The aim was to write this before the end of May, then before the World Cup and finally before the fixtures came out as otherwise its relevance would have diminished completely.
So the season. How was it? Well my gut reaction is a bit pants really. No cup highlights, with any excitement only really being generated by the successful fight against relegation.
However taken in the context of the position with which our club found its self in we didn't do badly at all. Consider that we had bickering major shareholders some of whom took us to the brink of administration before Christmas. We sold our best striker and defender before August was out. We had to play some very very inexperienced squad members and had a rookie manager. Therefore 16th is very respectable.
The high points came on those unlikely footballing days of Friday, the 4-1 win against Sheffield Wednesday, and Monday, the 3-1 win over QPR featuring THAT goal. We saved them specially for the nice men from Sky. Remember the time back in the 90's when we went a ridiculous amount of games without winning a live TV match? It seems a long long time ago now. A mention should also go to the unlikely 1-1 draw at home to West Brom which was completely unexpected and the 3-0 win against Reading which ensured survival. What a great shame they weren't still being managed by Judas.
The low points came in a number of heavy defeats, the like of which I've never seen us suffer before, even in our two Premiership stints. A 4-0 defeat at home to Cardiff was bad enough but less than a month later we conceded five without reply at The Hawthorns and did it again in the New Year at Chelsea. The inability to take so much as even a point off bottom side Peterborough also comes into this category.
The real star was Tom Cleverley who throughly deserved the Player of the Season award, although its a bit sad that the prize goes to a kid on loan from Man U rather than someone who is genuinely one of our own (although I bet we’re not far off a loanee of the season award). The reason Tom really deserved it was that he put his heart and soul into our club from day one. Unlike some other loanees who look like they’d rather be anywhere than playing in front of the East Stand (Cathcart, Bridcutt, Agbonlahor.) Cleverley seemed proud to wear our shirt, and we were proud to call him ours, even though we all knew it was only a temporary thing. Saddest sight of the season was the premature ending of his loan spell with his broken leg against West Brom. I hope some-one told him of the reaction he got as he was stretched off as I doubt he was in a state to appreciate it.
John Eustace kind of won the honour of contracted Watford player of the season with his victory in the players player award and the reaction from the fans about the news he has signed a new contract. The turnaround in him being generally derided to becoming a must stay player is incredible. Usually it takes a season to do this as in the case of Gavin Mahon or Marcus Gayle. However as late on as the first half of the home Plymouth game he was getting chants of Useless from the Upper Rous. However his performances against Reading and Coventry seem to have won everyone over.
Personally I’d give the award to Lloyd Doyley but then I’ll admit to being a big fan. He’d get it not just for the goal but for the complete commitment he puts in to every performance. We all know he’s not the best player in the world but he plays each and every game the same way and to a team like ours that is just as important. I was delighted he came second in the player of the season and hope he goes one better next year.
Scott Loach deserves a mention for his decision to stay with us in the New Year rather than cash in on a big money move to Spurs, although now I slightly wonder whether he and we might have missed the boat. I like Scott, I really do, but sometimes I can’t believe he is the best under 21 year old England have got. Given England’s current predicament with Robert Green I don’t feel particularly inspired for the future. If we hadn’t been through the Richard Lee experience I’d expect us to try and persuade Scott to stay for another year to get more games at this level under his belt before he tries his luck with a Premiership team. However remember that once Lee was touted as being the next great keeper so much so that Blackburn took him on loan. I wonder whether we should cash in our wonder boy when we next get the chance.
Finally to Malky. At times he frustrated with odd or late substitutions and confused us, and probably the entire squad, when he took Ryan Noble on loan. However as a first time manager I guess it’s to be expected he’ll make some mistakes. But he carried himself with the dignity and poise of someone who’d had far more experience than a short caretaker spell in charge. In fact, he reminded me with his considered responses and frequent communications to the fans, of our current chairman and I don’t think I can pay him any higher compliment.
Of course, the fact that he kept us up was all he was ever going to be judged on. With more sales and cost cutting to come, the same is likely to be true of every future season he can keep us at this level.
