The Lisa Mansfield match thread

Worked today,put the football results on and super shez pulled one out the bag, im shocked, argyle usually dont do lucky!

hairy j wrote:

Freathy wrote:

Mansfield will be f***ing furious.  Talk about being mugged.  We should have lost this by about 6 or 7.  We are shit.

Have a massive wank.

Think you just did it for him  

Sir Francis Drake wrote:

Tringreen wrote:

Brilliant absolutely. Result fantastic.

Aviva heaven in the cauldron at Mansfield. Attendance 3,379........... wouldn't even fill our ministand   

To be fair the home fans got behind their team really well. I was only listening to the radio but there was some real crowd atmosphere coming through and it usually doesn't.

Today seemed to be a proper away win of the sort Sturrock used to get almost every time at one stage. They battered us, should have scored, didn't and we stiffed them at the death. Perfick.

We have been on the wrong end of such a game often enough for me to celebrate this one if you don't mind. Sometimes the "Aviva" thing is a valid dig but this time it isn't. A totally undeserved away win, against the odds, against all expectation, with an injury time set-piece is a thing of beauty to be savoured, relished, enjoyed and celebrated.

The Aviva 'thing' is perfectly valid . Naaaaaaaaarich, sponsored by Aviva, turned down the gig. Our parochial dimwits welcomed it   

The nature of the beast does not change because of a scrappy win at Mansfield, as welcome as that may be.

Angry wrote:

Coxside_Green wrote:

akagreengull wrote:

Yep true to form most posters have their waving scarf smilie in full action. Bless!

Silly comment.

I'm hoping there are problems with the pathetic developments.  A non-compliant manager who has sussed he is being deliberately hindered, fighting back rather than giving up would be the icing on the cake.  Not expecting but certainly hoping.  

joking right? they would hail beating a pub side as a massive achievement and for Argyle thats sadly true.

on a totally unrelated matter who is looking forward to the fa cup draaw tomorrow?

You'll have to explain the joke to me in "Not expecting but certainly hoping". I do realise over the last 5 years we've had a load of freak results which have led to false dawns to the masses but for the realistic could easily be shrugged off.

Against all hope I'm just hoping things at HP aren't all as they seem right now. The team has been shit but the last couple of weeks has seen an improvement, not a lot but an improvement nonetheless. It has coincided with rumblings the developments off the pitch aren't as straight-forward as they once appeared. Sheridan has taken a lot of shit on PASOTI, some on there (the compliant) never even wanted him after saving us last season and always been ready with their backstabbing knives. Many on here have either supported or stood by Sheridan realising his situation. After today's result I'd love him to take confidence from the 5% that should be ignored (thanks president) who can see what's happening and go from strength to strength against Brent's wishes of keeping us as a struggling club until his developments get built. Where's the joke?

Some sobering comments on the Pasoti brief synopsis thread, in particular the one from Spark who was at the game, as was S Powell who honestly isn't another Pasoti multi or Webby  

He's even worse than Saracen 10 and that's saying something. Whatever did happen to Saracen 10 anyway?

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Greenjock wrote:

Some sobering comments on the Pasoti brief synopsis thread, in particular the one from Spark who was at the game, as was S Powell who honestly isn't another Pasoti multi or Webby  

He's even worse than Saracen 10 and that's saying something. Whatever did happen to Saracen 10 anyway?

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Saracen 10 disappeared the same time as spolwell 92 appeared,both these genuine real fans agree with knobber nool, which is a shock to no one....

Yeaaahhhhhhhhhh
We fokin wun innit.
Up yours Freeeeeeevy

First game for over a year and if truth be told we mugged em.
Our two stand out players were Trotman and Luke and that basically tells the story as they dominated the first half. I went with an old friend who went to Hartlepool and he still cannot believe we lost that game so maybe a bit of luck has come our way.
My overall impression is that we are an average side at best and how Boco gets in the side I'll never know. Far too many stray passes and Hourihane apart the players treat it like it's a hot potato. Still onward and downward to see us against The Cobblers next Saturday before heading back to the land of smiles.
Good support from the Green army as usual.

My understanding of Boco when he signed was a bit of an individualist who could score the occasional wonder-goal, not the important team player. Probably came cheap-ish. Fall-guy.

With Branston in the team, Wotton back in the fold, perhaps a few things have been aired and agreed. I Live in hope there's a rebellion to succeed.

