Saint Garrett Posted 20 March, 2012 Share Posted 20 March, 2012 Luckily for me just a relatively short trip back to Sheffield. Not a great game by any means, first 5/10 minutes we struggled to get into the game but then we settled and tried to knock the ball around. Wasn't easy on an extremely bobbly pitch but we got Schneiderlin on the ball more and therefore started to put some passes together. Once we went 1-0 up we never looked like losing. We've come a long way from throwing away leads constantly, to now winning pretty much every game that we go ahead in. We seemed to start with the diamond with Lallana causing lots of issues for their defence as they weren't sure who to mark. Their CB's were marking Guly and Lambert and so Lallana quite often found himself in quite a lot of room to cause some trouble, and this happened when he was through on goal (looked like a huge bobble just as he was about to tap it in). We had a few shaky moments when their right winger (King?) was often in quite a bit of space, I think that was due to us playing the diamond, but apart from that they rarely threatened. Lambert had a good game won a lot in the air, but certainly struggled to keep the ball once we went 1 up front. Guly I thought played very well (which I don't say very often) thought Puncheon was absolutely awful. Davis - 9 - Made some good saves when needed to and caught everything that came in pretty much, nothing bad can be said about him tonight and dealt with the bobbly backpasses very well. Frazer - 7 - Had a decent game and did what he needed to do. Fonte - 7 - Played well looked back to his solid best of last season apart from 1 mistake which they nearly scored from but he got up and blocked the shot. Hooiveld - 9 - Not sure he missed one header tonight, fantastic buy. Puncheon - 5 - Didn't really offer us anything going forward and constantly gave the ball away, why was he not brought off earlier ? Cork - 7 - Good game, not amazing. Schneiderlin - 9 - Fantastic performance from him, he's added so much to his game and will be a massive player for us if we can keep hold of him. Lallana - 7 - Ok, played well in flashes, certainly caused them a lot of problems in the first half. Lambert - 8 - Solid game, link up play was fantastic and ran his balls off. Guly - 8 - Thought he did well tonight, wasn't sure about him when he started after seeing how bad the pitch was but he played well. Subs: De Ridder - 7 - Did very well when he came on, gave us a different option and a good outlet when we needed to move the ball up the pitch. Hammond - 7 - Shored up the midfield when he came on and won quite a few headers, did his job. Harding - 6 - Did alright, not really on long enough to rate. Fans - both sets of fans were very quiet, pretty dead atmosphere. Very nice big ground but not actually that many seats - was very surprised there was only 18000 there tonight. Not sure how many we took up there? 700? We tried to make some noise at times but it was a bit of a struggle with many quite happy just admiring us grind out the result, though it did go up a bit in volume in the 2nd half after we scored. All in all, another ground ticked off, another 3 points....15 more from 8 games??? It's in touching distance. COYR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint Since '51 Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Agree almost entirely with post from Saint Garrett. You may flatter Lambert and Guly slightly - and do Fox no favours - but otherwise spot on. Good report. We were fortunate to weather the last 10 minutes of the first half and go in with our lead intact. But, once we went two up, Nigel sorted out a formation which made it look very unlikely that they would find a way back. Table is looking good! By the way, I sometimes wonder if that chap who wrote Lord of the Flies (William Golding?) was an away Saints supporter. When I go to away grounds where the stewards don't steward, like Hull, it's clear that those with no brains and no scruples fill the void where there should be proper order and indulge their own selfish needs with no regard for others. When there are swathes of empty spaces in rows further back, quite why some people think it's reasonable to arrive in row 6 at 7.45pm and stand in front of people who've been sat in seats since 7.15 I cannot think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheaf Saint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 I too am now back in Sheffield, and I just posted this on the main reaction thread... I didn't think it was quite as comortable as some on here seem to be claiming it was. The build-up to our first goal was lovely and deserved a goal, but there was more than a slight suspicion of handball from Jose before he crossed for Jos to stick away the second. Thankfully, the ref was pretty poor tonight so he didn't see it and the goal stood. Lallana reeeeeeally should have scored when he got put clean through in the first half - it looked harder to miss from where he was but we were up the other end of the ground so it was difficult to see just how tight the angle was. It was evened up a little later on when Hull got in behind from the right wing and the striker who had managed to get goalside of our defense blazed over from 6 yards when he looked odds-on to stick it away. I thought we lacked a little bit in midfield at times and gave the ball away far too cheaply. Cork and Morgan never seemed to get any time to play the ball and looked rushed which might explain why we never really got our passing game going. Kelvin made a couple of decent saves in quick succession near the end, although they were saves you would expect him to make to be fair, but apart from the goals we didn't test their keeper at all. Can't really remember much in the way of clear chances. Lambert had a very quiet night by his standards. He won a lot of headers but invariably there was nobody on his wavelength to latch on to them. Lallana has had many better games than this but did well in the build-up to the first goal and caused a few problems down their right. Jos and Jose seemed to cope very well with pretty much everything that was thrown at them, except for one scary moment when Jos miscontrolled in our area and nearly let their striker in with a clear shot, but he recovered well. Fox had a good game on the right but I thought Richardson got caught napping a couple of times and gave their let winger too much space at times. My