DOWN TO EARTH WITH A BANG!
RHYL 1 (Jones 42)
WELSHPOOL TOWN 2 (Rogers 15, Roberts 48)
LEAGUE CUP GROUP 5
IT was certainly a case of "Following the Chain-Wearing Figurehead's Bash" for Rhyl tonight as they crashed to a shock defeat at the hands of Welshpool in the League Cup.
Showing five changes from the team which thrashed Llanelli 5-1 on Saturday, the Lilywhites had one of those nights where nothing went right.
It must be said that second-choice keeper Paul Pritchard was at fault for both goals and perhaps galling that arguably the best performer on the pitch and the scorer of the winner was a player Rhyl released - Paul Roberts.
Jittery from the off, the Lilies were making errors from the start. In the seventh minute an awful misjudgement from Paul O'Neill let in Steve Rogers. As Rogers switched feet it looked like O'Neill might have been guilty of handball, but the striker got his shot in and Pritchard was able to save.
The warning signs were there and on 15 minutes a terrible clearance from Pritchard fell to Rogers who simply stroked the ball into an empty net.
Rhyl thought they had equalised when Jamie Reed rose with keeper Andy Mulliner to meet a Craig Jones cross and the ball ended up in the net.
It appeared the goal had been given, even though it seemed Mulliner had been barged off the ball, but referee Huw Jones changed his mind on the guidance of an assistant.
Welshpool should have gone 2-0 up when Craig Wilkinson's cross from the right picked out Rogers totally unmarked but he headed over.
A minute later Rhyl were level when Reed's strike was blocked but Jones was following up to drive home powerfully from 15 yards.
The hosts began the second half on fire and it appeared they were going to take the visitors apart. Josh Johnson's brilliant pass found Reed whose chip was off target. Reed, who had a disappointing night, then miscued from close range.
A nasty shock was around the corner for the Lilies as on 48 minutes Andy Davies' neat pass found Roberts in far too much space and Pritchard did a poor job of narrowing the angle, allowing the ex-Bangor, Porthmadog and Rhyl striker to make it 2-1.
After that it was mainly all Rhyl possession, but Welshpool did a good job closing them down, restricting them to very few clear chances.
Mulliner made a good stop from a deflected Greg Strong shot and he also held a late Johnson effort, while Roberts went very close to a third at the other end.
Did Rhyl pay the price tonight for not picking their strongest side? Maybe, but this result will certainly be a wake-up call and they must pick up the momentum for their visit to Porthmadog on Friday.
RHYL: Pritchard, Stones, C Roberts (Connolly 76), O'Neil, Horan (Strong 49), Williams (Kelly 68), Wilson, Johnson, Reed, C Owen, Jones.
MATCH FACTS
GOALS - Rhyl 1 Welshpool 2
ATTEMPTS - Rhyl 15 Welshpool 6
ON TARGET - Rhyl 4 Welshpool 3
CORNERS - Rhyl 13 Welshpool 0
YELLOW CARDS - Rhyl 0 Welshpool 1
RED CARDS - Rhyl 0 Welshpool 0
ATTENDANCE - 296
MAN OF THE MATCH:
Josh Johnson (Rhyl)
Dynamic down the left.
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The players who are not usual first team choices were poor last night. Pritchard was a calamity, O'Neill shaky, Wilson out of sorts, Chris Roberts erratic and Carl Owen ineffective. Kelly also looked poor when he came on. I'm wondering how strong the squad is - I know our best TEAM is awesome but what about the squad. Welshpool did ok, smash and grab raid and did their job well no qualms about the result but I don't think losing any game is healthy and let's hope we can bounce back against Port.
Disappointing to say the least, didn't think I would be a grump this season but five games in here goes.
Paul Pritchard - poor, seemed to panic especially when kicking, so much so the defence lost confidence in him and rarely risked a back pass.
Chris Roberts - looks the part going forward as far as the half way line then runs out of ideas, did nothing to enhance a claim for a regular start.
Gareth Wilson - no energy, passing dreadful, shooting wayward and not capable of putting foot on the ball and creating anything.
Danny Williams - for me the real concern, is one paced, barely covers any ground, seems to be carrying an injury (back possibly) from Wrexham days?
Read and Owen - too much of a likeness, without Neil Roberts alongside were clueless. Tried far to many flicks and were intent on trying to turn Timmy Edwards were 'easy meat' for the veteran defender.
I agree with Toss the main 12/13 players are excellent but the rest sub standard I'm afraid. On a final positive not well done to Josh Johnson he was excellent his play deserved a goal
I didn't see the game, but it's unlikely that the individual players are the difference. Most of these "squad" players are hardly inferior to those in the first team. GK - fair enough, an individual makes a difference but only because we only scored one goal. CB - only a few weeks ago that George was making mistakes and O'Neill keeping him out of the team. Kelly has been touted as our best player over the last year with everyone lamenting his injury. Willo was our most effective player against Bohemian. Carl Owen has played quite a part in the 3 league games of the "awesome" first team. I'm sure that Conno is a better option at FB than Chris Roberts, but Conno has not been the most infuential part of the "awesome"team in the last fortnight. So, I think we're missing the point if we believe that these "squad" players are vastly inferior to their "first-team" counterparts.
