Another Cardiff win on a bizarre night in snowy Yorkshire.

[the other bob wilson]

All of a sudden, Cardiff City is a club that cannot stop winning!

https://mauveandyellowarmy.net/

[cyril evans awaydays]

Good read as always Bob. I like you thought that the ref was abandoning the game when he was dealing with the underinflated balls.

I did have a chuckle at the irony of the little spelling mistake in the 5th paragraph though. Top sic (sic) !

[poc]

All of a sudden, Cardiff City is a club that cannot stop winning!

https://mauveandyellowarmy.net/

nice to read a write up like that for change

[Whisperer]

Thanks Bob, I was one of those pessimists you mentioned but really happy to be proved wrong.
Saying that though MM until the end of the season shake his hand and start building for the future.

[Rock_Flock_of_Five]

Thanks Bob, I was one of those pessimists you mentioned but really happy to be proved wrong.
Saying that though MM until the end of the season shake his hand and start building for the future.

It's the kind of outcome I would wish for too. However, if MM was to keep getting the results he's been getting from this team, in the interest of fairness, it would be had to argue against a longer contract, wouldn't it?

[the other bob wilson]

It's a tough one with Mick McCarthy. From a footballing point of view, Flint is back and I see the long throw ins up the line by defenders are back with Nelson being used to take them on the left. We are, perhaps, more direct than we were under Neil Harris, but at least the footballers we have in the squad (e.g. Wilson, Ojo, Murphy) are becoming more influential and we-re looking more dangerous on the counter attack.

McCarthy was straightforward about his approach when he came in in that he would look at the squad and play to what he thought were their strengths I don't think it is a surprise at all that we are looking pretty much the same as we've looked for the last seven years or so (i.e. since Slade was appointed).

There were also those stories from early in our manager's career where his Millwall side got the ball down and played and I don't really remember his Sunderland and Wolves teams being overly direct, but the big question for me has always been if Mick McCarthy does well enough to merit a longer contract, would he then think this is my squad now and I want to start to change the way it plays? My answer to that is, I've not got a clue.

I've said on here before that I've long since had enough of how we play - it's all very well new managers coming in and saying "this squad is best suited to playing the way it has always done and I'm not going to change", but us poor sods have had to watch for what seems like ages.

I often think I'm being selfish when I say that I'm sick and tired of the way we play, but I'd also say that the sort of game we play had it's day a long time ago and, while it can be effective to a limited degree, it can only take you so far these days - it got us promoted, but we were always going to struggle to survive without some refinement. We were fourteenth in the Championship when Slade arrived in September 2014 and are eleventh today and an awful lot of money has been spent on players we struggle to move on since then while the supposed financial impacts from our two promotions have not resulted in the stability that they could have brought with a different approach at the club.

If Mick McCarthy gets a longer contract and decides in the summer to, broadly speaking, stick with what he's got, I would understand it in some ways, because the rebuild required to move us away from what we are now looks a very big one to me, but it's an approach which reeks of short termism and I would argue eventual decline.

[Former Labour leader]

At the end of the season the loanees will be gone and several first teamers out of contract. And, there will be little money to spend. Arguably an opportunity for a complete change, but also an argument to have someone experienced to steady the ship.

[surge]

At the end of the season the loanees will be gone and several first teamers out of contract. And, there will be little money to spend. Arguably an opportunity for a complete change, but also an argument to have someone experienced to steady the ship.

MM looked at picking the best formation for this squad and decided that 3 CB's (Morrison, Nelson and Flint) and 2 CM's (Ralls and Vaulks) is the way to go despite it "looking pretty much the same as we've looked for the last seven years or so."

All 5 of those players are due to be on our books next year so this summer is not perfectly set up for complete change. Perhaps what we do have though is an Under 23's side playing what appears to be the same formation as the first side (3-4-2-1) and doing so reportedly in a more skillful and progressive way, who would benefit from the leadership group Warnock brought in and could be ready to largely take up the mantle the season after?

Too much wishful thinking on my part but how nice would it be if Trollope's Welsh way ended up being our formation, built on the foundations of Warnock's leaders, Harris focusing on youth and MM gelling it together? Ryan Lowe taking over for 2022-2023 and firing us to promotion would pretty much be the cherry on top. The alternative is bringing in new manager at the end of this season and if they pushed for change too quickly we could easily end up on the sticky wicket Harris found himself.

Teams usually need a well stocked resource in order to change playing style successfully, be that transfer funds or youth team to pick from, and we may finally have something here.

[Former Labour leader]

MM looked at picking the best formation for this squad and decided that 3 CB's (Morrison, Nelson and Flint) and 2 CM's (Ralls and Vaulks) is the way to go despite it "looking pretty much the same as we've looked for the last seven years or so."

