As the teams lined up in the tunnel on Sunday, ready to give us all (and Sky Sports) the first chapter in another long, arduous and undoubtedly stressful season, I, with what seemed to be a considerable majority, looked to this term with decidedly more optimism than in previous years.
Ok, while we all possess a special brand of caution that only comes from being a Rams fan, if football was won on paper then this particular sheet certainly seemed to possess the potential to produce pleasant reading.
From the first whispers of team news filtering from various smart phones, my first thought from seeing 1-18 (or 26-Ledzgins!) was that for the first time in a long time, we actually had a proper match-day squad, without the Conor Doyle’s of this world getting splinters for the sake of it. My one worry though ultimately came to pass, and it worries me that this could be the Achilles heal of the hunt for the playoffs.
We have, as Clough has muted throughout the summer, one of the top midfields in the league. Messer’s Hughes, Bryson and Hendrick all bring different qualities, different pros and cons. Hughes, for example, at 18, brings the most flair and guile but is young and has a target emblazoned on his bright locks.
Bryson will run and run but needs to score more, whereas Hendrick drives forwards at will but often gets found wanting facing his own goal. The conundrum then is who to drop if, like on Sunday, we endeavour with 2 strikers and 4 across the middle. Jamie Ward has the wide left position nailed down and Paul Coutts, when injury free, looks a safe bet on the right.
This leaves 3 fighting for 2 central spots. For me, it was proven with Bryson and Hughes’ stints on the left wing last season then neither is comfortable there, despite producing a manful shift when asked to fill in. Imagine my dismay then, when on Sunday, as in the WBA friendly, Jeff found himself in an unusual right wing role. Instinctively, he looked to come inside, which left us lob-sided and bereft of ideas.
When switching to 4-5-1, with the midfield trio looking more assured and with square pegs finding fruit in square holes, we started to knock it around. The sacrifice was that despite Chris Martin battling away, winning headers and holding it up well, he had little support.
Johnny Russell, a peripheral figure and a striker by trade, saw more of the ball but in less threatening wide areas. Possession, especially at home, is sought as an upmost requirement. So is an obvious goal threat, which is bound to diminish with 5 across the middle.
The other side to this is the risk of gifting the opposition the ball until at least the halfway line, thus becoming camped in our own half, as we found to our cost again on Sunday. 4-3-3 has been talked of, but Russell has been ear-marked for 20 goals this term, a total he will struggle to reach while covering out wide.
For the talk of 2 up top being our preferred route forward, the risk to accommodate this will have to be at the cost of one of the midfield trio. The question is who risks the axe first? For me, Hendrick will be the unfortunate first to be given a watching brief, which potentially leaves both him and the fish looking on. A penny for the thoughts of Mr Trapattoni should this come to pass…
At some point this season, we will suffer injuries, suspension or just lack of form. This is where our ace in the pack, whoever that may be, can be plucked from the cold in Derby, Yeovil or wherever in the country serves as the deck on the particular day.
Rotation, as we saw to good effect at Oldham on Tuesday, will become the buzz word. With us now finally having a squad to shake up, with the likes of Jacobs, Davies and Sammon chomping at the bit for a regular start, competition and training should be fierce and sharp.
I would rather it was Nigel than me making this call but a decisive outcome over axing one of our ‘big three’ will have to be made in due course. Fortune, they say, favours the brave, and it may be that a courageous call works for the better in the long run to May.
Whoever is dropped will be a certainty to play some part from the bench, and will enable a rotation that might just benefit us in the 46 game season. Add the experience of Eustace to the pack and we have significant depth.
Nigel will have to be brave. Finding the balance of utilising the centre-piece of the selection, along with some aforementioned fortune, could just be the key to the elusive top 6 door.