|
|
Post by Rags on Oct 1, 2011 17:16:21 GMT
Phew!
After a fairly hard fought first half I must admit I was wondering if we were starting to run out of steam a little but the way the team came out in the second answered that almost immediately. Watford, it has to be said, were truly awful but we just completely controlled the game after the first 20 minutes. Cork and Hammond ran the midfield and when Nigel changed things Chaplow and Morgan actually took it up a few notches. Chaplow in particular looked in a different class when he came on. Our fitness and preparation showed in the last quarter of the game when it looked like we would score at will. The centre back pairing of Fonte and Hoof looked awesome, Fonte has a true partner at last. Full backs were superb, how good is Foxy Fox FFS!! Special mention to Holmes, he has waited for his chance and everyone was pleased for him when he got his well deserved goal.
It's all looking good.
|
|
|
|
Post by OneBeat on Oct 1, 2011 17:43:13 GMT
I agree with all you say, except the bit about Fox, I didn't think he was that particularly good today and found myself wondering when Harding would be back. But that's a very minor thing and it was a great result, and we could have had 8. What's more, I feel we can play better too. Good times.
There were some people near us today that moaned the whole way through; whenever Saints strung a few passes together they grumbled "what are you doing?" Then when we played a long cross field pass they sighed "who's that to?"
They only seemed happy when Kelvin booted it high up the pitch, they didn't seem to mind that usually resulted in Watford winning a 50/50 in the air.
Why can't people just enjoy the way Saints are playing this season?
|
|
|
|
Post by THE BEAST on Oct 1, 2011 17:51:28 GMT
I agree with some of that, some of it I'm not so sure of, from where I sat the first half was a real struggle for us up to the first goal.
At that point we really should have been behind as we again let the opposition "get at" the centre back pairing and, but for some completely inexplicable cock ups by Watford players, the end of the first half should have been 3 - 2 to Watford, I still can't quite believe the amount of space and time that they had in the box THREE TIMES?
However the penalty, good shout by the referee, put them back a bit and we started to get a bit more of a hold on the game.
Second half, totally different team, how many times have we seen this with Saints, not that the first half was awful, it just wasn't working all that well?
After the half we didn't ever look like being troubled, I thought Iwelumo might freak them out but, even though he tried his best, actually they didn't look troubled at all really.
The only slight fly in the ointment, and it's a real nitpicky one, is this tendency to try to be Arsenal, where did that come from? Why can't we just shoot sometimes when that's the easiest option? It's very pretty when it works but I can't help feeling we could have actually scored about eight today… Still, that does seem churlish and I would like to say that I'm only saying this because I think you have to continue to learn even when you have put in a performance that makes it look like you were totally impressive, don't you?
Anyway, player by player from me:
Davis, didn't need to do much but when he did need to do something he did it well, thought it was a bit unkind for the crowd to get on his back about only doing what he's been told to do (passing it short to Hammond or Cork) but, anyway, did VERY well when called on. 8/10
Richardson, I thought this was one of his better games actually and that mazy run at the end which produced a thunderous shot that the goalkeeper only just saved was fabulous, he looked up for it and quite fit (fitter than I have seen him anyway) 7/10 (
Fonte, a couple of wobbles in the first half when everything was almost, but not quite, working, imperious in the second, very comfortable and looked very good today. 8/10
Hooiveld, did well, looked very assured, balances out the back line very nicely with his left foot and is learning how to play with the other players every game, a good acquisition on this evidence. 7/10
Fox, the best game I have seen from him without doubt, still room for improvement but he's learning to defend (always something I value in a defender!) The other stuff in his game we all know about and is still there so he is looking more assured. Good game. 7/10
Hammond, I know some don't value him but as far as I'm concerned he makes the team tick, looked a bit out of sorts in the first half without doing anything majorly wrong or right, in the second half just looked very comfortable, easy 7/10
Cork, a little bit invisible in this game, I'm not sure if that's because he was doing really well and I just didn't notice or he was a little bit out of it, others who were paying more attention will probably disagree with this but I'm only going to give him 5/10 as I don't recall much that he did (although I may have seen things and attributed them to someone else?) enlighten me if I missed something wonderful??
Lallana, didn't look himself in the first half although he was trying lots of tricky stuff when given the opportunity, in the second half he just turned on the style and started to take the piss quite frankly! I was glad he was given a rest as he looked knackered. 8/10 (it would have been an easy 9/10 if the first half had worked out a bit better for him)
Do prado, I'm still not sure why I find him so infuriating and yet so good to watch, sometimes he quite clearly doesn't give a shit and then all of a sudden WHAM (no, I'm not making George Michael references) he does something and you think "bloody hell, that was cool as a cucumber and excellent to boot", 8/10 simply for his goal today, absolutely first class, head-up and placed, well done.
Lambert, still not sure why someone thought he should be playing as a winger/whatever when he is so destructively brilliant in the middle but kudos to both Ricky and Nigel as it's doing wonders for Saints, wonderfully executed penalties won by himself and well-deserved plaudits for his 100th appearance for the club. 9/10
De Ridder, I'm a little bit frustrated with him and for him, with him because he's just not as fast as he needs to be for his game, for him because the others sometimes don't see things as quickly as he does and miss out on glaring opportunities to give him the ball when he could do something dangerous with it. Still learning to start for the club but he looked dangerous today in a number of areas 7/10
Subs:
Chaplow, looked a real livewire, incredibly dangerous coming on at that time in a game and made some absolutely wonderful runs, I still can't believe that ball off the post wasn't a goal, it even looked in from where I was sitting! Considering he didn't have a lot of gametime to impress he impressed me mightily today, 7/10 (only because he didn't play more, if he had played like that for an entire game I would have given him 10/10!)
