Squad taking shape very nicely.

Here you can chat about everything and anything related to ITFC and other football issues. This forum also hosts the now Internationally famous TB.com ITFC match previews which contain insightful pre-match thoughts, previous highlights, news links relating to Town, form guides and other bits and pieces. Feel free to discuss meet ups/travel plans in here as well.

Moderators: marko69, Bluemike, Charnwood

User avatar
Bluemike
Global Moderator
Posts: 29564
Joined: Mon May 18, 2009 5:26 pm
Location: Ipswich

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Bluemike » Thu Jul 06, 2017 6:46 am

You are spot on Andy, it is what he doesn't do that have some fans doubting him, he does not make very many killer passes at all, nor does he attempt to cross the half way line in support of the forwards, if he added that to his game he would be quite a player because the "nitty gritty" he does really well.

I think Skuse is unfortunate in some respects in that he has been in a town team which for the most part of his time here have been pretty average where "Midfields" are concerned and had we had players in the other Midfield positions who were doing their job better he would have had much less criticism aimed at him, I guess what I am saying is that at times our so called creative players have struggled to create a bloody ripple in a bath, it wasn't until Lawrence we had aqnyone creating much at all, Hyam, Douglas, Bru, Bishop, Ward, Sears etc etc do for the most part evade much criticism at all and yet all of them for whatever reason have struggled big time for long periods of time and dare I say it "hid" when the going got tough, that can never be aimed at Skuse.
Last edited by Bluemike on Thu Jul 06, 2017 4:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
loudnproud
Forum Hall of Famer
Posts: 3751
Joined: Thu Dec 29, 2005 12:10 pm
Location: PETERBOROUGH
Contact:

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by loudnproud » Thu Jul 06, 2017 8:42 am

I have to say that im not over excited about our new faces,But i am regaining some optimism. Got in touch with the club yesterday and renewed the membership. Thought long and hard about the season ticket and decided against it on the pretext that i know i will be missing well over half of the home games due to work. I am going to make a huge effort to rejoin my old pal "Polish Mac" and many others on the terraces at away games :D :D

I also got an email from Jonathan at the club about this "Fans panel" thing they are wanting to put together. A proposal i suggested well over 8 seasons ago,i hasten to add. I have been asked to apply and i have accepted. keep you all posted.

For me this season is going to be all about Didzy getting off to a flyer and injury free. The guy is one of the best assets we have and when on form he is key.
The other major change i would like to see is for MM to stop attacking the fans and getting on with his job. Fans are entitled to their opinion love it or hate it, MM needs to just shut the feck up and take it on the chin if it is going against him.

The other big change we must make as fans is creating our own atmosphere and enjoyment of the game and occasion....Win loose or draw...We need to inject our own brand of "Terrace humour" . We are all spending good hard earned money for a day out, we need to enjoy it. Im sure that it will rub off onto the players and who knows become better for it?

I'll see you all at Colchester.......

User avatar
herforder
Posts: 2764
Joined: Fri Dec 30, 2005 11:34 am

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by herforder » Thu Jul 06, 2017 8:45 am

Agree. In a team that's playing well, good players become excellent whilst average players become good. Same applies in reverse.

At least, next season, we probably won't have a set up where Skuse is stuck in the middle with Bru!

If only players could become the players we want them to be, rather than what they are - defined by some by their limitations, as opposed to their strengths. But then, they don't manage or pick themselves.

User avatar
Bluemike
Global Moderator
Posts: 29564
Joined: Mon May 18, 2009 5:26 pm
Location: Ipswich

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Bluemike » Sat Jul 15, 2017 10:07 am

UPDATED SQUAD


Keepers - Bialkowski, Gerken, Crowe

Defenders - Webster, Chambers, Smith, Taylor, Iorfa, Spence, Kenlock, Knudsen

Wide Midfield - Celina, Rowe, Ward,

Central Midfield - Skuse, Huws, Adeyemi, Bishop, Dozzell, Hyam,

Strikers - McGoldrick, Garner, Sears,


Youngsters - Downes, Nydam, McKendry, Morris

User avatar
marko69
Global Moderator
Posts: 24186
Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2009 2:16 am
Location: Somewhere between here and there.

