Home Match Build Up 20/02/2024 L1: OUFC v Northampton Town

[Northstandboy]

PRE MATCH PACK:

Interview - Des Buckingham

OUFC Match Preview

Ref Watch - Charles Breakspear's Previous Games & Stats

Head to Head

 

[m]

Can you honestly say it's Des that has us there? Or individuals playing in a team with no direction?

So if we drop out of the play offs it's Buckingham's fault, but if we stay in the pay offs it's not because of him?

Seems fair.

 

[Symp59]

Why is this season a write off?

If you can’t see that sitting 6th with 13 games to go as a good enough reason to get behind the team and the manager, I really do feel sorry for you.

I would go as far to say, why the fcuk do you even bother to be a fan?

It's a great season compared to last we could have easily been in league 2 ,we need everyone to start jelling for the run .Hopefully Tuesday night we have the players we just need the cohesion and a bit of luck.

 

[Symp59]

Must win this one if we are serious about top six after a good point yesterday.

Cumming
Long Negru Brown Leigh
Matete Brannagan
Harris Bodin Burey
Goodwin

Subs: Eastwood, Moore, McGuane, Henry, Dale, Goodrham, Murphy

Rodriguez instead of henry

 

[West Oxon U’s]

REF WATCH

Surrey based referee Charles Breakspear is tomorrow night’s man in the middle.The card happy official has issued 114 yellow cards and eight reds in just 24 matches this season. His last match at Grenoble Road was the 0-3 loss to Bristol R on February 25th 2023. Karl Robinson was sacked 24 hours later.

 

[MustardYellow]

Considering Des is the manager, picks the players, who made the subs last Tuesday who sealed the win against Wigan, who got it spot on away to Blackpool, got the game plan on point away at Carlisle, then yes I would say it is down to Des for us still being in the play offs.

I know it’s hard for you to accept though.

The fact you have to go back all the way to the 13th of Jan to find just 3 examples of good tactical decisions is pretty alarming in itself.

 

[Yellow2K22]

REF WATCH

Surrey based referee Charles Breakspear is tomorrow night’s man in the middle.The card happy official has issued 114 yellow cards and eight reds in just 24 matches this season. His last match at Grenoble Road was the 0-3 loss to Bristol R on February 25th 2023. Karl Robinson was sacked 24 hours later.

Wow…. Those stats are ridiculous.

 

[Malc]

Let's hope he gives yellows for shirt-pulling.

 

[OX18]

Our team is far better balanced now then under robbo or manning. We now have cover all over the pitch which is reassuring

Right back?

 

[Foley]

The fact you have to go back all the way to the 13th of Jan to find just 3 examples of good tactical decisions is pretty alarming in itself.

Surely we all want Des to succeed?
FWIW, I thought that tactically we were pretty good defensively on Saturday.
Wycombe had a lot of corners ( where we gave conceded far too many goals recently). Wycombe are a very tall team and put in somee pretty good deliveries into our area.
It looked to me as if we had practiced this and had a plan on how to deal with the aerial bombardment.
We were poor going forwards until until the last 25 minutes, but that is a separate issue.

 

[WRox]

For me we need 9/10 points out of Northampton, Orient, Cheltenham, Bolton and Pompey.

I think Pompey will beat us but I don’t see why we can’t get something away to Bolton who have drawn 3 out of the last 4 games and their only win in those games was against Northampton.

I don’t think 8 would be an issue. 2 home wins, a couple of draws and lose one.

Tomorrow’s the big one. Ideally take three points and we can tick over with mid-table form for a month whilst playing 2 of the top 3 and Orient.

Then it’s Vale, Lincoln, Fleetwood, Shrewsbury, Burton where I’d expect 10+ points.

 

[MustardYellow]

Surely we all want Des to succeed?
FWIW, I thought that tactically we were pretty good defensively on Saturday.
Wycombe had a lot of corners ( where we gave conceded far too many goals recently). Wycombe are a very tall team and put in somee pretty good deliveries into our area.
It looked to me as if we had practiced this and had a plan on how to deal with the aerial bombardment.
We were poor going forwards until until the last 25 minutes, but that is a separate issue.

Of course we all want him to succeed, but that doesn't mean concerns can't be raised.

We've improved defensively recently, but as you say we remain poor in the attack. We're a bit of a 'nothing' side. We seem to have no real identity in how we play. Very non-descript.

 

[Foley]

Of course we all want him to succeed, but that doesn't mean concerns can't be raised.

We've improved defensively recently, but as you say we remain poor in the attack. We're a bit of a 'nothing' side. We seem to have no real identity in how we play. Very non-descript.

My point was that tactically we were far better on Saturday defensively ( in response to going back to 13 January to find any good tactical decisions).
I agree that we need to be far better going forwards ( even though we scored 4 v Wigan). We seem to be relying on moments of individual skill by certain players to score, and there are not enough passages of play where we look to string a lot of passes together in the other half.