' I fink, we went free , four , free '  

Cheer up sleepy greens
oh what can it be
to have a shit owner
........................

New day new depression

Greenjock wrote:

Some sobering comments on the Pasoti brief synopsis thread, in particular the one from Spark who was at the game, as was S Powell who honestly isn't another Pasoti multi or Webby  

He's even worse than Saracen 10 and that's saying something. Whatever did happen to Saracen 10 anyway?

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Oddly enough, my faith in Sheridan has diminished a little further even after a win away from home to a team much higher up the league than us. I was surprised by the level of positivity following that performance...if Trotman hadn't have popped up with a winner the atmosphere (at the game and the subsequent forum fallout) would have been completely different.

Away fans are pretty patient and generally enjoy their day out; win, lose or draw. There were murmurings of discontent at times as simple passes were not completed, possession was given away cheaply, attacks broke down weakly, half hearted challenges went in, etc etc. Such was the frustration, there was a point in the second half when the green army sporadically broke out in to an 'Attack, attack, attack-attack-attack!' chant and also 'Sheridan's got to go' (although the latter was only chanted by a handful and died out pretty quickly).

I'm generally pretty positive and I wanted to give Sheridan as much time as possible, but after that I think the guy is on borrowed time. He has brought in some dreadful players and we seem to be absolutely clueless tactically. He puts square pegs in round holes and it clearly doesn't work. The only saving grace for me is that I don't have to watch them every week, I feel sorry for the hardy souls that turn up regularly to witness such dross. I've seen some pretty bad argyle sides over the last 25 years or so, but is this the worst?!

Cheers Sparkke nice to have an objective view.

The three points are most welcome but I'm not putting out the bunting just yet. It may turn out to be the stroke of luck we needed or even deserved or it may just bring temporary respite for Sheridan. Let's roll over Northampton next week and take it from there.

hairy j wrote:

Yeaaahhhhhhhhhh
We fokin wun innit.
Up yours Freeeeeeevy

It's 3 points towards league survival we shouldn't have got. Maybe it means we don't go to Pompey already expelled from the league but go there needing a win instead.

Greenjock wrote:

Cheers Sparkke nice to have an objective view.

The three points are most welcome but I'm not putting out the bunting just yet. It may turn out to be the stroke of luck we needed or even deserved or it may just bring temporary respite for Sheridan. Let's roll over Northampton next week and take it from there.

No probs. I think anyone getting carried away with this will have a serious reality check against Northampton...I hope I'm wrong!

Sparkk wrote:

Greenjock wrote:

Cheers Sparkke nice to have an objective view.

The three points are most welcome but I'm not putting out the bunting just yet. It may turn out to be the stroke of luck we needed or even deserved or it may just bring temporary respite for Sheridan. Let's roll over Northampton next week and take it from there.

No probs. I think anyone getting carried away with this will have a serious reality check against Northampton...I hope I'm wrong!

This will be the real test of whether the corner has been turned, we have failed to win any of our six pointers in the last five years, especially at home we nearly always choke Against teams at the bottom of the table. Will Northampton come for a point? Probably but we need the three, pressure is on them though, I might even drag my arse down for that one even if only to sneer at Brent and his failing plans.  

Iggy wrote:

Sparkk wrote:

Greenjock wrote:

Cheers Sparkke nice to have an objective view.

The three points are most welcome but I'm not putting out the bunting just yet. It may turn out to be the stroke of luck we needed or even deserved or it may just bring temporary respite for Sheridan. Let's roll over Northampton next week and take it from there.

No probs. I think anyone getting carried away with this will have a serious reality check against Northampton...I hope I'm wrong!

This will be the real test of whether the corner has been turned, we have failed to win any of our six pointers in the last five years, especially at home we nearly always choke Against teams at the bottom of the table. Will Northampton come for a point? Probably but we need the three, pressure is on them though, I might even drag my arse down for that one even if only to sneer at Brent and his failing plans.  

Must admit I'm surprised that Boothroyd is struggling with the Cobblers.

I know that the usual suspects who hate Holloway also dislike Boothroyd but I've always had a gut feeling he'd be good for us, as Holloway was.

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He can also string a few sentences together, dontchafink ?

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Will x throbber and brent be in the trenches for this one? A mate of mine asked me if i fancied going to the northampton relegation battle, for some strange reason i 've got the urge to go! mind you its only sunday, a week of the usual brentynooly bollocks plus no sign of a new striker, i will probably be like the x throbber and not bother.

