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Defence

Defence

Vodsel

Vodsel

A “significant” poster
Joined
Apr 27, 2013
Messages
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Come the end of January, we should have a clean bill of health re defenders, fingers crossed. Which begs the question, what should our settled back four be? There's probably going to be rotation at some point in the latter half of the season but which set of defenders would you prefer to see start the majority of the remaining games?

Should Clarke retain his position in the team at right-back because he's a great leader and never gives less than his all or will he be exposed for lack of pace by some of the trickier wingers in the league? Is Fisher more of an attacking threat and therefore more valuable?

As for the two centre-halves, I think it's pretty much agreed that Davies should be in the side whenever fit but could Clarke maybe displace Huntington next to him or is that not even a question worth thinking about?

As for left-back, Cunningham should start if he's available but who knows what toll injuries could take on the team again...
 
Fisher, Hunts/Clarke, Davis, Cunningham

No question we play with proper fullbacks. I would expect AN to rotate Clarke and Hunts
 
paddysr said:
Fisher, Hunts/Clarke, Davis, Cunningham

No question we play with proper fullbacks. I would expect AN to rotate Clarke and Hunts
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I think the fact we are even discussing tom clarke having to displace hunts is a huge testament to how superb hunts has been this season.

When you think we were all adamant that a new centre half was needed to replace the injured clarke.

I think huntington has earned his place in the side and it is now up to tom clarke to win that place back, as reliable as clarke is to fill in at right back i agree with you that natural full backs play when fit.
 
Tough one to call. There is simply no case for disrupting the Huntington-Davies partnership in central defence though Clarke would bring an ability to play long accurate balls out of defence that Huntington does not possess. At right-back Clarke cannot recover once an opposition player gets past him - Fisher is much more agile in that respect but otherwise not obviously superior to Clarke defensively while Clarke as we saw on Friday can add some weight to our attack at set-pieces. At left-back Cunningham is the present and Earl the future - just when the first of those will become the second remains to be seen.
 
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ernest said:
Tough one to call. There is simply no case for disrupting the Huntington-Davies partnership in central defence though Clarke would bring an ability to play long accurate balls out of defence that Huntington does not possess. At right-back Clarke cannot recover once an opposition player gets past him - Fisher is much more agile in that respect but otherwise not obviously superior to Clarke defensively while Clarke as we saw on Friday can add some weight to our attack at set-pieces. At left-back Cunningham is the present and Earl the future - just when the first of those will become the second remains to be seen.
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To my mind the only way back for Clarke is injury to Hunts or loss of form. Neither apparent at the moment.
 
johnkellysmop said:
To my mind the only way back for Clarke is injury to Hunts or loss of form. Neither apparent at the moment.
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Agreed as far as central defence is concerned. A couple of weeks ago I would have said that as soon as Fisher is fit he should come straight back in at right-back but now I am not so sure. Yes Clarke's slowness of turn remains a weak point though that is just as much the case when he is in central defence but he very obviously has a talismanic effect on the team as a whole - he is a genuine on-field leader - and as we have seen he can pitch in with some goals as well. On balance I think I would persist with Clarke at right-back with the proviso that if he came up against a winger who started giving him the run around he might have to be subbed fairly. AN I would guess thinks the same - otherwise he might he have started with Woods at right-back on Friday.
 
Fisher - Hunts - Davies - Cunningham

Clarke comes in if form or injury knocks out any of them aside from Cunningham, or if AN wishes to play him for a tactical reason.
 
ernest said:
On balance I think I would persist with Clarke at right-back with the proviso that if he came up against a winger who started giving him the run around he might have to be subbed fairly. AN I would guess thinks the same - otherwise he might he have started with Woods at right-back on Friday.
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I didn't see Friday's game but, prior to it, Mendez-Laing was touted as the roadrunner; I assume he didn't give TC too many problems. Of course he wouldn't if Clarkey showed him to a seat in Row Z early on. Fisher gets forward much faster but, apart from the shot he put in against Burton, he's not as much of an attacking threat. Having said that, he's good to have around to provide cover/competition/rotational options as are Woods, Earl, Spurr, Boyle, O'Connor. Twenty one league games and at least one FA cup game will take their toll.
 
Maybe AN does actually have Plans A B C, and could rotate the defence accordingly; with alleged incoming strikers available, perhaps there's a case for 3-5-2 being a possible formation, where he could align TC, PH, BD.
 
WADSH said:
Maybe AN does actually have Plans A B C, and could rotate the defence accordingly; with alleged incoming strikers available, perhaps there's a case for 3-5-2 being a possible formation, where he could align TC, PH, BD.
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I totally agree that the boss has more than one string to his bow. With one player already arrived, and the hope of a couple more to follow, fingers crossed we see less and less of the one up front; I know this sounds dated but 4-4-2 still has a lot to offer 🙂!
 
Earnest, you obviously don’t watch PNE live because Hunts is a far better passer of the ball than Tom Clarke. Tom just hoofs it up the line but has other attributes defensively that make him an excellent fullback. Having Davies Hunts and Clarke and Hugill on our 6 yard box for corners and free kicks gives us real solidity. Slightly off tack, I think our success this season is down to the backbone down the middle of the pitch. Maxwell,Hunts/Davies, Pearson and Hugill,- this is our strength imo.
 
pet shop boy said:
Earnest, you obviously don’t watch PNE live because Hunts is a far better passer of the ball than Tom Clarke. Tom just hoofs it up the line but has other attributes defensively that make him an excellent fullback. Having Davies Hunts and Clarke and Hugill on our 6 yard box for corners and free kicks gives us real solidity. Slightly off tack, I think our success this season is down to the backbone down the middle of the pitch. Maxwell,Hunts/Davies, Pearson and Hugill,- this is our strength imo.[/QUOTE]

Nail on head actually.
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Hunts and Davies are 1st choice CB partnership. Depending on who we plat determines right back. Anyone with pace we have to play Fisher
 
Hunts has been outstanding this season and he has built a fantastic partnership with Davies. All credit to them, they must have been putting in the hours training together as a unit with the coaches and what we all thought would be our greatest weakness this season has become one of our greatest strengths. Tomorrow I guess woods will start left back with cummingham to sub later, may be too much to expect Cunningham to play another full match so soon.
 
If fisher is fit clarke can't start. Simple as that. Too slow as a fb & gehen isolated it'll show against a good winger .AN clearly prefers a right left footed cb pairing. Imo Clarke a better cb than hunts but he has the jersey. If Cunningham doesn't start O'Connor should. Done very well his last couple starts. But won't
 
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