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Rochdale   v   Brackley Town

Saturday, 3rd January 2026 Kick-off 15:00
Southampton At Doncaster Rovers The Verdict
Monday, 12th Jan 2026 09:50

There were a few changes, both in personnel & formation, but ultimately the same old problems were still there, we started well and then wavered in the second half, but ultimately we are through to the next round of the cup.

All eyes were on the Southampton penalty area where Daniel Perezt stepped in for his debut with Gavin Bazunu rested, but the truth was Perezt did not excel and in terms of our defensive problems from this performance at least nothing changed.

To tackle the goalkeeping issue first up, Perezt had 6 efforts on target to deal with, he made 4 decent enough stops, but all of them those that you would expect him to make.

He also came out for a cross, that he fumbled and dropped and in the resulting scramble we conceded a corner that almost led to a goal.

Doncaster's first goal was a free header from close range, I would question his positional play here, he seemed to go for the cross at the near post and then realise he was getting nowhere near it and was nowhere near the header, but in fairness this was a typical type of goal we have conceded of late, an unmarked header from close range.

The second goal conceded though was not a good one, Peretz did not react to the shot and just stood and watched as it went in at his right hand post, that was worrying, when Bazunu is criticised for letting in a goal, he has always made some attempt at it, I don't think Peretz thought it was going wide and had got his angles wrong, he just failed to act.

He redeemed himself at the end a little, making two reaction saves, both from standing positions, but overall I did not think this was an impressive debut and certainly not one that should earn him the nod over Bazunu on Saturday.

Of course there has to be some leeway, he has barely played in the last year, he would be rusty, but we could temper that against the fact this was against League One opposition, although in fairness I think the rest of the team should be called out for that, rather than the goalkeeper.

There will be some who are in the "Anyone but Bazunu" camp who will be calling for his League debut on Saturday, but for me, he did not do enough to warrant that yet, if we want a fair comparison, if Bazunu had just had exactly the same game, they would be blaming him for both goals, especially the second, bringing his reflexes into question and lambasting him for dropping the cross.

Elsewhere in the field, it was a question of two halves, we steamrollered Doncaster, the 4-4-2 formation looked good, the midfield performed and we scored three times, all of them good goals in their own right through Cameron Bragg, Cameron Archer and Kuryu (Possibly Cameron in English) Matsuki, all the talk at half time was about who we would get in the next round.

But within 3 minutes of the restart things changed drastically, we were all at sea from a corner and a free header from close range gave the home side hope, every time they attacked they looked dangerous.

Just before the hour mark they were only a goal behind us, we have already covered that one in depth.

We made changes, Tonda Eckert realised that with the tiny Jelert & Welington at full backs in a back four, we did not have enough height in the side, just Harwood-Bellis & Quarshie, so he took off Jelert and brought on Wood with Scienza coming on for Robinson.

But now Doncaster could smell fear and they could smell blood and we were all at sea at the back and our midfield was being over run, we took off Bragg & Archer and replaced them with Jander & Stewart, but nothing really changed.

Now we were a disorganised rabble and God knows how Doncaster didn't score an equaliser.

So as I said in the preview, the issue isn't the goalkeeper, it is the lack of leadership and organisation in defence, it is about a fragile confidence, we dominated the first half, but once Doncaster pushed a little we buckled and it was embarrassing to watch.

It doesn't matter whether we have 3 at the back or a more traditional back four, without leadership we are a rabble, Doncaster Rovers a team second from bottom in League One can do this to us, what hope have we got against the better Championship sides.

The problem isn't about a back 3, it isn't the goalkeeper, it is about having the right type of players in the defence, contrasting players to suit the occasion , I don't know who is out there and who we could get, but I know what the problem is.

This transfer window is crucial, we have to but in an experienced central defender but not just that, a leader and organiser, we do not have the assets we need in that man, already at the club.

Of course this is me saying the same things as I said last week and the week before, in fact in nearly every week in the last 8 years, so why is it not being dealt with.

