Monday, May 16, 2011

L1-10 Player Review 2010/11 : Part 2 - Midfield and Attack


JASON PUNCHEON started the season on the right wing and was simply dreadful.  Looked unfit and looked like he didn’t care.  He missed open goal after open goal and then got annoyed when the crowd got fed up with it.  Virtually the first act when Nigel Adkins came into the building (oh yes) was to set Jason some KPIs and these were “shoot in the general direction of the fucking goal occasionally” and “stop being a sulky twat”.  Having failed on both scores, he was dropped in favour of an only-just-17 year old and he threw his toys out and got loaned out to Millwall where bizarrely, he banged in a few goals.  A brief return to us followed which included a decent game in the FA Cup v Blackpool who then signed him for the remainder of their Premier League campaign where he has again done ok.  Technically still our player but we won’t see him back here as long as he has a hole in his ass.  Not happy with being a squad player and in all likelihood, a dissenting voice to Nigel’s plan of squad unity so bye.... and rightly so.  It would be the best outcome all round if we got rid of him and anything over £400k would represent good business for the club. 
The only-just-17 year old who replaced him was of course ALEX OXLADE-CHAMBERLAIN who dropped the first part of his surname so it would fit on a shirt.  He’s had a brilliant season and has been very well managed by the club and has rewarded us all with some great goals and assists and with pace and directness that will take him far in the game – but hopefully not away from SMS in the near future.  Of course, all the tabloids were selling him off in January and even the usually intelligent Arsene Wenger commented on him which didn’t go down well with Don Nicola.  Any website or paper that quotes a fee is making it all up and should therefore be placed on your ‘ignore’ list and nothing is real until the Don says it is.  None of them seem to realise that we’re not in the “Rupert Lowe – Everything Must Go” era any more and the club has a bit of cash.  The second half of Chambo’s season was interrupted by a nasty ankle injury but he was back on as a sub in the last game and instantly looking like the phenomenal player that he will be.... hopefully for us.  Another great thing about Alex is that a lot of Skate fans think he should have been one of theirs.  It is hard to see why his dad didn’t send his talented son to Pompey, what with their magnificent training facilities and unsurpassed track record with developing youngsters.  With Alex being injured, the right wing berth passed to Guly do Prado who, when told to play on the wing and not on the right of a diamond formation, was a revelation.  More on him in the forwards section.
On the left for a majority of the season has been ADAM LALLANA who, like Fonte is good enough to play in the Premier League now.  It was a major, major statement of intent to get him to sign another 4 year contract in January as once again, he’d have been off under the previous regime, probably before this season started.  A few injury problems this season but when fit has been superb, both in creating and scoring goals.  A deserved call up for the England U21s, even though I suspect he will miss out on the tournament itself after the SMS friendly is out of the way and he’ll be a massive player for us next season.  Once aspect of his game that gets overlooked is how hard he works to get back into position once the ball is lost.   Has the potential to be the next Saints legend if he stays for the duration of the contract he’s just signed.
LEE HOLMES has had his usual season in that he’s played about 5 minutes and been injured the rest of the time.  Sadly, I think that time has run out for Lee now and he needs to move on as he must have played about 15 games in three years here with only about 5 of those coming in the last 2 years.  He’s got a year left on his deal but even if he’s fit I can’t see him playing many games.  You could argue the same with David Connolly but at least you know that he’s got the ability to play at Championship level whereas Holmes is still unproven.   I guess he’ll be a squad player next year in the same vein as Dany N’Guessan was this year.
DANY N’GUESSAN came in on loan in January to I presume, cover for Adam Lallana but despite looking good in flashes (Exeter and Charlton away, Fake Dons at home), never seemed to have the trust of the manager and a variety of options were tried instead of giving him a game and I can’t see him being back next year even though I think there’s a decent player in there somewhere.
Ryan Dickson was occasionally picked on the wing and can do a job there, mainly because he’s such a good crosser of the ball.  The cross he dug out at Orient for Sir Rickie to score was particularly good.
In the engine room, DEAN HAMMOND is the first name on the team sheet if he’s fit and I see no reason why this will change next season.  He has a physical presence that we have lacked for years in the centre and the whole team plays better when he’s there.  To me, he’s the ideal defensive midfielder as he wins his headers and tackles, can get about the park and plays it simple.  He should however, shoot more often as he has a decent dig on him when he gets it right.  Has played a lot better in the second half of the season which coincided with an injury to Morgan Schneiderlin as this meant he had to play at the base of the midfield instead of farther forward.  Deano is not really suited to being an attacking midfielder and seems slow and prone to getting caught in possession if he ever receives the ball with his back to the opposition. 
The aforementioned MORGAN SCHNEIDERLIN has more ability than virtually anyone else but also has the ability to make himself invisible.  Personally, I’d love to see him play farther forward and use the talent he has to create and score goals.  For a player of his ability to have only 1 goal in three seasons is pretty poor, whichever way you look at it…. In fact it’s shite.  There is a generally held opinion that he will be better in a better league and to an extent, I agree but unless the Championship has changed in the two years we’ve been away, it’s still largely kick and rush so he’s going to have to get stuck in – something he has got progressively better at doing this year.  I haven’t checked yet but I bet I wrote virtually the same thing last year though he has managed not to get sent off this, despite the card waving best efforts of those great sports from Brighton.
