U's v Luton - Darler v Emma is no contest

[BelizeHatter]

Elliot Lee must feel marginalised.

 

[BelizeHatter]

We're gutless when the chips are down. No heart all flair. Will struggle at the next level - if we don't blow it. Next weekend is huge and im confident we will bottle that. Can't see a win at all

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

We're gutless when the chips are down. No heart all flair. Will struggle at the next level - if we don't blow it. Next weekend is huge and im confident we will bottle that. Can't see a win at all

This is my feeling tonight to be honest, feeling frustrated by us. Im getting a bit concerned looking at the big games coming up knowing we are mentally fragile and likely to shoot ourselves in the foot in them. The bad thing is that Jones doesn't seem to know how to get us over the hump with this sort of thing.

Next week is a big game, so you know we are going to mess it up, its just how. My money is on Stech dropping a cross in his own net, and Hylton red card to lay the ground work for fucking up the equally big Coventry game.

 

[Maple Hatter]

Despite his goals I just get the impression he isn’t happy and hasn’t quite fitted in. Everything he does is just... awkward. Don’t know but something seems to be frustrating him about how we play and I think that is the root of today’s idiocy.

Another who doesn’t look like he is fitting in is Jervis. Not sure what that signing was all about to be honest, looks way below the level let alone League 1 quality.

Couldn't agree more about Collins. Looks frustrated which you can see be his reaction to not getting the ball even when his teammates are in a better position and quite rightly has an attempt at goal. Having a moan at Hylton in the first half for example when Hylts had a cracking run and shot just wide. In his defence you can say that he loves scoring goals and he has gpt his fair share this season. Goals apart though he isn't a player you notice much on the pitch. Even with the absence of Hylton of late he has failed to take the leading role. As for Jervis I don't know what he brings to the team. He has failed to impress in any of his appearances this season and is clearly not the standard of forward we should be looking at. The annoying fact yesterday and not for the first time is how easily he is knocked off the ball for such a big man. Cambridges big men in comparison used their physical presence to unsettle our defence. They lacked a finish however thankfully for us. Jervis reminds me of the type of signings we made in the conference and seems a bit desperate. Not a NJ type of signing really. Hope his contract is a short one.

 

[Laker]

Was a good game in front of a decent atmosphere. Luton bossed the first half and really should have been more than one up, though they didn’t create that many opportunities besides the goal. I was a bit frustrated by the goal as I thought Forde should have pushed it wide (this is what we criticised Chris Dunn for a few seasons ago).

Second half started in the same way but we got more into it as it went on and the red card was like a birthday present, I’m not sure we would have got an equaliser if it wasn’t for that - totally changed the game.

Great to see Jabo get a goal on his return though god knows how his shot in the goal mouth scramble didn’t go in to win it. I’m not disappointed as we didn’t deserve the win but it would have been very lovely..... ;-)

Quick point, I found a lot of gamesmanship from Luton’s players particularly in the first half which was reminiscent of Wycombe - the left back Potts went down in front of us holding his ankle and rolling around after a good challenge, claiming injury/a free kick yet seconds later he was up and running around like nothing happened. Collins fell over towards our penalty box when there was barely a challenge and won a free kick, again holding his ankle in apparent agony yet was up seconds later. Hylton and Berry (surprisingly - what have you done to him?!?) spent the whole game in the ref’s ear trying to get our players booked. It’s not what I remember from the Luton side which came up with us or in their first season or two in League 2 - you’ve changed and it’s not good. :-(

For me, our weakness was laid bare yesterday - all of our midfielders were dreadful when it was 11 v 11. Jevani, Elito and O’Neil were anonymous, while Deegan kept getting caught in possession or giving it away. Amoo looked good off the bench and Maris looked more lively (though it was blusto rather than skill with him) than Elito and O’Neil. Deegan only looked good when we had an extra man and Jevani still didn’t really get into the game. Defensively we did ok against a good forward line and up front I thought Ikpeazu was a handful all afternoon - he’d be worth millions if he could shoot.

Anyway, decent point and nice to put the 7-0 behind us with a good restorative performance.

Edit: also well done to Ian Darler and his team for getting the game on at all. The pitch was pretty decent (as it always is under his care). Nice touch to give him the man of the match award.

