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Sheffield Weds 1-2 Saints - Match Thread

Yorkshire Saint

By Yorkshire Saint,
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Lord Duckhunter

Lord Duckhunter

Posted
Posted

Good win against a fucking awful side. We’re going to have to be more ruthless than that against decent opponents, but a win is a win. Second half we were the wrong side of the mincing line, until Stu came on and injected some urgency. It’s going to be a fine balancing act and at times it’s going to  be fucking frustrating watching that week in week out. 

Ive a feeling my blood pressure is going to shoot up regularly this season, particularly when we’re chasing the game. 

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moonraker

moonraker

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2 minutes ago, sfc4prem said:

He won't be a legend if he leaves, a word too easily used.

He is preimiership player, we are in the Championship if the chance him to return to Prem arises that is right for SFC that does not negate the service he has given to us.  He will always be a Saint, is Mike Channon not a legend? JWP has been a shinning example of a loyal player.

 

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Nordic Saint

Nordic Saint

Posted
Posted (edited)

If you know any Pompey fans, I'm sure they'll enjoy these stats:

Sheffield Wednesday's opening game last season: Sheff Wed 3-3 Pompey. attendance: 26,901 (2,000 away fans)

Sheffield Wednesday's opening game this season: Sheff Wed 1-2 Saints. attendance 28,558 (3,000 away fans)

Edited by Nordic Saint
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bpsaint

bpsaint

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Massive monkey off our backs and potential banana skin avoided. Che has to start, not a huge improvement up top but an improvement none the less. I’d rather keep him and aid our promotion even if we do lose him for nothing next year. If we can get a bit more end product to go with the tippy tappy passing we’ll have a brilliant season.

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WGC Saint

WGC Saint

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Well that was very enjoyable viewing compared to the last couple of seasons. The way we bossed the game was so great to see for a change. Set pieces will be our weakness this season as was shown tonight. Need to tighten up on that. Get a decent striker to lead the line and on that showing it should be a very good season.

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Ex Lion Tamer

Ex Lion Tamer

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9 minutes ago, Sir Ralph said:

Adam Armstrong cannot lead the line this year. 

I think the main problem is that teams are going to sit back against us in a way they didn't again Blackburn in his breakout season. He's not the kind of player to break down a massed defence

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HarvSFC

HarvSFC

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Said before the game that the five subs rule would be key. 😉 Shame we probably won't have Adams for the entire season though, given his contract situation and the need for a more consistent striker. Had a bit of a feel of last season when Armstrong started the season, Adams was brought off the bench and scored two against Leicester.

First half was great, guess the only complaint you could have was that we didn't score more than one. 

Second half was a bit more of a fight, and we won it. Must remember that Sheffield Wednesday came into this match with the momentum of a play-offs win, while we were still looking to shake last season's losing mentality. Last two times we got relegated we started the following season with a 1-1 draw against Millwall and a 0-0 draw against Wolves. So, to kick off with 3 points is key.

I thought the wide players, Tella and Edozie were especially good tonight. Edozie just missing that final ball, but he did get two of their players booked, which again we were all saying he was able to do last season while Elyounoussi was selected ahead of him. A few too many crosses in the second half, but again, with a proper forward, not A. Armstrong that could be a good tactic.

Smallbone was also very good in the middle. A few times we were missing a bit more steel in the middle and he was beaten in the air for their goal, but he was excellent on the ball and keeping our moves moving. And again, I wasn't his biggest fan before this pre-season.

Alcaraz, again, like the Reading pre-season match was quiet. One of our few hopes last season, but now we're dominating he's going missing a bit. Hopefully it's just a case of him getting up to speed of a more physical league.

I thought S. Armstrong looked a lot better coming on. Needs to stay fit and then he can be an asset for the season. 