Schneiderlin, I thought he looked a bit rusty, I am a big Spiderman fan and I think he is class but you can tell he's not playing regularly, really good but made a couple of quite silly mistakes in his limited time on the pitch, glad they never caused any real trouble. 6/10
Holmes, to be honest apart from the goal (which even he seemed hard pressed to believe) I'm not sure he touched the ball much did he? Anyway, very well deserved for a very nice bloke, 7/10 because the goal was just the icing on the cake (probably 5/10 without that)
|
|
|
|
Post by Furry Frank The Combat Wombat on Oct 1, 2011 20:20:25 GMT
Thx for the detailed review; I guess this result going our way despite the shakey start makes up for things not quite going our way the last 2 games; frinstance the fist pen makes up for the one Lala could've got at Burnley.
But everyone behind us slipping up going into the break as well is just incredible... have we finally found not just a good, but a lucky manager in Nige?
Interestingly, tother side are showing Cork as MOM.
|
|
|
|
Post by channonite on Oct 1, 2011 20:51:52 GMT
Thx for the detailed review; I guess this result going our way despite the shakey start makes up for things not quite going our way the last 2 games; frinstance the fist pen makes up for the one Lala could've got at Burnley. But everyone behind us slipping up going into the break as well is just incredible... have we finally found not just a good, but a lucky manager in Nige? Interestingly, tother side are showing Cork as MOM. That is my only issue with crashhot's review. I thought Cork had a cracking game up until he was fouled and then had to come off injured. Rickie was still my MoM though. Wonderful game on a wonderful day and I even managed to get given a free small can of ice cold Coke Zero by a very attractive young promotional girl on the way back to the car. Rounded off a great day. Seems almost churlish to complain about anything at all in Saints performance. |
|
|
|
Post by OneBeat on Oct 1, 2011 21:19:01 GMT
Thx for the detailed review; I guess this result going our way despite the shakey start makes up for things not quite going our way the last 2 games; frinstance the fist pen makes up for the one Lala could've got at Burnley. But everyone behind us slipping up going into the break as well is just incredible... have we finally found not just a good, but a lucky manager in Nige? Interestingly, tother side are showing Cork as MOM. That is my only issue with crashhot's review. I thought Cork had a cracking game up until he was fouled and then had to come off injured. Rickie was still my MoM though. Wonderful game on a wonderful day and I even managed to get given a free small can of ice cold Coke Zero by a very attractive young promotional girl on the way back to the car. Rounded off a great day. Seems almost churlish to complain about anything at all in Saints performance. It's odd isn't it, I too thought Cork had a quiet game. Still, what does it really matter, it's a team game and the team won, and won well. I'm never really worried when the opposition have periods in games when they get on top, I kind of expect that in this league, and despite how I always feel before a game, during it I always think Saints will turn it round. |
|
|
|
Post by saintpaddy on Oct 1, 2011 21:26:35 GMT
To be frank, I believe that 2-0 at half time was far more than we deserved. 2-2 or 2-0 to them would imo been a fairer score line. I felt that Adam was absent for most of the first half and Watford made it difficult for us. To be fair our forwards got pretty poor service.
However the second half was amazing. Yes, I agree a 7/8 or even 9 ion our favour would not be an unfair result.
In the first half they prevented us from playing from the back so imo we need to learn to go direct in such circumstances.
It may not be long before someone comes to St Marys and gets a right tanking. But because of the second half a great afternoon which myself and the missus really enjoyed.
|
|
|
|
Post by THE BEAST on Oct 2, 2011 13:51:29 GMT
like I said with Cork, I didn't notice him, sometimes that's because players are brilliant and doing a very quiet thorough job, sometimes it isn't so that's why I put what I put regarding Cork.
Personally speaking I've seen him play better but I welcome the other opinions on him due to me not noticing him much on this occasion (why that was I don't know?), I'm quite willing to believe he was better than I've given him credit for on this occasion…
anyway, as Tone said, the team play well today and that's really what counts.
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 3, 2011 7:23:14 GMT
De Riddler did well to get his head up and pick out Lallana (?) at the far post for a free header in the first half and he got in good positions but no one seemed able to give him the bloody ball, as Crash pointed out ^ but he's not a patch on Oxo, who's pace could turn a crap ball into a good one.
Guly drives me to distraction. The blokes next to us were crowing about Guly's goal because we'd been saying how frustrating he was to watch but he's so inconsistent he drives me to distraction. I thought it was one of his better games and he got a standing ovation from Crosby and Adkins for tracking back at one point.
There's room for improvement but I love watching Saints play like they did in the second half. The football hasn't been this attractive since Case was pulling the strings and the likes of MLT, Rod Wallace, Shearer and Rideout were sticking them away. Even then, it was more predicated on pace and simple passing than the intricate play we saw at times on Saturday. When Saints are on top and relaxed they can tear teams apart, especially at SMS. The queue for tickets at the end was a joy to behold. Long may it continue.
|
|
