TOPIC: Player Ratings v Chesterfield

Thought we were miles better than what we were against Mansfield, after surviving the opening barrage we came into our own and were the better side for the majority of the game, great to see.

Gillespie 7 - Didn't have a lot to do but he claimed crosses and set pieces well, not much chance for the goal.
Brough 6 - Not as good as i've seen him be, Chesterfield full back contained him well.
Grainger 6 - Made the odd gaff but apart from that he was decent, still not a big fan.
Raynes 8 - Didn't put a foot wrong, made some important blocks.
Atkinson 7 - Like Raynes, was very solid, hope he's not too badly injured.
McQueen 8 - Very impressed with him, thought he showed great drive, plenty of pace about him, we've got a good player on our hands i think.
Dicker 8.5 - My MOTM, barring a few loose balls i thought he was superb, controlled the midfield brilliantly, picked out some smart passes, put a tackle in when he needed to.
Balanta 6.5 - Very good first half, anonymous in the second half, caused problems. Tired towards the end
Hery 7 - Struggled at the start of the game but grew as it went on, showed some great feet at times, needs to improve his decision making a little.
Wyke 6 - Good hold up play at times but looks off the pace
Rigg 5.5 - Battled hard but failed to make much of an impact, tried some fancy stuff which he's not really capable of, looked absolutely shattered at the end, was running on fumes

Subs:

Ibehre 8 - Changed the game when he came on, excellent hold up play and took his goals (especially the first one) very well, didn't realise how fast he was too, the guy can run.
Osei 7 - Quiet when he first came on but came alive towards the end, superb finish.
Miller 7 - Filled in very well at centre back, made some good challenges.

CraigWL wrote:
Wouldn't change that my MOTM toss up between Dicker McQueen and Ibehre

Ibehre - constant graft a threat and 2 great goals, he must be a nightmare to play against! 20 goals this season?

Dicker - composed throughout especially when we had nervous spells
McQueen - good find, solid defensively, good pace good on the ball good going forward i'd say he'll be in a higher division soon enough really like him

Mention for Miller who looked good a CB showed his versatility and importance to the side another real good find, and Raynes who hasn't impressed me too much throughout pre-season but was a real leader tonight hopefully more to come...

Overall excellent performance and excellent management by Curle!

No way on earth does Grainger deserve the same rating as Wyke CraigWL.

Grainger had a good game, Wyke didn't!

franksidebottom wrote:
you have to remeber grainger is our fall guy even when he plays well he gets no credit, where as if brough scored 3 own goals gave away 5 penalties and got a red card grainger would still be blamed for us losing.

Gillespie 7
Brough 6
McQueen 8
Raynes 8.5
Grainger 7.5
Atkinson 7
Hery 8
Balanta 7
Dicker 9
Wyke 5
Rigg 6

Ibhere 8.5
Miller 7.5
Osei 8

franksidebottom wrote:
I agree. Shocked as I'm the first normally to get at Grainger but he's been good last 2 games.

For a league 2 side we looked really good tonight.

Still Jenkins and Nixon out but could be a decent season.

Happyblue wrote:
Never been a fan of Grainger, last season I thought he was a liability. However, credit where credit's due, he had a good game tonight. Hopefully his Carlisle career starts here

Like i said, i thought Grainger was decent tonight, but he always worries me, he tends to make baffling decisions and needless challenges. i'll give credit where i think it's due, still consider him to be the weak link in the defence, and that won't change over one game, although if you do insist, i'll say it again, he was decent tonight.

