Match Thread Coventry City vs Rochdale Match Thread - Saturday 1st Sep (3 Viewers)

[Grendel]

Robins like many managers is myopic and resistant to any change.

He gets an idea on players and formation and fixates on it.

The real problem when you look at his record is that a downward curve after 18 months of tenure is the norm.

 

---

[Nick]

He’s a conservative manager.
You either have to back him as that or not.
Backing him requires a great deal of patience, a really great deal!
It was the same for the first 10 to 15 games last season.

The two biggest issues with this style, is as you point out, that it is very hard to adapt mid game as it’s not built around fluidity & that if you play like that and lose games narrowly then patience gets in shorter and shorter supply ... about where we are now!

Personally, I think tactically it will come good against many other managers in this league as the longer MR persist’s with the style, the more the players will get used to it .. 442 maybe our best option in this style though as well as taking our chances of course ...

.. my main view is that we will be hard to beat once we get in front - before you shout at me on this point, as it’s it not what we have done this season at all, I am reasonably confident that the full backs pushing on will make us hard to play against. We do need to get used to this as an approach though, more crosses, less long balls.
I do not think MR is specifically directing the long ball scenario’s, I think this is bi-product of over forcing the conservatism in trying to force the game(s).
Building a team around Andreu though is a no go right now, I agree with you on that.

Either way, I am completely aware that this style, without results will cause frustrating reactions.

I will however, again personally, stick with this style and MR for a little longer yet.

My pre-season expectation was mid-table and I still think we will achieve that under my mate Robins.

We have been in the lead 3 times and lost one and drawn one of them though so far.

 

[ccfcway]

He’s a conservative manager.
You either have to back him as that or not.
Backing him requires a great deal of patience, a really great deal!
It was the same for the first 10 to 15 games last season.

The two biggest issues with this style, is as you point out, that it is very hard to adapt mid game as it’s not built around fluidity & that if you play like that and lose games narrowly then patience gets in shorter and shorter supply ... about where we are now!

Personally, I think tactically it will come good against many other managers in this league as the longer MR persist’s with the style,, .

exactly this

 

[Hullinho87]

We have been in the lead 3 times and lost one and drawn one of them though so far.

I know, I did say, it’s not what we have done this season so far as in keep a lead but longer term we will keep leads and be harder to beat was my view .. I am slightly concerned if we do go behind right now but only slightly at this stage as I’d like to see how Chaplin gets on goal scoring and chance taking wise!

 

[thekidfromstrettoncamp]

Just noticed a player who is not considered ready for our first team had as many shots on target as all our strikers on the pitch today , and he was only on for 36 minutes . I'm getting pissed off with "streetwise" coming from our manager, change the record don't we just the same when we are in the lead .

 

[Nick]

I know, I did say, it’s not what we have done this season so far as in keep a lead but longer term we will keep leads and be harder to beat was my view .. I am slightly concerned if we do go behind right now but only slightly at this stage as I’d like to see how Chaplin gets on goal scoring and chance taking wise!

Most of it should have been done pre season though. I can understand not all players could be signed pre season but the majority of them were.

We can't go 10-15 games in still treating games like we are learning.

 

[Hullinho87]

Y

Most of it should have been done pre season though. I can understand not all players could be signed pre season but the majority of them were.

We can't go 10-15 games in still treating games like we are learning.

You absolutely can in my opinion.
My personal ambition as a fan of this team and manager is to be a solid mid table side in League One this season and go from there .. realistic in my eyes and still conceivably realistic if we are inconsistent 10 to 15 games in.

 

[Rasputin]

So are people thinking MR has now become a bad manager??
I am going to give him till the end of the season before I draw that conclusion.

 

[dazed&confused]

Robins like many managers is myopic and resistant to any change.

He gets an idea on players and formation and fixates on it.

The real problem when you look at his record is that a downward curve after 18 months of tenure is the norm.

You and Nick briefing against the manager again? We lost today because certain players [JCH & Andreu] missed the sort of chances you have to take at this level. They didn't. Tactics didn't come into it. Even after Rochdale 'changed' tactics, we should have scored at least one maybe two. So their tactical 'change' wasn't that effective, was it? Thomas also missed chances, but at least he was busy creating those same chances. JCH and, sadly, Andreu as well in my opinion don't seem good enough at this level. Perhaps you can blame Robins for them being here, but you can't blame him for the way they squandered gold plated goalscoring opportunities.