Love Sparkk's avatar. One of my favourite Vic & Bob sketches that.

Good to see Argyle have a small piece of luck for a change.

Conflicting stories about who was better than who,are being written over on PASOTI.

I will take those three points though...

My views as copy and pasted from the Pasoti thread:

Player ratings:
McCormick- 9. MOTM. Saved us on several occasions. Two big saves and his general cross collection was superb.
Blanchard-9. See above except swap goals with 'goal saving tackles' and swap 'cross collection' with 'positioning and marking'.
Trotman-8. Made a few cock-ups but realised his mistakes and made up for them excellently each time. On the whole a very good defensive performance and seems to look more and more like a good stopper defender with every game he plays.
Branston- 5. Still not a fan overall. Still has no idea where he's supposed to be in relation to his man and still gives the ball back to the opposition every time he clears. However two moments were golden- bounding down the left-wing and attempting a cross which won us a corner and a herculean clearance just before we scored that would have stopped a likely Mansfield goal.
Berry-5. Meh. Very average throughout. Defensively he was decent but going forward utterly useless. Toothless product and scared to take a man on.
Nelson- 8. The decision to play him was an excellent one from Sheridan. It was his sitting deep in midfield, collection of interceptions and making tackles that allowed us to get onto a more even footing in the second half by allowing the midfield players around him to push forward without fear of being left open. Was a tad wasteful with his passing but on the whole was a huge part of how we won.
Hourihane-5. Very mediocre throughout. Was involved in most of the attacking play second half (and breaks in first) but he showed a real lack of incisiveness in passing and decision making. Too much of what he tried went awry, and what he did try wasn't enough. In August/September he was far and away our best player for me but he's had a pretty average month. Bloody excellent delivery for the goal though and a reminder of what he's capable of.
Boco-4. I'm afraid I'm losing patience with him. He was played in his preferred central position today and still had a stinker as he has done every game recently except for Pompey. Even more wasteful on the counter than the rest of our midfield. He's a good technical player who could and almost certainly would play well in a better side but he's offering very little to us just now. Hourihane and Young have vastly outshone him this season and Alessandra has been better since moving away from 4-4-2 too.
Reckord-2. Just terrible. Anonymous and out of position going forward, ditto at the back. It meant Branston, Allesandra or Hourihane having to cover him for much of the time. Neither of those three had good games but at least they got stuck in there and tried to do stuff. Reckord was and is absolutely atrocious. It's a shame that he and Blackman are probably the worst two players in the squad and they're both wing-backs. It really does make you wonder what Ben Purrington has to do.
Reid-6. Good solid game, linked up and held up as well as ever. Finishing still as toothless as ever though.
Alessandra-5. I'm afraid, despite his sensational cameo against Pompey, he's just really a very average player who offers little. He was busy and lacking in no effort but he couldn't get any balls under control and lacked the guile to win any second balls up front. We were better after he went off.
Gurrieri- 7. Very solid game and his involvement was just what we needed. We were playing the counter-attack well and today just proves what Gurrieri is best at. Sitting in the midfield and playing the sharp, short passes to keep us ticking over. When you give him a free role behind the strikers then his lack of end product becomes evident but used like he was yesterday and his virtues are evident- industries, creates pacey counters and keeps possession. I'd sooner have Young start than Gurrieri, but on the basis of yesterday I'd quite possibly sooner have Gurrieri start than Boco.
Harvey-7. Yesterday dispelled the myth that Tyler is ineffectual from the bench. He's only ineffectual from the bench when Argyle are sitting so deep we never get the ball out of our own half. Yesterday we got it out of our own half very well but we just struggled with what to do with it when we got it there. Harvey helped with this. Got involved in some good link-up play to move us into their final third and his determination to keep possession and not be muscled off the ball when he is in possession of it won us the free kick which led to the goal. I'd start him above Alessandra.
Hayes-6. Looked bright enough when he came on and got involved in some decent movement but not as good as Harvey was. Still nothing to write home about.

Positives overall:
All our lines of defence were very solid. Most of our defensive players at least knew where to be when defending if not when going forward. It was a good, Luggy-esque performance in the first half. We soaked up pressure very well and Nelson's involvement in filling the defence/midfield gap worked wonders for our transition counter attacking play. In the cases where they did break us down, the last line of defence (Luke and Max) did the job they're paid for. It's no coincidence how much better the defence has got since Max Blanchard returned to the side either. He's our best defender by a country mile and one of the best players we have. In the second half we grew into the game with a bit more confidence and created several more goalscoring chances. We showed good delivery from set pieces not only for the goal but also for a goalline scramble from a corner a few minutes earlier.