I don't think we have a bad squad, I think with that crucial signing in the back four we can challenge for play offs, but we need to deal with the issues now or face mid table mediocrity.

All Photos Via Reuters



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kingolaf added 09:55 - Jan 12
Are you related to Bazunu?

Absolute joke.
0

davidargyll added 10:03 - Jan 12
All over them like a rash in the first half; struggling to keep them at bay in the second.

Sounds familiar?

But even though this was a fair reflection of Saints’ game v Doncaster, I was actually referring to the Spurs/Aston Villa game that followed ours.

In H1, Spurs sat off and Villa ran riot, playing some sublime stuff, PARTICULARLY THROUGH THE MIDDLE, and Spurs couldn’t lay a finger on them; but in H2, they (TH) pressed really hard, had a bit of luck, AV struggled to cope with it and, guess what, scored.

What this tells me is that:
1. Both ours and Villa’s match were cup games away from home against an opposition which had nothing to lose, and in such circumstances even the best can find it difficult to cope with a determined press;
2. If a tenacious opponent ups its game after half time, it is never going to be easy;
3. Playing through the middle is harder to defend against (a back line across the pitch often has exploitable gaps in the centre) - and NB our first two goals on Saturday came that way…;
4. If we play more through the middle, be ready to defend with our lives in the face of a press, especially in the second half, and get continuing good performances from Bragg and a returning Stewart, I believe there just may be grounds for optimism.
2

andoverpierre added 10:11 - Jan 12
i dont know what it is are Tonda and the board so blinkered in the belief that we have some good defenders ??? i know when Adam Blackmore quiered Tonda on this after the game regarding leaders on the pitch and lack of a striker he got quite defensive and cut the interview short just saying we have lots of quality and we just need to find a way of working it out , "let me tell you now Tonda YOU DONT !
8

landsdownsaint added 10:25 - Jan 12
The problem was never Bazunu . The problem is if the opposition want to play football against us then they lose but every team we play has a plan b which is to rough our pkayers up & then we capitulate
10

bryanK added 10:47 - Jan 12
I am not a fan of any of the current goalkeepers and the jury will be out on the new addition so I believe a wait and see policy is best at the moment.
The real issue is our terrible back 4 or 5 who just cannot defend. We need a decent right back as I have little faith in the 2 so called Danish internationals plus Wood, Stephens and Manning are unreliable.i also thought Quasie was terrible against Doncaster.
Buy a left sided centre half with leadership qualities give Wellington a chance as an out and out left back, bring Bree back and play a back four. Play Fellows where he should be hope Stewart remains fit
I am also worried about the drop in form of Yander, Robinson and Scienza which were the really bright spots in another mundane season.Getting shot of Edwards why?
As most so called amateur pundits I probably have it all wrong time will tell
8

underweststand added 11:00 - Jan 12
Can't quite fathom your condemnation of Peretz (Nick) I was impressed by his full length save in first half, and his ability to throw a ball - to the halfway line..didn't you see that?
A double-save late on in the game looked excellent. If you were at the game-well done- as I wasn't able to go, but he looked good on TV. Blame for the goals ? ..IF Bazunu keeps clean sheets on loan at Stoke, it may go some way to proving my (long-held) claim that a goalie is only as good as the defence in front of him.

Back to the match. Exhibition stuff before HT, but then (as usual) the complacency set in and as soon as Donny scored they woke up and saw it was a match they might win, and the 7 added mins. didn't help my blood pressure either. M.O.M was surely Cam Bragg. A quiet young man who looks mature beyond his years who passes well and took his goal chance when others may have hit Row Z. Archer must be complimented for his ability to recover and score with a brief chance, but (sadly) as ever - he simply vanished after that.