 

[Nick]

You and Nick briefing against the manager again? We lost today because certain players [JCH & Andreu] missed the sort of chances you have to take at this level. They didn't. Tactics didn't come into it. Even after Rochdale 'changed' tactics, we should have scored at least one maybe two. So their tactical 'change' wasn't that effective, was it? Thomas also missed chances, but at least he was busy creating those same chances. JCH and, sadly, Andreu as well in my opinion don't seem good enough at this level. Perhaps you can blame Robins for them being here, but you can't blame him for the way they squandered gold plated goalscoring opportunities.

Their tactical change was pretty effective, they won the game from it.

They also had much better chances than us to score more.

 

[dazed&confused]

Their tactical change was pretty effective, they won the game from it.

They also had much better chances than us to score more.

I will conceed that they did have chances, not at the JCH/Andreu level, but they were there - that missed header by their bald-headed number 9 was particularly woeful, but we were chasing the game by then.

Sometimes when I read the stuff you and Grendel write about Robins now, it reminds me of the suprising level of anger sometimes shown by Alan Shearer when providing post-match analysis on the BBC after some of the bigger nations had lost during the Russia World Cup. I always assumed his excuse was that he'd had a lumpy bet at odd-ons and was now talking through his pocket. As I'm guessing your passion about this comes from a love of CCFC and not from a gambling problem, I'd just say you two need to get some perspective and learn not to panic.

 

[Irish Sky Blue]

I am glad that the general fan base doesn’t have the views of a few who regularly contribute to the matchthread on here. Absolutely unbelievably negative. The same people were saying the same things last season in what turned out to be a promotion campaign. We played well today in the first half and battled hard and created chances in the second. Rochdale should have been dead and buried by half time.There was nothing wrong with selection, tactics or formation. The only thing lacking was the finishing. Thomas is a young boy playing his first league games and looks a tremendous prospect. Yet the experts on here have already written him off. At least two of the chances he missed today he created for himself today because of his drive and speed. The performance today is as different to the one at Blackpool as chalk is to cheese. Up there we created nothing. In this game we must have had nine or ten presentable chances. It would also seem that Andreu is to be the new Biamou. After the games we have played this season, I am really optimistic about where we will finish. We could easily have ten points by now. I cannot believe that if we play as well in future games as we have against Scunthorpe, Gillingham and Rochdale that we will not pick up points and score goals. No doubt the negative, whinging bunch on here who seem to delight in picking holes in Robins and the team will fall silent as they did at the end of last season. I really wonder how some of them can describe themselves as fans or supporters.

 

[cc84cov]

Robins like many managers is myopic and resistant to any change.

He gets an idea on players and formation and fixates on it.

The real problem when you look at his record is that a downward curve after 18 months of tenure is the norm.

I don’t think think he has an idea on players & system tho players yes to a certain degree the full back & another midfielder in Ogogo but trying to play forwards as wingers to me he isn’t set on a system yet for me we should of stuck to 4-4-2 from the start.

 

[ccfcway]

I don’t think think he has an idea on players & system tho players yes to a certain degree the full back & another midfielder in Ogogo but trying to play forwards as wingers to me he isn’t set on a system yet for me we should of stuck to 4-4-2 from the start.

He may well get to that once he works out what’s best with the squad he has. Very early days

 

[Nick]

I am glad that the general fan base doesn’t have the views of a few who regularly contribute to the matchthread on here. Absolutely unbelievably negative. The same people were saying the same things last season in what turned out to be a promotion campaign. We played well toda in the first half. There was nothing wrong with selection, tactics or formation. The only thing lacking was the finishing. Thomas is a young boy playing his first league games and looks a tremendous prospect. Yet the experts on here have already written him off. At least two of the chances he missed today he created for himself today because of his drive and speed. The performance today is as different to the one at Blackpool as chalk is to cheese. Up there we created nothing. In this game we must have had nine or ten presentable chances. It would also seem that Andreu is to be the new Biamou. After the games we have played this season, I am really optimistic about where we will finish. We could easily have ten points by now. I cannot believe that if we play as well in future games as we have against Scunthorpe, Gillingham and Rochdale that we will not pick up points and score goals. No doubt the negative, whinging bunch on here who seem to delight in picking holes in Robins and the team will fall silent as they did at the end of last season. I really wonder how some of them can describe themselves as fans or supporters.

