davie nine":10usuvzw said:
Metal_Green_Mickey":10usuvzw said:
Carey and Bradley will take most of the plaudits this season. Which is why for PASOTI player of the year l voted for Threkeld because of the way he filled in the both full back postions in a time of great need.
Yet there are players who will hardly get any recognition so lve started this thread so people can highlight any of the less popular Argyle players they think have had a decent season and why.
For me there is three.
Songo. One image in my head sums this guy up for me. It's the last few minutes at Doncaster and he is the man blocking a shot that is about to get fired at goal. In fact he is often then man who tries to get a block in or a header. He heads it the wrong way at times, he slices his kicks wildly and his feet seem a little uncoordinated when defending but he gives everything he has got. For a man who didn't play much football the season before and has been a bit part player in other teams we have got something more out of him than maybe our expectations should have allowed us to believe.
Smith. If it wasn't for injuries we would have seen him more. Just when he had his best game for Argyle, against Stevenage at HP, he got injuried in a committed tackle. The guy seems better in a more central midfield birth where he can roam than a defensive holding midfield slot. He has an engine on him which is why Adams has used him recently in the Portsmouth game because "he has the legs to close down the space". He can also shoot as demonstrated against Portsmouth at HP for the last minute equaliser.
Slew. My Dad calls him the journeyman. Personally since Kennedy has come on he has found it very hard to get in the side. Yet Kennedy, before, Newport, had a number of indifferent games and was harsh on Slew not to see return to the side. The left side of midfield l don't think is his best position but for three quarters of the season he was asked to do a job there. He was always comitted to the cause and whilst lacking some of the skill set you require from a wide man he still managed to make a contribution. More so, you have to remember his work-rate where he often by tracking back helping his fellow full back out. Another guy who hasnt really established himself recently in any team but actually has played a vital role in the way we set up and play.
Looking at the praise that you're handing out to 3 of the less 'heralded' players, Mark, you've already recognised Bradley, Carey and Threlkeld's contributions, and I will add McCormick, Fox and Jervis to the list without including any of the January acquisitions, it is amazing that, for most of the season, you have considered us only playoff prospects.
Now we are automatically promoted with 3 games to play and still with a chance of being champions.
Obviously, we have been very lucky.
Ok. Last time on this one because I've tried to explain why I said what I did.
Back at the start of the season there was a thread about where do you think we will finish. After witnessing pre-season and the changes Adams had in place I stated I thought we would finish top 3. Its there in black n white.
However, I always need 10 to 15 games to grasp a real feel for an Argyle team. Around that period I we were having a good run. However, what I saw in terms of a performance on the pitch didn't feel for me to be a top 3 material side. So unlike a number of people I made a judgement call back in October/November and I stuck to it.
Now what I don't get is I was hardly calling the team s***. I have my opinions on players and the ones you have mentioned, especially Jervis, I have praised. McCormick for example has had good games but he has also had a number of poor ones too. For me, he doesn't command his box at times which sees Argyle a little too deep. However, he normally is a very decent shot stopper.
Anyhow, people kept changing their mind about the team on here. I however stuck with what I thought based on watching every home league game and a number away. The results for me where better than the performances and too many times I came away thinking how on earth did we win that game. I couldn't see us finishing top 3 because I felt the way we performed was too inconsistent to keep obtaining the results. However, I was proved wrong and we did.
Yet when I said we would finish in the playoffs I was talking about 3-4 wins short of where we are now. eg a Luton position. So in no terms was I saying this team were truly awful but that I just didn't think they had the extra difference you need to find to be a top 3 side, and not a playoff one. Again I was wrong.
I could of changed my opinion like the wind, like a number of people do. I just stuck by my gut feeling and luckily I was wrong. Yet I stand by the fact the football, especially at Home, has been poor. That there hasn't been enough quality on show. I don't like seeing Argyle play in the negative manner it seems to have to at times, to get a result. Morecambe was prime example. Very decent 20 minutes spell in the first half but the whole of the second half was woeful and dire.
Anyhow, that's why I said what I did and to me I cant be happier I am wrong. However, I'm not going to lie about what I've witnessed this season and there are times the football hasn't improved from some of the rubbish Sheridan served up at home a few years before. However, there have been spells in matches this season where the football has been very good and been some of the best we have seen for a while. The problem being they last for 20 mins spells and the other 70mins or so we seem to be hanging on somewhat. For example, the Portsmouth game away. Great first 20 mins. The next 70mins we sat back and couldn't get out of own half. Now you might say this is the game plan but I'm sure part of the game plan wasn't to pass it as poorly as we did and leave Taylor so isolated on his own that he had no support.
