the difference between us and the Albion

[ted1965]

Once again we beat the Albion, it’s not surprising and we thoroughly deserved the three points even if It wasn’t the best game of the season. The sour grapes once more from Mowbrey that he would rather stick to his principles that actually win games is pretty hilarious to say the least. I am sure the supporters and board of directors will show their appreciation of his principles if they become detached at the bottom of the league which is beginning to look a distinct possibility, principles will be worth a lot from a dole queue.

This game for me it was a very significant one because it was possibly the first game where we started as favourites to win and we did just that convincingly. That had been a worry, it’s great beating the Arsenal’s and Tottenham’s but this was the type of game where it could have all gone wrong, the kind of game over the years where we would have fallen in a big hole, it didn’t and without our main goal threat and game breaker Fuller it was even more impressive and significant.

It would be nice if this game finally showed many people what the difference is between us and the Albion, they were hardly Brazil like, they looked more like a rudderless ship caught between two styles of play and neither was going to work. Before the game despite having three more points and looking far more convincing thus far some bookies still made us the favourites to go down. The bookies it seemed were still caught up with the it’s just a matter of time before we crumble. Mr Ed was bemoaning before the game that direct football would only take you so far and that unless you played the free flowing game his side do then you would maybe survive one season. I would suggest he looks at the league table and worries about how they are going to survive one season on the evidence so far very unlikely. In the Championship it was easy for them to pass the ball about and create chances at the higher level you have to compete first and then play, they aren’t good enough to do either. The best part of the game we won it with a move of high quality far better than anything the Brazilians have produced this season. The game wont go down as a classic but it takes two sides to make a good game and on Saturday there was only one side trying to play and win and it wasn’t the purists. I am delighted that we won the game with goal from open play, if we had won from a corner or one of Rory’s throws people would have just said, there you go again one dimensional Stoke, didn’t hear Mr Ed complimenting us on the quality of the winning goal, though had it come from a long throw you can bet he and the press would have made a meal of it.

We may not be pretty at times but we at least know what we’re supposed to be doing and at home it works very well. It seems our black country neighbours haven’t a clue home or away. I wonder which they would prefer between now and May, so called free flowing football or a realistic chance of survival. The facts on today’s evidence they have neither at this moment in time. I would like both but we aren’t all hoof and grind we play some neat football at times as well. That certainly is the case at home. It would be nice to think Tone would encourage the players to be more positive away from the Britannia from here on, we need some points on our travels because this season anyone can beat anyone and it’s going to need a high total of points to keep you up.

It seems from Mr Ed’s comments after the game he’s already accepting they are down, with luck that will be taken on board by his players, oh I would love to be inside the head of Scott Carson listening to those kind of comments. In my opinion he turned us down having convincing himself that we were going to be cut adrift at the bottom of the league while he would be receiving rave reviews with the rest of his Brazilian team mates. Instead he is hearing well it’s almost all over for us and we just have to prepare for moving the better players on while improving on them and making sure they play the game in the right manner, it reminded me of so many of those Dario interviews of years gone by who would have thought it the Brazilians are now the new Crewe oh how that must warm the hearts of all those Brazilians huddled together for warmth around their portables on a cold winters evening. I know which attitude I want from my players and those representing the club and being virtually told we are giving up on survival even though we’re only a few points behind tells you as much about their ambitions as it does about their mental strength.

We as a club haven’t got everything right since we gained promotion but the one thing we have in spades is character and the desire to prove people wrong. We have proved it time and again, we have been beaten and showed real character and belief in ourselves as a team to bounce right back. It would have been easy with no Fuller and the drubbing we took last weekend for the players to have felt sorry for themselves and faltered in a game like today instead we convincingly beat a side who were rivals for survival when the game began I feel by the end of it many at their club no longer see them as such.

