England v Croatia

[leics_saddler]

Haven't read any other posts and don't care what they say. The front page has it just about right for me.
Who is to blame for this scandal? I'll tell you who like none of you know already:

FA: Complete cock up of appointment led to nth choice. Ruined the pitch three weeks before the game for a few quid - bye!

McClown: Abysmal team selection last night cost the game. When is it appropriate to play experienced professionals at the back!? He then failed to show Keeganesque honour afterwards - bye!

Players: As a man showed total lack of composure and professionalism, re-building required. Can't even organise themselves into a formation other than 442.

Campbell: It's unfair to single out an individual especially when he's been put in an unfortunate position, but he summarily failed to lead an makeshift defence. His career is over.

Carson: Is it unfair to blame such a young inexperienced goalkeeper? Yes, perhaps, as he shouldn't have been put in that position in the first place. He needs to spend years in the international wilderness for his own protection after making such a catastrophic and basic error. If he's that good he'll rebuild his career, but I doubt it.

Where next:

Manager: Mourinho by a distance, Scolari and O'Neill are the only others who are anywhere near. It needs a headcase with ability to take charge now, they're the only three who fit the bill in any form. Big Sam? What's he going to do? Sign Djorkaeff??

FA: New ideas required fast. Too much £££ and not enough football. There should be major, major overhaul.

Players: A number of careers are over Campbell, Bridge, Beckham (apart from his ceremonial 100th match). A few more are in the wilderness Lescott, Carson, Bent, Johnson, Defoe, Brown, Downing (remember him?). Some of these players have done little wrong, it's just their time has passed. The FA should play one match only in this next year, where Beckham is captain, picks the team and picks the opposition for his 'testamonial'. It's the one opportunity to justify a Wembley showpiece occasion. Argentina might be fitting opponents. Then we should say a fond farewell to that generation.

We still (staggeringly) have the nucleus of a good squad for the 2010 World Cup campaign, which should be added to with younger prospects gradually. There are a number of players who'll still be young enough with vast experiece. However, the most pressing concerns are the hunt for a young goalkeeper who can take on the job and a long-term successor to Ashley Cole. The long term outlook is something like this:

GK Robinson [gap]. Carson's had it, Kirkland is always injured, who does that leave? Green's chance has gone. James is strictly emergency use only.

LB A Cole [gap]
RB G Neville (yes I know he'll be getting on, but that's where you need experience) countered by Richards.
CB Terry Ferdinand [gap] [gap]. Carragher should be begged to come out of his petulant McClown influenced retirement as experienced cover. Perhaps Dawson might fill in here one day who knows? Anyone remember King?

DM Hargreaves [gap]. People who think Hargreaves is cack should remember that Carlton Palmer used to do this role.
CM Barry (versatile) Lampard Gerrard (but not together!) [gap]. Carrick is in the wilderness, Beckham is still better even half fit.

LM J Cole [gap] Barry could cover this also. Downing isn't up to it.
RM Wright-Phillips Lennon. Gerrard can cover this.

F Crouch Rooney Owen Walcott. No problems here, the only thing to complete this would be an expert young sniffer, Defoe had the chance to grab this role and blew it.

We just need to plug the gaps! It might be that in the next two years players may appear from nowhere is an Aghbonlahor kind of fashion to stake a claim. The U21 squad have a golden opportunity in front of them now and that includes Stuart Pearce who has the best opportunity of anyone to be next English national manager.

[Neil Ravenscroft]

so we are back to the days when England fail to qualify for major tournaments , everything was wrong last from team selection to tactics , McClown set his stall out for a draw and came unstuck big time.
You can blame the pitch , bad defending , shabby goalkeeper but at the end of the day one man alone takes responsabilty , this was not a difficult qualifing group we should have sailed through it.

and to make matter worse , the sun have taken page 3 out today , to show pictures of sobbing England fans. :twisted:

thanks for nothing McClaren.

Agree completely that he's got to go, but the players and, especially, the FA also have to take their share of the blame. The game in this country is sick and needs drastic surgery. We just don't seem to know how to play the game properly - by keeping the football - and the financial burdens placed on the FA and the short term demands for success forced on us by the over rich Premier League are all distoring the picture.

