Barnet vs Torquay United

[Parry]

Have Barnet got a messageboard with regular posts? I can't find one.

[Trojan 67]

Will it be Manse or Oastler at right back!??? Gutted about Nico. I really don't rate LRT whatsoever.

Hoping for a big performance from Big Billy. Can't wait to see what this lad can do!

Yellowsmiffy, you of little faith !

[Trojan 67]

Interviews on Radio Devon NOW.

Hopefully PB will be on shortly.

[miltonkeynesgull]

Just travelling back from the game, and what a performance! After having to park miles away, eventually getting to the ground at 2.50 and then having to shell out £15 to get in, I was praying for a good performance. We started off poorly. We were struggling to find any rhythm and Barnet had a few useful breaks down the wing, but their end product was pretty wasteful.  Eventually we started to get a foothold in the game, with Oastler and Stanley passing nicely and Zebs and Robinson looking dangerous. Manse marauded forward nicely at times and showed some silky skills to beat the fullback, but his cross couldn't find anyone. On the 25 minute mark, Zebs beat his fullback again and whipped a cross in. After the ball had bobbled around in the box, LRT appeared out of nowhere and slotted it in from the penalty spot area on his debut! He was rightly mobbed by his teammates afterwards too. We kept pressing and had several chances to make it two, before Zebs received the ball on the touchline only for Pulis to clatter into him and receive a straight red. I was blinded by the sun so couldn't tell how bad it was, but Zebs looked in trouble. Anyway he continued and we made it to halftime untroubled. Barnet started the second half well and strung some ominously nice moves together, but I can't remember them actually having a shot on target. Gilligan came on for Robinson and made an immediate impact - skinning a few players before splitting the defence with a through ball for Kee. Big Billy was running away from goal but shot back across the keeper for number 2! Wonder if the Cobblers want Ryan back now?! Barnet were still dangerous though and Stanley was booked for tripping the complete tool that is Izale McLeod when he was clear. Lathrope replaced O'Kane, and Danny came on for Kee (who was brilliant) at this point. We weren't finished on the goalscoring front though, and after a brilliant flowing move involving (I think) Oastler, Stevens and Gilligan, Zebs finished at the far post for 3-0! A great turnout from the travelling Gulls and we made a great noise! Plus points were LRT (tired after 60 mins but very promising), Oastler (very inpressive and did a lot of work), Stanley, Kee (Elliot who?!) and Gilligan (Cobblers were right. He's rubbish...). All in all, a great afternoon. Playoffs anybody?!

John

[Dave_Pougher]

We still need to get to 53 points (39 plus 14) to be absolutely sure of staying up.

I reckon that 48 points (probably less) will be enough this year for anyone, but lets hope we don't even have to worry about that!

[Trojan 67]

Thanks for the report Milton and glad you enjoyed the game.

Yes, we sure could hear the YELLOW ARMY on Radio Devon.

[Trojan 67]

I reckon that 48 points (probably less) will be enough this year for anyone, but lets hope we don't even have to worry about that!

It was tongue in cheek Dave

[Trojan 67]

As the match reports come in, it will be interesting to know what our formation/tactics were today.

[miltonkeynesgull]

As the match reports come in, it will be interesting to know what our formation/tactics were today.

Sorry I forgot to mention that - I think we played a straight 4-4-2 with Robinson and Kee up top, and Zebs and O'Kane on the wings. When Robinson went off, Zebs went up front and Gilligan went on the wing. As for tactics, there was some long ball, but we seemed to be getting the ball out wide as often as we could - and it worked!

[Trojan 67]

Breaking news :

Two horses die of suspected electrocution in the paddock at Newbury.

Much to the disappointment of posters on here, I have to inform you that the 'rse called Trojan was not one of them.

:devil: o:)

[Trojan 67]

Sorry I forgot to mention that - I think we played a straight 4-4-2 with Robinson and Kee up top, and Zebs and O'Kane on the wings. When Robinson went off, Zebs went up front and Gilligan went on the wing. As for tactics, there was some long ball, but we seemed to be getting the ball out wide as often as we could - and it worked!

Ok, thanks for the update Milton.

[cambgull]

Breaking news :

Two horses die of suspected electrocution in the paddock at Newbury.

Much to the disappointment of posters on here, I have to inform you that the 'rse called Trojan was not one of them.

