Chester City (H) League Saturday 10/3/07

[Registered Saddler]

For a while there I was thinking we were just going to have to be thankful for the other sides slipping up. But edging these kind of games is what has got us into this position so I'm thankful for another 1-0 win, crucial three points, crucial day, crucial stage of the season. The pressure is slightly off for the two upcoming away trips now. Come on boys, let's see this through.

[Neuromantic]

Great win, thought we played well. Could play better though...

Why on earth was Gerrard given MOTM ? Rubbish decision. It had to be Dobson or Keates, brilliant performances by both of them. Thought we looked a bit shaky at the back, Dann needs a better defensive partner. Midfield functioned well, tink we need a little more cutting edge up front though.

Good perforamance but not great!

UTS!

[Neuromantic]

And can I just add, that, that was the worst refreeing performance I have witnessed for many a year. Disgusting refeereing, should never step foot on a football field again.

[Registered Saddler]

Great win, thought we played well. Could play better though...

Why on earth was Gerrard given MOTM ? Rubbish decision. It had to be Dobson or Keates, brilliant performances by both of them. Thought we looked a bit shaky at the back, Dann needs a better defensive partner. Midfield functioned well, tink we need a little more cutting edge up front though.

Good perforamance but not great!

UTS!

:roll:

25 games for Gerrard (discounting little sub appearances) and we've conceded just 14 goals. That's clearly just a coincidence and all our good work at the back on those occasions has been down to the three other defenders.

[BathSaddler]

Any win today was what mattered. That, combined with defeats for MK and Braz....er, I mean Stockport, has put us back in the box seat with Hartlepool. Swindon are also grinding out results and will be up there come May. Still a long way to go though.

UTS

[Geordiesaddler]

And can I just add, that, that was the worst refreeing performance I have witnessed for many a year. Disgusting refeereing, should never step foot on a football field again.

From what I've seen myself, and heard on commentary they seem to get worse by the week. If the old adage of these things evening out over a season is to be proved correct then I suspect we are in for a bonanza of penalties and sending off of opposition players over the remaining games.

Still I suppose we should be grateful for our second penalty of the season.

Just on the last few games, I think its crucial that we are not conceeding again. Two goals conceeded in the last 4 since Lincoln, that's what our season was built on, and its good to see that trend re-emerging.

[Jolly Johnny]

And can I just add, that, that was the worst refreeing performance I have witnessed for many a year. Disgusting refeereing, should never step foot on a football field again.

In what way - can you expand?

I noticed on the bbc match stats that they commited 23 fouls to our 8! I'm guessing that means that they were a touch physical and trying to kick us off the park. :? With only 1 booking, maybe the ref wasn't doing his job properly and letting too much go.

[Rushall Saddler]

And can I just add, that, that was the worst refreeing performance I have witnessed for many a year. Disgusting refeereing, should never step foot on a football field again.

In what way - can you expand?

I noticed on the bbc match stats that they commited 23 fouls to our 8! I'm guessing that means that they were a touch physical and trying to kick us off the park. :? With only 1 booking, maybe the ref wasn't doing his job properly and letting too much go.

Well how the challenge on Wrack wasn't a red card I'll never know! Appalling decision! Also a couple of there players must have commited 5 or 6 free kicks each and weren't booked for persistent fouling, when a couple of them could have been yellow cards on their own.

Thought it was a decent performance today, the players (and the crowd) were very patient and in the end the lads got the job done.

Ince did well when he was called upon, although his kicking was a wee bit erratic.

The back four were solid. Pead did well, Gerrard is sometimes too eager and commits himself too early, Dann's defending was almost exemplary, I just wish he didn't so many 'hoofed' balls forward. Fox was also decent, if sometimes a little apprehensive to overlap Cooper in the second half.

I thought Harper looked a little casual at times, as if the game was too easy for him, he forgot to do the simple things. Cooper still understandably looks short of match fitness but did ok. Dobson and Keates were both brilliant in my opinion, Keates probably just shading it due to his goal.