[dadio1977]

Hopefully this shambles of a qualifying campaign will encourage the powers that be to push for a quota on foreign players in the Premiership - we were never going to be good enough, and the finals would have been a disaster. At least half the team were not up to international standard, but who could replace them?

Any new manager will have the same problems - this was supposed to be a 'golden age' (well so was 2006, 2004, 2002 etc), but with supposedly the best midfield in the world and a tradition of great central defenders, we should have had enough to qualify comfortably. But Gareth Barry?? When did our ambitions reach the pits that meant Barry was one of the first on the teamsheet? And Lescott?? Ditto!

There is just not a depth of good English players available anymore, and I fear we will look back on quarter final runs as the halcyon days of English football if we don't act now with the domestic leagues - we need to restrict the number of foreigners lining up in our domestic games for the sake of the national team, and until somebody has the balls to implement changes, we will continually struggle on the international stage.

[Duke]

so we are back to the days when England fail to qualify for major tournaments , everything was wrong last from team selection to tactics , McClown set his stall out for a draw and came unstuck big time.
You can blame the pitch , bad defending , shabby goalkeeper but at the end of the day one man alone takes responsabilty , this was not a difficult qualifing group we should have sailed through it.

and to make matter worse , the sun have taken page 3 out today , to show pictures of sobbing England fans. :twisted:

thanks for nothing McClaren.

Agree completely that he's got to go, but the players and, especially, the FA also have to take their share of the blame. The game in this country is sick and needs drastic surgery. We just don't seem to know how to play the game properly - by keeping the football - and the financial burdens placed on the FA and the short term demands for success forced on us by the over rich Premier League are all distoring the picture.

as the great Bill Shankly once said , " if you have the ball the opposition cannot score "

agreed Neil , and welcome back .

[Tettenhall_Saddler]

Well he's gone now. What about the rest of the useless "team". Agree with everything Neil said, the English game is rotten from the bottom up, these so called "world class" players control a ball further than I can kick it, and find it impossible to do the simple things correctly like pass and move and play with any kind of tempo. It was raining though, so maybe the players were worried about their hair and the next lucrative advertising deal. Splitters.

Even Wenger couldn't make England play well, the pure fact is that we are completely technically sub standard and we need to start giving the grass roots proper thought and not coach all the skill out of them from an early age. Last night was so easy to defend against, it was untrue.

Getting rid of the manager is step one, but I'm worried that it's just masking the true problems with the English game.

[Gutter Press]

I fear we will look back on quarter final runs as the halcyon days of English football.

They are already though - unless you count a success on home turf more than 40 years ago thanks to a dodgy lino's decision.
You're right there needs to be a root and branches job at theFA - I think McClaren has to go but the blame has to shared among the fat men at the FA and the players.
As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal? Certainly between EU member states? I'm sure there would be some kind of restraint of trade thing that would be brought up - I stand corrected though.

[philthesaddler]

Well he's gone now. What about the rest of the useless "team". Agree with everything Neil said, the English game is rotten from the bottom up, these so called "world class" players control a ball further than I can kick it, and find it impossible to do the simple things correctly like pass and move and play with any kind of tempo. It was raining though, so maybe the players were worried about their hair and the next lucrative advertising deal. Splitters.

Even Wenger couldn't make England play well, the pure fact is that we are completely technically sub standard and we need to start giving the grass roots proper thought and not coach all the skill out of them from an early age. Last night was so easy to defend against, it was untrue.

Getting rid of the manager is step one, but I'm worried that it's just masking the true problems with the English game.

Damn right, there are massive problems in the English games, not just short term managerial and performance issues.

I mean, how long before the majority of teams in the Premiership play with no Englishmen? Arsenal already do, Liverpool aren't far off, and the rest all have 7 or 8 out of the starting 11 who are foreign.

For England to return to being one of the top countries, we must force 6 or 7 of every starting XI in the professional game in this country to be English (or British)

[Tettenhall_Saddler]

As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal?

Well, that's another excuse the media/FA/players will use. Over inflated prices for English "talent" just makes more technically superior foreign players more attractive. How much was Darren Bent - 16 million ? How much was Fabregas, how much was Christiano Ronaldo ? Restricting foreign players would mean the English are even more expensive, and feed their already bulging egos.