Getting stuck in is not something RICHARD CHAPLOW has a problem with.  In fact, he has a problem with getting stuck in too much.  Sometimes it’s ok just to jockey the opposition player and make him go backwards but Chappers seems to have to pile in to the tackle every time he gets near anyone like a bald Paul Scholes.  He must be a complete nightmare to play against, like an annoying yappy dog that continually bites your shoelaces but if anyone has spent a better £50k on a player then I’d be amazed.  He is a real goal threat from central midfield which is something every team needs and he has been responsible for winning the ball back high up the pitch on a number of occasions this season.   Season highlight was a cracking goal against Man Utd but equally memorable was him kicking the Brighton goalkeeper who desperately deserved it.  Also, he obviously doesn’t like Darren Ferguson much which can only be a good thing and his goading of Fergie Zero at Peterborough was fabulous.
OSCAR GOBERN got the odd game towards the end of the season and the jury is still out on him.  Despite his goal in the Brentford away game, his moment of the season was being our only player to get a red card with his hilarious Ninja tackle at Bournemouth when he had a go at heading and kicking a ball at the same time, when the ball was about 10 minutes away.  Needs to go out on loan for a season in my opinion to see if there is a player in there or not and so see if the brain-to-legs messages actually work for a long period of time. 
DALE STEPHENS joined on loan from Oldham in February and put in a few tidy performances and a couple of ineffectual ones.  I don’t feel that he really grabbed the opportunity that he had and if it were down to me, I wouldn’t be taking up the option to buy him. 
Then there was the dearly departed PAUL WOTTON who made a couple of appearances as a sub before being sold to Yeovil, whom he inspired enough to lift them out of the relegation zone.  Yes he’s limited but for putting in 100% in every second he was on the pitch for SFC – we should remember him fondly... and I still want to hear his account of what life was like playing for the Dutch clowns.
Up front for the whole season except for the first match was SIR RICKIE LAMBERT who didn’t score the volume of goals he got last season but probably made a bigger contribution in terms of assists and general play.  He did seem to be carrying and injury through to Christmas and seemed to be struggling.  He came good when it mattered though and a little scoring spree at the business end of the season took him to 21 goals and got us over the line.  Throughout, his play for the team was a constant and whoever he was partnered with, benefitted from his industry.  He never seems to get given free kicks by referees anymore and I put this down to the fact that he doesn’t jump.  Usually his positioning is good enough to get the flick on anyway.  Has never played at Championship level and will need to stay off the pies and beer over the summer in order to be a potent force at that level but I think he’ll relish the challenge of being out of his comfort zone and having something to prove so expect Sir Rickie to be up near the top of the Championship scoring charts next season. 
Sir Rickie has been partnered in the main by LEE BARNARD who was set to have a great season until he visited the Whitehouse and got in a ruck which ended in a trip to hospital.  He was in the team at the time and was our best player but as a result of the injury picked up in the incident, was out of the team for three months afterwards.  When on the pitch though, he’s been superb and always looked a threat and weighed in with a good amount of goals.  His first touch sometimes lets him down and unless he improves that, quick defenders will just take it off him but here’s another striker with something to prove at Championship level and he should make the step up comfortably enough.   Barney has recovered well from the respiratory problems caused by the Jaidi roll at Bournemouth.
Whilst Barney was out, GULY DO PRADO was pushed up front and was a revelation, showing a willingness to adapt his game and learn which would have been most surprising to anyone who saw his first few games when he sulked about in his gloves, looking cold and miserable.  The one touch passes are a joy to watch at times and his ability to sometimes fall on his arse like Bambi on ice are very amusing.  I don’t think he’s really a forward as he takes too long to get his shots away at times but give him the ball 30 yards out and he’s a real threat, either with a through ball or a hammer of a shot.  With him, Lallana and Chamberlain – we’re lucky to have 3 players who are all a goal threat and who all work hard.  There is a slight question mark against him in away matches where he can go missing but again, here’s a player who easily has enough ability to play in the Championship and I think he’ll be a massive player for us next season now he’s settled in.
DAVID CONNOLLY had a few games at the start of the season and then got injured, returning to play a few at the end when we really needed him when Barnard got injured.  There is no doubt that he is class and his movement is better than anyone elses.  He’s proved in the last few games that he should be offered a deal for next year and has been fit now for about 5 months so sort it out Nigel...
JONATHAN FORTE was signed to give us some pace up front and he seems to have loads of it.  The question is – does he have the football brain to know when to use it?  Scored two vital goals within seconds of coming on when we were 2-0 down against the Fake Dons but somewhat mysteriously, hardly played after that.  Jury still out but having someone that quick can’t be a bad thing.  His signing has brought the phrase ‘Does he have Johnno pace?’ into my vocabulary so we can thank him for that and he’s a model pro for anyone wanting to teach their kids how not to head a ball – sliding it off your nose is not the way to go.
End of Part 2