 

[Kenneth E End]

Wow... looking at some of the responses above, it's like we're scrapping to escape relegation.

We're top of the league with change. Relax. We're still in a better position than everyone else. 4th place now need to gain 1 point per game to stop us getting promoted, which is all that matters. That is a massive benchmark.

Win next Saturday, at home, against a team we've already beaten this season and we go back to 2 points a game which no team has really come close to replicating and also become massive favourites to win the league (we already are massive favourites, but even more so).

We're not playing great at the moment, granted but there is a lot of quality in this side. We're also not having a lot of luck with decisions, in the last 2 games. Luck evens itself out.

 

[Kenneth E End]

Quick point, I found a lot of gamesmanship from Luton’s players particularly in the first half which was reminiscent of Wycombe - the left back Potts went down in front of us holding his ankle and rolling around after a good challenge, claiming injury/a free kick yet seconds later he was up and running around like nothing happened. Collins fell over towards our penalty box when there was barely a challenge and won a free kick, again holding his ankle in apparent agony yet was up seconds later. Hylton and Berry (surprisingly - what have you done to him?!?) spent the whole game in the ref’s ear trying to get our players booked. It’s not what I remember from the Luton side which came up with us or in their first season or two in League 2 - you’ve changed and it’s not good. :-(

I'm not having this. Wycombe we're genuinely doing it from the first minute.

On Potts - yes he can be cheeky at the best of times, but he was clearly caught by that challenge. It was dangerous; the Cambridge player flew in.

Don't understand the comment on Berry - he was outstanding yesterday and ran the midfield.

Hylton getting involved with referees - well I never!

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

Yes in my defence I’d had a few to drink and was feeling somewhat reactionary last night! Think we’ve all been there! Just frustrated by the day and another wasted opportunity by us.

Collins is always in the refs ear, but Berry was about the ref yesterday because Deegan in particular was absolutely battering him for much of the game. He was playing well and running the game but was getting no protection from the ref. Could understand his frustration. He isn’t normally like that. Jones made the point that if by the letter of the law Collins has to be sent off for what he did (which I agree with, he should have) then by the letter of the law Deegan should be gone too given the amount of times he’s fouled in the game. Not much point booking a player for consistent fouling if he continues to consistently foul! His yellow should have come earlier for me too but I’m bias of course.

We arent Wycombe level but we do push the boundaries in terms of that and it shows up in the number of cards we have. Like I said above Jones needs to have a look at our discipline, it’s been poor since he has been manager and cost us yesterday.

 

[Arbury]

Fuck me, if That’s a championship winning side then there’s hope for us all yet!!

Thought we started the game better, couple shots/half chances but as the half went on Luton saw more of the ball but I never felt it was backs to the wall stuff, thought defensively we coped quite well but they got a chance and took it.

2nd half started in the same vein but was hoping dunne was going to make the changes sooner than he did, that midfield of Deegan, O’Neil, Brown and elito just doesn’t work, not in that diamond anyway, as soon as the changes were made we became more positive plus with the sending off(what a prat) we sensed the game could be won, Just needed a few more mins but it wasn’t to be.

Overall I’m pleased with us, we’ve definitely turned into a more positive side but that midfield needs some work.

Disappointed we didn’t test the Luton keeper more as he looked dodgy but wtf have you done to berry, he was constantly moaning, just play the game and let the ref do his job, can see why Collins got sent off, bet the ref was sick of the moaning.

I hope you Bedford lot go up automatically because you definitely haven’t got it in you for the play offs!

KTF

 

[Habbinalan]

I think it's almost all been said.

When we didn't score in that first 15-20 minute spell, I predicted 0-1 by half time. The diamond didn't doesn't work offensively but restricts teams like Lu'on and Notts better and higher up the field than 2 holding midfield - so has become our default when not going gung ho. Individually they struggled against a table topping midfield but did their best and stuck at it.

D'Ath going off seemed to play a big part in Lu'on's revival - Gambin was impressive and Berry looked good at the top of the diamond. Fortunately Deegan did what Deegan does, including ensuring steel and effort in the rest of the team as well as putting in the odd enforcer tackle. I couldn't see us getting back into it and feared conceding more when we inevitably went for it in the last 20 minutes - but instead they lost the plot, panicked, chased and harangued the ref and gifted us the initiative.

