Ipswich 3-2 Saints - Match Thread

[coalman]

16 hours ago, Fabrice29 said:

Always feels like Adams best games come when he's got a point to prove so even though he clearly has his issues and I'd have been happy to sell him at any stage over the last few years, I'd 100% be starting him tomorrow. 

He's a professional footballer. He should have a point to prove every game.

[Weston Super Saint]

3 hours ago, coalman said:

He's a professional footballer. He should have a point to prove every game.

That's unfair.  He's proven his point game in, game out.  Not his fault that the point is he's fucking shit at scoring.

[Dragon_man]

On 30/03/2024 at 08:59, CB Fry said:

Maybe practice penalties like mad?

Indeed.

We are then just three 0-0s from the premiership!

Take the shackles off Smallbone, just pass it around, fill your boots. Can we not bore the opposition into three goalless draws?

[notnowcato]

11 hours ago, Holmes_and_Watson said:

On having someone to tuck the ball in from a few yards out: RM's system devotes itself so much to the control of possession and patient creation of a chance.

Our attackers are part of that and it's difficult for them to then get into a postion to put the ball away, when they've also been somewhere else as part of the set up. We don;t generally set up for quick, direct counters using crosses to then have a finisher to tuck away.

We've tried a bit of that in the last couple with Sule, who really hasn;t created that much. Edozie or another, dribbling in to cut it back for attackers running in from set up positions has got more finishes. It allows AA or Che time to be part of the build up and get into the box. It suits AA a lot more than Che.

We could do with someone with a bit of Che's physical presence, AA's work rate, some psychic power of knowing when to be in the set up and when to make a run, and a decent finisher all in one player.

In the meantime, having a team that has a plan with the ball to incease temp and activate attacks from possession would at least give us more chances in the match, for those we do have to put away.

You say that but fuck me our strikers have missed plenty of golden chances. 

[notnowcato]

Expecting a big response today. We’ll win by a couple. 

[Dragon_man]

4 minutes ago, notnowcato said:

Expecting a big response today. We’ll win by a couple. 

It wouldn't surprise me at all. That said, I do think it's a meaningless game for us.

[Toussaint]

Current form table. We need all three points today regain some momentum. If you go back over 8 games, it’s 13 points from 24.

Edited April 1 by Toussaint

[AlexLaw76]

16 minutes ago, notnowcato said:

Expecting a big response today. We’ll win by a couple. 

lol

[david in sweden]

On 30/03/2024 at 09:59, CB Fry said:

That's not really play off specific, though. It's just generally try and improve things we're weak at, which is fine.

"Look after an injured player" is not actually doing anything new whatsoever.

I agree with you, it's the play offs for us.

Maybe practice penalties like mad?

Definitely ....but the problem is that after the first 3 or 4 attempts,  you end up having to use players who have never taken a penalty in their lives.

England have failed many times in tournaments, and even Gareth Southgate was a culprit in the past.   It's worse for England with barely 35 % of 

English players to choose from in the first place, many Prem. sides rely on foreign strikers who regularly take their penalties.

 

I'd hate to have to make a list of Saints players who might have to take them, especially the younger players who rarely score goals at all. 

 

 

[Saint_clark]

27 minutes ago, david in sweden said:

Definitely ....but the problem is that after the first 3 or 4 attempts,  you end up having to use players who have never taken a penalty in their lives.

England have failed many times in tournaments, and even Gareth Southgate was a culprit in the past.   It's worse for England with barely 35 % of 

English players to choose from in the first place, many Prem. sides rely on foreign strikers who regularly take their penalties.

 

I'd hate to have to make a list of Saints players who might have to take them, especially the younger players who rarely score goals at all. 

 

 

A. Armstrong

Adams

Rothwell

Fraser

KWP

 

Would be my 5. 

[chownie20]

12 hours ago, OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint said:

I'd like to see this every week, but as with a lot of people here, I think RM will try and fit Stephens in somewhere.

Up front, Che's useless, Mara's useless, AA's useless in the no9 role. Didn't we try Stuart Armstrong there once but that didn't work? Even against Middlesbro, as well as Che's misses, there were a couple of chances where the crosses came across the 6 yard box but there was no-one there.

I'm stuck for an answer but there must be someone in the squad who can kick/header a ball in the net from 6 yards. Could Sule, even Rothwell stand in the middle?

