Brief Synopsis (Oxford) sponsored by Bromleigh House Ltd

[Green Flash]

As for the outcome of this season, maybe just sneak into playoffs if we can cover up our 20 - 30 minutes lapses of

As for the outcome of this season, maybe just sneak into playoffs if we can cover up our 20 - 30 minutes lapses of sloppy ness in games. For this to happen, the midfield of Broom, Camara & Mayor (which ever 2 of the 3 he plays will need to score on a consistent basis.

As above, I agree we are most likely to be contesting for a play off spot but if we could cut out the 30 minutes of many games we look at bit off it, I would be confident of automatic promotion!

 

[Kentishgreen]

Seeing the money we’re up against a play off spot would be an achievement.

 

[saxman]

Just listening to the Radio Devon commentary on GOS after listening to Argyle TV live. Wow that was lively

Reminded me of one of my all time favourite funny commentaries... not the same bloke is it?

Grief, was that 10 years ago! What a performance it was, totally fearless.

 

[saxman]

It's just like watching Brazil! Count the passes for the third goal.

https://twitter.com/Voodoov21/status/1450054462446391299?t=FJMXfeyLczzceoHxLFAzqw&s=19

Wow, that's fantastic

 

[davie nine]

Even the best teams lose possession. The issue is how quickly they regain possession. On MoTD on Saturday this was very well illustrated in the comparison between Liverpool and Manchester United and how they pressed to regain possession. I think one of the features of our performances this season is the energy of the press and the ability to win second balls. Broom and Pan have been instrumental in this with the prodigious distances they cover (up to 20% above average) but it starts from the front and we shouldn't underestimate how hard Ryan and Luke work the back three / four each game.

It is simply not possible to maintain these high energy levels for 90 minutes plus but reduce the misplaced passes, win the second balls and continue with the way we press from the front then I am confident that we will maintain our rate of progress.

Absolutely, spot on. Our type of play under RL means that, if we lose possession when Broom and/or Camara are attacking we will inevitably be exposed on occasions.
We then have to rely on our solid and reliable defence to try to prevent counter attacks, aided by our wing backs and the ‘always available’ Jordan Houghton.
It is interesting that, for all their apparent domination, Oxford only had 2 shots on target and one of them was their goal in the 5th minute.
Who is to say that, if some of their shots were on target, Coops wouldn’t have saved them?
We are on a 12 match unbeaten run and yet some supporters are seeking perfection and total control in every game. Perhaps, they should consider that all the teams we face in League 1 have some decent players, including Oxford, and there are stages in almost every game where the opposition will take control for a period. That’s why, even in the Premier League, teams like Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea concede goals and have stages of a game where the opposition has control.
I prefer to marvel at the pluses at the moment and, as an example, take a look at Posty’s contribution at 2:57pm today and see the number of passes we put together that resulted in our 3rd goal.

 

[mutley marvel]

Some people expect perfection for 90 plus minutes- perfection does not exist- our players are human beings not robots

All games ebb & flow- the pendulum swings on numerous occasions throughout a game but it is the result at the final whistle that matters

All the teams we play will have different tactics, different styles of play & it is not a given that they will be a soft touch & let us impose our game plan on them for the duration of the game

Our unbeaten run is a testament to the fact we have a team that are a extremely strong cohesive unit , so extremely well drilled & fully on top of the game plan that has been worked on in training prior to the game

 

[xmastree]

I don't honesty think that anyone expects "perfection for 90 minutes", because, as Mutley Marvel suggests "perfection does not exist". For the same reason I don't agree with Davie nine's assertion that some "seek perfection".

What some fans definitely do look for is ways to improve, regardless of how good things are at the moment. I'm sure it's accepted that Lowe and co should always be looking to improve, but some fans interpret it as unnecessary criticism, and unappreciative of what's already been achieved, when other fans post their views on how we might improve even further. I do think such views should be regarded as positive aspirations, rather than disrespectful of recent achievement.

Perfection to the extreme would of course be a nightmare. It would be great to watch a 20 pass move result in a wonderful team goal in the first minute. Equally good when a similar move puts us 2-0 up after 3 minutes. 6 or 7 nil up after 10 minutes, with the opposition having done little more than kick off a few times, and things would become a little tedious - I certainly wouldn't want to watch that game after game. Human vulnerability on both sides plays a big part in making a game watchable. You need to be able to see errors, and, to be able to imagine a strategy to reduce such errors.

There's nothing wrong with speculating on further improvement, providing respect is paid to improvements already achieved. Where you really hit a problem is when no further improvement is possible.

 

[davie nine]

I agree, XT, that most fans don’t expect perfection but, after reading some posts on this thread, it appears that there are a small minority who will not be happy unless the opposition is under control for 90 minutes and create no chances.
Maybe, it is down to continued lack of trust in our manager’s style of play.

