Shabba Shines as Pilgrims Plunder Points
Rangers were soundly thumped as they turned in a
terrible performance at Home Park against
Plymouth Argyle. The game started poorly and
went downhill from there as Holloway’s men
failed to get anything right for almost ninety
minutes. The only bright spot in the game was
the performance and first goal for Shabazz
Baidoo.
After the
Reading game and the subsequent two week break, the squad was not
looking as healthy as it might have and as such the team selected
had an odd look to it. Royce was in goal behind the usual back four
of Bignot, Evatt, Shittu and Dyer. Ainsworth, Doherty, Langley and
Cook lined up in midfield behind Gallen and makeshift striker
Santos.
Rangers had the
better of the first couple of minutes, Lee Cook breezed past Argyle
full back Connolly and we hoped it was a sign of things to come.
Unfortunately that was not the case as Rangers gifted Plymouth a
goal with their first attack. David Norris was allowed to run
through the heart of the defence and was absolutely hammered by
Royce.
The keeper
stayed down and seemed to be in agony, I say seemed as he looked
much better after not being sent off! In truth Norris was heading
away from goal but I expected a red, a yellow was shown though and I
think this had a bearing on the card happy Tanner’s display for the
rest of the afternoon. Paul Wotton stepped up to take the kick and
battered it into the net.
Rangers looked
to respond but couldn’t get anything right. They were being overrun
in midfield where neither Langley nor Doherty were putting in a
challenge worthy of the name. Brian Tilsley look-a-like Akos Buszaky
was making light of his groin injury and leading the R’s players a
merry dance.
They did come
close to equalising when a poor corner from Langley was flicked on
by Gallen and the ball sailed over the top of Romain Larrieu.
Luckily for the French stopper there was a player on hand to hack
the ball off of the line. That was about as close as Rangers came to
getting back into this and Argyle started to turn the screw.
Royce made a
great save one on one with Chadwick to deny the former Everton
striker. Then Buszaky went close with a freekick from thirty yards
that was brilliantly saved by the R’s keeper much to the chagrin of
the ever vociferous Home Park crowd. This lot will appeal for
anything and they do have an influence on referees. Fair play to
them as sometimes, as on this occasion, it works a treat!
Eight minutes
before the break Rangers were two down as they gave away a
criminally sloppy goal. Buszaky’s corner from the left was not
cleared properly and it dropped to Matthias Doumbe and he hooked the
ball into the top corner from ten yards leaving Royce helpless.
Shortly after
this Gallen was rightly booked for a shocker of a challenge on the
same man and the on the stroke of half time Dyer was booked for
standing strong under a barge from Chadwick. The Argyle man went to
ground and the R’s left back was ridiculously cautioned. Cook was
also shown a yellow for dissent when he reacted angrily to a
challenge from Norris on Bignot. It would be nice if he had shown as
much passion as this at any other point during the game.
After the break
Doherty was forced off through injury and Rowlands returned from his
own injury lay off to replace him. Within two minutes Plymouth had
made it 3-0 via yet more sloppy defending. Buszaky once again sent a
freekick into the box and Chadwick eased Gallen out of the way and
glanced a header past Royce.
Ainsworth then
found himself booked for trying to block a clearance and making
minimal contact with the player. It seemed now that every time there
was a foul, the crowd would shout and Tanner would oblige with a
booking. That made it six R’s players so far when you add in Santos’
early booking for kicking the ball away, something a Plymouth player
was not booked for later in the game.
Just before the
hour mark Holloway made his final two changes with Bean and Baidoo
coming on for the ineffective pairing of Langley and Santos. The
change paid off immediately as Shabba scored his first ever goal for
the R’s first team.
Cook swung in a
corner and the ball was cleared as far as Evatt. He sent a header
back into the danger area and Baidoo was lurking in front of Larrieu
and turned sharply to send the ball into the net with his right
knee. It was a poacher’s goal and hopefully the first of many for
the fiery little striker.
He found himself
in the book soon after when he and Connolly tussled on the
touchline. Tanner booked both men in a nothing incident that seemed
to quickly get out of hand. The rest of the game was played out
against a backdrop of Plymouth knowing they had the game comfortably
won and Rangers trying to get back into it but achieving very
little.
Baidoo was
posing the only real threat for Rangers as he constantly buzzed
along the Argyle backline looking for an opening. He had an effort
blocked after finding some space at the far post. Gallen had a tame
header turned over the top and Ainsworth had a volley blocked but
that was just about all they could muster.
In injury time
Bean and Shittu were both booked to take the R’s tally to a
ridiculous nine! This had never been a game that could be described
as brutal, indeed the stats show that we only conceded fourteen
freekicks; quite how this equates to nine yellow cards I will never
know. What it does mean is that we will be fined for failing to
control our players, I’m not sure if they reduce the fine for the
ref going crackers! Incidentally the bookings for Bean and Shittu
were their fifth ones of the season and they will now miss the Hull
City game, not the Preston game as Olly believes.
A few things
will have to happen if we want to turn things around. Firstly we
must play strikers up front, not defenders. I am sure most people
would rather see a wet behind the ears seventeen year old up there
than a grizzled war horse more at home at centre back. Our midfield
players must learn to put their foot in and organise themselves
properly. Langley and Doherty were woeful and a fit Lomas is needed
to knit this team together. We need to provide better delivery from
wide, too often today the crosses from Messer’s Bignot, Dyer,
Ainsworth and Cook was terrible.
It won’t solve
everything, the players need to take a look at themselves and ask
why they seem to capitulate when they go behind. So far this season
when we have gone behind in a game we have lost eight and drawn one.
It is time they stood up and showed some fight rather than letting
heads go down and watching the game drift tamely away. Not good
enough I am afraid.
simon@qprnet.com |
