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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 10:33:30 GMT
Bizarre question considering we're top of the league - but based upon saturday's performance (and the qpr match last season) is tony good enough to take us over the finishing line?
I appreciate he's done well to date but for me he consistently seems to bottle it in the big games.
Is he good enough - for me .....No
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lazymatt
Youth Player
gazoontite!!
Posts: 305
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Post by lazymatt on Mar 17, 2008 10:34:12 GMT
Shush
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Post by kkkkken on Mar 17, 2008 10:35:32 GMT
Sorry I am not with you , if he bottles it in the big games how come we are Top of the league ?. Surely you must be referring to Mowbray or Pardew ?
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 10:38:23 GMT
Sorry guys you've missed the point - i'm not knocking the guy he's worked arrd and done smashin' - just wondering whether he has it in him to take us over the line. Evidence suggests (Watford,QPR last year) he MIGHT not have it in him.
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Post by barndoorbanjo on Mar 17, 2008 10:38:56 GMT
Time will tell.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 17, 2008 10:39:13 GMT
Bottle it in the big games?
In the 12 games against last season's top 6, we lost just 3.
In the 11 games played against this year's current top 6, we've lost just 1.
If anything, it's the smaller teams that we slip up against.
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 10:41:57 GMT
No mate the really big games that really reall matter.
Saturday for example - they're down to ten men and Pulis continues to defend - QPR last year - need a win and he sends out an ultra defensive line up.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 17, 2008 10:44:59 GMT
How is Watford on Staurday any bigger than any other game against a top 6 side, given our status as contenders? Last season around this time of year we went to Derby and West Brom and won both games. How is the Watford game any bigger?
QPR, yes, we were set up defensively, but our earlier dropped points against the no marks were what cost us a play off place, not that game.
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Post by tazi on Mar 17, 2008 10:46:23 GMT
Whilst the man stands on the brink of becoming a legend out comes yet more fickleness.
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Post by vientianescfc on Mar 17, 2008 10:52:59 GMT
I didn't realise Pulis was on the pitch telling all the players to defend! Blimey I didn't realise putting Gallagher on for Cort and Pugh instead of Dickinson was defensive!? I mean we started with only 3 recognised strikers. Just how defensive could you get . .. I guess we should have 5 or 6 maybe. Numerous times on this message board people were saying why don't we play 5-2-3 or 5-3-2 or whatever - this game TP shuffles the pack and tries it - it doesn't workout (in my opinion for other reasons which I've made clear on an other thread) but now even though we survived the game with a point and are top of the league we have the wrong manager! Only at Stoke!
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 10:55:43 GMT
Its not fickle Tazi, its just a question. I think Tony's doing a great job. He's just let himself down on a couple of occasions, which leads me to question his ability. Or perhaps not his ability, more his mentality, particularly when he really needs to go for it e.g. Watford.
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 10:59:12 GMT
PiiBaa - were you at the game? Even after he took Cort off Pulis Delap, Whelan and Diao rarely got past the half way line - Why? Did we see Pulis on the side line urging them on? No. We saw him doing the old calm down, calm down motions. When in reality they all wanted a fookin rocket up their bums.
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coll45
Academy Starlet
Posts: 157
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Post by coll45 on Mar 17, 2008 11:01:55 GMT
if wed really gone for it and got caught on the break and lost would you have been happy and praised him up for it .
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Post by tazi on Mar 17, 2008 11:04:08 GMT
Ok, fickleness was the wrong choice of word, but there are times when to go for it and Watford away was certainly not one of those times where we could go so called gung-ho because at the end of the day our most important part of that day was to preserve our 3 point lead and that's exactly what we did. Makes not one scrap of difference how it was achieved and now Saturday is one of those so-called matches where we should "so call" go for it.
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Post by followyoudown on Mar 17, 2008 11:07:48 GMT
I didn't realise Pulis was on the pitch telling all the players to defend! Blimey I didn't realise putting Gallagher on for Cort and Pugh instead of Dickinson was defensive!? I mean we started with only 3 recognised strikers. Just how defensive could you get . .. I guess we should have 5 or 6 maybe. Numerous times on this message board people were saying why don't we play 5-2-3 or 5-3-2 or whatever - this game TP shuffles the pack and tries it - it doesn't workout (in my opinion for other reasons which I've made clear on an other thread) but now even though we survived the game with a point and are top of the league we have the wrong manager! Only at Stoke! Watford was a very poor performance and disappointing considered we played against 10 men for 70 mins ish but at the start of the day everyone would have taken that result. As for playing 3 strikers whilst techincally true, 1 of them Creswell was playing as a wide midfield player whilst Boothroyd seemed to be floating around a bit but was mainly playing 10 yards behind Fuller. Gallagher was put on 20 mins too late (sub should have been made as soon as they went down to 10 men) and less than 15 mins later Diao is bought on for an attacking player so we started of with 5-3-1-1 played 4-3-1-2 for about 10 mins before closing out the game effectively playing 4-4-1-1.