 

[Tugboat]

I think it’s a case of always striving for more.

Peoples expectations are continually increasing with good results and now that we are scoring goals, playing well and generally doing fantastic as a club, some are wanting that unrealistic sprinkle of magic over the lot to make us truly magnificent.

A short sharp dose of reality is needed to remind some of us that we are overachieving right now. Long may it continue but let’s not get carried away with ourselves and start believing that the top spot was a realistic objective when the season started.

Many bumps along the way. Enjoy today and let the ride naturally take its course.

Nothing to lose and perhaps a lot to gain with little expectation attached.

 

[The Doctor]

I think the thing we need to worry about are winter conditions, this may make our style of play more difficult to execute and maintain on the heavier pitches.

Winter conditions? Well we should start to find out about that tonight!

 

[WoodsyGreen]

All lm saying is wait and see. Maybe we can keep getting away with these spells because we are so good in other areas.

What lm thinking is we have had a great start. That we have played some beautiful football. That we give the opportunities to the opposition with some sloppy moments that will eventually get punished.

Tactically, people don’t seem to think playing 3-1-4-2 for the whole 90 mins is an issue. That’s what l criticised him for. l just think in certain game/match situations, around 60 mins in, you sometimes need to change systems. Be more adaptable. Whether it’s to see a game out or to wrestle momentum back. I don’t see this from Lowe from the past few seasons. It’s my concern about him.

I still think this system is about your wing backs. We have creative players like Broom or Mayor who can drive to the byline. What we don’t have is wing backs who can do this. I also think we need a physical no9 to help us up front, from time to time.

l know people will say we are top of the league, your being too harsh. Maybe l am. It’s just what l see. Built on watching league one and two football throughout my Argyle life and watching what made promotion teams in this league.

As for the outcome of this season, maybe just sneak into playoffs if we can cover up our 20 - 30 minutes lapses of sloppy ness in games. For this to happen, the midfield of Broom, Camara & Mayor (which ever 2 of the 3 he plays will need to score on a consistent basis.

MGM - you appear to be a frustrated football manager who should perhaps look to get involved with grassroots football at some level. It'll help you to realise that football is a real-life sport involving human beings who make mistakes and get tired, not to mention a set of opposition players who are going all out to stop you playing.

It's not a computer game, and you can't magically get more out of your players just by tweaking formation.

I do agree with you about goals from our midfield, though. It's been a good week or so on that front but it needs to happen consistently if we're going up.

 

[Metal Green Mickey]

MGM - you appear to be a frustrated football manager who should perhaps look to get involved with grassroots football at some level. It'll help you to realise that football is a real-life sport involving human beings who make mistakes and get tired, not to mention a set of opposition players who are going all out to stop you playing.

It's not a computer game, and you can't magically get more out of your players just by tweaking formation.

I do agree with you about goals from our midfield, though. It's been a good week or so on that front but it needs to happen consistently if we're going up.

Not frustrated at all.

When people were moaning like hell about Adams, and l brought up the issues l wasn‘t frustrated, l was being realistic.

Last January, when Argyle were on a good run, l brought up some issues. The same argument was said to me then. A few months later we go into free fall. I was just being realistic.

People get all hyped up, then go into meltdown.

When Argyle unfortunately won’t be competing for the top two places, you will hear way more negativity than l give the team. I’m just giving constructive criticism about where we are at.

Unfortunately, and this is how this site is, you can support your team, enjoy the atmosphere (as l did on Saturday) and be caught up in the game. Then you can be honest about what you seen. Unfortunately on the Internet everyone wants to label you. Put you in a shoebox.

Maybe lm wrong. Maybe we will stay in the top 2. Who knows? A couple of games ago people were being negative about Garrick. They were saying Mayor should come back in the team for Camara. One game great game later we have a thread declaring they need to sign a new contract.

Thats more computer game in thought process than what l say. They bounce from opinion to opinion based on that one match. I love Camara but the guy is beyond erratic with his final shot or pass. As soon as he has a game where he misses those easier chances people will say get Mayor in.

People can’t separate supporting your team and then just having an opinion. Just because you have an opinion doesn’t mean you take it with you when watching the game.

And your argument makes no sense about tweaking systems. As Burton second half and Oxford both tweaked their systems and it changed the momentum of the game. Sturrock, who is our best coach tweaked his system. 4-5-1 away from home at times. 4-4-2 at HP. Martin Phillips often come on at HP as he tweaked the system to get a win in last third of game.

 

[Metal Green Mickey]

I don't honesty think that anyone expects "perfection for 90 minutes", because, as Mutley Marvel suggests "perfection does not exist". For the same reason I don't agree with Davie nine's assertion that some "seek perfection".

