Skubala had to be brave at half time, and he was. Here is a confession: I do not always feel Jack Moylan is the answer to our questions. However, yesterday he went some way to proving me wrong with an outstanding 45 minutes that earned him a unanimous Man of the Match from the Stacey West team. He lit up the half from start to almost finish, with other players looking better because of him (and, to be fair, Reeco who also made a difference).
Those two added drive and energy, a desire to beat a player and to get forward. It is why Rob Street is just not a wide player for me. He is a clear number nine, and given James Collins’ quiet afternoon, perhaps we need to give Street a run of games there. I am not writing him off, but as a wide player it is a big no from me.
Was Moylan fouled for a penalty? Yes and no. It is outside the area, so it is not a penalty, but for me Anders Hagelskjaer fouls Moylan. As Jack goes one way, the Dane looks the other and leaves a leg trailing. Moylan might take that leg, but it is contact. The problem is his fall is theatrical, but a foul is a foul. Langford had a good view and booked Moylan for diving, which I think is the third booking for such an offence we have seen (Wiredu and Darikwa the other two). I think all three are very harsh. Darikwa and Wiredu were not fouls, though for me Moylan was fouled.
Obviously, the subs made a big change in terms of impetus, but the next two brought the goals. Obikwu and Draper both got on the scoresheet as we threatened to win the game. I felt for Draper, as we had the ball in the net four times in the half, only for two to be ruled out for his pushing. I can see why the one where the keeper and defender collide was disallowed. It is a soft push, but it is a push. However, elsewhere on the field I noticed two-handed pushes from both teams that the referee ignored. Either they are all fouls or none are. A foul does not become any worse if it is in the area.
The other goal he disallowed, a Bradley header at 2-2, was pretty poor. As the ball comes in, Bradley is having the shirt pulled from his back, yet it is a 50/50 grapple in the middle he blows for. Again, some consistency would be nice, because half a metre of shirt being pulled from a player’s back, anywhere else, is a foul. Was Langford the only reason we lost the game? No. Did his decisions directly affect the outcome? Yes.
Even towards the end, letting Norris waste time, I do not blame players for it. I know some fans get angry and shout cheat and all that, but we do it as well. It is up to the referee to clamp down. I am reliably informed he held onto the ball for more than eight seconds at one point, but imagine Langford giving a contentious decision our way? Never. The foul by Obikwu which had Norris on the floor was a state as well. If Moylan gets booked for diving, Norris should have been punished. Again, nothing from Langford, who seemingly wanted to get away from Wycombe without upsetting the locals, bar a late corner for us that perhaps should have been a goal kick. Evening it up? Only if I stole £100 from you and gave you 50p change evened things up.
Another week, another poor EFL referee. You guys know me, I have always tried to steer away from referee blaming, but here is another who was really poor.
We had chances to score, Obikwu with his ‘Gazza 96’ moment, and House firing wide. Outrageously, our xG was only 1.04 all game, further making me question the numbers Wyscout sometimes produces. In context, 1.04 seems low, given two goals, and the House and Obikwu misses, but it does not include the two disallowed goals either, nor crosses which nobody got on the end of (13 of our 18 did not find a man). Still, I do use xG as a tool to praise us, so maybe our chances were not quite as clear-cut as I felt.
Their winner, by the way, is poor from us. It is their only corner of the game, cheaply conceded, and it should have been dealt with. Obikwu misses it at the front post, but it still bounces right across the area and finds a man marked. Grimmer had Darikwa sticking to him like he is a Panini album, but somehow the former Fulham man scores. It should have been prevented.
Overall, despite the defeat, I was not too downhearted. A few weeks ago we were complaining we could not score, but we now have six in three games. I am not all that angry about the first half performance. A couple were missing, the two who went off and James Collins in particular. Wycombe had a plan, executed it well and formed a blue wall we could not break down. At times we did not look willing to try, but maybe that was justified, because when we did lose the ball we were made to pay.
One point: I thought Bayliss had a poor game, but the numbers suggest not. He completed 71% of his passes to the final third and 77% of his forward passes. Perhaps out of possession, the midfield looked to be missing for the second goal, but I do wonder if he is getting scapegoated a bit. We have our club record signing on the bench, we know McGrandles has been outstanding, so some sections take the easy “let us blame Tom Bayliss” route. I was guilty on social media last night, and McGrandles did pass better (82% success to the final third, 81% forward, both in greater volume), but that does not mean Bayliss was bad.
What is the Billy Bragg lyric? “Just because you are going forward, does not mean I am going backwards.”
Overall, I am disappointed, of course I am. I could bleat on about budgets (we are around 16th, lower than Wycombe, I believe), but that does not wash yesterday. We do get more per pound than many clubs, which is why Michael Skubala pops up in the betting for manager roles in the Championship. We know we get that, but what is frustrating is the individual mistakes yesterday, which gave them two of their goals, and decisions not taken, resulting in the other, as well as insufficient officiating (in my opinion).
Still, we are in a decent place heading into Christmas, and I saw enough resilience and desire in the second half to know we are going to be fighting away, whatever the outcome. That is the key, isn’t it? Be competitive.
We know we will win some and lose some, we know we are probably realistically a top ten side rather than top six.
Up the Imps.
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