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 11:07:51 GMT
Coll - they were there for the taking. For me Tony didn't know how to exploit the situation.
Happy if we lost? Grow up. I'm as desperate for success as everyone else. Just a little preturbed by Saturday's none performance at such a crucial stage in the season - nothing more.
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Post by vientianescfc on Mar 17, 2008 11:09:23 GMT
So he's telling the player to calm down . . . shocking! I mean who would think it when Watford were piling forward on all occasions punting balls up field??
How you know he wasn't telling them to keep the ball down? Or did he come and tell you personally?
Obviously I wasn't at the game. But just because the players didn't go pushing forwards do you not think it might be something to do the opposing team being in the ascendancy?
Things can be interpreted in many ways.
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 11:12:40 GMT
Tazi, fair enough mate. I have to disagree however - after John went off they were wide open and ripe for a good thrashing. Having said that four points from a tricky weak is an excellent return and sets us up nicely for the weekend.
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Post by powchirper on Mar 17, 2008 11:15:31 GMT
That bloke deserves a fuckin knighthood for what he's done at Stoke, thats what a mate of mine says every time i bump into him.
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 11:16:07 GMT
PiiBaa - Keep the ball down - come on this is Stoke we're talking about ;-)
I'm no body language guru but it doesn't take much to interpret Tony's two handed downward waft.
And with the amount of wafting he was doing in the second half I'm just suprised the grass underneath didn't die from over exposure.
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Post by Stick It On Cort's Head on Mar 17, 2008 11:19:48 GMT
Oh my, don't question him, he has taken us to another level.
Just look at the teams around us, apart from Brizzle, they all have far better squads than us...
If he takes us over the finishing line, then great.
If he doesn't, then it will have been a pivotal season in which a lot of people will have turned round and said "stoke city have gone on to another level"...
And we can push on for the future then.... Better prepared...
We are all getting mithered about ONE game, a game in which we played poorly against the 3rd placed team in the league, the favourites for promotion, and got a point in their own backyard.
The fact is, we are top of the league, above some very big clubs, we are winning a lot of games, not losing many at all, and we should be enjoying it while it lasts.
NOT continually moaning and groaning ....
But still, people have their opinions and i respect that, but when your team is top of the league and in theory they ARE punching above their weight.....
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 11:24:33 GMT
Good points SIOCH.
Just to clarify I for one am neither moaning or groaning.
Just breaking the boredom of a Monday with a wee debate :-)
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coll45
Academy Starlet
Posts: 157
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Post by coll45 on Mar 17, 2008 11:29:56 GMT
Good points SIOCH.
Just to clarify I for one am neither moaning or groaning.
Just breaking the boredom of a Monday with a wee debate
ok so lets stop going on and on about it look forward to the next match and think of the future .
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 11:35:06 GMT
Ok Coll a truce has been officially called.
Right whats next - this work malarky is crap.
I've got one....
Fuller - Could we be better without him!?? Just stop and think a while before you answer!!
(I'll let you start coll ;-))
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coll45
Academy Starlet
Posts: 157
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Post by coll45 on Mar 17, 2008 11:46:26 GMT
no wed be better if we had someone to play alongside him who can score goals and take the pressure off him
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Post by troj on Mar 17, 2008 11:52:57 GMT
I agree!
Crikey that was a useless debate ;-) What next... go on coll>>>>
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Post by Pugsley on Mar 17, 2008 11:57:32 GMT
Pulis has exceeded EVERYONES expectation this season - well done to him.
What is clear is that his failure to land a decent striker last season cost us the play offs. Let's hope that this time he learns the lesson and gets someone in so it doesn't cost us automatic this time.
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Post by potter84 on Mar 17, 2008 11:58:07 GMT
Right Team - PERFECT MANAGER for me - Nuff said!!!!!! Only one Tony Pulis!!!!!!!!!
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Post by tazi on Mar 17, 2008 12:06:31 GMT
I love you Tony and i want to have your's and Deb's babies.
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Post by knowles on Mar 17, 2008 12:10:57 GMT
Right team, right manager.
Saturday was a match we couldn't afford to lose. We didn't. Watford absolutely battered us before the sending off- we would never have escaped with a point had Eusty not been sent off. The point has taken us top- bottled it? I don't think so.
If he isn't good enough for you- who exactly would you get in as a replacement? Who else could get us to top of the league with just 7 games remaining? I'm still struggling...
You are basing your theory on two games. Not much evidence is there? I cannot believe the stick TP has got from a cracking draw at Vicarage Road.
Fuller is in need of a rest, and this suspension has come at the right time. Let him re-charge his batetries and start again for the final five (not eight) games. He seemed uninterested on Saturday. The service to him was poor but even when the ball was near him he stood still half the time.
Just for the record, I predicted a 5-3-2 formation. Anyone remember the Hoekstra show at Watford? The formation that day? You've guessed it!
Well done Pulis, keep it up- you are the right man
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