Up front, Butler worked his socks off as usual, and got a couple of snapshots in which produced good saves from the keeper. Sam still frustrates the Hell out of me, some of the things he does would be good in the Championship, other times he looks like a Pelsall Villa player. Was denied a goal by a good save tipped onto the post.

All in all a good days work, and a vital 3 points that SHOULD see us playing League One football next season.

[WFC_Rob]

And can I just add, that, that was the worst refreeing performance I have witnessed for many a year. Disgusting refeereing, should never step foot on a football field again.

In what way - can you expand?

I noticed on the bbc match stats that they commited 23 fouls to our 8! I'm guessing that means that they were a touch physical and trying to kick us off the park. :? With only 1 booking, maybe the ref wasn't doing his job properly and letting too much go.

You can say that again. In agreement with Wednesbury Saddler, the ref was a complete joke. Chester have been done by the FA for misconduct 3 times since Christmas, and it's easy to see why. That tackle on Wrack was a definite red - Wrack was on the floor and had one of his legs jumped on with 2 feet by one of their players - no attempt to win the ball whatsoever.
They were the original league 2 side who had come for a point. All of their fouling was tactical, and the reason why they got away with it was because they made sure the fouls were shared out amongst their team. Having said that, professional fouls were frequent, and the referee did nothing to stop them. That spoiled the game.

Onto our performance, I thought we knocked the ball around well at times whithout really looking like we had that cutting edge. Cooper was solid and kept the ball well, but was not as much of a threat as he has been. Harper was the pick of the bunch going orward I thought.
Pead in my opinion had his best game for Walsall. Wasn't beaten by his man once, and got forward to good effect. In contrast, Dann probably had his worst game this season. He was all over the place. Someone needs to get hold of him and tell him to stop looking for the pinpoint 60 yard pass. Their good chance in the first half seemed to come about as Gerrard failed to win a header he should have, and Dann was caught out positionally.
I thought Fox proved some of his doubters wrong today. Whilst it wasn't a man of the match performance, it was very solid - his distribution in particular was much improved from recent weeks.

Dobson and Keates both played well, with Dobson looking more like the player we saw at the start of the season now. Keates was effective because he didn't give them any time on the ball in midfield. That's his main strength - I just feel he struggles to do it enough at times.

I thought Sam was very unlucky not to score the superb effort he shot against the post. He did very well to make the space for a shot and seems to have learned to play the ball simple more often that he used to.

One other thing - we were 1-0 up at the end of the game and had only used 2 substitutes. What is it about Walsall managers not using their substitutions to run down the clock? Every other club seems to do it - take the player furthest from the dugout off to waste time. Cooper could have easily been replaced by Ishmel to run the clock down. I know it's a bit picky, but it seems like a professional thing to do to me.

7 points clear of the playoffs now. We all had a feeling a gap would begin to emerge, and it has. The key to promotion now lies with us avoiding defeat in the next 2 games. In a sense, anything will do at MK Dons as long as we don't lose - we just want them to stay a distance behind us.
Exciting stuff now - the next month could well be a very exciting time indeed.

[Neuromantic]

And can I just add, that, that was the worst refreeing performance I have witnessed for many a year. Disgusting refeereing, should never step foot on a football field again.

In what way - can you expand?

I noticed on the bbc match stats that they commited 23 fouls to our 8! I'm guessing that means that they were a touch physical and trying to kick us off the park. :? With only 1 booking, maybe the ref wasn't doing his job properly and letting too much go.

AS Rushall has said, The sending off that was blatant and clear as the light of day, the fact he had NO control whatsoever. Their number 5 must have got away with 6 or 7 punishable offences, and nothing at all. Several other players made brutal challenges, how about the challenge that made Keates bleed? Awful, disgusting refereeing. Oh yeah, and the fact he forgot about both Butler and Keates re entering the field of play after head injuries, forgot about that one!

Truly Dreadful.


Registered - Gerrard has been brilliant the last couple of weeks, however today he was probably our worst player along with Fox. Its not that fact he wins headers - he is brilliant at that, its his positional sense, and as Rushall says, his eagerness to challenge, whereas Dann has a infintely better foootballing (and defensive) brain, and backs off then comes towards the ball, to avoid being caught out of position. He was ok, wasnt dross, but Roper (when fit) and Westwood should start in place of him.

