| How do you see things at town. 21:05 - Aug 3 with 3337 views | FrimleyBlue |
So the way I hope this thread goes is a contribution and discussion on why certain opinions can be overcome with a different view point and maybe change certain perceptions of certain situations.
So my personal view is all through the summer I felt we recruited ok. I did share a view that I felt especially in the final third last year that we could see a fair bit of change amongst potential crowd favourites.
I like Ladapo and felt he was a strong potential target and we've got him. Other than that I didn't really know personally who I'd expect to see in the door.
I don't feel comfortable that we've recruited better than what we actually did last season and don't feel we are actually any stronger than we were last season. Is this just me or do others feel similar.
I see alot of great individual talents. But I still don't see a promotion challenging team, just one that will certainly hold its own but ultimately lack that cutting edge to win enough fixtures.
Fully aware the window isn't closed... but I can't see KM breaking up much more of the current side, and that for me begs the question of how good can these individuals be as a team.
Now no this isn't a thread based from Saturdays draw. End of day a draw is better than a loss and its at least not a loss to a side most likely up the top end come end of season.
How does everyone feel about the squad and its potential.
I see alot of wishes for a striker.. but say we spent £2 mill on hirst.. would that really be that difference or are we still a few players away?
What does everyone think |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 21:11 - Aug 3 with 2474 views | jeera |
"I don't feel comfortable that we've recruited better than what we actually did last season".
In relation to what? More numbers? Heck that would be lunacy. How could it be 'bettered'?
What was needed to be done was done, a tweak here and there. There's the valid suggestion that maybe a sharp shooter would still be a worthy addition but I'm glad we haven't gone out and bought like crazy. And after last year's recruitment drive that was never on the cards anyway and rightly so.
"What does everyone think?"
That we were never going to go out and do the same as last year. Obviously. |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 21:12 - Aug 3 with 2462 views | Skip_Intro |
I think we look much more cohesive than last season. Bolton are a very good side and once we weathered the inevitable early storm there only looked to be one winner.
We have more strength in depth across the whole pitch and our subs last week hit the ground running and gave us a significant lift in performance.
I think that with the addition of a good finisher (not saying that Ladapo won't score 15 goals for us this season btw!) we will have a very strong squad with numerous options to cover injuries and make the most of the 5 sub rule. |  | | |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:15 - Aug 3 with 2441 views | FrimleyBlue |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:11 - Aug 3 by jeera |
"I don't feel comfortable that we've recruited better than what we actually did last season".
In relation to what? More numbers? Heck that would be lunacy. How could it be 'bettered'?
What was needed to be done was done, a tweak here and there. There's the valid suggestion that maybe a sharp shooter would still be a worthy addition but I'm glad we haven't gone out and bought like crazy. And after last year's recruitment drive that was never on the cards anyway and rightly so.
"What does everyone think?"
That we were never going to go out and do the same as last year. Obviously. |
Oh no no not numbers that would be mad.
I don't really know. I just don't have this feeling that we've improved the squad yet.
We've kinda replaced people.. but improved it as a unit? I just don't feel it. | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 21:25 - Aug 3 with 2416 views | J2BLUE |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:15 - Aug 3 by FrimleyBlue |
Oh no no not numbers that would be mad.
I don't really know. I just don't have this feeling that we've improved the squad yet.
We've kinda replaced people.. but improved it as a unit? I just don't feel it. |
This is McKenna's squad now. He's had time to assess and now he's had a transfer window.
Is the squad 'better' on paper than last year? Not sure. Is it a better fit for McKenna? Likely it is. If Saturday was anything to go by then we're in for a decent season. |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 21:26 - Aug 3 with 2411 views | PioneerBlue |
Interesting contribution. A flight of conjecture. It is impossible and not useful to judge until the season has concluded then we can ask did we recruit well, did we improve by having lower turnover and more players benefiting from full preseason at the club, did we perform better than last year? At the end of the season it will all be apparent!
Meantime, my opinion is we have recruited well, we have players that are a better fit for the club we are and want to be.
