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Paper Boy · 19-02-2007, 12:39

It's true we don't see those sort of goals anymore, I think the reason for that is that Paul isn't able to boss the penalty area as much as he did in the Unibond days for obvious reasons. To score those sort of goals you need a striker who is able to get in front of the defenders which requires either pace or strength. Paul used to have the upper hand with his power, but all managers and defenders know that now and negate his threat with good solid defending. More recently we have seen teams doubling up against Paul which makes it very hard for him.

As I'm sure everyone will agree he was at his best when paired up with Lutel and he hasn't had that type of partner for a while. Whilst one type of goalscoring opportunity has been taken away from him, there is no doubt in my mind that he can still be a very effective member of the team. His heading ability is top class (can't believe some disagree), but he is a link in our attacking chain and if no one is able to get near enough to him to feed of the flicks (which Lutel did) then it's a wasted tactic. We need someone to offer him support and we haven't got anyone - we need to stop trying to kid ourselves that Brown and Mangan are the answer - they're blatantly not good enough.

Personally, I'm pinning my hopes on McGivern who gave a little glimpse that he may well be the missing link.

19-02-2007, 12:39	#30
Paper Boy Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Dreamland Posts: 57 Liked: 1 times Rep Power: 0	Re: vs Stockport County It's true we don't see those sort of goals anymore, I think the reason for that is that Paul isn't able to boss the penalty area as much as he did in the Unibond days for obvious reasons. To score those sort of goals you need a striker who is able to get in front of the defenders which requires either pace or strength. Paul used to have the upper hand with his power, but all managers and defenders know that now and negate his threat with good solid defending. More recently we have seen teams doubling up against Paul which makes it very hard for him. As I'm sure everyone will agree he was at his best when paired up with Lutel and he hasn't had that type of partner for a while. Whilst one type of goalscoring opportunity has been taken away from him, there is no doubt in my mind that he can still be a very effective member of the team. His heading ability is top class (can't believe some disagree), but he is a link in our attacking chain and if no one is able to get near enough to him to feed of the flicks (which Lutel did) then it's a wasted tactic. We need someone to offer him support and we haven't got anyone - we need to stop trying to kid ourselves that Brown and Mangan are the answer - they're blatantly not good enough. Personally, I'm pinning my hopes on McGivern who gave a little glimpse that he may well be the missing link.