I know what you mean. I am sure I had seen Brooks play through the middle before. But 433 needs a bit of physicality in the central role I think. Like Che, Stewart, or Kieffer Moore of course!

I think today our front three should be Fraser, Arma and Che, with brooks for Fraser when he tires. 

Would like to see Aribo, but Stuey turns up in big games, and Downes / Smallbone are important. 

Need a strong RB vs Leif Davis and no silly free kicks or balls into the box like Saturday!! 

Play our best, work hard, and we win comfortably!

COYS!!!

[Block41 Saint]

11 minutes ago, Saint_clark said:

A. Armstrong

Adams

Rothwell

Fraser

KWP

 

Would be my 5. 

He would be an obvious choice for who would miss the target. 

[Saint_clark]

Just now, Block41 Saint said:

He would be an obvious choice for who would miss the target. 

I don't think you can place him outside the initial 5 as that would put more pressure on him. He's still our second top scorer. 

[danjosaint]

U need composure and he has zero 

[coalman]

It's all set up for a classic day of Saints table watching. The day starts with hope as Leicester get turned over by Norwich. In the build up we see the opportunity then start brightly taking an early lead. Trousers posts the table. Then one of our full backs goes missing and Ipswich sneak it. Followed by Leeds rubbing salt in the wounds later.

Textbook.

[macca155]

13 hours ago, OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint said:

I'd like to see this every week, but as with a lot of people here, I think RM will try and fit Stephens in somewhere.

Up front, Che's useless, Mara's useless, AA's useless in the no9 role. Didn't we try Stuart Armstrong there once but that didn't work? Even against Middlesbro, as well as Che's misses, there were a couple of chances where the crosses came across the 6 yard box but there was no-one there.

I'm stuck for an answer but there must be someone in the squad who can kick/header a ball in the net from 6 yards. Could Sule, even Rothwell stand in the middle?

Stephens has done nothing wrong and had a good game on Friday. However the best defence is obvious and he is excellent cover.

Totally agree up front there is no clinical striker. Che isn't as bad as recent performances suggest but he'll have to work for his place.

The only option is to put finishers up front. Mara can at least do that but doesn't offer any of Che's hold up play or physically presence.

Total conundrum. That's why I suggested Brooks Frazer and Rothwell. They do at least know where the goal is.

[egg]

Hopefully this is bollox...https://x.com/foreverboleyn__/status/1774731290253689096?s=20

 

[VectisSaint]

1 minute ago, egg said:

Hopefully this is bollox...https://x.com/foreverboleyn__/status/1774731290253689096?s=20

 

Check the date

[Saint NL]

I feel that we've been robbed of an incredible game. Imagine if we'd won at the weekend and not thrown away points against Millwall etc. Let say we could have had 82 points going into this game, it would have been one of the most enthralling end of seasons ever imagined. 4 teams separated by 2 points all going balls out trying to win the league.

 

Instead we get an almost dead rubber and a sad acceptance that we're finishing fourth. 

Robbed of an incredible day, most people here could hardly give a fuck now 😂

Edited April 1 by Saint NL

[Saint_clark]

Just now, Saint NL said:

I feel that we've been robbed of an incredible game. Imagine if we'd won at the weekend and not thrown away points against Millwall etc. Let say we could have had 82 points going into this game, it would have been one of the most enthralling end of seasons ever imagined. 4 teams separated by 2 points all going balls out trying to win the league.

 

Instead we get an almost dead rubber and a sad acceptance that we're finishing fourth. 

Robbed of an incredible day, most people here could hardly give a fuck now 😂

We weren't robbed of it though, we threw it away. The crazy thing is if we win today and our game in hand there's still only 3 points in it, 4 points to the top. It's being dangled tantalisingly close in front of us but always just quite out of reach. 

[egg]

8 minutes ago, VectisSaint said:

Check the date

FFS 😂😂😂

[Whitey Grandad]

32 minutes ago, macca155 said:

Stephens has done nothing wrong and had a good game on Friday. However the best defence is obvious and he is excellent cover.

Totally agree up front there is no clinical striker. Che isn't as bad as recent performances suggest but he'll have to work for his place.

The only option is to put finishers up front. Mara can at least do that but doesn't offer any of Che's hold up play or physically presence.

Total conundrum. That's why I suggested Brooks Frazer and Rothwell. They do at least know where the goal is.

