The Voice - Match preview #23: Mansfield Town vs Bradford City Thursday 1st January 2026 15:00

I think too it's an issue with our back lines ball play. Really, only Baldwin can play these long diagonal balls. All the others just play a hoof to the centre backs, rather than the ball in behind. So if Baldwin is out, and we still hoof, we are just making life harder for ourselves once again.

Massively behind a plan B.

 

The league table doesn’t lie but isn’t the fact that we are halfway through the season and fans don’t know what our plan b is a bit worrying?

 

When I checked the lineup, could not fathom the team selected. GA at fault for this defeat. Keep the same lineup as Port Vale and we get a point. Gift wrapped the goals for Mansfield.

 

That well versed drivel that managers use these days of "make plan A better" will come out. Which always means we only know one way.

On the table btw, the L1 table this season is just a minefield of nonsense it's that tight. Blackpool for example, they were in or skirting around the relegation slots before their win today...... if they absolutely dick us on sunday and other results go their way, they could end the day 9th. Not likely I know, but the table at the minute is a congested nightmare.

Before today, I cant remember who were 9th but points wise they were mathematically closer to 22nd place than 8th.

 

Discuss...

https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxvdSIU6GFOIIMfXB_167Z4RAPu-G41JTx?si=sqZyTohfF1KwZAyd

 

Some of Alexander’s decisions really are baffling. His loyalty towards significantly sub-standard players like Byrne, Kelly and Kavanagh is genuinely baffling when you consider Cook and Pattison have been exiled. Now I'm not saying they're world beaters, but Pattison is a better option than no midfield option at all and Cook is superior to Kavanagh in every respect.

I'm all for being ruthless because we have definitely outgrown certain players (albeit quicker than we probably expected to) but the double standards on show is irritating me.

Ultimately, the squad is what we all know it was. A good first XI and a couple of dependables beyond that. But when the likes of Baldwin, Pointon, Sarcevic are missing, we have no quality to replace them and when all of them are missing, you get what we got today. We need 3-5 players of proper quality (ideally proven) who can come in and make a significant impact, not be squad players. We cannot miss this opportunity to go up this year.

 

You see there's my issue with T Wright. He's allegedly a winger but he looks scared to take his man on. He's supposed to be fast so even if he just pushes it past and runs after it he might make something happen. There was an occasion in the second half today when he was one on one and finally got half a yard on his man. Instead of driving on and getting to the line or maybe drawing a pen he just crossed it straight away 45 deg ball came to nothing. We were discussing him in the main stand against Port Vale. He hides at throw ins! He stands behind a defender and doesn’t look or make eye contact with the thrower. He doesn't want the ball. We need more from an attacking "winger ". Today was possibly his worst performance for us bearing in mind the opportunities he had early on. Rant over. Neufville must have done something really bad to have not started on the right today ahead of Wright.

 

Absolutely blatant penalty. The ref really does need to go to Specsavers if he thought that hit the defender’s chest.
Doesn’t excuse our utterly honking performance today. But if we’d scored from a pen there to make it 2-1 it could have been a different game from then on.

 

one of the most blatant penalties you will ever see.

 

It was never going to be the same line up, everyone makes changes in this period of a game every 3 days. Tilt was never going to be able to start again after being out for so long, playing him today would have been neglect. Sarcevic is another that needs his minutes managed as he has a history of picking up injuries.

 

..and the ref was bang in-line.. incredible.

 

Ref needs to go spec savers.. such a blatant handball..

 

Well it's been the hardest 90 minute performance to watch since Notts County just over 12 months ago.
What is worrying is we played exactly the same way as today in the second half at Orient.
Halliday and Swann guilty of really poor finishing which would have helped our goal difference.
Really hope the squad can shake today off.
Blackpool getting battered will have brought them back down to earth.

 

We’re still 3rd after an absolute piss poor performance like that, and teams around us dropped points… again

Thats why we’re lucky.

We’ve been looking a lower half team for weeks

 

Sometimes we aren't even sure what plan a is?

 

I swear looking at this thread you'd think we were deep in a relegation battle.

 

Bang on re Wright. Frustrates the hell out of me. As you say he has the pace but is reluctant to utilise when attacking. However, when facing his own goal and needs to get back he can put the burners on as he did late in the second half when they had a break. Must be frustrating for GA and his team mates.

 

Indeed, we already saw how we fall apart without Bobby, Sarc and a couple of others even before today.

Today was disappointing though, the way we failed at even the basics.

 

I don't think we are lucky at all. You said it yourself "and teams around us dropped points… again". We didn't make them drop points they did that themselves. And will continue to do so for the rest of the season.

We definitely messed up today (though poor finishing and a poor ref and things could have been different) but have 6/9 points over the festive period-beat Blackpool who got royally bummed today and we have 9/12 points-averaging over 2 points a game as we have done so so far this season.

 

I wonder if that ref has a main job as a piano tuner.