Match Thread Home v Carlisle Sat Dec 5th 2020

Even if you put a win your phone will automatically autocorrect to the default position

 

Carlisle fan here.

Thought I’d share my view on today - first goal was always going to be critical - but I’d question if you did any form of scouting etc. If you don’t bring pace and run the wings against us, we will generally win.

Your GK and RB / RWB looked very promising, and your players attitude at 0-0 was that of players wanting to battle for a manager. Samuels looked a decent threat (or better than what you had) up top, doesn’t seem like a scorer though. - not sure why he’s getting slated here, was 5 or 6 far worse players.

you obviously watched Elliot Watt when he was at us to sign him ? I don’t understand why your asking him to do a job he can’t do asking him to be a mobile CdM is a disaster, let him break up play in the centre and dictate play with the ball at his feet. We changed about 15 min in and asked Melish to run beyond him, as soon as we did he was out of the game.

I’d be a little worried about your CB’s decent in the air but can’t keep hold of the ball. Cooke looked decent with the ball, didn’t notice Pritchard. As for Donaldson - I’d get rid now, clearly not bothered, used to be feered and bully CB’s he just didn’t look bothered today.

Our finishing was disgraceful today and we were lucky you coudnt capitalise on this (we should of had 3 or 4) again thought your keeper was decent.

Positives:
- ive seen two worse teams this season (barrow, Southend, Scunthorpe (don’t know how we lost to them))

Good luck for the rest of the season, Bradford are too big for L2 never mind the conference.

 

Did he really say he wishes we had goal scoring centre backs, then baulk at the idea of signing a goal scoring centre back free agent in Rhys?

Hahahaha!!!!!!

We managed to lose to Barrow, and they're abysmal.

Scunthorpe are kicking on a little bit, can't see them being below 18th.

We're absolutely ruined as a club, very little promise on the pitch, even less off it.

 

No chance Bennett would of come to you - made it clear on a number of occasions the only reason he’s in L2 is Chris beech. Said he wouldn’t reunite with his old boss Keith Hill at Tranmere.

 

It doesn't really matter, our manager Stuart McCall has said he has absolutely zero interest in signing free agents, and has stuck to that for quite some time.

It's an interesting bit of info, for sure, and thank you - but it doesn't matter if he was a Bradford City man through and through, Stuart has laughed off the idea of signing ANY free agents.

Don't ask me why.

 

Great honest post this.

Can't disagree with any of it.

Watt is one of our best midfielders but that's the problem. He shouldn't be. As soon as you got runners in and around him he didn't know what was going on. His head was spinning.

Your defence had an easy night work and we played in to your hands.

If it was a boxing match it would have been stopped at 0-0 with you all winning because every part of the game you were doing damage to us. You could have scored on the counter, in normal play. You had us in your back pocket.

Even if we would have scored first I believe you would have woken up and scored 2-3 goals. It was too easy for you all today.

Hopefully, when we come to your place we will give you a game.

Good luck..

 

Without.a.doubt.

 

Another Carlisle fan here, last time I was at at Valley Parade we got humped 0-4, the last days of the Greg Abbott regime, we were deservedly well beaten.
Today....... Well what a difference, not wishing to gloat but I thought you would come out all guns blazing especially after Tuesday night (by all accounts you were unlucky to lose), but today??????
Some of your players just didn't seem interested, Elliott Watt (great for us) was a shadow of the player who left us, your midfield was out battled time and again and your forwards well.......................(just hoping for your sakes that they were all reserves) All our ex Bantams played well, (fair enough they probably wanted to 'up' their game against their former employers) however, Devine was neat and tidy in the middle of the park (he wasn't even our first choice until a couple of weeks ago), and Patrick as always has bags of pace and was probably unlucky not to get a goal.
Not wanting to gloat, as I know a number of Bantams (I lived in Harrogate for a number of years) but a club the size of Bradford shouldn't be sitting anywhere near the bottom of the 4th tier, your fans deserve more than that.

 

Omari Patrick is that player - the forward who's 'unlucky' not to score - until you've seen it 20 times in a row, then you realise that's just Omari!

I'm glad Devine is getting game time with you, he needed a move to kickstart his career. Hopefully we now see that happen.

I was at Carlisle last season for the dire 0-0 - when the 'Bowyer Out' chants started. Well, Bowyer went the second the transfer window closed, which is a trick our owner has played on us numerous times.

Good luck to you, great to see you progressing and sitting pretty in fourth place.

By the way, to you and other Carlisle United fans reading this, "to what extent has consistency led you to success"?

