Player Ratings v Northampton

[nickthehoover]

Julian 7 - Didn't have much to do, and kicking off ground was good despite the wind
Fuller 8 - Kept their very good winger Jacobs control for most of the game, and provided necessary assistance going forward when required
Gowling 9 (MOM) - Quite rightly awarded MOM, rock solid and didn't give them anything
Lawrence 8 - Marshalled the defence very well in tricky conditions
Nutter 7 - His best game in a while. Good touches, chose the right moments to go forward and defended pretty solidly
Spiller 6 - A bit quiet and was not didn't show too much creativity, partly due to the conditions. A good shift nonetheless
Maher 7 - Played well and always looked to find other players feet. Tired a bit in the second half
Jackman 7 - Like Maher he tired but he did play some good passes
Barcham 8 - Always a threat and at times had the easy beating of their right back.
Weston 8 - Got in the hole in the first half and made some very effective runs off McDonald. Thought he was unlucky to be brought off
McDonald 8 - In the first half it seemed as if everytime he touched it he would cause problems. Missed a couple in the second half but still he is playing with confidence, which is just what a player like him needs

Subs:
Akinfenwa 5 - Thought the big man had a poor game, his touch was not quite there and he was a bit lazy
Rooney 7 - Came close to a goal and always looked dangerous with the ball
Bentley 7 - Solid, cam on and did an important job at the end of the game

Hessenthaler 8 - Got his team selection right and the team looked organised and disciplined in defence. Also pleased with the way we defended set plays as Northampton often do score from dead ball situations.

Referee Kettle 6 - First 10 minutes were iffy, and throughout the game their were some baffling individual decisions but overall he controlled the game well and didn't issue too many cards.

[mikew0212]

A fair view Nick, agree with your ratings.
I think Danny Jackman took a knock early in the second half which may have affected him.

Matty Lawrence & Josh Gowling were spot on today, both reliable & solid - agree with the MOM rating.

As you say, Bayo was very quiet & a bit lothargic. Perhaps he hasn't totally gotten over his ilness which may be why he started on the bench?

I think the Ref may have been watching another game at some points, some of his decisions were mind numbing but seemed to let the game flow quite well.

3 points in difficult conditions, job well done!

[Deleted]

Basically agree with both postings,quite what the ref saw on occasions was beyond me.
I might have given Julian a 6, mainly because he was given nothing challenging to attend to,did not think the Big Man did to badly therefore would have given him a 6 as well
Seen the team perform better but with wind as it was 3 points well deserved.
UTG

[dickwroe]

bayo was not fully over his injury AND he is still suffering from a chest infection

[chrisgills]

Fair mark's and comments although I would have given lawrence 9 but wasn't it good to see Maher,Spiller and others making really solid tackles keep it going lads well done.Cody could have had another hatrick scoring is just as much about running into the right areas as it is about shooting and Cody's movement is top class.With Francis Laurent and a big centre forward the cobblers are going to be a really tall side in the next few weeks.Not a great game but who cares 3 more points.

[ollybeak]

All your marks I agree with except for Barcham. I know he's not been back from injury long,but I thought he was very ineffective and no improvement on last season. He looks a long way from the the player of 2 years ago, and I thought he should have made way earlier than he did yesterday. Rooney at the moment looks a better bet in that position. The only thing in Barchams favour is that Nutter seems to play better with him in front of him.

[blueinvicta]

I did see Hessie and Hendon both asking Barcham a couple of times in the second half if he was OK. To me he seemed very short on pace so I wonder if he picked up a knock?
I thought Rooney looked really good when he came on and he was unlucky when the keeper saved his shot.

[Deleted]

Think you've been a little generous for me. It was a good performance, considering conditions, but the marks you've given would suggest we won 5-0. For me:
Julian 6 - Not tested, but kicking was beter.
Fuller 7 - Defensively solid, good forward well.
Nutter 8 - Much better with Barcham in front, got forward very well and probably his best performance this season.
Gowling 9 - Righty MOTM. Almost fautless
Lawrence 9 - as Gowling
Spiller 6 - worked hard, but not as threatening as he can be. Best in the tackle rather than the cross
Maher 7 - Protected back 4 well and a couple of crunching tackles that reminded me of Paul Smith. Tired after about 65-70 mins.
Jackman 7 - Tackled and tracked back well and kept things simple. Rarely didn't find his man with a pass, OK freekick that wasn't far off.
Barcham 6 - Like Spiller, his best work was defensively rather than going forward. He didn't go at his man enough for me and had his back to goal too often which isn't his strength. Good to have him back though
Weston 7.5 - extremely harsh on him to be taken off. Thought his workrate was the best I've seen from him in at least 12 months, drove forward well and creative. Didn't look happy when he came off so hope Hess hasn't upset him with that decision.
McDonald 7 - Scored the vital goal and pace caused problems. To be harsh, should have had more than 1 goal with the chances he had.

Subs:
Bayo 5 - looked unfit and I thought Hess made a mistake bringing him on for Weston.
Rooney 7 - as a rule, I don't rate him as I think he flatters to deceive, but a good impact performance. Need to see that more often.
Bentley 6 - Did OK and made a couple of important tackles, but also gave the ball away a couple of times. Thought the decision to play corners with 5-6 mins to go was daft.

Hess 7 - Right team selection, team are looking more and more organised which is a tribute to his and his coaching staff's work on the training ground. Didn't think he got the subs right. Bayo was the wrong choice, Maher should have come off earlier when his legs started to get heavy.
Kettle 5 - By his standards a good referring performance, but still gave some bizarre decisions which confused both sets of fans/managers

[superblues]

Julian-7-Had nothing to do but kicked well considering the conditions
Fuller-7.5-Another good game and got forward well
Nutter-7.5-Had a good game but their guy he had to mark(Herbert) was awful
Lawrence-8.5-Excellent
Gowling-9-Excellent with an assist to boot! MOM
Barcham-6-It wasn't his day and their right back(Johnson) had the better of him.
Spiller-7.5-Had a good game, great energy levels and stayed wider than he has done in other games. Linked up well with Fuller.
Jackman-7-Did well as he's been out for a while
Maher-7.5-Had a good game, read the game and intercepted balls well. Organised well but tired the last 10 mins.
Weston-7-Did ok made some good runs.
McDonald-8-worked hard and always a threat.

subs.
Bentley-7-Did ok
Akinfenwa-6.5-Didn't look as sharp as normal but still did ok.
Rooney-7.5-A good cameo and a good player to come on for the last 15 mins against a tiring defence.
A funny game with all the players having good individual games but the weather spoilt it and made it a battling performance and a great 3 points.