Quashie showed up well in a changed back line. Matsuki took his goal well, a good backwards header from a short man, but he should learn not to argue with refs again. The subs showed impact, Scienza doing what only he can do, and Stewart won a late tussle against their goalkeeper, but his shot missed by inches. In the end, we won by the maths, but it wasn't pretty or convincing after our first half display.
1

Block47M added 11:01 - Jan 12
Peretz is a down-grade on Bazunu. Constantly over the years management and fans have blamed goalkeepers (look at how Fraser Forster was treated) when the problem was in front of them. If Bazunu goes to Stoke then be assured that we will regret it!
1

Bowlercow added 11:14 - Jan 12
He finally tried a back four with fringe players now let's try it with first choice players
Either Roeslev or Jelert was touted as a player who could play in either full back position so when fit that would solve that one THB and which other cb is the question I'm loathe to suggest it because I don't rate him at all but captain calamity is probably the best bet Unless of couurse they surprise us and buy a 32 year old cb with EPL experience
Looking forward to seeing Charles playing with Jander as the holding pair or with Downes if we go 4 3 3
If we play out with pace we can score goals From the cup tie Peretz was a bit gung ho at times but he didn't always want to play tippy tappy That's a big plus
4

Bawdrip added 11:31 - Jan 12
Crazy letting Bazunu join Stoke on loan. Peretz didn't inspire confidence.
1

saintmark1976 added 12:04 - Jan 12
Nick, a couple of points if I may concerning the playoffs and Bazunu :-

1. Even if Sports Republic spend money ( they won’t ) in the current window we are not going to finish in the top six this season, nor do we deserve to.

2. Bazunu is by any metric a poor goal keeper. Sports Republic attempting to replace him with Peretz is equally poor but hardly surprising given their recruitment record.
-6

Farlow added 12:24 - Jan 12
Peretz kept us in the Cup good for a debut.The decision to let Edwards go is totally ludicrous
given the crap defenders we currently employ.
6

IanRC added 13:31 - Jan 12
Appearances suggest Sports Republic are trying to sabotage us (Tonda too is possibly complicit). Selling Ronnie Edwards without even giving him a fair chance given our poor quality defenders (particularly Stephens and Manning) is crazy. Selling him to a direct competitor is just insanity or a deliberate undermining of our club.

If, as looks increasingly likely, there really is a group of ‘senior’ players running things Sports Republic really need to get a grip. Not hopeful that they will or that they will sign a proven goal scorer that we have needed since before they took over. Hopeless.
3

underweststand added 16:08 - Jan 12
Agree with Farlow (above). I thought Peretz was a breath of fresh air and not afraid to move around. Decrying him for only playing a few games (with Bayern Munich) is nonsense as they already have one of the best keepers in the World ( Neuer).

The Edwards deal?..Obviously, it's down to Eckert who he has in the squad, but hopefully we have a replacement lined-up with only 4 CB's to choose from. Injuries or suspensions (and with THB on 4 yellows) could prove embarrassing if things go pear-shaped.
-1

Ali_Diarea added 20:11 - Jan 12
This games proved what we all already knew:

1. The squad is average at best
2. SR have no ambition which is why our new gk is no better than any of the others
1

Jesus_02 added 23:24 - Jan 12
Unfortuntly I think we are going to find out a lot about the club from the people that have left it.

Bazunu is part of a badly organised deffense in a team that never presses, its hard to tell if he is any good but I fear he will fair better at Sheffield United and I'm 100% sure Edwards will do well at QPR.

Such rash decisions. To loan our No1 keeper to a team 7 points above us with only McCarthy and a Norwich (3rd bottom) reject a back up seems insane. Before anyone says anyting Rambo was never coming back.
1

SNPMT added 02:32 - Jan 13
I'd start the ball boy, any one of them, over Bazunu.
-2

Boris1977 added 11:40 - Jan 13
Sports Republic do like being active in summer transfer windows and often get players in then move them around without them playing in our first team. I wonder if there was an official independent financial audit of the club things would look right.
0

saintinexile added 20:51 - Jan 14
report fixture next season, if Doncaster stay up that is
0

saintinexile added 20:52 - Jan 14
repeat....
0


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