All 5 of those players are due to be on our books next year so this summer is not perfectly set up for complete change. Perhaps what we do have though is an Under 23's side playing what appears to be the same formation as the first side (3-4-2-1) and doing so reportedly in a more skillful and progressive way, who would benefit from the leadership group Warnock brought in and could be ready to largely take up the mantle the season after?

Too much wishful thinking on my part but how nice would it be if Trollope's Welsh way ended up being our formation, built on the foundations of Warnock's leaders, Harris focusing on youth and MM gelling it together? Ryan Lowe taking over for 2022-2023 and firing us to promotion would pretty much be the cherry on top. The alternative is bringing in new manager at the end of this season and if they pushed for change too quickly we could easily end up on the sticky wicket Harris found himself.

Teams usually need a well stocked resource in order to change playing style successfully, be that transfer funds or youth team to pick from, and we may finally have something here.

That's fair comment about those players, although I do wonder if Morrison might be tempted for one last move, particularly if he is played out of position in a back3?
We are going to lose our flair players, the way Moore is playing I can see a mid ranking premier club coming in for him, so there will be quite a rebuilding to do.
Like you, I am hopeful that our u23s will at last provide players for the first team(I wonder if the recent improvement in performances at u23 is something to do with the fact that players are starting to make the 1st team squad), but even in a bumper year there will be at most just 2/3 making the grade, so experienced reinforcements will still be needed.

[A Quiet Monkfish]

It's a tough one with Mick McCarthy. From a footballing point of view, Flint is back and I see the long throw ins up the line by defenders are back with Nelson being used to take them on the left. We are, perhaps, more direct than we were under Neil Harris, but at least the footballers we have in the squad (e.g. Wilson, Ojo, Murphy) are becoming more influential and we-re looking more dangerous on the counter attack.

McCarthy was straightforward about his approach when he came in in that he would look at the squad and play to what he thought were their strengths I don't think it is a surprise at all that we are looking pretty much the same as we've looked for the last seven years or so (i.e. since Slade was appointed).

There were also those stories from early in our manager's career where his Millwall side got the ball down and played and I don't really remember his Sunderland and Wolves teams being overly direct, but the big question for me has always been if Mick McCarthy does well enough to merit a longer contract, would he then think this is my squad now and I want to start to change the way it plays? My answer to that is, I've not got a clue.

I've said on here before that I've long since had enough of how we play - it's all very well new managers coming in and saying "this squad is best suited to playing the way it has always done and I'm not going to change", but us poor sods have had to watch for what seems like ages.

I often think I'm being selfish when I say that I'm sick and tired of the way we play, but I'd also say that the sort of game we play had it's day a long time ago and, while it can be effective to a limited degree, it can only take you so far these days - it got us promoted, but we were always going to struggle to survive without some refinement. We were fourteenth in the Championship when Slade arrived in September 2014 and are eleventh today and an awful lot of money has been spent on players we struggle to move on since then while the supposed financial impacts from our two promotions have not resulted in the stability that they could have brought with a different approach at the club.

If Mick McCarthy gets a longer contract and decides in the summer to, broadly speaking, stick with what he's got, I would understand it in some ways, because the rebuild required to move us away from what we are now looks a very big one to me, but it's an approach which reeks of short termism and I would argue eventual decline.

Early days, but it would be the easy option to stick with MM if the City finish comfortably in mid-table. For all the recent plaudits for Flint, Vaulks etc, they're part of a group of players that wouldn't get close to half the sides in this division. We still have 3 centre backs that couldn't make a decent pass if they tried and it showed again last night. The risk is worth taking, though Tan & Co. may think otherwise..

[the other bob wilson]

That's fair comment about those players, although I do wonder if Morrison might be tempted for one last move, particularly if he is played out of position in a back3?
We are going to lose our flair players, the way Moore is playing I can see a mid ranking premier club coming in for him, so there will be quite a rebuilding to do.
Like you, I am hopeful that our u23s will at last provide players for the first team(I wonder if the recent improvement in performances at u23 is something to do with the fact that players are starting to make the 1st team squad), but even in a bumper year there will be at most just 2/3 making the grade, so experienced reinforcements will still be needed.

The nucleus of the current Under 23 team were in the best Youth side I’ve seen at the club since the Academy opened in 2004, but I think you are right - it would be very risky to introduce, say, four youngsters into the first team in one go. In saying that, it is frustrating seeing someone like Sam Bowen playing well in a role that I feel would be very beneficial to the first team if somebody could perform there as effectively as he does for the Under 23s.

[Whisperer]

It's the kind of outcome I would wish for too. However, if MM was to keep getting the results he's been getting from this team, in the interest of fairness, it would be had to argue against a longer contract, wouldn't it?

No I don't think so, thanks Mick & TC you've done us proud but going forward your not part of our long term plans.
I think we need to find an experienced younger manager and the board should be scouting someone now and doing their due diligence.