What do we do at East Mains?

[crash]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

[Hibercelona]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

And we're sitting in 3rd place. :wink:

[lEXO]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?
We are 3rd in the league.Hoofball? Mmm. Todays game wasn,t great, but to say your post is an over reaction would be putting it mildly.

[Jonnyboy]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

All good points IMO crash.

It's easy to ignore failings when we've just won 3-0 but there are indeed elements of our play that are concerning. Closing down, winning second ball, doing something (anything) positive at throw ins and insisting on playing square and backways when pacey attacks might cause difficulty to opposing teams - all need attention I agree.

There is however a but and that is that Yogi and Chipper are still working hard to get their philosophy across to the players and that will take time. Watching them today for example I lost count of the number of times either or both were waving frantically from the dug out asking players to get forward more quickly. I reckon the players themselves need to have more confidence in their own ability.

One other factor I reckon it's worth mentioning. Easter Road was like a morgue for large parts of the game. That affects players I am sure. I recall only one or two songs from the East in the first half and one of those came after the opening goal and consisted of the timeless nugget that is "You've all gone quiet over there" No doubt some East Standers will come on and say the atmosphere in there was great - maybe it was but it wasn't heard in the West and so probably wasn't heard on the park either.

[noz]

agree, we still dont look fit enough to me. And what happened to our supposed 'passing game' we were meant to have. Were still not playing that well but were 3rd?.....footballs a funny game.

[hibsbollah]

And we're sitting in 3rd place. :wink:


:agree: 2points off the lead. Are Hibs fans the biggest bunch of torn-faced disasters in the football world?:confused:

[Jonnyboy]

:agree: 2points off the lead. Are Hibs fans the biggest bunch of torn-faced disasters in the football world?:confused:

Some are it seems but to ignore deficiencies just because we've won is wrong surely?

[madgoalie87]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

the game room looks like it would be well used:duck:

[lEXO]

:agree: 2points off the lead. Are Hibs fans the biggest bunch of torn-faced disasters in the football world?:confused:
Some are.Glass half full most of the time.Rather than say "we won 3-0 and scored 3 great goals" some would rather focus on the negatives. We,ve had a week of negatives after the Hamilton, and fair do,s if you lose it,s expected.Lets try and enjoy our win and 3rd place for at least a week, or is it to much to ask.:rolleyes:

[hibsbollah]

Some are it seems but to ignore deficiencies just because we've won is wrong surely?

Its about emphasis I suppose Johnny. We're seeing the emergence of a genuinely exciting young prospect (Mr W.Spoon), our big name signing getting off the scoresheet with two great goals, a dizzy league position but most of the threads are about our perceived faults. I prefer to dwell on the fact that Mixu could still be here:greengrin

[BigKev]

All good points IMO crash.

It's easy to ignore failings when we've just won 3-0 but there are indeed elements of our play that are concerning. Closing down, winning second ball, doing something (anything) positive at throw ins and insisting on playing square and backways when pacey attacks might cause difficulty to opposing teams - all need attention I agree.

There is however a but and that is that Yogi and Chipper are still working hard to get their philosophy across to the players and that will take time. Watching them today for example I lost count of the number of times either or both were waving frantically from the dug out asking players to get forward more quickly. I reckon the players themselves need to have more confidence in their own ability.

One other factor I reckon it's worth mentioning. Easter Road was like a morgue for large parts of the game. That affects players I am sure. I recall only one or two songs from the East in the first half and one of those came after the opening goal and consisted of the timeless nugget that is "You've all gone quiet over there" No doubt some East Standers will come on and say the atmosphere in there was great - maybe it was but it wasn't heard in the West and so probably wasn't heard on the park either.

Today was one of them games where we expect to win (which we did) and there was never going to be much passion about the game.

The team never looked like moving out of second gear and got the points.

Credit where it's due - we'll play better and lose but ffs - enjoy the victory and stop the whinging.

As for the atmosphere if the West Standers fancy making one then feel free to do so. If not leave off the Terracing boys who at least sang a song which was heard on the opposite side of the ground.

