What Age is Steven? Bolton v Stevenage Tues. 3-11-2023 7-15.

[Mar]

Iredale pulling back, looks cynical, gets the yellow. Nothing doing with their player grabbing ours. We're walking a dangerous tightrope.
Iredale pushes in the back. That should've been Iredale off. Comical.

Feel like theres a number of calls that should've been given in our favour that haven't.


Rattled.

[officer_dibble]

Second best by a long distance. Evatt moaning at the refs - he wants to thank them for not sending Thomason and Iredale off. Lucky it’s 1-1.

He’ll have to sub George, which is a shame cos he’s the only one in that midfield who is brave on the ball and showing for it - there has to be space in there as they are man for man v the centre backs. Our wing backs are the only ones playing anywhere near.

Dion isn’t in the game and Dan is fecking awful as it’s a proper game against a team of blokes.

Did this lot a disservice before - they are more than a Morecambe they are having a go and look a lot more dangerous. The type of game that Evatt struggles with. Best we can hope for is we keep them out and nick a late one when they tire.

[BWFC_Insane]

Absolute unmitigated disgrace. Yes we played Saturday and have injuries. But they want it more all over the pitch. They are the better team because they are actually putting a shift in. We are abominably bad because at least half don’t want to be here.

Someone tell me how much Stevenage’s forward line cost it better be a fair few million because they are streets and I mean decades, light years ahead of Nlundulu. Fair enough if they paid a few million, if not someone explain why they can win every header, run every channel, fight every lost cause and we are stuck with Forest Gump?

1-1 completely flatters us. They deserve to be completely out of sight so dominant they’ve been. Sheer effort Vs Sheehan shirking!

The only silver lining is we can’t, cannot possibly be as bad second half. Evatt should have the teacups flying round that changing room.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Second best by a long distance. Evatt moaning at the refs - he wants to thank them for not sending Thomason and Iredale off. Lucky it’s 1-1.

He’ll have to sub George, which is a shame cos he’s the only one in that midfield who is brave on the ball and showing for it - there has to be space in there as they are man for man v the centre backs. Our wing backs are the only ones playing anywhere near.

Dion isn’t in the game and Dan is fecking awful as it’s a proper game against a team of blokes.

Agree with much of this, except maybe the very first and last bits. There's not a lot in the game, and while I fear Stevenage look liklier, that may be emotion rather than intellect. One shot each on target. They're just much more efficient at their game than we are at ours.

(As you say in your edit) They're not Morecambe-level divers/cheats, though. They just get the ball and launch it forward, fancying their front three against our back three. Can't blame them as Toal hasn't looked imperious, and Iredale - good line-block aside - now looks worried.

Our midfield has to show more, and as you say GT is now a walking red card because they will go down if he catches them.

Up top Dion is indeed absent and it's started to bounce off Dan, who may be football's most frustrating player. Bod should bring a bit of calm but he needs passers behind him. I just worry that the obvious sub – Morley for Thomason - might play to their midfield strength.

[The_Gun]

That cheered me right up. Thanks, Insano!

[BWFC_Insane]

Nlundulu is a big lad. He doesn’t want it though. Doesn’t want to do the work.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

That cheered me right up. Thanks, Insano!

[jmjhb]

We do need to find a way to win these games as we're not finishing higher than playoffs if we don't.

Right now they remind me of the Arsenal sides of the 00s who came up to the Reebok and got outfought off the park.

[officer_dibble]

Yeah agree DSB. We need to keep George on the pitch but we can’t afford the risk. Needs Kyle Dempsey to step up. Or we mix it up and go three up top and try to make it stick there. Maybe push Dan wide where he had more luck against Peterborough. I’m gonna be nervous whenever it goes near Iredale though…. Shakes fist at Gethin Jones again!!!!

[BWFC_Insane]

We do need to find a way to win these games as we're not finishing higher than playoffs if we don't.

Right now they remind me of the Arsenal sides of the 00s who came up to the Reebok and got outfought off the park.

Exactly. Lack of battle. Lack of bottle. Thomason aside the midfield is shameful. No fight at all. It’s not acceptable. On any level.

[Mar]

He’ll have to sub George, which is a shame cos he’s the only one in that midfield who is brave on the ball and showing for it.

It would be a shame. the only reason GT got a booking is because Iredale didn't tackle properly enough. That should've been Iredales booking at worst. Given the positioning of Iredale, I think he wouldn't have been booked for a challenge that blocked off the man as GT would've been covering. Instead GT's got the booking because he's past both our players.

Dion isn’t in the game and Dan is fecking awful as it’s a proper game against a team of blokes.

Did this lot a disservice before - they are more than a Morecambe they are having a go and look a lot more dangerous. The type of game that Evatt struggles with. Best we can hope for is we keep them out and nick a late one when they tire.

Indeed. We're not able to get Dion in the game. Dan's been showing for the ball, but he's not getting any service and what little service he has had, he's struggled. Even when he beats a man he's getting taken out and the ref not giving us a free kick.

This is exactly the sort of game we struggle with.

[officer_dibble]

We do need to find a way to win these games as we're not finishing higher than playoffs if we don't.

Right now they remind me of the Arsenal sides of the 00s who came up to the Reebok and got outfought off the park.

What I would say is Maghoma and Santos would be in the side tonight and that would help. Even Mendes Gomes potentially.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Relevant scores elsewhere
Oxford 1-0 Shrews
Pompey 0-1 Wycombe - Pompey yet to have an effort on target
Cambridge 0-2 Barnsley - Tyleks provisionally third
Carlisle 0-0 Posh
Charlton 1-1 Exeter
Bristol Rovers 2-0 Vale

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Stevenage make a change at half-time, bringing on a 6ft5 centre-back.

We're unchanged.

COYWM

[Prufrock]

No way Iredale and Tommo have the brain cells between them to not get sent off, but also can't really replace them. Superb.

[Worthy4England]

All looks very disjointed from us. Some very petulant challenges from some of our chaps, combined with the usual array of baffling decisions from the ref for both sides. Whilst the on target shots might be about equal, they're looking quite tidy.

That 6' 5CB must be a response to our aerial dominance from Dion and Dan.

[DJBlu]

Basics ffs.

Putting the ball in from a corner right into the keepers hands.

[DJBlu]

All looks very disjointed from us. Some very petulant challenges from some of our chaps, combined with the usual array of baffling decisions from the ref for both sides. Whilst the on target shots might be about equal, they're looking quite tidy.

That 6' 5CB must be a response to our aerial dominance from Dion and Dan.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Better. Toal raker finds space down their left. Vary it up.

[Mar]

We do need to find a way to win these games as we're not finishing higher than playoffs if we don't.

Right now they remind me of the Arsenal sides of the 00s who came up to the Reebok and got outfought off the park.

What I would say is Maghoma and Santos would be in the side tonight and that would help. Even Mendes Gomes potentially.

I'd agree. I suspect CMG looks a stronger sort which would've drastically helped a fixture like this. I get the impression that it may just be a case of we're making the best of what we have. Trouble is, its the same as what we've had previously and the issues we've had previously that it just seems like more of the same, rather than an issue that we've addressed, but not quite able to take advantage of.