Away Match Day Thread 11/11/2023 L1: Leyton Orient v OUFC

[Big Ronaldo]

Why didn’t he just sweep it in when the keeper was absolutely nowhere? That extra touch was so unnecessary and is a sign of his lack of confidence.

 

[Scotchegg]

I’m sorry but his record to date at any club does not suggest this. He is not a natural goal scorer.

Today we got away with it because Orient aren’t that good.His miss (two misses) when it was 0-0 when Mills set it up on a plate for him was unbelievable. In the games coming up v Bolton Peterborough Pompey he has to take those chances

He could be the difference between automatic promotion or not.

We need a top quality striker in the January window, and I mean first week of January.

We keep being told that Mark Harris will cost us promotion, but we're 2nd with him and the joint highest goal scorers in the league so it's not exactly costing us a lot at the moment.

It's all about balance. Swap him for someone who is going to poach you goals and you potentially lose the shape and style that is working well for us. I didn't go yesterday, but watched the game in full this morning on iFollow. Harris's movement was excellent and the never went missing. He missed two great chances in the 27th minute yet only a minute later he has the composure to play in Rodrigues for the opener. And the one where he hit the bar in the second half was just unlucky.

In the games against Bolton Peterborough and Pompey, I want us to win. If Harris scores, great. If he creates spaces for others to score, just as great!

 

[Eric Blair]

Hopefully this will be the difference between us and Pompey. Their fans are cacking themselves that their main CB is now out with an ACL. We have Negru and Thornley sitting on the bench. We have players of the caliber of Edwards out injured but have coped fine! Admittedly we don't have much cover in CM and up top but now is the time when suspensions and injuries really start to play and overall this is the deepest squad we have had for years.

Yeah the CM cover worries me a bit. We did look far less effective when Brannagan was out recently.

 

[Eric Blair]

Some of Harris’ movement yesterday was outstanding. Always an outlet for many of Rodrigues’ outrageous, precision passing. Whilst he is not a natural goal scorer, I felt he was generally unlucky yesterday. Definitely with the chip in the second half which was clever, and if he was a metre further back it is an outstanding finish. The save the keeper made in the first half from his chance was brilliant rather than a miss, and whilst he probably should have scored the rebound, it did come back at him quickly at an angle and his least effective foot. Always an outlet and working hard to create options for him and others.

As for Rodriguez, he was outstanding. Earlier on in the season he appeared to be struggling with the different pace of L1 compared to the conference, but not anymore based on that performance. After running the show like he did, he may however not get quite so much space with future opposition (hence Edward’s back would be good - although Mills gets better and better each game). This said, when you are a class act you make space for oneself.

Also a shout out for the tactical nous of Craig Short to put Negru on to nullify the high ball on our right from Orient as they started to gain momentum in the last half an hour.

And finally, what support. Loudest I’ve heard our support on iFollow for sometime. We’ve set the benchmark extremely high and hope we can maintain it because that really must have helped the players!!

I’m all for getting an out and out striker in January but I don’t have a major problem with the lack of goals from Harris. We’re the highest scorers in the league and Harris relentless running the channels and pulling defenders out of shape is a big reason. The goals will come.

 

[Northstandboy]

Cracking Photo. I hope Short stays, the club needs to honour his service. Has to be part of the new manager requirements. KEEP SHORTY!

 

[brassmonkey]

Cracking Photo. I hope Short stays, the club needs to honour his service. Has to be part of the new manager requirements. KEEP SHORTY!

It was funny af when the players were pushing short to do the manning celebration and he pretended to do it. Then did it just afterwards to a chorus of 'who the fook is LM' in the background.

 

[Swaby39]

We keep being told that Mark Harris will cost us promotion, but we're 2nd with him and the joint highest goal scorers in the league so it's not exactly costing us a lot at the moment.

