No Pirates up the Irwell. Home to Bristol Rovers, Sat 16th Dec, 3-0'clock

[boltonboris]

feck me. Centre backs have been sent straight reds since the feck* things were brought into the game. Honestly BWFCI, I'd just stop watching us if I were you. You've made your mind up. There's no convincing you. You're of that boomer generation who when anything goes slightly wrong, if completely feck* you up mentally and you yearn for the days of old when we were absolutely 'anging to watch, but were a little more 'solid'

[Worthy4England]

Not sure anyone is "blaming" a striker coming in? I thought we were poor all over the park on Saturday. Every last one of us.

[GhostoftheBok]

Not sure anyone is "blaming" a striker coming in? I thought we were poor all over the park on Saturday. Every last one of us.

I suspect Bod will get another game to show what he can offer.

His first start was a really tough game. Second start we go down to 10. The manager will think he deserves a real go and Orient will hopefully be a showcase for him.

[Worthy4England]

Not sure anyone is "blaming" a striker coming in? I thought we were poor all over the park on Saturday. Every last one of us.

I suspect Bod will get another game to show what he can offer.

His first start was a really tough game. Second start we go down to 10. The manager will think he deserves a real go and Orient will hopefully be a showcase for him.

I still would be disinclined to change the balance of a team on a winning run.

[GhostoftheBok]

I still would be disinclined to change the balance of a team on a winning run.

Away at the league leaders would certainly not have been my choice of game to throw Bod in. Equally, I'd not have taken Dion off vs Bristol.

Some poor calls from Evatt in the last couple of games. Presumably he wants to give someone else a chance at Manager of the Month.

[Prufrock]

The whole Bod v Vic thing appears to make people's blood boil on both sides. But you have to say, we've been a poorer side since that change. And yet, fine margins... if Bod's header at Fratton sails in – or the keeper still saves it but Dion doesn't fluff the rebound - are we looking at the same thing? Or is Bod just not qualified to do the job Vic does, which (perhaps entirely coincidentally) was in a very winning team?

A poorer side in 2 games where the functional components that caused us to be poorer generally were not the front two.

You can't IMHO say 'oh its cos we played Bodvarrson that's why Santos turned into a pub player for two games in a row'.

It doesn't make sense. At all. And its a massive stretch. And this idea that Victor works that much harder is not borne out by reality at the actual game he took stick when coming off the bench fresh from the crowd for standing and watching where Bod was chasing!

As I say, I didn't see this game, which is why I'm ascertaining opinions. Yours is noted and filed.

To your latter note: I've already said I worry somewhat that our system is over-reliant on Santos winning 1v1s. It also seems to rely on winning the ball back as soon and as high as possible – where we have league-leading statistics, or did last time I checked, which was before the change up top. I like Bod as a player and I have some doubts about Vic, so I have no strongly-backed horse in this race, except Bolton Wanderers, who appear to have fallen apart in the last two games, and we're all wondering why that is. You're entitled to your own ideas – apparently resurfaced old beliefs about the abilities of the skipper and manager. Clearly both need to keep learning, improving and, in the long run, proving you wrong.

The idea that you fix the issues by bringing Vic in is for the birds.

I found it odd that we took Charles off - I mean as said above I'd have left a back 4 till half time and then re-assessed but I'd have left Charles on if not and taken Bod off instead because Charles can cover more ground. I'm not really convinced that Evatt's 'we were vindicated second half' is true, we huffed and puffed but always felt like BR knew the game was done and they could absorb it.

On Saturday I thought Bod was one of our better players tbh (as he was first half against Portsmouth) and the issues in both games for me were elsewhere....Charles miss - midfield, back three, wing backs.....

If Victor is somehow critical to our performances he certainly didn't show it coming off the bench fresh on Saturday. Quite the opposite. But there is an oddity where Santos has an absolute nightmare is unprofessional - gets sent off and some won't even discuss that instead are blaming a striker who comes in.