Telling that Lavia didn't come on, despite his composure and control being a good piece to add at the end of the game, maybe a move is more imminent, not that it was ever in doubt anyway. But, again, I've not really seen us close out a 1 goal lead so easily before, usually it's back to the walls and nail biting, especially with 9 minutes added time.

3 points is 3 points. Top of the league, 45 matches to go and hopefully Norwich is just as good next weekend.

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woodsaint1

woodsaint1

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Posted
13 minutes ago, Sir Ralph said:

Adam Armstrong cannot lead the line this year. 

I think we all know that, I think he knows that and I think RM now knows that. He made some good runs in the first half but was non existent in the second. When games open up in the last 20 minutes or so he could be more of an impact sub. No issue with him also being another option off the left as Edozie will be frustrating at times this season

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jasonbenali

jasonbenali

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Phew. After all the losses it’s just great to get a win even against such limited opposition. Much bigger tests ahead but a win’s a win.

Being able to bring on Che and Stu says it all. Just hope we can hang onto most of them.

That last 9 mins was like watching Man City.

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Holmes_and_Watson

Holmes_and_Watson

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Our depth of squad really stood out, adn is going to be a massive advantage this season (unless everyone goes, which isn;t likely)

Edozie had a total mix of promise and indifferent decisions. But he played his part first half. As did Alcaraz. When they became less effective second half we had Stu and Aribo to come on. Stu immedately lifted the game for us, and could have been on earlier. Aribo did little things well, helping us see it out with no issues. On the other flank, Tella offers a more direct option to Edozie, looking to get shots in on goal. A nice balance to have. We'll ahve Sulemana (if he stays) pushing for a place and perhaps even AA)

When AArmstrong became less effective, as Wednesday engaged further up, we could bring on Adams who offered a different threat and got the winner. He could have been on earleir too. But in the first half, AA had plus points, offering something different to Adams.

KWP is definitely key. Attacking, available for the pass, better tackling late on than Smallbone, poinitng out better options to others, and linking up well with JWP in particular, but also Tella. My MOM.

I'm not convinced if we're using Smallbone as someone who's supposed to be breaking up play, or dictating tempo. He made himself available all the time for passes. He might not always have done much with those. But as the game went on, he got into better positions, and linked up really well. JWP being more closely watched, created even more space for Smallbone. So, a nice balance, even if their roles are overlapping a bit. We need midfield drive, with Lavia on his way.

We've a team with lots of options in it, and Martin will hopefully be able to bring that out, so we can switch up games. That will help us manage changes like those Wednesday did, to make that second half more balanced.

Bazunu had nothing to do, but was maybe about to have a moment when that final whistle went. Stephens was mobile and aggressive when he needed to be. But nearly gave away a pass right across the back. Bednarek was quiet, and going about his job.

Our dominance first half, and the ease we controlled and closed down the game was really nice. But it's against a team that just came up, losing their manager along the way. Lot of good things, but I'd have been disapointed had we lost this, with the resources we have. We're going to have tougher tests ahead, but great to get that confidence a win will bring. 

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Smirking_Saint

Smirking_Saint

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1 hour ago, The Kraken said:

I don’t necessarily disagree but on tonight’s showing it hasn’t made too much difference. Against better sides I think it will and I wonder if Charles will get the nod for games where we’ll have less posession. Smallbone has kept things ticking over quite nicely but I do agree with your overall point about him.

I really like Smallbone, he really is silky on the ball, and fits almost perfectly in RMs system

But thats what I was talking about.. a couple of times the ball broke and we’d of benefited by having a steely ball winner in there.. against better sides we could of been caught out

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ErwinK1961

ErwinK1961

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6 minutes ago, Saint Matty 76 said:

Wasn't anything too bad.

Was asked if the fans can be excited about seeing him here next year and said something along the lines of "I'm just taking it game by game and we'll see what happens". 

Ah fair, probably all he can say I guess. Hopefully Burnley continue to be cheapskates and he stays

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Southner

Southner

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2 minutes ago, jasonbenali said:

Phew. After all the losses it’s just great to get a win even against such limited opposition. Much bigger tests ahead but a win’s a win.