If only we had a finisher starting regularly. Pity the chances don't seem to be falling for Waters. We can look forward to some more decent games over the remainder of the season, with no pressure as we're only headed for the mid-table title. Hopefully we can see a bit more of Jabo and a few more goals. I guess we'll be dependent on the cups for our regular outing against the new enemy from next season. Even with Jones floundering, top 3 should be a shoo in. We'll see if we can help the cause at Wycombe next weekend.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=1564006933715081

 

[Maple Hatter]

Wow... looking at some of the responses above, it's like we're scrapping to escape relegation.

We're top of the league with change. Relax. We're still in a better position than everyone else. 4th place now need to gain 1 point per game to stop us getting promoted, which is all that matters. That is a massive benchmark.

Win next Saturday, at home, against a team we've already beaten this season and we go back to 2 points a game which no team has really come close to replicating and also become massive favourites to win the league (we already are massive favourites, but even more so).

We're not playing great at the moment, granted but there is a lot of quality in this side. We're also not having a lot of luck with decisions, in the last 2 games. Luck evens itself out.

I think its frustration at the performances we've been putting in of late. One win in four and not beating teams who are mid table with not a lot to play for. Its not just that decisions are going against us its down also to our lack of discipline which we need at this stage of the season. Our frustration is shared by NJ. If you listen to his interiew he has highlighted many of the concerns we've voiced. Of coure we are still in pole postion and it would take a catastrophic run to drop out of the top three. The fact that a lot of teams in the promotion and play off places are playing eachother makes it more difficult for the chasing pack. That said there is always one team to come out of the pack and put together a fantastic run. Doncaster looked odds on last season for the title but were pipped by Portsmouth who timed their form to perfection. Personally I'm not fussed at winning the title, although it would be a shame if we didn't bearing in mind we've been top for most of the season. Getting out of league 2 is the only priority so that we can press on with our longer term plans.

 

[BelizeHatter]

Let's not kid ourselves. We're top and clear by effective seven points because everyone else is pretty shit. We're ok. Good when on song and been very good a few times but against terrible tactical setups that we basically ripped apart at the end when they just gave up. Anyone with some spine bottle and balls has given us big problems we can't overcome. When it's time to stand up we can't. We sit too deep can't hold the ball and take the pressure off and just fold more often than not. We'll likely go up, but we're a soft touch for anyone with any tactical nouse. Stanley would pip us if they had depth and might anyway. I do expect them to beat us next weekend.

Jervis looks awful. Plymouth fans laughed at us signing him and I can see why. E Lee must be gutted. Collins has been accurately assessed above. Defensively fragile and sit way way too deep when under the cosh - and that's Jones fault. There was forty yards between Jervis and the nearest other Hatter once down to ten. Sheehan has been head and shoulders above and beyond anyone lately but still there's always space and gaps for someone to nip in and invariably head an equaliser. Frustrating times even tho we are top

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

I think its frustration at the performances we've been putting in of late. One win in four and not beating teams who are mid table with not a lot to play for. Its not just that decisions are going against us its down also to our lack of discipline which we need at this stage of the season. Our frustration is shared by NJ. If you listen to his interiew he has highlighted many of the concerns we've voiced. Of coure we are still in pole postion and it would take a catastrophic run to drop out of the top three. The fact that a lot of teams in the promotion and play off places are playing eachother makes it more difficult for the chasing pack. That said there is always one team to come out of the pack and put together a fantastic run. Doncaster looked odds on last season for the title but were pipped by Portsmouth who timed their form to perfection. Personally I'm not fussed at winning the title, although it would be a shame if we didn't bearing in mind we've been top for most of the season. Getting out of league 2 is the only priority so that we can press on with our longer term plans.

Ill preface by saying that this is probably an unpopular view but personally ill be disappointed if we dont win the league.

We have been so good this season, id hate to see us limp over the line having shown what we can do earlier in the season. Especially as the investment this season has been excellent from the board and we have been top majority of the way through the season. Be delighted to go up obviously, but you play and watch to see your team win leagues. Lets face it, and this probably a very arrogant view, but given the payers we have brought in to be pipped to the title by albeit excellently run and managed Accrington side for instance would be a bit of a disappointment.

