That's more like it. Not outstanding, and Rovers were poor, but we deserved our win. Surely now relegation isn't happening.
Better teams might have punished us for this, but I really liked our fluidity. The 4-2-2-2 which we employed did mean that we saw less of the ball than we might have done in a 3-5-2, but the tactic which saw us find space in attack was clever from Lowe - especially down our left.
Whilst Lewis was playing at left back, he would charge forward when we were in possession, overlapping both Grant and Mayor. Grant would then immediately drop in and cover the space at left back if we lost the ball. Rovers couldn't deal with this, meaning that we were constantly creating overloads and opportunities to drive into the box / put crosses in. I'm glad that Lowe has finally realised that playing 2 DM's makes it a lot easier to slot in and cover for a full back / wing back caught high up the pitch when we lose possession.
Rovers had a lot of shots, but very few of them - other than a shot that was going wide before hitting a Rovers player and forcing Cooper into an excellent save - were particularly threatening. A few small scrambles in the box, but we put our bodies on the line and defended them well.
Criticism where it's due (the past few weeks), and also credit where it's due - this was a good response from Lowe and the players. Obviously it'll be good to build on this, but next week will be tough.
Cooper 6 - one excellent save previously mentioned, but his command of area was a little mixed - I appreciate there were often numerous bodies in the way but his punching wasn't up to his normal standard. One in particular in the first half where he punched it straight to a Rovers player 20 yards out was poor.
Edwards 7 - as is often the case, a lot of the play (both attacking and defensively) was concentrated down our left side, and Edwards-Fornah-Camara weren't quite as adept at creating overloads as the other side were. However, defensively he was very good.
Aimson 7 - much more suited to the orthodox centre-back role compared to RCB in a 3 on this viewing. He no longer had the responsibility of driving forward with the ball or making difficult passes, and as a result this was his best game for a while. One good block on the line albeit the ball might have just been drifting wide.
Opoku 7 - defensively excellent, gave their number 9 a thoroughly frustrating afternoon by giving him so little, however, he made one or two dodgy fouls after his yellow. I think Kettle was right not to send him off, but on another day, with another ref (Sarginson, Hooper, Huxtable) he could have gone. We'll miss him these next 2 games.
Lewis 7 - has anyone seen this guy and Andy Kellett in the same room at the same time? Defensively he wasn't good at all - his marking is awful, time and again he (after getting back into a reasonable position) would let his man get in behind. However, two superb assists and constantly provided good overlaps for Mayor when he drifted inside.
Fornah 6 - very weak header attempt which he completely missed inside the first few minutes for a Rovers chance, but actually did well after that - the odd bad pass aside. It certainly helped him having another DM alongside.
Grant 7 - an all-round good game, passed it well and covered for Lewis very well defensively.
Camara 7 - as always, fantastic pressing. With the security of 2 DM's behind him he was able to press even higher up the pitch, and denied Rovers time on the ball. His passing was a little better too - his best game in a while.
Mayor 8 - when Lewis wasn't overlapping, Mayor could drift wide, and as I mentioned in an earlier piece, this allowed him to run at defenders 1-on-1 or suck defenders in and create space for others in central areas. He seemed to be constantly getting away from defenders with a clever feint or turn - if there's a better dribbler at this level, I haven't seen him yet.
Jephcott 6 - better. We got bodies closer to him which helped, but his hold up and link up play in its own right was improved too. Still won't happen for him in front of goal, and if Hardie impresses next week than LJ might struggle to get back in.
Ennis 9 - what a player. Every single aspect of his game yesterday was just superb. His second goal was an excellent finish, the first one easier but he had to be there. His ability to dribble past defenders was excellent, and perhaps most impressive, his ability to hold off defenders and shield the ball was like having peak Reuben Reid / Ryan Taylor back in the side. Feet on the ground time as he is still young and may be inconsistent, but blimey we could have a player on our hands here.