Negatives overall:
Whilst we played the counter attack well, as I have mentioned, we stalled to a halt and killed off our own momentum once we actually got too far into Mansfield's half. It was as if we all had nosebleeds. Indecisive, panicky and each player frightened to be the one to try to do anything other than treat the ball like a hot potato. We played with fear from minute 1 to minute 90 plus 3 as we so often do. Also in the first half I felt we sat too deep and didn't attempt enough rapid counters but as others have said , this rectified itself in the second half even if the creativity problem did not. We have now scored from open play in only two of the twenty eight halves of football that we have played in the league this season- let's reflect on that. 2 in 28. The goalscoring problem is a full blown crisis. The defence is more or less sorted for now but something needs to be done up top.

On the whole:
Mansfield had the better of the game- there's no doubting that. Their fans and manager will feel unhappy not to have picked up all three points let alone one. However, we defended very well throughout the game and Curtis Nelson's role allowed us to play the counter like we haven't done in a long time. Going forward though we were hopeless and never going to score from open play in a month of Sundays. We need to tweak the attack a bit still, in either personnel, style or a bit of both. Will this be a turning point? Probably no. Will we still struggle this season again relegation? Probably yes. Do I still want Sheridan out? Yes. Am I still very unhappy with the club on the whole? Yes.

BUT, were there signs of positivity to take from yesterday except just the scoreline? Yes. Did it still feel utterly spectacular, leaving me with a wide grin on my face for the rest of the day and send me utterly mad for the ten minutes following the goal/full time? Yes it bloody well did. I've never been so disillusioned and utterly sick and angry to the back teeth with supporting this football club as the past few weeks. Whilst my concerns still remain, that game was just the tonic I needed. A 93rd minute 1-0 away victory made for an absolutely perfect day as it always does. Yesterday was nigh on perfect and just how I remember it from when supporting this club was fun and worth sacrificing money on other things for. I say nigh on perfect as a few of the demons that have dragged us down were still tangible in the second half before the goal. As we started to get more of a foothold on the half, our flaws such as every player visibly emanating the air of 'urrrgh these big scary Mansfield players are running at me and I don't know what to do, I'll just get rid of it to the man next to me' became obvious and so did the anger of the fans. At one point, we were so physically wound up by the players lack of initiative and guile that we as one all started an angry chorus of 'ATTACK, ATTACK, ATTACK'.

And whilst I am happy with the best of Argyle that sent me into euphoria and a sense of giddy, happy disbelief yesterday which I'm even now only just on the come down from, we also saw the worst of Argyle for some brief moments. The fear culture that has riddled the club and the 'negativity is norm, mediocrity is to be cherished' mindset that has poisoned the club and seems to seep into the brain of every player that joins us was also evident with our mind numblingly infuriating failure to just do something. As I was saying to my travelling companions on the way to the game yesterday, the losers mentality has got so deep into the club that it seems almost impossible to cut the club open and remove it. We agreed that it would take something pretty massive and cataclysmic in order to ever put us back to a club that can actually do positive things, and not just look forward to an annual battle with the drop. Even mid-table would feel like winning the European Cup, the FA Cup and the World Cup all in one- not because that would be a good standard for a club of our size to aim for in this division but it would at least show us that we aren't doomed to this losers mentality forever more.

There have however, been signs of progress since changing the formation and bringing certain players back into the side. There have been indications that, had we not been in a malaise of five years, would hint that our fortunes could be about to change. The thing is though, we are in that malaise. Lifting ourselves fully out of it will be an experience that we haven't had in five and a half years. Please, please Argyle let's surprise ourselves. Let's let that euphoria of that 93rd minute winner be just what we need to get that taste for more. Let's let it be the trigger for a mentality that is desperate for success, rather than is desperate to avoid going into the Conference. Let's build on the improvements over the last 5 or so games though and iron out the areas that we're still useless in. Will we do it or will it be one of many false dawns leading to a return to the usual doom? In all probability, the latter. But going on from yesterday, I'll be giving the team every decibel of my support to urge them on to ensure that it is the former- starting at Mansfield on Saturday and then again at Lincoln/Worcestor after that. We'll see how it goes.