Being able to bring on Che and Stu says it all. Just hope we can hang onto most of them.

That last 9 mins was like watching Man City.

Well we do have half of their youth squad. 

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The Kraken

The Kraken

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1 minute ago, Dr Who? said:

I think he would probably enjoy another high flying season in championship, rather than a premier league struggle. 

It didn’t seem that way from his response, it was the most awkward laugh ever then a bland “I’m taking it game by game” statement. From that, he wants to go, and nobody can blame him. Sounds like he’s got an offer there, just whether it’s enough money for the club to accept.

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Holmes_and_Watson

Holmes_and_Watson

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1 minute ago, Smirking_Saint said:

I really like Smallbone, he really is silky on the ball, and fits almost perfectly in RMs system

But thats what I was talking about.. a couple of times the ball broke and we’d of benefited by having a steely ball winner in there.. against better sides we could of been caught out

Agreed. Smallbone did loads of good things tonight. But he did have JWP creating space and KWP offering lots of options. For me, he still has the same issue of being really a JWP type player, needing game time when JWP is always fit. I really hope JWP stays, and that us having a bit more control allows Smallbone to get more game time.

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Baird of the land

Baird of the land

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6 minutes ago, Dr Who? said:

I think he would probably enjoy another high flying season in championship, rather than a premier league struggle. 

I think it would be nuts to sell, especially given the small fee mentioned and are you really going to get someone with championship goal pedigree to replac without reinvesting it all.

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beatlesaint

beatlesaint

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After watching that if JWP, KWP and Tella do leave I’ve got the confidence that this manager will bring in players that can do the same job well. 
 

The one thing we need is to be able to finish all this possession off, in other words the weakness is going to be scoring unless some of this incoming transfer money is spent on a decent striker. I just have no confidence that Armstrong or Adams are capable.

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  • Jimmy_D changed the title to Sheffield Weds 1-2 Saints - Match Thread
david in sweden

david in sweden

Posted
Posted

Finally got the deserved result, but with 80% possession and 23 shots , we might have hoped for a few more goals. 

PROBLEMS ?.. none on the footballing side, but Wednesday had a squad of heavyweights and some of our shorter players got " unnecessary attention"

and not a lot of protection from referee Madley.   With a whole season ahead of us I'd be glad if we kept Lyanco - at least he can take care of himself.

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woodsaint1

woodsaint1

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1 minute ago, Holmes_and_Watson said:

Agreed. Smallbone did loads of good things tonight. But he did have JWP creating space and KWP offering lots of options. For me, he still has the same issue of being really a JWP type player, needing game time when JWP is always fit. I really hope JWP stays, and that us having a bit more control allows Smallbone to get more game time.

Thought Smallbone did well tonight, although there was alot of times where he presented in space and instead of taking it on the turn and advancing, it was just passed back to Bednarek or Stephens. That may be on purpose and what RM is asking, but he needs to show more bravery, Lavia certainly would. Charles will be pushing for that spot also

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Smirking_Saint

Smirking_Saint

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What a performance, of course there were a couple of negatives but who cares.. after the crap we’ve been through last two seasons its refreshing to see a real identity and a team on the front foot

We nullified Wednesday to essentially long balls and set pieces, unfortunately got done by a very well worked corner but overall, defensively and in possession we were excellent… we passed and moved exceptionally well, and out of possession we hunted brilliantly

Edozie and Tella were excellent at stretching play and running at their back line.. their final ball was a bit off, but its going to be like that against packed defences

Arma I thought tried hard but I just dont think it’ll work for him, he can’t hold the ball up and he just won’t be able to utilise his pace if we build up this slowly, Adams, or a player like him occupies/disrupts defenders better, and that creates opportunities 

