tough in league 2..... (1 Viewer)

[clint van damme]

Former Coventry City skipper warms of perils of League Two

Former Coventry City skipper warms of perils of League Two
"Honest to God, it's so difficult. I've never seen anything like it."
BYANDY TURNER

• 09:48, 15 APR 2017

COVENTRY CITY V CHARLTON ATHLETIC

• 
  Former Coventry City captain Carl Baker says his old club had better brace itself for life in League Two.

The 34-year-old is enjoying a bit of vintage form to help Portsmouth get back to League One at the fourth time of asking, scoring seven goals on their way to an exciting end to the season that’s yet to be decided after guaranteeing a spot in the play-offs but still pushing for automatic promotion.
But Baker has warned the Sky Blues that they’re in for a short, sharp shock if they think they’ll breeze back up at the first attempt, saying: “Honest to God, it’s so difficult.

“I played in the Championship last season, League One the year before and it’s so difficult because you can’t really pass your way out of it.
“Every game is different but it is so physical and very, very tough because the teams and lads you come up against are just huge and 90 per cent of the teams just shell it and you can’t get any momentum or run together. So it’s a really difficult league.”

City's drop was confirmed on Good Friday when they drew 1-1 with Charlton Athletic , with three games to go.

Baker also says that Coventry will be a huge scalp for teams who will raise their game at the Ricoh.

“Life for Coventry City will be very similar to what’s happened here at Portsmouth,” he said.

“Pompey are such a massive club who get 17/18,000 every single home game and sell out every single away game. The fans are unbelievable and get right behind us but when teams come to Fratton Park they virtually make it impossible.

“I have never seen anything like it. They literally put 11 men behind the ball. We played Carlisle at the start of the season and they didn’t play any strikers, so they make it so difficult and try and catch you on the counter attack.

“Honestly, it gets that bad and my fear for Coventry is that they will do the same because obviously the Ricohstadium is lovely and it’s a big club and it will be a big scalp.”

He added: “They lost to Cambridge 4-0 in the FA Cup this season and that’s a case in point, so that’s the type of thing they will face and I don’t know with the personnel they have at the minute whether they will be able to stand up to the way League Two is.”

Baker believes the key is in recruitment, and drafting in a number of players who are familiar with the division.

“I think the secret is to recruit a few League Two players because the squad we have here at Portsmouth is very technical – one of the best I have played with,” he said.
“Individually the lads are so talented and the squad is ridiculous. We have a 30-man squad and I think every one of them could play League One minimum but we’ve struggled a little bit at times in League Two ourselves because of how difficult it is in this league.

“You’ve probably seen the state of the pitches on the TV. It’s like playing on a beach at times and you don’t get the quality of pitches in League One or time on the ball, so it’s completely different.

“They’re probably going to have to get some bigger lads in and go down the route where the football is not the most pleasing on the eye and bully your way through games.”

 

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[skybluetony176]

Stark warning indeed.

Teams turning up at Portsmouth and not playing strikers ffs. Going to be a long hard season, probably at home as much as on the road reading that.

 

[no_loyalty]

If we don't replicate what Doncaster have done this season, I think we could be in league 2 for a while

 

[hill83]

In other news. Wheel invented.

 

[Ashdown]

He is stating the obvious of course but then we didn't learn to pack the team with a few scrappers for League 1 either did we. I have some faith in Robins ability to recognise what we need but then managers for the last 6 years have had to try and include a bunch of promoted academy kids before they were largely ready and I bet that happens again. At this level they will be hung out to dry by a whole league full of merciless bullies.

 

[clint van damme]

In other news. Wheel invented.

Haha!! There was a thread on here the other day which contradicted this train of though and said there were more footballing teams in l2 these days so I though it was worth posting - but maybe not!