And thereby hangs our problem. People thinking that Stephens had a good game.

[coalman]

1 minute ago, Whitey Grandad said:

And thereby hangs our problem. People thinking that Stephens had a good game.

He made one incredible tackle tracking back. I also remember a big ol' swing and miss at the start of the game.

It doesn't matter though. THB and Bednarek have to be first choice partnership. Failing that THB + 1 other.

[John Boy Saint]

As an aside, a mate has made a short break of being at the game tonight - his FB post prompted a memory of my own. 

I was there for our game in 2005 when the floodlights went out for about 40 minutes - Ipswich were sponsored at the time by  N-Power - which fuelled Saints fans mirth singing timeless classics like “can we lend you 50p” and “who forgot to pay the bill”. 
Amazingly the local rail company held the late train back to Felixstowe until after the later final whistle. Something else I recall, as we made our way the out seats a Saints was munching through a big bag Pistachios like a machine  - when we were heading home the pile, sorry mountain!, of shells around where his feet were was definitely a slip hazard!!

Right - carry on 

[Whitey Grandad]

1 minute ago, coalman said:

He made one incredible tackle tracking back. I also remember a big ol' swing and miss at the start of the game.

It doesn't matter though. THB and Bednarek have to be first choice partnership. Failing that THB + 1 other.

He did well to get back and make that tackle but he was fortunate that the forward miscontrolled the ball and gave him the chance. The forward only got that chance in the first place because Stephens was ball watching in their half. 

[AlexLaw76]

I sense a THB as a hybrid RB for today's game

[coalman]

25 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

I sense a THB as a hybrid RB for today's game

I see us turning formations on their head and playing a 5-4-1 today. 5 players on the left, 4 in the middle and 1 on the right. Why be inverted when you can be rotated inverted?

[coalman]

2 hours ago, coalman said:

It's all set up for a classic day of Saints table watching. The day starts with hope as Leicester get turned over by Norwich. In the build up we see the opportunity then start brightly taking an early lead. Trousers posts the table. Then one of our full backs goes missing and Ipswich sneak it. Followed by Leeds rubbing salt in the wounds later.

Textbook.

Here we go.

[S-Clarke]

Just to put some context on it, 'if' Norwich were to beat Leicester and we won our two games in hand (including against Leicester) we would still be 2 points behind them with a far inferior goal difference and just 2 games to play. 

[Saint_clark]

13 minutes ago, S-Clarke said:

Just to put some context on it, 'if' Norwich were to beat Leicester and we won our two games in hand (including against Leicester) we would still be 2 points behind them with a far inferior goal difference and just 2 games to play. 

Eh? 

We have 9 games left. 

[S-Clarke]

2 minutes ago, Saint_clark said:

Eh? 

We have 9 games left. 

They have a game in hand too, against us.

[Saint_clark]

1 minute ago, S-Clarke said:

They have a game in hand too, against us.

Still not getting what you're saying tbf. 

As it stands right now, we have two games in hand over Leicester including todays game V Ipswich. If we win both of those we'll be 3 points behind them as it stands (2 if they lose), level on games with them and would have 7 games left. 

[S-Clarke]

2 minutes ago, Saint_clark said:

Still not getting what you're saying tbf. 

As it stands right now, we have two games in hand over Leicester including todays game V Ipswich. If we win both of those we'll be 3 points behind them as it stands (2 if they lose), level on games with them and would have 7 games left. 

You're right, I was having a maths brain fuck as usual.

We wouldn't be equal with everyone until after we've played our game in hand against them though, we'll only have 2 games left after that - that's what I was clumsily trying to get to.

[Saint_clark]

Just now, S-Clarke said:

You're right, I was having a maths brain fuck as usual.

We wouldn't be equal with everyone until after we've played our game in hand against them though, we'll only have 2 games left after that - that's what I was clumsily trying to get to.

I see what you're saying. We could however overtake them before the game against them, given their implosion is even more impressive than ours. 

[benjii]

Some of you lot are very miserable.

We are less likely to finish in the top 2 than the teams above us but the reality is that if we win all of our remaining games we will finish top 2 (probably first).

And if we win today, confidence will be up.

I'm not saying we will do this, but we're certainly not at the "give up" stage yet. 

