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Can't do worse than the last Cameron Stewart we had! Good luck to all of them, let's hope they can become good pros, and that there's a gem in there somewhere.
This leapt out when I read the bit about them rejecting the idea of lowering prices - "It's very important that we try and keep our fans in the way we think is appropriate to Suffolk and to this part of the country."
Does anyone have the slightest clue what this means? I mean I can translate it into something along the lines of 'we're gambling that the fans are idiots who will pay anything, or at least enough of them will be', but assuming he was trying to say something more constructive than that, what would that have been?
Nothing against us looking, because you never know, but it's worth pointing out that there's an accepted school of thought that basing decisions on players solely on their performance at international tournaments is ill-advised due to the small sample size.
Just for interest's sake, been reading a poll about whether Mick should have been sacked as Wolves boss, with some interesting comments underneath. Samples - "Absolutely yes. A good League One or Championship manager but too 'old age' for the Premiership", "I like his style and his bluntness but I do have my doubts though about his ability to instill solid commitment in the players. Wolves have been so up and down, sometimes inspired and sometimes crap," "He seemed to have exhausted his repetoire of tactics and strategy", "consistently produced teams whose most significant quality is the ability to run around lots. Aside from that, could anyone really say what characterises a 'Mick McCarthy' team? Defensively Wolves are a shambles, yet it's not like they try to attack like Blackpool, Swansea, Norwich or even Wigan. What are they? What is McCarthy's footballing manifesto?".
In short, it seems like some things don't change.
Just for balance, I don't think there was really anyone who thought someone else could do a better job, or who wasn't grateful for what Mick had achieved at Wolves. Plus, we all know what happened when he went. Be careful what you wish for.
As for us, I think Mick is being boneheaded and I don't think we'll progress further than where we are except by luck. If he doesn't think his team and formation need to change then he'd have to be stupid, which he isn't, so there must be something more too it than that. Doesn't mean I want him gone, or that I'm not grateful to him, but he deserves some criticism.
This is one of those occasions where I find McCarthy a little disingenuous. He hasn't played Taylor last season, he's criticised him publicly and ultimately transfer listed him, and yet he's got a 'clean slate' for this season. I can't see this as anything other than an attempt to remind potential buyers he's in the shop window, or more likely that there isn't a market for him and so McCarthy is having to backtrack rather rapidly. That said, a fit, focused, firing Taylor is a good option to have, though I'd be wary of pinning my hopes on someone who is essentially unproven with us.
Yes, Hyam didn't set the world alight today, but I was appalled by some of the supporters sitting around me. The first mistake he made, and people jumped straight on him. It's not even people getting frustrated at a string of mistakes or near the end of a truly appalling performance, it's them having a go for every little thing. I think he could score a hat-trick, but if he gave the ball away once he'd be slaughtered by some of our fans.
As for the game today, I thought it was very poor, but we got a point against a team that will probably be top 10 come the end of the season. Second half was certainly an improvement on the first, but we didn't have a cutting edge or any sort of killer instinct. Nouble ran and ran, but was ineffective, and I would have liked Graham and Taylor to have had half an hour for Nouble and Murphy. We're playing a 4-3-3 with three strikers, but if the midfield isn't producing then those 3 up front end up isolated, and I just wonder if two wingers would give better support to McGoldrick, who seems to be the only one capable of creating and scoring goals. Of course, it'll be all change when Ebanks-Blake comes in, so we'll see.
whosroundisitanyway - tune is Give It Up by KC and the Sunshine Band. It's always been Ebanks-Blake's chant as far as I can recall.
I have to say I'd be really pleased if we could get him in, he's got proven pedigree at this level and on a free transfer it's really a no-brainer. The only issue would be his fitness, but you have to assume that if he's not ready or within a month of being ready then Mick wouldn't sign him.
Just to add this to my criticism of Mings, I forgot to mention that he was struggling with a knee injury, so some elements of his performance can beeexcused (not that it was all that bad anyway).
I was at the match today, and I came away with my sense of optimism intact, which was what I wanted. Yes, we lost, but we weren't outclassed. We never really had control of the midfield, but we still managed to create 5 or 6 opportunities, about as many as Reading did. It's a disappointing result, but Mick's right and if we play like that we'll win more often than not.
What I was most intrigued by going into this match was how our full-backs would cope. Hewitt was in a battle all afternoon, and coped decently. Mings did the same, but his positioning and judgement was a little off, particularly on high balls (it was in this way that we conceded the corner from which their first goal came), but this is something that will improve with experience, one would hope.
A little word for Skuse. He played well, shielded the back four, kept play ticking over in possession, but he's not creative in any sense of the word. A good performance though. Hyam, meanwhile, never really looked to go forward. Wordsworth needs to be in that central midfield if we're to carry any threat from that area.
I'd like to point out that Berra is left-footed, so if you want the left-foot/right-foot centre back pairing then he'd be cover for/first choice ahead of Smith. Otherwise, sure, play all three and put Chambers at right back, but I wasn't too impressed when he was shunted over there once or twice last season.
He's made over 90 appearances without being a permanent Ipswich player. I wonder if there's another example of such a thing occurring.
As for Murphy the player, he's good. Not great, of course, but he gives us an option and he works hard. Most important, however, is what he brings to the defensive side of our game. How often has he been a key component of our defense from set pieces? If he can add a few more goals to his game this coming season, then he could be significant.
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