Cov 2-1 LCFC

[ACF]

Did we have better all black clobber than them though?

[Gamble92]

10 hours ago, ozvaldo said:

We don’t have a striker that runs in behind to create space and/or busts a gut to get across the front man for poacher-type goals. 
 

Bobby should have got at least one, yes. 
 

But being in those positions without an effective striker really does cause us issues.  The amount of times Ayew either stood still or went backwards was ridiculous. 

Id argue Ayew made space for Reid a couple of times. We seemed to have a plan to cut it back to the midfielder running into the box and it was working really well with Ayew dragging their centre back out of position. It was a bit like Enzo tactics. 

 

If Reid scores one of his chances I honestly think we'd have had a result like the Derby away game. 

[Sky Blues]

1 hour ago, Gamble92 said:

Id argue Ayew made space for Reid a couple of times. We seemed to have a plan to cut it back to the midfielder running into the box and it was working really well with Ayew dragging their centre back out of position. It was a bit like Enzo tactics. 

 

If Reid scores one of his chances I honestly think we'd have had a result like the Derby away game. 

Goals win games. The only time you had players in the 6 yard box waiting for the ball was in set pieces. For our 1st goal we had players in the 6 yard box and Simms scored off the back of his calf from a foot away. For our 2nd goal once Thomas decided to do the dying fly it was 1 v 3. If Ayew is playing as a striker he should have been aiming to get into the box. 

[Gamble92]

Just now, Sky Blues said:

Goals win games. The only time you had players in the 6 yard box waiting for the ball was in set pieces. For our 1st goal we had players in the 6 yard box and Simms scored off the back of his calf from a foot away. For our 2nd goal once Thomas decided to do the dying fly it was 1 v 3. If Ayew is playing as a striker he should have been aiming to get into the box. 

Goals do win games, thanks Des Lynam.

 

We created more than enough chances to win. It's obvious the system, rightly or wrongly, doesn't play with an out and out striker. 

 

Like you said, without Thomas defending so pathetic that chance doesn't happen.

 

We need to stop coming out second half like we did anyway. Lampard only had to tell you to get up for it more and too many of our players fold. It's not the first time and won't be the last this season unfortunately.

[Sky Blues]

1 hour ago, Gamble92 said:

Goals do win games, thanks Des Lynam.

 

We created more than enough chances to win. It's obvious the system, rightly or wrongly, doesn't play with an out and out striker. 

 

Like you said, without Thomas defending so pathetic that chance doesn't happen.

 

We need to stop coming out second half like we did anyway. Lampard only had to tell you to get up for it more and too many of our players fold. It's not the first time and won't be the last this season unfortunately.

You're in for Diabate from Sweden for 2m. A proper striker. 

 

It's how we normally play but you had us on toast the 1st half. Second half Lampard tweeked it at HT and your players are not fit enough. 

[LCFCJohn]

16 hours ago, PaulW said:

Somebody else jumping on the 'happy clappers' bandwagon.

Oh hi Paul.

 

I realise you never did confirm why is it ‘divisive, unhelpful and arrogant’ to call somebody a happy clapper yet it is ok for those backing the regime to do/say the following regarding those protesting for change;

 

- Calling them part timers, plastics and boo boys.

- Spreading misinformation online that if you are unhappy with how the club is run this means you have only supported the club since 2016.

- Physical violence towards fellow supporters in the stands who are being vocal about the running of the club.

 

I’m  intrigued to know why a simple term like happy clapper you believe is divisive, unhelpful and arrogant whilst the list I have put above is ok?

[Muzzy_no7]

1 hour ago, Sky Blues said:

You're in for Diabate from Sweden for 2m. A proper striker. 

 

It's how we normally play but you had us on toast the 1st half. Second half Lampard tweeked it at HT and your players are not fit enough. 

While we’ve got you here could you explain where you’ve found these regular extra 12,000-14,000 home supporters? 
 

I know success increases attendances a little but your average home followings have gone from 14-16K to 29-30K.

 

Are you doing similar to what Derby did between 2007-2012 and giving 1,000’s of tickets and ST’s away?

[CV10 Sky Blue]

4 hours ago, Muzzy_no7 said:

While we’ve got you here could you explain where you’ve found these regular extra 12,000-14,000 home supporters? 
 

I know success increases attendances a little but your average home followings have gone from 14-16K to 29-30K.

 

Are you doing similar to what Derby did between 2007-2012 and giving 1,000’s of tickets and ST’s away?

 

I'll take that one, whilst I'm here.