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by marko69 » Sat Jul 15, 2017 3:23 pm

Another decent striker maybe to make it all look really REALLY good? OR..... is Wee Freddie gonnae start banging them in with the (hopefully) better service from Huws and Celine Dion?

User avatar
Bluemike
Global Moderator
Posts: 29564
Joined: Mon May 18, 2009 5:26 pm
Location: Ipswich

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Bluemike » Sat Jul 15, 2017 3:28 pm

Yes Marko another striker is a must and we wont be far away from a good looking squad

User avatar
Dubai Blue
Posts: 4935
Joined: Tue Jun 01, 2004 2:18 pm
Location: Dubai, UAE

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Dubai Blue » Sat Jul 15, 2017 4:16 pm

Agreed. We can't reply on McG's fitness sadly.

User avatar
Mach_Polish_Blue
Posts: 1094
Joined: Tue Apr 26, 2005 1:07 pm
Location: Manchester

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Mach_Polish_Blue » Wed Jul 19, 2017 10:34 pm

loudnproud wrote:I have to say that im not over excited about our new faces,But i am regaining some optimism. Got in touch with the club yesterday and renewed the membership. Thought long and hard about the season ticket and decided against it on the pretext that i know i will be missing well over half of the home games due to work. I am going to make a huge effort to rejoin my old pal "Polish Mac" and many others on the terraces at away games :D :D

I also got an email from Jonathan at the club about this "Fans panel" thing they are wanting to put together. A proposal i suggested well over 8 seasons ago,i hasten to add. I have been asked to apply and i have accepted. keep you all posted.

For me this season is going to be all about Didzy getting off to a flyer and injury free. The guy is one of the best assets we have and when on form he is key.
The other major change i would like to see is for MM to stop attacking the fans and getting on with his job. Fans are entitled to their opinion love it or hate it, MM needs to just shut the feck up and take it on the chin if it is going against him.

The other big change we must make as fans is creating our own atmosphere and enjoyment of the game and occasion....Win loose or draw...We need to inject our own brand of "Terrace humour" . We are all spending good hard earned money for a day out, we need to enjoy it. Im sure that it will rub off onto the players and who knows become better for it?

Finally Dave ! Finally you're back mate ! Been missing you.

I'll see you all at Colchester.......

User avatar
Mach_Polish_Blue
Posts: 1094
Joined: Tue Apr 26, 2005 1:07 pm
Location: Manchester

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Mach_Polish_Blue » Wed Jul 19, 2017 10:37 pm

bluemike wrote:Yes Marko another striker is a must and we wont be far away from a good looking squad
It depends on how you define a good looking squad Mike.

The current squad may be good enough to drift along come season.

But is this squad good enough to challenge for promotion? Nowhere near that methinks.

Andym
Posts: 5355
Joined: Thu Aug 31, 2006 1:47 pm
Location: Mid Suffolk

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Andym » Mon Jul 24, 2017 8:32 pm

Mach_Polish_Blue wrote:
bluemike wrote:Yes Marko another striker is a must and we wont be far away from a good looking squad
It depends on how you define a good looking squad Mike.

The current squad may be good enough to drift along come season.

