If this wasnt the final nail in Saints promotion hopes it was probably the last but one.
Put bluntly there will be a lot of excuses given as to why Saints couldnt beat Wycombe Wanderers, but the sad truth is that we are underperforming and Norwich apart we have been doing so game after game.
Yes the pitch was a churned muddy mess, but that didnt stop their players running at us and giving us some hairy moments,apart from a 10 minute spell mid way for the second half we were decidely average.
Once again it comes down to Alan Pardew not knowing the best side to put out, after a great win at Norwich were he didint make a substitution till the fnal minute, why tinker with what was a winning combination, for the first half an hour Saints were at sea, with Puncheon moved into the centre and Antonio appalingly average on the wing, it was brave of Pardew to make the change just after the half hour, but to be blunt it merely underlined the fact that he had got team selection and formation badly wrong.
Wotton wanted to play and put himself around, which is more than can be said from certain players who didnt appear willing to take on opponents and put them to the sword as Wycombe clearly tried to do to us.
There was a ten minute spell when Puncheon suddenly woke up and started to take on his man and suddenly Saints looked like they could win the game, but this was over all too quick and Puncheon retreated back into his shell, frustratingly showing what he can do, but not doing it for long enough.
The introduction of Papa Waigo again sparked the team, Waigo looked like a man who was trying to show his manager that he is worth more than brief cameo's, but too many of his team mates arent prepared to show the same level of commitment and willingness to crush the opposition.
With regard to that substitution, Pardew has to be prepared to take off Lambert, the game clearly wasnt suited to him, the pitch was too heavy and the game would be won by through balls and he isnt a channel runner, when Waigo came on it should have been Lambert who made way not Barnard, the only thing Lambert was on the field for was to hit free kicks, however as we know Puncheon can also take them, so a change of tactic was in order.
The match stats can sometimes lie as we know, however the fact that the home side had 8 corners whilst we didnt have a single one, tells a story, Wycombe had us on the back foot when they attacked and we had to defend, whilst when we had chances we missed them we didnt force them into having to block.
With Huddersfield and Swindon both winning, this game was just about theend of Saints promotion hopes, now being 19 points off a play off spot.
Im sure the apologists will be out in force quoting 10 poinft deductions and poor pre season preparation due to administration etc, but the fact is we overcame that by December and we have now drifted out from 7 points behind sixth to 19, we have the best players, we have the best squad, the fact is they are not fit enough, and the wrong teams and substitutions are selected,add to the fact we dont seem to have that fighting spirit that other sides have shown against us and the fact that we are one dimensional due to the fact we try to play everything through Barnard and you have a situation where the JPT final at Wembley has papered over some big cracks im afraid.