Andy Cook

you ever thought that maybe Hoskins is actually helping to create chances you know with build up play etc ............. does Cook ???? Does he bully centre halves ????? Does he link the play up ????
Listen I hope this time next week your pulling me to bits on this I will be glad to be wrong but the signs really are worrying and unless we are creating chance after chance then sadly Cook is just a passenger ........... just got a nasty feeling that this season will yet become another wasted opportunity because we have a man in whose to stubborn to change his ways we should be going after every team in this league and creating chances for fun because the players are there ............ you create for Cook he will score but in all honesty we are creating very little over the last few games and that’s where to me Cook becomes a passenger ...........

 

but Oliver may have caused there centre backs more trouble than Cook did ............. it was to easy for them yesterday ..........I seriously don’t think Cook is the problem it’s a system that’s not playing to his strengths ......... we need to be going after teams for 90 minutes but we never do we either start off slowly or go a goal up and do nothing after that until the other team equalises

 

Oliver can then if so why has Hughes not started him before Cook ?.

Play Cook along side Oliver you make it sound like Oliver is Hughes preferred starter I'd suggest as Cook is our main striker it would be Oliver supporting Cook, I believe we could play two up top once the likes of Walker return we certainly have enough players who on their day could supply chances, I wouldn't be adverse to 2 striker but it looks like Hughes prefers the lone striker.

 

Can't disagree with that, we've bought Oliver in a three year deal so I'd expect him to be part of Hughes plans. But not at the expense of Cook. If that means he has to play them together and forgo this pedestrian passing football we are seeing then i'll go with that. The three behind Cook aligned with quite slow midfielders in Smallwood and Gilliead just haven't clicked at all. Maybe it is time to go direct and use Oliver and Cook as a front two

 

I honestly hate the obsession of just the one man up top maybe Cook would do a lot better if had someone else occupying there centre backs but sadly it’s not gonna happen is it ........... along with the going nowhere passing

 

Don't like this tippy tappy playing out from the back, it invites too much pressure on the back four, but also not keen on hoofing to a big man either. How about mixing it up a bit and not being so predictable.

 

As Stevenage are showing a set method is usually the way to go. Most teams have a set way of playing, if your 'plan A' isn't working then that plan needs working on. The lone striker role is very difficult to play, it leaves you isolated and requires a specific player to do it. I tend to agree with you, i'd like to see Cook alongside another player now. If that means ditching 4-2-3-1 then so be it.

 

Campbell with Mcniven, Mills and Blake , Hanson and Wells , strikers that worked well .

 

We've not had many successful partnerships in my 40 odd years watching Andy. The ones you mention about the only ones. A successful pairing takes time and a connection to work. Not sure who would work with Cook wether it be Harratt, Angol, Oliver. But it might get to the stage where we have to try it as apart from Tyriek Wright and possibly Scott Banks, no other player has put a marker down to play with or near Cook, that includes Chapman, Young, Oliver, Angol, Periara etc.

 

That's the whole point you don't seen to understand or accept, of course Hughes signed Oliver because of his scoring record at his last club 31 in 93 games hardly prolific, Oliver started against Doncaster and barrow with the shirt it was up to the other strikers to take off him he didn't deliver whilst he had it FACT so its hardly Cooks fault for coming in and doing the business, there is plenty of the season left for Oliver to show what he can do but at this present time only a fool would contemplate dropping the clubs leading goal scorer no matter who for.
Your argument is similar to the Aaron Mclean situation we signed him from Hull a Premiership club with regards his past scoring record in league one he had a great record previously at Posh, unfortunately for Bradford City he didn't look like scoring, a similar situation although at the time we signed McLean we'd sold our top goal scorer to Huddersfield so he had little/no competition.
At the end of the day we all have our take on who should start etc, only Hughes will make that call and so far whether some like it or not his decision of picking Cook over Oliver has been the correct one, I'm glad I'm in agreement with this decision IMO a very worthy winner :

 

Behave did you miss the Wimbledon game where he came off at half time with his shirt in tatters.
.winning headers I'd say around 5 of his goals this season have come from headers your clutching at straws now accusing Cook of not winning headers especially in the box.
We'll not agree on this one lets see if anyone of our strikers can take the shirt off him I leave it there.

 

Cannot believe some of the stuff I'm reading on this thread. How long have we been crying out for a goalscorer? And now we have one, who's in good form and some people want him dropped because his hold up play isn't the best?

Well we have another striker who is excellent with his back to goal in Angol. Problem is, his finishing is atrocious.

This is league two, there is not a single striker in the division who is a goalscorer and has good hold up play. So it's one or the other. And I choose the goals every time.

 

Hughes has made that comment several times in his pre and post match interviews referees have been told to let the game flow it seems to be what the referees deems was a foul or a fair physical challenge others don't, I posted last night that challenge being outside the box the referee would have waved play on.

 

Unfortunately it seems that's the way Hughes wants us to play one striker with others chipping in with goals which isn't a problem as long as the likes of Banks, Chapman, Wright, etc do.

 

I struggled to think of any more and have been watching 40+years like yourself. Walker when fit could be the answer, very good player we are missing.

 

No, I'd play him because of his last 14 and not just knee jerk because of a defeat in which the entire team was poor.

 

Ah, I get it now. You've developed Hanson-itis.

It's common when your team has a striker that scores goals. Couple of weeks in a dark room and abstain from football. That should get you sorted.

 

And you was doing so well until this post.

 

Hoskins is nowt like Cook.

Hoskins is a right winger, he's more comparable to our wingers like Wright/Pereira/Vernam/Banks/Eisa.

He's not a 442 winger, more a modern winger-forward.

I think comparing Hoskins to Cook is the most pointless endeavour, when Northampton have Danny Hylton and Louis Appere, who are actually comparable - neither of them score like Cook, and neither of them are more useful in providing opportunities for others. 1 assist each this season.

If we've got a beef that relates to Hoskins, it's that none of our wingers are even close to scoring with his regularity - although I'm very happy with Wright at the moment.

 

Bronco, Hoskins hadn't played since Stockport County.

I think that's a good enough excuse for not scoring in any of those games.

And he wasn't out for 4 games, he was out for 2, returning against Salford City yesterday.

So he's on a 1 game goalless run, and it started yesterday.