Mansfield

[Yellow River]

Cook and green were miles away from Beano.

.

This has been an area that has concerned me all season, especially when playing 4-3-3 away from home. Constable does get isolated in the middle with Green and Cook playing too wide.

4-4-3 at home is ok when we are taking the game to the opposition with the fullbacks pushing on but away from home when we are under pressure it's not so easy to retain possession.

I much prefer 4-4-2 away from home kepping the game tight and frustrating the home side, certainly for at least the first 45 minutes. Plenty of time in the second half to go for amore arttacking formation as the game opens up and defences tire.

[Myles Francis]

This has been an area that has concerned me all season, especially when playing 4-3-3 away from home. Constable does get isolated in the middle with Green and Cook playing too wide.

This is a common problem with 4-3-3 - a formation which often results in one of two outcomes: i) an isolated central striker with two very wide players too far away to offer proper support or ii) a bunch of three strikers in the middle getting in each others way!

[slappy]

Cook and green were miles away from Beano.

.

4-4-3 at home is ok when we are taking the game to the opposition with the fullbacks pushing on but away from home when we are under pressure it's not so easy to retain possession.

this formation is OK when we are 3 up and dominating, but leaves us extremely vulnerable to any breakaways by the opposition, or tentative punts from the halfway line.

[Ascension Ox]

Cook and green were miles away from Beano.

.

4-4-3 at home is ok when we are taking the game to the opposition with the fullbacks pushing on but away from home when we are under pressure it's not so easy to retain possession.

this formation is OK when we are 3 up and dominating, but leaves us extremely vulnerable to any breakaways by the opposition, or tentative punts from the halfway line.

4-4-3 is my favourite formation.

[GodalmingYellow]

4-4-3 at home is ok when we are taking the game to the opposition with the fullbacks pushing on but away from home when we are under pressure it's not so easy to retain possession.

And there was me thinking that a goalkeeper was mandatory!!

[SmileyMan]

It seems on reflection that a better approach from Wilder to the problems of the Eastbourne game would have been a word with the players in private, and a shake-up of personnel to counteract any &quotunbeatable/undroppable&quot mentality that might have been forming. Mansfield had obviously done their homework had a different formation with different players taken the field, it might have disrupted them enough to stop their strong start.

Not criticising Wilder though - he might equally have been caught out not fielding his strongest team against a title contender I expect that's why we got the &quotrant&quot option, because he couldn't realistically drop anyone.

So long as we don't repeat the nightmare of Jim's 4-5-1 being played week after week when it was plainly obvious that it had a) been worked out, and b) that information was being shared amongst our rivals.

[Yellow River]

4-4-3 at home is ok when we are taking the game to the opposition with the fullbacks pushing on but away from home when we are under pressure it's not so easy to retain possession.

And there was me thinking that a goalkeeper was mandatory!!

[boris]

Has anyone got a Mansfield programme they can sell me? My usual source was unable to get one.

Thanks

[Kernow Yellow]

Things I learnt from the Mansfield game:

1) Our defence is not that great. The full backs were beaten too often in the opening stages, and Creighton isn't quick enough to commit himself out of position as often as he does. Mansfield won a lot in the air against him and Foster too.

2) Constable is massive for us. I've rarely seen a forward work so hard. Superb first-time finish. Our key player, without a doubt.

3) This team has some real fight - the willingness to drag themselves back into the game was excellent. We nearly came away with a point from a game that any other Oxford team I've seen recently would have lost 2-0.

4) Mansfield are a very good team on their day, and we shouldn't be overly worried by the result.

5) Non-league refs aren't strong enough to stand up to blatant time-wasting. That second half should have gone on at least another 5 minutes.

[slappy]

Has anyone got a Mansfield programme they can sell me? My usual source was unable to get one.

Thanks

I've got one, not sure how uncreased it is as was in back pocket, but can bring to next home game anyway.

In the Dreamers League I've Mansfield to finish 2nd this year. I noticed they made around 10 or 11 signings in the Summer, and they seem to have made progress getting the fans back with the season ticket promotion under the new ownership. It was quite a shock to go to a ground with 3,300 home fans, and packed into their stand in the middle too, and quite a large vocal section of them too. Stewards as last year were pre-occupied with trying to get everyone to sit down, but eventually gave up.

Was impressed with the speed Mansfield started the game, and I think this surprised our players too as no other teams have really come at us like that. Thought we fought back well and 2 against the bar shows how close it was. Also Billy Turley hurdling the advertising hoardings to get the ball back in play was noticed - hardly the actions of a player in a sulk, though I think he will need an injury to Clarke to get a game, other than in the FA Trophy.

I was pleased to see the players clap us after the game even though they had lost, and noticed Wilder also came over to our end to applaud which I thought was a good gesture after the Saturday before.

[Yellow River]

Cook and green were miles away from Beano.

.

This has been an area that has concerned me all season, especially when playing 4-3-3 away from home. Constable does get isolated in the middle with Green and Cook playing too wide.

4-4-3 at home is ok when we are taking the game to the opposition with the fullbacks pushing on but away from home when we are under pressure it's not so easy to retain possession.

I much prefer 4-4-2 away from home kepping the game tight and frustrating the home side, certainly for at least the first 45 minutes. Plenty of time in the second half to go for amore arttacking formation as the game opens up and defences tire.

Thought I'd bump this thread which appeared after our first defeat of the season against Mansfield back in September.

Quite a few comments at the the time and now increasing about us playing a 4-3-3 formation with Constable getting somewhat isolated.

With CW's record it seems a bit mean to critisise but I still think our formation isn't quire right.