L1-10 Player Review 2010/11 : Part 1 - Keeper and Defence


KELVIN DAVIS has been in goal for every League game this season and got voted into the League 1 team of the season which he also managed last year.  In my opinion he’s had a worse season this year than last and though we haven’t let in many goals, there have been quite a few that he really should have stopped.  He seemed to develop near-post-itis for the second half of the season and looked shaky for a while but when he’s confident however, there is no one to touch him in League 1 and he will be more than capable in the Championship next year where being busier will probably suit him.  Overall, I’d say he had a solid if unspectacular season. 
BARTOSZ BIALKOWSKI has had a couple of cup games and that’s it so my opinion that he is a good keeper and more than capable of being our No 1 is based on a few games last year and some appearances about 5 years ago.  You do wonder how long he’s going to stick around being 2nd choice and I wonder why he’s never been on loan anywhere significant. 
The answer might be that no one trusts TOMMY DISMAL FORECAST, even to sit on the bench.  Every passing match when he’s not even on the bench, increases the realisation that we got royally mugged when we signed this bloke on a 5 year contract as he’s now 4 years into it and I saw him play for the first time on Sunday – as the third choice keeper in a friendly against a team of 40+ year olds.  Haven’t we got a decent young keeper who can be 3rd choice ?
Right back has been either DANNY BUTTERFIELD or FRAZER RICHARDSON.  Richardson was obviously signed to be first choice and then dislocated his shoulder immediately, meaning we still needed a right back and so Butterfield was brought in.  To be honest there has been very very little to choose between these two all season with Richardson winning on aggression and by physically being bigger and quicker and Butterfield winning on positioning and generally being less likely to make a mistake and less likely to give ball away which is a bit of a Richardson speciality – sometimes you can’t even see who he was aiming at, making him a bit of a right footed Benali.  Richardson looks better going forward but I reckon Butterfield has set up more goals, mainly by cutting back and putting in crosses with his left foot.  Both have Championship experience and both are easily good enough for next season but apparently Butters is out of contract so who knows what is going on there.  My opinion on who is best changes every day which is why I’m not a manager – just a person who thinks he knows what he’s talking about, sometimes.
DAN HARDING is a player I worry about a bit for next season.  He’s fine going forward but he seems to struggle when we’re put under any pressure.  There are times when he just doesn’t seem strong enough, particularly in the air and he does have a tendency to let mistakes bother him and then he just falls to bits and ends up being subbed early.  He’s had a decent season (again making the League 1 Team of the Year) and does some great stuff in attack but next year there’s going to be more defending to do and he’ll have to step up.  It’s slightly odd that he’s been allowed to get to the end of his contract and no mention of it being renewed as yet.  I feel that he deserves the chance to at least see if he can play at that level next year as he’s been pretty consistent in his two years at League 1 level.
RYAN DICKSON was a surprising signing seeing as Harding did well last year and he took time to adjust and found himself out of favour when the manager changed.  Quicker than Harding and a better crosser of the ball but again, can be a bit flaky in defence but his pace often gets him out of trouble.  Still only 23 and will improve.  Personally, he’d be my first choice and he gets an extra mark for being on Twitter but there is very little in it. One of the two will step up and left back is not a position we will have to worry about next season.