COME ON ARGYLE.

GreenSam wrote:

My views as copy and pasted from the Pasoti thread:

Player ratings:
McCormick- 9. MOTM. Saved us on several occasions. Two big saves and his general cross collection was superb.
Blanchard-9. See above except swap goals with 'goal saving tackles' and swap 'cross collection' with 'positioning and marking'.
Trotman-8. Made a few cock-ups but realised his mistakes and made up for them excellently each time. On the whole a very good defensive performance and seems to look more and more like a good stopper defender with every game he plays.
Branston- 5. Still not a fan overall. Still has no idea where he's supposed to be in relation to his man and still gives the ball back to the opposition every time he clears. However two moments were golden- bounding down the left-wing and attempting a cross which won us a corner and a herculean clearance just before we scored that would have stopped a likely Mansfield goal.
Berry-5. Meh. Very average throughout. Defensively he was decent but going forward utterly useless. Toothless product and scared to take a man on.
Nelson- 8. The decision to play him was an excellent one from Sheridan. It was his sitting deep in midfield, collection of interceptions and making tackles that allowed us to get onto a more even footing in the second half by allowing the midfield players around him to push forward without fear of being left open. Was a tad wasteful with his passing but on the whole was a huge part of how we won.
Hourihane-5. Very mediocre throughout. Was involved in most of the attacking play second half (and breaks in first) but he showed a real lack of incisiveness in passing and decision making. Too much of what he tried went awry, and what he did try wasn't enough. In August/September he was far and away our best player for me but he's had a pretty average month. Bloody excellent delivery for the goal though and a reminder of what he's capable of.
Boco-4. I'm afraid I'm losing patience with him. He was played in his preferred central position today and still had a stinker as he has done every game recently except for Pompey. Even more wasteful on the counter than the rest of our midfield. He's a good technical player who could and almost certainly would play well in a better side but he's offering very little to us just now. Hourihane and Young have vastly outshone him this season and Alessandra has been better since moving away from 4-4-2 too.
Reckord-2. Just terrible. Anonymous and out of position going forward, ditto at the back. It meant Branston, Allesandra or Hourihane having to cover him for much of the time. Neither of those three had good games but at least they got stuck in there and tried to do stuff. Reckord was and is absolutely atrocious. It's a shame that he and Blackman are probably the worst two players in the squad and they're both wing-backs. It really does make you wonder what Ben Purrington has to do.
Reid-6. Good solid game, linked up and held up as well as ever. Finishing still as toothless as ever though.
Alessandra-5. I'm afraid, despite his sensational cameo against Pompey, he's just really a very average player who offers little. He was busy and lacking in no effort but he couldn't get any balls under control and lacked the guile to win any second balls up front. We were better after he went off.
Gurrieri- 7. Very solid game and his involvement was just what we needed. We were playing the counter-attack well and today just proves what Gurrieri is best at. Sitting in the midfield and playing the sharp, short passes to keep us ticking over. When you give him a free role behind the strikers then his lack of end product becomes evident but used like he was yesterday and his virtues are evident- industries, creates pacey counters and keeps possession. I'd sooner have Young start than Gurrieri, but on the basis of yesterday I'd quite possibly sooner have Gurrieri start than Boco.
Harvey-7. Yesterday dispelled the myth that Tyler is ineffectual from the bench. He's only ineffectual from the bench when Argyle are sitting so deep we never get the ball out of our own half. Yesterday we got it out of our own half very well but we just struggled with what to do with it when we got it there. Harvey helped with this. Got involved in some good link-up play to move us into their final third and his determination to keep possession and not be muscled off the ball when he is in possession of it won us the free kick which led to the goal. I'd start him above Alessandra.
Hayes-6. Looked bright enough when he came on and got involved in some decent movement but not as good as Harvey was. Still nothing to write home about.

Positives overall:
All our lines of defence were very solid. Most of our defensive players at least knew where to be when defending if not when going forward. It was a good, Luggy-esque performance in the first half. We soaked up pressure very well and Nelson's involvement in filling the defence/midfield gap worked wonders for our transition counter attacking play. In the cases where they did break us down, the last line of defence (Luke and Max) did the job they're paid for. It's no coincidence how much better the defence has got since Max Blanchard returned to the side either. He's our best defender by a country mile and one of the best players we have. In the second half we grew into the game with a bit more confidence and created several more goalscoring chances. We showed good delivery from set pieces not only for the goal but also for a goalline scramble from a corner a few minutes earlier.

