I didn’t have a problem with Bettinelli moving to cover his near post but if we hadn’t had pretty much everyone competing with Morrison then we may not have impeded our own ability to jump for the ball or better still, Bettinelli may have been able to come off his line to punch away.
Fair point on covering the back post although that would have allowed a Cardiff player to run in as they wouldn’t have been offside from Morrison’s flick-header.
A very poor goal to concede however you look at it. Criminal in such a tight game with so few chances created.
totally agree with you about Cardiff. It was minimalist football designed to remove risk and take advantage of size. It made us look quite sophisticated.
I don’t think offside is that much of an issue on long throws because, rather like corners, there are so many people close to the goal line. In this case there was no other player. The ball just bounced off his head into the empty side of the goal. I wasn’t blaming Bettinelli for being there but the defence should have decided who was supposed to be jumping against Morrison.
In the Gazette, Johns writes
Regardless of if Boro manage to make top six or not, this served as another reminder of Boro's improvements. With just a few of the right additions in the summer, Boro aren't far off having a good Championship side at all. They have their deficiencies, they have bad nights like Tuesday, but they have progressed
I think that's a fair summary. We're probably a team that is not far off being a top 6 Championship team. There are some obvious weaknesses and we have a fading legacy of players we overpaid for that have prevented us from fixing those weaknesses.
The Cardiff game was a good example of our strengths and weaknesses. Tendency to be out-thought and out-muscled in defence, tendency to panic and play long balls but strong team ethos. With the majority of our highest earners ending their contracts there is a chance to get the players in to deal with those weaknesses.
Of course, getting the right players in is what we have failed to do for about 5 years. What we need is Jim Platt, Stuart Boam, Graeme Souness and John Hickton.
Must admit I never noticed the Ref particularly which I guess is the ultimate compliment. I doubt he will be in the Championship long and fast tracked to the Premiership (probably swapping places with Lee Mason).
On Officiating it will be interesting to see if there are repercussions from the Bournemouth v Watford game yesterday.
Hartlepool had the same failings as Boro when it comes to putting the ball in the net. Completely dominated the match in a 1-0 win but missed some absolute sitters. Dave Challinor is doing a good job there and after Pools had lost 3 of their first 4 home matches, his side has won 8 successive home matches. The next 3 matches are all away and that will be the acid test.
It’s a very complicated playoff system with only the Champions promoted. Torquay seemed to have had that sown up, but now Solihull Moors might have the advantage and it’s important that Pools retain their current 3rd place or they will have to face the possibility of 4 playoff matches. As I see it, matches are one-off games with 4th home to 7th, and 5th home to 6th, the winners of those two matches having home advantage for the right to play away to the 3rd placed club in the semifinal. The final will have the 2nd placed club having home advantage as far as I’m aware. It is further complicated by the fact that Dover Athletic have furloughed all their players and staff so won’t play again this season, thereby meaning that either all their results are expunged or that as happened last season, final League positions will be decided by a ratio of points per match.
Pools supporters will also be hoping that unless they finish 2nd with ground advantage that they don’t have to make another long trip to Torquay whom they are due to meet in Devon in a week’s time, but this is Pool’s best chance to regain League 2 status.
@deleriad I was thing that we should have something like Jim Platt in goal after the game yesterday. I think we would have collected something like 6 to 10 more points this season had we a Jim Platt in goal. Up the Boro!
@deleriad. "Of course, getting the right players in is what we have failed to do for about 5 years. What we need is Jim Platt, Stuart Boam, Graeme Souness and John Hickton."
Those were the days, add in Willie Maddren and spike and even these days they would be a forced to be reckoned with. 😎
We have all the right players but not necessarily playing in the right team.
Nod to Eric Morecambe
OFB
@original-fat-bob. Yes but we appear to be getting closer to it.
CBs being played at CB, midfielder in midfield and substitutes who should have started.
Perhaps next match we might have all he right players in all the right positions all playing the same way together. 😎
I had a very big problem with Bettineli, but then I have had this problem for a while. He is, quite simply not good enough to play at this level. their goal was the complete example, 1. He placed himself at the centre of his goal, on his goal line, a mass of bodies blocking his view, as soon as the throw was launched he was pulled by an invisible magnet to the near post and the mass of bodies, the ball touched someone's head, not much, a simple catch if he had stayed where he was, a simple header for someone on the far post. This is not rocket science and has gone on all this season. Our reserve keeper may as well had been getting this experience. In case you think I am being unfair, consider the free kick front and centre of the goal early in the match, he was never still as they prepared to take it, always on the move, fussing and anxious, it ended with a weak shot, which he saved, with difficulty, had it been a powerful shot, our number was up. i will refrain from comment on Britt, had he been subbed at half time, we would have won, usless, you can say that again!