Bolton 2-2 Nottingham Forest.

Entertaining first half. Very poor second.

I can't believe the amount of hoofing we do. So often Bogdan gets a chance to roll it out to a full back in space. He just clutches onto it for five seconds, before booting it up to nobody. And it's not just Bogdan, the whole of the back line is hitting aimless long passes all the time.

I've no real complaints about the starting line-up, the substitutions were obviously silly as usual. Danns and Medo for Trotter and Pratley? I despair.

There's something fundamentally wrong with this team and I might be tempted to take a mid table finish now. They look demotivated and low on confidence, various players seem to just switch off, there's no togetherness, there's no direction in our play, particularly the passing. As I say, if it's not Bogdan or a defender hammering it long, it's midfielders passing it backwards and sideways needlessly, and nobody seems to be on the touchline urging them in the right direction.

MartinBWFC wrote:This is how I see it, Freedman obviously wants to win games, unfortunately I dont think he quite knows how to, its plain to see that we do have some good players who on the face of it could lead the team to a top half or better finish.

Now the problem... These good players are being utilised in an almost alienated way, they are neither good or clever enough to play the Real Madrid way, yet Freedman insists they are good enough for that style, if he just set them up as most Championship sides are set up i.e with width, a holding midfielder, and 2 strikers, I honestly think we would be a force in this league.

Football is not a science its far simpler than that, put round pegs in round holes Dougie, and you have a formula for success, but Freedman will never admit to his own failings, and as such will carry on regardless with his non sensical football ideologies, sadly until he is shown the door, mid table is best we can hope for.

Agree with every word of that. 

Hi all. For what it's worth here's my take on what happened today. 

First off I want to be very clear about the result. It's MUCH BETTER than I expected and had someone offered me a point at five to three I'd have snatched their hand off. I predicted 2-0 to Forest and thought it might even be more. So from that aspect I'd say there was quite a bit to be cheerful about. 

However, it's clear from the commentary I listened to that Dougie made EXACTLY the same errors he made this time last season. Baffling substitutions and parking the bus with half an hour to go to hold out for a draw. 

Spearing had a shocker, he was lucky to still be on the pitch at half time and should have been taken off at the break. Skipper or not when you're playing badly, have lost your cool AND are already on a yellow and STILL throwing rash challenges in all directions you're a liability to your team and need to be removed by the manager while it's still in his hands. Add in the introductions of both Pratley AND Trotter and the insanely late switch of Cravies for Beckford and it's little wonder so many fans were again turning puce and gnashing their teeth at Dougie's "plan". 

In all honesty I was furious with him myself at the time but now I'm in a much worse place than that vis a vis my thoughts on our manager. I can't be bothered to get mad with him anymore. He is what he is, he's not going to learn or change and frankly the only possible option for BWFC is to start the search (if they haven't already) for a new manager who CAN use the talent we have to its best effect and bring that person in AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. As to Dougie, well, I don't hate the man at all, I think he's given his very best but it's not enough and never will be. It's past time he was thanked courteously for his efforts and shown the door.

Shame you wasnt there Lpp but your take is pretty much spot on,however I disagree of your take on Spearings contribution,he is after all the Captain and was trying to instill passion and agression into his team mates which didnt quite come to fruition ! I share your apathy and disillusionment with our little Jock,the job is clearly beyond him. Introducing Pratley and then Trotter was mindblowingly so bad it was laughable.To again try to hang on for a draw with 20 odd minutes left at home shows the mindset of him and Lennie and quite frankly its unacceptable. He needs to go back to Palace where inexplicably the Palace fans are ready to take him back !! Just shows we dont hold the monopoly on fuckwit fans !!!

I've no issue with putting Trotter or Pratley on, our starting midfield is pretty lightweight so if he felt we were getting outmuscled then it's just a good tactical decision. Only think he needed one though, not both. Considering all Pratley seemed to do when he came on was foul then I'd prefer Trotter. 

I'd have liked to see him throw Feeney on in something of a free role, but overall a good point and selection albeit too cautious with the subs. 

Word from Nixon is a young premier league striker is signing on loan on Thursday. Capable of 20 goals and fits our system apparently, hopefully that comes through. Shame it's a loan but at this point we have to take what we can get.

Hi tiger. I appreciate what you're saying about Spearing and his need to lead from the front BUT he already had a yellow that the commentators felt was lucky (they felt it could easily have been red) AND he'd been spoken to by the ref at least once AFTER that but was still throwing in rash challenges and clearly losing his cool. I don't like subbing the skipper but ultimately any player in that frame of mind is a liability and not even a Captain should be immune to being subbed if that's best for the team. 

I want to see players in our shirt showing passion and fight but they need to be smart about it and remember that a game is hard enough to win with ELEVEN on the pitch let alone ten. That's why I feel Jay should have been swapped for Feeney at Half time. 

As to DF, well, I can't even be bothered to get wound up about him anymore.

You'd have put on a winger for Spearing, a defensive midfielder?

He didn't get sent off, so I don't think it's much of a point to be honest.

bwfc1874 wrote:
Word from Nixon is a young premier league striker is signing on loan on Thursday. Capable of 20 goals and fits our system apparently, hopefully that comes through. Shame it's a loan but at this point we have to take what we can get.

I'm afraid I've got to the point where if it comes from Nixon I don't worry about a pinch of salt; I break out the salt cellar and get ready to refill it. 

That said, if it does come off then I'll be pleased provided it's a player who doesn't instantly disappear into the "development squad" or spend more than 80 mins per game on the bench because he's "not quite fit" or "not quite ready". 

Buy or loan doesn't matter too much to me given the club's finances, just as long as whomever this kid might be is here to do a job in the first team now and not at some unspecified future date while he "Gets ready".

When did Nixon last get something right?