I would love a striker to arrive, catch fire, propel us out of the league. I’m not sold this 1 striker exists and if they do would they want to play in L1. I like how we have brought together different profiles to suit occasions. If Hirst arrives, like Davis, he is not the finished article.
The season is long, we are 1 game down, I’m not over thinking it until we’ve seen more games and KMcK and players have had a chance to build form. [Post edited 4 Aug 2022 5:40]
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| How do you see things at town. on 21:33 - Aug 3 with 2366 views | davblue |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:15 - Aug 3 by FrimleyBlue |
Oh no no not numbers that would be mad.
I don't really know. I just don't have this feeling that we've improved the squad yet.
We've kinda replaced people.. but improved it as a unit? I just don't feel it. |
Too early to say, we will know by Christmas if we have better players.
I’m confident the 2 left wing backs will be an improvement on last year.
Ladapo, I’m not sure on yet, I’m not sure we have as many options in that number 10 position or quality with Celina leaving. |  | | |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:44 - Aug 3 with 2324 views | ringwoodblue |
Everything about our club seems better than it has been for a very long time - the owners, the chief executive, the manager, the coaching staff, the recruitment team, the ground all except the results which are what the club is ultimately judged by at the end of the season
I think we have quality players but I do wonder if they have the belief and mentality to grind out results week in week out.
Every year, we say this will be our season but we have no divine right to promotion just cos we are Ipswich. Guess time will tell but the club is in a very healthy place right now. |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 21:53 - Aug 3 with 2262 views | Illinoisblue |
It’s silly to judge after just 1 game but i do have a nagging doubt that we may continue to be less than the sum of our parts. In contrast to Rotherham last year who were probably more than the sum of their parts. Be it physicality, nous, set pieces… just feels we may still be lacking something.
Off the field we are acting very grown up, very professional. almost 5k fans in the fanzone ffs. More than a number of L1 clubs average attendance. We shouldn’t be here, but here we are. And as good as the off field stuff is, it ultimately means nothing if we fail on the pitch.
There’s pressure and expectation, as there should be when ITFC are in the third tier. Can we rise to the occasion? |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 21:54 - Aug 3 with 2259 views | clive_baker |
I have a completely different opinion to that. ‘Great individual talents’? I would question that. Of course it’s all relative, but we’re a long way from ‘many great individual talents’ in my book. I would argue the opposite, unlike last season we finally look a side that’s at least equal to the sum of the parts. We’re well drilled and very considered in our play, we’re energetic, fit, forward thinking.
We’re a proper side now who won’t lose too many matches this season IMO. The question mark is still if we have enough goal threat as we’re asking a lot of Ladapo. Jackson has never been prolific, and TJJ is young and very raw. I still think our recruitment isn’t finished in that area though. [Post edited 3 Aug 2022 21:58]
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:11 - Aug 3 with 2138 views | Veggie |
I think the squad is strong but definitely lacking that star striker. They have clearly identified Hirst as that man, rightly or wrongly. They’ve already drafted in Harness who enjoyed a good partnership with Hirst last year at Pompey, so there must be a plan there.
Defence wise we are fine. GK and CBs are top notch for this league.
Wingbacks - interesting. Burns obviously great (l though seems to lack his usual fizz so far). We’ve bought Davis and KM clearly rates him highly. However his debut was wobbly, and Greg Leigh actually looks the more effective player currently.
Midfield - Morsy is very good. Evans, not 100% sure yet. He takes our set pieces, but is he good enough I don’t know. Ball sounds like a good buy, but is he just a stand in for Morsy? Harper - not great.
Up front, we have Chaplin who is a good player and decent finisher, Harness who has been a consistent scorer and provider for Pompey (can he do it in our system though?). Aluko and TJJ are quality backups (if indeed they can’t get a first team place).
Strikers - this could be our Achilles heel. Ladapo did ok on Saturday without scoring. Jackson is fast but not a natural finisher. We definitely need a 20 goal a season man to complete the jigsaw. [Post edited 3 Aug 2022 22:12]
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:19 - Aug 3 with 2089 views | Nthsuffolkblue |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:15 - Aug 3 by FrimleyBlue |
Oh no no not numbers that would be mad.
I don't really know. I just don't have this feeling that we've improved the squad yet.
