Q and A........

[pomp 'n circumstance]

.....you fell for it, didn't you? Own up, you thought I meant Question and Answer, didn't you?

Well, I was talking about a curious tale of 2 Nigels, Messrs Quashie and Atangana. We all know that Nigel Q had a curious propensity when he saw the goalposts at either the Milton or Fratton End and he was 30 or 40 yards out of rocking back on his heels and lumping the ball into Row X. I have a feeling this is a Nigel gene that has been passed on to Nigel Atangana, who also suffers a red mist when seeing goalposts at a distance and the stats tell us that he has a similar tendancy to follow his mentor Nigel Q and pull the trigger and lump it into Row X.....strange but true!

Now I want to touch on an irksome subject - posters who refer to Matt Tubbs as our only natural goal scorer. I first caught sight of Mr Tubbs at Wycombe in January this year. He had just joined us from Wimbledon(?) where he had scored somewhere around 12 goals. Around 25 minutes into the game he was put through one on one with their goalkeeper - 'Simples' we all bayed ' 1-0 to the good guys' only he naused it up big time and as we all know it turned into a 0-0 draw. Since Mr Tubbs has joined us, I'd be interested to know how many goals he scored for us in open play last season - sure he was our penalty taker so let's discount them for the moment.

Natural goal scorers have one thing in common - they are usually smaller men, with a lower centre of gravity compared to the giants who act as central defenders. Well Matt Tubbs ticks the box in that respect - but natural goal scorers have another aspect to their game. They are lurkers, they are loiterers in an around the penalty area - they have an innocent schoolboy look about them, but they also have an electric turn of foot which they can turn on like a super charger. The only 2 'natural goal scorers' I ever saw were Jimmy Greaves and Michael Owen, both masters of their trade and assassins in the box. From what I've seen and it's early days yet, the only likely candidate in our squad is Connor Chaplin - witness his goal against Derby. Yes, the build up was great and the final pass of sliderule precision, but he made acres of space in the area and the finish was sublime. No - I'm not comparing him with Jimmy Greaves or Michael Owen , merely building up a profile of a natural goal scorer. Let's have no more talk about Matt Tubbs being a natural goal scorer - it is a disservice to the real ones!

[Selsey Bill]

Good morning PnC. With regards to your two points, taking the Nigels first:

I've seen a lot of both Nigels live and there is no comparison between the two players whatsoever, even with their shooting prowess. Actually what NA could do with in my opinion is a little more of NQs confidence to have a pop from anywhere. NA is not only very good at dissecting the opposition's midfield with pin point passes, but often finds himself on little marauding runs that take him to the edge of the box. There are times when I have shouted at him to pull the trigger, but he rarely does. When he does, he looks like a player bereft of belief and confidence, and hence the ball usually listens to him and ends up in Row Z. Strangely though, when warming up he has scored some of the most scintillating 'goals' you'll ever see, so he does have the ability in his armoury. I suggest that if he gets one in a match, others will follow.

With regards to Matt Tubbs, I believe you are being a little harsh. He has scored some very good goals for us in open play, including a perfectly decent one last Tuesday night against Crawley. His style of play just doesn't suit the way the team is set up at the moment, and whilst he insists he will adapt to Cook's vision, I'm not entirely convinced. I would suggest he'd score more goals if we played Jayden Stockley up front and played Tubbs in the hole where Roberts, Bennett and Evans play. However, Cook will not drop Roberts or Bennett, and possibly not Evans either as he does score goals.

I do agree that Conor Chaplin looks the real deal, and he does remind me a little of Michael Owen. I think he has a very bright future and will be going on to bigger and better.

[pomp 'n circumstance]

Morning SB

Firstly as ever, compliments on your report on the game - the away end looked a tad sparcely populated from what I saw of the game on TV!

Re Nigel A - agree that he is a tremendous talent and that PC understands him - the gentle josh about the Nigel gene was meant in gentle jest.