We aren't going to loan a player for the development squad Pete, he'll be for the first team. As far as Bolton transfers go Nixons accurate, it's just some fans expect everything he says to happen and if a move collapses or stalls they think he's been bullshitting. So fingers crossed!

Natasha Whittam wrote:When did Nixon last get something right?

Moxey.

bwfc1874 wrote:You'd have put on a winger for Spearing, a defensive midfielder?

He didn't get sent off, so I don't think it's much of a point to be honest.

Yes mate I would have. Coming up to half time despite having conceded a penalty I thought we had Forest on the back foot more than they were attacking us. As the home team and especially given the horror show of our matches against Bury and Watford I thought it made sense to go for the win especially when Forest were fielding a somewhat "make do and mend" defence (something we've had to do ourselves all too often). 

Spearing didn't get sent off but I don't think it negates the point. He probably deserved to be sent off and got away with it. Had the ref been a little stronger we could easily have wound up down to ten for a large part of the match, perhaps even more than half of it. 

But to be honest in the second half I'd have gone for the win and brought off a DM for an AM even if Spearing hadn't got blood in his eye and steam coming from his nostrils. Forest were genuinely vulnerable and we let them off the hook with Dougie's change in personnel and tactics. As I've already said I would have taken a point before the game but given the fact we had a real chance to go for all three I think it was very irresponsible of Dougie not to try and get them. And please don't tell me that you think the introduction of Pratley and Trotter was any kind of signal of an attacking intent.

bwfc1874 wrote:We aren't going to loan a player for the development squad Pete, he'll be for the first team. As far as Bolton transfers go Nixons accurate, it's just some fans expect everything he says to happen and if a move collapses or stalls they think he's been bullshitting. So fingers crossed!

I don't think Nixon is particularly accurate or has been at any time in the Freedman era mate. During Coyle's reign he did seem to have a decent pipeline into the back rooms at the 'Bok but since then he's been wrong far more often than he was right. 

As to not loaning a player for the development squad I hope you're right but what worries me is this business about it being a young striker. If he's really a 20 goal a season man then why isn't he in his parent club's first team already? I don't think there's ANY club in the Prem that wouldn't kill to have that for themselves. 

I find this one hard to believe for that reason; it's not got anything like enough specifics attached to it either. Which club? What's his name? Where did he get his goals at? It's all very nice sounding but way too nebulous for me. It sounds like Nixon's having a stab in the dark, maybe based on gossip such as "Oh so and so looks decent" that he's run with and exaggerated, something he's done before.

bwfc1874 wrote:We aren't going to loan a player for the development squad Pete, he'll be for the first team. As far as Bolton transfers go Nixons accurate, it's just some fans expect everything he says to happen and if a move collapses or stalls they think he's been bullshitting. So fingers crossed!

How do you know he hasn't been bullshitting, do you know him?

It was a good first half, good finish by wheats but what spearing was doing for the pen I will never know - I missed the first bloody goal due to some fuck ups with season tickets not being accepted at the turnstiles then being sent back to the ticket office!

As even as the first was I felt we slipped back into ultra sit back mode in the 2nd - some positives but i'm still far from happy from the majority of what i'm seeing at the min.

Natasha Whittam wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:We aren't going to loan a player for the development squad Pete, he'll be for the first team. As far as Bolton transfers go Nixons accurate, it's just some fans expect everything he says to happen and if a move collapses or stalls they think he's been bullshitting. So fingers crossed!

How do you know he hasn't been bullshitting, do you know him?

I don't think Nixon is lying per se. I do think he tends to see more than there really is and instead of saying something may be happening he states it as a fact because he's convinced himself it is one. In this case I think there are too many variables and too little solid info to really put any faith in him. I'd like to be wrong of course but I think what we have here is Mr Nixon hearing things that were not actually said because he's read too much into 'between the lines' as it were.

For what its worth LPP I would have swapped Medo with Feeney at half time and asked him to play slightly deeper than he normally does but when given the chance attack down the right and get it  in the box for Mason and Cavies.Forest were there for the taking but once again our genius tries to hold on for a draw ! Pratley !! how he even gets on the bench is beyond me,what must our youngsters think when such a shite player gets the nod week in week out ahead of them ??

aaron_bwfc wrote:I missed the first bloody goal due to some fuck ups with season tickets not being accepted at the turnstiles then being sent back to the ticket office!

I hacked the BWFC computer. I couldn't resist.

Tigermin wrote:For what its worth LPP I would have swapped Medo with Feeney at half time and asked him to play slightly deeper than he normally does but when given the chance attack down the right and get it  in the box for Mason and Cavies.Forest were there for the taking but once again our genius tries to hold on for a draw ! Pratley !! how he even gets on the bench is beyond me,what must our youngsters think when such a shite player gets the nod week in week out ahead of them ??

I don't know if I can argue with that tiger. But for me I think leaving spearing on was a dangerously risky proposition. I just felt he was clearly not in control of his emotions and had he been sent off that would have dropped our heads a lot faster than simply switching him for someone else. I think I'd have moved Medo over into CM, put Feeney out wide with Chungy on the other wing and told them to have a run at Forests full backs who were both clearly struggling in the first half. 

But when he brought on the Prat and the Fat I knew we were finished as an attacking force except for the most cursory of counters. The fact Cravies missed a sitter simply compounded the error for me and made our desperate need for a quality centre forward all the clearer. If we aren't going to create a lot of chances then we need someone who can be relied on to finish when he gets those few opportunities that do present themselves.

Ok pal we agree to differ if only slightly but to be honest I hadnt thought Spearing had lost his head as you put it but he could have been sent off for the penalty foul. Looking forward to seeing the replay on FLS but maybe not till tomorrow , then we can reconvene ! cheers