Post by stevek192 on Oct 18, 2015 13:07:55 GMT
Well where do i start after such a pulsating game? Arrived at the match listening on the radio to cocky (not in the cup type!) local reporters on the radio who were confident that the stags would produce a fourth win on the trot and yet made no mention of the fact that they were playing a team who also had won three on the trot but also had only lost once in the last 26 away games!! Went into the Mansfield club bar and it seemed from what i could hear of conversations that their fans too were confident of three points.
I was not surprised by the return to the wingback formation in the absence of Bodin and Gosling being only fit enough for the bench but was very surprised that James Clarke was selected in preference to Mc Crystal however couldn't really argue with the selection in the circumstances.
Nicholls 7 A very confident performance from our number 1. Cut out so many dangerous crosses in the first half particularly, that he stopped any danger before it happened. His handling gives defenders confidence and us supporters as well!! Some may criticise him for not coming for the goal but having made the decision not to come there were no misunderstandings and if ,at this level his only "error" is not coming for one high through ball then there is little to worry about. I would like to see him signed permanaently if that is possible as that could be the Goalkeeper position settled for many years.
Leadbitter 7 Didn' get too many opportunities to get forward as was needed to defend as Mansfield took the early initiative and made every effort to get out wide and get behind our back three. Danny's pace and hard work made sure they didn't make too much headway and he did manage to set Easter up for his goal. His exit was down to the fact we were down to ten men rather than his personal performance.
J. Clarke 7.5
Had a strong game at the back after a shaky start. He is much better as a centre back on the right side and it was that and his ability to bring the ball out which I believe got him the nod over McCrystal and it proved to be a good decision by DC as he went on to give a very impressive second half display culminating in an excellent cross to set up Matty Taylor for the winning goal. It really was a sublime volleyed cross.
Lockyer 9 MOM I always thought he was undroppable in DC's eyes and now he is proving that he is definitely that in his favoured position and deserves all the accolades . He is a great professional and belies his years in the way he reads the game and after an early mistake when he hesitated and allowed the ball to bounce which resulted in a bad miss by Mansfield he went on to just get stronger and stronger and restrict Mansfield to very few chances.
Parkes 7
A good return for Tom and gave a steady and determined performance ,more than matching the physically strong Mansfield side and putting in some great challenges. Distribution could have been better but played a big part in a strong defensive performance. Would have been an 8 but for a poor header which led to their goal.
Brown 7
Still believe Lee is better in a flat back four as an attacking full back rather than in the wing back position but needs must and to be fair yesterday he was needed more as a full back and gave a good performance defensively
Sinclair 7.5 Another who started slowly but then got stronger and stronger, hassled the opposition pretty well into submission and I believe he was the player who was fouled for both sending offs. He just never gives up and has a huge appetite for the game which all fans love. I have to admit that I was one at the start of the season that was not sure if he had the ability to step up a league but thankfully he has proved me totally wrong and has now added to his game with the ability to "ping" the passes around and be a real presence in the middle of the park. he is one of the reasons why even with ten men we were able to keep two up front and never really look like we were a player short unlike Mansfield who when they went a player short really looked it.
Mansell 7
A true Leader and Mr Nice and Mr Nasty all in one. Tenacious in the tackle and with a hard working ethic. if only Lines possessed these qualities! but there again if he did he would still be playing Championship Football. Lee prompted throughout and at the moment he is ,without doubt a better combination with Sinclair than Lines when we go to 4-4-2.
Lines 5
To be fair to him it was not really his type of game against a very physically strong Mansfield midfield that required hard work and physically strong challenges to overcome. He did put in one very good tackle and one great long pass but when we went down to ten men DC was right to sacrifice him. Ironically ,although it didn't matter in the end he would have been very useful when Mansfield were at a player disadvantage.
Taylor 7.5 Probably not as effective overall as his recent performances but
I have always marked him down when his performances have been good but he hasn't scored so i have to be fair and mark him up when he does what he is paid to do as a striker and puts the ball in the net. It was a brilliant finish to head the ball high and across the goal and he was unlucky to also have a disallowed goal. He is really in inspired form with four goals in four consecutive games and who would now question his ability to be top scorer again this season. Throughout his career he has been a player who gets his goals in batches and lets hope he can continue this present run.