[persevere1875]

Isnt there an old adage about winning when your playing badly ??:wink:

[Jonnyboy]

Its about emphasis I suppose Johnny. We're seeing the emergence of a genuinely exciting young prospect (Mr W.Spoon), our big name signing getting off the scoresheet with two great goals, a dizzy league position but most of the threads are about our perceived faults. I prefer to dwell on the fact that Mixu could still be here:greengrin

I agree 100% that we should all enjoy the positives but discussing the negatives on here is no more than we'd do in the pub :wink:

[hibsbollah]

I agree 100% that we should all enjoy the positives but discussing the negatives on here is no more than we'd do in the pub :wink:

If you were drinking in 'The Torn Faced Disaster's Arms', i daresay you would:wink:

[Pete70]

Get it sorted Petrie :grr:

[truehibernian]

Midfield balance is still wrong IMO but Yogi today has to be given a pat on the back for making good subs today to inject some urgency. The full back positions worry me immensely this season as I don't think Hanlon and McCormack are good enough (sorry that will be controversial to some Hanlon fans). They are drawn out of position time and time again, they don't win one on one challenges in the air, and they allow too many crosses into the box. I would go for a midfield of Galbraith (left), Miller, Cregg and Wotherspoon for Tuesday.......this would give us width when attacking (Galbraith and Wotherspoon don't half whip in good crosses) and also our full backs some protection as they have these two young midfielders tracking back more so than the likes of Zemmama and Rankin. The way St Johnstone line up, I don't think you need a McBride in there when you have someone like Miller who looks composed on the ball and can spray it around better. Cregg for a bit of bite and to get in about Morris.

[jakedance]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

Maybe a bit harsh but you raise some valid points. I think we'll improve and at least we're getting results. Yogi's in it for the long haul and we need to give him time, he'll put things right (except the throw ins, we'll never be good at them).

[Jonnyboy]

If you were drinking in 'The Torn Faced Disaster's Arms', i daresay you would:wink:

Not my establishment of choice I have to say :greengrin

I'm a regular in the "Smile cos we're Hibernian FC" tavern :thumbsup:

[Bishop Hibee]

All good points IMO crash.

It's easy to ignore failings when we've just won 3-0 but there are indeed elements of our play that are concerning. Closing down, winning second ball, doing something (anything) positive at throw ins and insisting on playing square and backways when pacey attacks might cause difficulty to opposing teams - all need attention I agree.

There is however a but and that is that Yogi and Chipper are still working hard to get their philosophy across to the players and that will take time. Watching them today for example I lost count of the number of times either or both were waving frantically from the dug out asking players to get forward more quickly. I reckon the players themselves need to have more confidence in their own ability.

One other factor I reckon it's worth mentioning. Easter Road was like a morgue for large parts of the game. That affects players I am sure. I recall only one or two songs from the East in the first half and one of those came after the opening goal and consisted of the timeless nugget that is "You've all gone quiet over there" No doubt some East Standers will come on and say the atmosphere in there was great - maybe it was but it wasn't heard in the West and so probably wasn't heard on the park either.

:agree: More atmosphere on the moon than at ER today. In the 80's, often with crowds of 5,000-6,000, there were always songs from us young 'uns underneath the tv gantry. Why no songs East Standers?

[hibsbollah]

Not my establishment of choice I have to say :greengrin

I'm a regular in the "Smile cos we're Hibernian FC" tavern :thumbsup:

Now you're talking:greengrin

[Dashing Bob S]

All good points IMO crash.

It's easy to ignore failings when we've just won 3-0 but there are indeed elements of our play that are concerning. Closing down, winning second ball, doing something (anything) positive at throw ins and insisting on playing square and backways when pacey attacks might cause difficulty to opposing teams - all need attention I agree.

There is however a but and that is that Yogi and Chipper are still working hard to get their philosophy across to the players and that will take time. Watching them today for example I lost count of the number of times either or both were waving frantically from the dug out asking players to get forward more quickly. I reckon the players themselves need to have more confidence in their own ability.

One other factor I reckon it's worth mentioning. Easter Road was like a morgue for large parts of the game. That affects players I am sure. I recall only one or two songs from the East in the first half and one of those came after the opening goal and consisted of the timeless nugget that is "You've all gone quiet over there" No doubt some East Standers will come on and say the atmosphere in there was great - maybe it was but it wasn't heard in the West and so probably wasn't heard on the park either.

Best post on the current state of Hibs for some time. The players still haven't meshed together as a team (though some individual performances have often been pleasing) but they are new to each other and some are still clearly traumatised from Yamish anti-football habits they picked up last season.

