MATCHWATCH : Fleetwood Town (a)

[Snowflake Royal]

I'd have taken a point before kick off, but you should never be happy with it when you're leading in injury time, not enough against Man City.

We must be due a late equaliser or winner of our own this season. What's the latest so far? Vickers v Bolton in the 85th?

Yeah wonder how many points we’ve lost after 85m this season. As you say, don’t think we’ve gained any

Well we've lost 3 to Fleetwood alone - 1 at Exeter, 1 at Orient, 2 at Shrewbury. If each of those games had finished with the score as it was as we entered injury time, We'd be 11th on 42 points.

Anyway onto yesterday, draw was fair but it hurts to let in a goal in the last minute that may have been offside. Even if it was, it is our own fault as we had 2 or 3 opportunities to clear it.

Issue started with Monlouis backing off to let the guy run in to the box, moved on to Elliott missing his kick spectacularly and sending it back across the box (you could honestly replay that moment 1000 times and the ball would probably never go back across goal like that ever again), even then I think Wing managed to get a foot on the ball and failed to clear it - disaster all round really from a lot of tired or inexperienced players.

Worth noting that of the XI that finished the game - only 3 were over 22 (one of those being the keeper), 2 were making their debut with another 2 in their first season as a first team regular. Gven the conditions (boggy pitch really seemed to impact us more than them) and the inexperience it isn't surprising that it all went a bit panic stations at the end.

Unless I'm mistaken that is the first time we've lost a lead since the Barnsley game on the 9th December and despite the pressure, we didn't really look like conceding until that last melee despite the panic.

Also weren't helped by Dorsett's early injury, meant Abrefa had to come on much earlier that would have been the plan (again esp on a pitch like that), given he is finding his way back to fitness. The knock on of that was that we had to replace him as he was absolutely done in, so Monlouis was in a position to have to come on as the only defender left on the bench - though could have brought Rushesha on instead.

So yeah, I think circumstance and conditions had a direct influence on letting in the late goal - although we probably should have been 2 up by then and out of sight - thats life, we move on and see what we can get out of the game at the weekend.

How was Abrefa?

[stealthpapes]

Solid, but short. We had him marking their #9 for a few corners.

[stealthpapes]

Really nice for Charlie Adam to applaud our fans. Good lad.

[Brum Royal]

Stayed at the in laws in Lancs so a relatively short trip back last night. Some thoughts:

- A draw was probably about right overall, despite the disappointing manner of the way it came about. It looked offside when they showed the replay of the goal on the big screen in the ground, and the still earlier in the thread confirms this. That said Kelvin should have scored when up against the keeper, but didn't do enough to move the keeper and just hit it straight at the keeper's chest (good save btw from a keeper perspective)

- The pitch looked really sticky in the first half, the heavy rain from the end of the first half and through the second half at least allowed the ball to be moved quicker on it

- Too much of the first half was played with the ball at walking pace, there was little movement for the man on the ball. We defended well in pairs so there was always a man covering if there was a missed tackle, but it didn't work the same way with the ball in possession, and the man on the ball was frequently left isolated with no real option to pass to.

- Dorsett's injury looks a nasty one, we heard the scream as he went down (either slipped or trying to block, didn't see it as our gaze had followed the ball being crossed into the box). He's clearly in a lot of pain, was never going to continue (should have had a sub ready to go immediately), and was in agony when he was carried off between the two medics in front of us. Could be knee ligaments at a guess (haven't seen Selles comments yet).

- The full backs struggled throughout I thought - Mbengue and Abrefa kept getting beaten, and Fleetwood quickly worked out that they would have a lot of joy exploiting that, normally in a 2 on 1. I can understand the sub in bringing on Monluis as something needed changing to try to shore it up a bit at the back for that last 10 minutes.

- Bindon - what a player. Won everything. Huge performance.

- Button, solid. Came and caught well (bar one) on a very tricky night with how wet it was.

- Kelvin. Nothing seemed to really stick for him tonight. A real mixed bag of a performance. Annoyingly had the ball taken on him by Mukairu (offside) when he would have been in on goal, really should have scored to make it 2-0 as mentioned earlier. Looked very lethargic from about 70 minutes on, and probably should have been subbed earlier, as he wasn't able to get into position to support Azeez (in particular) when he broke forward on counter attacks.