Gillespie 7
McQueen 8
Atkinson 7
Raynes 8
Grainger 7
Brough 6
Dicker 8
Hery 9
Balanta 8
Wyke 4
Rigg 3
Ibehre 9
Osei 8
Miller 7

Gillespie 7 - did what he had to pretty well
Brough 4 - offered nothing going forward or in defence, crosses were poor, didn't really seem to be putting much effort in, should be dropped imo
McQueen 8 - great performance especially on his full debut
Raynes 8.5 - did he lose a header? Looked very solid
Grainger 7.5 - solid and a great ball in for Jabo's 2nd, shocked I'm saying this but I've been pretty impressed by him today and at Mansfield
Atkinson 7 - solid without being spectacular
Hery 8 - great feet, played some great balls and put in a shift
Balanta 7.5 - was very impressed first half with him and Hery working together, faded 2nd half but could tell he was knackered
Dicker 8.5 - put in some good tackles and played some great balls, just calms it down. Would start him Saturday but imagine Joyce will be back in.
Wyke 5 - a couple of decent touches and turns, was always going to be hard asking him to hold it up against Evatt
Rigg 4.5 - he put a shift in but I just don't think he's good enough, too slow to make decisions/pass the ball on and spends half the time chasing his first touch

Ibhere 8.5 - fantastic, great finishes and hold up play, did what Wyke couldn't, but has the size to be able to
Miller 7.5 - showed he's capable of playing at CB if needed, very solid
Osei 8 - grew into it after coming on and gave us a great outlet down the left, exactly what Brough didn't. Superb goal.

Not one mention about the cross for Ibheres second which was quality all round. Maybe it was from the wrong person eh

Edit to add i was typing this when the post above did mention it!!!

thenewmessiah wrote:
Just about right for me too. Though Brough was the worst player on the pitch, seemed to spend most of the time in the middle of nowhere putting very little effort in. No comparison to McQueen on the other side who I thought had a great game and would have given 8.5. Rigg worked hard as ever but out of sorts, was more use when he seemed to drop into midfield more in e/t.

Really enjoyed the game

Gillespie 8
Grainger 7.5
Atkinson 7
Raynes 7.5
Brough 6.5
McQueen 7
Hery 8
Dicker 8.5
Balatanta 7
Wyke 7
Rigg 6.5


Subs
Jabo 8.5
Osei 8
Miller 7.5


Half to say best performance I've watched in a long time only bad performance was rigg and brough didn't play bad but didn't have a good game like others tonight. #COYB

A very enjoyable game and fair play to Chesterfield - they moved the ball quickly and it was hard to believe they only had 10 men for most of extra time.

Gillespie 7 some poor choices early on but improved and made some good stops
McQueen 8 an impressive debut, has pace and positional sense
Atkinson 7 generally reads the game well
Raynes 8 wasn't impressed in the 2 home friendlies but was terrific tonight
Grainger 7 seems to take too long at times when he gets the ball but credit to him, a much improved performance and hopefully he can build on this
Brough 5 disappointing, was in some good positions and didn't make the most of them. Crossing normally good but not last night
Dicker 8 great performance, tired near the end but still composed when he had to go to centre back near the end. he should be rewarded by taking him off the list
Balanta 7 intelligent player who uses the ball well. Understandably tired towards the end in ET
Hery 8 tireless and some very clever play, faded a bit and then got his second wind and did very well in last 15-20 mins
Wyke and Rigg 5 and 4 the weak links. Neither really got going and Rigg, though working hard, had poor control. Hopefully he will improve as he made great progress last year

Ibehre 8 terrific finishes and held the ball up cleverly
Osei 7 took a while to get going but really came into it late on and a terrific goal
Miller 7 slotted in well in place of Atkinson and looked secure

Thought we were silly at the back at times with short by kicks etc to put ourselves under unnecessary pressure. Especially when we were 1-0 and 2-1 up and had Ibehre holding the ball up so well.

However real team spirit and creativity and a thoroughly entertaining performance.

There's a variance of opinion about individual player's ratings, which is fair enough, but the one thing that stood out for me last night was the team performance. Indeed, even looking like a team is an improvement over last season, but last night, we actually played well as a team.

One thing about individuals though, I thought Balanta was superb in the first half, faded a lot in the second half, but could be a great impact sub. We seem like we may have a few of those now, Osei as well for example.

