forevertufc wrote:MidDevon makes a good point, don't think there is any selection dilemma until after the Bradford game,a win at Bradford will give Lingy a real nightmare, he will want to restore his captain to the starting line up as would any manager.
A draw or defeat at Bradford would make bringing Manse back in easier to justify, the only way I can see Mansell coming back into the team is if Jarvis makes way and Nathan Craig is pushed forward, or Manse comes in for Nathan Craig and is pushed forward.
A lot has been made of us playing 4-4-2 in the last two games I ma not entirely sure we have been, I think Jarvis has been playing in a forward role in behind Howe and getting up in support.
It wouldn't me!
Strangely enough it was Pope Gregory the 9th inviting me for drinks aboard his steam yacht, the saucy sue currently wintering in montego bay with the England cricket team and the Balanese Goddess of plenty.
Indeed Andy, it will not give me a nightmare either it would make me a very happy gull.. However as said any manager will want to have his captain on the field three wins on the spin will make it very hard indeed for Lingy to bring him back.Allthough he will sooner rather than later regardless.
I think a situation like this makes you realise how tricky it is for Martin to make the 'right' decision. He obviously has to make A decision but with the three or four available options he has to go with what he feels is best for the side. It is apparent just by looking at the posts on this thread that there is a difference of opinion. My only concern is that he brings Manse back and we once again set up defensively to accommodate him. I will not accept this. Martin can bring him back in and rotate the squad a little to keep our more positive line up and it may work seamlessly or indeed he could just leave him out alltogether. I can't see that in a million years though and my expectation is that Mansell returns to the starting line up against Northampton no doubts in my mind.
Strangely enough it was Pope Gregory the 9th inviting me for drinks aboard his steam yacht, the saucy sue currently wintering in montego bay with the England cricket team and the Balanese Goddess of plenty.
If we stay with 4-4-2 I'm not sure if there is a starting place for Manse. For me Craig is now an integral part of the midfield providing us the creativity and I think he needs to play alongside a holding midfielder - either Lathrope or Easton. We struggled last year with Eunan and Manse as too frequently the back 4 was exposed and while I think Craig is a better tackling midfielder than Eunan I'm not convinced it is enough.
If nothing else we need Lee Mansell's energy and desire on the pitch, and we need Nathan Craig to be able to make the incisive passes he is obviously capable of (although not in evidence against Dagenham as he was mostly on defensive duties).
No-one seems to be thinking the apparently unthinkable of dropping Billy Bodin - was it my imagination, or was there a reluctance among some of our players on Saturday to even give Billy the ball (presumably because they did not expect him to retain the ball/beat his marker/pass it back to them). Billy evidently has potential, but it is notable that he often has to be told by Rene where to move - surely he should be more aware by now (20 games in, and an apparently automatic choice despite not providing many goals or assists) of team tactics/his role?
If he needs more confidence, get him out on loan, then we can give more opportunities to our other youngsters to gain experience and to impress?
Our poor form wasn't down to Lee Mansell's inclusion in central midfield, but rather Nathan Craig's exclusion. Nathan was farmed out to the wing whilst Danny was unfit and it didn't work, he impeded on Nicholson's space, his omission meant the central midfield was far too defensive and Howe was not supported. He's returned to the middle and we hit form again. He could be pushed even further forward in behind Howe with Mansell put back in alongside Easton, but I get the feeling he likes to pick the ball up from deep and play the ball with the play in front of him, so having Jarvis up with Howe probably suits him. However, I'd like Mansell back in for the festive period. I'll let Martin decide.
PL21gull wrote:
If he needs more confidence, get him out on loan, then we can give more opportunities to our other youngsters to gain experience and to impress?
With respect PL21, I don't think shipping him out to Bideford for a month would have him brimming with confidence.
I am not saying that I do know the solution; just that that isn't it.
PL21gull wrote:If nothing else we need Lee Mansell's energy and desire on the pitch, and we need Nathan Craig to be able to make the incisive passes he is obviously capable of (although not in evidence against Dagenham as he was mostly on defensive duties). No-one seems to be thinking the apparently unthinkable of dropping Billy Bodin - was it my imagination, or was there a reluctance among some of our players on Saturday to even give Billy the ball (presumably because they did not expect him to retain the ball/beat his marker/pass it back to them). Billy evidently has potential, but it is notable that he often has to be told by Rene where to move - surely he should be more aware by now (20 games in, and an apparently automatic choice despite not providing many goals or assists) of team tactics/his role?
If he needs more confidence, get him out on loan, then we can give more opportunities to our other youngsters to gain experience and to impress?
I have made it quite clear that i would like to see this very thing although it is highly unlikely due to the fact we have nobody to replace him with of any note PLUS the fact that he is Martin's 'big buy' and Martin doesn't want us to think he has made an error in signing him. Also it must be on Lings' mind that a benefactor gave him £50k of their own cash to enable Martin to bring Billy to Torquay. He is more or less undroppable.
My reasons for dropping Billy are purely that he has had 20 odd games now, has been fairly poor in many of them ( certainly in every one i've seen bar York ) and i don't believe the team is particularly benefitting from Billy being a regular. He is also a target for increasing critcism and vocal abuse from certain sections of fans and whilst my opinion is he's a grown man so he needs to deal with it, i do have some degree of sympathy for him despite my opinion of Billy as a footballer. In any case, the constant abuse is having the opposite effect to what those fans want and i don't believe Billy has the strength of character to come through this and so he isn't going to improve greatly even given a continual starting berth IMO. Some people think Billy will eventually somehow 'play himself into form' but for that to happen a whole range of scenarios need to occur and i just can't see it.
What the answer is to get that bit of confidence and assuredness back in the lad again i don't confess to knowing but like Jonny says, it certainly wouldn't do him any good whatsoever farming him out on loan where he will feel unsupported by the club. It will hammer his confidence even more turning out for some Cornish or Devon pub team and playing with mostly rednecks and this is not the way to go at all. I do strongly feel though that a spell out of the side will do him the world of good and perhaps, with the right support from Ling and the backroom staff and other players he will come back into the team without the expectation that he has to do something special hanging over him.
Strangely enough it was Pope Gregory the 9th inviting me for drinks aboard his steam yacht, the saucy sue currently wintering in montego bay with the England cricket team and the Balanese Goddess of plenty.
