ECFC v Millwall Matchday thread

[greenawayr]

Oooooh, do I detect a convert ?

Can't do it second half with Stewart and Russell on the pitch mate, not enough energy. I thought it was madness to take Bertie off to bring Duffer on when we went down to ten, but Tis obviously feels his best way out of the cack is to pass his way out, obviously you have to get the ball first but I am sure he will pick up on that eventually. Also Corr and Fleetwood don't make much of a foil for the pressing game, IMHO, everything changed up when Stanno and Logie came on.

Were you at the game Poults???

Bertie was anonymous for the most part. Harley and Russell controlled the midfield in the first half and Stewart was a real threat down the wing in the conditions.

Once Tully got sent off, we went sort of 4-2-3 and the midfield was always going to struggle no matter who was in it. But having the three up front gave us an outlet and support to the outlet.

 

[arthur]

Once Tully got sent off, we went sort of 4-2-3 and the midfield was always going to struggle no matter who was in it. But having the three up front gave us an outlet and support to the outlet.

A depleted midfield and the wind behind us - if ever there was a time for a bit of long ball this was it, but we fannied around a bit too much I felt

 

[CREDYGRECIAN]

What a crap game

Conditions obviously didnt help and the pitch looked heavy which didnt help our ageing legs in Russell and Stewart.

Harley was decent - Stans did well off the bench.

I also think it was a pen. caught his heel from behind.

 

[Mr Jan Yeo]

Have sky/bbc showed the goals yet anywhere?

Dunno about Sky but Beeb will have highlights (were there any?) on their website first thing Thursday morning.

 

[Poultice]

Were you at the game Poults???

Bertie was anonymous for the most part.

Yes I was there, and if I might be so bold, he only looked anonymous because he was doing his job so well, IMHO. his positional awareness is so good he takes areas of the pitch away from the opposition without having to actually touch the ball.

God I am starting to sound like some of the no neck w*nkers on here who spout on but have never played the game in their lives.

Some players have the inate ability to get others to perform better without seeming to do much themselves, Bertie will have stormers when he he is heavily involved but he is also just as valuable when he picks up space and denies it to the opposing players, this gives Russell, Harley and Stewart licence to ponce about looking good. I have thought this from the first few games I saw him play, he did struggle then for fitness but in my view he was always trying to do the right things, now he just does them and moves on quietly.

ps. Buckle was similar and he used to get slated on here but boy did we suffer when he wasn't there, Gill is perhaps a better example, the gift of being in the right place most of the time.

 

[zyderman]

Dunno about Sky but Beeb will have highlights (were there any?) on their website first thing Thursday morning.

righto. annoying that once again ssn have been showing all the goal from just about every l1 game other than us!

 

[A Slacker]

that is spot on. i was impressed with the fitness of the millwall players for the entire 90 minutes they didnt give city chance to settle and our slow tempo made it easier for them.


I agree. Millwall didn't give our players any time at all and space was difficult to come by. I have to say that I thought Marriott was superb last night. The conditions for a GK were awful last night and he looked solid, secure and in charge.

 

[grecIAN Harris]

What a crap game

Conditions obviously didnt help and the pitch looked heavy which didnt help our ageing legs in Russell and Stewart.

Harley was decent - Stans did well off the bench.

I also think it was a pen. caught his heel from behind.

I dunno where you were to in the ground Creds but it happened right in front of me and there was no way on this earth that it was a penalty.
As for the game itself, we didn't deserve to go in one down. The penalty aside, Millwall didn't have a shot at goal in the first half. I don't think Tulls should have been booked but their bloke who jumped in two footed should have walked. That said, I think Tulls was luck to get away to bookings instead of a straight red when he did go for an early bath. We were poor in the second half once we went down to ten men until about the last five minutes when we finally woke. A draw was probably the right result.

 

[Mr Jan Yeo]

I dunno where you were to in the ground Creds but it happened right in front of me and there was no way on this earth that it was a penalty.

There's some niggling little rule about getting the ball. Bertie didn't and instead kicked the blokes ankle. It was soft but it was a penalty IMO. More to the point it was a penalty in the opinion of the ref, no use whingeing about it now.

 

[RaeUK]

Giler said it was a penalty, so it must have been.


Whats with the trend these days where keepers decide which way they'll dive for a penalty, whereas if they were to stand and wait for the ball to be struck, they have a much better chance of saving it, as Marriott would have tonight, if he'd only stood still...

Pete, don't quite get this. Might just be my dodgy connection, but have just watched the highlights on GP. Marriot doesn't appear to move before the ball's kicked and then dives the right way. Unlucky not to get it. Though, to be fair, it's a bit hard to see the ball in the clip...