It's all about balance. Swap him for someone who is going to poach you goals and you potentially lose the shape and style that is working well for us. I didn't go yesterday, but watched the game in full this morning on iFollow. Harris's movement was excellent and the never went missing. He missed two great chances in the 27th minute yet only a minute later he has the composure to play in Rodrigues for the opener. And the one where he hit the bar in the second half was just unlucky.

In the games against Bolton Peterborough and Pompey, I want us to win. If Harris scores, great. If he creates spaces for others to score, just as great!

I’m somewhere in between with this debate. I agree with you that his movement causes never ending problems for teams, however, things like staying onside are fairly critical to that meaning anything. I thought he started the game poorly, gave the ball away, silly fouls and offside a lot. He grew in to things and you’re absolutely right, the assist for the first goal was extremely well executed; the touch, the patience and the weight of pass having missed a sitter seconds before was really impressive.

But then we go to the chances missed. It isn’t just unlucky, there’s an art to finishing, it isn’t “hit it in the general direction of goal and hope” - that would bring luck in to the equation. The first double miss is unforgivable. When he hits the bar, he’s 1vs1 and your strikers must be scoring there. It’s close but he’s missed. He misses too many for it to be rotten luck and 14 hours (I think?) without a goal given the quality of chances he’s had is not good enough.

I think he will have patches in the season, like earlier on, where he gets a few goals and they may turn out to be in crucial games and therefore not his quantity that plays it’s part in promotion, but when he chooses to put them in (derby away, a good example). But I think in the main he will frustrate and we need someone else with a proven eye for goal for the days he just can’t get the job done. We should’ve been 4 goals up and out of sight in the first half, Harris with at least a couple. Then again the fact we went in 2-0 up does owe largely to some of his play so it’s not black and white.

 

[brassmonkey]

I’m somewhere in between with this debate. I agree with you that his movement causes never ending problems for teams, however, things like staying onside are fairly critical to that meaning anything. I thought he started the game poorly, gave the ball away, silly fouls and offside a lot. He grew in to things and you’re absolutely right, the assist for the first goal was extremely well executed; the touch, the patience and the weight of pass having missed a sitter seconds before was really impressive.

But then we go to the chances missed. It isn’t just unlucky, there’s an art to finishing, it isn’t “hit it in the general direction of goal and hope” - that would bring luck in to the equation. The first double miss is unforgivable. When he hits the bar, he’s 1vs1 and your strikers must be scoring there. It’s close but he’s missed. He misses too many for it to be rotten luck and 14 hours (I think?) without a goal given the quality of chances he’s had is not good enough.

I think he will have patches in the season, like earlier on, where he gets a few goals and they may turn out to be in crucial games and therefore not his quantity that plays it’s part in promotion, but when he chooses to put them in (derby away, a good example). But I think in the main he will frustrate and we need someone else with a proven eye for goal for the days he just can’t get the job done. We should’ve been 4 goals up and out of sight in the first half, Harris with at least a couple. Then again the fact we went in 2-0 up does owe largely to some of his play so it’s not black and white.

Agree with that. A player like Harris with his pace, movement plus a finishing touch would unlikely to be playing in league one though.

 

[Grumpy Git]

Why didn’t he just sweep it in when the keeper was absolutely nowhere? That extra touch was so unnecessary and is a sign of his lack of confidence.

If he’d tried to sweep it in and missed, people would have said he should have taken an extra touch.

 

[notThisWayButThat]

Cracking Photo. I hope Short stays, the club needs to honour his service. Has to be part of the new manager requirements. KEEP SHORTY!

The reactions to shorty, you could tell, were sincere when they congratulated him. You could see it.
That pic speaks volumes.

 

[Jster]

I think Harris is an excellent contributor to the front line - think of him as a "false 9" if you want to obsess about how many goals a "proper" number 9 should score. His passing and movement contributes a great deal to the team, and he was involved in all 3 goals yesterday, wasn't he?

 

[Yellowecky]

It was very enthusiastic of the Leyton Orient players to try to swap shirts while the game was still in progress.

