The Opposition View – Exeter City

Following yesterday’s 1-1 draw at Exeter City, here are some views on the game from the Grecians’ manager Paul Tisdale, their goalscorer Lloyd James, and a selection of their fans.

“It was a really good game,” said Tisdale, speaking to his club’s official website

“it was end to end and I’m happy to walk away with a point, albeit, at half-time I thought we had it in us to win it.”

“But they (Wycombe) responded really well at half-time, and they’re a tough team to beat.”

On the subject of Exeter’s soft opening goal, Tisdale said: “You can’t say it was lucky when you put the ball into a dangerous area with a good delivery and with players trying to get on the end of it.”

Grecians’ midfielder James said: ” I thought it was a very tough game.”

“The pitch was tough, but perhaps we could have nicked it. I feel we had the better chances… but all in all it was a good point.”

“We knew what Wycombe were about. They probably weren’t at their best in the first half but I think that was down to us pressing them really well.”

“Second-half we knew they were going to come out with a reaction but I thought the boys dealt with it well and it’s a very good point against a side that are very good at what they do.”

“I’m sure they will be in and about it come the end of the season,” he said.

The Exeter fans seemed content with a point.

The following extracts are taken from exeweb.

Antony Moxey wrote:
“Talk about a game of two halves. First half we dominated without really troubling their keeper, second half they dominated without really troubling ours. A fair result I would suggest. Both teams worked hard, both teams were as good and as bad as each other in all departments and in the end we had a good old fashioned fourth division winter slug fest.”

IndoMike wrote:
“Happy enough with that. Wycombe winning most games so to hold them is OK.”

Sturtz wrote:
“In the end it has to be said that Pym kept us in that game. First half was ours and Wycombe looked fairly insipid, second half they pushed up to support the Beast and we failed to respond.”

Red Devon wrote:
“Thought we played well today and looked fairly comfortable before Wycombe got their goal. Good to see Tis getting animated shouting instructions from the sidelines. He even stopped one of our coaches from throwing the ball back on quickly at one stage. Well done Tis.”

hardi2b wrote:
“Granted the ground was heavy going but… why can we not keep the ball on the ground more? Wycombe seemed to manage it in the second half to a greater extent, as do many of our opponents.”

Sexton Blake wrote:
“Must be some concern that the goals up front have dried up.”

Cheshire Grecian wrote:
“The ‘goals up front have dried up’ since we decided to become a long ball team. The fact that numerous posters are saying “we hit aimless long balls” and so on, tells its own story. Any half decent defence will have us worked out in the first few minutes of each game. And it’s awful to watch.”

manc Grecian wrote:
“Decent enough game with a draw a fair result. Scrappy throughout. The referee was abysmal. I’ve never seen so many fouls, for both sides, go unpunished.”

Red Bill wrote:
“I thought the ref had a ‘game of two halves.’ He was really good first half, however he was equally as bad second half. One or two of his decision second half were absolutely shocking as he increasingly fell for Wycombe’s usual tactics.”

The Proper Chap wrote:
“Wycombe looked a chaotic side today with a lack of control to their game, they had a decent spell in the second half however. All in all I thought we caught them on an off day. Their keeper looked awful today, I imagine he is normally much better, Pym on the other hand was immaculate in most things he did. Also I don’t get the Wycombe bashing, I don’t think they did a lot wrong today in terms of gamesmanship etc.”

Budegrecian wrote:
“The ref was very poor. On numerous occasions when the ball was lumped towards Akinfenwa he would use both hands to shove whoever was marking him out of the way to give himself a free header. From the BB it was blatantly obvious & should have been to the officials too. There were the odd occasions where he simply used his upper body strength & won a header cleanly, but these were few & far between.”

Antony Moxey wrote:
“The Cowshed crowd were continually whining at the referee (who had a decent game I thought) baying for free kicks and bookings throughout the game, especially whenever Akinfenwa was involved. If our players played as he does, we’d all be applauding his strength and ability to both win, and hold-up the ball. But when he does it, every single touch is apparently a cardable offence.”

Snoop Fog wrote:
“The game was as dull as the weather. Very scrappy, very few chances. Akinfenwa doesn’t foul. He stands still and it’s like running into a brick wall.”

Next Game: Wycombe v Swindon – Tuesday 13th February – 7.45pm