Who fell silent when we did well?

Just because you don't applaud losing and leave games with a sour taste like today it doesnt mean you aren't a fan.

If we start scoring and winning then I for one wouldn't be leaving the ground pissed off like today, would be over the moon.

 

[east_midlands_skyblue]

I'm annoyed we lost today, and we do need to start taking points pretty soon, but I do think some of you need to calm down a little. We created chances, particularly first half, and on another day 2 or 3 go in and we're sitting pretty. We lost, in my opinion, a game we probably didn't deserve to lose. Based on an underwhelming second half, we probably didn't deserve to win either. But it's ridiculous to be calling for Robin's head at this stage of the season after a promotion and rebuilding of the squad. If we got relegated then fair enough, but I doubt that will happen. Where have we got from knee jerk decisions in the past? Who would do a better job with a squad he has assembled?

 

[Nick]

I'm annoyed we lost today, and we do need to start taking points pretty soon, but I do think some of you need to calm down a little. We created chances, particularly first half, and on another day 2 or 3 go in and we're sitting pretty. We lost, in my opinion, a game we probably didn't deserve to lose. Based on an underwhelming second half, we probably didn't deserve to win either. But it's ridiculous to be calling for Robin's head at this stage of the season after a promotion and rebuilding of the squad. If we got relegated then fair enough, but I doubt that will happen. Where have we got from knee jerk decisions in the past? Who would do a better job with a squad he has assembled?

How many are actually calling for his head?

 

[east_midlands_skyblue]

At least one prominent poster was, I imagine you could count back through the remainder just as well as I can. Several people around me in Block 17 also getting trigger happy. My desire for people to calm down a little extends beyond calls for the manager's head... we've just signed a new striker that many have been creaming themselves over... maybe see how that works out before we start ordering rope and seeking a branch to tie it to?

 

[Rasputin]

From what I have seen so far I think there is more chance of this squad coming good then there is of it staying like this.
What we don’t need is people booing their own players coming on. We don’t need threads after only a handful of games saying ‘taxi for Robins’ or words to that effect.
Irish is right Thomas is still developing and could be an immense talent
Chaplin when fit, if it is true he is a great finisher will relish the chances that this team can provide.
Don’t firget Jones is still to return and Allassani to get fit.
I was impressed with our bench today and we have Kelly to come
Sometimes patience is a virtue we are Cov fans, we should know it will never be the easy path!!!!! PUSB

 

[larry_david]

We need Kelly back. Plain and simple. Kelly and ogogo in the middle was the long term plan I'm pretty sure

 

[thekidfromstrettoncamp]

Today the tactics were alright to get 16 shots I thought is a pretty good average .We got the ball up fairly well to the strikers in good positions and they wasted them . We should have been out of sight at half time. What do we do in training? Because it is not shooting .I really do hope Conor Chaplin is the answer but 1 in 5 average I am not so sure . I keep hearing we have got time, early days and all that 6 games in and we are already 2 wins away from the 6th place I always think middle of the table even this early on is alright lower reaches no. This stage last year Northampton and Milton had 6 points look where they are playing this season.

 

[Rasputin]

We need Kelly back. Plain and simple. Kelly and ogogo in the middle was the long term plan I'm pretty sure

Gotta change the song then!!!

 

[AFCCOVENTRY]

Just read Robins interviews in the press after the game. Have you noticed recently he just calls players out to the media where they've been poor or made mistakes. I just don't know if that is good man management or reverse psychology. Bizarre.

 

[Rasputin]

Just read Robins interviews in the press after the game. Have you noticed recently he just calls players out to the media where they've been poor or made mistakes. I just don't know if that is good man management or reverse psychology. Bizarre.

Yes clocked that recently aswell. I never like that.
I would love to know what percentage of the goals we have conceded in the last year have come directly or indirectly from set plays.

 

[Irish Sky Blue]

Robins like many managers is myopic and resistant to any change.