The first choice pairing have been JOSE FONTE and Radhi Jaidi.  Fonte has been imperious this season and is the best centre back in the league bar none.  It is still a total mystery to me why he came down to play in League 1 when he’s good enough to play in the Premier League.  Though he’s a big lad and more than capable of mixing it, he’s better off reading the game and sweeping up whilst letting a big ‘first knock’ centre half challenge for the ball.  Chipped in with about 7 goals this season as well and provided one of the best moments of the season with the goal in the last minute at the Withdean.  Will be linked with moves away, especially to Newcastle where Alan Pardew is manager.  The same media outlets who report that he’s off to Newcastle will be the same ones who reported that he and Pardew had fallen out.  This may come as a surprise to you but the media write a load of bollocks.
RADHI JAIDI has been superb in the ‘first knock’ centra half role – he just gives me kittens when he’s trying to pass the ball.  He can look a little clumsy at time but it’s brilliant to have a defender who wins headers cleanly and sends them miles up the pitch, usually accompanied by an opposition forward.  We haven’t had as good a header of the ball since Michael Svensson and every team needs one.  Of course, he’s about 42 now and out of contract and him getting another will depend on Nigel deciding is he can contribute at the higher level.  Personally, I think we should keep him for another year but would expect him to start less games next year, as long as we sign a similarly sized centre back.  Provided many humourous moments this season, the best of which being when he jumped on a ruck of bodies to celebrate a goal and all the breath in Lee Barnard’s body left him at the same time.  The look on Barney’s face when he emerged was priceless.
DANNY SEABORNE has been first choice back up all season and must improve to have a chance of becoming a first choice.  Naturally left footed which is a big plus, he can look very good but tends to start games slowly and I wonder about him when we’re under pressure.  He’s also good for picking up a ridiculous booking for trashing someone who is nowhere near our goal. 
AARON MARTIN has only played a few games and like Dickson, I feel was a bit of a victim of the new manager coming in.  We allegedly turned down an approach from West Ham for him in January so one would expect him to be offered a new deal.  Looks more capable than Seaborne of stepping into Jaidi’s shoes but I feel that one way or another, will find himself on the bench or out on loan to a League 1 club next year.  An excellent prospect none the less.
End of Part 1

Monday, May 9, 2011

League 1 Match 46 - Southampton 3 Walsall 1


Willo Gets Stuck In

Walsall were the visitors as we rolled up to SMS for the last time this season to what was a rarity… a game with no pressure on it…. for us anyway.  Win, lose or draw – it didn’t matter as we were up and it was Promotion Day.  I personally was looking forward to see if the collection of moaning bastards who sit around me would actually be happy but the game itself would be interesting because Walsall were one of three teams who could go down.  There were many permutations but in a nutshell, they needed to get a better result than Dagenham and Redbridge (who play like us apparently) who were away at Peterborough.

Walsall beat us earlier in the season when their keeper, Jimmy Walker had the game of his life and kept out about 25 on target shots.  Walker was in goal again today and the Saints side trying to finally get one past him today was pretty much full strength with the Gulyman returning to the right wing and Morgan Schneiderlin getting a start in central midfield.  Alex Chamberlain made a return to the bench which did not include either Dale Stephens or Dany N’Guessan, so I think we can safely say that that’s the last we’ll see of those two.  It would be interesting to see what the attitude of our players would be like – whose mind would be on the beach and who’s been out on the piss all week etc.  The Saints Creative Department has been busy again and we all held up cards which spelt out ‘COMING FOR YOU, CHEATING SKATE BASTARDS’ which should have looked good on the TV.