We've kinda replaced people.. but improved it as a unit? I just don't feel it. |
I think that the concern at the end of last season (and in the later part of Lambert's reign) that we weren't scoring enough goals. We have lost Norwood's goals and have not added anything more in terms of expected goal threat.
However, it is more complex than that. If we can improve on our set piece threat and get the current players to take more of the chances they get (the issue under Lambert was not creating them but it isn't that under McKenna), we will do better. I would be a lot more confident if we could a clinical striker in. It is the difference that having a player like Stewart or Darren Bent brings. However, teams have gone up without someone like that. |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:20 - Aug 3 with 2089 views | Guthrum |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:15 - Aug 3 by FrimleyBlue |
Oh no no not numbers that would be mad.
I don't really know. I just don't have this feeling that we've improved the squad yet.
We've kinda replaced people.. but improved it as a unit? I just don't feel it. |
Turning that around a bit, how much did we need to 'improve ... as a unit'? That unit did, after all, put together a pretty astonishing run from late December to April, even if it did tail off a bit towards the end. Sustained over a whole season, it would see us in the promotion mix.
Is it not more a matter of tweaks and adjustments than requiring a massive injection of talent - which might, in any case, be hard to obtain at our level? |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:22 - Aug 3 with 2076 views | LegendofthePhoenix |
I think that last season we were less than the sum of our parts - at least until KM arrived. From January onwards, I felt we were the best footballing side in L1, despite having a weakness at LWB. The real turning point was KJ, who came from nowhere to suddenly become a real dangerman. And then we got injuries, to Fridge, to Jackson, as well as Evans and Edwards.
We can hit the ground running this season - and we have more quality and cover in key positions, certainly LWB. Are Ladapo and TJJ better than Norwood and Bonne? I think probably yes, they are both very athletic and the main difference is that our front line has real pace. Coupled with the fact that this team is established, with only a few changes, they will be able to exceed the sum of the parts, and by that I mean better than the team of January/February that was averaging more than 2 pts a game. Another striker would complete the set, but even without another goalscorer, in my view we are better than the best we saw last season. Auto promotion is realistic, and with that extra striker, maybe champions. |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:27 - Aug 3 with 2030 views | TractorTom5 |
| How do you see things at town. on 21:25 - Aug 3 by J2BLUE |
This is McKenna's squad now. He's had time to assess and now he's had a transfer window.
Is the squad 'better' on paper than last year? Not sure. Is it a better fit for McKenna? Likely it is. If Saturday was anything to go by then we're in for a decent season. |
Time will tell !! | | | |
| How do you see things at town. on 22:28 - Aug 3 with 2034 views | Nthsuffolkblue |
| How do you see things at town. on 22:22 - Aug 3 by LegendofthePhoenix |
I think that last season we were less than the sum of our parts - at least until KM arrived. From January onwards, I felt we were the best footballing side in L1, despite having a weakness at LWB. The real turning point was KJ, who came from nowhere to suddenly become a real dangerman. And then we got injuries, to Fridge, to Jackson, as well as Evans and Edwards.
We can hit the ground running this season - and we have more quality and cover in key positions, certainly LWB. Are Ladapo and TJJ better than Norwood and Bonne? I think probably yes, they are both very athletic and the main difference is that our front line has real pace. Coupled with the fact that this team is established, with only a few changes, they will be able to exceed the sum of the parts, and by that I mean better than the team of January/February that was averaging more than 2 pts a game. Another striker would complete the set, but even without another goalscorer, in my view we are better than the best we saw last season. Auto promotion is realistic, and with that extra striker, maybe champions. |
I agree with what you say apart from needing convincing that Ladapo and John-Jules are better than Bonne/Norwood. Time will tell and I hope you are right. | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:30 - Aug 3 with 2014 views | FrimleyBlue |
| How do you see things at town. on 22:20 - Aug 3 by Guthrum |
Turning that around a bit, how much did we need to 'improve ... as a unit'? That unit did, after all, put together a pretty astonishing run from late December to April, even if it did tail off a bit towards the end. Sustained over a whole season, it would see us in the promotion mix.