What some fans definitely do look for is ways to improve, regardless of how good things are at the moment. I'm sure it's accepted that Lowe and co should always be looking to improve, but some fans interpret it as unnecessary criticism, and unappreciative of what's already been achieved, when other fans post their views on how we might improve even further. I do think such views should be regarded as positive aspirations, rather than disrespectful of recent achievement.

Perfection to the extreme would of course be a nightmare. It would be great to watch a 20 pass move result in a wonderful team goal in the first minute. Equally good when a similar move puts us 2-0 up after 3 minutes. 6 or 7 nil up after 10 minutes, with the opposition having done little more than kick off a few times, and things would become a little tedious - I certainly wouldn't want to watch that game after game. Human vulnerability on both sides plays a big part in making a game watchable. You need to be able to see errors, and, to be able to imagine a strategy to reduce such errors.

There's nothing wrong with speculating on further improvement, providing respect is paid to improvements already achieved. Where you really hit a problem is when no further improvement is possible.

What gets me is Lowe said the same thing after the Burton and the Oxford games about being sloppy.

 

[Metal Green Mickey]

I agree, XT, that most fans don’t expect perfection but, after reading some posts on this thread, it appears that there are a small minority who will not be happy unless the opposition is under control for 90 minutes and create no chances.
Maybe, it is down to continued lack of trust in our manager’s style of play.

Nothing to do with lack of trust.

You can’t keep giving the ball away in daft areas of the pitch and not expect that to hurt you, at some point.

Again, your speaking about domination regarding control for 90 mins. Thats not what lm talking about at all. It’s about taking the sting out the game when you actually not got the momentum. We can be very wasteful with the little possession we have when teams dominate us. Instead of just calming it down and playing it simple.

Im speaking about sloppiness. For example, (and it’s on the extended highlight) Camara tries an audacious clip over the head of the Oxford player. It fails, from that point on we are in trouble as we left exposed. It was just the wrong place of the pitch to do, at the wrong time (when Oxford had the momentum) in my opinion.

 

[WoodsyGreen]

Not frustrated at all.

When people were moaning like hell about Adams, and l brought up the issues l wasn‘t frustrated, l was being realistic.

Last January, when Argyle were on a good run, l brought up some issues. The same argument was said to me then. A few months later we go into free fall. I was just being realistic.

People get all hyped up, then go into meltdown.

When Argyle unfortunately won’t be competing for the top two places, you will hear way more negativity than l give the team. I’m just giving constructive criticism about where we are at.

Unfortunately, and this is how this site is, you can support your team, enjoy the atmosphere (as l did on Saturday) and be caught up in the game. Then you can be honest about what you seen. Unfortunately on the Internet everyone wants to label you. Put you in a shoebox.

Maybe lm wrong. Maybe we will stay in the top 2. Who knows? A couple of games ago people were praising Garrick. They were saying Mayor should come back in the team for Camara. One game great game later we have a thread declaring they need to sign a new contract.

Thats more computer game in thought process than what l say. They bounce from opinion to opinion based on that one match. I love Camara but the guy is beyond erratic with his final shot or pass. As soon as he has a game where he misses those easier chances people will say get Mayor in.

People can’t separate supporting your team and then just having an opinion. Just because you have an opinion doesn’t mean you take it with you when watching the game.

And your argument makes no sense about tweaking systems. As Burton second half and Oxford both tweaked their systems and it changed the momentum of the game. Sturrock, who is our best coach tweaked his system. 4-5-1 away from home at times. 4-4-2 at HP. Martin Phillips often come on at HP as he tweaked the system to get a win in last third of game.

1. You've missed my point. I described you as a 'frustrated football manager', meaning you seemingly want to be one but aren't. Not that you are frustrated.
2. I'm afraid you've put yourself in a shoebox due to the repetitive content of your posts.
2. For every example you can give me of managers successfully tweaking a formation, there will be thousands of not-so-successful examples.

There is nothing wrong with wanting the team to be better or having an opinion about tactics. But you have gone on and on and on about Lowe's system almost from day one, regardless of where we are in the league or how well we're playing. Sometimes it's okay to change the record and actually recognise when he gets it right - as he has done so far this season.

I happen to agree with you that we probably won't be in the shake-up for the top two places. But that's besides the point. We're currently top of the league yet you're still piling on the negative pseudo-analysis and disguising it as 'constructive criticism'. Guess what, Argyle aren't perfect - nor will they ever be. No football team in the history of the sport controlled 100% of every game without getting sloppy, or tired, or error-prone. What makes you think Argyle should be any different?

The quest for perfection you're on would even be a little weird if you were a fan of PSG or Man City. Yet you support Plymouth Argyle of English League One.

Give the analysis a rest and enjoy the ride.