 

[bazzer9461]

Well if we follow Mousinho’s example of hoping events derail teams then perhaps we should be ‘celebrating’ Reagan Poole’s injury because it clearly weakens them.

We shouldn’t celebrate someone’s injury it’s happened to us in the past.

 

[tonyw]

But then we go to the chances missed. It isn’t just unlucky, there’s an art to finishing, it isn’t “hit it in the general direction of goal and hope” - that would bring luck in to the equation. The first double miss is unforgivable. When he hits the bar, he’s 1vs1 and your strikers must be scoring there. It’s close but he’s missed. He misses too many for it to be rotten luck and 14 hours (I think?) without a goal given the quality of chances he’s had is not good enough.

And you haven't even mentioned the second Rodrigues goal, where he has two whacks at it from inside the six yard box and somehow conspires to hit the Orient keeper both times (before Ruben shows him how it's done).

I do agree with Scotchers' general sentiment though - there's so many goals throughout this squad, and Harris contributes so much outside of goals, that we're good enough to get promoted with him leading the line for 40+ games.

But if we found a striker that could do what he can do, and could finish, then we'd probably win the league by ten points!
(though BM is right - that sort of player is unlikely to be dropping into League One)

 

[Carpy]

93% of the vote for Rodrigues for the forum man of the match, I can't recall the last time a player won it so convincingly

 

[bazzer9461]

The smiles on the faces mean a lot.

 

[Nadi-]

I think Harris is an excellent contributor to the front line - think of him as a "false 9" if you want to obsess about how many goals a "proper" number 9 should score. His passing and movement contributes a great deal to the team, and he was involved in all 3 goals yesterday, wasn't he?

I agree with that, but once he finds himself in the position of scoring, I’m afraid he needs to do better

 

[Followtheox1]

I agree with that, but once he finds himself in the position of scoring, I’m afraid he needs to do better

Oh, that bit after the comma was pretty much every parents evening I ever had.

Seriously though, he does bring a lot to the team. Hopefully his finishing will come but his previous record is not amazing so it makes me think he was brought in with that in mind i.e the rest of his game will ensure he creates opportunities for the other attacking players.

 

[windmill]

Limited edition print from the club (or whoever ), suitably framed....what a great Christmas present....they do not come any better. A fortnight off now, so everybody can relax. Brown and Edwards back for Cheltenham.

 

[Northernyellow]

I’m somewhere in between with this debate. I agree with you that his movement causes never ending problems for teams, however, things like staying onside are fairly critical to that meaning anything. I thought he started the game poorly, gave the ball away, silly fouls and offside a lot. He grew in to things and you’re absolutely right, the assist for the first goal was extremely well executed; the touch, the patience and the weight of pass having missed a sitter seconds before was really impressive.

But then we go to the chances missed. It isn’t just unlucky, there’s an art to finishing, it isn’t “hit it in the general direction of goal and hope” - that would bring luck in to the equation. The first double miss is unforgivable. When he hits the bar, he’s 1vs1 and your strikers must be scoring there. It’s close but he’s missed. He misses too many for it to be rotten luck and 14 hours (I think?) without a goal given the quality of chances he’s had is not good enough.

I think he will have patches in the season, like earlier on, where he gets a few goals and they may turn out to be in crucial games and therefore not his quantity that plays it’s part in promotion, but when he chooses to put them in (derby away, a good example). But I think in the main he will frustrate and we need someone else with a proven eye for goal for the days he just can’t get the job done. We should’ve been 4 goals up and out of sight in the first half, Harris with at least a couple. Then again the fact we went in 2-0 up does owe largely to some of his play so it’s not black and white.

His goal per game is pretty poor for a forward (1:9, or near enough). I saw him close up yesterday. He's not a bad player at all, but he can't finish. He appears to panic whenever he gets a chance. He's not good enough as a first choice forward, if we hope to go up. As a backup/late sub, he's fine.