But is this squad good enough to challenge for promotion? Nowhere near that methinks.
I have to agree. I rad this in today's EADT (online, I wouldn't pay for the sh*te they publish)

"Whisper it quietly, but Ipswich Town may just be a bit easier on the eye this season.
The Blues suffered their first set-back of pre-season on Saturday, losing 2-1 at League One side Gillingham, but the positives of the performance outweighed the disappointment of the result.
Just like at Peterborough last Tuesday, Town stamped their authority on the game, got on the front foot, kept the ball on the floor, moved it quickly and created chances.
It was a pro-active display rather than a passive one – and that’s exactly what we’ve all been crying out for over the mind-numbingly dull last 18 months.
Town lost this game thanks to a soft penalty and a wonder strike. And they will undoubtedly lose games in a stronger-than-ever Championship too.
Stick with this bolder approach though and they could just turn some of those dire home draws into victories. One thing’s for sure – win, draw or lose – the entertainment value would be higher.
Mick McCarthy has decided to return to the system he knows and loves – a traditional 4-4-2 with attack-minded wingers.
Grant Ward running at the full-back and delivering teasing crosses, combined with either Bersant Celina or Danny Rowe cutting inside from the flanks, will get fans off their seats.
Dominic Iorfa, Jordan Spence and Myles Kenlock have the potential to be the dynamic, athletic, attack-minded full-backs which are so key to modern football.
Emyr Huws and Tom Adeyemi have been signed to add some box-to-box positivity to the centre of midfield, but it’s 18-year-old academy graduate Flynn Downes who has really caught the eye in their absence through injury and illness respectively.
Bit-by-bit this summer the dark cloud which seem to linger permanently over Portman Road has begun to dissipate.
Owner Marcus Evans loosening the purse strings, homegrown players breaking through, Town passing the ball, a charity put on the shirts, matchday ticket prices cut... It feels as though criticism has finally been taken on board.
Perhaps it took a major drop in season ticket sales for the message to hit home. Ignore the DNA of this club – academy, entertainment, community – at your peril.
Signing a striker would add to some renewed, if not cautious, optimism. "

The problem is, the article points out the positive signings in midfield and the attack minded fullbacks, but ignores the 3 major stumbling blocks:

1. We lack a decent striker.
2. Some of the midfield signings are unlikely to play because Skuse will be a regular.
3. Out of the 3 fullbacks mentioned, it's likely only one will start as Knudsen will probably be first choice.

I think the squad might be marginally improved upon the end of last season (when we already had Spence & Huws on loan), but I can't see who will fill Lawrence's shoes, so not sure where the goals will come from.

I was going to go to Colchester tomorrow as we can't be arsed to arrange a home friendly, but I imagine the majority of the game will give time to those who ended Saturday's match so I won't waste my evening and money.

I'll still be pleasantly surprised if we finish in the top half...unless of course we start badly enough for MM to get sacked before Christmas. Once a pessimist.... :wink:

User avatar
Bluemike
Global Moderator
Posts: 29564
Joined: Mon May 18, 2009 5:26 pm
Location: Ipswich

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Bluemike » Mon Jul 24, 2017 10:56 pm

I actually found that article spot on and very encouraging to be honest. It was clear to see at Gillingham that we were trying to change our style of play and it was most definitely pleasing on the eye, not a hoofball in sight, what people have to be aware of is it doesn't and wont just fall into place over night, this team has played a very direct and boring way for some time now and to adjust takes a bit of time.

I think it is obvious that we have more options at our disposal now, especially in Midfield which is an area we have moaned about for a few seasons now as being the reason we create so little, I can't emphasise enough just how impressed I was with Flynn Downes, man he has come from nowhere and will no doubt have a part to play as the season progresses. As for a replacement for Tom Lawrence, we do have one, Bersant Celina will be that man, like Downes I was impressed with what I saw and yes it was only Gillingham I hear people saying but it doesn't matter as it is what our player did with the ball and the one piece of skill alone when he did a few step overs before cutting in and hitting a long range shot that came off the post was class, in fact it was very "Lawrencesque" had that gone it it would have been up there with a few of Tom's efforts last season. Let's not forget when lawrence came back from injury he was a shadow of the player from the early part of the season and I for one am pleased that we won't be a one man team where the goals are concerned because that is what we were with Lawrence last season, I can see goals being shared around the squad which is a much healthier position to be in. MM has sounded very confident today that another striker will be here before the Birmingham game which is good to read and should that happen I think we have a decent looking squad that will without question be more pleasing on the eye.