only real gripe of the night was Puncheon. He was an absolute waste of space. Offered nothing going forward, and although he did track back and help out in defence he was far too static. There was one moment when he came back to win the ball and laid it off to Frazer, and he had acres of space to then run into but he just stood there ballwatching. He was always too far infield or too close to Richardson to ever be effective, and I don't remember him making any kind of meaningful contribution. As soon as De Ridder came on and went to the right wing, immediately he got down the channel and started causing problems to the Hull defence who had, up until that point, had a pathetically easy ride down their left. It wasn't pretty, but it was a solid team performance overall. Never panicked and looked calm and assured. We saw earlier in the season with the game away at Reading how teams can press us hard and snuff out our attack, so it is nice to know that we can go away to a very well organised and in-form team like Hull, who employed the same tactic of trying to shut down our midfield, and still come away with the 3 points. With the other results going our way as well, I'm a very happy fan tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lallana's Left Peg Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Tonight wasn't vintage by any means but there was much to admire about aspects of the game I'd questioned about us earlier in the season. The pitch did neither team any favours, which made this a game about percentages and not making mistakes. Hull were bright, they had an extra man in midfield and very deliberately looked to exploit how narrow we play at times. But they have no cutting edge. We changed shape at least FOUR times in the first half (4-4-2, to 4-1-2-1-2, to 4-4-1, to 4-4-2) and that tells you how well Hull were set-up. They had a few moments but so did we. Second half started a bit like the game so Adkins changed it quickly. I thought Puncheon was ok playing off Lambert, but was not his day unfortunately. The introduction of De Ridder and Hammond did help - Hammond in particular shored up the midfield and that leads me onto my next point. After we scored the second we were fantastically professional. Not great football or anything like that, but a bank of 9 men who were determined to suffocate any space in dangerous areas and asked questions of Hull's quality that they couldn't answer. It wasn't pretty but it was amazing to see. And I never felt like Hull would find a way back. We saw the game out well and the players were ecstatic. There was a large screen behind our fans and when the results from the other games came up while Adkins and Crosby were on the pitch you could see the delight in their faces. 3 more points to where we need to be, and where we need to be just got a little closer thanks to Posh and Boro. Fantastic performance for many aspects beyond passing the ball and what is what is really pleasing. There is a belief there and the players are learning to win in different ways. The evolution of our away form is very interesting and of great credit to the management team and the squad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooney Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Thanks for the reports guys. We could hear you loud and clear on Solent via the Saints Player. The sound created seemed to be coming from more than 800! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint Garrett Posted 21 March, 2012 Author Share Posted 21 March, 2012 They must have had their mic's right next to us then as the atmosphere was generally very poor! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bourno Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 It looked like more than 800. Guly had a good game, Puncheon was very poor, kept giving the ball away. Lallana very bad miss after rounding the keeper. Hull had enough chances but luckily isn't convert them. Very nice stadium, brighton should have copies it as they both have a similar main stand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheaf Saint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 It looked like more than 800. Indeed. I couldn't see many empty seats from where I was sat and we made a fair bit of noise at times. I would guess at more than 800 as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladysaint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 There was definitely more than 600 there, it was a good drive up and arrived home at 2.00 this morning which wasnt too bad either. It was a lovely day in Hull yesterday made all the better by the good result, thought we were quite lucky with the second, to me it was a definite handball by Jose before Jos put it away. Had a trip to the old Boothferry Park (quite by accident) but suprprised to see still some of the old signage around the site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheff Saint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 If people want an indication of what kind of game/performance it was, think of Leicester's performance in their 2 -0 win at St Mary's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West End Saint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Great trip got home at 2.30 knackered but very happy it was a really professional performance Hull made us work hard for the win our lads put in a massive effort chassing harrying & getting goal side very impressed with the concentration & effort put in Jos & Morgan stood out both excellent Punch was gash. Great effort 700/800 on a Tuesday in Hull is good work atmosphere could have been better but was ok 2nd half very nice ground well worth the trip COYS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint Garrett Posted 21 March, 2012 Author Share Posted 21 March, 2012 It's amazing how on the whole we play pretty well....but Puncheon was so incredibly bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chez Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 There was definitely more than 600 there, it was a good drive up and arrived home at 2.00 this morning which wasnt too bad either. It was a lovely day in Hull yesterday made all the better by the good result, thought we were quite lucky with the second, to me it was a definite handball by Jose before Jos put it away. Had a trip to the old Boothferry Park (quite by accident) but suprprised to see still some of the old signage around