Southport V Darlington

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LoidLucan
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by LoidLucan » Thu Dec 02, 2021 2:12 pm

How about we find ourselves a manager who gets the fan-owned bit, keeps us within budget and has a record of masterminding a fantastic, dominant, title-winning season in the league below and a great charge into the play-offs in this league (and all on very limited spending). And one who has a good record of cup runs and bringing in all that crucial extra cash.

Oh, hang on, we've already got one!

Old Git
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by Old Git » Thu Dec 02, 2021 3:03 pm

loan_star wrote:
Thu Dec 02, 2021 1:37 pm
Theres a lot of bed wetting going on in this thread. Fortunately as Lucan said, we have people in charge who arent trigger happy with the sacking option. Imagine if Archie Heaton had a pair of balls and hadnt sacked one of the best managers we have ever had.
Not bed wetting just some concerns and observations about how the season is going from a season ticket holding, budget boosting, DFCSG member.
Gramps makes the point that we have progressed since the reign of TW citing the stats from his final season in charge in 2018/19, when we finished 16 th with 50 points from 42 games played. Our Points Per Game ratio was 1.19. Compare that to this season’s total so far of 19 points from 16 games played and you get a PPG of 1.1875. Of course we have only played 16 league games so not a direct comparison but not yet progression either. We need to improve and may well do.
Covid interruptions have also been raised as an excuse for our disappointing form, and certainly it was a big hindrance at the start of the season, but that was July/August. Surely that argument is starting to diminish by early December. A number of other teams in our league have also suffered Covid interruptions, so not a unique factor only affecting us. Indeed you could argue that we have benefited from other teams misfortunes in that regard. Guiesley played a very under strength team against us and Kettering hadn’t played for about 3 weeks prior to playing us. Of course we won both games comfortably but we may well have been fortunate to play them at the right time.
Finally, it has been stated by some that this is very much a season of rebuilding and expectations should be tempered according. No doubt we lost a lot of players in the summer, but unfortunately recruitment has been patchy, especially for defenders. We currently have 6 central defenders on the books, including 2 loanees in Cooper and Lawlor who had to be brought in because Beedon and Taylor simply did not look good enough. That additional disruption is down to the manager making poor signings initially. Of course some of the summer recruits have been good, especially Cassidy.
I am not saying AA should be dismissed, simply that he should be given more time to prove himself the right person to take us forward. Improvement is definitely needed in the coming weeks and hopefully it will happen. There are some excuses for the disappointing start to the season, but eventually they will start to wear thin.

onewayup
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by onewayup » Thu Dec 02, 2021 7:40 pm

One question for everyone on this, Do you think you could do a better job than the management who have played the game at a high level and who understands what is required of the team,
Myself I know I couldn't, let's see where we are end of January, I am a big believer in AA and what is being built here, Rome wasn't built in a day. I trust the board and management.
Stop sniping get behind your club/team give them encouragement We are where we are things can only get better. :thumbup: up the Darlo.

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theoriginalfatcat
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by theoriginalfatcat » Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:00 pm

onewayup wrote:
Thu Dec 02, 2021 7:40 pm
One question for everyone on this, Do you think you could do a better job than the management who have played the game at a high level and who understands what is required of the team,
Myself I know I couldn't, let's see where we are end of January, I am a big believer in AA and what is being built here, Rome wasn't built in a day. I trust the board and management.
Stop sniping get behind your club/team give them encouragement We are where we are things can only get better. :thumbup: up the Darlo.
I am in support of A.A. but surely you don’t have to be an experienced football manager to express concern, or question some of his decisions?
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D_F_C
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by D_F_C » Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:11 pm

I'm a big fan of AA and I've never considered his position to be under threat. As Gramps and others have said there are plenty of reasons for an up and down start. There's no doubt that AA's recruitment (in some areas) can be questioned but at the same time he's made some very good signings. Feel like we are better at GK, full backs, centre backs (now, not earlier) and up front. Think it's handy to have Purver/Rose in as well. We are perhaps lacking another wide man and unfortunately Mondal hasn't lived up to my expectations, but there's still time for him.

I think the BTB makes some people believe that this gives us more than other teams, but my opinion is that it levels us out in terms of budget. Whilst I'm no expert I still think we'd be upper mid table in terms of budget. Another point is that this league is getting better every year with bigger teams with deeper pockets. Although we finished inside the playoffs a few years ago, that team wouldn't be anywhere near that IMO. Even TW's team from a few years ago wouldn't be able to compete in this league.

There's no doubt that some things haven't been perfect with AA (the CB's, some of the performances haven't been up to scratch) but there's plenty in the squad. Better concentration needed from the players at times, but I'm optmistic that we can improve. I've not seen us play a team who I'd consider to be a very good team that would blow us away. All teams very much capable of beating and it's up to AA to get it done.