We really need to be patient. Yes, the results (the Hamilton disaster aside) have generally been better than the performances and we have deficiencies that need corrected, but we have a lot of talent in our squad and we will come good performance wise. It would nice to keep winning untill that day arrives.

Most importantly, we have a shrewd manager who is well aware of our shortcomings, and is working hard to rectify them.

[HibsMax]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?
That's exactly what I saw today. I can't speak for the rest of the games because this is the only game of the season that I have seen but I would say your analysis is spot on.

Of course I'm happy that we're in 3rd place and I'm not surprised that some people are "surprised" with your post but league position is not necessarily a great indicator of the quality of play.....at least not this early on in the season.

[Arch Stanton]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

It looked to me as if the 2nd goal came from a practiced throw-in, didn't it?

I also didn't think the play was one-paced - slow probing, while keeping possession, leading up to fast attacks is what a lot of teams do (albeit a lot of them do it a lot better but thats another story).

Anyway, it seemed to me to be a decent mixture of possession football and longer 'out balls'. (And this from someone who didn't renew his ST, but who nonetheless enjoyed the game from the South Stand today).

I don't personally go along with this aversion to 'hoofball' - I remember when Collins was here and seeing that his insistence on playing the ball out from the back meant watching most of the game played in our own half of the field.

[Tomsk]

Best post on the current state of Hibs for some time. The players still haven't meshed together as a team (though some individual performances have often been pleasing) but they are new to each other and some are still clearly traumatised from Yamish anti-football habits they picked up last season.

We really need to be patient. Yes, the results (the Hamilton disaster aside) have generally been better than the performances and we have deficiencies that need corrected, but we have a lot of talent in our squad and we will come good performance wise. It would nice to keep winning untill that day arrives.

Most importantly, we have a shrewd manager who is well aware of our shortcomings, and is working hard to rectify them.

Agreed. Patience is needed. It is unreasonable to expect Hughes to undo the damage inflicted by Mixu in a few short months. I think it is evident that we have the capacity within the squad to grow.

Today was putting it kindly imperfect. For me the 433 is not working although it may start to work in time -- although not with Rankin in there. And full back remains a problem area for us.

I have seen Hibs win three times this season without ever really exerting any control -- when they do get a grip on the game God help the opposition because we definitely have goals in us.

[sahib]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

First things first, we have got some points on the board against the weaker opposition in the league - Hamilton excepted. Stokes has got two goals and if he can kick on from here it will make a big difference to our season. We have plenty of useful midfielders and competition looks like being fierce for a place in the starting line up. I thought Hanlon had one of his best games today and Mccormack looked more relaxed. That said, with the players we have got I hope we will try and play the ball on the deck.
John Collins may have had an unhappy time, latterly, but I think he was spot on about holding the ball, controlling the game and denying the opposition the chance to play. I can't remember Stack rolling the ball out too many times today. Unlike Jonnyboy I am not cheered by the fact that Yogi and Rice were gesticulating wanting the quick ball forward because that is what we saw from Mixu last season. I know there has to be a balance but I think the big punt still looms large in our play. If we can gel, though, we look to have a good side there.

[Jonnyboy]

First things first, we have got some points on the board against the weaker opposition in the league - Hamilton excepted. Stokes has got two goals and if he can kick on from here it will make a big difference to our season. We have plenty of useful midfielders and competition looks like being fierce for a place in the starting line up. I thought Hanlon had one of his best games today and Mccormack looked more relaxed. That said, with the players we have got I hope we will try and play the ball on the deck.
John Collins may have had an unhappy time, latterly, but I think he was spot on about holding the ball, controlling the game and denying the opposition the chance to play. I can't remember Stack rolling the ball out too many times today. Unlike Jonnyboy I am not cheered by the fact that Yogi and Rice were gesticulating wanting the quick ball forward because that is what we saw from Mixu last season. I know there has to be a balance but I think the big punt still looms large in our play. If we can gel, though, we look to have a good side there.

Not quite what I meant sahib. My point was that the ball should be moved forward at pace when Hibs have it in their control!

[jabis]

agree, we still dont look fit enough to me. And what happened to our supposed 'passing game' we were meant to have. Were still not playing that well but were 3rd?.....footballs a funny game.


aye ye did well last year.......ya door-nob !

[Sprouleflyer]

At least this season we seem to keep more retention of the ball at throw in's. Last seson we would loose the ball amost every single time or throw the ball straight to an opposition player.

