Salisbury FC v Torquay United Tuesday 5 Nov KO 19.45

[UnitedinDevon]

Young so unlucky hitting the post

[UnitedinDevon]

A great penalty from Cooke puts us 0-1 up!

[UnitedinDevon]

9mins of added time seems excessive

[UnitedinDevon]

FT 0-1

Thank god for the subs giving us an actual midfield and some energy!

Be interesting without Cooke on Saturday

Salisbury chanting 1-0 to the referee

[desperado]

Very unimpressive first half but much better when Hasani and WJD came on, more energy, passing with pace and threat.

[Yellow6]

Can anyone explain the point of Oscar Threlkeld…….again. Dreadful. Useless.

[AdrianC]

Can anyone explain the point of Oscar Threlkeld…….again. Dreadful. Useless.

What is he trying to be or being told to be? Ball winner, mid field anchor? I’d have thought a player with Div 1 experience could win the ball and pass the ball at the NLS level! A calm head, as perhaps Alex Russell or Brian Healy would have been....

Let’s take the win and move on! We know we aren’t the finished article, Collins was no doubt a good player in a promoted team, found wanting at this level and has been moved on! PW I’m sure will have all positions on his radar!

[AdrianC]

Can anyone explain the point of Oscar Threlkeld…….again. Dreadful. Useless.

What is he trying to be or being told to be? Ball winner, mid field anchor? I’d have thought a player with Div 1 experience could win the ball and pass the ball at the NLS level! A calm head, as perhaps Alex Russell or Brian Healy would have been....

Let’s take the win and move on! We know we aren’t the finished article, Collins was no doubt a good player in a promoted team, found wanting at this level and has been moved on! PW I’m sure will have all positions on his radar!

[desperado]

Think Oscar is playing within himself and being managed . A one year contract was a bit of a gamble on a player who announced his retirement from the game with a knee injury about 18 months ago.
Midfield seems rather pedestrian with Threlkeld and Hayfield starting .I'd like to see Mussa pushed forward on Saturday in Cooke's absence, think he his more of a threat and effective up front . Maybe play Hayfield in Threlkelds slightely deeper midfield role with WJD and Hasani , they both work hard and can tackle as well as getting forward and making things happen.

[numpte]

Wotton was right, it was a bore fest of a forgettable first half and not much to cheer the very good away support on Guy Fawkes and the game being on telly. We are 2 decent players away from being a decent side i would say. Young a good start in that regards and Mussa getting more involvement as time goes on, Cooke starting to score and last night, the team defended robustly throughout. This team right now not as good as the one in the South a few years ago and i think the division has improved in that time also. So to be 4th with 1/3 of the season gone is pretty good. Hang in there, keep chipping in with wins and hopefully get those 2 players as the season goes on.

[culmstockgull]

If we had played till midnight we would not have scored in open play so thank goodness for a fullback sub who actualy ran at the salisbury defence to be brought down for the penalty, we looked tired and there are several players that patently cannot play two matches in a week, I had a pop at threlkeld on saturday, last night he was again absent when it counted, first 45 he was salisbury's additional man on the park, everytime he got the ball he gave it away, I wonder if he is carrying an injury or has some personal issues because his mind is not on the game.
Our midfield ,such as it was yet again largely absent first 60 minutes,there were holes everywhere, as a man next to me said this is like two youth teams, plenty of endeavour but they have only learnt the basics of pro football. Mussa is frusrating and annoying, great feet and frightens the opposition going forward but he obviously has something in his contract that states he doesnt have to track back and make recovery runs, that is someone else's problem.
When Hasani and WJD came on it was a different team, as if someone had plugged us in at the mains, the energy levels of the whole team went up and we actually looked a threat. But a very welcome three points, 15 games in are the team gelling, you can see a strong starting eleven coming through the fog, but we need far more pace, an experienced centre half and a fit version of lapslie would be nice.

[numpte]

Absolutely, id take Lapslie all day long in this team.Lets hope.....

[Bristol_Gull]

I sat right behind the gulls dugout last night and unfortunately was not impressed with either the on the field or off the field performance, but the experience was quite revealing in terms of why we are witnessing some consistent issues.

As others have noted, we had no midfield in the first half. It was frustrating to watch what actually appeared to be a reasonably well organised back and front line with a giant gulf between them, and therefore no service to the forwards and limited cover for the backline.

Whilst I was throughly unimpressed by the midfield, I think part of the problem can be explained by the off the field action, specifically Wotton and Edwards constantly barking orders from the sideline to the point that even I felt tense and confused, let alone the players!

Imagine having your boss yelling at you, telling you what to do at every turn? At one point I'm sure Foultson retorted that he didn't need to be told what to do every 2 minutes!

Frankly it felt incredibly amateur and I think could explain why there is little leadership or ownership on the pitch because the players lack autonomy - I wouldn't be surprised if this is why Threlkeld is underperforming and reluctant to step up on the field as a captain when he already has two voices from the sidelines?

Sure it's frustrating to see your players making mistakes, but turning to the bench to specifically vocalise your frustration with certain individuals is simply unprofessional.

Even when play improved in the second half with the introduction of WJD and Hasani, Wotton once again was on WJD's back having taken the shot instead of passing after bursting through the Salisbury midfield, instead of encouraging the lad who had literally been the first player to show any sign of spark!!

Whilst I do admire the passion and commitment from the sideline, I do fear that a lack of experience in leadership and management is partly to blame for the underperformance on the pitch, which is something I'd hope Neil Warnock could address through some coaching and mentorship.

Lastly, I'm not sure how it would work in terms of shape but I'd like to see Hasani, Mussa and WJD in the same lineup next game, between them there is a good amount of attacking flair and pace which will lead to goals with Cooke and Young looking up for it.

[Hereford Gull66]

My comments last night disappeared in to the ether, so on further reflection.

First half other than the header from the corner we were not in it. Listening to the managers, ours rightly described it as a boar fest whilst Salisbury’s was pleased with his young side pressing us, but reckoned they as young part timers ran out of energy against a full time team.
Second half both before and after the first pair of midfield substitutions we definitely upped our game. We gave them too much space first half and the defence did well to bring us in 0-0. As they tired our substitutes had a big impact, Hasani’s pass to Young was class, and Young did everything but score.
Looking at other comments, I think it likely that some players minutes on the pitch are being closely monitored. Tonk’s and WJD loan agreements probably mean they can not play 2 full games a week, whilst we are being careful with some of our own.
The use of all 5 substitutes was clearly an attempt not to overplay some players, Palmer back from injury and Young being examples.

Whilst pleased with the result and progress this season, we did not look like a team, at the moment, that is going to win this league. I do however like the thinking on the length of some of the contracts younger players are on. We are now thinking long term on our assets.

coyy

[Louis]