Easter 6.5
Before his sending off he was having his best game and really showing the form which made him a Championship player. Took his goal really well and was holding the ball up brilliantly and causing the Mansfield defence all kinds of problems. If he wasn't clipped on the penalty incident then you have to question why he went down because he had again beaten the defender with ease and surely could have scored. Having watched the incident several times now I just cannot see that there was a red card offence there- just a very over zealous and poor referee. It is a great shame because we will definitely miss Easters Class which has brought him 5 goals in his last 5 games. He is the player we thought we had got!!
Subs: O. Clarke 6.5 Worked very hard which is what was required in the circumstances. Put himself about
and gave us an edge in midfield with three hard workers in him,Mansell and Sinclair and he was involved in the move that created the winning goal..
Harrison 7
Another stupid booking but gave us an extra bit of pace at a time when Mansfield were tiring and unlucky not to score a couple of goals but was denied by the crossbar when his tremendous angled shot deserved a goal. His skill definitely was the final straw for the home defence which were overworked from the moment they scored and decided they were going to hold on to it.
Gosling Not long enough to mark but went on a wonderful run into the penalty area that looked like it was going to be a repeat of his record goal for Gilbratar but it was blocked after beating three players.
Hope he starts on Tuesday.
Crowd 10 A great turn out and fantastic vocal support from beginning to end. You would never had known that we were outnumbered in a 4000 crowd.
Ref 1 Hardly deserved a mark at all . Lost control of the game early on and never really regained it. Not sure he got many decisions right and was the main reason we had so many extra minutes which is why i8 gave him a mark because we scored the winner in that time!!
Mansfield 7 A good side who lost my respect with their discipline which was appalling.
Physically strong side that played outside of the boundaries of the game. Thankfully we were able to match that physical aspect but fairly. It was justice that they ended up with the less players and had used all their substitutes.
DC Have to give him full credit again for both his team selection and the way he set us up and even when we went down to 10 players kept trying to attack. He has built a very good squad with limited help financially. I just hope that the Board will back him to get the one or two players in that are needed if we are to challenge for success.
So we now move on to two home games and the chance to improve a very poor home league record.
Personally I would go for
Nicholls
Leadbitter Lockyer McCrystal Brown
Bodin (Montano) Sinclair Mansell Gosling
Harrison Taylor
That is; of course; assuming that Easter is suspended.
UTG
I was not surprised by the return to the wingback formation in the absence of Bodin and Gosling being only fit enough for the bench but was very surprised that James Clarke was selected in preference to Mc Crystal however couldn't really argue with the selection in the circumstances.
Nicholls 7 A very confident performance from our number 1. Cut out so many dangerous crosses in the first half particularly, that he stopped any danger before it happened. His handling gives defenders confidence and us supporters as well!! Some may criticise him for not coming for the goal but having made the decision not to come there were no misunderstandings and if ,at this level his only "error" is not coming for one high through ball then there is little to worry about. I would like to see him signed permanaently if that is possible as that could be the Goalkeeper position settled for many years.
Leadbitter 7 Didn' get too many opportunities to get forward as was needed to defend as Mansfield took the early initiative and made every effort to get out wide and get behind our back three. Danny's pace and hard work made sure they didn't make too much headway and he did manage to set Easter up for his goal. His exit was down to the fact we were down to ten men rather than his personal performance.
J. Clarke 7.5
Had a strong game at the back after a shaky start. He is much better as a centre back on the right side and it was that and his ability to bring the ball out which I believe got him the nod over McCrystal and it proved to be a good decision by DC as he went on to give a very impressive second half display culminating in an excellent cross to set up Matty Taylor for the winning goal. It really was a sublime volleyed cross.
Lockyer 9 MOM I always thought he was undroppable in DC's eyes and now he is proving that he is definitely that in his favoured position and deserves all the accolades . He is a great professional and belies his years in the way he reads the game and after an early mistake when he hesitated and allowed the ball to bounce which resulted in a bad miss by Mansfield he went on to just get stronger and stronger and restrict Mansfield to very few chances.
Parkes 7
A good return for Tom and gave a steady and determined performance ,more than matching the physically strong Mansfield side and putting in some great challenges. Distribution could have been better but played a big part in a strong defensive performance. Would have been an 8 but for a poor header which led to their goal.
