Thanks, Silver.
I was so annoyed by yesterday's shambles, I didn't want to waste much time discussing it. Some 90 minutes of my life and a tenner had already been stolen, and they deserved nothing more.
I am really scratching my head with your intro. I didn't find it even close to be being decent at any particular time, other than the goal which I thought Bennett took very well. He is probably the only player we have who could have put that away from that position - and Bradshaw should spend the next week studying the film of that goal.
I thought we were hopeless for the entire 90 minutes and at no time put them under any sustained pressure.
Yes, I get the fact that we were countering their press and did this by playing no recognised striker - a kind of a 5-5-0 formation with Jed and Bennett at the top of of an elongated diamond.
In its way, ingenious. But unfortunately meant we played no passing football and our attacking options were telegraphed. Never a plan that can work for 90 minutes.
Bennett had an outstanding game and their thug defender should have been at least booked for the way he played Bennett off the ball for the entire match, but seemingly with impunity.
But as for the rest if the team.... Well, they were hamstrung by the team selection, which was hopeless. If you put Willians in the middle, you know there will be no energy and no balls being won. With Thompson possessing the yips and landing on his arse every time he goes near the ball, he, too is totally ineffective.
So I have no idea why we played a five. Surely, we need to start the game with a four with Evans putting energy into our non-existent midfield. I say non-existent. Well, Woods I read this morning has taken some right stick about yesterday.
That, I think, was a touch unfair. He was the only midfielder who rolled his sleeves up and got stuck in and took responsibility on and off the ball: frankly, he was doing Williams' and Thompson's work for them because both had vanished off the pitch. Their combined contribution to the Millwall cause yesterday was matched probably by my parrot. Who, wisely, slept through the game.
The fact that Woods was visible meant he took some stick. But at least the bloke made an effort.
The truthoif the matter was, we had one tactic. Play the ball into an area between the high Barnsley backline and the D of their penalty box: in other words, long ball shit. Not so much push and run as kick and rush.
Well, as Bennett was designated the only player who was going to do this, by half time it became pretty obvious to their manager how to deal with this...and deal with it they did.
Of course Rowett should also have worked out that their manager would be putting in place plans to neuter our tactics. So he had to change it. But, ridiculously and fatally, he didn't. Just more of the same and playing right into their hands.
I think one of the reasons I was so utterly pissed off with the our performance was because you could see what Barnsley were going to do if we didn't change, and they did it. It was like witnessing a preventable car crash that you had seen coming for the last 45 minutes.
We needed more than one point of attack and to strengthen our dire midfield.
Which meant we should have switched to 4-4-2
Romeo - Hutch - Pearce - Ferguson
Burey - Woods - Evans - Malone
Jed - Bennett
This would have meant we could have used pace on both wings and through the middle. And we would have been better set up to introduce Smith as they dropped back to counter our pace and/or defend their lead. Options.
But for the second half all I remember was Bennett almost break his neck to try and covert an absolutely shit cross from either Malone or possibly Williams that was way too low and almost behind him with a header on target but no chance of beating the keeper.
I read that our manager said after the game that you always don't get what you deserve,
Well, Mr Rowett, I can assure you we most certainly did.
This was dire enough to be a Harris performance (though not from a tactical point of view, as at least here we had some). And it can't get much more depressing than that.
Because it was, in effect, 90 minutes of non-football.