Irish Wolves and Opposition Irish

**Charlie Darwin** · 27/12/2011, 2:41 PM

Hunt has actually looked decent at centre mid. He's not the headless chicken I'd have predicted.

**the bear** · 27/12/2011, 2:47 PM

Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

Hunt has actually looked decent at centre mid. He's not the headless chicken I'd have predicted.

more the cultured professional i predicted

**geysir** · 27/12/2011, 2:52 PM

He's playing an advanced role. Near the end of the half, he lost possession and was about to put in a tackle from behind to recover the situation but thought better of it. Some signs of a thought process going on.

**Charlie Darwin** · 27/12/2011, 3:32 PM

I've never seen a team give the ball away on the edge of their own box so many times.

Forde got 70 minutes. Unlucky to be taken off I think - Arsenal got nothing down his wing all night.

edit: and just as I say it, Nenad Miljas sent off for a lunge after giving the ball away on the edge of his own box. It wasn't even a foul - shocking decision.

**geysir** · 27/12/2011, 3:36 PM

Mick can be seen screaming and gesticulating from the sideline, Why me! why does it always happen to me!

**Charlie Darwin** · 27/12/2011, 3:39 PM

That's probably a worse decision than the Sammon one. At least Sammon's was actually a foul.

**geysir** · 27/12/2011, 3:44 PM

Even when Hennessy dives the wrong way he collects the ball with his feet.

**geysir** · 27/12/2011, 3:49 PM

This is worse than Moscow.
Injury time .. 6 minutes

**Charlie Darwin** · 27/12/2011, 3:54 PM

It's actually ridiculous the number of non-fouls Arsenal are being given. Doyle just penalised now for winning the ball.

**tricky_colour** · 27/12/2011, 3:56 PM

Great point for Wolves, I didn't think they were gonna do it when they went down to 10,
but pretty comfortable in the end.

**Charlie Darwin** · 27/12/2011, 4:02 PM

Arsenal played some amazing passes over the top of the defence, who looked completely ragged the entire game. Gervinho did a job on Ward in the second half (though he has absolutely no protection from Jarvis) and Benayoun/Arshavin offered very little down Forde's wing. Funnily enough, that sending-off might mean some more game time for Forde.

**Stuttgart88** · 27/12/2011, 4:04 PM

Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

I've never seen a team give the ball away on the edge of their own box so many times.

Forde got 70 minutes. Unlucky to be taken off I think - Arsenal got nothing down his wing all night.

edit: and just as I say it, Nenad Miljas sent off for a lunge after giving the ball away on the edge of his own box. It wasn't even a foul - shocking decision.

Didn't see it - wasn't watching the game - but it sounds like it might have been like a tackle by Ciaran Clark vs Stoke last night. He won the ball cleanly but I still think it was an awful tackle. We've had this debate before (after the Hutton v Long tackle) but there was no duty of care shown by Clark. If he was just slightly out it was a leg breaker. Player's lose their composure after losing the ball carelessly. I know I used to, until I got pulled up by a ref for it, rightly.

**drummerboy** · 27/12/2011, 4:06 PM

Was impressed by Forde. Kept the ball very well and passed it very well. Worked back and wasn't afraid to take on his man. Great prospect for us.

**Charlie Darwin** · 27/12/2011, 4:10 PM

Originally Posted by Stuttgart88

Didn't see it - wasn't watching the game - but it sounds like it might have been like a tackle by Ciaran Clark vs Stoke last night. He won the ball cleanly but I still think it was an awful tackle. We've had this debate before (after the Hutton v Long tackle) but there was no duty of care shown by Clark. If he was just slightly out it was a leg breaker. Player's lose their composure after losing the ball carelessly. I know I used to, until I got pulled up by a ref for it, rightly.

I didn't see the Clark one but this was a clean tackle. He left the ground a bit but his studs were parallel to the ground and he took the ball cleanly.

**geysir** · 27/12/2011, 4:24 PM

The ball went a bit too far ahead of Miljas and he tried to retrieve it with a lunge, but the ball was always between his outstretched foot and the Arsenal player.
Reminded me of when Roy Keane (who kept on his feet) got booked against Portugal away, for a similar attempt to win the ball from Pinto. What the ref sees is the lunge/tackle and other player being upended but doesn't see that the ball was the meat in the sandwich.

**tricky_colour** · 27/12/2011, 4:37 PM

Just found out there is no MOTD tonight, maybe they will show a bit on Saturday.
I love to see the game again as I only caught a few glimpse of it.

**geysir** · 27/12/2011, 6:23 PM

Here's a few highlights

The big plus was the starting debut by Forde. Not that he set the game on fire but was busy and looked confident on the ball, for such a young player that registers as a big positive on Trap's mentality factor.
Hunt was here, there and everywhere, set up the goal with a bit of neat football and invariably a few interventions in the box. He started the game in advanced CM position and ended up in his familiar role at LM, sometime in the 2nd half. I'd say he had an average game with the bonus of composed play that set up the goal. Ward had good stint, even if he was left trailing by Gervinho a few times, one period in the 1st half he made a good clearance out from the box and followed the move with a great run to receive the ball outside the Arsenal box and laid it off nicely to Jarvis? who flecked it up. Generally he covered the threat coming his way, resulting in balls into the box that even the Wolves' centre halves could deal with.

Mick has just signed a young product of the Iceland advanced academy of football excellence, a midfield player called Eggbert, Egg for short. That signing can only be a positive.

**tricky_colour** · 28/12/2011, 1:03 AM

Thanks geysir, fortunately I have managed to find a a full download of the game.
I had been watching it for 15 minutes but could not for the life of me pick out Anthony Forde.
That was because I was going by this the picture on this page.
http://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football...art_11528.html

Which is somewhat different from the picture on the Wolves site (below).

**Charlie Darwin** · 30/12/2011, 10:42 PM

Originally Posted by geysir

Here's a few highlights

The big plus was the starting debut by Forde. Not that he set the game on fire but was busy and looked confident on the ball, for such a young player that registers as a big positive on Trap's mentality factor.
Hunt was here, there and everywhere, set up the goal with a bit of neat football and invariably a few interventions in the box. He started the game in advanced CM position and ended up in his familiar role at LM, sometime in the 2nd half. I'd say he had an average game with the bonus of composed play that set up the goal. Ward had good stint, even if he was left trailing by Gervinho a few times, one period in the 1st half he made a good clearance out from the box and followed the move with a great run to receive the ball outside the Arsenal box and laid it off nicely to Jarvis? who flecked it up. Generally he covered the threat coming his way, resulting in balls into the box that even the Wolves' centre halves could deal with.

Mick has just signed a young product of the Iceland advanced academy of football excellence, a midfield player called Eggbert, Egg for short. That signing can only be a positive.

Do you know anything about the English player Mark Doninger playing for Akranes in Iceland?

Selected in Les Rosbifs' overseas English team of the week here: http://lesrosbifs.net/2011/12/les-ro...es-galaxy-men/. Gary Martin of the same club also included.

**geysir** · 31/12/2011, 1:54 PM

Nah, just heard his name a few times, Akranes (IA) were playing in the 2nd division in 2011, gained promotion without breaking into a sweat. IA have a proud football tradition and getting relegated was a blow.
The 2nd division highlights rarely make the tv and my live time would be spent attending about 6 KR games over the season.

So, Doninger and Martin making that list is a curious one, considering the standard in the 2nd div, or it all goes to show what a massive achievement it was for Pats to overcome IBV in the Europa league