 

It's a bit disingenuous to keep hearing this line from other fans. The support has steadily grown since we got back into the Championship. The City has been starved of any notable success for decades, it's not happened overnight.

 

 

2021–22 19,541 12th (Championship)

2022–23 19,950   5th (Championship)

2023–24 25,468   9th (Championship)

2024–25 29,177   5th (Championship)

2025–26 30,000+   ??st (Championship)

 

Just as success brings in the fans, failure loses them. Hence why your attendances dropped to 20k in League 1 and then rose a bit to low/mid 20s in the following 5 seasons back in the Championship. Your fan base is no different to ours in that respect. 

Edited 19 January by CV10 Sky Blue

[CosbehFox]

Even me with my hatred finds the crowd thing a bit off. 
 

Yeah that crowd when we played them opening day under Sven and won 1-0. That period, operation Premiership and all that, horrific crowds for a club with a significant catchment area 

 

But Cov fans rightly boycotted for years once it became apparently their owners were de facto property/land agents
 

With that though their journey will have completely brought through a new generation of supporters (something we badly need here), hence their crowds are growing. 
 

Hence I find the defence from a section of their support on the £45 away tickets at complete ill odds in consideration of their last few years. 
 

But hey that’s why English football is where it is. Too many supporters get partisan rather than finding the common ground for the greater good. 

[CosbehFox]

11 hours ago, ACF said:

Did we have better all black clobber than them though?

No but record number of football shirts worn to Sunday dinners and at Deano pints. 

[Pliskin]

16 hours ago, VLC86 said:

Even with that, it’s pre season for us and the opposition. We were changing a whole team in games.

I’m not talking about changes in tactical decisions, or changing of personnel, I’m suggesting that the players are less fit, and less of a cohesive unit since he took over. Which I don’t think can be denied….. how can you look so sharp, fit and up for it during the pre season, and then in January look like you’ve never played together, and are blowing out of your see after 50 minutes? 

[Clever Fox]

22 hours ago, Harry the Cat said:

We’ve got too many lightweights. I’ve lost count of the number of times Thomas, Fatawu, Daka and Monga fall over following the slightest touch. On several occasions this has led to us conceding goals and needless bookings. We’ve got to toughen up, be stronger and be more resilient. 

I totally agree, We need to sign a few 6 ft plus midfielders and defenders to compete with most teams in this league. If they can play all the better.

 

At the very least we should lose less set pieces in our box.

[VLC86]

8 minutes ago, Pliskin said:

I’m not talking about changes in tactical decisions, or changing of personnel, I’m suggesting that the players are less fit, and less of a cohesive unit since he took over. Which I don’t think can be denied….. how can you look so sharp, fit and up for it during the pre season, and then in January look like you’ve never played together, and are blowing out of your see after 50 minutes? 

It’s pretty clear to me, the same group of players are playing week in week out, and sometimes twice a week. Some of them, are too old to be doing that but Marti doesn’t seem to think he has another option.

 

Other than Ayew, Ricky P and BDCR, who else are you noticing is looking worse fitness wise? 

[RonnieTodger]

Didn’t they fill the stadium for a JPT semi final during this boycott?

[Raj]

6 hours ago, Muzzy_no7 said:

While we’ve got you here could you explain where you’ve found these regular extra 12,000-14,000 home supporters? 
 

I know success increases attendances a little but your average home followings have gone from 14-16K to 29-30K.

 

Are you doing similar to what Derby did between 2007-2012 and giving 1,000’s of tickets and ST’s away?

You mean like what we did before the Thai era giving away loads of free tickets to Schools and neighbourhoods etc.

I know cos i was on the fans forum at the team and the club were almost p1ssing them away.

 

Give it a couple of years of whats happening here and you will be able to ask the same of us but in reverse (i.e how we hoave LOST 10,000 odd fans!)

 

[Pliskin]

11 minutes ago, VLC86 said:

It’s pretty clear to me, the same group of players are playing week in week out, and sometimes twice a week. Some of them, are too old to be doing that but Marti doesn’t seem to think he has another option.

 

Other than Ayew, Ricky P and BDCR, who else are you noticing is looking worse fitness wise? 

I don’t disagree, but, he isn’t exactly using the squad properly either is he? For example, yesterday it was clear Skipp’s legs had gone after 60 minutes, so why not replace him with Hamza? Regardless of our feelings toward him, he has played that CDM role in this league before and is capable of doing so, but instead is put at RB or LB and we convince ourselves he isn’t capable of playing that role anymore, when only a couple of seasons ago he played a blinder against WBA…..
 