[Plastic Hawk]

so we are back to the days when England fail to qualify for major tournaments , everything was wrong last from team selection to tactics , McClown set his stall out for a draw and came unstuck big time.
You can blame the pitch , bad defending , shabby goalkeeper but at the end of the day one man alone takes responsabilty , this was not a difficult qualifing group we should have sailed through it.

and to make matter worse , the sun have taken page 3 out today , to show pictures of sobbing England fans. :twisted:

thanks for nothing McClaren.

Agree completely that he's got to go, but the players and, especially, the FA also have to take their share of the blame. The game in this country is sick and needs drastic surgery. We just don't seem to know how to play the game properly - by keeping the football - and the financial burdens placed on the FA and the short term demands for success forced on us by the over rich Premier League are all distoring the picture.

Agree completely - but we'll never learn. Just look at all the calls for "passion" on here today. It's always been the same with England: we'd much prefer a clogger who runs around a lot to someone with genuine quality on the ball who covers a little less ground. But which one wins you matches? And if you give the ball away less you don't need to cover so much ground. Beckham turned the game around for 20 minutes or so last night, but I heard far more praise for him sprinting from taking a free kick (missed) to take a (poor) corner ("never gives up, passionate") than I did for the pinpoint pass that set up Crouch's goal. Which actually made a difference to the game? And if he had jogged across then (a) he'd have had more energy for the rest of the game, (b) he'd have had more time to compose himself and actually put in a decent cross rather than hitting the first man and (c) the ref would have added the time on at the end anyway.

We also need to learn (as a nation) how to have a winning mentality. And that means playing to win from a young age. None of this "it's the taking part that counts" nonsense or looking down on "foreigners" who stretch the rules to breaking point (and beyond) in order to secure a competitive advantage on the pitch. Winning should be the only thing that matters once you cross that white line - and the way to win is to learn how to make the right decisions under pressure, not to run around in frantic desperation.

[Plastic Hawk]

Well he's gone now. What about the rest of the useless "team". Agree with everything Neil said, the English game is rotten from the bottom up, these so called "world class" players control a ball further than I can kick it, and find it impossible to do the simple things correctly like pass and move and play with any kind of tempo. It was raining though, so maybe the players were worried about their hair and the next lucrative advertising deal. Splitters.

Even Wenger couldn't make England play well, the pure fact is that we are completely technically sub standard and we need to start giving the grass roots proper thought and not coach all the skill out of them from an early age. Last night was so easy to defend against, it was untrue.

Getting rid of the manager is step one, but I'm worried that it's just masking the true problems with the English game.

Damn right, there are massive problems in the English games, not just short term managerial and performance issues.

I mean, how long before the majority of teams in the Premiership play with no Englishmen? Arsenal already do, Liverpool aren't far off, and the rest all have 7 or 8 out of the starting 11 who are foreign.

For England to return to being one of the top countries, we must force 6 or 7 of every starting XI in the professional game in this country to be English (or British)

:roll:

How will more players playing lower quality football help matters?

There's a decent article about quota systems in this month's When Saturday Comes. They suggest that English players should get on the plane and look for Champions League football overseas if they can't get it in this country. Too many young professionals are in a comfort zone, playing for Big 4 reserve sides or bottom half Premiership sides. If they're going to be capable of competing on the international stage then they need to be stretched outside of that zone. They need to stand on their own feet in an environment that challenges them and forces them to take responsibility and develop the leadership qualities that we lack.

Forcing more players into that comfort zone (as quotas will do) will actually have exactly the opposite effect from the one that you think it will. If we're to succeed then the players who will take us there need to make it in the game through their own efforts, not through positive discrimination which over-promotes them above more capable people of a different nationality.

[Gutter Press]

As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal?

Well, that's another excuse the media/FA/players will use. Over inflated prices for English "talent" just makes more technically superior foreign players more attractive. How much was Darren Bent - 16 million ? How much was Fabregas, how much was Christiano Ronaldo ? Restricting foreign players would mean the English are even more expensive, and feed their already bulging egos.

