The Voice - Match preview #42: Swindon Town vs Bradford City Saturday 12th April 2025 12:30pm

A few dumbos on social media who think it was a yellow, it's a potential leg breaker FFS. Doesn't matter what happened last week or last year, it was this match and is a blatant red. Christ when your skipper puts his head in his hands sheepishly I'm not sure why some are trying to question this one.

 

No doubt about him winning the ball which back in the day was all that was needed with regards a good fair tackle, unfortunately now a days not only do you have to win the ball you have to be in control of your motion after winning the ball, credit to Smallwood he was making sure he wasn't coming out the worst from the tackle .
Back in the day those sort of challenges/tackles were bread and butter for the likes of Kamara, Kennedy, McCall, never mind your Bremner's, Styles, Giles, Hunter etc, the games gone soft and not the spectical we once knew and loved, a game played by men if the ball was there to be won you'd better make sure you got in first,

 

They certainly knew which buttons to press picking on Smallwood and Shep .
Smith pushed his buttons all afternoon and it showed in their goal celebration by surrounding him on the floor .

No issues with the defeat but the ref made some strange calls .

Defender floured Tayo when side by side on the left second half … free kick but clearly unpunished .
Shep floored from behind by Smith , unpunished (?) behind the refs back .
Ungentlemanly conduct by three of their players surrounding Shep on the floor …unpunished.

He was ready to fish out yellows for us ?

Smallwood got riled and deserved his sending off . He cost us our defensive shape and ultimately the game.
Bobby poor
Pattison poor
Defensive unit poor

Hats off to their boss he had the player dark arts off to a T and who to target creating ill discipline .

Onwards and upwards ? Well done Wimbledon too.

 

At last the voice of common sense .

 

Yes by 1 ! Do you know how GD works !

 

When was the last time we conceded 5 goals in a league game by the way, what a time to do so after managing to score 4 away from home

 

Idle -

I remember the 5 - 4 defeat at West Ham in the Prem.

 

Reminds me of West Ham 5 - 4 Bradford City. Jamie Lawrence scored a brace, di Canio asked to be subbed. Another mad match. I thought as I stood in the away end, we can't score 4 away from home and lose can we? Well, we've done it again.

 

Doubt it. The EFL have the option to add a game if they deem the appeal to be frivolous. That was a stonewall red in all honesty and I think he knew it.

 

I remember us winning 5-4 at Cheltenham too

 

It was certainly worth another yellow, he was at it most of the second half you have to wonder if that's a part of Shepheard's game that's lacking, getting into oppositions faces when the going gets tough, I had to smile when Smith put his shoulder into Shepheard's chest and knocked him over, if Smith had pushed him over with his hand high on Shepheard's chest it would have been a yellow possibly red so why no action taken by the referee for him shouldering him. I'm not blaming the referee for today defeat but as we see week in week out similar tackles/challenges are waved play on where as others get a yellow or red, as someone has posted earlier was the challenge on Pattison against Crewe any less reckless than Smallwood's today that's what gets fans up in arms very little consistency by the referees.

 

Yes I do but my point is that come the end of the season it may come into play.
Note, Vale are 4.0 up today and matching our GD

 

Port Vale will be out of sight at the end of Easter fixtures. However, you are right about goal difference, only Donny and Grimsby in the top 7 worse than ours, so could be crucial when its so tight

 

Now 5

 

It was a completely different type of challenge. I knew some would try the false equivalence. Smallwood's was far worse. You can't just throw a net over two vaguely similar challenges and expect the same outcome. The one on Partison was borderline but the Smallwood one today was absolutely text book red. It was a red as soon as he followed through.

 

Reckless is a booking not a sending off.

 

The fact that we are missing Smallwood for three games is a major blow he is central to how we play

 

Looks like Walsall have lost, currently 2-0 down.

 

I'm amazed that Walsall are still in the top 3 given their last 9 or 10 games. No doubt due to the teams below them not taking their opportunity. Walsall didn't have a single shot on target today.

 

Can we all be sensible here please. Richie has been one of our outstanding players this season and one silly moment doesn't change that.

Yes it was stupid and yes it'll cost us but this is a time to pull together, get our chins off the floor and fight hard as a unit.

#bamtamprogresivism