- Wing - what a finish. Curled so, so late into the goal. I was stood right in line with it, I assumed it was just going to go wide then it suddenly swung and hit the back of the net.

- Azeez, our real creative spark, everything good going forward seemed to go through him. Very lively throughout.

- Overall, a draw probably fair. A decent night out, a nice little ground, with modern stands, sensible stewards, and a nice little club. Good attendance from the Reading fans given the distance on a Tuesday night, and in good voice too. Some good terrace humour in the chants as well "I'd rather be a haddock than a cod" and the "he's got short arms and can't reach the bar" were great. Small ground in a relatively small town, so could park a two minute walk from the ground and get away easily afterwards.

[Stranded]

Yeah wonder how many points we’ve lost after 85m this season. As you say, don’t think we’ve gained any

Well we've lost 3 to Fleetwood alone - 1 at Exeter, 1 at Orient, 2 at Shrewbury. If each of those games had finished with the score as it was as we entered injury time, We'd be 11th on 42 points.

Anyway onto yesterday, draw was fair but it hurts to let in a goal in the last minute that may have been offside. Even if it was, it is our own fault as we had 2 or 3 opportunities to clear it.

Issue started with Monlouis backing off to let the guy run in to the box, moved on to Elliott missing his kick spectacularly and sending it back across the box (you could honestly replay that moment 1000 times and the ball would probably never go back across goal like that ever again), even then I think Wing managed to get a foot on the ball and failed to clear it - disaster all round really from a lot of tired or inexperienced players.

Worth noting that of the XI that finished the game - only 3 were over 22 (one of those being the keeper), 2 were making their debut with another 2 in their first season as a first team regular. Gven the conditions (boggy pitch really seemed to impact us more than them) and the inexperience it isn't surprising that it all went a bit panic stations at the end.

Unless I'm mistaken that is the first time we've lost a lead since the Barnsley game on the 9th December and despite the pressure, we didn't really look like conceding until that last melee despite the panic.

Also weren't helped by Dorsett's early injury, meant Abrefa had to come on much earlier that would have been the plan (again esp on a pitch like that), given he is finding his way back to fitness. The knock on of that was that we had to replace him as he was absolutely done in, so Monlouis was in a position to have to come on as the only defender left on the bench - though could have brought Rushesha on instead.

So yeah, I think circumstance and conditions had a direct influence on letting in the late goal - although we probably should have been 2 up by then and out of sight - thats life, we move on and see what we can get out of the game at the weekend.

How was Abrefa?

As Stealth said, looked solid but was also clear that he wasn't ready to play essentially a full game especially on a sticky pitch. More than good enough for this level though and a solid back up to Yiadom, even more so if we have to manage his game time during this busy period.

[Wycombe Royal]

Hope Knibbs is fit for Saturday. Required physio treatment after the final whistle and limped off the pitch.

As for the match, disappointed conceding an offside goal that late, but we only have ourselves to blame. Numerous chances to clear the ball and failed to do so, strange substitutions and leaving Kelvin on for so long when he was clearly knackered.

Pitch certainly didn't help either team, but the weather has been a bit crap recently.

[tidus_mi2]

Certainly showed yet again we are almost useless without a fully fit Smith, wonder if there are any free agents that might fill the role of backup, that or Ehibatioman has to improve or we adjust our play to suit him as the lone striker. Even when he's not scoring Smith's work rate is immense.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Knibbs has been great, but of all our key players he has the most cover. We could bring in Craig and give Wing licence to play higher where he can do more damage, or give Elliott a chance in the middle where he's better suited. If he does need a rest for Saturday it wouldn't surprise me. This is a brutal run of fixtures. At least we have basically no travel until we have a week off, given how close Portsmouth is.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Certainly showed yet again we are almost useless without a fully fit Smith, wonder if there are any free agents that might fill the role of backup, that or Ehibatioman has to improve or we adjust our play to suit him as the lone striker. Even when he's not scoring Smith's work rate is immense.

Time to give Wareham a chance. Ehibhatiomhan's best form lately has been out wide, so use him there because he's unsuited to the central role.