Exactly. All the true International class English players are already snapped up by the top four teams in the Premiership anyway. I dont see that limiting the number of foreigners would help - it would just ensure English players not really good enough would be playing above their level. There is a reason why there are so many foreigners in the English game - its because they're better and cheaper. Unless - somehow - the top premiership clubs are persuaded/forced to push some of their cash down into the lower leagues and our up and coming youngsters are coached properly, without having their natural talent crashed out of them thanks to hundreds of meaningless overly competitive 'training' games, we will never move on from the rank of alsorans. Its what the French FA did a few years back and look at the success they have seen over the last decade.

[cancol]

Without a doubt,Croatia did a 'job' on England last night.
They closed down space and gave the man in posession little or no option in terms of what passes were available,
Englands glorified midfield failed to do the same thing and allowed far too much room for the Croation players, so it is no surprise that we got stuffed.

And will someone tell me why the new goalkeeper wasn't given a touch of the ball before they scored

[Cueball]

It's a good point. But it's also important that as a major footballing nation that we have a stadium of the highest order. When I go to Wembley it makes me proud to know that we have one of the best (if not the best) football stadiums in the world. I don't know whether you have been yet, but maybe it's just something you have to see in the flesh. And no offence, but England isn't a team for London fans. Every time I go down, the majority of fans seem to be from teams outside of London (we always see at least 10 other Saddlers!!). Join EnglandFans and you'll never have a problem getting a ticket, in fact I'm quite amazed how easy it is to get tickets starting from just £25.

I only wish it had been built in Birmingham....

Thanks very much for the wonderful recommendation - it inspired me to take full advantage of this fantastic opportunity this afternoon at the "bargain" price of £70.....s**t happens, I suppose :cry:

Erm sorry about that!! If it's any consolation, I went to the match last night. Had afternoon off work, spent best part of £100, got absolutely drenched, saw the most spineless display by a bunch of overpaid cretins and got home about 2.30am. At least you'll know never to listen to my recommendations again.... :evil:

[dadio1977]

I fear we will look back on quarter final runs as the halcyon days of English football.

They are already though - unless you count a success on home turf more than 40 years ago thanks to a dodgy lino's decision.
You're right there needs to be a root and branches job at theFA - I think McClaren has to go but the blame has to shared among the fat men at the FA and the players.
As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal? Certainly between EU member states? I'm sure there would be some kind of restraint of trade thing that would be brought up - I stand corrected though.

You're right, it couldn't be forced as a law, but it could be 'agreed' upon by member clubs (although i can't see Arsenal and Liverpool doing that!) - I suppose it's the bitter pill we have to swallow for having the best domestic league in the world that its also the most powerful, and the national team's interests will always be a distinct second. I'm not sure the Italians would swap their world cup win for a more glamorous Serie A though!

[leics_saddler]

It's a very interesting comparison with France.

Some years ago (1993, IIRC) they underwent a similar humiliation by the same score in the same last qualifying match at home to Bulgaria, who went on to prove to be a very good team but that's another story. We all know what happened in 1998 and then on. There was some surgery for sure, but not that much, just where it mattered.

Thank god McClown has gone before somebody shoved Rihanna's brolly where it belonged. Now for Step 2 & Step 3. There's absolutely no panic for a managerial appointment, all the FA need to do is wait and keep their gob shut - I wonder if they can manage that?

[bangsection]

Happy with last night's result and here's why:

1. The best team won.

2. The FA might actually learn something from the botched appointment of McLaren.

3. Europe can enjoy a football tournament without the In-Ger-Lund pondlife despoiling their lovely countries and treating bemused locals to 'Ten Austrian Bombers' whilst urinating in a fountain.

4. England can enjoy a summer without the frenzied, over-hyped circus that surrounds this consistently average team of millionaires. No WAGs. No ubiquitous St George's flags. No patronising '10 things you didn't know about Romania' articles in The Sun. No attacks on Italian/Turkish/Greek restaurants when we lose to Italy/Turkey/Greece. No soul-searching when we get knocked out. Just a football tournament that we can watch because we like watching football.

5. In December, the FA finally decide whether to revive the mothballed National Football Centre at Burton (shelved because of the overspend on Wembley). Our failure to qualify for this tournament should at least make it extremely difficult for the FA to argue that we don't need a facility to make our younger players better.

[Plastic Hawk]

I fear we will look back on quarter final runs as the halcyon days of English football.