:devil: o:)

Wow, thats really bad. You think they would do more to stop things like this happening in this day and age.




























You could even say it was shocking! :devil:

[Trojan 67]

Wow, thats really bad. You think they would do more to stop things like this happening in this day and age.






























You could even say it was shocking! :devil:

The Police, Electricity Board, HSE and NIC/EIC will be on it and all over it like a rash. The "competent person" responsible for the installation will at this time be sh*tting their pants.

[Jeff]

Well that was a game where we never had to get out of second gear really. Although barnet managed to put together a couple of chances early in each half, you pretty much always felt we had things under control. 

We lined up after a brief shower to a pitch bathed in sunshine but with a slick surface. the opening exchanges were pretty grim from our perspective to be quite honest. Couldn't get hold of the ball, some sloppy touches and we could quite easily have been a goal down. A couple of times Potter had to get down to smother out attacks, and perhaps the closest barnet came to scoring was when a left wing cross was swung over, LRT looked to be shoved in the back, but tries some sort of off balance attempt at hooking the ball out. He only succeeding in shunning it towards goal, which Potter fortunately scrambled away. We found the opening 15 mins fairly tough going.

What was key in us gaining control of the game was our ability to switch our front players around. Every one of them had a spell either up top on their own or on either flank. We even went 4-4-2 at times. We began to gain control of things when Robinson came to the right wing and Zebs went through the middle. Robinson was a real handful, gave the full back a torrid time. Zebs was magnificent. Chased everything, won his fair share of balls in the air and played some great little passes. After a slow start, Oastler and Stanley began to over-power the midfield and attempted to make up for o'kane who had a lacklustre game.

We didn't really create and awful lot before we scored, and when we did it was far from our fluent best. Zebs and LRT linked up down the left and managed to get the ball across to Kee. billys first touch was poor, he crumpled under a challenge ( never a pen) and the ball ran free........right into the path of LRT who had continued his run into the box. A firm right foot shot beat the keeper low down to his left hand side, and we're 1 up.

The next moment of note was the sending off. I found this funny as Anthony Pulis is surely the worst player to grace league 2, yet keeps getting loan gigs around the grounds. He was anonymous for us years ago, and never impressed me since. The challenge to me looked a fair 50:50, and at the time I commented that Zebs had done well to win the ball. But the ref had no hesitation in reaching for the red. A scuffle followed which saw Robbo and Fraser booked, but for Barnet now the writing was on the wall.

The remainder of the half we created a couple of good chances. Robinson beat his full back all ends up and drew a parry with a fizzing shot. Zebs tested the keeper with a low drive, and Barnet were losing the plot. Their left back (parkes) could not deal with Robinson and got himself a booking. The rest of the half saw Robinson using his trickery to try and get Barnet reduced to 9.

Second half started much the same. We were poor for 10 mins and invited pressure. Marshall on the wing (of whom I expected much more) had a couple of forays, one of which saw him link up with McLeod and get a shot away which he dragged well wide when well placed. We struggled to build any momentum and couldnt do much at the bottom of the slope.

The key moment was one of real controversy. We had pines up way to far, and a routine ball over the top saw Kabba in a foot race with Stanley. Initially stanley had the edge, but for some reason let the ball bounce and Kabba was in. Stanley clumsily hauled him down, surely a red???? No, the ref only gave a yellow and I really don't know how we got away with that. The free kick was wasted and that was as good as it got for Barnet. Potter, for the second week running, barely earnt his money.

Robinson was removed - again not sure why - for Gilligan who after a shaky start in giving the ball away looked a decent find. Not massively quick, but a few good touches and built play up nicely. Zebs still worked his socks off, while Kee laboured a little. O'kane was massively off colour, but it wasn't a factor today.

Our best opportunities initially came from set pieces - hard surprising given the midget Barnet side we were facing, just frustrating it took so long to test them. A Nico delivery would have done damage today. A couple of corners were headed towards goal, and a combination of scrambles off the line and some good goalkeeping kept us out.

We seemed to be working to close the game out, and Kee nearly made it safe when he got away on a good ball from Stanley, but was challenged just as he was about to pull the trigger when well placed.

