Quote:
Originally Posted by cashman
not having seen much of the symes sending off, any mileage in n appeal?  |
No. I was Sat in main stand and have to say they were both going hell for leather whilst on the deck,straight in front of the fourth official, who even if the ref hadn't seen it, would have told him it was a straight red apiece.
I'd disagree with a few comments on this thread. In my opinion, it seemed like once 2-0 up, a few in the team obviously thought they'd done enough to beat Dale. You can argue that their second was a little lucky, being a deflection and all that, but when their first went in I had the horrible feeling of Deja vu, a.l.a. Bradford and at that moment (of Dale's first goal) could see what eventually happened, happening.
Despite changes in personnel from last season, it's still obvious that we are lacking at times in the defensive department. It seems lessons have still not been learned.
It may be my opinion, but to me, once 2 zip up against a so called better side, we seemed to freeze. Once their first went in, panic set in and from being on the front foot, we went on the back foot and the inevitable pressure told.
Don't get me wrong, a top half finish beckons and given our recent problems that is an achievement in itself.
However, having seen today's defensive capitulation more than once recently, ( Dale today, Bury on Boxing Day, and Bradford last season) that convinces me that, despite improvements going forward, until we can sort out defensive frailties and being able to handle pressure such as was applied in those three examples, we're not good enough to go up.
I'm not sure where the problem lies, however, what I will say is that if Coley and Bell spent less time berating and arguing with officials and bemoaning their bad luck and a little more time addressing the defensive problems in general, then I for one would be happier. I appreciate that we seem to get more than our share of dodgy officials, however to me, that excuse is starting to wear a bit thin.
Yes, Rochdale were a good side once they got going, however at 2-0 up, it would have been nice to close up shop and get the three points. Up until that point we never gave them a chance to get going.
Oh yeah, and the all ticket policy was a great success. I was sat next to four Dale fans in the main stand ( Clayton End Side )and had a natter with another at half time ( sat elsewhere in the main stand,who I would hasten to add, stated at that point he would have been happy with a point) wearing full colours !!! Quality decision and policing by the local Plod.