I realise thats a ridiculous standard to set "win the league or ill be disappointed", almost worthy of contempt you would give fans of the big Premier League sides who heaven forbid go a whole season without winning a major trophy, but given how the season has gone so far, I cant lie id have a funny taste in the mouth if we get pipped to the league.

And also, perhaps a somewhat controversial opinion amongst Luton fans. I think League 1 is probably the limit of our ambitions for a while, at least until we get the new stadium and can push on financially off the pitch from that. So could be the last time for a good while before we win something again.

 

[oakroader]

 

[Habbinalan]

 

[Maple Hatter]

Ill preface by saying that this is probably an unpopular view but personally ill be disappointed if we dont win the league.

We have been so good this season, id hate to see us limp over the line having shown what we can do earlier in the season. Especially as the investment this season has been excellent from the board and we have been top majority of the way through the season. Be delighted to go up obviously, but you play and watch to see your team win leagues. Lets face it, and this probably a very arrogant view, but given the payers we have brought in to be pipped to the title by albeit excellently run and managed Accrington side for instance would be a bit of a disappointment.

I realise thats a ridiculous standard to set "win the league or ill be disappointed", almost worthy of contempt you would give fans of the big Premier League sides who heaven forbid go a whole season without winning a major trophy, but given how the season has gone so far, I cant lie id have a funny taste in the mouth if we get pipped to the league.

And also, perhaps a somewhat controversial opinion amongst Luton fans. I think League 1 is probably the limit of our ambitions for a while, at least until we get the new stadium and can push on financially off the pitch from that. So could be the last time for a good while before we win something again.

Promotion has always been the goal this season anything else is a bonus. I think the pressure on us has grown as the season has progressed. No secret that teams try that bit harder when they play the team who are top and so it should be. The club deserves to win the title especially the board who have done everything asked of them. I think league one is quite an open league and we have every chance of finishing in the top half (at least) should we go up next year. None of the teams who went up last season are going to be relegated and Plymouth even find themselves in the play offs. We know the play offs are a lottery so anthing can happen, although consolidation would be the main aim. Now if we end up in the championship before the new stadium is built then we would come straight back down or survive a relegation fight at best. In the longer term when everything is in place our ambition should be to become and established Championship team which without being arrogant is where I feel we belong (based on history, traditon and potential).

 

[Vanni]

I was going to put this in the delusional manager thread, but kinda felt sorry for Nathan so I'm posting my thoughts here instead. Anyway, we all know he's also quite delusional just like all managers are after all.

On Collins's first yellow, the hand ball one - 'He's not tried to deceive anyone' What else was he trying to do then Nathan? Stopping the ball from going out of play and perhaps save us all a few seconds?

On Collins second yellow for dissent - 'after making a mistake himself(he's talking about the ref here) in giving a corner when it was clearly a goal kick, if that had happened (the ref giving a goal kick) than the other incident wouldn't have happened'. It wasn't CLEARLY a goal kick, in fact it was clearly a corner and the ref made the right call.

Then he also says something about our players committing 18 fouls (16 in fact, same number of fouls his lot committed) and Greg Deagan getting booked but I'm afraid he had lost me by then and I don't know what point he was trying to make.

 

[Kenneth E End]

t wasn't CLEARLY a goal kick, in fact it was clearly a corner and the ref made the right call.

It clearly came off Greg Taylor's head. I could see it from where I was sitting.

 

[Laker]

It clearly came off Greg Taylor's head. I could see it from where I was sitting.

120 yards away?

 

[Kenneth E End]

Something that hasn't really been mentioned yet - what a remarkable job the groundsmen did with that pitch. It was in terrific condition; it was almost like it had no snow on it whatsoever!

 

[Bosox]

This is absolutley tragic, treating a draw against a team in your own division (who only had 10 men) like you've beaten Man Utd:

https://twitter.com/CambridgeUtdFC/status/970600647845404672



They even went ALL CAPS

 

[Laker]

This is absolutley tragic, treating a draw against a team in your own division (who only had 10 men) like you've beaten Man Utd:

https://twitter.com/CambridgeUtdFC/status/970600647845404672



They even went ALL CAPS

Yeah that’s pretty bad. You should stick it in be tinpot thread, happy to endorse that. I mean, seriously?