[Neuromantic]

And can I just add, that, that was the worst refreeing performance I have witnessed for many a year. Disgusting refeereing, should never step foot on a football field again.

In what way - can you expand?

I noticed on the bbc match stats that they commited 23 fouls to our 8! I'm guessing that means that they were a touch physical and trying to kick us off the park. :? With only 1 booking, maybe the ref wasn't doing his job properly and letting too much go.

You can say that again. In agreement with Wednesbury Saddler, the ref was a complete joke. Chester have been done by the FA for misconduct 3 times since Christmas, and it's easy to see why. That tackle on Wrack was a definite red - Wrack was on the floor and had one of his legs jumped on with 2 feet by one of their players - no attempt to win the ball whatsoever.
They were the original league 2 side who had come for a point. All of their fouling was tactical, and the reason why they got away with it was because they made sure the fouls were shared out amongst their team. Having said that, professional fouls were frequent, and the referee did nothing to stop them. That spoiled the game.

Onto our performance, I thought we knocked the ball around well at times whithout really looking like we had that cutting edge. Cooper was solid and kept the ball well, but was not as much of a threat as he has been. Harper was the pick of the bunch going orward I thought.
Pead in my opinion had his best game for Walsall. Wasn't beaten by his man once, and got forward to good effect. In contrast, Dann probably had his worst game this season. He was all over the place. Someone needs to get hold of him and tell him to stop looking for the pinpoint 60 yard pass. Their good chance in the first half seemed to come about as Gerrard failed to win a header he should have, and Dann was caught out positionally.
I thought Fox proved some of his doubters wrong today. Whilst it wasn't a man of the match performance, it was very solid - his distribution in particular was much improved from recent weeks.

Dobson and Keates both played well, with Dobson looking more like the player we saw at the start of the season now. Keates was effective because he didn't give them any time on the ball in midfield. That's his main strength - I just feel he struggles to do it enough at times.

I thought Sam was very unlucky not to score the superb effort he shot against the post. He did very well to make the space for a shot and seems to have learned to play the ball simple more often that he used to.

One other thing - we were 1-0 up at the end of the game and had only used 2 substitutes. What is it about Walsall managers not using their substitutions to run down the clock? Every other club seems to do it - take the player furthest from the dugout off to waste time. Cooper could have easily been replaced by Ishmel to run the clock down. I know it's a bit picky, but it seems like a professional thing to do to me.

7 points clear of the playoffs now. We all had a feeling a gap would begin to emerge, and it has. The key to promotion now lies with us avoiding defeat in the next 2 games. In a sense, anything will do at MK Dons as long as we don't lose - we just want them to stay a distance behind us.
Exciting stuff now - the next month could well be a very exciting time indeed.

I would agree with everything bar the Dann and Fox comments. Thought Dann was ok, but fox's unwilling to over lap frustrates the hell out of me. He wasnt rubbish, just ok. Need to make that clear, no one was crap, just think other players played better.

Oh and yes Rob, where was our favourite 'best winger in the league' today on the bench ? :D *sarcastic smilie*

( we were right Rob, we were right ! :D)

[coxy_saddler]

We played well, Played some nice football, We had so many chances all game we should of won 20 - 0 ! Keatsy was superb should have been the MOTM. Chester was absolutley fudge awful!! Dirty bunch of animals..they had 3 major chances all game..one which was a great save from ince. We've got the 3 points which is vital..7 points from 4th now..That gap is opening up..Bring on the wycombe..UTS

[philthesaddler]

A very important 3 points, but the performance is what worries me, against a side with any footballing ability, we would have been beaten.

Chester were a terrible side. They had nothing of any decency, and whatsmore were the dirtiest side i've seen at Bescot this season, which of course wasn't helped by the worst referee i've seen this season to accompany the team.

