Blackburn Rovers

[Yankee_Jack]

Here we are .... once more unto the breach dear friends.

A tale of two cities ... on the one hand we desperately want our club to succeed and therefore win ... on the other hand a loss would be another nail into the coffin of yet another woefully inept manager.

With a record of 3-5-6 out of our last 14 league games - after the Sept international break to date - we have 14 points out of a possible 42 ... a rank 33%. Our form over the last several matches places in the bottom 3 or 4 of the form table.

From being "determined to put things right" (Steve Cooper | We're determined to put things right | Swansea) after the humiliating defeat to WBA to "belief is key to getting back on track" (Steve Cooper | Belief key to getting back on track | Swansea) before today's match, we have bumbled forward from wishful thinking to fantasy faith and prayer. How many times have we heard this word salad from managers and coaches that had no clue what was going on nor how to fix it .... otherwise they wouldn't be in a hole they had dug to start with.

Our squad has talent. We witnessed it last season. @CroJack gave an excellent summary of last season's development on another thread. What we witness now is a horse that has been lamed by poor training trying to pull a cart it is ill-equipped and ill-prepared to pull. With just two days between matches Cooper has not had time to do shit other than talk. He has no skills in the art of inspiration. So what will we witness tonight? If we didn't have some semblance of form away we wouldn't have any form at all and tonight we walk into the dilapidated fortress once known as Fortress Liberty. We have enjoyed just 1 win out of our last 7 home games ... Cardiff ... surely this cancer can't continue beyond tonight.

 

[ivoralljack]

surely this cancer can't continue beyond tonight.

Who knows? For sure we play some good football in patches and then balls it all up with some glaring basic mistakes. But the team is playing with a distinct lack of confidence and I'm not going to repeat why I think that is. We all know why.

If we play to our potential then we can beat Blackburn but we've got to stop handing goals on a plate to the opposition. Luck favoured us last night as some teams around us dropped points including Bristol City, Forest, Charlton and Fulham, so a win tonight will keep us in touch near the top six.

Can we do it? Yes!! Will we do it? Who the hell knows.

 

[The Blobster]

My moneys on Danny Graham slotting the winner in the 85th minute and Leon and Curt taking over for the middlesboro game

 

[CroJack]

Blackburn recent form:

5 wins in the last 6 games. Lost only 1 game away to Leeds 1:0. Blackburn are 3rd in the form table, Swans share 19th - 21st place.

Whoscored have predicted 0:2 Blackburn victory. I hope they are wrong, but knowing how gutless we play at home turf (and now also away) Whoscored might be spot on.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

Swansea City: Freddie Woodman; Connor Roberts, Mike van der Hoorn, Ben Cabango, Jake Bidwell; Tom Carroll, Matt Grimes (captain); Andre Ayew, George Byers, Bersant Celina; Sam Surridge.

Subs: Kristoffer Nordfeldt, Kyle Naughton, Ben Wilmot, Jay Fulton, Barrie McKay, Aldo Kalulu, Borja Baston.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

@CroJack ... that’s a daunting record to go up against

 

[ivoralljack]

Been out and just tuned in to Radio Wales who are saying that this is a game between two good sides with Swans, playing well, looking the most likely to get the next goal. Comms saying that Ayew is very busy and having a good game.

PS: After another near miss they're saying that Ayew is causing them all sorts of problems.

 

[ivoralljack]

Comms saying that this is the best performance of recent games with the Swans looking really up for the game.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

Carroll of all people getting a double yellow

 

[Yankee_Jack]

Tedious game between to average sides

 

[ivoralljack]

Carroll sent off for a second yellow after what the comms described as a totally innocuous foul. They also said that it was ridiculous when Bradley Dack has committed several fouls for Blackburn without a card, one of them in their opinion deserving of a red. Usual shit or bent referees giving us grief again.

 

[ivoralljack]

And now the refefuckingree has denied us a penalty and the comms saying he's not going to give us anything tonight.

 

[ivoralljack]

Dack sent off for a stamp and not before time. 10 v 10 now.

 

[ivoralljack]

Draw game then but at least the comms were impressed by the performance saying that it was far better than anything in recent memory. However, home draws are not what we want, we need some wins. But at least we more than held our own against a team bang in form and Ayew easily MOM for the comms.

 

[CroJack]

Draw game then but at least the comms were impressed by the performance saying that it was far better than anything in recent memory.

The commentators you were listening to are clueless. What performance? We can't f***** shoot. Yes, we were a better side, but the Blackburn lot are so poor that's incredible they've had five wins in their last six games. It says it all about the quality of the Championship and our own lack of quality when we can't beat such a crap side at home turf. Our players are embarassingly poor at shooting and they lack some basic shooting skills. And they get £15-20.000 a week? Jesus Christ.

 

[ivoralljack]

I can't comment because I didn't see the game personally and received a second hand perspective of the game. The co-commentators were Anthony O'Connell and David Giles, who repeatedly said that we played far better than usual tonight, were sharp, looked up for the game and played with a confidence that had been lacking for some time.

However, you know that I respect your opinion and you wouldn't say what you did without just cause, so perhaps I'd better put my optimism on the back-burner for now. Perhaps others can give their opinions as well and are we to assume that Cooper is still walking a tightrope?

 

[The Blobster]

Brief summation ( I was at the game )
Ayew worked non stop.
Byers gave them a goal start with his woeful back pass, and how Blooperman persists with him I don't know , couldn't believe that he hooked Celina ( who had his best game for a while ) while leaving Byers on the pitch.
Tom Carroll had his best game in a swans shirt , his return to form spoilt by a bent ref !
Sturbridge worked hard but toe poked a good chance well wide.
Kalulu looked lively and should have been on sooner.
Bidwell was frustrating to watch , still can't use his right foot and when we were pressing late on when he had acres of space to move into and attack he'd amble up to the halfway line and ---------yup, you guessed , passed back or square !
As stated our shooting was woeful , one attempt by Celina spoilt by a bad bobble but others had no excuse , leaning backwards rather than getting over the ball. I've seen schoolboys with better shooting skills.
It was a better performance but again no cutting edge and quite frankly Blackburn were poor , the gift of a goal we gave them being their only effort on target .

 

[Yankee_Jack]

And Cooper survives.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

I found it a tedious game to watch. We look like a bunch of 11 players trying their best to play in a system that they don’t get. It’s like trying to walk a mile in ill-fitting shoes. There appears to be limited cohesion, players are not making runs that seem glaringly obvious to the spectator or do make runs that are not recognized by their team mate with the ball. The result is that our moves forward stall and result in square and backward play. These are not complicated situations that are being missed but simple situations that should be rote.

The simple glaring example was with Kalulu. Fair play, he came on and was chomping at the bit to make runs beyond the Rovers’ defense only time and time again to have to abort when the obvious pass that would have set him free, turned the defense and conjured up opportunity, was made in a completely different direction.

I was not impressed by Rovers at all. What was frustrating was when 10 v 10, with more space to exploit, we could not and did not up the tempo, sharpen our focus, and bring superior quality to bare. Instead it served to demonstrate our mediocrity.

 

[Victoria Swan]

Thanks @The Blobster for a good summary - had to go to a Christmas lunch so missed seeing the game. Sounds like I missed seeing us play better than we have for the past few games (not difficult!) but still woeful enough to be frustrating to watch. Agree about Byers - time to sideline him for the holidays.