Personas Non Grata

There was something Dean Saunders said after the Gateshead match that didn't quite stack up for me.

For only the second time this season he picked an unchanged side, despite the fact that we'd played on a tiring pitch two days earlier. He then explained that part of the reason for our poor performance was the number of players who weren't fully fit: Mangan and Mitchley in attack, plus Holden, Taylor and Smith on the bench. That, he explained, limited his options.

Of course, the obvious question is why he didn't indulge in at least a little reshuffling of the pack, but quite apart from that, a more serious question is raised. What does his selection tell those who weren't chosen? He said he was reluctant to use the injured trio on the bench, so what must the likes of Matty Wolfenden, Hedi Taboubi, Adrian Cieslewicz and Nathan Fairhurst be thinking? Probably that it's time to grab their coats.

Will Gareth Taylor Suffer From Robbie Keane Syndrome?

The cup tie tomorrow will, no doubt, see Dean Saunders fall back on his most experienced and reliable performers, and there can be no doubt that Gareth Taylor falls into that category.

Yet the Kidderminster game posed an interesting question. Look back at last Sunday: Robbie Keane is a fine player and has been a regular for Spurs, but things haven't properly gelled up front for them despite their abundance of attacking options. Last Sunday Keane was rested and suddenly they clicked, Peter Crouch getting two and Jermaine Defoe hit five! Selecting a football team is about finding a blend, not picking your best players.

Central to Saunders' plans, Taylor has delivered and is not just our top scorer, he's our only scorer. Strong, willing and the one playerwe've got who you'd fancy to take a chance on the rare occasion one presents itself.

Yet Tuesday's game posed a vexing question; are we better when he isn't playing?

It seems a ludicrous question on the face of it; after all, without his goals we'd probably be in the bottom four.It's horrendous how reliant on one player's goals we are.

Yet the Kidderminster game, which Taylor missed with a knee injury, was an eye-opener. Okay, neither of the strikers who replaced Taylor have scored this season, a worrying state of affairs when you're virtually in December.

However, it was most fluent attacking performance for some time. Admittedly neither Marc Williams nor Adrian Cieslewicz were particularly clinical in front of goal, but their enthusiasm caused all sorts of problems and their movement meant suddenly we started playing football!

Saunders knows he has an issue of balance to resolve in his team; Christian Smith and Andy Fleming are both having good seasons, but neither of them have really offered much creativity. We look very solid with them protecting the back four, but we don't pass the ball through midfield quickly or penetratively. Until Tuesday. With Williams dropping off and Cieslewicz looking for balls to chase, suddenly we looked creative, rather than desperately hoofing the ball to Taylor.

So what happens tomorrow? Taylor will start, and I'm not saying that's wrong, as he's been crucial for us this season. But who makes way, and will we be hankering back to Tuesday as the game wears on?

Coventry Podcast

The Coventry podcast is now up featuring Dean Saunders, Marc Williams, Adrian Cieslewisz and Chris Coleman.

Six Weeks to go and counting

Another week closer to the big kick off on August 8th and this time next week we will know the fixtures for the BSP in 2009/10 and the real countdown can begin.

It looks likely that the BSP will not get the same level of TV exposure it received in 2008/09 with the sad collapse of Setanta.

Whatever your thoughts on Thursday night fixtures away at the furthest geographical point possible and the meaningless Shield competetition I can honestly say I enjoyed the fly on the wall coverage. We had Deano's team talk with all the "great" players, Rebecca's interview technique of shoving a mike in front of a stressed manager and that never to be forgotten quote from the big man Jefferson Louis on coming off against Oxford! Not to mention the opportunity for Mark to complete a full commentary on a wet and windy night in Devon from the comfort of his own armchair!!

Talking of commentary thanks to Deano for signing Adrian Cieslewicz from Manchester City. I am sure the Dragon's supremo was more concerned with his footballing skills than how to pronounce his surname but it will also give us the opportunity for some full and frank discussions in the press box as to just how it is said.

Another interesting piece of news was the possibility of signing Andy Mangan who has a tremendous knack of finding the back of his opponents net but I quess we will have to wait and see what develops on that one.


Steve