Negatives overall:
Whilst we played the counter attack well, as I have mentioned, we stalled to a halt and killed off our own momentum once we actually got too far into Mansfield's half. It was as if we all had nosebleeds. Indecisive, panicky and each player frightened to be the one to try to do anything other than treat the ball like a hot potato. We played with fear from minute 1 to minute 90 plus 3 as we so often do. Also in the first half I felt we sat too deep and didn't attempt enough rapid counters but as others have said , this rectified itself in the second half even if the creativity problem did not. We have now scored from open play in only two of the twenty eight halves of football that we have played in the league this season- let's reflect on that. 2 in 28. The goalscoring problem is a full blown crisis. The defence is more or less sorted for now but something needs to be done up top.

On the whole:
Mansfield had the better of the game- there's no doubting that. Their fans and manager will feel unhappy not to have picked up all three points let alone one. However, we defended very well throughout the game and Curtis Nelson's role allowed us to play the counter like we haven't done in a long time. Going forward though we were hopeless and never going to score from open play in a month of Sundays. We need to tweak the attack a bit still, in either personnel, style or a bit of both. Will this be a turning point? Probably no. Will we still struggle this season again relegation? Probably yes. Do I still want Sheridan out? Yes. Am I still very unhappy with the club on the whole? Yes.

BUT, were there signs of positivity to take from yesterday except just the scoreline? Yes. Did it still feel utterly spectacular, leaving me with a wide grin on my face for the rest of the day and send me utterly mad for the ten minutes following the goal/full time? Yes it bloody well did. I've never been so disillusioned and utterly sick and angry to the back teeth with supporting this football club as the past few weeks. Whilst my concerns still remain, that game was just the tonic I needed. A 93rd minute 1-0 away victory made for an absolutely perfect day as it always does. Yesterday was nigh on perfect and just how I remember it from when supporting this club was fun and worth sacrificing money on other things for. I say nigh on perfect as a few of the demons that have dragged us down were still tangible in the second half before the goal. As we started to get more of a foothold on the half, our flaws such as every player visibly emanating the air of 'urrrgh these big scary Mansfield players are running at me and I don't know what to do, I'll just get rid of it to the man next to me' became obvious and so did the anger of the fans. At one point, we were so physically wound up by the players lack of initiative and guile that we as one all started an angry chorus of 'ATTACK, ATTACK, ATTACK'.

And whilst I am happy with the best of Argyle that sent me into euphoria and a sense of giddy, happy disbelief yesterday which I'm even now only just on the come down from, we also saw the worst of Argyle for some brief moments. The fear culture that has riddled the club and the 'negativity is norm, mediocrity is to be cherished' mindset that has poisoned the club and seems to seep into the brain of every player that joins us was also evident with our mind numblingly infuriating failure to just do something. As I was saying to my travelling companions on the way to the game yesterday, the losers mentality has got so deep into the club that it seems almost impossible to cut the club open and remove it. We agreed that it would take something pretty massive and cataclysmic in order to ever put us back to a club that can actually do positive things, and not just look forward to an annual battle with the drop. Even mid-table would feel like winning the European Cup, the FA Cup and the World Cup all in one- not because that would be a good standard for a club of our size to aim for in this division but it would at least show us that we aren't doomed to this losers mentality forever more.

There have however, been signs of progress since changing the formation and bringing certain players back into the side. There have been indications that, had we not been in a malaise of five years, would hint that our fortunes could be about to change. The thing is though, we are in that malaise. Lifting ourselves fully out of it will be an experience that we haven't had in five and a half years. Please, please Argyle let's surprise ourselves. Let's let that euphoria of that 93rd minute winner be just what we need to get that taste for more. Let's let it be the trigger for a mentality that is desperate for success, rather than is desperate to avoid going into the Conference. Let's build on the improvements over the last 5 or so games though and iron out the areas that we're still useless in. Will we do it or will it be one of many false dawns leading to a return to the usual doom? In all probability, the latter. But going on from yesterday, I'll be giving the team every decibel of my support to urge them on to ensure that it is the former- starting at Mansfield on Saturday and then again at Lincoln/Worcestor after that. We'll see how it goes.

COME ON ARGYLE.

Very good post sam! realistic and fair, enjoyed reading it.

