I have missed the last few games through working away and will miss this weekends game but the point you have made there has been clear throughout the season!

Our middle defence has played a major part in our defence outwide, we cant seem to read any of the oppositions plays. Our sliding defence has been pathetic! We seem to be drawn into the dummy runner on every occasion which leaves huge overlaps for our centres and wingers to cope with.

Give them a copy of St George games to watch from this season(though not sure of their last 2 results)and get them to watch and learn.

Tall dark hair

Actually our main problem is our sliding defence not sliding, thus exposing the winger and leaving him with an overlap more often than not. Lynn got a pasting for his 'mistakes' against the Bulls but watching the replay he was twice left with half the pitch to cover and 3 or 4 men running at him.

Sounds like Rovers have similar problems.

Problems what problems Na it's all rosey at our end NOT

Our sliding defence has been woeful all year why in gods name JM hasn't implemented a zonal defensive structure is beyond me.
Before anyone lays into me or that idea I'll just ask 'can it be any worse?'

I disagree our main problem is not sliding defence. nor does that account for Lyne's positioning , not been able to tackle and not actually making any clean breaks. He is know-where near SL standard, apart from yesterday I have watched every game Lyne has played for FC.

It's not just about Lynn. Every winger we put on that side has the same problem to a greater or lesser degree - even Saint Richard of Whiting. Now we've either employed a lot of dumb wingers over the last several seasons or there's a structural problem. I know which is more likely, although it doesn't fit in with some folks deep-seated need to scapegoat.

Have you watched the highlights of the Bulls game? Two fantastic examples of why we struggle.

Thought I'd accidently gone on the wrong forum for a minute

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You raise some valid points, indeed we have struggled for a while, lack of quality centre on the right has contributed to this..However it does pain me to say Lynne would struggle with the best centre, his one on one tackling is poor, plus like I say his positioning, I would like nothing better than him to improve to SL standard as I very much support any local lads which ever club, but I am not confident...I do not particularly do scapegoats I tend to call it as I see it, though it is only my opinion of course.

Although this thread seems to have not only drifted off topic but onto a completely different club it does raise a very valid point. Wingers / centres seem to be the scapegoats for poor defensive structures and abysmal sliding defence at both sides of the city. I do think ours stems from poor central defence sucking in the backrowers and then no speed to slide the defence and ending up with a 2 (or more) on 1 on the winger. End result is you end up with wingers with shot confidence and poor performances. Fox for us and to a lesser extent Briscoe at FC have both dipped badly in form over this year.
The FC edge problem is a little harder to understand because they do seem a solid pack unit and as such the defence shouldn;t be as sucked in as ours.