Two other possibilities are that all footballers - especially the better ones - relish a challenge. They were well up for it against Llanelli, were they last night ? Secondly, and more worryingly, are we very dependent on injury-prone Neil Roberts and 48-yr-old Gareth Owen to set up and link up moves ? If so, ensure that always one of them is playing.
btw JDH, who are the 12/13 who are excellent then ? You're not happy with Pritch, Chris, Willo, Danny Wms, Reed and Carl Owen. TOC has added that O'Neill is "shaky" and Kelly "poor"
That only leaves 10 of the squad on whom you can be agreed and maybe you're not sure of all of those !
Here's my 2pennyworth - based on the limited match-time I've seen :
Kendall - best in the league, just accept that he makes occasional mistakes and has a few off-days
Strong - Surname says it all. Experience and a threat in the boxat set-pieces for the first time since Timmy & Brewi partnership
Horan - Generally sound, quick and effective. Had a bad 2 months from mid-June to mid-Aug
O'Neill - Very good WPL defender tho the best strikers (like Hunt did) can get past him
Willo - Great WPL defensive midfielder. Not perfect but great to have in the squad and by far the best bet for captain IF he were to be certain of his place in the team
Chris Roberts - Were we not short of FBs, he might have left. Difficult to figure out - has some magical days but not a midfielder nor really a wing-back and defenc=sive frailties.
Conno - the best signing this summer (after Neil R) was his decision to stay. Only difficulty finding his best position. Would be best as lampard-style midfielder if he could shoot more accurately. Very useful as wing-back.
Kelly - not really seen enough of him, but those who have see him as hugely influential
Danny Wms - idea is that his defensive control allows Gareth Owen to get forward. That's not the sort of quality you really notice, and Gareth has certainly had the chance to get forward. Wrexham fans complained that he was slow.
Neil Roberts - Performs the "moran" role of linking up attacks with a far higher level of skill. Wins everything in the air also to set things up. Scores spectacular goals. Dunno if we does the simple ones consistently
Jamie Reed - His excellent movement is his great strength and combines well with Robbo. Still have the initial doubt that he's not a clinical finisher. Could end up wide in 4-3-3 or even as an attacking midfielder
Mathew Wiliams - None of us have seen enough of him. One magical turn in the box against Oldham. Is he too similar to Reed ? No idea til we see more of him.
Carl Owen - Reasonable in the air, intelligent, good shot but not consistently so. Great asset as a 4th striker to cover for injuries, but will a player who would be No. 1 at many WPL clubs settle for that ?
Craig Jones - Brilliant winger and intelligent team-player. A bit more shooting practice would make him the all-round attacking footballer.
Josh - Speed, flashes of great skill, inconsistency..I haven't seen enough
Pritch - Don't understand. He always played well against us. Few games in the Reserves might help. Does he still live up in Blackpool ? Long way to travel to constantly warm a bench.
Gareth Owen - absolute revelation. Looks like he's come straight from a League 1 Wrexham, incredible to believe that he's been stuck on deeside for 4 years. Not just skill but also bursts of energy and pace even.
Greg Stones - Was trying to work out in summer what was his best position. CB or midfielder getting forward for crosses from the wingers (as in Klaipeda) ? At the time, I'd have put left-back just behind centre-forward and just before GK as his best position. Still get the impression that he's filling a gap.
Great isn't it, that we all have our personal assesments, and none of us will agree ! Whichever of the 11 start against Port, they'd better make sure they're well up for it.
C'mon gents, let's keep the negativity pills in the draw to at least October. This was 3 days after, arguably, Rhyl's best team performance in decades. I still maintain any member of this squad would walk into any other WPL side. The standard has been raised, and with it, expectation levels have been siginificantly upped. Keep the faith.
Toss & JDH, where do u watch the action at BV?
What a great result for us on Tuesday. After our dodgy start to the season that was just what we needed to get us going. Was really pleased with our defence recovering from the Newtown game. Thought you dominated the game and can only remember Rogers effort in the opening few minutes that was blocked when he looked offside and our 2 well taken goals as efforts on target. The winger Johnson looks a good signing and thought him and O’Neal were your best players on the night. Just been reading the match report online, was the guy who wrote it even at the game? Paul Roberts the best player on the pitch? Other than his goal he barely got a kick all night. Big Timmy Edwards or Andy Mulliner would have been my choices. Rhyl are still my picks to win the league but hopefully we can have a good run in the cup starting by beating you again at maesydre! All the best for the season.
Seems my comments have stirred up a few people from the euphoria of the Llanelli win.
