THE CONCRETE ROUNDABOUT (TCR)

Thing is - Alexander, Winkie, Sweeting and everyone else will have known that right at the start of Alexander's tenure. If Alexander was/is intent on forcing such a different style then we should have recruited more intensely to cater for that. The one area we have been poor in recruiting for is the area of the pitch all those long balls are aimed at - the final third. Eisa and Leko are good at what they do (playing ball to their feet, through balls, 1v1) but most of the football we've played this season isn't catering for that. We need 3-4 tall strong physical players who can hold the ball up.

Doesn’t help we train at a shit council field either. Honestly this club, the more you think about it the more you uncover and the more it annoys you.

You don't need to tell me mate, I feel exactly the same.

Winkie's constant mistakes, excuses, poor decision making (mainly off the pitch - inc. Castore)
Sweeting being exposed as at best average at his job
Our lacklustre/poor player recruitment since last summer
The eternally delayed training ground
All of the penny pinching and cutbacks off the pitch affecting the fan experience
Just the general lack of buzz and excitement around the club and fanbase since last summer

The constant one step forward, two steps backwards we've taken since 2004.

Read the latest SB notes on the website. It’s so clear Simon Crampton and John cove are so out of touch with us fans! If they are meant to be an upgrade on Andy Gibb then god help us. Does anyone have Cullen’s number?! Pay him whatever he wants.

Also would like Liam to be at the forum tomorrow and be interrogated about his awful recruitment.

I've kind of lost interest. One of the reasons we stopped the pod was that we were going over the same ground every week. The football was terrible, and last night confirmed that our decision was the correct one. Difficult to pinpoint one thing that you could say is a defining moment, it's one thing after another. The most damning indictment of the club is the continued debacle over the training ground. If I were a player, I'd seriously think twice if I had to train on a public playing field. We'll struggle to attract quality players if the infrastructure around the club is rubbish.

_________________
When you make your music, do you think about the man in the street? No, I've met the man in the street. He's a Ladybit.

#Winkelmanout

Much of our fanbase (well those more than just casual/occasional supporters) it seems to me are feeling very fragile towards the club at the moment. There has been this air of dissatisfaction since about this time last year.

What has really changed since the fan forum last September (apart from the obvious relegation)? The club feels stale both on and off the pitch.

Off the pitch it's evident when you look around the club - zero progress on the training ground, attendances, redundancies, the soulless and sterile club shop selling overpriced tat, just an overall lack of investment both financially and in the fan experience. The Supporters Board seems a waste of time looking at the minutes of the meetings - no big picture discussions, no ambition, just firefighting.

On the pitch, Graham Alexander seems to be trying his best and he seems a capable person, but it really doesn't feel like the club are doing all they can to back him. We have a hybrid squad of technical players who have been heavily drilled to play out from the back, keeping possession and the ball on the ground as well as a couple of new players and players who just aren't good enough.

If the market is tough, well then tough - Winkie was the one who chose Alexander and knew what he was getting, so should have been prepared financially to back wholesale changes. He has to take the hit and invest this window ASAP if we're going to get out of this league at the first attempt.

Morale from the players comes across poorly too - body language and on the pitch. It's clear some players feel they're better than this and they're right. Others just aren't good enough and we need to be honest about that, even ones who haven't been here particularly long.

Spot on. GA comes with a history and a definitive style, and last year's squad was not cut out to play it. It is obvious we need a target man for his style, even if it is not a first choice pick but someone you can rotate in for tricky Tuesdays like Crawley.

All the early business was good. Gilbey - a 100 percenter, midfield hound dog. MJW - experienced and specialised DM. Norman - physically imposing RB/RWB who can send in a cross. Not 100 percent sold on Hunter yet, and Tommy Smith I think is a very shrewd bit of business.

There are still hangovers from last season though. WoH doesn't seem the same player since his injury, and Tucker has looked momentarily fragile (the goal against Barnet was classic Tucker). The loss of Kaikai was a sore one; he would improve this squad immediately. Leko is still the same hot and cold frustrating bag of blind alley dribbles. Pass the ball, dickhead.

We absolutely need loanees to come in - we are desperate.

I said elsewhere I fear toxicity. GA was criticised for not directly slamming his players. I actually back him for doing this; a manager should never directly slam their players in public; they should do it in the dressing room. I would bet a month's wage that he was fucked off with last night's showing, but I also hope he realises he made a mistake in not rotating. He's gone on at length about fitness and how games are longer now. He should have fielded a weaker side against Wycombe, too - nobody cares about the Energy Drink Cup.

I can't make the Q+A tonight but I really hope someone asks some difficult questions.

100% this. I can't imagine a gruff stuck in his ways Scotsman who has been around management for a while would be scared of Sweeting and Winkelman like green as goose shit Jackson and hapless Manning were, so I can't expect he would roll over and accept this shit. I am waiting to see what happens by 1st September, but if not much happens that Sweeting needs to get it with both barrels. This will be his 3rd average to poor transfer window unless we work miracles which if we can't do that in 3 months what the fuck we are going to do in 14 days. He is a big part of the problem and the one constant that has been here throughout this mess. If he doesn't work magic he needs to fuck off badly. We were never this bad when we didn't have a Director of Football/Sporting Director. Makes me think that the whole idea of having one is a bit of a joke.

who do you rotate in? Devoy is the only one yesterday that looked like he could make a difference. Dean ain't getting a sniff for some reason, Hunter is average from what I can see and Holland can take a running jump the man is useless and the rest are all kids. The 11 we play are pretty much it. This is why they have played so many games. I find it ludicrous that 6 games are played in the opening two weeks. We are probably not the only team struggling to rotate, but saying that if we played a way that benefited the 11 and actually controlled a game instead of chasing it then we might not be so knackered. 35% possession yesterday and they do say you are always more knackered if you are chasing the ball then when you have it.