 

I honestly think its down to Chris Beech, he seems to have instilled a 'never say die' attitude into our player along with fantastic recruitment. For instance, Tanner (our right back) plucked from Salford's reserves, but a product of the Old Trafford empire, never even got a game for them but has been outstanding for us. Alessandra given a contract after failing to agree an extended contract with Morcambe (even our fans were moaning at that one, "Not good enough for bloody Morcambe but signs for us", he's been brilliant!!
Bennett, a free agent on a short term contract (the scorer today....sorry!!!), has been absolutely fantastic and holds the whole back line together, why on earth a bigger club hasn't come in for him I will never know. And Hayden couldn't get a sniff under the old manager (Pressley), Beech played him from the first minute from his first game in charge and now I believe bigger clubs are already starting to take note.
Happy times a Brunton Park (for a change) it wont last for of course, but I'm certainly enjoying it whilst it does.
And 'consistency'?, well picking the same team and keeps playing the same system helps a lot in my opinion, something Keith Curle and Steven Pressley (ex Managers) could never understand.

 

That's really interesting, thank you very much for the insight.

So it sounds like Beech (who is a nice understated pick as manager himself) has unearthed a few gems.

How does he compare to his predecessors, does he play a similar style, or is it a complete 180 (or something in between)?

Do you think he's signed players to suit a particular formation and signed them for characteristics rather than their profile?

 

The biggest thing for me with Chris beech is the attitudes of players - the likes of Donaldson woudnt be making the match day squad under him (as he won’t work hard enough).

we do the simple things right, defend get forward fast and take many shots. We are a big physical team who will outscrap any team.

personally, from what I’ve seen today, I’d question it Mcall understands what’s required for L2 at present. I’d also be very disappointed in the way you set up, any form of pace at our back line and we struggle - instead you go route one - thank you very much we’ll take the 3 points.

your in a similar position fans wise as us a few years back, you think your bigger than L2 (you probably are), however - Patrick the type of player you’ve slated for not scoring enough is a valuable asset. Gets us up the pitch fast, reliving defensive pressure has a shot keeper spills it, Melish scores the tap in. (Whilst as fans Patrick’s and Melishs are frustrating they are typical L2 players who if it all clicks together will go higher)

Pace, physicality abs effort are all that’s needed in L2, Chris beech has shown us it’s simple don’t over complicate it and you’ll do well.

 

Interesting to hear a rival fans view - thanks.

I agree RE McCall, sadly. He just doesn’t seem to get L2 at all - his signing are evidence of that.

Alarm bells rung for me when we signed Gareth Evans from Pompey and then McCall said a few weeks later he’d seen him in training and didn’t think he’d play the role he signed him to do.

I don’t think much scouting has gone into many of the signings and we’re regressing, fast.

From 25/1 to 5/1 for relegation after losing three home games in a week....but the CEO isn’t panicking.....[gulp].

 

Thank you for your general insights but these two parts are key for me.

Some of our fan base are obsessing about root and branch changes to the club and the way we are set up. Long term they're 100% right.

However, short term these are the key parts. Get a manager who can recruit well and instil a relatively simple identity alongside players who have very simple and solid attributes.

Unfortunately we have management and players that show the exact opposite attributes.

Good luck for the rest of the season.

 

Its not completely his fault IMO. We knew all summer that we were short of goals but were told that it would all be made right by a premiership loanee when they became available.

So Samuels came along (coincidentally the day after scoring against us but I'm sure we'd been scouting him for months ) and was described as the final piece of the jigsaw.

Unfortunately, he can't seem to hit a barn door with a banjo. So while his general play is probably in advance of all the rest of our attacking options the circumstances he was brought in under will mean he's not going to get the benefit of the doubt for anything.

 

I'm pretty sure Beech must have unlimited funds, a Director of Football, Head Scout, a team of analysts and a specialist coach for every position on the pitch. There's no other way such a turnaround could be achieved.

 

Good summary I'll pass it on to our manager.

 

Wish that were true, but as I understand it we may be slightly better off than some of the teams in our league, but for the most part were as skint as the next club, all non playing staff have had to take wage cuts and there's certainly been no more recruitments on the coaching side. We're also watching the 'Edinburgh Woollen Mill' situation with great interest, as they are the major sponsors and have been lending the club money over the last few years, if they go completely belly up, then heaven knows what will happen.
As far as 'turning it around' is concerned, I honestly think we have a good coach who knows the lower divisions inside out. He doesn't fanny around with this bloody stupid 'playing out from the back', he doesn't unnecessarily change the team or the style, or the tactics, (Curle and Pressley were absolute sods for 'changing it around', 'keeping players fresh', absolute bollocks in my opinion). But where I really think he hits the sweet spot, is his recruitment. He seems to have got, not only decent players, but players that fit into a system that he wants to play, and he plays players that play in their favoured positions and doesn't 'experiment' with players playing out of position, and probably one of the biggest assets he doesn't worry too much about the opposition.

 

Your mention of Gareth Evans is a good point. At what part of our transfer strategy was he aimed at? McCall isn't even sure what position to.play him which Begs the question, what actually is our transfer strategy?

 

Yeah, my post was sarcastic and aimed at some of our fans who seem to think we should an off-field setup akin to Bayern Munich or Manchester City's to support McCall and have no grasp of the fact we are in League 2!