[Post edited 14 Sep 2021 22:27]

Everything is awesome by Mullet 15 Aug 2021 21:52
Having seen both league games thus far, it's pretty clear that Cook's decision to be "Demolition Man" might well render his time here a cult classic, rather than the blockbuster we are budgeting for.

It wasn't necessary to rip apart the whole team, it was a decision and direction decided upon, and the first few steps have seen us in the gutter haven't they? Overloaded with attacking depth but unable to find a front 4 that doesn't limit Piggott to playing second balls to new runners or empty spaces for most of his time on the pitch.

He and Fraser have been devastating at this level for smaller teams, as with most of the individuals you can see the potential there but that doesn't mean we are yet. Lots of possession and a clear intent to strafe wide and overload fullbacks. It's ironic we conceded in that way against Burton. KVY finding himself further forward than he managed prior, the whole side gets caught out and once again it's one shot and we are behind.

Cook has been here months, he couldn't make it work with what he had, he has been given way more than anyone else for a long time. It's all well and good pointing to his past at other clubs, but his past at Ipswich and thus his present, is closer to the bloody woeful we've been accustomed to. Pointing that out is not the TWTD equivalent of going to the Vatican and giving the Pope a kick up the ass.

You can probably be assured Cook and his staff will be unhappy with the points tally and the manner in which we've been so generous to teams with far smaller budgets and even more churn in the case of Morecambe.

More worryingly for them might be Ashton and the higher ups. They clearly didn't appoint Cook, they perhaps didn't see prudence in removing him right away either financially or morally when taking over. This is a marriage of convenience in some respects and this summer seems very much like Cook is backing himself, using the dollars available. That could all change very quickly without promotion on the table.

Pretending promotion is beyond this club is equally laughable, especially given all the chiding about "ambition" in recent years and when we were looking to do it in the league above. It absolutely must and should be the minimum we expect. 3 teams will go up, we should be one of them preferably as champions - otherwise this recall to Cook's CV is fairly moot. Let alone the fact we've got rid of Evans' approach and been told everything we wanted to hear for years.

Harper and Edwards look like they belong on the path to being in the league above already, and will hone that claim with game time. The lovely shapes Harper made when we got the ball down and he broke the play up were even better than the few times Dobra and Fraser did it. The fact we then didn't see players getting off shots and were reduced to hoping that flashes across the goal might be turned in yesterday, speaks to how disjointed we are.

The manner in which we conceded a second against Morecambe, seemed to plague us up top yesterday and with so many personnel changes it's not that surprising. Adding Burgess in will help breed some confidence amongst players and fans alike, it's a late but welcome addition in my opinion.

Woolfenden won a fair amount yesterday, Donacien again showed he's incredibly dependable but will never really excel. Given KVY seems to have lost a yard in his feet and another in his head, whether it's fear of getting hurt or a lack of fitness, the idea of replacing him with JD makes the whole system Cook is trying to employ, severely hampered. Regardless he hasn't managed many games for us yet and assuming he should or will is risky still.

Penney like many others seems to have the right ideas but not the right amount of belief or understanding around him. Sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe sh1t seems to be the pattern of play we've settled for so far. But that will improve as time goes on. If it doesn't then we truly are a managerial graveyard and need something else drastically.

Fans haven't been in the grounds for over a year and that seems to play on everyone concerned. When we concede the atmosphere whooshes out and away almost instantly. People either side of the lines are unsure about what to say and do, particularly when things don't go as we'd like. But no amount of thought-policing and insistence on being cheery about failing to beat not one, but two teams, we'd never consider rivals to promotion is as wrong as it is tiring.

Just as it seemed there was a place for Toto and Norwood, there now doesn't unless they cycle in as others replace them on the treatment table and the timescales to get the spine sorted makes it little wonder why we've come out of the season crawling along.

Pointing to when and what side X or manager Y did is fairly irrelevant. There isn't a context which lends itself to ITFC completely changing in a matter of weeks and with it expectations and the ability to meet them.

Hladky has looked a far more rounded keeper, our central midfielders as good as those we just sold to promotion chasers in the league above, there's an abundance of threat up top but so far less return than we needed. But we've failed to keep teams out with barely a fight.

This has the makings of the most exciting season since the playoff campaign (because of where it sets us up to be) and there is enough about us to see us do well, but thinking we can just will that into existence is stupid. The longer we ponder and fail to produce wins with regularity the speed with which this league will leave us behind is the one thing we should have gotten used to in the years we've been down here.

It's a massive stain on this club being relegated to this level. It's still very much all over us for now. There's nothing wrong with facing up to that regularly either is there? They've been pretty open with us how long it will take to sort off the field, but on the field it should definitely be a much shorter timescale.

[Post edited 15 Sep 2021 7:21]