The opportunity now presents itself to close the gap on Hull next weekend and when you think only a few weeks ago they seemed completely out of reach. It certainly isn’t going to be an easy game, they will battle for every minute as we will and it will come down to how much we want it. It’s a game where we could slip up, though with our home record and belief in how we play at home it’s one which certainly can be won. As long as we don’t become complacent and believe we only have to show up to win these next couple of home games, we’re not even close to that point in our development and I am sure everyone at the club realizes it. We have four games coming up where points are most certainly a possibility, there’s no reason with the right approach we can’t beat Hull and Fulham at home, neither easy games but winnable all the same and two away games where points are very gettable. Blackburn are struggling that’s one away game where we need to be taking it to them. Newcastle isn’t as easy as it was a few weeks ago but they are still vulnerable and if we get stuck in there’s no reason why we can’t get a point like we did at Wigan.

We have started this most vital few weeks with the desired three points and now with the right attitude we can really set ourselves up before the transfer window opens. If we are well placed come January the club needs to ready and not playing Mexican stand off with targets the results so will give them a lot more bargaining power and we need to use it, if we can make the right signings and add to what we already have we could well finish mid table and what an achievement that would be considering we have been written off by so many at every opportunity.

[Deleted]

the difference between us and the Albion

A quicker summary: -

They're shit and they've got a shit manager who insists on persisting on trying to play football when they obviously haven't got the quality to do that (also, the "pure football" was non existant on Saturday). We've got a manager who knows you have to play to your strengths and has assembled a squad that will give us a fighting chance of staying up.

[Pretty Little Boother]

Cheers WD, good read that.

[visunitafortior]

Good post Ted, worthy of a newspaper publishing. If you get any spare time could I post you my Uni essay titles?

[mikeyb99]

Totally agree with what you've said Ted. I think the most telling thing about the game, that Mowbray completely ignored, was that the one bit of quality in the whole game that led to a goal wasn't from his black-country Brazilians, but Stoke.

I haven't seen a side with as little cutting-edge as Albion in a long time - they are really in trouble this season.

We need to reinforce our victory last Saturday with another against Hull. I just hope Pulis doesn't take the foot off the peddle (ala Wigan after Arsenal) and send the team out hoping for a draw, because I too think that the side that shows most desire this Saturday will win the game. That - and hopefully Hull won't get their usual dose of extremely good luck

[Deleted]

The Wigan situation is a bit different from the Hull one though. We were away from home against Wigan and only went uber-defensive when we lost Sidibe to injury (and true to form, didn't have a plan B). We're at home against Hull, hopefully the smaller pitch might marginalize Geovanni to some degree (otherwise we can just kick fuck out of him ) and I fully believe we'll be going for all three points. We'd better be anyway!

[Irish Stokie]

Well to be fair we have yet to play defensively at home this season and always look to play on the front foot and win the game and i think it will be the same against Hull. I think that Hull have really come back down to earth and without some extremely good luck they would be without a win in 5or 6

[bert]

from the guardian.

"I couldn't see them scoring but then an attack-minded footballer in our team has a slip, they get a one-two and we lose," said Mowbray.



not just any player. an attack- minded player.

[dexter97]

Nov 24, 2008 16:20:51 GMT bert said:

from the guardian.

"I couldn't see them scoring but then an attack-minded footballer in our team has a slip, they get a one-two and we lose," said Mowbray.



not just any player. an attack- minded player.

Could that man be any more of a cock?

[mcf]

An attack minded player wouldn't be in his own half would he?

This football principle bollocks is wearing a bit then when he flooded the midfield and played one forward - hardly built like Zola or Deco either, more like Sidibie.

[swampySCFC]

I dont care what he says. That side were the poorest Baggies side to visit Stoke for many years.

Remember the trouble we used to have with Bob Taylor?

I must say I couldnt recognise any of the names in their team as stars. So given that he's had a good 6 months to put their squad together, just what has he been doing in that time?

But this goes back a lot further. As a yo yo side with presumably considerable more wealth, the fuck wit could only manage to beat us to the title on the last day of last season, so what was he doing all last year too.

He's like that other pillock Pardew. What is all this "we play football" crap. It wasnt in evidence from West Brom at the weekend and the Charlton fans havent seen any for months.

[stayingupfor drmagicdiao]

Superb as usual Ted and spot on. Have you ever thought about sending shortened versions of your essays to one of national newspapers? It would be great if they published them! Most of the reports in the papers this morning were full of the reporter and/or Moanbray moaning about the quality of the game!