Stats from today

[mjdgreg]

Look it's called football, not 'run around like demented idiots trying to get the ball off the opposition'. The ball is supposed to do the work. The ball can't do the work if you haven't got it. Simple. Who would have ever thought Saunders used to play for Liverpool. Didn't he learn anything when he was there?

Some of you need educating in basic maths. More possession means more chances for you. Less possession means more chances for the opposition. Less possession means more tiredness towards the end of a game which means you are going to get punished.

Mark my words I will be proved to be right again. When I am you can rest assured I'll be letting you know about it.

[pubteam]

Any news on why we used to concede late goals every week when we tried to play posession football?

[dickos1]

Rubbish. More possession in your own half means more chances, don't think so.
Also there's a big difference between chances and attempts on goal. An attempt on goal could be a tame back pass of a shot or a shot that flies over the stand..
We just won 3-0 away from home for the first time in probably years and your moaning,, just about sums you up.

[Glyn_Wigley]

Barcelona, losing Champions League Semi Finalist's with 80% of possesion over 180 minutes!

But that's impossible..!

[mjdgreg]

Rubbish. More possession in your own half means more chances, don't think so.

Who said anything about only having possession in your own half? Are you saying that if you venture into the opposition's half you have to give them the ball? Possession in your own half should then be used to move the ball into the opposition's half to create chances. It's called building from the back.

Sounds like your idea of building from the back is to give it to the goalkeeper to hoof it up field so giving us a 50/50 chance of retaining possession. As a professional gambler I can tell you that you are putting the odds in your opponents favour by doing this every time.

[pubteam]

Rubbish. More possession in your own half means more chances, don't think so.

Who said anything about only having possession in your own half? Are you saying that if you venture into the opposition's half you have to give them the ball? Possession in your own half should then be used to move the ball into the opposition's half to create chances. It's called building from the back.

Sounds like your idea of building from the back is to give it to the goalkeeper to hoof it up field so giving us a 50/50 chance of retaining possession. As a professional gambler I can tell you that you are putting the odds in your opponents favour by doing this every time.

His point is, most of Walsall's posession yesterday was in their own half and around the half way line where they couldn't hurt us.

If you'd been to the game yesterday and weren't some sort of troll, you'd probably know this.

[mjdgreg]

Barcelona, losing Champions League Semi Finalist's with 80% of possesion over 180 minutes!

But that's impossible..!

This is the exception that proves the rule.

[mjdgreg]

His point is, most of Walsall's posession yesterday was in their own half and around the half way line where they couldn't hurt us.

My point is that one freak result does not disprove my theory. 3 goals from 4 attempts on target is not going to happen again this season.

[Akinfenwa]

My point is that one freak result does not disprove my theory. 3 goals from 4 attempts on target is not going to happen again this season.

Why start this whole boring argument off again on the back of "one freak result" then?

[pubteam]

His point is, most of Walsall's posession yesterday was in their own half and around the half way line where they couldn't hurt us.

My point is that one freak result does not disprove my theory. 3 goals from 4 attempts on target is not going to happen again this season.

I wasn't even talking about attempts on target. The debate was on posession. Keep up Mick.

[mjdgreg]

Why start this whole boring argument off again on the back of "one freak result" then?

I haven't started a boring argument off. I merely posted the match statistics so everyone can see objectively what has transpired during the match. When watching a match it is far too easy to be subjective. I just like to bring a bit of objectivity to the proceedings. Thats all.

[mjdgreg]

I wasn't even talking about attempts on target. The debate was on posession. Keep up mjdgreg.

Without possession there aren't any attempts on target.

[pubteam]

I wasn't even talking about attempts on target. The debate was on posession. Keep up mjdgreg.

Without possession there aren't any attempts on target.

And with posession there aren't necessarily attempts on target, as Walsall demonstrated yesterday.

That was my point. For all their sideways passing on the halfway line, they barely troubled Woods in goal. He had a couple of shots straight at him, and a few fly over/wide of his goal, and that was it. They never looked like scoring.

[dickos1]

Which is the better chance??
A 30 yard effort that the keeper catches in his hat
Or a cross that flies across the 6 yard box but the striker just fails to get on the end of it?

One is an attempt on target the other isn't but I know which is the better chance..

Just emphasises how much crap your talking again..

[BillyStubbsTears]

Thank the good Lord up above that Mad Mick doesn't support the Blades.

At half time yesterday, according to the BBC website, they were winning 1-0 but had had zero shots on target.

Poor old Mick would have spontaneously combusted had he seen that one, such would have been the extreme temperature of his urine.

[Glyn_Wigley]

Barcelona, losing Champions League Semi Finalist's with 80% of possesion over 180 minutes!

But that's impossible..!

This is the exception that proves the rule.

What does yesterday's match prove then?

[Drummond_Base]

That there are more exceptions to the rule than 1 example?