Subs: Hardie 6, Moore n/a.
Better teams might have punished us for this, but I really liked our fluidity. The 4-2-2-2 which we employed did mean that we saw less of the ball than we might have done in a 3-5-2, but the tactic which saw us find space in attack was clever from Lowe - especially down our left.
Whilst Lewis was playing at left back, he would charge forward when we were in possession, overlapping both Grant and Mayor. Grant would then immediately drop in and cover the space at left back if we lost the ball. Rovers couldn't deal with this, meaning that we were constantly creating overloads and opportunities to drive into the box / put crosses in. I'm glad that Lowe has finally realised that playing 2 DM's makes it a lot easier to slot in and cover for a full back / wing back caught high up the pitch when we lose possession.
Rovers had a lot of shots, but very few of them - other than a shot that was going wide before hitting a Rovers player and forcing Cooper into an excellent save - were particularly threatening. A few small scrambles in the box, but we put our bodies on the line and defended them well.
Criticism where it's due (the past few weeks), and also credit where it's due - this was a good response from Lowe and the players. Obviously it'll be good to build on this, but next week will be tough.
Cooper 6 - one excellent save previously mentioned, but his command of area was a little mixed - I appreciate there were often numerous bodies in the way but his punching wasn't up to his normal standard. One in particular in the first half where he punched it straight to a Rovers player 20 yards out was poor.
Edwards 7 - as is often the case, a lot of the play (both attacking and defensively) was concentrated down our left side, and Edwards-Fornah-Camara weren't quite as adept at creating overloads as the other side were. However, defensively he was very good.
Aimson 7 - much more suited to the orthodox centre-back role compared to RCB in a 3 on this viewing. He no longer had the responsibility of driving forward with the ball or making difficult passes, and as a result this was his best game for a while. One good block on the line albeit the ball might have just been drifting wide.
Opoku 7 - defensively excellent, gave their number 9 a thoroughly frustrating afternoon by giving him so little, however, he made one or two dodgy fouls after his yellow. I think Kettle was right not to send him off, but on another day, with another ref (Sarginson, Hooper, Huxtable) he could have gone. We'll miss him these next 2 games.
Lewis 7 - has anyone seen this guy and Andy Kellett in the same room at the same time? Defensively he wasn't good at all - his marking is awful, time and again he (after getting back into a reasonable position) would let his man get in behind. However, two superb assists and constantly provided good overlaps for Mayor when he drifted inside.
Fornah 6 - very weak header attempt which he completely missed inside the first few minutes for a Rovers chance, but actually did well after that - the odd bad pass aside. It certainly helped him having another DM alongside.
Grant 7 - an all-round good game, passed it well and covered for Lewis very well defensively.
Camara 7 - as always, fantastic pressing. With the security of 2 DM's behind him he was able to press even higher up the pitch, and denied Rovers time on the ball. His passing was a little better too - his best game in a while.
Mayor 8 - when Lewis wasn't overlapping, Mayor could drift wide, and as I mentioned in an earlier piece, this allowed him to run at defenders 1-on-1 or suck defenders in and create space for others in central areas. He seemed to be constantly getting away from defenders with a clever feint or turn - if there's a better dribbler at this level, I haven't seen him yet.
Jephcott 6 - better. We got bodies closer to him which helped, but his hold up and link up play in its own right was improved too. Still won't happen for him in front of goal, and if Hardie impresses next week than LJ might struggle to get back in.
Ennis 9 - what a player. Every single aspect of his game yesterday was just superb. His second goal was an excellent finish, the first one easier but he had to be there. His ability to dribble past defenders was excellent, and perhaps most impressive, his ability to hold off defenders and shield the ball was like having peak Reuben Reid / Ryan Taylor back in the side. Feet on the ground time as he is still young and may be inconsistent, but blimey we could have a player on our hands here.
Subs: Hardie 6, Moore n/a.
