Home Match Day Thread 30/10/2021 L1: OUFC v Morecambe

[MJB]

Watching that again, we scored three excellent team goals yesterday.

And that hit from Stockton - woof.

 

[Jster]

Yeah, the right side was our definite weakness all game. They had their number 3 and number 7 linking up well and causing Long no end of trouble (no fault of his, they were just plain good - he stuck to his task, and by the end was starting to come out on top), which meant Long couldn't get forward as much as usual, and Sykes was completely ineffectual (one of my favourite players when he's on it, but he wasn't yesterday). I said at half time we should bring on Whyte, and I wish we had done so earlier. We needed to give them something to think about on that side.

 

[Followtheox1]

Yeah, the right side was our definite weakness all game. They had their number 3 and number 7 linking up well and causing Long no end of trouble (no fault of his, they were just plain good - he stuck to his task, and by the end was starting to come out on top), which meant Long couldn't get forward as much as usual, and Sykes was completely ineffectual (one of my favourite players when he's on it, but he wasn't yesterday). I said at half time we should bring on Whyte, and I wish we had done so earlier. We needed to give them something to think about on that side.

Their goal came from our left side. I actually thought their right winger, can't remember number, who they took off was their best player for them.

 

[Jster]

Yeah, perhaps that was more in the first half. I think Long gradually got to grips with them, and they weren't as dominant on that side in the second half.

 

[Followtheox1]

He was poor today.

McGuane was the one that gave the midfield energy when he came on.

I didn't think Kane was at his best but in my view still did some good things and provided energy. I like McGuane and he did well in the 20 minutes he was on against a tiring Morecambe. However, he has been inconsistent and has been criticized loads on here by the 'have one bad game panic brigade'. I hope he can stay injury free and build consistency to his game as we all know there is a player in there.

 

[windmill]

Watching that again, we scored three excellent team goals yesterday.

And that hit from Stockton - woof.

Surely Easty could have made a better effort to stop that shot.....it was close to his left shoulder

 

[DavidB]

Surely Easty could have made a better effort to stop that shot.....it was close to his left shoulder

Little more than a back pass really!

 

[bazzer9461]

Well, I was there, as per usual I don’t agree with some of what’s been said on here, so here’s my opinion for what it’s worth (probably not much)

I felt Morecambe were very poor. Some of their midfielders could barely control the ball and they didn’t offer much apart from a long punt forwards of a hopeful cross. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that they’ve lost 8 and won 4, a reversal of our won 8 and lost 4… although the goalscorer, Stockton, seemed to have something about him and their left winger McDonald was also dangerous, so they weren’t absolute no-hopers by any means. After they scored they were a different team for a while, but eventually were well beaten.

We were nowhere near our best however, especially in the first half where our passing was so slow and completely lacked imagination, constantly going backwards. However we did look to be the side who wanted to be on the ball and make things happen, and we got a bit of luck and also had more quality than them in the end.

My player ratings:

Eastwood: 6 - I thought his kicking was terrible, especially in the first half, although it did improve. Nothing he could do about the goal. He’s not as nimble as Stevens but he’s solid enough.

Long: 6 - Not his best game for me, he was done a couple of times and didn’t get forward much. Sykes didn’t always offer him great protection though

Moore: 7 - Solid enough, didn’t seem to want to bring the ball out of defence much but saw a lot of it. One terrible pass nearly put us in trouble, but he’s clearly a decent defender.

Thorniley: 7 - His long passing was hit and miss. Again he had opportunities to bring the ball out from defence but didnt - Rob Atkinson would have had a field day against this Morecambe team. I think we can put to bed the idea that he’s anywhere near his level, but he did his job.

Seddon: 7 - Early on he was offering absolutely nothing defensively, and I was thinking to myself he looks devoid of all confidence, but to be fair to him he was in the right position for the goal, and he actually did very well for the assist as well. Repeatedly finds himself so far up the pitch, which is an attacking threat but means we are very susceptible on the break down his side.

Gorrin: 6 - I just don’t think he was needed at home against a side who were never going to be pressing us with wave after wave of attacks. He ended up having the ball a lot and slowing us down with backwards passes. He did make a couple of good interceptions and he’s definitely worth a place away from home against the better sides. Ballooned an awful shot over the bar from a good position.

Kane: 6.5 - One of his worst games for us, certainly since his recent good form. I think he looks better at the base of midfield, where he can constantly be on the ball and spray it around. At one point he dwelled on the ball far too long in the middle of the park and gave it away. However, he worked ridiculously hard and was everywhere at times, closing down and tracking back. Certainly no lack of effort or desire which was nice to see from a loan player.

Henry: 5.5 - Terrible penalty miss - you have to hit the target at least surely? - and at a stage which would have put Morecambe down, but instead spurred them on. Also shot when a simple pass to Sykes on the right would have seen him in. Wasn’t bad overall without setting the game alight.

Sykes: 5 - I didn’t think he was great yesterday, he looked slow in a position where Morecambe would have been susceptible to pace. His crossing wasn’t bad but nothing special. Did well to be in there for his goal though.