He didn't have to wait long though. A beautifully weighted ball from Gilligan set kee away on the angle, and he delivered a sweet shot across the keeper with his weaker foot into the bottom corner. Great finish, and this is what Kee can do - even when playing poorly he's got a finish in him.

The game looked to be petering out, but one of those "ole" passing moves ended with our third. A stevens backheel played in Gilligan, who fed zebroski on the left side of the barnet area. He drover outside for the byline, and somehow squeezed a shot in past cole's near post. At first I didn't realise it had gone in, but it was a great finish and my god it was deserved for zebs. Barber still had time to plant a free header over the bar, which rather summed up their day.

So, we barely tried but still delivered the goods. That bodes well! All the new lads looked good, and brought a lot to the party. After the shaky vibes of last week, I certainly feel more positive now!

Some ratings.........

Potter - 7 - did what little he had to do right. Good, thought out distribution to Robinson in the first half.

LRT - 7.5 - better than I remembered! Good tackling and followed the play well for his goal

Branno - 8 - his usual brilliance. Made McLeod look lame, positional sense superb

Robbo - 7 - nothing particularly noteworthy, some good clearances

Mansell - 7.5 - usual 110% stuff from manse, better passing than usual

Oastler - 7 - didn't stand out, but made some good challenges

Stanley - 7.5 - lucky to stay on the field, but strong and held the ball well. Needs to play forward more rather than sideways

O'Kane - 6 - subdued. Not his best game. Looked like the injury might be bothering him more than first thought

Robinson - 8 - good while it lasted! Box of tricks, like what I saw

Kee - 6.5 - some sloppiness and an occasional lack of effort, but will always have a finish in him

Zebs - 11 - yes, 11. Better than faultless. Chased, tackled, headed, scored. Cannot give enough positives

Subs:

Gilligan - 7 - not a speedy winger, but played intelligent passes. I fear he may be a little too much in the O'Kane positional mould though. A decent player nonetheless.

Lathrope - 6 - quiet but effective

Stevens - 7 - only a cameo, but covered a lot of ground and started the move for the third goal brilliantly

As for Barnet, they look doomed on that basis. Yeah they were a little unlucky with the Stanley incident, but considering we never broke sweat they didn't test us anything like enough. Kabba and McLeod should be a real handful at this level, but really wernt.

Hopefully that gives everyone a good picture of the game, looking forward to the views of other attendees

[Trojan 67]

Well that was a game where we never had to get out of second gear really. Although barnet managed to put together a couple of chances early in each half, you pretty much always felt we had things under control.

We lined up after a brief shower to a pitch bathed in sunshine but with a slick surface. the opening exchanges were pretty grim from our perspective to be quite honest. Couldn't get hold of the ball, some sloppy touches and we could quite easily have been a goal down. A couple of times Potter had to get down to smother out attacks, and perhaps the closest barnet came to scoring was when a left wing cross was swung over, LRT looked to be shoved in the back, but tries some sort of off balance attempt at hooking the ball out. He only succeeding in shunning it towards goal, which Potter fortunately scrambled away. We found the opening 15 mins fairly tough going.

What was key in us gaining control of the game was our ability to switch our front players around. Every one of them had a spell either up top on their own or on either flank. We even went 4-4-2 at times. We began to gain control of things when Robinson came to the right wing and Zebs went through the middle. Robinson was a real handful, gave the full back a torrid time. Zebs was magnificent. Chased everything, won his fair share of balls in the air and played some great little passes. After a slow start, Oastler and Stanley began to over-power the midfield and attempted to make up for o'kane who had a lacklustre game.

We didn't really create and awful lot before we scored, and when we did it was far from our fluent best. Zebs and LRT linked up down the left and managed to get the ball across to Kee. billys first touch was poor, he crumpled under a challenge ( never a pen) and the ball ran free........right into the path of LRT who had continued his run into the box. A firm right foot shot beat the keeper low down to his left hand side, and we're 1 up.

The next moment of note was the sending off. I found this funny as Anthony Pulis is surely the worst player to grace league 2, yet keeps getting loan gigs around the grounds. He was anonymous for us years ago, and never impressed me since. The challenge to me looked a fair 50:50, and at the time I commented that Zebs had done well to win the ball. But the ref had no hesitation in reaching for the red. A scuffle followed which saw Robbo and Fraser booked, but for Barnet now the writing was on the wall.

