Just Back...on the bus.

And fuming. We simply cannot think we can win a game playing for 15 minutes. Holohan's goal was a wonder strike but we didn't need to spend the rest of the game admiring it.
We gave the ball away far too often with Smith in particular guilty of dreadful distribution. Our big problem though is lack of attacking nous.  Our midfielders on whom we've really relied were too slow to get into the box and on the rare occasions they did the delivery was shocking.
We've benefitted from it ourselves in our recent past but there is nothing guaranteed to get a crowd going like an equaliser. Their fans had an air of resignation at 0-1 but the equaliser turned it into a cauldron of noise and there was only going to be one winner from that point.
No obvious candidates for M of the M but in true sponsor style let's give it to the goalscorer.
Very poor all round.

Unsure if its arrogance, laziness, or just a defensive mindset. Hartlepool are awful, make no mistake, first 20 minutes i thought we’d win it 3 or 4-0. Scored, had 2 rules out. And then just stopped playing, stopped attacking. As though we’d won the game…. They didnt create much but we slowly gave them a way back into the game as we got deeper and deeper, made bizarre substitutions and created utterly intercourse all.

Clifton and Morris were very poor, as was Amos and Richardson. no support as per usual for Taylor, subs were ineffective, pepple isnt good enough, really drunk off

The passing was appalling, always overhit and when conceding possession there was no desire to get it back, almost every stray ball we played ended up as an attack from them. At 1-0 up we seemed to have no extra gear to press and defend the lead.
Looking like last Xmas's form...4 away wins in a row followed by two away defeats.

Amos, Clifton and Morris were so poor, only outdone by Hursts poor game management today.

They were absolutely shite and we’ve somehow come away losing. I won’t accept the ‘dust ourselves down & move on’ rubbish, there are issues shining through IMO. The failure to get a decent striker in is absolutely unacceptable to me and a key reason we lost today. It absolutely needs to be addressed and quickly before this becomes a mid-table season, which would still be great progress, but I strongly believe we’ve got the makings of a play-off side here.

Quoted from pontoonlew

Amos, Clifton and Morris were so poor, only outdone by Hursts poor game management today.

They were absolutely shite and we’ve somehow come away losing. I won’t accept the ‘dust ourselves down & move on’ rubbish, there are issues shining through IMO. The failure to get a decent striker in is absolutely unacceptable to me and a key reason we lost today. It absolutely needs to be addressed and quickly before this becomes a mid-table season, which would still be great progress, but I strongly believe we’ve got the makings of a play-off side here.

This is a mid table season. People are quick to mention Leyton Orient, Northampton and Bradford where we could have got more, but quick to forget Rochdale, Walsall, Gillingham and I think Colchester where we were lucky to get what we did. Today was the polar opposite to that Rochdale game, they looked absolutely awful at the back and were there for the taking, but once we started messing about, and Crocombe was doing it in the first half, they grew into the game and got confident. The game management was appalling, Green coming on had all the hallmarks of a Parslow point and it went one worse.

We've not signed a striker for 2 seasons and got away with it last season, but we aren't going to this season.

Awful complacent performance after going 1_0 up and saw a genuine lack of urgency, 100% commitment and drive to put the game away whilst they were up.

The team selection was odd again and I have to again raise the same issue - our attacking players are probably the least effective of any team I have seen home and away all season. That is the real issue.

Pebble - please send him back as he is less effective by miles than what we had last season and we let them both go.

Gone from edge of play offs to obscurity last 2 weeks. Next 3 league games will define whether we start glancing over our shoulders downwards or get back on it.

Quoted from Lincspoacher

Awful complacent performance after going 1_0 up and saw a genuine lack of urgency, 100% commitment and drive to put the game away whilst they were up.

The team selection was odd again and I have to again raise the same issue - our attacking players are probably the least effective of any team I have seen home and away all season. That is the real issue.

Pebble - please send him back as he is less effective by miles than what we had last season and we let them both go.

Gone from edge of play offs to obscurity last 2 weeks. Next 3 league games will define whether we start glancing over our shoulders downwards or get back on it.

In fairness to Pepple he held the ball up better than Taylor did today, the rest was poor but he’s still very raw

Agreed with all posts except Penfras, I think we will be fine this season because Hurst won't accept that from himself, his team or his squad and hopefully the players and all involved will realise what is at stake. We put the ball in their net 5 times in that game and lost but I think the single most important thing I came away thinkling was how little like a team we looked after scoring. Absolutely bizarre. Hartlepool were awful but they fully deserved their victory because we simply stopped. Incredible. I imagine the air was pretty blue in the away changing rooms, or at least I  hope it was. Bloody awful.

Lack lustre passing all round again, unfortunately, which gave them every chance if staying in the game at 1-0.

Richardson was still the best attacking option, even noting Pepple's 2 chances.

Clifton is looking tired now, after running through 90 minutes of most games this season.

Taylor is also too isolated up front at present.

Amos' forward passing was poor today and we didn't make enough on their left flank, with some better running from Efete.

Good 1st half - let them back in far too easily in the 2nd half !

One poor 2nd half to forget in a hurry !!

Quoted from BeijingMariner

Agreed with all posts except Penfras, I think we will be fine this season because Hurst won't accept that from himself, his team or his squad and hopefully the players and all involved will realise what is at stake. We put the ball in their net 5 times in that game and lost but I think the single most important thing I came away thinkling was how little like a team we looked after scoring. Absolutely bizarre. Hartlepool were awful but they fully deserved their victory because we simply stopped. Incredible. I imagine the air was pretty blue in the away changing rooms, or at least I  hope it was. Bloody awful.

How is mid-table not fine? I never said we're in danger of going down, I think the hard work that we put in is enough to carry us safely through this season. But reading people talk about us being playoff contenders is bizarre when we don't look like scoring goals even against poor sides.

The only thing we're in danger of is losing the positivity and fans that turned up after last season. There's not been a whole lot to get excited about, and probably the best game this season was a 0-0 draw against Bradford.