Is it not more a matter of tweaks and adjustments than requiring a massive injection of talent - which might, in any case, be hard to obtain at our level? |
I think for me something that didn't really improve amongst that run was results when it mattered.
Of course every game mattered. But we didn't beat those you'd have expected us to beat ( whilst those above made a much easier task of them) and we still struggled to beat those in those higher end positions. I guess that's where I'm not confident that we've recruited that extra requirement to do what we need when we need to. | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:35 - Aug 3 with 1947 views | Nthsuffolkblue |
| How do you see things at town. on 22:30 - Aug 3 by FrimleyBlue |
I think for me something that didn't really improve amongst that run was results when it mattered.
Of course every game mattered. But we didn't beat those you'd have expected us to beat ( whilst those above made a much easier task of them) and we still struggled to beat those in those higher end positions. I guess that's where I'm not confident that we've recruited that extra requirement to do what we need when we need to. |
Indeed. I thought we should have won on Saturday with what we created towards the end. However, it is a point more than we got against that opposition last season. Will we see it as 2 points dropped or 1 gained later in the season? We need to convert a good percentage of draws from last season into wins this time around. | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 22:43 - Aug 3 with 1908 views | hype313 |
Too early to tell, I think Ball could be a menace and help us not wilt against the likes of Fleetwood and Accy.
Think we're a striker short, an out and out striker, not someone to run the channels.
And I wonder if we have a plan B in place of Celina.
All in all, this squad is perfectly capable of finishing first, no doubts, I just can't see any other teams with the depth of quality in thier squads.
But as we know, that doesn't necessarily translate to success.
The foundations are in place, just needs McKenna's sprinkle of magic to tye it all together. |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 00:45 - Aug 4 with 1740 views | Kropotkin123 |
I think Ball, Morsey and Evans is an upgrade on what we started with last season.
On paper Pig and Bonne were a better duo than Ladapo and TJJ. But I think the latter two will perform better.
I thought Leigh looked great. Better than Penney and Coulson.
I think we a short of one striker of Ladapo's quality. I'm not convinced by KJ as the third choice. But happy if he does well. Not looking to do a Bluefish Vs Edwards.
Not sure how useful this is after one game though. |  |
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| How do you see things at town. on 01:21 - Aug 4 with 1723 views | X0Y0 |
Pre-season...
McKenna produced the type of form that would be challenging for top 6 over a full season, and matches against the top sides indicated we could go toe-to-toe with any of the teams in the division. With McKenna's first opportunity for a full preseason and the professional planning it's not unreasonable to assume the team has the platform to become better organised, fitter and stronger than we ended last season.
Squad...
Most of the transfer business looks good, but we all know there is an element of luck with any individual success. On paper, the left side looks far stronger, Leigh may be the surprise signing of the summer. I'm confident Ball is an upgrade on Bakinson. Piggott never worked with the style of play. We will have to wait and see whether Ladapo, JJ and Harness are an upgrade on Bonne, Norwood and Celina - I would have happily traded the first two, though I am not convinced Harness fits the system and think we would have valued Celina's creativity. Saturday affirmed my views but early days, and we of course have another month left for Ashton to surprise us.
Off the pitch ...
The above is reinforced by the upward trajectory of the club in almost every area since the takeover. Positivity is at the highest levels I can remember since we were in the premiership, and it is mostly based on early evidence rather than just pure optimism.
Momentum...
Everything is moving in the right direction. More time together and match experience will hopefully be enough to take the team from c. top 6 contenders at end of last season to c. top 2. If not, there is another transfer window in January. [Post edited 4 Aug 2022 6:37]
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| How do you see things at town. on 05:48 - Aug 4 with 1567 views | PioneerBlue |
| How do you see things at town. on 01:21 - Aug 4 by X0Y0 |
Pre-season...
McKenna produced the type of form that would be challenging for top 6 over a full season, and matches against the top sides indicated we could go toe-to-toe with any of the teams in the division. With McKenna's first opportunity for a full preseason and the professional planning it's not unreasonable to assume the team has the platform to become better organised, fitter and stronger than we ended last season.
Squad...
