BOLTON V IPSWICH match thread

Re the first four misses I saw three clearly but the tap in on the near post in the first half looked like Clough from my vantage point. If Trotter an awful miss. And in the second half there were also a couple of non shots one Trotter.

Feeney is energetic and for some reason (?) on the left certainly made inroads. He should have had an assist when Pratley skied over.And without the ball (the ball is not his friend sometimes) made one really good harassing press. So it wasn't his worst game. But that one incident apart he has no end product and he tailed off. I maintain Silva should have replaced him. Silva and Madine for Feeney and Pratley at 55-60 with someone else for Clough or Trotter at 75-80 was more logical.
So yes my three for Feeney is harsh,maybe it should be five.But he drives me senseless and Neil's blind devotion to his darling is unhelpful in the extreme and must surely dent morale. Subbed at 60 I'd have thought decent game 5/6. For 90 well he just faded. And Silva petulant and defensively risky though he is has a lot more talent and goal threat in short bursts. This was captured in essence by Silva's glorious crossfield left to right cross which Feeney could not control and ran harmlessly out.

Andy,

I largely agree with your last post, we need tactics. Feeney crossing to Clough and Davies was never going to work, both are small men. Trotter was the big man who as far as I can see cannot jump. If you have seen the video, you will know he missed the sitter of the match, much easier than Pratley's. Although for me his best performance and at one stage showed a turn of pace not seen before. Still only a 6 for me . I think you under rate Spearings effect on the team, sitting in front of the back four, and I agree with DavidM, involved in everything.
I think we all now agree that relegation is favourite, unless a change of manager can inspire some obviously quality players, with new selections and tactics, and get back that winning feeling.

The proof readers at the BN and BWFC obviously went to the same University of spelling LOL

If it was always the same player missing sitters, or the same defender/midfielder making crucial individual errors, it would be easy to deal with, but we seem to share these gaffes around, so that picking the team becomes a nightmare. Such unreliability, spread across the whole squad, suggests a confidence issue is at the heart of our problems. If finances had stretched far enough, a good sports psychologist would have been worth many points this season.

Virtually every player has, in my opinion, shown that he has the skills to perform at this level, but unaccountable sudden errors undermine confidence and the manager's efforts to find a consistent, points-winning team.

Equally, confidence has been eroded by the turmoil off the field, by losing Chungy, Lonergan and Mjallby, by an unduly high number of unstoppable opposition goals and flukes at key moments (particularly in the last minutes of games), and by injuries....the ones to Clough, Pratley and Mavies have seen them lose form dramatically.

In these circumstances, a manager will seek to avoid selecting players with a poor attitude, so that he can maintain team spirit.....and it seems to me that spirit is one feature that has remained positive throughout it all. I've been impressed by the sense of togetherness in dire circumstances and clear joy shared when successes arise.

However, the attitudes of Madine and Silva stink....and I suspect that Lennon has also found one or two others seriously lacking in training sessions and has sidelined them as well, for the good of the team ethic. It is hardly surprising, then, that those who maintain their commitment are the first names on the team-sheet. Feeney, who is much more able that AndyL tends to suggest, maintains his willingness to track back, run at his full-back and get in crosses, but Heskey and Madine do not make appropriate movement towards the ball....and Clough's build is not helpful.

Picking a player of the year will be mighty difficult(!), since so many have lost form or consistency, and the choice may well come down to the player whose drive has never wilted even if he does not have the most talent.

If only there had been a skilled mental coach, there might have been more contenders.

I agree Joanna, the individual players do have the skills to compete at this level, and the tohetherness seems to be there, including Madine and Silva. So as you say, there is something else, I do not see it the loss of players, this is an occupational hazard, maybe the loss of the coach, or maybe a feeling that Lennon does not know what he wants from players and does not recognise it when he sees it. The man behind me last night said Wilson had had a good game so was sure to be dropped on Saturday. It has seemed that way all season, good performances not recognised and shoe ins like Pratley, Fenney, Dervite get games not withstanding. Yes, Feeney works hard tracks back, but his crossing is poor and the timing of his runs seems sure to set an new individual offside record. Yes Pratley runs and tackles, sometimes unfairly, but his overall contribution to games is low, and I think he should have been pulled off before Trotter, and that is saying something.
Lennon only uses substitutes when forced, meaning we have eleven tired men against eight tired ones and three fresh ones for the latter part of the game.
Again he continues to use Heskey, when Woolery or Madine can carry the game for at least an hour, Heskey may then use his experience on tiring defences.
There is an old saying that if you are good enough, you are old enough (Wayne Rooney?) so as his plan A consistantly fails to get results, let the youngsters loose, after all they have scored three goals in recent matches.