PSF TUFC vs Plymouth Argyle 19.7.22

[Admiral]

Feels like I say this every season, and even at other times during the season - but there seems to be a section of our fanbase that would actively prefer the team to be doing badly. Every time, there's the same people posting the same "the sky is falling!" stuff. It's more than 2 weeks before the start of the season.

Are there questions that need to be answered? Absolutely. That's why we play the games rather than just engraving "Wrexham" on the trophy now. Goalkeeper could be a question, who knows if our strikers will perform together, and hey, we have a lot of midfielders without appearing to have too much defensive cover. But coming on here after a pre-season defeat against a team divisions above and bitching serves no purpose.

We could be 15 points clear at the top of division by february, having scored 80 goals and conceded 12 and you'd still have people complaining, probably that the food stand doesn't have the correct types of pie and "it's a f***king disgrace!" or asking why Johnson is held in such high regard when clearly, given how good the team is, any muppet could be managing them to success.

do you get any joy out of following the side? Is it entertaining when (if) you go to games? Because it's never appeared that you've ever had any fun being a supporter, so really - what's the point?

Gary knows what he’s doing, if he’s happy with the recruitment then I am.

[Dave]

Seriously Brucie, stop trying to present the TT match blog as some kind of worldwide authority on professional football, those blogs are entirely written by 'laymen' football fans expressing their personal opinions just like we do on these forums, none have coached the first team at Man City , just because it was written on the TT blog , doesn't mean it's true, it's not fact it's opinion.

When criticism becomes constant, unfair, unbalanced it crosses the line from constructive criticism and descends into bullying stroke abuse, no one deserves such abuse for just trying to do their job , and this is what I won't tolerate, and the point behind my initial post .

I share some of the concerns myself, I am not trying to paint Halstead out to be the best technician, the best keeper seen at TUFC and NL history, clearly is none of those listed. There has to be an understanding to get a top class keeper down here will require top dollar spending, that's not where our club is right now.

Halstead had an awful start to his career at TUFC, however he's not alone in that is he? some fans have to move on from that, some have short memories, Shaun McDonald when he first arrived couldn't catch a cold, and could barely dive into a swimming pool tripping over his own laces, with support, his confidence grow and he developed into a fine keeper.

All I'm suggesting is, Halstead who I think will start the season as no1, is afforded the same support, his confidence is a knife edge right now, we can't afford a better keeper so we need him performing at his very best not worst.

Not sure what the agenda is in some, maybe using the goalkeeping position to be be deliberately negative against the manager, or maybe using it as a tool to wind up others, I don't would be pretty shameful, if that makes some happy, says a lot about them doesn't it.

As UnitedinDevon posted , some fans on the popside were singing 'you're shit' with every goal kick he took, that along with over analysis every goal he concedes in my view has to stop, can't we just except sometimes the opposition will simply score a well worked, well finished goal, and just support the lad.

[portugull]

Brucie in response to your post yesterday the Argyle fans were very quiet in the second half because at 5 nil up the game was over.

The Pop Side Drummer and Choir must have sung for between 5 and 10 minutes which was in my view pretty unusual when we were 5 down!

Did our Midfield make a tackle.They were played off the park by Argyle who moved the ball rapidly at all times and it was very clear early on that our lads were completely outclassed in every way. But and it is a big but what did we expect? We fielded a new side with 8 new players 3 of which were not yet match fit.

As Gary said we are better than that and I think too many people are just not looking at the facts. This was David v Goliath for all sorts of reasons
and to be honest it could easily have been 8 nil!! Patience everyone patience sought by many but possessed by few.

[torq2u]

Got it now, Brucie? Have you?

Somehow I doubt it. This site just wouldn’t be the same without your constant negativity. Be nice to give it a try, though

[brucie]

Yes the person who wrote the blog was just giving his opinion that the keeper was at fault for two of the goals.

Apparently you had to be present at the match before you could voice an opinion according to you, but it seems his opinion doesn't count either cause its opposite to yours. No its obviously not true - he was probably in the bar when he wrote it, and the "highlights" were so misleading that Halstead didn't spill the ball twice at the feet of opposition forwards, resulting in the ball ending up in the back of our net twice (after also making a complete hash of the clearance before the fourth goal) - it was all a bad dream.

I think you must have heatstroke or perhaps were traumatised by all those nasty Argyle fans laughing at us. You know as well as I do that goalkeeping mistakes are magnified umpteen times in comparison to those committed by outfield players.

if he commits errors like that in many more matches the crowd will be on his back - you might not like it but its a fact of life, it will happen as sure as eggs are eggs. Lets hope we perform better at Exeter but I'm not sure I have much faith in that happening. Another hiding isnt exactly going to do much for team morale.

Still as Exeter couldn't manage to beat Yeovil with Hargreaves star signings of Buse, Alex Fisher and Chiori Johnson, you'd think that we might have a chance of doing better.

[Southampton Gull]

Haven't you all worked out yet that brucie just loves playing devil's advocate in order to wind everyone up? He's not risen from his armchair for 10 years so don't expect any reasoned debate where he'll accept other points of view

[culmstockgull]

Having been at the match it is very easy to criticise a performance that ends in a 5-0 drubbing, in fact trying to find a positive is a far more difficult proposition., the midfield was played through for much of the 90, ( a very similar issue to the early part of last season ), if I am being charitible our defence was at best shaky,our forward line could be faulted for not converting chances into goals which may have put Plymouth on the back foot a lot more. Ultimately all these shortcomings reflects on the goalkeeper, he had to pick the ball out of net five times, that three were unstoppable seems to have escaped notice, and if you look at the figures Mcdonald averaged over a goal a game conceded last season but to some he is the messiah in comparison, he was not and is not a better keeper, just different, it was a pre season match against a very good team but many things would have been learnt and I would rather find that now than two months into the season. I agree with Johnsons appraisal that we are a better team than that result

[Dave]

Above, probably one of the best, fair and balanced posts I've seen anywhere on Tuesday pre season game.

Of course it's time to move on so won't dwell on it too much, there's a thing called collective responsibility, every team loves to bask in the glory when winning 5.0 , when you lose by that score line then questions need to be asked on everyone, not just pin the blame on one unfortunate player who doesn't appear as popular, so not quite so bomb proof as others.

However despite what the resident wind up merchant says, and being honest he's dug himself so deep into his own whole on this topic, surprised he hasn't done a weather report from other side of the world I maintain it's overly harsh to be critical of last Tuesday, as today again we'll be facing a side from much higher level, who are at the end of their pre-season due to their league campaign starting next week, unlike ourselves who are still in the middle of our pre-season.

Whilst I'm unable to attend todays game, I fully expect us, not to be in position to fully compete on a fitness/sharpness level, but of course hoping to hear about better day at the office.