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theoriginalfatcat
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by theoriginalfatcat » Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:18 pm

Fylde will be a test.

However for some reason I feel pretty confident we can get something from the game.
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loan_star
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by loan_star » Thu Dec 02, 2021 10:19 pm

The problem with BTB is that it’s well publicised so any potential signings could think “the fans have raised £140k and they are only offering me £500 a week, I’ll try get a chunk more or go elsewhere”. It’s not like we are northern league anymore and some players came to us for the kudos of playing in front of big crowds for that level whilst earning similar amounts to what other teams were paying. The higher up the leagues you go, the more money comes into it.
AA isn’t perfect, but you could say that for virtually every manager at every level. You get rid and you either gamble on someone with no experience at this level or someone else’s failed manager. AA has shown he knows what it takes to get a good team at this level so we should give him the courtesy of at least one full season before judging him. I have every confidence he will prove the bed wetters wrong (sorry old git, it is bed wetting)!!

Old Git
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by Old Git » Thu Dec 02, 2021 10:51 pm

loan_star wrote:
Thu Dec 02, 2021 10:19 pm
The problem with BTB is that it’s well publicised so any potential signings could think “the fans have raised £140k and they are only offering me £500 a week, I’ll try get a chunk more or go elsewhere”. It’s not like we are northern league anymore and some players came to us for the kudos of playing in front of big crowds for that level whilst earning similar amounts to what other teams were paying. The higher up the leagues you go, the more money comes into it.
AA isn’t perfect, but you could say that for virtually every manager at every level. You get rid and you either gamble on someone with no experience at this level or someone else’s failed manager. AA has shown he knows what it takes to get a good team at this level so we should give him the courtesy of at least one full season before judging him. I have every confidence he will prove the bed wetters wrong (sorry old git, it is bed wetting)!!
Just my opinion. Happy to be proved wrong.

Darlogramps
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Southport V Darlington

Post by Darlogramps » Fri Dec 03, 2021 12:28 am

Old Git wrote: Gramps makes the point that we have progressed since the reign of TW citing the stats from his final season in charge in 2018/19, when we finished 16 th with 50 points from 42 games played. Our Points Per Game ratio was 1.19. Compare that to this season’s total so far of 19 points from 16 games played and you get a PPG of 1.1875. Of course we have only played 16 league games so not a direct comparison but not yet progression either. We need to improve and may well do.
This is poor from you. You’ve selectively chosen a statistic that isn’t reflective of where we are now and are trying to claim it’s evidence we haven’t progressed from TW’s time.

Would you honestly say our first four games of the season are any reflection on where we are now? No they’re not. We had 0.25 PPG from those matches.

From the next 12, we’ve taken 18pts, which is 1.5 PPG. A considerable improvement both on our first four games and on TW’s time.

Oh, and 1.5PPG across 16 games puts us into the top seven. So it’s play-off form we’re on, yet you’re wetting the bed.

Don’t selectively choose statistics without context.
Old Git wrote: Covid interruptions have also been raised as an excuse for our disappointing form, and certainly it was a big hindrance at the start of the season, but that was July/August. Surely that argument is starting to diminish by early December. A number of other teams in our league have also suffered Covid interruptions, so not a unique factor only affecting us. Indeed you could argue that we have benefited from other teams misfortunes in that regard. Guiesley played a very under strength team against us and Kettering hadn’t played for about 3 weeks prior to playing us. Of course we won both games comfortably but we may well have been fortunate to play them at the right time.
None of this changes the fact COVID has affected us. It feels like whataboutery on your part.

Read up on how important pre-season was to managers like Bill Shankly for example. If it wasn’t spot on, you were far behind everyone else. Had pre-season not been as disrupted, there’s every chance we’d have had a few more points from those opening games. The fact Guiseley or Kettering have had COVID doesn’t change that fact. That feels like whataboutery to be honest.

I could easily argue Kettering should have been fresh from having three weeks off, or that Alfreton, Curzon and Bradford PA benefited from us having COVID.
Old Git wrote: Finally, it has been stated by some that this is very much a season of rebuilding and expectations should be tempered according. No doubt we lost a lot of players in the summer, but unfortunately recruitment has been patchy, especially for defenders. We currently have 6 central defenders on the books, including 2 loanees in Cooper and Lawlor who had to be brought in because Beedon and Taylor simply did not look good enough. That additional disruption is down to the manager making poor signings initially. Of course some of the summer recruits have been good, especially Cassidy.
Absolutely agree with you on the poor central defensive recruitment, although again AA at the time said it wasn’t for the lack of trying. To say he bought poorly ignores this fact (unless you’re accusing AA of lying of course).

