As I write this, I'm not surprised, I'm not angry, I'm just hugely disappointed.
So, let me start by saying, we were the better team. We played the better football, but we were undone by two things: Schoolboy defending for two set pieces, and an absolute lack of creativity.
Their first goal (3 minutes after we scored) was just awful. They had a corner, it came to a totally unmarked Fleetwood player who had a simple header from 6 yards out. Seny had no chance. I think Dunne was marking him, but as the scorer moved into space, Dunne didn't follow him. It was basic stuff (what do we do in training?)
Their second goal was also from a corner. The ball was delivered into a dangerous area in the penalty area (something we failed to do with any of our corners) and as the ball pinged about, some of our players stopped and appealed (not sure what for, but the ref didn't give anything) this gave the Fleetwood player time and space to score. What did my games teacher at school Mr Stewart say to me 54 years ago? "Play to the
!" Lyndon Dykes has come in for a lot of criticism, but we did not deliver any decent balls into the box for him to attack. Actually, there in lies another major problem we have ... Take any of Adomah, Willock, Chair, Laird, etc etc and they all want to take an extra touch before crossing the ball. Sometimes beating the defender two or three times, turning him back and forth. The problem with this is that it gives the defence time to get organised and get into position. Guys, get the bloody ball in early!
Talking of Dykes, he is not most effective as a lone striker, so why do we keep asking him to be one? Andy Cole is one of the highest scoring forwards in Premier League history, I remember reading a stat that he needed 3 chances to score 1 goal. Dykes is not as good as Cole, so will probable need 5-8 chances to score. We are not creating 3 chances a game for him let alone 5-8. No surprises he isn't scoring.
Lastly, substitutions. It was clear on 50 minutes (actually at half time) it wasn't working, we were creating nothing. Yet the first 2 changes were on 70 minutes, and then 3 on 81 minutes. Way too late Neil! Dozzell has been unwell, so almost certainly not 100%, why wait until 81 minutes to take him off? In fact, with 5 subs available, shaking it up at half time with 2 or 3 changes would have made perfect sense.
