The Voice - Match preview Bradford City vs Grimsby Town Saturday 9th September 12:30pm - sky sports

Yep and why bring in 10 or 11 players if the first team players can’t be replaced.I am yet to be convinced of our transfer strategy this season.

 

Well what can we say with regards that dire first half you do have to wonder what's going on in Mark Hughes head, at half time he makes changes goes with what looked like 4-4-2 we look a half descent side, but he'll make his formation work if it kills him, not heard his post match interviews as yet but IMO the players look frightened to death of trying anything positive, although Lewis made a good save second half I believe it effecting him the most he's not half the player he was last season.
This cant continue Mr Hughes a very good home debut by the kid is one of the positives we can take from the second half display, Tulloch and Afokaat look two very capable players.
And Young gets another 3 - 0 Swindon.

 

First time I've seen multiple players, so too early for me to say on that score.

Any team would struggle when all the injuries are to forward players, though, so there is that to bear in mind.

 

Thoughts on that strike from Gillead, @NorthernMonkey!?

we need to see more of that from him but what a strike - Rodri would have been proud.

Pointon was great. stubbs was a rock at the back. Macdonald slows us down and isnt the answer alongside Smallwood, nor is this awful five at the back.

Tulloch showed nice feet when he came on.

harry lewis’ goalkicks to our full backs stood on touchline. Plain awful.

poor result, average display. Hughes needs to go asap.

 

Don't know how he didn't book the player in 2nd half who basically grabbed the ball to stop an attack from us

 

Dark age football looked O/K to me second half, at least we weren't bored stupid as we were the first half.

 

The same Cook who hasn’t scored this season. It should never be an excuse in a million years.

 

We look equally ineffective with a fully fit complement. Last season, we had 4 or 5 games with zero shots on target. Its about Hughes, not injuries.

 

That first half was on a par with anything I saw from any of the past half a dozen managers we've had. And with that I just can't trust him not to revert back to this stupid formation he keeps trying. We've literally had one effort on goal today, simply not good enough.

 

Morecambe aside, that first half was the worst half of football this season, so that doesn't pass the logic test.

 

Totally agree. I said this in a separate discussion before the game - any club with openly communicated aspirations of promotion, should be set up to adjust to several different approaches to winning a game. At the moment we have two, one of which is a fall back to last seasons approach when the new approach fails…….which it has in every game this season IMO.

Our missing front players is a tough deal. However with the greatest respect to Grimsby I still looked at todays squad and thought there was enough there that I’d set up right, there’s no reason we couldn’t have won the game.

Strong leaders find solutions.

 

A half decent side wipes the floor with both of those playing today. At times the football was no better than amateur level. A crowd of over 18,000 deserves to be served up better than that shite on show.

 

Nowhere near good enough from start to finish. Of course, the second half was an improvement but it could not have gotten any worse from that first half which was an utter disgrace.

Playing a rigid 5-4-1 at home with a midfield of Smallwood and McDonald and a grandad up front was totally unacceptable and bordering on laughable. We are at home, on TV and in front of 18k yet he's setting up for a 0-0. That was enough to take away my last little bit of confidence in him.

Second half was thanks in part to Mark Hughes Jr getting his side to park the bus and allowing us onto them. I would be absolutely livid if I was a grimsby fan having watched how bad we were and how they simply gave up attacking.

Change in shape obviously helped. Replacing Derbyshire definitely helped because he is utterly useless and retirement is long overdue. Pointon excellent, Afoka looked lively, Tulloch did ok and Osadebe was Osadebe.

No shots on target until the 89th minute and only a single one at that in a home game will never be close to being acceptable. And that isn't the first time we've had such stats under Hughes. He just doesn't get it.

 

That first half was nothing short of dire!!

Lot better in the second half.

We will get nowhere playing defence first football. MH needs to sort it out very quickly.

 

Cracking weather you've brought with you though, I really feel for you mate, to be fair both the Colchester and Crewe games were not much better, we seem incapable of stringing two passes together never mind two descent halves of football.

 

More entertaining

 

Most boring first half I think ive ever watched live. 2nd half better.

Halliday sh1ts his pants if there is just an ounce of attacking opportunity or empty grass in front of him.
Osadebe - woeful.
Derbyshire - hang them up fella, you are just a body.

Its obvious why we play the ball around 7 yards around the back. Any ball required direct or cross field is usually overhit or given straight to the opposition,.

 

I can't fathom your own logic there Jon. With, without injuries, we often look ineffective and lacklustre going forward. It's down to how Hughes sets us up, more than anything else.

 

The first half genuinely didn't resemble a professional football side.

 

I wonder if Ryan is happy with what he's seeing, two changes and a different formation it was like chalk and cheese why can't Hughes see it most of the 18,000 in attendance could.