 

[MateoCorbo'sTackle]

My point was that tactically we were far better on Saturday defensively ( in response to going back to 13 January to find any good tactical decisions).
I agree that we need to be far better going forwards ( even though we scored 4 v Wigan). We seem to be relying on moments of individual skill by certain players to score, and there are not enough passages of play where we look to string a lot of passes together in the other half.

Buckingham makes far more good calls than a lot of people give him credit for. Going two up front changed the game on Saturday.
OK, we are still finding a good two half performance hard to come by - but I'm of the opinion that the players need to stand up far more and take more proportion of the criticism: learn to control a ball, not run into blind alleys, and so on. Our truly abject performances this season (Reading second half, particularly) have generally been down to the players failing to remember, and deliver, even the basics.

 

[Mojofilter]

Buckingham makes far more good calls than a lot of people give him credit for. Going two up front changed the game on Saturday.
OK, we are still finding a good two half performance hard to come by - but I'm of the opinion that the players need to stand up far more and take more proportion of the criticism: learn to control a ball, not run into blind alleys, and so on. Our truly abject performances this season (Reading second half, particularly) have generally been down to the players failing to remember, and deliver, even the basics.

Also.worth saying that this was true under manning too.

 

[MustardYellow]

My point was that tactically we were far better on Saturday defensively ( in response to going back to 13 January to find any good tactical decisions).
I agree that we need to be far better going forwards ( even though we scored 4 v Wigan). We seem to be relying on moments of individual skill by certain players to score, and there are not enough passages of play where we look to string a lot of passes together in the other half.

Wigan is a prime example of that - we won largely due to individual moments rather than a well rounded 90 minute performance.

Part of my concern is a lot of the times we can point to things and say something Des has done tactically has worked, they're defensive. We can't point to many examples where he's changed the game, or more importantly won the game, through changes he's made. Bringing on Goodrham vs Wigan maybe? But if we're honest that change just seemed like a no brainer!

 

[Big Ron]

Buckingham makes far more good calls than a lot of people give him credit for. Going two up front changed the game on Saturday.
OK, we are still finding a good two half performance hard to come by - but I'm of the opinion that the players need to stand up far more and take more proportion of the criticism: learn to control a ball, not run into blind alleys, and so on. Our truly abject performances this season (Reading second half, particularly) have generally been down to the players failing to remember, and deliver, even the basics.

I'm largely in agreement here - Buckingham has still to impose a style of play and things can look fragmented but the players also need to hold up their hands and take responsibility. Some of the ball control, passing and decision making on Saturday was atrocious. Admittedly, Wycombe largely took those factors out of the game by lumping it forward at every opportunity.

After the game one of the usual numpties posted something about Des' system (or lack of it) causing the players to make these mistakes but that's simply trying to apportion the blame on one man.

 

[holdsteady]

I don’t think 8 would be an issue. 2 home wins, a couple of draws and lose one.

Tomorrow’s the big one. Ideally take three points and we can tick over with mid-table form for a month whilst playing 2 of the top 3 and Orient.

Then it’s Vale, Lincoln, Fleetwood, Shrewsbury, Burton where I’d expect 10+ points.

Lincoln game is on an international weekend, so might be moved, although less chance from our end with Beadle gone and Stevens injured.

 

[RgYellows]

Winning is a must, but just as important is the performance, cohesion and a style of the play where we don't look a like bunch of strangers playing without a system.

If it’s “just as important” you must think that the following are as good as each other:

Win by playing poorly
Lose but play well.

 

[MateoCorbo'sTackle]

I'm largely in agreement here - Buckingham has still to impose a style of play and things can look fragmented but the players also need to hold up their hands and take responsibility. Some of the ball control, passing and decision making on Saturday was atrocious. Admittedly, Wycombe largely took those factors out of the game by lumping it forward at every opportunity.

After the game one of the usual numpties posted something about Des' system (or lack of it) causing the players to make these mistakes but that's simply trying to apportion the blame on one man.

Saying something like that is obviously bonkers.
It's a funny one - I'm not sure we'll ever see a proper "system" from Buckingham. He's a reactionary, "case by case" kind of manager, it seems, who puts his team out in a generic, almost unidentifiable kind of fashion until he figures out the opposition and then tailors approach based on this.
I'm not saying this is right, but it is interesting - the direct opposite of Manning, who went by the high press, death by possession mantra but found it very hard to adapt during a game if he needed to. And Robinson - well....I'm pretty sure he just said "go out there, lads, and crack on", and that was it.

 

[Daviddidcotexile]

For various reasons my first look at a Des team on Tuesday. Providing we win I will think Des is the Messiah. If we lose then we need to sack him. I am a true yellow forum member!