Showing posts with label season review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label season review. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Enjoyable Inconsistency- A review of the season
A bit of context. I wrote this review on the way to work this morning before I'd heard the news about Brendan. I think its only fair to publish it as it was, because anything I say about him now will be clouded by the action he has taken.
Having read the season review of 2007/8 one thing keeps jumping out at me. Just how much more enjoyable this season was. In the season of our abortive playoff attempt we had a good beginning to the season, made even better by the arrival of Adam Johnson. Once he'd gone apart from a few games, the rest was miserable.
This season just gone we've constantly flirted with relegation, only making ourselves safe in the penultimate match, had a change of board, a change of manager who initially the fans didn't warm too, but some how its all been a lot more entertaining. A series of small triumphs over adversity.
I went into it with very low expectations. Our pre-season form was awful. Never before can I remember the team being booed off in a pre-season friendly, but thats just what happened at Stadium:MK and I'm afraid to say it was well deserved. We had no clue that night. No one quite sure what our new style was supposed to be. Priskin seemingly in the death throes of his Watford career gave us no hint of what was to come, but then I don't think he ever did under Aidy.
So to go to Palace and get a goalless draw on the opening day was a fine result indeed. Rather ironic that it was goalless given the amount of times the ball would go in the net follwing it. The only other 0-0 all season was a similarly impressive 0-0 at Ipswich.
Our record in August wasn't bad four home wins, two in the league, two in the cup and a 3-2 away loss to Forest.
September will be forever overshadowed by the Atwell incident but looking back it was a game that made me tremendously proud to be a Watford fan. The way we used the ghost goal to battle our way back into a game that we would've won if it hadn't been for the penalty right at the end. Following it was another proud performance as we dispatched West Ham in the Carling Cup. Its true that we didn't actually manage to score on the night but thanks to their own goal and some great defending we got through.
October and early November was where it all went wrong for Aidy. Some crazy matches culminating in the 4-3 loss to Blackpool. It still seems a bit of a surprise now that he went when he did. Its not as if we'd lost four or five on the bounce by cricket scores. Even our style of playing wasn't awful, not attacking wise anyway. It was the defence that needed sorting. Which is why I'll always think it was particularly odd that we replaced Aidy in the interim with Malky, the man in charge of our defence. However, he did okay in his spell as caretaker succesfully seeing us past Swansea in the Carling Cup and annilihating QPR which was a lot of fun.
Since leaving Aidy seems to have been some what villified by some fans. I think this is partly due to his link with Simpson, partly down to a perceived lack of humility, and also because the team his permanent successor brought in immediately embarked on a campaign to persaude our hearts and minds that we'd previously been playing football the wrong way.
This grated quite a lot with me, maybe because it went against everything that God, who would be returning himself a couple of months later, had believed during his original campaign of glory during the 80's.
At the beginning the hardcore lets play it on the floor experiment just didn't work. The game against Donnie was an embarassment as we showed Brendan why were aren't as good at football in any sense as those of his previous employers.
But, although I didn't realise it at the time, the second game, a right awkward one against Spurs in the Carling Cup, showed already why Brendan is probably better than Aidy. He changed things so that we actually gave Spurs a decent run for their money. Following that BR had his moment of doubt before we lost away at Birmingham, which given what we know now I think is perfectly understandable. If you'd been told a load of half truths about a new job you'd just taken on I think you'd be more than entitled to reconsider your position.
Two wins in four days over Norwich and Coventry in the wet proved a bit of a false dawn. The Christmas period was grim as Bristol City won the Boxing Day game within about 30 seconds of the start. Not long after came the worst point of the season when Darius and Danny came to town and totally outclassed us leading to ironic cheers for Hendo's goal.
But Brendan kept learning. He kept changing things until he'd got the team playing in his style but within their own limitations. No more so is this apparent than in the change to Lloyd Doyley. I love him but even I'd admit that under Aidy he couldn't pass to save his life and as an offensive weapon was hopeless. Under Brendan he passes with complete confidence and we surely aren't far away now from Lloyd's first goal for the 'Orns.