I wasn't there last night due to work but it sounded fantastic on United Player (when the bloody thing worked). It sounds like the penny has dropped for Keith and he is genuinely trying to turn us into a passing team, rather than just talking about it. Fair play to him for the dramatic change in approach.... I couldn't have taken any more of the hoof ball shit we had last year. Was it as good a performance as it sounded on the radio? it sounded like we caused them all kinds of trouble. The commentary team were raving about Hery and said that Dicker was a class act controlling the midfield. Despite the shambles off the field it sounds like things may be looking brighter on the field at least.

1954Blue wrote:
Can't argue with any of the above. I thought Raynes and Grainger played really well last night against a good Chesterfield team. The Chesterfield number 4 Hird had Brough in his pocket and rather than drop a bit deeper and cross early Brough kept trying to beat him and failing. Wyke and Rigg were marked out the game. Rigg got frustrated and some of his challenges were poor especially the one on the keeper at the end where he was lucky not to be sent off.
McQueen was much better. Excellent pace and a great cross. Needs to work on his first touch and his heading though, passing him the ball is like kicking it against a wall
Dicker looked very good, if he goes to another League 2 club they will get a good signing
I thought Osei wasn't any better than Brough until his wonder goal, he didn't beat the right back either even though their lad had played over an hour of football.
Worth mentioning how lucky we were their lad got sent off. Poor challenge but didn't look like a straight red to me.
Overall a great performance and Jabo was the best player on the park by a mile, need to keep him fit. Roll on Saturday
And where the [censored] was Dean Saunders on holiday, I thought they had Gandhi in the dug out when we kicked off, and pencil cords, dear dear

Dancingbear wrote:

That was a cracking ball in Chopper, definitely deserved an assist. Credit where it's due though, Grainger's ball was pretty special too.

Saunders was sporting the Graham Kavanagh attire, stupidly large jacket, pointy toe shoes... what a ponce.

Very impressed overall with the performance. Only major complaint can be that the style of play may cause a few heart problems to the fanbase. It's going to take time for the side to get used to the style, we're going to see a few nerves at times no doubt and a few mistakes (possibly leading to goals). However, it finally looks as though we're going to utilize our greatest asset - the pitch. If it stays in good nick all season the likes of Hery and Balanta are going to be having, quite literally, field days.

Gillespie 7 - Solid, no chance with the goal, couple of flaps at crosses but otherwise strong. Nervous with his new distribution role, understandable but hope he sticks at it, promising start.
Atkinson 7 - First time I've seen him and I was impressed. Think he offers good balance to the back three and suits his attributes.
Raynes 8.5 - Very, very impressed. Held the back line superbly, didn't get drawn out of position and made sure he was always the last line of defence. Hardly put a foot wrong all night, won a lot of headers against bigger players. Reminded me of Livesey at his best.
Grainger 7 - Never hides from the ball, maybe a bit too much so. Cracking cross for Jabo's 2nd.
McQueen 8 - Didn't stop running, constant threat, crossing was hit and miss but the boy's got talent.
Hery 8 - Can't remember watching many players as comfortable on the ball as he is at BP. Wonderful balance, beat countless amounts of players and clearly intelligent.
Balanta 7.5 - Best player on the pitch first half, looked like he should be playing a couple of divisions higher. Worked very well with Hery, both on same wavelength. Faded as the game went on.
Dicker 8.5 - Get him off the transfer list and in that team.
Brough - 5 Poor. Showed glimpses, but couldn't quite get the delivery he is capable of.
Rigg 5 - Not impressed, seemed absolutely shot of confidence, perhaps understandably. If he'd scored early doors like he should've we might have seen a different player.
Wyke 6 - okay. Struggled to hold it up against hands-on centre halves.

Iberhe 9 - Matchwinner. Suprised at the pace he possesses, seriously quick.
Osei 8.5 - Lovely goal, lovely setup for Jabo's 1st. Starts on Saturday.
Miller 7 - Very solid, think we've finally got a half decent looking defence.