He gets an idea on players and formation and fixates on it.

The real problem when you look at his record is that a downward curve after 18 months of tenure is the norm.

Ironic that you would comment on someone who has a fixed view on a player that will never change.

 

[itsabuzzard]

I don’t think think he has an idea on players & system tho players yes to a certain degree the full back & another midfielder in Ogogo but trying to play forwards as wingers to me he isn’t set on a system yet for me we should of stuck to 4-4-2 from the start.

Blimey!

Sent from my LG-H850 using Tapatalk

 

[Irish Sky Blue]

Today the tactics were alright to get 16 shots I thought is a pretty good average .We got the ball up fairly well to the strikers in good positions and they wasted them . We should have been out of sight at half time. What do we do in training? Because it is not shooting .I really do hope Conor Chaplin is the answer but 1 in 5 average I am not so sure . I keep hearing we have got time, early days and all that 6 games in and we are already 2 wins away from the 6th place I always think middle of the table even this early on is alright lower reaches no. This stage last year Northampton and Milton had 6 points look where they are playing this season.

How many did Plymouth have?

 

[usskyblue]

Moving forward...one would hope that with the acquisition of Chaplin, we will see a change of formation to accommodate a poacher type striker that’s more productive playing as part of a front two. I’m hoping the change was delayed with Chaplin’s signing, and today’s game came too soon to implement it.

If this doesn’t come to pass...Robins will grace my shit list.

 

[Irish Sky Blue]

Win percentage wise Robins is one of, if not the, best manager that we have had. Yes, it can be pointed out that other managers had to find their wins at a higher level. That makes no difference as Robins can only operate in the league we are in with the resources that we have. If he is such a tactically naive manager, how has he achieved this feat? It certainly doesn’t say much for all of our other managers that have gone before. The Scunthorpe guy who “out thought” Robins on the opening day has already bitten the dust. His club obviously didn’t appreciate his tactical astuteness in the way that some of the SBT experts did. I wonder how many of the tactical geniuses out thinking Robins week in and week out will still be in a job come next May?
We now have people saying that he luckily got us promoted at the end of last season. It was a “lucky run”. Well that “luck” produced one of the best performances that I have seen by a Coventry team in my 51 years watching this club, namely Notts County away in the play off semi. The way Robins set the team up in those two legs and the final ensured we got promoted. Not luck. Good management got us promoted into this league. Where were all the tactical experts then? How many piped up to say where Robins had gone wrong or what he had got right those nights or at Wembley?
The fact is that we have a manager who is a good fit for this club. In his two spells here he has got far more right than he has got wrong, yet we have people claiming that if he doesn’t get this or that right in such a length of time he has to go. So many tactical experts on here who can see the game so clearly, who know exactly what to do to make everything right. And some of them can do this while still managing to type their comments throughout the game. Robins should, like me, be in awe of their prowess.
For a lot on here the result dictates how they see things. Lose and we were rubbish. Win and we were great. Today we should have won. I wonder what sort of a tactical genius the Rochdale manager would have appeared to be if his team had gone in 4 or 5 goals down. He had no control over that happening as it wasn’t his tactics or even his defenders that stopped us having that lead, it was our wayward finishing. He is hailed on here as out thinking Robin’s. The way that he set his team up in the first half resulted in us having a stack of chances that we should have put away. Should he not have seen the way the game was going after 25 minutes and tried to stem the tide if he was such a good tactical thinker.? Their goal straight after half time obviously changed things. It allowed them to sit back, timewaste and try to pick us off as we searched for the equaliser. We still could and should have scored in the second half.
Jim Brown in his book on the second division championship winning team of 1967 quotes from programme notes by Jimmy Hill in the early stages of that season. Things weren’t going well and fans were questioning whether Jim was the right man for the job (sounds familiar) even after all of the success JH had brought in the previous four years. Jim is writing an imaginary conversation with his daughter answering her questions as to why the fans of the football club seem to hate him. In reality he was trying to tell the doubters to have patience and to trust in him. He proved the haters and the doubters wrong as I think Robins will if given time.
Never-the-less our little collection of hole pickers and tactical experts will have their metaphorical pencils sharpened and at the ready for dinner time next Sunday ready to delight in letting everybody know how crap Robin’s and his players are and salivating every time a player makes a mistake or misses a chance. Some people must lead miserable lives.