Priskin too has performed a transformation a kin to a caterpiller into a butterfly. Once the man you always expected to miss any goalscoring opportunity, is now a dead cert when he is 1 to 1 with a keeper even scoring past Petr Cech.
From February onwards things really did look hopeful even though it took until that Coventry away match to make us safe. Good performances against Doncaster, Charlton, Forest, Swansea and even Chelsea pointed that the future is at least hopeful, although it partly depends on how much we have to sell over the summer.
It was a season of inconsistency but I'd rather have that in a way than the consistent way we were good in the opening 15 games or so of 07/08 and then fairly rubbish in the rest.
Having read the season review of 2007/8 one thing keeps jumping out at me. Just how much more enjoyable this season was. In the season of our abortive playoff attempt we had a good beginning to the season, made even better by the arrival of Adam Johnson. Once he'd gone apart from a few games, the rest was miserable.
This season just gone we've constantly flirted with relegation, only making ourselves safe in the penultimate match, had a change of board, a change of manager who initially the fans didn't warm too, but some how its all been a lot more entertaining. A series of small triumphs over adversity.
I went into it with very low expectations. Our pre-season form was awful. Never before can I remember the team being booed off in a pre-season friendly, but thats just what happened at Stadium:MK and I'm afraid to say it was well deserved. We had no clue that night. No one quite sure what our new style was supposed to be. Priskin seemingly in the death throes of his Watford career gave us no hint of what was to come, but then I don't think he ever did under Aidy.
So to go to Palace and get a goalless draw on the opening day was a fine result indeed. Rather ironic that it was goalless given the amount of times the ball would go in the net follwing it. The only other 0-0 all season was a similarly impressive 0-0 at Ipswich.
Our record in August wasn't bad four home wins, two in the league, two in the cup and a 3-2 away loss to Forest.
September will be forever overshadowed by the Atwell incident but looking back it was a game that made me tremendously proud to be a Watford fan. The way we used the ghost goal to battle our way back into a game that we would've won if it hadn't been for the penalty right at the end. Following it was another proud performance as we dispatched West Ham in the Carling Cup. Its true that we didn't actually manage to score on the night but thanks to their own goal and some great defending we got through.
October and early November was where it all went wrong for Aidy. Some crazy matches culminating in the 4-3 loss to Blackpool. It still seems a bit of a surprise now that he went when he did. Its not as if we'd lost four or five on the bounce by cricket scores. Even our style of playing wasn't awful, not attacking wise anyway. It was the defence that needed sorting. Which is why I'll always think it was particularly odd that we replaced Aidy in the interim with Malky, the man in charge of our defence. However, he did okay in his spell as caretaker succesfully seeing us past Swansea in the Carling Cup and annilihating QPR which was a lot of fun.
Since leaving Aidy seems to have been some what villified by some fans. I think this is partly due to his link with Simpson, partly down to a perceived lack of humility, and also because the team his permanent successor brought in immediately embarked on a campaign to persaude our hearts and minds that we'd previously been playing football the wrong way.
This grated quite a lot with me, maybe because it went against everything that God, who would be returning himself a couple of months later, had believed during his original campaign of glory during the 80's.
At the beginning the hardcore lets play it on the floor experiment just didn't work. The game against Donnie was an embarassment as we showed Brendan why were aren't as good at football in any sense as those of his previous employers.
But, although I didn't realise it at the time, the second game, a right awkward one against Spurs in the Carling Cup, showed already why Brendan is probably better than Aidy. He changed things so that we actually gave Spurs a decent run for their money. Following that BR had his moment of doubt before we lost away at Birmingham, which given what we know now I think is perfectly understandable. If you'd been told a load of half truths about a new job you'd just taken on I think you'd be more than entitled to reconsider your position.
Two wins in four days over Norwich and Coventry in the wet proved a bit of a false dawn. The Christmas period was grim as Bristol City won the Boxing Day game within about 30 seconds of the start. Not long after came the worst point of the season when Darius and Danny came to town and totally outclassed us leading to ironic cheers for Hendo's goal.