Most of the transfer business looks good, but we all know there is an element of luck with any individual success. On paper, the left side looks far stronger, Leigh may be the surprise signing of the summer. I'm confident Ball is an upgrade on Bakinson. Piggott never worked with the style of play. We will have to wait and see whether Ladapo, JJ and Harness are an upgrade on Bonne, Norwood and Celina - I would have happily traded the first two, though I am not convinced Harness fits the system and think we would have valued Celina's creativity. Saturday affirmed my views but early days, and we of course have another month left for Ashton to surprise us.
Off the pitch ...
The above is reinforced by the upward trajectory of the club in almost every area since the takeover. Positivity is at the highest levels I can remember since we were in the premiership, and it is mostly based on early evidence rather than just pure optimism.
Momentum...
Everything is moving in the right direction. More time together and match experience will hopefully be enough to take the team from c. top 6 contenders at end of last season to c. top 2. If not, there is another transfer window in January. [Post edited 4 Aug 2022 6:37]
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I like what you say.
Leigh being a good player wouldn’t be a surprise. He had 4th best LB/LWB data in L1 last season. | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 06:55 - Aug 4 with 1480 views | LegendofthePhoenix |
| How do you see things at town. on 22:28 - Aug 3 by Nthsuffolkblue |
I agree with what you say apart from needing convincing that Ladapo and John-Jules are better than Bonne/Norwood. Time will tell and I hope you are right. |
I agree - it's too early to tell whether they are an upgrade. If they are better than the Bonne of the first season half, and the Norwood of the second, we are laughing. But football is never simple, and there is more luck than we like to admit. Luck with injuries, luck with refereeing decisions, as well as luck in general play. I feel positive because I really do think we should be better than last season (despite the loss of Celina) and a "gelled" squad with a good pre-season should be able to work close to peak performance from the off. The Saturday game at FGR is a big one - are we gonna hit that high and put them to the sword?? Will we bring in another striker who can lead the line? Lots that bodes well, and of course off the pitch is fantastic to see. Its up to KM and the players to deliver what should happen. | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 07:45 - Aug 4 with 1379 views | BondiBlue |
I just can't get past that first paragraph. Which opinions need to be overcome and which perceptions need to be changed? | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 07:49 - Aug 4 with 1365 views | Chrisd |
I appreciate it is simply opinion, but I do feel we are in a stronger position to this time last season. A lot of the key ingredients of our squad have remained, have had more time working with KM and his coaching staff, embracing his philosophy and methods which is a big positive. I like our side and options from Walton, through our defence, which we strengthened with Davis and Leigh and midfield - Ball will make a big difference for us. You then look at our forward options and they all invariably have a pedigree at L1, which gives me plenty of hope. I’m focused very much on our ‘second half performance’ last week against Bolton and that really impressed me, we pressed constantly until the final whistle, played some good stuff and kept a promotion favourite comfortably at bay and made them look toothless, we really didn’t do that very often last season and that’s what encourages me. I think the goals will come, but KM needs to workout what his best combination is to play behind Lapado and then those relationship will flourish.
If you hadn’t guessed I’m very hopeful and that doesn’t happen very often! 😉 | |
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| How do you see things at town. on 08:29 - Aug 4 with 1273 views | Guthrum |
| How do you see things at town. on 22:30 - Aug 3 by FrimleyBlue |
I think for me something that didn't really improve amongst that run was results when it mattered.
Of course every game mattered. But we didn't beat those you'd have expected us to beat ( whilst those above made a much easier task of them) and we still struggled to beat those in those higher end positions. I guess that's where I'm not confident that we've recruited that extra requirement to do what we need when we need to. |
As Nthsuffolkblue says, it was the draws which cost us, not really the losses.
The question I would raise is how much of that was down to quality and how much to form (of our strikers, plus the inopportune injury to Jackson) and tactics. Regarding the latter - and we must remember that McKenna is still learning his trade as a tactician - Town struggled to break through packed defences and too often seemed to recycle wide for that perfect cross-and-shot/header, rather than simply having a go (despite the success achieved by Burns and others when we did). Set pieces were also a massive problem, something it looks like we may have cracked, with goals in preseason and against Bolton. That will make a big difference. | |
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