[davefizzy14]

We have to win this today to keep our automatic promotion hopes alive. 2-1 to us with Adam Armstrong and Brooks scoring- COYR 😊

[Saint_Tony]

We need quite a lot of results to go for us, such as Leicester today and they are now winning. We would need to win 4-5 on the bounce just to apply some pressure, I don't want to give up hope just yet but it could well be over at the end of play tonight.

[Turkish]

7 minutes ago, Saint_Tony said:

We need quite a lot of results to go for us, such as Leicester today and they are now winning. We would need to win 4-5 on the bounce just to apply some pressure, I don't want to give up hope just yet but it could well be over at the end of play tonight.

Unfortunately we dont seem capable of this. We won 4 in a row around christmas time but even in our long unbeaten run there were plenty of draws, often throwing away games we should have won easily or conceding soft late equalisers. All the teams we have left to play have something to play for be it staying up, play offs or automatic promotion so we've got a really tough run of fixtures. We've thrown automatic promotion away, it was in our hands a few weeks ago but we've screwed it up

Edited April 1 by Turkish

[DT]

Downes back to West Ham because of Calvin’s shitness. Game over for us then. 
What will Russell’s hipster rotation crap be today then? I’m guessing Manning back in because he loves him. Hopefully Che out in favour of a footballer who can hit a barn door from five yards. Ho hum. Still, champ will be at least no VAR fun again next season. Any win at playoffs will be a bonus but feels like we’re way off from having either the goals or the defence. Has been like it most of the season. 
 

ps I know it’s April 1

Edited April 1 by DT

[Saint_Tony]

31 minutes ago, Turkish said:

Unfortunately we dont seem capable of this. We won 4 in a row around christmas time but even in our long unbeaten run there were plenty of draws, often throwing away games we should have won easily or conceding soft late equalisers. All the teams we have left to play have something to play for be it staying up, play offs or automatic promotion so we've got a really tough run of fixtures. We've thrown automatic promotion away, it was in our hands a few weeks ago but we've screwed it up

yeah you're probably right. Reminds me of last season in our final 10 games 'if we just win our next two' every week when we were incapable of winning a single game. 

[northam soul]

Is the Ipswich game not on Saints play ?

can’t see it.

[Master Bates]

3 1 Ipswich 

[Holmes_and_Watson]

2 0 to us. Oh sure, Ipswich work hard and try and pressure us into errors with their hard work and relentless attacking. But all taken care of effortlessly by our CBs. Stu gets one and AA the other.

[FarehamSaintJames]

On 30/03/2024 at 09:18, FarehamSaintJames said:

Pathetic, wimpy, tame 3-0 defeat.

Ipswich were poor when they visited us last autumn but we were just worse on the day and getting used to Russ-ball.

They have come on leaps and bounds since and look pretty content to steam roll teams when they feel like it.

3-0 defeat with Stephens at the back, Manning reintroduced, and Rothwell weirdly thrown in. 

Followed by some form of quote from RM saying “three crap goals”.

[Ted Bates Statue]

We went up to the premier league on Nigel Adkin's magic bus, so I'm all about getting on board Russell Martin's rocket ship to get us over the line.

Unfortunately it's April Fool's day and experience tells me that our team will once again generate the punchlines. Good luck to all of you travelling today. 

[david in sweden]

5 hours ago, Saint_clark said:

A. Armstrong

Adams

Rothwell

Fraser

KWP

 

Would be my 5. 

looks like a good list to me , but I would be more concerned about 6, 7 and 8  if the shoot-out goes beyond 5. 

[Dark Munster]

8 minutes ago, Ted Bates Statue said:

We went up to the premier league on Nigel Adkin's magic bus, so I'm all about getting on board Russell Martin's rocket ship to get us over the line.

Unfortunately it's April Fool's day and experience tells me that our team will once again generate the punchlines. Good luck to all of you travelling today. 

Rocket ships tend to go fast and in a straight line, not sideways and backwards. 

[Holmes_and_Watson]

8 minutes ago, david in sweden said:

looks like a good list to me , but I would be more concerned about 6, 7 and 8  if the shoot-out goes beyond 5. 

No chance it goes beyond 5 with a specialist shot stopper like Baz in goal. 🙂

[Lee On Solent Saint]

I confidently predict we will win today.

[Saint Matty 76]

Comfortable 3-1 win tonight. Hull hold Leeds to a point

Everybody on the forum arm in arm as automatics are back on