Saturday’s loss to QPR was bad … very bad very. Everything about it was less than we’ve seen this season … clue-less, rudder-less, spine-less. The list could be never ending.
During the inevitable angst and inquest – in which not too much wasn’t rubbished – there were two aspects that surprised me.
One was Dave Jones downing his front six, albeit mildly excusing Chris Burke, but opting to say little about his defence or midfield in public anyway. BUT WHY?
As crap as our forward line was, why should the defence be treated less harshly when neither full back showed desire to get forward, the defence as a whole lacked any pace or energy and the goals conceded, while problems started further up the field, saw our static back line trying to play offside while stood all over the field and then back off not knowing what to do allowing Routledge and Simpson to run amok for the other. Maybe three of those players being Dave Jones summer signings with a hefty £1.7 Million spent on them tempered his thoughts?
Of course, Jones also decided not to spend any money on our central midfield – the weakest unit of the side in the eyes of most fans – until the recent splash on Soloman Taiwo. Even when playing well this season, that unit has rarely convinced, often started slowly and, in truth, badly lack the personnel to turn it around. While I find the Jones Out calls by some a little laughable and an extreme over-reaction, his failure to act damns him … and, more to the point, City too.
The other aspect was Terry Phillips in the South Wales Echo calling it City’s worst home display since Frank Burrows last match as City were on their way to basement relegation a decade ago? Has his memory glossed over several appalling home displays under Dave Jones throughout his reign or has dementia set in? I know we’d all rather forget sh*te home displays but c’mon, let’s be real here. How can anyone, for example, overlook a whole year’s worth or relegation style results of football and results under Jones as recently as 2007 that took him to within 2 or 3 games of dismissal?
Here’s just a handful of unacceptable home shockers under Dave Jones – each on a par with last weekend or, undoubtedly with a few of these, even worse than the QPR debacle … and, believe me, this list isn’t complete either.
2007/08
City put on two shocking displays to lose 2-0 at home to Charlton and 1-0 to Leicester with nothing to commend in either display save a spectacular 35 yarder own goal by Darren Purse.
2006/2007
A 1-0 home defeat to Southend was abject in the extreme in a season City started off as runaway leaders but were soon cut down to size.
2005/2006
Cardiff 1 Watford 3 – we started the season with 2 wins and then got mullered by The Hornets.
Cardiff 2 Reading 5 - it could have been 8
There were many more dire displays between 1999 and Dave Jones - a dire 3-0 Ninian Park stuffing by Colchester weeks before the play-off win being a stand out.
However even after Frank Burrows was sacked in 2000, even worse came when Cambridge pasted us 4-0 at Ninian and Bury winning here 2-0 was just as shocking.
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