Well, we’re back with the match analysis, and it seems not much has changed. Out of context this game doesn’t feel that bad – an away tie at a high-spending Championship team, when our centre-backs were
Michael Stickland and Matty Jacob, with Mark O’Mahoney up top. It’s a game that, really, we were never likely to win.
Having said that, Swindon Town fans may well have gone into their game against us with a similar mentality – but in that match we failed to demonstrate why we’re in the higher division like Wrexham did in this one.
But looking at the run of games Noel Hunt has led us on so far this season, this loss doesn’t make it look much rosier. 12 matches into the campaign in all competitions, we’ve lost six and won only four.
Looking at how the match was played though, we saw some of the best football yet in the season, particularly in the first half.
O’Mahoney started after a period out of the XI and appeared to play in a slightly different role to what we’d seen from him, as the Irish striker was no longer occupying the position of a target man.
He only had a very low number of touches through the game with 26, the lowest of any outfield player, but managed to get in the positions to receive 10 progressive passes.
An example of one of those is shown below.
Kamari Doyle makes a run from attacking midfield into the line of Wrexham centre-backs which takes O’Mahoney’s man away from him, giving the striker the space to face back and receive the ball off Charlie Savage. He turns well and has loads of time to get his head up and try create a scoring chance.
Kelvin Abrefa is making a run in loads of space to his right, to his left is Doyle in a position to be set through on goal, and Daniel Kyerewaa is pointing, making a run in front of him too. Instead, O’Mahoney just takes on the shot from about 30 yards out and it sails wide.
Of course, if it had gone into the top corner we’d all be praising him for the bravery to take on the strike, or if it were Lewis Wing taking a chance on a shot it’d be merited, but when you have put in poor performance after poor performance since coming to the club, we have to make the most of attacking opportunities like this.
Then at the other end of the pitch, we didn’t cover ourselves in much glory either. Switching off at the back, lazy defending and silly mistakes all played a part in goals that at first glance might have just looked a bit unfortunate.
For the first, number 38 Elliott Lee – who’s in possession in the screenshot below – gets the ball off Nathan Broadhead, who was being closed down by Doyle and Ben Elliott on our right side.
While Lee takes on a shot that is deflected against Stickland and goes loose inside the box, Broadhead makes the easy run inside to pick up the deflection and strikes unopposed inside Jack Stevens’ far post for 1-0.
Neither Doyle nor Elliott went to follow his run, the rest of the team failed to shift over the pitch to cover the obvious overload on that wing, and it makes it quite simple to score when you outnumber your opposition.
The Welshman tore us apart with how clinical he was: Broadhead’s two shots resulting in a goal and one effort against the woodwork. It’s not a massive surprise than a £10m player looks a different class against a starting XI with a transfer value of zero, but it felt like Wrexham never had to do anything particularly complicated tactically to break us down and rather just made the most of the common Reading mistakes.
It’s hard to know what the answer is ahead of Stockport County this Saturday. I suppose that’s why it’s not my job to figure it out, although I’m not sure if Hunt has much idea either. Compared to their achievements of last season, County haven’t hit the ground running quite as hard this time out, but if the game goes anything like those of last year, it’ll be one long old journey back home for the Reading faithful.
To me it feels like there’s been a distinct lack of movement from the boardroom at Bearwood Park, so I can’t see the corner flag pictures being brought out too soon. However, time is most certainly running out for Hunt among the fans.
So that’s why I’m predicting a scoreline of Stockport County nil, Reading Football Club three. Keep the faith lads.
Up the Royals.