 

[Rasputin]

Win percentage wise Robins is one of, if not the, best manager that we have had. Yes, it can be pointed out that other managers had to find their wins at a higher level. That makes no difference as Robins can only operate in the league we are in with the resources that we have. If he is such a tactically naive manager, how has he achieved this feat? It certainly doesn’t say much for all of our other managers that have gone before. The Scunthorpe guy who “out thought” Robins on the opening day has already bitten the dust. His club obviously didn’t appreciate his tactical astuteness in the way that some of the SBT experts did. I wonder how many of the tactical geniuses out thinking Robins week in and week out will still be in a job come next May?
We now have people saying that he luckily got us promoted at the end of last season. It was a “lucky run”. Well that “luck” produced one of the best performances that I have seen by a Coventry team in my 51 years watching this club, namely Notts County away in the play off semi. The way Robins set the team up in those two legs and the final ensured we got promoted. Not luck. Good management got us promoted into this league. Where were all the tactical experts then? How many piped up to say where Robins had gone wrong or what he had got right those nights or at Wembley?
The fact is that we have a manager who is a good fit for this club. In his two spells here he has got far more right than he has got wrong, yet we have people claiming that if he doesn’t get this or that right in such a length of time he has to go. So many tactical experts on here who can see the game so clearly, who know exactly what to do to make everything right. And some of them can do this while still managing to type their comments throughout the game. Robins should, like me, be in awe of their prowess.
For a lot on here the result dictates how they see things. Lose and we were rubbish. Win and we were great. Today we should have won. I wonder what sort of a tactical genius the Rochdale manager would have appeared to be if his team had gone in 4 or 5 goals down. He had no control over that happening as it wasn’t his tactics or even his defenders that stopped us having that lead, it was our wayward finishing. He is hailed on here as out thinking Robin’s. The way that he set his team up in the first half resulted in us having a stack of chances that we should have put away. Should he not have seen the way was going after 25 minutes and try to stem the tide if he was such a good tactical thinker.? Their goal straight after half time obviously changed things. It allowed them to sit back, timewaste and try to pick us off as we searched for the equaliser. We still could and should have scored in the second half.
Jim Brown in his book on the second division championship winning team of 1967 quotes from programme notes by Jimmy Hill in the early stages of that season. Things weren’t going well and fans were questioning whether Jim was the right man for the job (sounds familiar) even after all of the success JH had brought in the previous four years. Jim is writing an imaginary conversation with his daughter answering her questions as to why the fans of the football club seem to hate him. In reality he was trying to tell the doubters to have patience and to trust in him. He proved the haters and the doubters wrong as I think Robins will if given time.
Never-the-less our little collection of hole pickers and tactical experts will have their metaphorical pencils sharpened and at the ready for dinner time next Sunday ready to delight in letting everybody know how crap Robin’s and his players are and salivating every time a player makes a mistake or misses a chance. Some people must lead miserable lives.

 

[Nick]

