How simple it could be!

[Jonaldiniho 88]

Is it just me who thinks with our squad we should be improving? We lack experience but we are spoilt with promise. So who of our youth have improved game on game this season? What player if any had improved at all this season? No offence to kit, I wanted him in and fully backed him. My mind is now changed. Not one player has improved under him. The ex u21 boss obviously had more talent than knowledge and I now wonder how good our u21's would've been with a better coach. He did deserve the job when he got it but he now needs to be put to pasture because not one player under his leadership has improved. Lvc is a good player. Not great but we make him look great. Fof playing in this team had been average. Could a better coach of made him better? If I was fofs coach I would ping hundreds of balls at him with five cones ahead and say "control then pass sensible". I may have drunk too much but this must be coaching 101.

[cmg]

Should we be improving? Yes

'Game on Game'? Youth improvement does not work like that. It cannot be charted on a regular graph. There is progress and there are set-backs. Some will not come on. Some will suddenly show rapid progress.

Such has been the necessity to 'fast forward' our youngsters that many of them have hardly had much in the way of u21 'careers', they have come straight from u18. Most would still be qualified for u21s.

'Not one of them has improved under him'. This is a matter of opinion - but I would say that Bettinelli and LVC have both shown dramatic improvement this season. As to the others, it could be argued that all who have made regular appearances have, by definition, improved from their previous junior level.

The development of many of our younger players has, at least in part, been due to Symons, who coached them at u18 and u21 level.
Would they have done better with another coach? Who knows?

[Artful Dodger]

The problem that the youngsters have had is putting too many of them in to the team in one go and then finding they are losing week in week out. Normally young players come through in ones and twos supported by seasoned pros. LVC has found himself having to boss midfield, Woodrow leading the line, Betts learning the trade on the job and being criticised by people on here for positional sense or distribution. It is so much easier in a settled team to do that.

It may be with 3 or 4 good signings, we can build a team around LVC, Betts, Woodrow, Grimmer, Roberts, Staf that will be good enough for promotion but anyone thinking that would happen this year is living in cloud cuckoo land.

[hovewhite]

The problem that the youngsters have had is putting too many of them in to the team in one go and then finding they are losing week in week out. Normally young players come through in ones and twos supported by seasoned pros. LVC has found himself having to boss midfield, Woodrow leading the line, Betts learning the trade on the job and being criticised by people on here for positional sense or distribution. It is so much easier in a settled team to do that.

It may be with 3 or 4 good signings, we can build a team around LVC, Betts, Woodrow, Grimmer, Roberts, Staf that will be good enough for promotion but anyone thinking that would happen this year is living in cloud cuckoo land.

100% agree
I agree , what worries me is that there are more people entering Cloud Cuckoo Land than leaving.

100% agree

[grandad]

...if LVC had not got injured. He was mercurial until the 1st injury. He was rushed back too soon & never regained the form he was in. We have sorely missed his influence in MF.