LoidLucan wrote:Whatever the circumstances it would always seem a strange decision to me to start a game with Scott in midfield and Turnbull on the bench.
I know that there have been recent games where Turnbull seemed to be less effective than we have been used to, but even so I do so agree with the above. In the first half yesterday we seemed far too reliant on launching the ball forward to no one in particular and when we did use the central midfielders they seemed out of sorts and frequently failed to control the ball, lose possession and generally allow Leamington to walk through them. Wheatley looked as if he needed Turnbull with him to get the best out of him and he played a much more active part in the play once Turnbull was on the field.
Overall I was underwhelmed by the ham-fisted way we played in the first half, Leamington were little better. Leamington's players were getting really worked up by Brown's reaction to being fouled and after their player had been sent off it seemed possible that the match might descent into something between a mudbath and a bloodbath. Happily TW's timely removal of Brown seems to have allowed the sides to refocus and remember that they were playing a football match.
Even so, at half time I was dismayed to see that we had no idea on how to capitalise on being a man up and hoped that a half time talk would get them set right. Yet the same pattern of play continued after the break and it was only when they were shook by going a goal down and got Turnbull and (a surprise to all) Caton on that the team looked capable of dictating the play. Whilst giving due credit to all three subs and the way Darlo rolled up their sleeves and pulled out a win, this has to be read against the fact that Leamington did more or less what we've been doing recently, rescuing defeat from the jaws of victory. They got a goal up and started to hang on, and because they are still of fragile confidence they brought pressure on themselves, which, thankfully, we capitalised on.
Still need a few more wins in quick succession to get us all believing.