As a collective we look unfit, the central midfield struggles, because James does a hell of a lot of running, he’s expected to form the double pivot with Skipp and a box to box? So naturally he runs out of legs. 
 

Perhaps it’s as you say, it’s more to do with the same set of players over and over and doesn’t appear to want to try a different system.

 

In my opinion, he needs to switch to an actual 4-3-3 system, rather than try to use any inverted full backs etc….. have Skipp Page and James play as the three, which should mean Skipp isn’t left isolated, and we can have two players working together to run from midfield, as I think Page is proving he’s capable of doing this role too! 
 

And he needs to use the squad more intelligently than he currently is…… he’s hamstringing himself, but not trying some alternatives that makes sense, like trying Aluko instead of Thomas who is desperately struggling, trying a midfield three rather than the two he’s currently trying to deploy. 
 

For whatever reason this team doesn’t appear to have the legs to be particularly dynamic for a whole 90 minutes, so he needs to try something a bit different, to try and help. 
 

The Coventry game is a prime example, he clearly sent the team out to carry on, and it appeared to me that he had not read the flow of the game properly and considered Coventry’s input in the game, instead Frank reacted and we crumbled. 
 

It is no surprise that this is happening over and over again. This is just part of a bigger picture for me that Marti hasn’t improved anything at all, and the were are less fit than we were, not a collective cohesive unit, and don’t have a clear tactical philosophy. 

[Finnegan]

3 hours ago, CV10 Sky Blue said:

 

I'll take that one, whilst I'm here.

 

It's a bit disingenuous to keep hearing this line from other fans. The support has steadily grown since we got back into the Championship. The City has been starved of any notable success for decades, it's not happened overnight.

 

 

2021–22 19,541 12th (Championship)

2022–23 19,950   5th (Championship)

2023–24 25,468   9th (Championship)

2024–25 29,177   5th (Championship)

2025–26 30,000+   ??st (Championship)

 

Just as success brings in the fans, failure loses them. Hence why your attendances dropped to 20k in League 1 and then rose a bit to low/mid 20s in the following 5 seasons back in the Championship. Your fan base is no different to ours in that respect. 

 

Cov is a decent sized city with only one team. It's obviously going to have a fair sized potential fanbase, probably not wildly different to ours. 

 

It's also been one of the most horrific clubs in English football to support for like the last 40 years, it's not really a surprise that attendances dropped off so significantly. 

 

Also not really surprising that fans will slowly start coming back when they start winning again. 

 

Every fanbase in the country loves singing stuff like "where were you when you were shit" but literally every fanbase in the country gets less arses on seats the further down the leagues they drop. 

 

Football is more fun to go and watch when your team isn't god awful. It's not rocket science. 

 

Edited 19 January by Finnegan

[PaulW]

7 hours ago, LCFCJohn said:

Oh hi Paul.

 

I realise you never did confirm why is it ‘divisive, unhelpful and arrogant’ to call somebody a happy clapper yet it is ok for those backing the regime to do/say the following regarding those protesting for change;

 

- Calling them part timers, plastics and boo boys.

- Spreading misinformation online that if you are unhappy with how the club is run this means you have only supported the club since 2016.

- Physical violence towards fellow supporters in the stands who are being vocal about the running of the club.

 

I’m  intrigued to know why a simple term like happy clapper you believe is divisive, unhelpful and arrogant whilst the list I have put above is ok?

I have never claimed or insinuated that those other forms of abuse are OK.

Edited 19 January by PaulW

[Lineker's Left Foot]

Just wondering if those ***** down the M69 - Christ I am turning into one of them with my name calling - have finally finished their street parties after winning their M69

Cup Final?  Just asking for a friend by the way!

[VLC86]

35 minutes ago, Pliskin said:

I don’t disagree, but, he isn’t exactly using the squad properly either is he? For example, yesterday it was clear Skipp’s legs had gone after 60 minutes, so why not replace him with Hamza? Regardless of our feelings toward him, he has played that CDM role in this league before and is capable of doing so, but instead is put at RB or LB and we convince ourselves he isn’t capable of playing that role anymore, when only a couple of seasons ago he played a blinder against WBA…..
 

As a collective we look unfit, the central midfield struggles, because James does a hell of a lot of running, he’s expected to form the double pivot with Skipp and a box to box? So naturally he runs out of legs. 
 

Perhaps it’s as you say, it’s more to do with the same set of players over and over and doesn’t appear to want to try a different system.

