Cod Almighty | Diary

Sans organisation, sans discipline, sans everything

21 August 2017

Trentside Diary is struggling a bit with this season. Admittedly I've only made it to the woeful performance against Coventry last weekend and so I may be allowing myself to wallow too early, but I try to restrict myself to following the more measured fans and not to venture on to the Fishy. When Matt Dannatt tweets: "Is it too early to say I'm slightly concerned?", I worry he might be justified.

Let's take stock: pre-season I nailed my colours to the mast and, while not a Slade fan, I had to give him a chance. Was I a bit premature with that one?

I would have taken the promotion in 2005-06 but our hoofball was never going to win any awards for style. Some fans argued that the speed of Michael Reddy defined how we played back then, but I'm not so sure. It seems like Slade's preferred style. We can only judge on what we see in front of us and if we're playing with one up front, we're not going to be lighting many fires. We're in division four. Most of our squad are journeymen or unproven youngsters. They can't help that but surely the manager needs to play a formation and style they can work within?

The Coventry match may have turned on one goal which was a farce but we never looked like we were going to do anything – in fact we looked like we didn't have a clue. Slades could have gotten any woman off the street and we would have put in a more organised performance. In fact bringing my nan might have had more of an impact.

Slade's comments following Stevenage sounds like it was more of the same. "It was an appalling first-half performance from us. We didn't move the ball anywhere near quick enough, and for me the players didn't appreciate the basics of the game enough." Apparently we look good in training though.

Discipline. What discipline? Three off in three. We're not at the business end of the season when you can understand the pressure that might lead to a despairing tackle or a loss of cool. To paraphrase many a teacher, Zak Mills, James Berrett and Sam Jones have let themselves down, let the club down and more importantly let the fans down. I'm not a statto but I cannot think of another season that has started with three sendings-off in the first three matches. Perhaps someone knows better?

Our fans. Yes, there will always be a few idiots but the vast majority of us follow the team with enthusiasm and the right attitude. We all know getting behind the club can make all the difference, and I don't agree with having a go at players during the match because it really isn’t going to lift them. But Slades, you had better start showing us something more than this. We gave Smiley Marcus long enough and you don't get a honeymoon period because that ran out some time in 2006. You work with the team day in and day out and they may not have the loyalty of a Sir Dave Moore or King John McDermott but if you can't inspire them then we wonder what you're doing.

Then, as highlighted by the Mariners Trust, there is the issue of the stewarding... well, let's look some more at that tomorrow. But taken with the false rumours circulated by Derbyshire police about damage in pubs around Chesterfield and I start to sound like my grandad: "I don't know what the world's coming to."

As one fan summed up the weekend: "We miss a captain. We miss a leader. We miss a legend."