But Brendan kept learning. He kept changing things until he'd got the team playing in his style but within their own limitations. No more so is this apparent than in the change to Lloyd Doyley. I love him but even I'd admit that under Aidy he couldn't pass to save his life and as an offensive weapon was hopeless. Under Brendan he passes with complete confidence and we surely aren't far away now from Lloyd's first goal for the 'Orns.
Priskin too has performed a transformation a kin to a caterpiller into a butterfly. Once the man you always expected to miss any goalscoring opportunity, is now a dead cert when he is 1 to 1 with a keeper even scoring past Petr Cech.
From February onwards things really did look hopeful even though it took until that Coventry away match to make us safe. Good performances against Doncaster, Charlton, Forest, Swansea and even Chelsea pointed that the future is at least hopeful, although it partly depends on how much we have to sell over the summer.
It was a season of inconsistency but I'd rather have that in a way than the consistent way we were good in the opening 15 games or so of 07/08 and then fairly rubbish in the rest.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Too Little Too Late- A review of the season
Maybe in the annuls of time it will go down as an okay season, possibly even a good season if you look at the league table. I was impressed by the bloke on bhappy who worked out it was our 10th best season of all time from a league table perspective.
Comparisons with 2000/1 have, of course, been made. That season we got 39 points from the first 16 games and then went on to get 30 from the remaining 30. The cute pub fact for this season will be that with Adam Johnson playing we won 8 league games out of the 11 he played a part in whilst in the 35 without him we won just 10.
He really was the true player of the season. Not since Rocket Ronnie (Rosenthal, not O'Sullivan for those reading this who got into football post 1997) has a player had such a dramatic and immediate impact on a Watford team.
In the beginning we looked ropey and vulnerable but managed to get results. The memory of Wolves on the opening day was lots of fun. However we all know that two goals in the last 5 minutes dramatically changes your perspective of the game (any-one care to admit they left early that day? In the same way I've often wondered about those who walked out of Bolton at home in 1993/4 and missed Gary Porter's amazing solo rescuing of the 'Orns. Thinking of leaving early kids? Remember Zammo and just say no!)
It may be me but the memory of the first home game of the season against Gillingham in the League Cup was possibly our most convincing display of the entire campaign. We played a team off the park, a team that can be considered equals because it was the Gill's first XI against our second string.
Sheffield United were put to the sword next but this doesn't really count as Bryan Robson was in charge then, a decision of Vialli and Basset like stupidity following the excellent work done by Colin W.
Following that we got found out away at the Walkers, ironic for so many reasons (they sacked their manager afterwards, Gary Megson, they went down...).
The reserve side that had done so well two weeks beforehand then got found out against Southend, and we followed that up with a routine 2-0 win over Ipswich, a team we always seem to beat unconvincingly but without too much effort.
Then in came Adam Johnson and all the worries about playing badly and winning and having been found out were forgotten. Forgotten not just by the supporters, pundits and nation at large but crucially by everyone employed by the football club as well.
Gareth Southgate really didn't help the Manager of the Month curse by recalling (but not using!) his boy wonder and our season fell away, although it took a bloody long time courtesy of every other club in the division trying to match us for inconsistency.
Aidy kept up the mantra of 'it'll be alright on the night' which kind of harked back to the cringe making 'one of these days we'll turn someone over big style' sentiments from the Premiership.
To be fair to him we did eventually turn Portsmouth over in the Prem, but it was a bit late by then.
And to be fair again, once automatic promotion had eluded us, we did eventually secure the playoff place needed to keep us in the hunt courtesy of a pathetic display at Blackpool. One which only improved when we were down to 10 men.
But therein seems to lie the possible solution.
For the last 30 minutes against the 'Pool we were okay. Once we stopped lumping it up to Hendo and started trying to play football we looked quite good.
Then against Hull without the suspended Hendo we played some really nice football. Granted we gave away two stupid goals but Ellington, Jobes and even Priskin-tubing looked good, whilst Ainsworth showed that he has the potential to be lots of fun.
And on Wednesday night was there a neater move all season than the nice one-two play between Big D and the Duke which led to our goal. We can play this nice style of football and still have Doris up front! Okay it all went wrong but finally Aidy seemed to have sussed that lumping it doesn't suit us, is easily defended against and is very very obvious.