 

In my opinion, he needs to switch to an actual 4-3-3 system, rather than try to use any inverted full backs etc….. have Skipp Page and James play as the three, which should mean Skipp isn’t left isolated, and we can have two players working together to run from midfield, as I think Page is proving he’s capable of doing this role too! 
 

And he needs to use the squad more intelligently than he currently is…… he’s hamstringing himself, but not trying some alternatives that makes sense, like trying Aluko instead of Thomas who is desperately struggling, trying a midfield three rather than the two he’s currently trying to deploy. 
 

For whatever reason this team doesn’t appear to have the legs to be particularly dynamic for a whole 90 minutes, so he needs to try something a bit different, to try and help. 
 

The Coventry game is a prime example, he clearly sent the team out to carry on, and it appeared to me that he had not read the flow of the game properly and considered Coventry’s input in the game, instead Frank reacted and we crumbled. 
 

It is no surprise that this is happening over and over again. This is just part of a bigger picture for me that Marti hasn’t improved anything at all, and the were are less fit than we were, not a collective cohesive unit, and don’t have a clear tactical philosophy. 

I said in my first post, I agreed with what you were saying, but disagreed with the point that you can say that Andy King did a better job in pre season and you have digressed away from that.

[Pliskin]

57 minutes ago, VLC86 said:

I said in my first post, I agreed with what you were saying, but disagreed with the point that you can say that Andy King did a better job in pre season and you have digressed away from that.

I didn’t say that, I said that I felt we are not as fit as we were then, and have essentially become less of a cohesive unit since then…. I didn’t exclusively say I felt king did a better job, but I do think our overall fitness is worse.

 

Essentially what I am saying is, the players who were here last season, have all regressed. 

[Muzzy_no7]

3 hours ago, RonnieTodger said:

Didn’t they fill the stadium for a JPT semi final during this boycott?

No, Coventry still to this day haven’t been able to fill that ground in 25 years. 

[Muzzy_no7]

6 hours ago, CV10 Sky Blue said:

 

I'll take that one, whilst I'm here.

 

It's a bit disingenuous to keep hearing this line from other fans. The support has steadily grown since we got back into the Championship. The City has been starved of any notable success for decades, it's not happened overnight.

 

 

2021–22 19,541 12th (Championship)

2022–23 19,950   5th (Championship)

2023–24 25,468   9th (Championship)

2024–25 29,177   5th (Championship)

2025–26 30,000+   ??st (Championship)

 

Just as success brings in the fans, failure loses them. Hence why your attendances dropped to 20k in League 1 and then rose a bit to low/mid 20s in the following 5 seasons back in the Championship. Your fan base is no different to ours in that respect. 

No you see it is different.

 

Yours was regularly, in this same league, between 14,000-18,000.

 

In the championship ours has always ranged from 23-31K.  
 

Both have differences, only yours is almost double in the same league. 

[CV10 Sky Blue]

5 minutes ago, Muzzy_no7 said:

No you see it is different.

 

Yours was regularly, in this same league, between 14,000-18,000.

 

In the championship ours has always ranged from 23-31K.  
 

Both have differences, only yours is almost double in the same league. 

 

Just points of order here, in the same league in the RICOH/CBS era, pre relegation to League 1,  ranged between 15-20k. And that was in a period of one of the worst ownership of a football club the country has seen. No great suprise the move to the RICOH/CBS didnt work out for us, like your move to the Walkers. You in the same period had steady 22-24k years. You were a steady club. You only averaged just short of 25k in your 13/14 promotion season  But you only ever got anywhere near 30k in your promotion year 23/24. And that's now happening to us. 

 

Ours has grown steady over the last 5 years and I think the signs are there now with a whole new generation of young fans hooked, that our averages will be above 27/28K for years to come outside of the PL. 

[Muzzy_no7]

28 minutes ago, CV10 Sky Blue said:

 

Just points of order here, in the same league in the RICOH/CBS era, pre relegation to League 1,  ranged between 15-20k. And that was in a period of one of the worst ownership of a football club the country has seen. No great suprise the move to the RICOH/CBS didnt work out for us, like your move to the Walkers. You in the same period had steady 22-24k years. You were a steady club. You only averaged just short of 25k in your 13/14 promotion season  But you only ever got anywhere near 30k in your promotion year 23/24. And that's now happening to us. 

 

Ours has grown steady over the last 5 years and I think the signs are there now with a whole new generation of young fans hooked, that our averages will be above 27/28K for years to come outside of the PL. 

yours is a much bigger and sudden jump though which is what I’m trying to tell/show you. 
 

You’re experiencing your second best era EVER so your attendances will peak but I don’t think they will stay there for decades, history shows that.