Old Git wrote: I am not saying AA should be dismissed, simply that he should be given more time to prove himself the right person to take us forward. Improvement is definitely needed in the coming weeks and hopefully it will happen. There are some excuses for the disappointing start to the season, but eventually they will start to wear thin.
This isn’t about “improvement”, it’s about perspective. You’ve taken the glass half empty approach, to the extent you’re cherry-picking statistics without context to justify your point of view. You did also say AA has 10 games so you’re being a bit disingenuous in saying you’re giving him time to prove himself. You’ve given him a ticking clock.

Also, why 10 games? What’s the significance of that number? It’s a random number you plucked out of the air.

One defeat in six (which was 2-0 away at a Top 7 side). Three points off the top seven and we’re one of the highest scorers in the league. Forgive me, but I feel you’re exaggerating things in order to justify your opinion.

I’ll say it again, the situation is nowhere near as bad as you’re making out.
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Old Git
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by Old Git » Fri Dec 03, 2021 1:19 pm

I am a bit of a glass half empty kind of a guy so I accept that I take a pessimistic view on things more often than not. I would prefer to say I am a realist, but spare a thought for Mrs Old Git, all she can do is open another bottle of Chardonnay.

MCFCDarlo3
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by MCFCDarlo3 » Fri Dec 03, 2021 1:51 pm

theoriginalfatcat wrote:
Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:18 pm
Fylde will be a test.

However for some reason I feel pretty confident we can get something from the game.
We should be fresh for this and the busy festive period at least.

bga
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by bga » Fri Dec 03, 2021 2:13 pm

MCFCDarlo3 wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 1:51 pm
theoriginalfatcat wrote:
Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:18 pm
Fylde will be a test.

However for some reason I feel pretty confident we can get something from the game.
We should be fresh for this and the busy festive period at least.
Fresh or lacking match fitness you just can't win can you!

Old Git
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by Old Git » Fri Dec 03, 2021 3:26 pm

bga wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 2:13 pm
MCFCDarlo3 wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 1:51 pm
theoriginalfatcat wrote:
Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:18 pm
Fylde will be a test.

However for some reason I feel pretty confident we can get something from the game.
We should be fresh for this and the busy festive period at least.
Fresh or lacking match fitness you just can't win can you!
Lacking match fitness will be the excuse if we get beat!

super_les_mcjannet
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by super_les_mcjannet » Fri Dec 03, 2021 4:01 pm

Do we need an excuse if we get beat of Fylde?

I expect us to try and give them a very good game and who knows I would like to think we can win. However they are one of the best teams in our league?

Whilst I am disappointed with a number of results, I am more than happy to keep behind the management and see where we end up.

lo36789
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by lo36789 » Fri Dec 03, 2021 7:42 pm

Reality is next 4 games are tough. I suspect the opposition will be irrelevant as every point not won will be deemed not acceptable by some.

Looking at the table I still think we could challenge for that bottom play-off spot. I don't see us catching / out performing those above Curzon Ashton though.

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theoriginalfatcat
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by theoriginalfatcat » Fri Dec 03, 2021 7:58 pm

lo36789 wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 7:42 pm
Reality is next 4 games are tough. I suspect the opposition will be irrelevant as every point not won will be deemed not acceptable by some.
I'm not sure lo. Does anyone truly believe we can win every game? The criticism and concerns of a few on here has so far been measured IMO. This isn't a Tommy Wright situation, where it was all getting a bit out of control, I feel most people are understanding of the situation but on saying that it has been frustrating lately, I'm sure that A.A. knows this.

If we perform well and cut out the daft defensive mistakes then we can do ourselves justice. I'm looking forward to the Fylde game, they will come to play football but we can do that too.
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lo36789
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by lo36789 » Fri Dec 03, 2021 10:15 pm

No, but every time we lose there are calls for AA to leave. I am not sure how measured that is.

Old Git
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by Old Git » Fri Dec 03, 2021 10:47 pm

lo36789 wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 10:15 pm
No, but every time we lose there are calls for AA to leave. I am not sure how measured that is.
Really I don’t recall that. Can you back up that statement?

Maurice_Peddelty
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by Maurice_Peddelty » Sat Dec 04, 2021 8:47 am

Old Git wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 10:47 pm
lo36789 wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 10:15 pm
No, but every time we lose there are calls for AA to leave. I am not sure how measured that is.
Really I don’t recall that. Can you back up that statement?
Pop across to "Tin Shed" on Facebook next time we drop a point and it will be there in spades

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theoriginalfatcat
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Re: Southport V Darlington

Post by theoriginalfatcat » Sat Dec 04, 2021 9:39 am

Maurice_Peddelty wrote:
Sat Dec 04, 2021 8:47 am
Old Git wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 10:47 pm
lo36789 wrote:
Fri Dec 03, 2021 10:15 pm
No, but every time we lose there are calls for AA to leave. I am not sure how measured that is.
Really I don’t recall that. Can you back up that statement?
Pop across to "Tin Shed" on Facebook next time we drop a point and it will be there in spades
Hmm, I’ve never been there, and have no intention of checking it out.
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