[CallumLaidlaw]

When Yogi was appointed, we were all on here saying, let's give him time to get the team right, things aren't gonna change overnight, yet all of a sudden we are meant to be worldbeaters in a heartbeat.
Yogi has a goal, and I think we are slowly seeing his vision fit into place, but its gonna take time. All I want to see this season is an improvement, and I think we already have that.
We have made good signings, and Stokes and Miller are particularly exciting, BUT, they need time to get fully match fit. I'm glad to see them in the team straight away tho, as even when they are not match sharp, they are still good enough and are only gonna get better.

There is lots of improvements to be made, although we are NEVER gonna be perfect, but there is lots to look forward to. :thumbsup:

[blackpoolhibs]

Not quite what I meant sahib. My point was that the ball should be moved forward at pace when Hibs have it in their control!

This is the one thing i have noticed that is so different from last season. Under Mixu it was lumped up the park quickly, although if we are trying to keep the ball better, we will be slower at doing so. But from what i have seen so far, we are very pedestrian in our play, McBride does the boozy role, but with him taking it from the centre backs, he really only has both full backs who are not marked, or the long ball to the forwards, and we dont want to do that.

The problem with the full back, are they are both converted centre backs, both need that little bit extra time, that 2nd touch. We really were spoiled with Whittaker and Murphy, its a difficult job replacing them from within. I dont see it getting much better unless we replace both full backs with better, and we all know thats not going to happen for a while.

The standard of the SPL has dropped dramatically in the last couple of seasons, Yogi's idea's are fine in theory, but and i cant believe i'm about to say this, but we will need a little patience, and as long as we keep our forwards fit, and keep our good players fit, i think we will be fine, and should be there or there abouts for a european place.:thumbsup:

[ironmike]

When Yogi was appointed, we were all on here saying, let's give him time to get the team right, things aren't gonna change overnight, yet all of a sudden we are meant to be worldbeaters in a heartbeat.
Yogi has a goal, and I think we are slowly seeing his vision fit into place, but its gonna take time. All I want to see this season is an improvement, and I think we already have that.
We have made good signings, and Stokes and Miller are particularly exciting, BUT, they need time to get fully match fit. I'm glad to see them in the team straight away tho, as even when they are not match sharp, they are still good enough and are only gonna get better.

There is lots of improvements to be made, although we are NEVER gonna be perfect, but there is lots to look forward to. :thumbsup:

:top marks great post! we need to remember this. give hughes a bit of time and it will come good.

[ancient hibee]

Hughes is trying things out and they don't always come off.For instance yesterday he shoved McBride further forward alongside Rankin-didn't work-McBride looks twice the player just in front of the back 4 with the game in front of him.Riordan andWotherspoon were played far too wide leaving Stokes isolated.Riordan must play beside Stokes so that they can make quick short passes at the edge of the box.It'll come-particularly when the central defence is sorted.

[Phil D. Rolls]

Five games gone.
We are second to every ball. We don't close teams down. No sharpness. No flowing football. No quick one-twos. Throw -ins are obviously not practised. Slow one-paced play, usually ending up at square one. Hoofball seems to be the order of the day. What do we do Mon-Fri?

I agree that we have been playing a lot of hoofball, and the quality of passing leaves a lot to be desired. Hopefully this is something that can be improved, as we are giving the ball away too easily.

[Spike Mandela]

Four of our first five games have been against teams who I fully expect to be contesting the bottom four positions in the league.

The next six games will tell us if we are a good team playing badly and winning or a poor team being lucky to win.

[matty_f]

When Yogi was appointed, we were all on here saying, let's give him time to get the team right, things aren't gonna change overnight, yet all of a sudden we are meant to be worldbeaters in a heartbeat.
Yogi has a goal, and I think we are slowly seeing his vision fit into place, but its gonna take time. All I want to see this season is an improvement, and I think we already have that.
We have made good signings, and Stokes and Miller are particularly exciting, BUT, they need time to get fully match fit. I'm glad to see them in the team straight away tho, as even when they are not match sharp, they are still good enough and are only gonna get better.

There is lots of improvements to be made, although we are NEVER gonna be perfect, but there is lots to look forward to. :thumbsup:

:top marks

Spot on. To me it looks like Yogi wants to build a team, and has started that process by bringing in some genuinely talented footballers. I think we'll improve as the season progresses, and next season we'll be looking very good.

I think we have the potential to do very well this season, but I'm not expecting it to happen that quickly.