Brown 7
Still believe Lee is better in a flat back four as an attacking full back rather than in the wing back position but needs must and to be fair yesterday he was needed more as a full back and gave a good performance defensively
Sinclair 7.5 Another who started slowly but then got stronger and stronger, hassled the opposition pretty well into submission and I believe he was the player who was fouled for both sending offs. He just never gives up and has a huge appetite for the game which all fans love. I have to admit that I was one at the start of the season that was not sure if he had the ability to step up a league but thankfully he has proved me totally wrong and has now added to his game with the ability to "ping" the passes around and be a real presence in the middle of the park. he is one of the reasons why even with ten men we were able to keep two up front and never really look like we were a player short unlike Mansfield who when they went a player short really looked it.
Mansell 7
A true Leader and Mr Nice and Mr Nasty all in one. Tenacious in the tackle and with a hard working ethic. if only Lines possessed these qualities! but there again if he did he would still be playing Championship Football. Lee prompted throughout and at the moment he is ,without doubt a better combination with Sinclair than Lines when we go to 4-4-2.
Lines 5
To be fair to him it was not really his type of game against a very physically strong Mansfield midfield that required hard work and physically strong challenges to overcome. He did put in one very good tackle and one great long pass but when we went down to ten men DC was right to sacrifice him. Ironically ,although it didn't matter in the end he would have been very useful when Mansfield were at a player disadvantage.
Taylor 7.5 Probably not as effective overall as his recent performances but
I have always marked him down when his performances have been good but he hasn't scored so i have to be fair and mark him up when he does what he is paid to do as a striker and puts the ball in the net. It was a brilliant finish to head the ball high and across the goal and he was unlucky to also have a disallowed goal. He is really in inspired form with four goals in four consecutive games and who would now question his ability to be top scorer again this season. Throughout his career he has been a player who gets his goals in batches and lets hope he can continue this present run.
Easter 6.5
Before his sending off he was having his best game and really showing the form which made him a Championship player. Took his goal really well and was holding the ball up brilliantly and causing the Mansfield defence all kinds of problems. If he wasn't clipped on the penalty incident then you have to question why he went down because he had again beaten the defender with ease and surely could have scored. Having watched the incident several times now I just cannot see that there was a red card offence there- just a very over zealous and poor referee. It is a great shame because we will definitely miss Easters Class which has brought him 5 goals in his last 5 games. He is the player we thought we had got!!
Subs: O. Clarke 6.5 Worked very hard which is what was required in the circumstances. Put himself about
and gave us an edge in midfield with three hard workers in him,Mansell and Sinclair and he was involved in the move that created the winning goal..
Harrison 7
Another stupid booking but gave us an extra bit of pace at a time when Mansfield were tiring and unlucky not to score a couple of goals but was denied by the crossbar when his tremendous angled shot deserved a goal. His skill definitely was the final straw for the home defence which were overworked from the moment they scored and decided they were going to hold on to it.
Gosling Not long enough to mark but went on a wonderful run into the penalty area that looked like it was going to be a repeat of his record goal for Gilbratar but it was blocked after beating three players.
Hope he starts on Tuesday.
Crowd 10 A great turn out and fantastic vocal support from beginning to end. You would never had known that we were outnumbered in a 4000 crowd.
Ref 1 Hardly deserved a mark at all . Lost control of the game early on and never really regained it. Not sure he got many decisions right and was the main reason we had so many extra minutes which is why i8 gave him a mark because we scored the winner in that time!!
Mansfield 7 A good side who lost my respect with their discipline which was appalling.
Physically strong side that played outside of the boundaries of the game. Thankfully we were able to match that physical aspect but fairly. It was justice that they ended up with the less players and had used all their substitutes.
DC Have to give him full credit again for both his team selection and the way he set us up and even when we went down to 10 players kept trying to attack. He has built a very good squad with limited help financially. I just hope that the Board will back him to get the one or two players in that are needed if we are to challenge for success.
So we now move on to two home games and the chance to improve a very poor home league record.
Personally I would go for
Nicholls
Leadbitter Lockyer McCrystal Brown
Bodin (Montano) Sinclair Mansell Gosling
Harrison Taylor
That is; of course; assuming that Easter is suspended.
UTG