So all the predictably optimistic talk on the official site is now of a new beginning and a new way of playing. Given the evidence of the last 210 minutes of the season it's not a brand new way we're after but just more of the same. I never thought I'd say this given how totally miserable the majority of the season has seemed but we really didn't need the season to end when it did. We'd just found that new way of playing and Hull only dealt with it because we gifted them ridiculous goals.
Next season could be all the OS promises and more, but that is very much reliant on Aidy having a good pre-season in the transfer market first.
Comparisons with 2000/1 have, of course, been made. That season we got 39 points from the first 16 games and then went on to get 30 from the remaining 30. The cute pub fact for this season will be that with Adam Johnson playing we won 8 league games out of the 11 he played a part in whilst in the 35 without him we won just 10.
He really was the true player of the season. Not since Rocket Ronnie (Rosenthal, not O'Sullivan for those reading this who got into football post 1997) has a player had such a dramatic and immediate impact on a Watford team.
In the beginning we looked ropey and vulnerable but managed to get results. The memory of Wolves on the opening day was lots of fun. However we all know that two goals in the last 5 minutes dramatically changes your perspective of the game (any-one care to admit they left early that day? In the same way I've often wondered about those who walked out of Bolton at home in 1993/4 and missed Gary Porter's amazing solo rescuing of the 'Orns. Thinking of leaving early kids? Remember Zammo and just say no!)
It may be me but the memory of the first home game of the season against Gillingham in the League Cup was possibly our most convincing display of the entire campaign. We played a team off the park, a team that can be considered equals because it was the Gill's first XI against our second string.
Sheffield United were put to the sword next but this doesn't really count as Bryan Robson was in charge then, a decision of Vialli and Basset like stupidity following the excellent work done by Colin W.
Following that we got found out away at the Walkers, ironic for so many reasons (they sacked their manager afterwards, Gary Megson, they went down...).
The reserve side that had done so well two weeks beforehand then got found out against Southend, and we followed that up with a routine 2-0 win over Ipswich, a team we always seem to beat unconvincingly but without too much effort.
Then in came Adam Johnson and all the worries about playing badly and winning and having been found out were forgotten. Forgotten not just by the supporters, pundits and nation at large but crucially by everyone employed by the football club as well.
Gareth Southgate really didn't help the Manager of the Month curse by recalling (but not using!) his boy wonder and our season fell away, although it took a bloody long time courtesy of every other club in the division trying to match us for inconsistency.
Aidy kept up the mantra of 'it'll be alright on the night' which kind of harked back to the cringe making 'one of these days we'll turn someone over big style' sentiments from the Premiership.
To be fair to him we did eventually turn Portsmouth over in the Prem, but it was a bit late by then.
And to be fair again, once automatic promotion had eluded us, we did eventually secure the playoff place needed to keep us in the hunt courtesy of a pathetic display at Blackpool. One which only improved when we were down to 10 men.
But therein seems to lie the possible solution.
For the last 30 minutes against the 'Pool we were okay. Once we stopped lumping it up to Hendo and started trying to play football we looked quite good.
Then against Hull without the suspended Hendo we played some really nice football. Granted we gave away two stupid goals but Ellington, Jobes and even Priskin-tubing looked good, whilst Ainsworth showed that he has the potential to be lots of fun.
And on Wednesday night was there a neater move all season than the nice one-two play between Big D and the Duke which led to our goal. We can play this nice style of football and still have Doris up front! Okay it all went wrong but finally Aidy seemed to have sussed that lumping it doesn't suit us, is easily defended against and is very very obvious.
So all the predictably optimistic talk on the official site is now of a new beginning and a new way of playing. Given the evidence of the last 210 minutes of the season it's not a brand new way we're after but just more of the same. I never thought I'd say this given how totally miserable the majority of the season has seemed but we really didn't need the season to end when it did. We'd just found that new way of playing and Hull only dealt with it because we gifted them ridiculous goals.
Next season could be all the OS promises and more, but that is very much reliant on Aidy having a good pre-season in the transfer market first.
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