How that lad wasn't sent off for the challenge on Wrack I will never know, he was late, too high and with studs showing, and he only got a yellow, and I have a feeling that card only came because of the scuffle that occured afterwards.

Chester must have committed 30-40 fouls during the game, I think I counted 4 by Walsall, yet the referee failed to warn or reprimand them for consistent fouling, very very poor refereeing, luckily he got one decision right which was the handball. There should have been a second penalty 10 minutes later with another handball.

However, Chester are a team we should be beating at home. And we nearly didn't, we had so much possession, and created so little clear cut chances it's unbelievable. Against better sides, we will struggle, and that is why I worry.

Starting with Wrack was a mistake in my view, Hector in recent games has been superb, if anyone should have been rested, it was Butler. Harper kept drifting inside, which on one hand allowed Pead licence to get forward, but on the other hand, gave us no pace going forward down the right wing which is what Harper brought to the team initially.

Keates played well, great penalty, Gerrard deserved his man of the match, barely put a foot wrong, Dann was a bit wobbly, Fox was poor and Cooper looked a bit lax. Overall, not the best performance from the Saddlers, but 3 very important points on a day when teams around us failed to win.

If I was DD I'd set a target of 4 points from our next two games, and should we get that, we'll have more or less secured promotion.

[Walsall_fan1992]

Good performance, keep winning 1-0 for the rest of the season and ill be happy. Dont know how on earth there player didn't get sent off awful challange! Considering he's had his critics the past couple of weeks Ince made a world class save just before keates peno. Good performance, 3 points in the bag

UTS!!!!!!!!!!

[pco_walsall]

good 3 points good performance should of scored 3 or 4 because chester were a really poor side i thought we were pathetic going forward until hector came on also ince had a excellent game with two world class saves

[sj]

It's very difficult to beat a team with 10 men behind the ball. I think the lads did very well they, showed great maturity. so did the crowd

[Fray Bentos is God!]

( we were right Rob, we were right ! :D)

:roll: :roll: :roll:

[PerStener]

Happy we took 3 vital points today.

Missed the match, was invited to family dinner at my parents just before kickoff :evil:

[geoffwhiting]

A very important 3 points, but the performance is what worries me, against a side with any footballing ability, we would have been beaten.

Chester were a terrible side. They had nothing of any decency, and whatsmore were the dirtiest side i've seen at Bescot this season, which of course wasn't helped by the worst referee i've seen this season to accompany the team.

How that lad wasn't sent off for the challenge on Wrack I will never know, he was late, too high and with studs showing, and he only got a yellow, and I have a feeling that card only came because of the scuffle that occured afterwards.

Chester must have committed 30-40 fouls during the game, I think I counted 4 by Walsall, yet the referee failed to warn or reprimand them for consistent fouling, very very poor refereeing, luckily he got one decision right which was the handball. There should have been a second penalty 10 minutes later with another handball.

However, Chester are a team we should be beating at home. And we nearly didn't, we had so much possession, and created so little clear cut chances it's unbelievable. Against better sides, we will struggle, and that is why I worry.

Starting with Wrack was a mistake in my view, Hector in recent games has been superb, if anyone should have been rested, it was Butler. Harper kept drifting inside, which on one hand allowed Pead licence to get forward, but on the other hand, gave us no pace going forward down the right wing which is what Harper brought to the team initially.

Keates played well, great penalty, Gerrard deserved his man of the match, barely put a foot wrong, Dann was a bit wobbly, Fox was poor and Cooper looked a bit lax. Overall, not the best performance from the Saddlers, but 3 very important points on a day when teams around us failed to win.

If I was DD I'd set a target of 4 points from our next two games, and should we get that, we'll have more or less secured promotion.

I agree with some points Phil, but not others. Firstly, I think the opposite of you in that we WOULD have beaten a better side more convincingly. The fact is that it was very difficult playing proper football against a team of animals - let's not beat about the bush, they WERE animals.

Even so, I actually still think Boston were the dirtiest side we've played at Bescot, and shall continue to pray for their relegation every Saturday from now until May.

