I was not as displeased as some with the way the game was played either. We were hugely in control before both of their goals. But we fell for the simple ball played into the box, from a corner and a free kick. Met by a tall and loaned (where the Swindlers get the credit rating from is beyond me) striker. This is something that City never manage to achieve. Even though it is simple. We never score from corners and free kicks.
The front three; Leroy Lita could have scored inside three minutes when put through, but the keeper saved well. He also had a constant battle with the pushing and shoving from the defence. He coped well and is a lot stronger than he looks. Lee Miller huffed and puffed but didn't quite have the impact I thought he'd have. He often ended up wide on the left. Whether he was instructed to or not I am not sure? I don't think the players were sure either? He should have scored at least two, one when he flicked a header over the bar, and the other when he failed to conect at the far post in the way that Beckham did in the week. Christian Roberts was his usual enthusiastic self and had a good game but for wasting the opportunities he always creates for himself. His final decision let him down, not least the cross for Lita in the second half (he obviously thinks that Leroy is 10 feet tall). My feeling is that a front three should consist of a target man (Miller) who plays centrally and two quick strikers buzzing around him, feeding off his supply and confusing the hell out of the oppositions defence. Today the two buzzers should have been Roberts and Lita, but Lita seemed to be playing the central role?
The middle three; It is Bradley Orr that I feel most sympathy for. He has come into a new side and is also expected to adapt to a new system that no-one at the club understands yet. He has had a good start and looks solid enough. I had hoped he'd have the opportunity to get forward more. Maybe he will when we switch back to 4-4-2 and even more so in a 3-5-2. Tommy Doherty had a bad start, I have never seen him miss-place so many passes, and he was lucky to only be booked. He scored the goal though so I shouldn't diss him too much. And Brian Tinnon? He still needs to decide whether he is a manager or a player on the pitch. He played well enough but with the current system we do not see his forte, which is the long crossfield passes to the wingers, we don't have any width, and any wingers, and we need to get some.
The defence; We really had precious few worries in defence and this is why it is incredible that we managed to concede two goals from set pieces and why Swindon's shot count was so high. They had five corners in the match, and I think they got a shot in from every one of them. Jamie Smith is my kind of player, no nonsense in the tackle and gets forward well. He still doesn't appreciate the standard of football he has dropped to and some of the passes he played put his colleagues in difficulty. Matty Hill plays well at centreback but his lack of height may cost us, he is the best covering defender I have ever seen at Ashton Gate. Danny Coles was solid enough as usual, but as with all the defence was left isolated by our attacking intentions, particularly in the second half. Craig Woodman plays well enough but still needs a bit of time to reach the required standard.
The subs; Welcome back Mickey Bell he made the biggest impact when coming on and should have been put through by Scott Murray who chose to shoot instead. Two years ago Scott would have scored, not at the moment though and we need him to find his form, he was rightfully dropped to the bench. Steve Gillespie had no chance to make an impact although one good run resulted in some Swindon thuggery and another shot was disappointingly blazed over.
Overall, not a bad performance but a poor result which sees us apparently struggling. A few tweaks in the system and we are not far off turning the season in our favour. The fickle City fans are, as ever, our downfall. We don't need to do anything rash, just start winning!
A word for the ref? Retire.
And whoever it was at FootyMad that wrote the match report (it wasn't me) they got it completely wrong and were watching a different game to me.
"For a vital 10 minute period City completely lost the plot. Midfielders Roberts and Tom Doherty were booked and central defender Danny Coles could have followed when he brought down Sam Parkin."
We lost the plot? Four bookings and a sending off, sees the plot being lost by Swindon and the referee.
"Swindon came out for the second half determined to dominate play and went back in front on the hour mark."
They can't have been very determined then because they scored with their first attack of the second half, City having been dominant. There was a spell after their goal when they kept the ball for about two minutes which, although worrying, was hardly dominant!