Any thoughts of Saints being in party mode were dispelled in the opening few minutes as Walsall defender Cook, gifted us the ball and Guly smashed in a shot which the flying fat bloke tipped over the bar.  We forged another chance straight away with Hammond, playing father forward as a result of Schneiderlin being in the team, arriving at the edge of the box and firing just over.

Saints were trying to pick their way through the middle of the Walsall defence, populated as it was, with Ollie Lancashire.  Sir Rickie chipped a pass to Connolly who headed down to the Gulyman who stretched a telescopic leg and flicked goalwards, only to be denied by another good save from Walker.

Twas a matter of time and the time arrived on 20 minutes when Cook played another crap ball and Schneiderlin broke up a Walsall attack before feeding Connolly who turned it into the path of the Gulyman who cut inside the left back onto his left foot and scored with ease.  Walsall looked very down at this point and from virtually the next attack it was 2-0 as Connolly, Hammond and Lallana almost overplayed it but eventually sorted it so out for Connolly to fire through the legs of a defender and in at Walker’s near post.

Long balls upto Jon Macken were the order of the day and he, with his face like a bulldog chewing a wasp, was getting progressively more irritated at being ‘trained’ by Radhi Jaidi.  It was nearly 3-0 as Deano hit the post from a tight angle before Walsall realised it wasn’t happening for them and replaced the holding midfielder with the odd name, with another forward.  The guy who’d gone off had not so much held the midfield, as waved a white flag to allow people to run through unattended.

On half time and out of nowhere, Julian Gray picked up the ball on the right wing, cut across Dicko and Lallana and curled a superb shot past Superkelv and into the net for 2-1.  Where did that come from?  Well, at least it would stop any complacency creeping in.

It was half time and there had been no moaning from the Chuckle Brothers, no whining, nothing.  I assumed they weren’t there but there they were, smiling and relaxed.  Excellent.  I still do not want them to renew their season tickets for next season.  We had one of the missing 10,000 sat just behind us as well who was obviously not used to the Kingsland central section, swearing his head off and being extremely pissed.  His girlfriend/wife who was sat with him was wearing the kind of fixed grin/grimace which showed both embarrassment and the fact that he wasn’t getting any tonight.

After a nondescript opening to the second half, Guly made way for Chamberlain who took all of thirty seconds to show us what we’ve been missing as he fastened onto a Hammond pass and hit the far post with Walker nowhere.  The ball ended up being fed back to Connolly in front of goal but he played an airshot when it looked easier to score and the ball hit his standing leg and went out for a goal kick.

Walsall had a flurry and Saints defended in a panic as Dicko failed to clear a ball, catching the airshot disease and Superkelv made a good save from Gray before Grigg the sub, stabbed the rebound against a post.  The Walsall boys were in full voice a minute later when Macken stopped chewing a wasp long enough to stab in a rebound when Davis failed to collect a shot from outside the box. Offside and a spot on decision.

It was game over a minute later as from the free kick, Saints went forward with Connolly and Lallana supplying Chambo who cut onto his left foot before curling a shot past Walker and in off the far post.  Beautiful goal and what a player we have here.

Chappers came on for Morgan who had been superb and an almighty cheer from the Walsall boys as it was announced that Dagenham and Redbridge were losing 4-0.  The season was over for all concerned at SMS but he may be 37 and overweight, but Walker was still performing heroics for Walsall, making two blinding saves in quick succession from Chambo and Connolly who both should have scored.  For my money, this is the best goalkeeper we've come across this season.

There was about 5 minutes to go when the stadium announcer requested that everyone stayed off the pitch as a little tin pot was to be presented to the team at the end of the game.  He got about 3 words out before being drowned out and my money was firmly on about 20,000 people being on the pitch at the end.  Final whistle, Fans on Pitch 30,000 Stadium Announcer 0.  We are going up!  I spoke to one of the stewards on the pitch who said that the club and the league fully expect home fans on the pitch and their job is purely to keep the away fans off – if they get on then the club gets hammered.