Today's useless excuse for a referee and the equally useless excuse for a referee for the Boston match were very much on a par. In an age when Refs give out the most unbelievable number of yellow and red cards, often for hardly anything at all, how come these two can be so incredibly lenient? Their failure to control violent conduct on the pitch positively encouraged both Boston and Chester to just get worse and worse as the games wore on. Serious consequences could have come from those failures in both games, and while the Ref doesn't start it, he HAS to be capable of controlling it by stamping down before it gets out of hand, so he is in many ways as much to blame as the players.

Agree the foul on Wrack was a nailed-on red card offence on it's own merit ( if merit is the right word to use ! ), but even more especially as it followed a bad challenge on Keates by the same player a short-time earlier.

I agree also that Wrack should not have started the game, the selection was, I thought, bizarre for a home game we HAD to win. Sam should have started, absolutely NO doubt whatosever.

The penalty was a dead cert hand ball, and Keates' put it away superbly. It should have been followed by another, not so long after, but the useless piece of sh*t in black hadn't a clue!

As you said Phil, overall NOT the best performance, but it was full of determination and character on a day when the result was paramount and the opposition wouldn't allow much football to be played. I did become frustrated at times that we allowed them to panic us into the long-ball stuff yet again, and basically their giant animals at the back were able to soak it up, especially first-half. Admittedly the second-half was much better from the Saddlers, but if we can see the long punts upfield from Ince and others aren't working, why do the players seemingly fail to spot it and change tactics earlier ?

Finally, the other results this weekend have been beyond my wildest dreams. Swindon were a home-banker, but who'd have forecast those heavy defeats for MKD, Stockport and Wycombe? Just what we needed to open that gap to 4th place, and stretch the goal difference as well into the bargain.

The drinks tonight will be in celebration, it's looking good again, I hate the lows on Saturdays when we lose, but tonight it's the highs !

[philthesaddler]

Personally Geoff, as for the other results, I knew, once Stockport conceded 1, they'd fall like flies, and as for Mk Dons, their recent form is poor, so a thrashing at a side that strengthened heavily during the transfer window and who are starting to pick up results didnt surprise me whatsoever.

It's now up to us to try and get a maximum return from the next two games, two games that are very winnable, but which I have no doubt we will go looking for a solid 0-0. :roll:

[Fray Bentos is God!]

Personally Geoff, as for the other results, I knew, once Stockport conceded 1, they'd fall like flies, and as for Mk Dons, their recent form is poor, so a thrashing at a side that strengthened heavily during the transfer window and who are starting to pick up results didnt surprise me whatsoever.

It's now up to us to try and get a maximum return from the next two games, two games that are very winnable, but which I have no doubt we will go looking for a solid 0-0. :roll:

If we can beat Wycombe, taking a point from MK would be great

6 points = gary in boxers running around MK

4 points = me being happy and shouting a lot

3 points = chuffed enough

2 points = chuffed enough

1 point = squeaky bum

0 points = poo time

[Pedro]

3 good points today :D

Though Keates was MOTM

[Magic Man Fan]

A solid if unspectacular performance against a quite frankly dirty Chester side. Very similar to Boston. No skill so resort to foul play to get something.

There was at least one, possibly two bookable offences before the dreadful challenge on Wrack which was clear to everyone but the ref that it was a red card. I'm all for refs for letting a game flow but he wasn't, he was blowing up for fouls but not booking their players so they continued fouling throughout.

They tried to stop us from playing but we ground out the result, however it came about. I don't have a clue why Gerrard was MOTM, everyone I heard after thought it was Keates and the goal capped off a brilliant performance, it was the kind of game he excels in. Dobson wasn't far behind either and Ince pulled off that great save at 0-0.

Butler did a lot of running but still looks off the pace to me. I'm not sure why Sam was dropped after recent performances but he continued his good form when he came on and was very unlucky with his shot that hit the post.

I thought Harper and especially Cooper were quiet. Cooper didn't attempt to go past his man once and his crossing was poor. If that was Wright he would have got slated. Harper was slightly more involved but not in the same league as against Barnet.