The back line was excellent, both Manning and KWP look brilliant and JS/JB didn’t really look troubled much, they should be comfortably one of the better partnerships this year, a defensive addition for me would be welcome but not completely necessary

The midfield is where we will win the majority of games, Smallbone and JWP are insanely classy players at this level. Alcaraz was quiet but pops up in some great positions… as I said previously we may need a solid ball winner against tougher opponents but from a passing unit, this is exceptional

To finish… im excited again, its been a long time coming, there will be ups and downs, but I have so many reasons to be optimistic 

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Holmes_and_Watson

Holmes_and_Watson

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1 minute ago, woodsaint1 said:

Thought Smallbone did well tonight, although there was alot of times where he presented in space and instead of taking it on the turn and advancing, it was just passed back to Bednarek or Stephens. That may be on purpose and what RM is asking, but he needs to show more bravery, Lavia certainly would. Charles will be pushing for that spot also

I think a lot of that was on purpose. It took a little while, but Smallbone would pass it back or sideways, but with the plan being to get into that space to create better angles for more possession. With the aim of then getting a forward pass. So, when he was part fo two or three consecutive passes, you could see the plan. When it was just the one, sometimes it looked a little wasted.

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Smirking_Saint

Smirking_Saint

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6 minutes ago, Holmes_and_Watson said:

Agreed. Smallbone did loads of good things tonight. But he did have JWP creating space and KWP offering lots of options. For me, he still has the same issue of being really a JWP type player, needing game time when JWP is always fit. I really hope JWP stays, and that us having a bit more control allows Smallbone to get more game time.

Smallbone is like a carbon copy of an early JWP for me, technically proficient but isn’t particularly great in an attacking or defending POV

He is effectively only really suitable to a 3 man midfield, so hopefully he’ll add to his game like a matured JWP did but all in all, he’ll do well this year in our system

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saintant

saintant

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Posted

Great start to the season. It wasn't perfect by any means but lots of positives. We moved the ball well although not always with enough purpose but hopefully that will come. Che's goal was an example of how we can open up defences. Rather than go down the wings which we did far too much we had the run of JWP into the box which created the opportunity and Che finished smartly - more of that please. This is the way to go rather than down the wings and hopeful crosses to our forwards who are not the tallest. I loved the way we managed the 9 minutes extra time which was far more comfortable than we are used to. One worry for me is that we are a small side and will struggle to defend corners and crosses into the box - that was how Wednesday scored and, in truth, you couldn't see them troubling us any other way. Lots to be encouraged about and we will get better.

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Saint Matty 76

Saint Matty 76

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Arma won't ever work in a team this favoured due to the deep lines he'll come up against. 

Makes far more sense to have somebody like Che (Piroe if Che is sold?) on the pitch for the first 70 minutes and then let Adam stretch defences when we're hopefully a goal or two ahead.

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Sfcphilc

Sfcphilc

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How's Russell got us playing like that in such a short space of time? Remarkable.

Maybe we've gotten used to watching a disjointed team for so long that we've actually forgot that we're capable of playing. 

Very early days I know, but I didn't expect us to dominate pretty much from start to finish.

Just need to create more clear cut chances for all of our possession. 

 

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SaintBobby

SaintBobby

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The way we played out the 9 minutes of stoppage time was just fantastic.

Pretty pleased, all in all.

But if we are going to play 433 in this style, I think the CF needs to be a strong player who can hold up the ball and bring others in. They don’t need to be prolific, but they need that strength. AA definitely isn’t that player.

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Smirking_Saint

Smirking_Saint

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6 minutes ago, Sfcphilc said:

How's Russell got us playing like that in such a short space of time? Remarkable.

Maybe we've gotten used to watching a disjointed team for so long that we've actually forgot that we're capable of playing. 

Very early days I know, but I didn't expect us to dominate pretty much from start to finish.

Just need to create more clear cut chances for all of our possession. 

 

Certainly makes you wonder what the fuck Jones did for 6 weeks

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