Sunday 17 April 2011

Lost Opportunity- Little Improvement in Key Areas

An opportunity to defeat a misfiring Huddersfield side was lost for the usual reasons of lack of creativity, ineffective wing play and little ability to beat a man. 
Reid came on and was totally ineffective, though it has to be said it was late in the game and he got very few passes. However, this may have been his last chance to impress, and he didn't.
Many have expressed hope that Stewart is the Messiah. I have yet to witness anything that suggests that's the case. Sure he likes to make a lot of noise but otherwise he contributed little.  Perhaps it was lack of match fitness, but whether he can do it at this level after failing to do do it at a higher level (a La Martin) remains in question.. However, unless substantial funds become available, he may be the best that we can afford, which does not auger well.
The goalkeeper looks a potential valuable find, my suspicion is he was unsighted for yesterday's goal.
Wagstaffe had a better second half, but he had to after the first. Racon was poor today, but his chances are not enhanced by playing him out of position on the wide left.
BWP did not do a lot (unless he scores he adds precious little); however, he seems to be trying hard to improve his first touch and distribution. However, he had one moment of near magic; perhaps that's all he needs to add value.
Where we start building for next year is a real challenge. Some want a complete clear out, but this is unrealistic. The optimum solution would be 4-5 good players with something to prove (as per Lennie Lawrence) who are prepared to put in some elbow grease and cast off the coloured plastic boots.
As to who remains? Most have highly different views. I have suggested my own preferences previously, though I guess I will probably refine those by the end of the season. No doubt so will others.
If we give CP the benefit of the doubt, we could attribute the poor run to experimentation and using the games to assess existing players. Alternatively, if he really was trying to get a winning side together then he has failed and you could take the view that Parkinson would probably have ground out a significant number of extra points over the same games.
It will be interesting to find out how the senior directors view the outcome of the season and CP's tenure.

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