[Stranded]

Hope Knibbs is fit for Saturday. Required physio treatment after the final whistle and limped off the pitch.

As for the match, disappointed conceding an offside goal that late, but we only have ourselves to blame. Numerous chances to clear the ball and failed to do so, strange substitutions and leaving Kelvin on for so long when he was clearly knackered.

Pitch certainly didn't help either team, but the weather has been a bit crap recently.

Seen a few people say the subs were strange - agree the last wave were a bit late but we were looking comfortable so understand not wanting to change too much (see Stevenage last week) but at that point Fleetwood went all out assault - but as for the subs.

Abrefa for Dorsett - obvious yet unplanned change.
Elliott for Mukairu - fine as the latter had been ineffective and Elliott is the best option on the bench for a swap there.
Craig for Savage - obvious change as both play the same role.
Wareham for Ehibhatiohman - obvious change if a little late
Monlouis for Abrefa - the only potential question mark - would Rushesha have been better rather than throwing on a debutant, possibly but he was the only defender left on the bench and he had played RB before for Arsenal u21 - made sense from that angle as no-one could have predicted the rabbit in the headlights display we got from him.

[Stranded]

Certainly showed yet again we are almost useless without a fully fit Smith, wonder if there are any free agents that might fill the role of backup, that or Ehibatioman has to improve or we adjust our play to suit him as the lone striker. Even when he's not scoring Smith's work rate is immense.

Time to give Wareham a chance. Ehibhatiomhan's best form lately has been out wide, so use him there because he's unsuited to the central role.

This.

Wareham is the nearest we have to Smith and he showed some nice skill and hold-up play in his short cameo last night - if Smith needs a few more days then I would start him and push Ehibhatiohman back out wide for Mukairu.

Knibbs being hurt would be a concern but as said we have options there, that whilst not quite as good, could offer Pompey different problems to deal with.

[Brogue]

Hope Knibbs is fit for Saturday. Required physio treatment after the final whistle and limped off the pitch.

As for the match, disappointed conceding an offside goal that late, but we only have ourselves to blame. Numerous chances to clear the ball and failed to do so, strange substitutions and leaving Kelvin on for so long when he was clearly knackered.

Pitch certainly didn't help either team, but the weather has been a bit crap recently.

Seen a few people say the subs were strange - agree the last wave were a bit late but we were looking comfortable so understand not wanting to change too much (see Stevenage last week) but at that point Fleetwood went all out assault - but as for the subs.

Abrefa for Dorsett - obvious yet unplanned change.
Elliott for Mukairu - fine as the latter had been ineffective and Elliott is the best option on the bench for a swap there.
Craig for Savage - obvious change as both play the same role.
Wareham for Ehibhatiohman - obvious change if a little late
Monlouis for Abrefa - the only potential question mark - would Rushesha have been better rather than throwing on a debutant, possibly but he was the only defender left on the bench and he had played RB before for Arsenal u21 - made sense from that angle as no-one could have predicted the rabbit in the headlights display we got from him.

Monlouis for Abrefa - if the Arsenal u21 captain cannot come on for the last 5 minutes - against a team in relegation in league 1 in the most non hostile atmosphere imaginable and not hold his own, then he might as well just hang up his boots now.

[PieEater]

[
How was Abrefa?

As Stealth said, looked solid but was also clear that he wasn't ready to play essentially a full game especially on a sticky pitch. More than good enough for this level though and a solid back up to Yiadom, even more so if we have to manage his game time during this busy period.

I thought he looked knackered for most of the second half, clearly not as fit as the others. Both wingers were tricky and physical so it wasn't an easy night. He was better than Mola.

[Snowflake Royal]

Well we've lost 3 to Fleetwood alone - 1 at Exeter, 1 at Orient, 2 at Shrewbury. If each of those games had finished with the score as it was as we entered injury time, We'd be 11th on 42 points.

Anyway onto yesterday, draw was fair but it hurts to let in a goal in the last minute that may have been offside. Even if it was, it is our own fault as we had 2 or 3 opportunities to clear it.

Issue started with Monlouis backing off to let the guy run in to the box, moved on to Elliott missing his kick spectacularly and sending it back across the box (you could honestly replay that moment 1000 times and the ball would probably never go back across goal like that ever again), even then I think Wing managed to get a foot on the ball and failed to clear it - disaster all round really from a lot of tired or inexperienced players.