the site. where did you get to in ull? I lived there for several years back in the 90s and frequented Boothferry on many occasion. The KC apart, I imagine ull as a whole is still very much in the 90's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chez Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 It's amazing how on the whole we play pretty well....but Puncheon was so incredibly bad.I don't care what anyone says, Puncheon has been woeful since he came back in almost every game. Much worse than when fans were jumping on his back over a misplaced pass or poor control. In fact I don't think he has been good in any of the games, even the first one, which was perhaps his best. I've backed the guy since he has been here, largely because I like underdogs and I suggested him as a player to buy on the HCDAJFU thread many years ago, but I think now that he has become more `popular' with fans (perhaps just to neutralise those that are quick to slate him) he's no longer an underdog and I'll start slating him. Far too casual, needs to get right `on it' from the first minute, pull his socks up and start using that ability he has to much greater effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hemel Saint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 For those heading back home down the M1 to London.... they shut the Motorway near J13 around 1.30am due to a lorry accident... Engines off nothing we could do... but for some reason, I could not stop smiling. :-) I thought our support was actually quite poor (vocally). The "Top Of The League" chant was loud, but the rest of the time it was pretty hard work to get many to join in! just my opinion from the back of the stand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shurlock Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 It's amazing how on the whole we play pretty well....but Puncheon was so incredibly bad. Very poor first half but looked better in the 2nd after SDR came on and he moved infield. His performance was certainly not as bad as Chaplow has been in recent outings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lallana's Left Peg Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Puncheon got through an incredible amount of work. I know we may consider it as standard and whilst he made a few mistakes on the ball he worked his socks off and was very much part of the defensive unit that Hull found hard to barge their way through. He put in a shift and ensured (like all our other players) that if it was not to be his day quality wise he was not going to let the team down when we did not have the ball. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griffo Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Just back after a 'night out' in Hull, if you can call it that. The place was deserted. Thought the game was relatively even but we took our chances. Think we'll win the league now after yesterday's results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldsarum Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Just back after a 'night out' in Hull, if you can call it that. The place was deserted. Thought the game was relatively even but we took our chances. Think we'll win the league now after yesterday's results. I stayed up in Hull last night and it was strange the centre was deserted after the game espeically the Old Town, where I and 9 or 10 others managed to get a lock in at a pub until 1am to round off a thoroughly enjoyable evening Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisscottager Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Was that the White Hart? Never been to such a miserable craphole in my life.Hull is truly desperate - the most run down knackered place ever! Town was deserted after wards and we got a cabbie to take us to the 'best pub in town'.Place was full of Saints fans which was fun. Walked back to the Ibis at about 12.30 and heard 'we are top of the league' coming from th eboozer opposite the Wetherspoons in the town centre. Obviously only us out for a pint last night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sour Mash Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Was that the White Hart? Never been to such a miserable craphole in my life.Hull is truly desperate - the most run down knackered place ever! Town was deserted after wards and we got a cabbie to take us to the 'best pub in town'.Place was full of Saints fans which was fun. Walked back to the Ibis at about 12.30 and heard 'we are top of the league' coming from th eboozer opposite the Wetherspoons in the town centre. Obviously only us out for a pint last night. Thought the Old Town and Marina were smart enough, just quiet before the game and completely deserted afterwards, for such a big city it was seriously dead. The few locals we saw walking around looked like they'd been put together back to front, a lot of odd looking people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Saint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 Thought the Old Town and Marina were smart enough, just quiet before the game and completely deserted afterwards, for such a big city it was seriously dead. The few locals we saw walking around looked like they'd been put together back to front, a lot of odd looking people. We have friends who live in Hull, I couldn't put my finger on what was wrong with them until now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plumstead_Saint Posted 21 March, 2012 Share Posted 21 March, 2012 thought we were quite lucky with the second, to me it was a definite handball by Jose before Jos put it away. Jose seems to be making a habit of doing that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griffo Posted 22 March, 2012 Share Posted 22 March, 2012 I stayed up in Hull last night and it was strange the centre was deserted after the game espeically the Old Town, where I and 9 or 10 others managed to get a lock in at a pub until 1am to round off a thoroughly enjoyable evening We were talking to some of you lot at about 1.30 in the hotel bar at the Travelodge I believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint Garrett Posted 22 March, 2012 Author Share Posted 22 March, 2012 Jose seems to be making a habit of doing that!I thought it was handball when I was there on Tuesday, but having seen the replay I don't think it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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