Sufferedsince68 wrote:

GreenSam wrote:

My views as copy and pasted from the Pasoti thread:

Player ratings:
McCormick- 9. MOTM. Saved us on several occasions. Two big saves and his general cross collection was superb.
Blanchard-9. See above except swap goals with 'goal saving tackles' and swap 'cross collection' with 'positioning and marking'.
Trotman-8. Made a few cock-ups but realised his mistakes and made up for them excellently each time. On the whole a very good defensive performance and seems to look more and more like a good stopper defender with every game he plays.
Branston- 5. Still not a fan overall. Still has no idea where he's supposed to be in relation to his man and still gives the ball back to the opposition every time he clears. However two moments were golden- bounding down the left-wing and attempting a cross which won us a corner and a herculean clearance just before we scored that would have stopped a likely Mansfield goal.
Berry-5. Meh. Very average throughout. Defensively he was decent but going forward utterly useless. Toothless product and scared to take a man on.
Nelson- 8. The decision to play him was an excellent one from Sheridan. It was his sitting deep in midfield, collection of interceptions and making tackles that allowed us to get onto a more even footing in the second half by allowing the midfield players around him to push forward without fear of being left open. Was a tad wasteful with his passing but on the whole was a huge part of how we won.
Hourihane-5. Very mediocre throughout. Was involved in most of the attacking play second half (and breaks in first) but he showed a real lack of incisiveness in passing and decision making. Too much of what he tried went awry, and what he did try wasn't enough. In August/September he was far and away our best player for me but he's had a pretty average month. Bloody excellent delivery for the goal though and a reminder of what he's capable of.
Boco-4. I'm afraid I'm losing patience with him. He was played in his preferred central position today and still had a stinker as he has done every game recently except for Pompey. Even more wasteful on the counter than the rest of our midfield. He's a good technical player who could and almost certainly would play well in a better side but he's offering very little to us just now. Hourihane and Young have vastly outshone him this season and Alessandra has been better since moving away from 4-4-2 too.
Reckord-2. Just terrible. Anonymous and out of position going forward, ditto at the back. It meant Branston, Allesandra or Hourihane having to cover him for much of the time. Neither of those three had good games but at least they got stuck in there and tried to do stuff. Reckord was and is absolutely atrocious. It's a shame that he and Blackman are probably the worst two players in the squad and they're both wing-backs. It really does make you wonder what Ben Purrington has to do.
Reid-6. Good solid game, linked up and held up as well as ever. Finishing still as toothless as ever though.
Alessandra-5. I'm afraid, despite his sensational cameo against Pompey, he's just really a very average player who offers little. He was busy and lacking in no effort but he couldn't get any balls under control and lacked the guile to win any second balls up front. We were better after he went off.
Gurrieri- 7. Very solid game and his involvement was just what we needed. We were playing the counter-attack well and today just proves what Gurrieri is best at. Sitting in the midfield and playing the sharp, short passes to keep us ticking over. When you give him a free role behind the strikers then his lack of end product becomes evident but used like he was yesterday and his virtues are evident- industries, creates pacey counters and keeps possession. I'd sooner have Young start than Gurrieri, but on the basis of yesterday I'd quite possibly sooner have Gurrieri start than Boco.
Harvey-7. Yesterday dispelled the myth that Tyler is ineffectual from the bench. He's only ineffectual from the bench when Argyle are sitting so deep we never get the ball out of our own half. Yesterday we got it out of our own half very well but we just struggled with what to do with it when we got it there. Harvey helped with this. Got involved in some good link-up play to move us into their final third and his determination to keep possession and not be muscled off the ball when he is in possession of it won us the free kick which led to the goal. I'd start him above Alessandra.
Hayes-6. Looked bright enough when he came on and got involved in some decent movement but not as good as Harvey was. Still nothing to write home about.

Positives overall:
All our lines of defence were very solid. Most of our defensive players at least knew where to be when defending if not when going forward. It was a good, Luggy-esque performance in the first half. We soaked up pressure very well and Nelson's involvement in filling the defence/midfield gap worked wonders for our transition counter attacking play. In the cases where they did break us down, the last line of defence (Luke and Max) did the job they're paid for. It's no coincidence how much better the defence has got since Max Blanchard returned to the side either. He's our best defender by a country mile and one of the best players we have. In the second half we grew into the game with a bit more confidence and created several more goalscoring chances. We showed good delivery from set pieces not only for the goal but also for a goalline scramble from a corner a few minutes earlier.