 

[shy_tall_knight]

Good posting especially as the Lameiras the lamb is being discussed also on this forum today. We were physically weaker and smaller than most of the teams we played this year, our line ups often made the opposition's manager team talk so easy regarding tactics

 

[steve82]

League two is tough as a Plymouth fan said on another thread. I think a few will be surprised to the style of football and pitches we will play on and I've said it for months. Most goals come route one, set pieces it's all largely played in the air.
One player we really need to keep for me is Nathan Clarke. We will need a leader type who is commanding and will head everything. Many fans won't like it but you need to wake up to the level we now find ourselves.

 

[torchomatic]

No different to L1 then really. No matter the manager over the last few years we've always lacked physicality and big men in the team Most teams we see in L1 are more physical than us, bigger than us and stick their foot in when needed.

Hopefully Robins will finally sort that out once and for all.

 

[Terry Gibson's perm]

It will be as tough you want it to be, spend money and bring in the best players it's a piece of piss do it like sisu and you struggle.

It will be physical so you won't have want to see many of the new pros chucked in.

 

[better days]

I've watched a lot of League 2 football in the last few years.
You spend most of the time looking up in the sky watching the ball which has been punted forward to a big man up top or booted away by the defending side

Ironically though it's usually the best quality teams that get promoted but you have to fight for the right to play

 

[steve82]

It will be as tough you want it to be, spend money and bring in the best players it's a piece of piss do it like sisu and you struggle.

It will be physical so you won't have want to see many of the new pros chucked in.

I still believe you can assemble a decent squad on frees. The players are there available this summer and doing it league two now.

 

[Terry Gibson's perm]

I still believe you can assemble a decent squad on frees. The players are there available this summer and doing it league two now.

I was classing spending money as on wages and fees. We do need players with knowledge of the league

 

[steve82]

I was classing spending money as on wages and fees. We do need players with knowledge of the league

Sorry, I thought you meant in fees....
Players with league two experience is vital, it's a must if MR is serious about bouncing back up. A skeleton side can be made from the current team nothing more, a few need to go back to being squad players

 

[Terry Gibson's perm]

Sorry, I thought you meant in fees....
Players with league two experience is vital, it's a must if MR is serious about bouncing back up. A skeleton side can be made from the current team nothing more, a few need to go back to being squad players

Fees wash your mouth out, Tims arsehole has just squeezed a bit tighter at that thought.

 

[rupert_bear]

Pace and power, we haven't had much of either for ages and horses for courses. Going back to the early JH days in a much worse environment playing wise than todays football with cloggers and glue pot pitches to contend with, our skilful wingers like Willie Humphries and Ronnie Rees ran amock but had tough nuts like George Curtis, Mick Kearns, John Sillett playing behind them. That's MRs job get the balance right.

 

[steve82]

Fees wash your mouth out, Tims arsehole has just squeezed a bit tighter at that thought.

Ha ha, we must remember that we did pay a fee for JJ and Turnbull last summer all be it out the pot.
I just pray MR is more resourceful with the pot this summer than TM.

 

[Terry Gibson's perm]

Ha ha, we must remember that we did pay a fee for JJ and Turnbull last summer all be it out the pot.
I just pray MR is more resourceful with the pot this summer than TM.

We did but we shifted players out to do it. My hope is he does things early I hate this x player missed Pre season so is catching up.

 

[steve82]

We did but we shifted players out to do it. My hope is he does things early I hate this x player missed Pre season so is catching up.

The Arron Martin exchange for Jordan Turnbull really pissed me off, granted Martin has not featured much this season anyway for various reasons. However Martin was said to be to tame for TM, what's is Turnbull then? Craig Mackail-Smith did him for pace last week repeatedly.
Yes I agree we need players in July ideally so we can do there conditioning and monitor there fitness.

 

[Nick]

Does anybody know much about "widdrington" types of players?

 

[Gazolba]

The principle is the same in every league. You just have to get the ball into the other team's net.
This has of course eluded us this season, and if it continues to do so next season, we will struggle to maintain our league status.
The first thing we need is a new goal-keeper, someone experienced and dominant.