They are already though - unless you count a success on home turf more than 40 years ago thanks to a dodgy lino's decision.
You're right there needs to be a root and branches job at theFA - I think McClaren has to go but the blame has to shared among the fat men at the FA and the players.
As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal? Certainly between EU member states? I'm sure there would be some kind of restraint of trade thing that would be brought up - I stand corrected though.

You're right, it couldn't be forced as a law, but it could be 'agreed' upon by member clubs (although i can't see Arsenal and Liverpool doing that!) - I suppose it's the bitter pill we have to swallow for having the best domestic league in the world that its also the most powerful, and the national team's interests will always be a distinct second. I'm not sure the Italians would swap their world cup win for a more glamorous Serie A though!

I think the Italians would swap almost anything for a Serie A free of match fixing, hooliganism and general corruption. A World Cup win would be very nice, but it only lasts a week - it's the bread and butter league football that keeps you going through the winter. I wouldn't swap a top class Premiership for all the England World Cup wins you could imagine.

[Registered Saddler]

They are already though - unless you count a success on home turf more than 40 years ago thanks to a dodgy lino's decision.

AAAAAAAAAAAAHGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHGHHHHHHHHHHG!!!
:evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

Don't promote this myth, the Scots and Germans do enough of that already. If the ref hadn't given a dodgy decision to Germany, who scored from a lucky ricochet from a non-existant free-kick in the last minute, then we would have won 2-1. It was our cup, fair and square.

[dadio1977]

I fear we will look back on quarter final runs as the halcyon days of English football.

They are already though - unless you count a success on home turf more than 40 years ago thanks to a dodgy lino's decision.
You're right there needs to be a root and branches job at theFA - I think McClaren has to go but the blame has to shared among the fat men at the FA and the players.
As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal? Certainly between EU member states? I'm sure there would be some kind of restraint of trade thing that would be brought up - I stand corrected though.

You're right, it couldn't be forced as a law, but it could be 'agreed' upon by member clubs (although i can't see Arsenal and Liverpool doing that!) - I suppose it's the bitter pill we have to swallow for having the best domestic league in the world that its also the most powerful, and the national team's interests will always be a distinct second. I'm not sure the Italians would swap their world cup win for a more glamorous Serie A though!

I think the Italians would swap almost anything for a Serie A free of match fixing, hooliganism and general corruption. A World Cup win would be very nice, but it only lasts a week - it's the bread and butter league football that keeps you going through the winter. I wouldn't swap a top class Premiership for all the England World Cup wins you could imagine.

Really? I would just love us to win a world cup in my lifetime, and I'd gladly sacrifice the non atmospheric over hyped over televised Premiership for it! Pity we can't have both!

[Plastic Hawk]

I fear we will look back on quarter final runs as the halcyon days of English football.

They are already though - unless you count a success on home turf more than 40 years ago thanks to a dodgy lino's decision.
You're right there needs to be a root and branches job at theFA - I think McClaren has to go but the blame has to shared among the fat men at the FA and the players.
As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal? Certainly between EU member states? I'm sure there would be some kind of restraint of trade thing that would be brought up - I stand corrected though.

You're right, it couldn't be forced as a law, but it could be 'agreed' upon by member clubs (although i can't see Arsenal and Liverpool doing that!) - I suppose it's the bitter pill we have to swallow for having the best domestic league in the world that its also the most powerful, and the national team's interests will always be a distinct second. I'm not sure the Italians would swap their world cup win for a more glamorous Serie A though!

I think the Italians would swap almost anything for a Serie A free of match fixing, hooliganism and general corruption. A World Cup win would be very nice, but it only lasts a week - it's the bread and butter league football that keeps you going through the winter. I wouldn't swap a top class Premiership for all the England World Cup wins you could imagine.

Really? I would just love us to win a world cup in my lifetime, and I'd gladly sacrifice the non atmospheric over hyped over televised Premiership for it! Pity we can't have both!

Yeah. I'd rather we won the next World Cup than anyone else. But at the end of the day, I don't actually care that much.

We have, what 8-10 England games a year. It's hard to feel any thread linking them together and I don't feel I've invested any real emotion in them. They're just an inconvenience that breaks up the season and takes players away from their clubs.