The remainder of the half we created a couple of good chances. Robinson beat his full back all ends up and drew a parry with a fizzing shot. Zebs tested the keeper with a low drive, and Barnet were losing the plot. Their left back (parkes) could not deal with Robinson and got himself a booking. The rest of the half saw Robinson using his trickery to try and get Barnet reduced to 9.

Second half started much the same. We were poor for 10 mins and invited pressure. Marshall on the wing (of whom I expected much more) had a couple of forays, one of which saw him link up with McLeod and get a shot away which he dragged well wide when well placed. We struggled to build any momentum and couldnt do much at the bottom of the slope.

The key moment was one of real controversy. We had pines up way to far, and a routine ball over the top saw Kabba in a foot race with Stanley. Initially stanley had the edge, but for some reason let the ball bounce and Kabba was in. Stanley clumsily hauled him down, surely a red???? No, the ref only gave a yellow and I really don't know how we got away with that. The free kick was wasted and that was as good as it got for Barnet. Potter, for the second week running, barely earnt his money.

Robinson was removed - again not sure why - for Gilligan who after a shaky start in giving the ball away looked a decent find. Not massively quick, but a few good touches and built play up nicely. Zebs still worked his socks off, while Kee laboured a little. O'kane was massively off colour, but it wasn't a factor today.

Our best opportunities initially came from set pieces - hard surprising given the midget Barnet side we were facing, just frustrating it took so long to test them. A Nico delivery would have done damage today. A couple of corners were headed towards goal, and a combination of scrambles off the line and some good goalkeeping kept us out.

We seemed to be working to close the game out, and Kee nearly made it safe when he got away on a good ball from Stanley, but was challenged just as he was about to pull the trigger when well placed.

He didn't have to wait long though. A beautifully weighted ball from Gilligan set kee away on the angle, and he delivered a sweet shot across the keeper with his weaker foot into the bottom corner. Great finish, and this is what Kee can do - even when playing poorly he's got a finish in him.

The game looked to be petering out, but one of those "ole" passing moves ended with our third. A stevens backheel played in Gilligan, who fed zebroski on the left side of the barnet area. He drover outside for the byline, and somehow squeezed a shot in past cole's near post. At first I didn't realise it had gone in, but it was a great finish and my god it was deserved for zebs. Barber still had time to plant a free header over the bar, which rather summed up their day.

So, we barely tried but still delivered the goods. That bodes well! All the new lads looked good, and brought a lot to the party. After the shaky vibes of last week, I certainly feel more positive now!

Some ratings.........

Potter - 7 - did what little he had to do right. Good, thought out distribution to Robinson in the first half.

LRT - 7.5 - better than I remembered! Good tackling and followed the play well for his goal

Branno - 8 - his usual brilliance. Made McLeod look lame, positional sense superb

Robbo - 7 - nothing particularly noteworthy, some good clearances

Mansell - 7.5 - usual 110% stuff from manse, better passing than usual

Oastler - 7 - didn't stand out, but made some good challenges

Stanley - 7.5 - lucky to stay on the field, but strong and held the ball well. Needs to play forward more rather than sideways

O'Kane - 6 - subdued. Not his best game. Looked like the injury might be bothering him more than first thought

Robinson - 8 - good while it lasted! Box of tricks, like what I saw

Kee - 6.5 - some sloppiness and an occasional lack of effort, but will always have a finish in him

Zebs - 11 - yes, 11. Better than faultless. Chased, tackled, headed, scored. Cannot give enough positives

Subs:

Gilligan - 7 - not a speedy winger, but played intelligent passes. I fear he may be a little too much in the O'Kane positional mould though. A decent player nonetheless.

Lathrope - 6 - quiet but effective

Stevens - 7 - only a cameo, but covered a lot of ground and started the move for the third goal brilliantly

As for Barnet, they look doomed on that basis. Yeah they were a little unlucky with the Stanley incident, but considering we never broke sweat they didn't test us anything like enough. Kabba and McLeod should be a real handful at this level, but really wernt.

Hopefully that gives everyone a good picture of the game, looking forward to the views of other attendees

It certaintly does Jeff, another excellent match report. Have you pinged your email off to Radio Devon yet to be a summariser ?

If Danny Potter continues to have little to do and we keep getting wins then it must be said :

Potter on . . .