Note to self re: being Christopher Hitchens: BWFC-I you are not Christopher Hitchens.

It's absolutely open to debate. It's a stretch to say Bod for Vic after a winning run and then two losses is entirely down to that or we'd have won them both, but it's still a hell of a lot less of a stretch than we wouldn't based on 15 minutes at the end of a game we're chasing.

And on Santos, no-one is saying it wasn't shite! He fecked up massively and it probably cost us at least a point and maybe 3. What people are disagreeing with is you keeping leaping back on your horse that he's shit or lazy rather than a player who's been immense for us this season and then made a bad mistake.

[Prufrock]

I still would be disinclined to change the balance of a team on a winning run.

Away at the league leaders would certainly not have been my choice of game to throw Bod in. Equally, I'd not have taken Dion off vs Bristol.

Some poor calls from Evatt in the last couple of games. Presumably he wants to give someone else a chance at Manager of the Month.

Same. Though I do think it was a tough call on Bod for Pompey. He'd been banging them in in the cup games and you have to reward performances at some point. I'd personally have given Vic one more game in the context but I do get the logic.

The Dion one on sat baffled me though.

But no-one is perfect. Not even me!

[GhostoftheBok]

Same. Though I do think it was a tough call on Bod for Pompey. He'd been banging them in in the cup games and you have to reward performances at some point. I'd personally have given Vic one more game in the context but I do get the logic.

The Dion one on sat baffled me though.

But no-one is perfect. Not even me!

Same on Bod. I think I said before the game that I felt he'd earned himself a start with the cup performance and I suspected he'd get one. I'd have left it until Bristol, but hindsight is a wonderful thing.

Dion, yeah. No clue. I understand the desire to hit a target man, but we didn't. We asked Bod to run channels and Charles is miles better at that.

I was really proud of our second half performance with 10, but still feel that call was wrong.

[boltonboris]

Just a thought - And whilst I still don;t agree with taking him off - It could be said, that maybe Evatt (though he'd never admit it) saw the likelihood of getting a positive result while being a goal down with man less, as very low....

So in that mindset, why have Dion chasing, pressing and blowing and at risk of fatigue and injury when a fringe player can do it for him?

Saving Dion for this coming weekend nice, fresh and with a striker next to him to share the load

[TANGODANCER]

Just a thought - And whilst I still don;t agree with taking him off - It could be said, that maybe Evatt (though he'd never admit it) saw the likelihood of getting a positive result while being a goal down with man less, as very low....

So in that mindset, why have Dion chasing, pressing and blowing and at risk of fatigue and injury when a fringe player can do it for him?

Saving Dion for this coming weekend nice, fresh and with a striker next to him to share the load

Dear Sir. Please don't try to instil common sense into a football discussion. Have you no compassion..?

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Bod was playing well in the cups and scoring goals. But they were all against 4th division or kids' teams, and he hasn't scored a league goal since January 2nd. If he'd have been scoring every time he rose from the bench in a league game, then you can argue that's a reason to change. But even then, what happened to the talk of "finishers" being just as important?

[GhostoftheBok]

But even then, what happened to the talk of "finishers" being just as important?

Hard to sell that to a player.

Even Solskjaer, the much-hailed "super sub", hated being on the bench.

The manager has given him a fair crack and he's a good player for this level. I'd expect Evatt to give him at least one more start to have an impact. He's well capable of bagging against Orient.

Vic's finishing numbers remain the best at the club. Much better than his nearest rival in Charles. He's improved his conversion rate by about 30% on last season. There's a lot more to come from him as we go along, but Bod has the shirt at the minute and has arguably been unlucky with the games he's been handed. Give him Orient at home (if he's fit) and we can fall back on Victor's vastly superior pressing game away at Lincoln - a very tough fixture.

[nicholaldo]

Iles is reporting this morning that Bod should be fit for Saturday.