Club football's there every week, there's a momentum to the season and stories that follow on from week to week. I go to watch Walsall most weekends and invest some real energy in them (I know we're not in the Premiership, but we're part of the same overall structure). I chose which club I wanted to support, whereas my nationality was imposed on me - and, to be honest, I don't want to feel any attachment to the morons who "supported" England in Andorra. Club football's got a real sense of belonging (ok, I accept that's less true higher up the leagues) that I don't feel when watching England at all.

[SheffieldSaddler]

Match reaction

http://www.steveroy.com/walsall/

What a complete JOKE. Some of the complete tosh written in that was beyond belief.
So Michael Owen (1 year younger than Lampard) and over 30 when the next World cup takes place is finished then as well as Lampard?
Lets right everyone off over 30 shall we?

Oh, but unless your name is Beckham who has lived on a reputation for the last 2 World Cups and European Championships, who deserve a 100th cap?
So Neil, what was Beckhams contribution to our last 3 major tournments?
And last night, besides the cross to Crouch he was utterly useless.

Open your eyes.

[Cueball]

I fear we will look back on quarter final runs as the halcyon days of English football.

They are already though - unless you count a success on home turf more than 40 years ago thanks to a dodgy lino's decision.
You're right there needs to be a root and branches job at theFA - I think McClaren has to go but the blame has to shared among the fat men at the FA and the players.
As for restricting foreign players I'm not sure that is the way forward but also would it be legal? Certainly between EU member states? I'm sure there would be some kind of restraint of trade thing that would be brought up - I stand corrected though.

You're right, it couldn't be forced as a law, but it could be 'agreed' upon by member clubs (although i can't see Arsenal and Liverpool doing that!) - I suppose it's the bitter pill we have to swallow for having the best domestic league in the world that its also the most powerful, and the national team's interests will always be a distinct second. I'm not sure the Italians would swap their world cup win for a more glamorous Serie A though!

I think the Italians would swap almost anything for a Serie A free of match fixing, hooliganism and general corruption. A World Cup win would be very nice, but it only lasts a week - it's the bread and butter league football that keeps you going through the winter. I wouldn't swap a top class Premiership for all the England World Cup wins you could imagine.

Really? I would just love us to win a world cup in my lifetime, and I'd gladly sacrifice the non atmospheric over hyped over televised Premiership for it! Pity we can't have both!

Yeah. I'd rather we won the next World Cup than anyone else. But at the end of the day, I don't actually care that much.

We have, what 8-10 England games a year. It's hard to feel any thread linking them together and I don't feel I've invested any real emotion in them. They're just an inconvenience that breaks up the season and takes players away from their clubs.

Club football's there every week, there's a momentum to the season and stories that follow on from week to week. I go to watch Walsall most weekends and invest some real energy in them (I know we're not in the Premiership, but we're part of the same overall structure). I chose which club I wanted to support, whereas my nationality was imposed on me - and, to be honest, I don't want to feel any attachment to the morons who "supported" England in Andorra. Club football's got a real sense of belonging (ok, I accept that's less true higher up the leagues) that I don't feel when watching England at all.

I used to feel exactly the same before I stupidly joined the TeamEngland bandwagon and got EnglandFans membership. Now I foolishly pay god knows how much money to watch England in home internationals (my missus would never allow me to pay to go away!) and probably because of this, I have a much bigger emotional attachment to the England team. For years I was a club-only supporter and only watched England on TV. It was still disappointing but at the end of the game you just turn the TV off and forget about it. But of course the disappointment is much more acute when you've taken time off work and paid a hefty sum for the privilege of being massively let down.

I know I'll carry on going to England games now because (mostly) it is a good experience - it makes a difference being in a stadium with some atmosphere!! But I can well understand other people turning their back on an England team who for the most part just don't deserve the support they get.

[kshammer]

Oh dear... don't dare knock Lampard cuz we all know Sheffield has feelings for him.

As for England. They're all over hyped, technically inferior to most and don't deserve to be in the Euro's. What's needed...