Not really sure about Matt Tubbs - yes, he scored against Crawley with a good finish and unfortunate to have it ruled out for offside. I am interested to know how many goals he has scored in open play for us - one of our stats chaps will probably let us know....

I hope PC finds a niche for him - I just don't see where he fits in with the formation being used.

[Pompey1985]

Nigel Quashie Scotland international 200 plus premier league appearances.

Nigel A 20 odd league two appearances.

To suggest any likeness is absolutely mental.

[pomp 'n circumstance]

Nigel Quashie Scotland international 200 plus premier league appearances.

Nigel A 20 odd league two appearances.

To suggest any likeness is absolutely mental.

Don't think you got the joke 85...... but I fear that if I have to explain it to you, then obviously you didn't understand it in the first place and somehow will be lost in translation.....so I'll leave it to you!

[The Cincinnati Kid]

Pomp, I think you have missed 1 important aspect of the genus "goalscorermus naturalis".....their natural habitat is not in Div 4, except for maybe the younger "goalscorermus potentialis" which may occasionally ply their trade in the lower reaches before being snapped up by a larger motherclub

[This Time Next Year]

Only player I've ever felt certain to score for us when through on goal was everybody's favourite dwarf by the name of Defoe...

[Pompey1985]

Only player I've ever felt certain to score for us when through on goal was everybody's favourite dwarf by the name of Defoe...

Similar with Yakubu.however, in that typical English way we prefer hard work to actually being any good.

[Selsey Bill]

Only player I've ever felt certain to score for us when through on goal was everybody's favourite dwarf by the name of Defoe...

What about Toddy?

[Pompey1985]

Only player I've ever felt certain to score for us when through on goal was everybody's favourite dwarf by the name of Defoe...

What about Toddy?

For one season.

[Earl Grey]

My list of the most natural goalscorers Pompey have ever had that I saw playing were....

Ron Saunders
Dave Kemp (can't believe he didn't go on to greater things)
Toddy (sickening that he got injured...would've been amazing for another few seasons)
Yak
Defoe


There are other notable names, Ron Davies, Colin Garwood and Alan Biley for example, but for that feeling you get as a fan that when they were near goal there was a good chance they'd score, the above list has those that are, for me, the most natural goalscorers.

My favourite of all those is probably Toddy. And my least favourite is the poison dwarf now plying his trade with the Black Cats, iirc.

[Pompey1985]

My list of the most natural goalscorers Pompey have ever had that I saw playing were....

Ron Saunders
Dave Kemp (can't believe he didn't go on to greater things)
Toddy (sickening that he got injured...would've been amazing for another few seasons)
Yak
Defoe


There are other notable names, Ron Davies, Colin Garwood and Alan Biley for example, but for that feeling you get as a fan that when they were near goal there was a good chance they'd score, the above list has those that are, for me, the most natural goalscorers.

My favourite of all those is probably Toddy. And my least favourite is the poison dwarf now plying his trade with the Black Cats, iirc.

In a recent interview toddy admitted everyone was suprised he scored as many goals as he did that season. He never had a season like it before or since. Like the lad at chesterfield last season Doyle, he'll never have a season like last year.

[Weybridge]

Whittingham would have to go on that list. Never really looked like a professional footballer, but unbelievably good at reading the game, and reacting sharper than anyone else on the pitch.

Micky Quinn was a natural too.

[Earl Grey]

Whittingham would have to go on that list. Never really looked like a professional footballer, but unbelievably good at reading the game, and reacting sharper than anyone else on the pitch.

Micky Quinn was a natural too.

Yes.....of course....I would've put those two in that list had I remembered them.

Even so, still think Toddy was the pick of them (given the particular league they all played in).

[Berkshire Blue]

It was rather a long time ago, and he was a slightly different type of player than most mentioned above, but for the one season he played for us Mark Hateley was absolutely electric and well worth the admission price on his own. You may remember that by the end of the season he got into the England team, which was no mean feat for a young lad from the old second division, and then was bought by Milan where he was nicknamed Attila the Hun for his all action displays. He certainly knew where the goal was!