FL2:Torquay Utd v Barnet 13 Nov 2010

Both Benyon goals away at Lincoln?

I think the big problem against Barnet was the midfield being too lightweight. It just goes to show how much Zebs was missed. Manse was trying his best to cover everything but received little assistance from Wroe, Stevens or OKane, all of whom looked out of their depth TBH.

Yes it was a nicely worked goal from Stevens-Kee-OKane & Benyon but that was about it for the "creative" midfield.

The problem up front is that Benyon and Kee are both the same kind of player needing it into feet to be most effective. That means a ball winner/holdup type of striker to play alongside them and they will score hatfuls (pretty much the way Kabba was playing yesterday).
I thought the defence stood firm albeit with a couple of shakey moments but both Robbo and Nico did well considering the lack of support from their wingers. Robbo in particular was up against probably the best 2 Barnet players on the day.

Yes it was a bad day at the office for us but im sure the Chesterfield and Bury supporters are equally critical of their teams, having lost to opposition they were both expected to win comfortably against...

According to our beloved chairman, it is Buckle's idea for the music but hopefully it won't be repeated after the number of complaints he had to field.

Officials were terrible

I think the players thought it was going to be easy when we carved them up for the first goal. We did not hassle and press like we normally do and just stood off them and let them play

Without wishing to sound like I'm defending a poor, frustrating performance, for that is what it was; but having spoken to a couple of the Barnet guys before the game it was apparent that thay are not as bad a side as their results and position make out. This was not just their viewpoint but that of a number of their opponents this season who have been surprised after a game against them as to how well they actually play.

There was also a lot of frustration amongst the United players afterwards that they didn't seem to be able to 'open the door' against teams such as Barnet and they were keen to get in on Monday and work out why. These boys were mightly disappointed and wanted to sort it out as soon as possible.

I see this attitude as a good sign.

It wasn't their players I had spoken to...

Perhaps I worded it incorrectly. I should've put it that they, those representing Barnet, believe their performances have, at times this season, merited more of a reward and that the feedback that they've received from others after certain games was that the club were better than their position suggested.

It was more an observation from the opposition than from myself.

Apologies.

We are a better team than our league position suggests, is the sort of statement a manager will make after a game for two reasons. One is to try and keep the fans believing and two is to try and keep the players believing results will soon turn the other way.

Teams that are at the bottom of the table are there because in the games they played in the other team were better on the day or made their own luck and won the game as a result of doing just that.

Yes its always said teams at the bottom never get any luck but is that really the case? they let in a very late goal but that's not down to bad luck, they failed to defend right to the end of the game. They hit the crossbar in the last minute, but thats not bad luck is it? no simply they failed to get the ball into the net when they had the chance.

The key word you used Leigh was the wood POOR. We played a team who has only picked up on single point on the road and the question is if we had not had played so poorly, would they have got their second point at Plainmoor?

I was not at the game but have read the match reports and just finished reading Dave Thomas's report. He said it was a good job the game was not played in front of the camera's as not only was the game a bad advert for second division football, it was a bad advert for Torquay United.

Paul Buckle said our only good move was the one for our goal and their keeper only had to make one save during the second half.

When a team does not get the expected result you so often hear how much better the other team really was, that may well be true but it can't really be used when your team simply were rubbish on the day.

Reading the reports it seems we were content to lob long high balls up to our forwards, fine if you have the right sort of forwards that can deal with such balls, the problem is we don't.

I have always believed the only way to win any game is to play to the strengths of the players you have out on the pitch. No good hoofing the ball up high to Benyon as he is not going to win the ball full stop.

When we had Hilly in the side our keeper would kick the ball high out to where he was standing, knowing Hilly would more than likely win the header, well you could not do that if say Danny Stevens was out on the wing.

A manager knows the team he is going to put out and must play the style those players do best playing and it also helps playing players in their best positions.

Such performances at home games will do nothing to help get more bums on seats and instead of statement's being made that the other team were not as bad as their league position suggests, statements should be made about what Bucks is going to do to get the performances from the players that they are more than capable of producing.

Yes it is but I feel its only being said to try and deflect from our teams performance. For me its never about how good or bad the other team play, or where they should be in the league table, only how good we play and the performance our players give out on the pitch.

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