1. An inspirational, motivating, tactically astute manager. The England boss doesn't need to coach skills - the players should get that from their clubs. He needs to be a man they'll respect and work their bits of for.
2. The players need a kick up the backside.
3. Change the training of kids. Youngsters don't need to play on full size pitches with full sized balls or be taught set pieces. They need one touch training, small technique balls and practice in all positions. I laugh when 11 year olds are on a massive pitch trying to take corners. Oh and the parents need to stop living through their kids. Instead of shouting "get your foot in", how about cheering skill.
4. Everyone to realise this is rubbish, take it on the chin and accept this isn't the end of English football. Its a wake up call. We'll be back in tournaments and will improve. Ok we're not Brazil but we're still on okay nation. Like league teams, everyone has a poor spell. This is ours... we'll still be in major tournaments before the Jocks though.

[Neil Ravenscroft]

Match reaction

http://www.steveroy.com/walsall/

What a complete JOKE. Some of the complete tosh written in that was beyond belief.
So Michael Owen (1 year younger than Lampard) and over 30 when the next World cup takes place is finished then as well as Lampard?
Lets right everyone off over 30 shall we?

Oh, but unless your name is Beckham who has lived on a reputation for the last 2 World Cups and European Championships, who deserve a 100th cap?
So Neil, what was Beckhams contribution to our last 3 major tournments?
And last night, besides the cross to Crouch he was utterly useless.

Open your eyes.

Have you actually noticed that you are in a minority of excactly one?

[Registered Saddler]

Have you actually noticed that you are in a minority of excactly one?

He hasn't. That's why Hope keep ending up in the bottom two.

[aaaae]

What a complete JOKE. Some of the complete tosh written in that was beyond belief.
So Michael Owen (1 year younger than Lampard) and over 30 when the next World cup takes place is finished then as well as Lampard?
Lets right everyone off over 30 shall we?

Oh, but unless your name is Beckham who has lived on a reputation for the last 2 World Cups and European Championships, who deserve a 100th cap?
So Neil, what was Beckhams contribution to our last 3 major tournments?
And last night, besides the cross to Crouch he was utterly useless.

Open your eyes.

Beckham contributed far more to England during the last world cup than Lampard - simple as

[SaddlerInALabcoat]

Well we go what we deserved, you can't go winning every other game 3-0 and not turn up for the others. I'm absolutely disgusted, but now the shake up begins, I won't be shouting for McClarens head because he is gone, thats a certainty. but hey, we didn't need to qualify, we can have the home nations tournamen now at wembley and help pay for the bloody thing.

my list of candidates would be.

Wenger
Big Sam
Mark Hughes
Jose M
Martin Jol
Martin O'neill

not in that particular order, all would bring something different to the party though

Id like to see a manager of Big sam or Hughes type,

but all the fairies couldnt handle being shouted at. Spineless, gutless morons. I saw more fight in a match between Yew Tree and Silverdale.

I used to play for Silverdale when i was a young'un and it used to kick off EVERY week. I miss it.

[Neil Ravenscroft]

Have you actually noticed that you are in a minority of excactly one?

He hasn't. That's why Hope keep ending up in the bottom two.

God, he doesn't actually like them as well, does he? They are really, really crap - on a par with Bridge last night.

[KJC]

Have you actually noticed that you are in a minority of excactly one?

He hasn't. That's why Hope keep ending up in the bottom two.

God, he doesn't actually like them as well, does he? They are really, really crud - on a par with Bridge last night.

I haven't had time to read through this, or the countless other England threads, but I'm glad you've mentioned him.

Bridges performance ranks right up there (or should it be down there?) as one of the most inept full-back performances I have ever seen at any level.

[Neil Ravenscroft]

Have you actually noticed that you are in a minority of excactly one?

He hasn't. That's why Hope keep ending up in the bottom two.

God, he doesn't actually like them as well, does he? They are really, really crud - on a par with Bridge last night.

I haven't had time to read through this, or the countless other England threads, but I'm glad you've mentioned him.

Bridges performance ranks right up there (or should it be down there?) as one of the most inept full-back performances I have ever seen at any level.

I'll put the front page link back up for you, then. About the only thing that stopped Micah Richards's absentee performance at right back being the worst I've ever seen at International level is the fact that Michael Bridge's was, undoubtably, easily and ineptly the worst by far.

http://upthesaddlers.com/wp/archives/20 ... t-mcclown/