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Post by Rijs on Jan 27, 2024 21:11:18 GMT
Not a great match or performance, but three much-needed points nonetheless. All our other rivals at the bottom won by the same score today so no gain for us, but a defeat would have left us adrift. I thought we were hugely missing Zac and it is disappointing to hear he will be out for at least six weeks. Without him, we seem to lack ideas and penetration, and to be honest, we were lucky to win today - United deserved something for their domination in the second-half, when City ceded territory and initiative by defending deep more or less from the start. Had the visitors been wearing their shooting boots this would probably have been another 1-2 defeat. Few teams at this level will be kept out for 45 minutes simply by a low City block, even with 11 behind the ball, which of course means we have no one up front to give us a man to pass to at the turnover.
On the positive side, we did defend pretty well on the whole and showed some determination to keep that clean sheet. Reece Fleet had a fine game - my MoM today - and Aaron Williams-Bushell did some good things down the right. It is also good to see Josh Ashby back in action, but it was only for one half and he appeared to be running out of steam before the end of that, so it will take time for him to regain full match fitness after so long out.
But against mediocre opposition today, we were much too cautious, with no one seeming willing to run at opponents in the way Zac does. We played in front of their defence when we had possession and played a lot of passes backwards or square, even when we were in a promising position. We had virtually no shots at goal in the entire match. We have played better than this and lost quite often this season. With time beginning to run out, we have to do better than this from now on if we are to stay up; we need the change in confidence that a few good results would bring. Underdogs we may be, but underdogs can spring surprise wins - think Maidstone!
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Post by clive on Jan 27, 2024 21:35:08 GMT
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Post by ChrisB on Jan 28, 2024 10:15:15 GMT
Thanks Rijs & Clive for the detailed reports. Three vital points for City there, with, it seems, the luck going City's way for once.
Two vital games coming up over the next two weekends at Kidderminster and Dagenham & R.: both clubs near us in the table and positive results could move City significantly upwards. After that it gets hard(er) with almost every match being against a top-half club.
(And the OSC QF coming up on Tuesday. It'll be interesting to see who plays for City - I thought there used to be a rule (maybe there still is?) that players couldn't play in both the Intermediate Cup and the Senior Cup, and the Development XI players featured in the OIC earlier in the season.)
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Post by Rijs on Jan 28, 2024 20:05:13 GMT
Thanks for another great report, Clive. Yes, it was nice to get a bit of luck on our side for once, after so many games where we did not get the result we deserved. And reading your report, it is clear that Latrell had a very good first half. And judging by what 'the gaffer' said on YouTube, Zac's injury doesn't sound so serious. Let's hope he is fit to play in the next two crucial matches.
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Post by clive on Jan 29, 2024 14:23:14 GMT
The Woking away game has been rescheduled for the Tuesday between the Kidderminster and Daggers games, so three away games in a week against fellow relegation candidates. Probably need to take at least 6 points from these ( although 9 would be nice ! )
I don't know how many of the Under 23/Development players will be eligible for the Senior Cup although Ross hinted Croker will play. I wouldn't play any of the outfield players that started against Ebbsfleet, and use it an an opportunity to give game time to the fringe players such as Lumeka, Fonkeu, Ofusu and McQueen if they are still with the club. Toure, Moore, Coyle, Fisher and Potter could also benefit from playing, and perhaps Ashby could have another 45 minutes under his belt. Brzozowski deserves another game.
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Post by ChrisB on Jan 29, 2024 14:54:34 GMT
The Woking away game has been rescheduled for the Tuesday between the Kidderminster and Daggers games, so three away games in a week against fellow relegation candidates. Probably need to take at least 6 points from these ( although 9 would be nice ! ) That really is a make or break week! As you say, 6 points would be good; 9 would be brilliant...fewer really would be a cause for concern! |
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Post by clive on Jan 29, 2024 16:58:10 GMT
At the start of the season my attitude was just to enjoy watching City at this level for a season, but it has been frustrating as we shouldn't be in the bottom 4 !
I could handle regular 0-3 thrashings, its the late 1-2 defeats that are a problem....
To use the old phrase, I can handle the despair, it is the hope I can't deal with !
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Post by clive on Jan 29, 2024 19:34:39 GMT
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Post by Rijs on Jan 29, 2024 19:39:14 GMT
At the start of the season my attitude was just to enjoy watching City at this level for a season, but it has been frustrating as we shouldn't be in the bottom 4 ! I could handle regular 0-3 thrashings, its the late 1-2 defeats that are a problem.... To use the old phrase, I can handle the despair, it is the hope I can't deal with ! Totally agree, though it's the hope that keeps us coming back... and so often in this sport (and probably many others), a relegation-battling team is not being wiped out week by week. They are not that much worse than those above them. They can compete. But they fall just short, too often. |
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Post by Monty on Jan 31, 2024 10:12:59 GMT
Kidderminster worried? You must be joking. We've got our calculators out for your visit following our 3 wins on the bounce - 2 of which were away. Phil Brown has made a brilliant start and one which we expect will deliver another 3 points on Saturday.
Out of interest, how many supporters are you likely to bring?
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Post by Padz on Jan 31, 2024 13:40:30 GMT
Kidderminster worried? You must be joking. We've got our calculators out for your visit following our 3 wins on the bounce - 2 of which were away. Phil Brown has made a brilliant start and one which we expect will deliver another 3 points on Saturday. Out of interest, how many supporters are you likely to bring? We don’t travel in large numbers so don’t be expecting a large crowd, maybe 40/50 is probably a decent bet. Interesting that Phil Brown has started so well there, he applied here when David Oldfield left in the National League South and was apparently nowhere near getting it. |
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Post by Monty on Feb 1, 2024 16:31:05 GMT
Pity your following isn't great. Probably the lowest to Aggborough this season. Nonetheless, we shall still have around 3,000 at the game with Kids for a Quid being promoted again.
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