I just went into Room 101 and could see ChicagoLion's posting history.
quote from Boozey 186 The only thing that matters at this point is next season, in my opinion. I want to see Dean building for that. Whether that means trying out a few kids to give them experience, or trying out a few new systems - I want evidence that we are planning for something different. I want to know that Dean can adapt again, for when Jack gets injured again (and he will), or for when Plan A isn't working - players like Wes and Davis are perfect for that, because they offer something different to Ollie. The last few games this season are such a rare opportunity to build for next year - I really hope we don't waste it.
Quote from: Louzie0 on May 04, 2021, 06:39:00 PMquote from Boozey 186 The only thing that matters at this point is next season, in my opinion. I want to see Dean building for that. Whether that means trying out a few kids to give them experience, or trying out a few new systems - I want evidence that we are planning for something different. I want to know that Dean can adapt again, for when Jack gets injured again (and he will), or for when Plan A isn't working - players like Wes and Davis are perfect for that, because they offer something different to Ollie. The last few games this season are such a rare opportunity to build for next year - I really hope we don't waste it.Thx, Lou.This is the paragraph that resonates most with my thinking - I posted 2-3 weeks' ago that with c.40 points on the board we should be using the remaining games to try different players and systems out: this is an ideal time because the fans are not in the ground to 'judge' and we have 3 or 4 options either coming back from injury or from the youth system.Clearly, we're not going to be doing this.Smith obviously gets to go again; why wouldn't you?! But, the stakes get bigger, and he - like most managers - are on a tightrope, results-wise.
It would be lovely to see some of the kids play. But looking from Smiths point of view, before the Everton game his team had won 4 games in 20 and we were pretty much in relegation form since Boxing Day. I can see why he may have felt the need to try and get some positive results before the end of the season was more pressing than blooding youngsters, for job security reasons if nothing else. Hopefully the Everton result will give him confidence he has the breathing space he needs. But even so with the fixtures we have and our desire to finish as high as possible, I wouldn't be surprised if those three don't make an appearance this season. I feel if he was going to play Kesler then the Cash suspension was the time to do it.
Quote from: chrisw1 on May 05, 2021, 10:28:29 AMIt would be lovely to see some of the kids play. But looking from Smiths point of view, before the Everton game his team had won 4 games in 20 and we were pretty much in relegation form since Boxing Day. I can see why he may have felt the need to try and get some positive results before the end of the season was more pressing than blooding youngsters, for job security reasons if nothing else. Hopefully the Everton result will give him confidence he has the breathing space he needs. But even so with the fixtures we have and our desire to finish as high as possible, I wouldn't be surprised if those three don't make an appearance this season. I feel if he was going to play Kesler then the Cash suspension was the time to do it. It's also easier to throw kids in when the team's playing well.