Having so many options says to me that nobody will be a shoe in to play, I suspect Chambers will play more often that not and Skuse will almost definitely start the season but I bet if things are not going to plan he won't be a certain starter and rightly so, that goes for anyone in the squad, with Huws, Adeyemi, Skuse, Bishop, Downes, Hyam, Dozzell, Ward, Celina, Rowe and Nydam we have an abundance of options at our disposal.

User avatar
Bluemike
Global Moderator
Posts: 29564
Joined: Mon May 18, 2009 5:26 pm
Location: Ipswich

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Bluemike » Mon Jul 24, 2017 10:59 pm

This is the article regarding a new striker etc. Two interesting quotes and seems to imply something is around the corner.
Ipswich Town manager Mick McCarthy is confident he will have a striker signed before his side’s Championship opener against Birmingham City, at Portman Road, in just 11 days’ time.

The Blues boss has just three senior strikers to call upon at present in the form of summer signing Joe Garner, Freddie Sears and David McGoldrick, with Brett Pitman (Portsmouth, free), Kieffer Moore (Rotherham, loan) and Leon Best (released) having all moved on.

Town have been pipped to the seven-figure signings of Danny Ward and Jon Dadi Bodvarsson by Championship rivals Cardiff and Reading respectively in recent weeks, with owner Marcus Evans keen to fund a deal.

“We’ll have another one (striker) by the start of the season,” said McCarthy, speaking at a press conference held earlier to announce that the logo of Suffolk charity the East Anglian Children’s Hospice will appear on the back of the first team’s shirts this season.

On his decision to allow Pitman to join League One side Portsmouth, the Blues boss said: “I just wanted to change it around and if I get my other striker that is what will have happened.

“Brett wants to play and be first choice striker and he wasn’t going to be that here. I’m pleased with the three I’ve got and if I can get another one that would be great.”

Meanwhile, Town managing director Ian Milne hinted there may be more than one new addition on the horizon.

He said: “We’re pleased with the transfers we’ve done, there’s a lot of competition for places and we still hope to do a little bit more business to fill any holes the manager feels need filling.

“There are things in the pipeline. We’ll probably operate with a 25/26 man squad.”

Altogether, 14 players have departed Portman Road since the end of last season, be it loan deals expiring, contracted players being loaned out or players being sold or released. Six players have been signed in the form of Garner (Rangers, £750k), Emyr Huws (Cardiff, £1m), Tom Adeyemi (Cardiff, free), Bersant Celina (Man City, loan), Dominic Iorfa (Wolves, loan) and Jordan Spence (ne deal agent).

“The wage bill is actually higher,” revealed Milne. “The business we’ve done and new contracts we’ve given have not been cheap.”

Town take on Essex neighbours Colchester United, at The Weston Homes Community Stadium, in their fifth pre-season game of the summer tomorrow night (7.30pm ko).

Tangfastic
Posts: 4911
Joined: Sun Jan 04, 2015 11:52 am

Re: Squad taking shape very nicely.

Post by Tangfastic » Tue Jul 25, 2017 7:28 am

If we are to play a more 'on the floor' passing game, then MM has to be committed to it. If we adopt this then get spanked or go on a losing streak, I would expect MM to close up shop and go back to norm. If it takes time to adopt, then it's not just the fans who needs patience, but also the manager.


With the personnel here, there's definately competition for places in midfield. Huws and Adeyemi didn't sign here to be on the bench, and with Downes in the mix also, Skuse must be feeling that his permanent place in the side must be under threat.

Never understood MM's comments in the past when he said certain players will always be in the starting line up.... surely that's unhealthy and a kick in the teeth for players trying to break into the side.
Encouraged by the signings so far. Not expecting top six, but after last season there's a lot to be gained other than challenging top six.

Post Reply