Negatives overall:
Whilst we played the counter attack well, as I have mentioned, we stalled to a halt and killed off our own momentum once we actually got too far into Mansfield's half. It was as if we all had nosebleeds. Indecisive, panicky and each player frightened to be the one to try to do anything other than treat the ball like a hot potato. We played with fear from minute 1 to minute 90 plus 3 as we so often do. Also in the first half I felt we sat too deep and didn't attempt enough rapid counters but as others have said , this rectified itself in the second half even if the creativity problem did not. We have now scored from open play in only two of the twenty eight halves of football that we have played in the league this season- let's reflect on that. 2 in 28. The goalscoring problem is a full blown crisis. The defence is more or less sorted for now but something needs to be done up top.

On the whole:
Mansfield had the better of the game- there's no doubting that. Their fans and manager will feel unhappy not to have picked up all three points let alone one. However, we defended very well throughout the game and Curtis Nelson's role allowed us to play the counter like we haven't done in a long time. Going forward though we were hopeless and never going to score from open play in a month of Sundays. We need to tweak the attack a bit still, in either personnel, style or a bit of both. Will this be a turning point? Probably no. Will we still struggle this season again relegation? Probably yes. Do I still want Sheridan out? Yes. Am I still very unhappy with the club on the whole? Yes.

BUT, were there signs of positivity to take from yesterday except just the scoreline? Yes. Did it still feel utterly spectacular, leaving me with a wide grin on my face for the rest of the day and send me utterly mad for the ten minutes following the goal/full time? Yes it bloody well did. I've never been so disillusioned and utterly sick and angry to the back teeth with supporting this football club as the past few weeks. Whilst my concerns still remain, that game was just the tonic I needed. A 93rd minute 1-0 away victory made for an absolutely perfect day as it always does. Yesterday was nigh on perfect and just how I remember it from when supporting this club was fun and worth sacrificing money on other things for. I say nigh on perfect as a few of the demons that have dragged us down were still tangible in the second half before the goal. As we started to get more of a foothold on the half, our flaws such as every player visibly emanating the air of 'urrrgh these big scary Mansfield players are running at me and I don't know what to do, I'll just get rid of it to the man next to me' became obvious and so did the anger of the fans. At one point, we were so physically wound up by the players lack of initiative and guile that we as one all started an angry chorus of 'ATTACK, ATTACK, ATTACK'.

And whilst I am happy with the best of Argyle that sent me into euphoria and a sense of giddy, happy disbelief yesterday which I'm even now only just on the come down from, we also saw the worst of Argyle for some brief moments. The fear culture that has riddled the club and the 'negativity is norm, mediocrity is to be cherished' mindset that has poisoned the club and seems to seep into the brain of every player that joins us was also evident with our mind numblingly infuriating failure to just do something. As I was saying to my travelling companions on the way to the game yesterday, the losers mentality has got so deep into the club that it seems almost impossible to cut the club open and remove it. We agreed that it would take something pretty massive and cataclysmic in order to ever put us back to a club that can actually do positive things, and not just look forward to an annual battle with the drop. Even mid-table would feel like winning the European Cup, the FA Cup and the World Cup all in one- not because that would be a good standard for a club of our size to aim for in this division but it would at least show us that we aren't doomed to this losers mentality forever more.

There have however, been signs of progress since changing the formation and bringing certain players back into the side. There have been indications that, had we not been in a malaise of five years, would hint that our fortunes could be about to change. The thing is though, we are in that malaise. Lifting ourselves fully out of it will be an experience that we haven't had in five and a half years. Please, please Argyle let's surprise ourselves. Let's let that euphoria of that 93rd minute winner be just what we need to get that taste for more. Let's let it be the trigger for a mentality that is desperate for success, rather than is desperate to avoid going into the Conference. Let's build on the improvements over the last 5 or so games though and iron out the areas that we're still useless in. Will we do it or will it be one of many false dawns leading to a return to the usual doom? In all probability, the latter. But going on from yesterday, I'll be giving the team every decibel of my support to urge them on to ensure that it is the former- starting at Mansfield on Saturday and then again at Lincoln/Worcestor after that. We'll see how it goes.

COME ON ARGYLE.

Very good post sam! realistic and fair, enjoyed reading it.

Me too.

GreenSam has my nomination for the Match Report of the Year Award.

Does Sam do radio?