Results mostly went for us. If we can beat Wycombe and MK Dons we're practically there but a draw against both would suffice in my opinion. We just can't afford to lose to them and I don't think we will. We do well against footballing sides so I think we'll beat Wycombe and get a point at MK but they're not unbeatable at all.

[King Crimson]

One other thing - we were 1-0 up at the end of the game and had only used 2 substitutes. What is it about Walsall managers not using their substitutions to run down the clock? Every other club seems to do it - take the player furthest from the dugout off to waste time. Cooper could have easily been replaced by Ishmel to run the clock down. I know it's a bit picky, but it seems like a professional thing to do to me.

Good post. You only wrote that 'cos you heard me shouting about it to your Dad! :roll:

:wink:

[Pedro]

Chester where thugs from start to finish. They tried to bully us of the parl , but our boys stuck with it and got 3 vital points

[redsaddler]

Walsall 1-0 Chester City

Keates

Attendance: 4,927

384 from Chester

Idiot: you got the crowd wrong and forgot to mention it was a penalty! :D

I'll make sure I get it perfect next time! :wink:

Anyway, good performance today from the lads. Here are my opinions:

Ince: Great save just before we went up the other end to get a free kick, which led to the penalty. Otherwise a quiet afternoon. 7.
Pead: Some decent running down the wing, defended well and even tried his luck with a couple of long range efforts. 7.
Gerrard: Sponsors' man of the match (which I don't quite agree with!). A couple of errors here and there, but was generally sound. 7.
Dann: Another good display and nearly scored with a close-range effort in the first half. Distribution was poor to begin with, but improved later. 7.
Fox: His worst game for a while. Again, distribution wasn't great and some of his crossing was wayward. 5.

Harper: Not sure which wing he was playing on (both?!), but he produced a workmanlike performance. Lucky not to be punished for a stamp on Bennett in the first half. 7.
Dobson: After being poor against Lincoln and good against Barnet, this was somewhere in between as his distribution was average and his tackling was mixed. 6.
Keates: My man of the match. Not just because he scored the winner, but also because he worked extremely hard to close down their attacks and tackled with purpose. 9.
Cooper: Again, a tiresome performance, but was generally ineffective. Tried to get the ball onto his left foot all too often and this led to him making some errors. 6.

Wrack: Was looking out of sorts, before getting caught by a lunging, late tackle which should have led to Chester being reduced to ten men. 5.

Butler: Worked as hard as ever, but he didn't get much support. Went close to scoring with a long-range effort in the first half. 7.

Subs:

Sam: Went close a couple of times with long-range efforts, the latter being when he saw his shot saved onto the post. 7.

Taylor: Late run-out and had very little to do. 5.

Chester star man?

Without question, has to be John Danby, their goalkeeper. Three or four outstanding saves to keep the score down. The best save being the one where he fingertipped Sam's shot onto the inside of the post.

So, another three points in the bag means that we are now in a decent position to push on and get these remaining victories that we need for promotion. Swindon won, but that was to be expected. However, the Dongs, Stockport and Wycombe all lost, which was an added bonus!

Two tough away matches are up next, but I shall be back at the Bescot for the Accrington Stanley game at the end of the month.

[Atomic Rooster]

Walsall 1-0 Chester City

Keates

Attendance: 4,927

384 from Chester

spot on what lottery numbers have u add

[Atomic Rooster]

Walsall 1-0 Chester City

Keates

Attendance: 4,927

384 from Chester

spot on what lottery numbers have u add

[cyclothymic]

Lovely sunny early Spring afternoon, 3 points against a side who would not have noticed if there was not a ball on the pitch, good performances all round with some lovely passing football at times, Keates cool as a cucumber with the pen, I am happy with that.

To expect much against a side as physical as Chester is wrong - they were allowed to foul time and again because the ref refused to show some early cards. We won't have to play them again (unless they get a cup run) for a good few years :D

Oh - and lucky Anthony got a 4-day cruise for MOTM. Beats a tray of bitter!

[Atomic Rooster]

What a important win today if we can now win one of the the next two away games we are getting closer. All the players were full of confidence and back on track