Gillespie 7 couple of dodgy kicks but took corners well and looked confident
McQueen 7 tired late on and struggled to get back from attacking but a good run-out and a good claim for a spot
Atkinson 7 intelligent takling and heading, growing into a centre-half role well
Raynes 8 terrible against Preston in pre-season but willing to put his body on the line and again making the defence a tough area to pick
Grainger 7 often took too long on the ball but hit Wyke, Rigg and then Ibehre well
Brough 6 didn't get enough of the ball for the space he had, his marker shouted to the bench "he's f****** killing me" in the first half, coming on massively
Dicker 8 superb, other than a couple of loose balls he kept the ball well and orchestrated several attacks
Balanta 7 looks strong and a good level of desire. tired in extra time but looks a better Amoo for me
Hery 7 hit and miss at times but willing to accept that for the bits of magic in the middle of midfield
Wyke 6 just not hitting it off at the minute, things aren't falling from him and he looks a touch off the pace
Rigg 6 unfortunately again off the pace big style, looked tired and their defence looked comfortable with him

Ibehre 8 will hold the ball up anywhere, bursts of energy off the bench and great finishes, no injuries and he'll be up there with the league top scorers
Osei 7 was marked tightly until the last 10 mins of ET, took his goal brilliantly but didn't see enough to rave about
Miller 7 another great case for a start in the defence, strong lad and didn't make a meal of the eventual red card

Great performance, their red card give us a boost or else I think we were gone, great to kill the game off and an unbeaten start to the season. 3 points on Saturday before the tough midweek game will be an amazing start.

And Newcastle or Liverpool in the next round please.

Northumbrian wrote: d

As opposed to the penny dropping with regards Curle playing the passing game I genuinely think last season's long ball was intended simply to keep us up. He saw the rubbish he had inherited from Kavanagh, a squad full of players who were uncomfortable with the ball at their feet, and realised there's no way he could play a passing game with what he had. Playing the long ball game was a means to an end in my opinion, now he has his own players in he can begin to play the passing game he did at Notts County when they came up here and wiped the floor with us a couple of year ago. Just a thought like!

You certainly would've been impressed Northumbrian. There's nothing wrong with mixing it up and playing the occasional long ball especially now we have someone in Jabo who can actually win the ball. Chesterfield helped matters in the way they tried to move the ball about with quick,sharp passing and movement which I thought was better than how we used the ball in fairness but they didn't take their chances and we did. I think if we can do likewise and play the ball a bit quicker then we could be in for a much improved season. Early doors right now though.

franksidebottom wrote:
This, i remember when Curle arrived i tried to find some opinions on him from Notts fans, and the majority of them said that he was a master of side to side passing (a bit of a criticism from them as they apparently didn't get the ball forward too often), the football we played last season under him was absolutely nothing like that, and i personally don't think that a manager's philosophy would change so drastically in a year or so. I think you're bang on in saying that he employed such tactics to grind out results, which worked to an extent, and he did his job in keeping us up. He's clearly taken the opportunity to try and implement his own style into the team now that he's had a summer to bring players in. It's early days but the signs are good, and it's nice to see that we have a plan B.

I have to say I enjoyed walking by four Chesterfield fans last night having a good twine about losing the game.

Just a quick thought on ratings for Curle. Substitutions were unfortunately forced upon him however he did have to make the choice of who to put on, Troy or Miller in defence or Osei/Thompson out wide or even Sweeney. I thought he made the right choice although did get frustrated when Troy was overlooked for Miller, hand held up high in apology, Curle was right. Shifting players about Balanta & Rigg, appeared to swap roles although both cream crackered Rigg was more of a presence in midfield and Balanta just seemed to wander about.
KC kept having ago at Gillespie for kicking ball long and not playing it to back three, worried me a few times and believe we will come unstuck on occasion however last night it kept Chesterfield chasing and with 10 men we always had somebody spare. Thought they played it well.
Walking along Warwick last night there was a definite buzz about and although we have along way to go it did prove we can play and hopefully will be consistent in playinggood football this year and getting well deserved results, as per last night.
KC gets a lot of grief on here, I'm not a big fan of his but do believe he deserves some credit for keeping the blues up and hopefully transforming us back into a football playing team
Rating for Curle and his staff 8.5