Worth noting that of the XI that finished the game - only 3 were over 22 (one of those being the keeper), 2 were making their debut with another 2 in their first season as a first team regular. Gven the conditions (boggy pitch really seemed to impact us more than them) and the inexperience it isn't surprising that it all went a bit panic stations at the end.

Unless I'm mistaken that is the first time we've lost a lead since the Barnsley game on the 9th December and despite the pressure, we didn't really look like conceding until that last melee despite the panic.

Also weren't helped by Dorsett's early injury, meant Abrefa had to come on much earlier that would have been the plan (again esp on a pitch like that), given he is finding his way back to fitness. The knock on of that was that we had to replace him as he was absolutely done in, so Monlouis was in a position to have to come on as the only defender left on the bench - though could have brought Rushesha on instead.

So yeah, I think circumstance and conditions had a direct influence on letting in the late goal - although we probably should have been 2 up by then and out of sight - thats life, we move on and see what we can get out of the game at the weekend.

How was Abrefa?

As Stealth said, looked solid but was also clear that he wasn't ready to play essentially a full game especially on a sticky pitch. More than good enough for this level though and a solid back up to Yiadom, even more so if we have to manage his game time during this busy period.

Cheers to all who replied

[blythspartan]

I am really enjoying this season and the camaraderie that’s building between the players and the fans.

With Lewis Wing we have a player to build a team around and the younger players will only get better with more experience. For the first time in ages I have high hopes for next season, but just know that Dai will oxf*rd us over again.

[Stranded]

I am really enjoying this season and the camaraderie that’s building between the players and the fans.

With Lewis Wing we have a player to build a team around and the younger players will only get better with more experience. For the first time in ages I have high hopes for next season, but just know that Dai will oxf*rd us over again.

Yep despite (or perhaps because) of all the off field crap, this is slowly turning into one of the most enjoyable seasons of watching Reading since we last left the Prem.

[skipper]

I am really enjoying this season and the camaraderie that’s building between the players and the fans.

With Lewis Wing we have a player to build a team around and the younger players will only get better with more experience. For the first time in ages I have high hopes for next season, but just know that Dai will oxf*rd us over again.

Yep despite (or perhaps because) of all the off field crap, this is slowly turning into one of the most enjoyable seasons of watching Reading since we last left the Prem.

+100 - ive even managed 4 games this season!!!

[Brogue]

I am really enjoying this season and the camaraderie that’s building between the players and the fans.

With Lewis Wing we have a player to build a team around and the younger players will only get better with more experience. For the first time in ages I have high hopes for next season, but just know that Dai will oxf*rd us over again.

Lewis Wing born 23rd June 1995
John Swift born 23rd June 1995

Never warmed to Swift, Wing offers much more to the team than swift ever did, you don't see wing go missing in games the way swift did. And wing is just as capable of producing a bit of magic, just like he did last night.

[WestYorksRoyal]

I am really enjoying this season and the camaraderie that’s building between the players and the fans.

With Lewis Wing we have a player to build a team around and the younger players will only get better with more experience. For the first time in ages I have high hopes for next season, but just know that Dai will oxf*rd us over again.

Lewis Wing born 23rd June 1995
John Swift born 23rd June 1995

Never warmed to Swift, Wing offers much more to the team than swift ever did, you don't see wing go missing in games the way swift did. And wing is just as capable of producing a bit of magic, just like he did last night.

If Swift plays for WBA, what is Wing's ceiling? He doesn't seem far off Swift's levels technically and his mentality is great. To have a player who can provide moments like last night and Cheltenham seems like a bit of a cheat code at this level.

[Snowflake Royal]

I am really enjoying this season and the camaraderie that’s building between the players and the fans.

With Lewis Wing we have a player to build a team around and the younger players will only get better with more experience. For the first time in ages I have high hopes for next season, but just know that Dai will oxf*rd us over again.

Yep despite (or perhaps because) of all the off field crap, this is slowly turning into one of the most enjoyable seasons of watching Reading since we last left the Prem.

+100 - ive even managed 4 games this season!!!

#greatreset.