Ioio - The 12/13 I am comforable with are:
Kendall, Connolly, Horan, Strong, Stones, Johnson, Kelly, Owen, Jones, Read, Williams, Roberts, K. Owen. (I like Read and Owen my point was not in the team at the same time, too much of a muchness)
The 4 I am still not sure about are:
Williams, Wilson, Pritchard and Roberts.
Wob - I sit in the George James stand.
Ioio - Unfortunately its a fact link up play revolves around Gareth Owen and Neil Roberts, early doors in the season and its obvious that if neither play we resort to the quick ball forward and Craig Jones gets a dose of starvation pills!
Wob - I agree mate its far to early to start worrying but we have to beat the likes of Welshpool not just raise our games against the 'big boys'
JDH, you speak much sense as normal. We just need to keep patient and realise, at this level, we're not going to play like we did on Saturday every game. I just can't see how we're going to draft players into the squad (of a similar quality to the first teamers) who would be prepared to sit on the bench.
I sometimes patrol the George James Stand. Lanky, beard & glasses. Come over and say hello pal.
I agree Wob, but if the coaching staff are in agreement on a style of play home or away, then the entire squad regardless of who is selected must have the ability to adapt and play as instructed. My observation after Tueday night was that my feeling is that certain players do not have that ability?
Welshpoolexile:
In reply to your insulting comment, yes I was at the game. I am at most Rhyl matches in my capacity as sports editor for the local newspaper and editor of the blog Lilywhites Online.
If I hadn't been at the game do you think I could have written such a detailed report to include match facts etc?
Football is all about opinions and just because yours doesn't correspond with mine doesn't mean I "wasn't at the game". I felt Paul Roberts took his goal well, went close to scoring a second and his running off the ball, chasing back and general sharpness made him a good player on the night. I also used the term "arguably" the best player on the pitch and in doing so was not stating he actually was man of the match but certainly a contender. My experienced colleague in the press box also felt Roberts had a fine game.
You think Andy Mulliner was a MoM contender? Well, Rhyl had 4 shots on target, one of those was a goal, the other two were straightforward saves and there was one apparent good save from a deflected effort which I thought was more a case of the ball hitting Mulliner rather than him making a wonder stop. He's been a good keeper for some time but man of the match? I might ask you "were you even at the game?" but I wouldn't be so disrespecful.
I welcome opinions on all my reports, criticism is healthy and evokes interesting debate, but I felt I had to respond to someone querying whether I was at the match rather than cribbing together a report on hearsay. I'm one of the few North Wales based reporters that actually does get out to matches, that is possibly why I and this blog has won awards.
I agree, a great win for Welshpool on Tuesday and a very good, committed performance. Any team with Terry Boyle and Tomi Morgan as motivators will never go far wrong.
I can't say the other night concerned me particularly. We made 5 changes, bossed the game but didn't take our chances. Gifted them the opener and then conceded early in the 2nd half and they defended very deteminedly and held on.
Yes we missed Robbo and Gaz Owen and I agree with JDH that perhaps a couple of the players struggle to play the style of football thats being asked of them, but I'd say its unlikely that we'll have to make 5 changes in one game during the league campaign and bringing in the likes of Gaz Wilson and Carl owen isn't going to change the style of the side too much
Many apologies Dave I can clearly tell by your passionate response that you were at the game. My comments came about after reading your report. Not just regarding Roberts but also the fact that you failed to mention a major incident in the potentially serious injury to our main striker Rogers who was dominating the aerial battle with Horan and looking very dangerous. Surely this had an impact on the game and was worthy of mention? Roberts dropping into midfield and narrowing opposing teams passing angles is nothing new. You may have not seen this side of his game at Rhyl as he didn’t play much but he has done that in previous games for us, but as for him chasing and tackling back I didn’t see much evidence of that. My comments regarding Mulliner’s performance were not simply based on the important saves he made but his coming for crosses when we were under pressure and his kicks barring one wayward one found their target on Rogers head until he was stretchered off. However I appreciate that maybe as a Welshpool fan I noticed this more than you may have. Clearly you are a dedicated and experienced journalist and I should not have questioned your attendance regardless of my conflicting views on your report. As you say football is all about opinions and I didn’t mean to cause any offence whatsoever. Congratulations on all your awards you’re doing a great service to non-league football long may it continue.
Thanks Welshpoolexile and you're right the injury to Rogers was a major incident and was more than worthy of mention. I hope he recovers well, he's been a great servant down the years and I was delighted he recently reached 100 WPL goals. Yes, I see your points about Mulliner and his all round game, although saveswise it wasn't his busiest night, the fact Rhyl had so many corners for one thing proves other aspects of his game were called upon such as catching and handling. I don't mind you or anyone else criticising my reports, it was the suggestion that I might not have been there which I felt the need to respond to. No offence taken, good luck for the rest of the season.