team was outstanding first 30 minutes 2nd half how they got back in it to 3-2 i will never know
felt like Dykes was superb as was Luke Amos Dunne an absolute titan at the back in 2nd half was shocked how well kakay played and paal i was very impressed with throughout as it was first time ive seen him but for me MoTm was Willock on goal alone but his work rate was immense we were less of a threat when he wasnt about.
slightly concerned by Sam Field who looked a different player and Chair wasnt at same levels we have all seen him.
Tremendous 3 points and lots to be positive about.
A generous Boro goalkeeper and defence. Willock and Amos will get better as they play more matches. Dykes scores for the first time in 6 months. Dieng exudes confidence and couldn't be faulted for either goal. Dunne was restored to centre back and looked solid.
The major issue that still needs to be addressed is our defending from set pieces with another goal from a corner. I have made the point before but Dickie gets too easily pulled out of position and his lack of pace means he struggles to recover. For the first Boro goal Dickie lost his man and for the 2nd he was pulled out of position although he should have been given better support from the defensive midfielders who seemed to run out of steam.
If our 2 new sick notes can get out of the medical room soon we look to have a good base to build from.
Have to disagree. Wilder's two subs changed their way of playing and the Rs struggled to cope. They used the wings better and had three strikers waiting to punish us. Our Backs were pinned down, especially Kakay, and at times Dunne & Dickie were overwhelmed. We also tired much more than them in the second half. It may not have looked like it, but it was really hot on the pitch (and W12 in general)! We have to regard three points for these two first matches as a positive. I reckoned it could easily have been a draw today. Btw controversial MotM from me - Dykes. On and off the ball he was really good today!
We’ll have to agree to disagree then kingfisher . I Felt Boro’ were far less of an attacking threat once Forss was replaced with Smith & they went to a 4-3-3. It cut off the threat of Giles and Jones, who were no longer able to get into as threatening areas to cross. The one time they were able to do so, Boro’ scored only for it to be disallowed. Absence of Forss and just going with Akpom also gave them fewer targets to hit in the box. They did have a lot of the ball in front of us without ever threatening to cut us too far open once he took Forss off. I don’t think this defeat is a bad one for Wilder though. It shows that Boro could do with a bit of extra quality and is likely to persuade Gibson to spend a bit more money, so in the long run we’ve possibly done them a favour.
I’ve still got a few concerns and a few things I saw today that still leave me worried going across a 46 game season. But it’s a positive result and an important one for Beale no question. Bank the three points and get back on the road for the next round of fixtures.
It was a big decision by Wilder to replace Ford with the more defensive Smith and it was at a time when they were looking very threatening. It's not always easy to understand why managers do things but I reckon Wilder was concerned that our biggest threat was coming down the Boro right and he needed to reinforce that area.
Of course once he had made that change it negated the pressure down our left and and that also seemed to coincide with Giles tiring down the other side. From then on I thought that whilst Matty Crooks was still a threat it allowed Dunne and Dickie a much more comfortable last 20 minutes.
Whatever, Wilders reason for making the change it certainly finished up working in our favour.