Taylor: 7.5 - A weird one as I thought his general all round play, and build up play, was very poor. He barely won a header, and a couple of times gave the ball away trying to dribble in midfield. However he got two assists and the goal, what more do you want! The second assist especially was a lovely header back across goal, and for his goal it was a great finish. He’s a poacher and on this form will snaffle up any chances you can give him.

Holland: 7 - He looked so dangerous, a complete contrast to our right hand side, as he had pace and wanted to run at the fullback. Twice he cut inside and shot, and really should have done better with one of them. Hopefully the recent flashes he’s shown aren’t his ceiling as if he can keep improving and do it on a regular basis for 90 minutes he will terrorise some fullbacks at this level.

As for the subs, McGuane looked very good when he came on. I’d like to see him get a start soon.

Felt Sam long coped well with McDonald you forgot to mention Easty’s kick out Seddon which led to Sykes goal which was a sublime bit of play.

 

[oufc1991]

Maybe it’s time to drop Eastwood again I mean 3 games in a week and concedes 4 goals not good enough

 

[DevilsAvocado]

Surely Easty could have made a better effort to stop that shot.....it was close to his left shoulder

Harsh, don`t think we will see a cleaner strike of the ball this season.

Sometimes you just have to put your hands up and say, yea, good goal that.

 

[bazzer9461]

Come on Mods, any chance of you directing the traffic - there are 130 pages of talk about takeovers and new grounds on the consortium thread. Do we need Baz and his negative bile infiltrating this thread, too?

Just being honest and look at everything and every angle, I won’t gush at things until we know what’s happening but if a certain pair are talking regularly with the board and feeding bits when maybe they shouldn’t be then I reply.
Any transfer news yet?

 

[Essexyellows]

Yes, it was also £10 for them.

I'm pleased the club got such a good response.

I had a family bash that I was supposed to attend today, but when I saw the £10 price I thought the club really deserved backing and made my excuses!

Apart from my tenner, I spent £20 in the club shop and £6 in the concourse. The club shop seemed busy, so I reckon the offer really worked well.

Also on a separate note, I made the switch from the East stand to the North Stand a few years ago and I'm so glad I did. You get such a better view of the game, and can get a far better appreciation of the shape of the team etc. £10 was an absolute steal for that view.

I`m no marketing genius but this is the "bonus" those £10 tickets give.
More casual spend.
Better atmosphere.
Better message spread.

That's how you grow it, should have done a 4 game mini-ticket for the midweek games "4 nights under the lights" kind of thing.

 

[Wandering Yellow]

Is CamBran definitely out for the next few weeks?

That is worrying.

 

[Scotchegg]

I`m no marketing genius but this is the "bonus" those £10 tickets give.
More casual spend.
Better atmosphere.
Better message spread.

That's how you grow it, should have done a 4 game mini-ticket for the midweek games "4 nights under the lights" kind of thing.

A huge number of the extras in yesterday were children, so the midweek games won't have the same impact.

Promotions are great, but if they become too frequent then they become less effective.

 

[bazzer9461]

A huge number of the extras in yesterday were children, so the midweek games won't have the same impact.

Promotions are great, but if they become too frequent then they become less effective.

Hope new marketing initiatives get thought and implemented nowhere no one will loan with what they’ve paid in ST’s.

 

[Scotchegg]

Is CamBran definitely out for the next few weeks?

That is worrying.

Haven't heard anything said about the nature of his illness. If Covid related then he misses the FA Cup but hopefully back for Ipswich. If anything else, and remembering the infection that nearly lost him his sight, then my first concern is for him.

 

[bazzer9461]

Haven't heard anything said about the nature of his illness. If Covid related then he misses the FA Cup but hopefully back for Ipswich. If anything else, and remembering the infection that nearly lost him his sight, then my first concern is for him.

Heard it was tonsillitis

 

[Essexyellows]

A huge number of the extras in yesterday were children, so the midweek games won't have the same impact.

Promotions are great, but if they become too frequent then they become less effective.

Considering the wider picture the competition for the "leisure pound" is stronger than ever.

So crank up the promotional bit early on, get people hooked, develop an increased customer base................... keep them interested.

Maybe even drop a few breadcrumbs about "the future"?

 

[NottsYellow]

About 20 tickets short of 8,000 sold at the moment to home fans.

Yesterday's sales were over 550, which is the highest Friday sales of the season, so with Executive Box sales and on the day sales I think we might reach 8,500 home fans, which to me is excellent for such a game, and a few hundred more than I estimated earlier in the week. I hope the weather is better in Oxford than it is here in Nottingham though, as it's pouring with rain here at the moment!

The final figure for home fans was 8,538.
A splendid bit of dot counting and forecasting there, Mr B

 

[MJB]

Harsh, don`t think we will see a cleaner strike of the ball this season.

Sometimes you just have to put your hands up and say, yea, good goal that.

Not sure which caused a bigger whoosh.

Stockton’s shot or your comment [emoji848]