The Tin pot was eventually presented up on the balcony thing in front of the Directors Box and as presentations go, it wasn’t one of the best but it didn’t need to be.  30,000 happy people on the pitch is all you need really.  Smiling people, grown men crying, cheering kids – it’s what it’s all about really.  Didn’t see the Chuckle Brothers on the pitch but I’m sure they would have been moaning about something.

The post match interviews were not really about the game but about the celebrations and the season as a whole.  For me, this game was an odd one as it looked like we were going to win about 8-0 but then we took our foot off the gas a bit and Walsall could easily have got back to 2-2 but then they seemed to ease off when it became obvious that they were going to stay up as the Daggers were getting stuffed.  Regardless of who was easing off, Fatty in goal made 4 or 5 unbelievable saves to keep the score down.  For us, Chambo was frightening when he came on and could easily have had a hat-trick which would have sent the tabloids into meltdown about which club we’d accepted a ten million bid from.  I thought Guly and Deano had good games for us but star of the show was Schneiderlin.

I turned up with the family on Sunday, to watch the Saints Day game against the old boys which was played in a great spirit.  Anyone who got there early would have seen Paul Wotton launch a slide tackle on Chaplow and Hammond who were stood having a chat in the warm up at the time.  An early highlight was Chambo trying to beat Paul Williams for pace.  He tried to go round him on the right which was a mistake as you’re supposed to go round roundabouts to the left.  Big lad was Willo.  My 6 year old son opined that Willo was “even bigger than you Dad”.   No pocket money for you....

On the other end of the scale, Inigo Idiakez looked leaner and fitter than when he was playing for us while Paul Telfer, Jo Tessem, Claus Lundekvam, Michael Svensson and Ken Monkou all looked exactly the same as they did years earlier.  Claus gave a pre match interview to the annoying bald bloke which put me in mind of the film ‘Kingpin’.  So Claus, what have you been doing since you retired?’.,,, he should have said ‘Drinking’ but I don’t really know what he said because the PA is shite.  The game itself finished 4-1 to the current side with Idiakez opening the scoring before Sir Rickie and Guly made it 2-1 past Antii Niemi.  Paul Jones was in goal for the 2nd half to concede to a Guly 35 yarder and a goal from Ben Reeves, one of our production line of Academy boys who are all 5 foot 8 with blonde hair.  We are cloning them in a lab by the look of it.  Lap of honour, job done, here comes summer.

As seasons go it’s been superb with our form at the business end of the season being nothing short of phenomenal with 40 points out of 45.  There is momentum that will still be there come August and the new season in the Championship.  I think that this side with no additions will finish in the top half but there will be additions (Nigel says) and we should be aiming for a playoff place at least.  We seem to play better against better sides and that should stand us in good stead. 

Just for giggles really, here’s a little league table made up on results the top 6 got against each other this season.  If it shows anything, it shows how everyone performed against the better sides this year, which is kinf of relevant as there are no dire sides in the Championship, like there are in League 1.



BRI
SOU
HUD
PET
MKD
BOU
Brighton

1-2
2-3
3-1
2-0
1-1
Southampton
0-0

4-1
4-1
3-2
2-0
Huddersfield
2-1
2-0

1-1
4-1
2-2
Peterborough
0-3
4-4
4-2

2-1
3-3
MK Dons
1-0
2-0
1-3
1-0

2-0
Bournemouth
1-0
1-3
1-1
5-1
3-2






P
W
D
L
F
A
W
D
L
F
A
Diff
PTS
Southampton
10
4
1
0
13
4
2
1
2
9
10
8
20
Huddersfield
10
3
2
0
11
5
2
1
2
10
12
4
18
Bournemouth
10
3
1
1
11
7
0
2
3
6
10
0
12
MK Dons
10
4
0
1
7
3
0
0
5
6
14
-4
12
Brighton
10
2
1
2
9
7
1
1
3
4
4
2
11
Peterborough
10
2
2
1
13
13
0
1
4
4
14
-10
9


...so... we look good to take on the better opposition next season.... and Brighton don’t.  Better learn to play like Dagenham and Redbridge, Gus!

Season player summaries to follow... WE ARE GOING UP!!!

Oh yeah... and we get the opportunity to put the record straight against the Skates who just might have players that they can afford by that time.  Doubt it though...

Season 2010/11 - The End!!!