As a scientist I like to work with constants and known reactions.  Football isn't science. It is the embodiment of chaos theory,  too many variables, cannot be computed. That's why we don't all win the pools every week.

[jonnydog]

Didn't this thread get locked yesterday or am I going mad... MAD I TELL YA!!! 

[wilts rover]

Didn't this thread get locked yesterday or am I going mad... MAD I TELL YA!!! 

Best response on this thread yet...... yes i thought that too because I came on last night to post this- so will do it now. Guess the match score from the stats of this game yesterday:

Possession     40% - 60%
Corners            7  -  3
Goal attempts 18 - 16
on target         11 - 12

as a clue I shall give you Mad Michael's words from above:

Look it's called football, not 'run around like demented idiots trying to get the ball off the opposition'. The ball is supposed to do the work. The ball can't do the work if you haven't got it. Simple. Who would have ever thought Saunders used to play for Liverpool. Didn't he learn anything when he was there?

Some of you need educating in basic maths. More possession means more chances for you. Less possession means more chances for the opposition. Less possession means more tiredness towards the end of a game which means you are going to get punished.

Mark my words I will be proved to be right again. When I am you can rest assured I'll be letting you know about it.

[mjdgreg]

What does yesterday's match prove then?

It doesn't prove a lot yet. We need to see about 10 matches before any hard opinions can be formed. So far I have deduced from the opening game that we are still  happy to let the opposition have the bulk of possession and that we are quite happy to create few chances. This was the pattern last year and did not stand us in good stead. I'm hoping this situation is going to change as if it doesn't, then I fear the worst.

[mjdgreg]

Any news on why we used to concede late goals every week when we tried to play posession football?

I think you have a different view to the rest of us if you think we played possession football last season after Saunders took over.

[Filo]

Any news on why we used to concede late goals every week when we tried to play posession football?

I think you have a different view to the rest of us if you think we played possession football last season after Saunders took over.

Can`t see any where, where he says the words "after Saunders took over"


You need to read more carefully Mick, unless you`re just making things up again!

[mjdgreg]

Any news on why we used to concede late goals every week when we tried to play posession football?

I think you have a different view to the rest of us if you think we played possession football last season after Saunders took over.


Can`t see any where, where he says the words "after Saunders took over"


You need to read more carefully mjdgreg, unless you`re just making things up again!

I assumed he was talking about after Saunders took over because the conceding of late goals was at it's worst in the club's history under him. It is simply not factually correct to say that this always happened under SOD.

[jonnydog]

Any news on why we used to concede late goals every week when we tried to play posession football?

I think you have a different view to the rest of us if you think we played possession football last season after Saunders took over.


Can`t see any where, where he says the words "after Saunders took over"


You need to read more carefully mjdgreg, unless you`re just making things up again!

I assumed he was talking about after Saunders took over because the conceding of late goals was at it's worst in the club's history under him. It is simply not factually correct to say that this always happened under SOD.

Really? That does surprise me. Obviously  aint going to trawl through results gone by, but I always thought we let a lot more in under SoD than DS.

[Red wizard]

So it had nothing to do with cb that couldn't defend? also players that didn't want to play for him.

[mjdgreg]

Really? That does surprise me. Obviously  aint going to trawl through results gone by, but I always thought we let a lot more in under SoD than DS.

No need for you trawl through previous results. I have a photographic memory which I have already used for this task. Take it from me, what I say is fact.

[mjdgreg]

So it had nothing to do with cb that couldn't defend? also players that didn't want to play for him.

If your argument holds water then you are saying that Saunders is not a good manager. Why didn't he get Willie to sort him out a decent cb? Is not the fact that players didn't want to play for him a poor reflection on his man management skills?

[Superspy]

I really do not know why I'm bothering here but I feel compelled to ask this question. mj...what would you class as a successful season this year? And realistically what would you have to say about DS if your idea of a good season came to pass?

[mjdgreg]

I really do not know why I'm bothering here but I feel compelled to ask this question. mj...what would you class as a successful season this year? And realistically what would you have to say about DS if your idea of a good season came to pass?

A successful season would be the play-offs. Anything else would be abject failure. I expect relegation. If he manages to pull off this miracle I shall instantly convert to the cult of DS and apologise profusely for my previous ramblings (I will however still harbour some resentment towards him for failing to keep us in the Championship, something I'm convinced SOD would have managed).

[DRFC_TID_93]

I really do not know why I'm bothering here but I feel compelled to ask this question. mj...what would you class as a successful season this year? And realistically what would you have to say about DS if your idea of a good season came to pass?

A successful season would be the play-offs. Anything else would be abject failure. I expect relegation. If he manages to pull off this miracle I shall instantly convert to the cult of DS and apologise profusely for my previous ramblings (I will however still harbour some resentment towards him for failing to keep us in the Championship, something I'm convinced SOD would have managed).

Speaking of things we're convinced of, am I the only one who thinks this guys more of a tool than 'donnyroversfc'. Someone ban this guy please