Win percentage wise Robins is one of, if not the, best manager that we have had. Yes, it can be pointed out that other managers had to find their wins at a higher level. That makes no difference as Robins can only operate in the league we are in with the resources that we have. If he is such a tactically naive manager, how has he achieved this feat? It certainly doesn’t say much for all of our other managers that have gone before. The Scunthorpe guy who “out thought” Robins on the opening day has already bitten the dust. His club obviously didn’t appreciate his tactical astuteness in the way that some of the SBT experts did. I wonder how many of the tactical geniuses out thinking Robins week in and week out will still be in a job come next May?
We now have people saying that he luckily got us promoted at the end of last season. It was a “lucky run”. Well that “luck” produced one of the best performances that I have seen by a Coventry team in my 51 years watching this club, namely Notts County away in the play off semi. The way Robins set the team up in those two legs and the final ensured we got promoted. Not luck. Good management got us promoted into this league. Where were all the tactical experts then? How many piped up to say where Robins had gone wrong or what he had got right those nights or at Wembley?
The fact is that we have a manager who is a good fit for this club. In his two spells here he has got far more right than he has got wrong, yet we have people claiming that if he doesn’t get this or that right in such a length of time he has to go. So many tactical experts on here who can see the game so clearly, who know exactly what to do to make everything right. And some of them can do this while still managing to type their comments throughout the game. Robins should, like me, be in awe of their prowess.
For a lot on here the result dictates how they see things. Lose and we were rubbish. Win and we were great. Today we should have won. I wonder what sort of a tactical genius the Rochdale manager would have appeared to be if his team had gone in 4 or 5 goals down. He had no control over that happening as it wasn’t his tactics or even his defenders that stopped us having that lead, it was our wayward finishing. He is hailed on here as out thinking Robin’s. The way that he set his team up in the first half resulted in us having a stack of chances that we should have put away. Should he not have seen the way was going after 25 minutes and try to stem the tide if he was such a good tactical thinker.? Their goal straight after half time obviously changed things. It allowed them to sit back, timewaste and try to pick us off as we searched for the equaliser. We still could and should have scored in the second half.
Jim Brown in his book on the second division championship winning team of 1967 quotes from programme notes by Jimmy Hill in the early stages of that season. Things weren’t going well and fans were questioning whether Jim was the right man for the job (sounds familiar) even after all of the success JH had brought in the previous four years. Jim is writing an imaginary conversation with his daughter answering her questions as to why the fans of the football club seem to hate him. In reality he was trying to tell the doubters to have patience and to trust in him. He proved the haters and the doubters wrong as I think Robins will if given time.
Never-the-less our little collection of hole pickers and tactical experts will have their metaphorical pencils sharpened and at the ready for dinner time next Sunday ready to delight in letting everybody know how crap Robin’s and his players are and salivating every time a player makes a mistake or misses a chance. Some people must lead miserable lives.

It still doesn't get away from the fact that opposition managers have been making changes during games and changing the game.

The manager clearly did out think Robins, they came out in the second half almost a different team. It was nil nil at the break so it was there for the taking for either team. I had to point this out to somebody saying we were embarrassing them. We really didn't, they tested burge and had much better chances and won the game.

The same happened at Gillingham, the same happened against Scunthorpe where the opposition manager changes something and it changes the game and we have no answer.

It's a points business, it isn't about how many passes in triangles or pointless shots we have, of course results is what people see. If people want to get excited about off target shot stats rather than wins that's down to them. It's about being effective and winning games.

It doesn't mean somebody hates him for pointing it out and discussing it. The same as they don't hate a player for daring to point out he has a bad game.

That's pointing out as in discussing it in a match thread, not booing them or abusing them. Discussing the system and decisions like subs doesn't equal saying sack him either.

 

[TewkesburySkyBlue]

I think a lot of people on here need to calm down.OK some rubbish yesterday. but lots of good things too. The team is all over the place with so many new signings. What do expect Real Madrid? We were out done by a much more experienced thuggish team with an absolutely clueless referee who allowed them to get away with murder.Hope MR gave him a zero. He might have been Keith Hil’s brother for his objectivity. Keep the faith I’m sure we will come good with so many talented players and MR definitely still gets my vote. PUSB

 

[Otis]

OK we were pretty poor for the last 20 mins or so but on another day we could have scored 4. Don't get all the negativity in here.

Actually yes I do, I forgot that football fans are incredibly fickle and negative.

Ha, some of the stuff in here is completely laughable and ridiculous.

Yep, we could have easily lost 4-0, but at the same time should have had at least 4 or 5 goals ourselves.

How can anyone say the system is not working when it was simply a case of player after player dragging shots wide from brilliant positions. Thomas should have scored at least two, maybe 3. Andreu missed an absolutely glorious chance in the first half and JCH should have clearly scored with that header. Bayliss screwed one wide too and Shipley dithered in front of goal in a great position.

We created more than enough chances. Our shooting was abysmal however.

On another day we would have scored at least 4.

Defence was a worry though, because at times Rochdale were just walking through us.

An odd game in many ways. We could have easily thrashed them and they could have thrashed us.

 

[speedie87]

To be fair to robins he lost his long term assistant last season and vivash has been missing last couple of games too

 

[Otis]

Yep. But you can't blame a system for players screwing shots wide and players missing fabulous opportunities when they really, really should have scored.