Did we look that solid and hard to play against today? They caused us loads of problems repeatedly playing the ball in behind our very slow back 3 and a mixture of inconsistent passing and Sargent being off colour and often not even getting a shot away meant that we somewhat got away with it to an extent.

Not a good watch and a fairly drab game, a point is not something we should be settling for at home so happily, wasting time delaying throw ins, and I dont agree with Eustace that it was a very good performance. Though saying that, a point is better than nothing albeit it is 2 points less than basically all of our rivals so not a good day. I understand if the intention is to solidify and go from there, but we were far from solid today. Norwich had a field day in getting balls in behind in particular McFadzean whose lack of pace really caused us issues today. Sargent wasted numerous chances one on one and we got fortunate. Also, just blindly punting the ball forward is not sustainable, we didnt really carry a threat ourselves, Gallagher went close twice but Dolan and Szmodics were ineffective. The latter is being smothered by these tactics. McFadzean again is guilty of aimless punts more than anyone. Its early days and there has been minimal training ground time, as he keeps saying contrary to the no excuse culture he keeps banging on about. But we hopefully will try and actually at least play a bit of football amidst the hoofing, and we still have work to do to solidify. McFadzean is a conundrum, reads the game well and excellent when we are deep and backs to the wall, but so slow and limited on the ball. Pickerings return (replacing Hedges who seems to have been flogged a bit too much) was a big plus. One of few players we have who can do things with one or two touches and fantastic corner.

The loan signings under Broughton in comparison have been woeful. Admittedly especially this season, im sure minimal wage contributions have played a big part so its on the owners.

It would only make sense if we had a third midfielder who was anywhere near good enough.

He seemed a bit caught out by the Gilsenan question, he probably wasnt expecting it. Im not convinced he is in the forefront of his mind. Theres a huge gap to senior football so I would be wary of thinking he could be a saviour but surely he is at least worth a space on the bench over the likes of Markanday, Ayari and Telalovic. I think he could have done with a loan like a few others.

I really hope he doesnt rotate the squad for the Newcastle game. That game represents a glimmer of excitement in otherwise a likely drab end to the season. Eustace is only just here convincing me and everyone else either way as to if hes a good manager. My opinion of him would go down if he throws that game. Hopefully we can win tomorrow for the first proper win of the Eustace era.

Hes been a regular in teams finishing 7th and 8th. But even if he isnt, he isnt the weakness in our team.

I disagree. He was a constant at wing back when we finished 8th and at full back when we finished 7th. A steady and IMO underappreciated player who reads the game well and is good with the ball. I dont think hes as suited to playing more centrally.

Dont you have a strong dislike of Pickering though? Pickering is steadier and much more aware defensively, as you would expect from Hedges being naturally someone who plays further forward. He is better on the ball too. Hedges was excellent v Stoke but at times was caught out defensively v Birmingham and Preston. He would also give us a good option playing off Gallagher as an alternative to especially Dolan in an area where we are weak.

Pickering is back in training. Im guessing he probably wont feature but his return will be a welcome boost. A steady player who is good on the ball and a considerable upgrade on Hedges who isnt a wing back and Chrisene who isnt really up to standard.

Problem is, we only have Tronstad and a half fit Buckley as adequate midfield options. Its a desperate looking squad. Not one that could afford to let its captain go out on loan. Big game for Eustace. Could do with getting his first official win ticked off but it wont be easy.

I think he is an average Championship striker. Ive also not been his biggest fan over the years. But I think its allowing confirmation bias to overule rational thought not to be willing to say that he has been good since he returned. He is what he is, he will never be prolific nor a top Championship striker, he is a mid table one. The alternatives are dire but even if we could spent the 1-2 million on another striker, it wouldnt be the really easy task people make out to get one as useful as him. And we need at least 2 competent strikers so even if we somehow for example agreed a summer deal for McGuire, we would need another one and it wouldnt be a certainty that either/both would be as effective as Gallagher.

He certainly has been a breath of fresh air compared to who we have had up top for the rest of the season. He has looked good and has offered a threat we didnt have, 2 good finishes v QPR and Preston even if we discount the Wrexham one which seemingly doesnt fit the agenda. But his whole round game gives us something we dont have otherwise, his power, his height and his pace, plus an excellent knock down for Dolan v Stoke and a brilliant ball for Szmodics at the weekend. Even if we write off the Birmingham and Cardiff games, where he barely got a kick due to those behind him struggling to pass it 5 yards, his impact is much more positive than negative. Even if we had signed him, we needed Gallagher as you cant just have one (presumably) decent Championship striker, Gallagher is one. Nothing special.

If we had have sold him we would be favourites for relegation. He has been a big plus since he returned from injury not only with his 3 goals and 4 assists but with what else he brings. We need to get every minute we possibly can out of him whilst not allowing him to get injured. Im guessing that you couldnt bring yourself to admit that he has looked good since he came back.

Unfortunately hes not nearly Championship standard. He did need a loan but even then im not convinced by what he offers aside from running around and whether he will get there at any time. He will need more than a promising cameo in a drab draw v Cardiff to move out of that.

Neither Ayari or based on more evidence Garrett is anywhere near the required standard, so I am wary of getting ahead of myself even if he is well above that really low benchmark. Buckley has always had ability, but has struggled for various reasons for nearly 2 years, he couldnt get a game at a team about to go down. He also didnt adapt as well as expected when moved into his new deeper midfield role. That being said, even though hes obviously not close to being Adam Wharton, he does have something in there so lets hope he can take an somewhat unexpected chance and push on. His cameo was a promising one.

None of us are managers or professional players either so lets not comment on their performances either.

Drab, lifeless performance and another painful watch with a poor set of players with no idea on how to attack. Cardiff were equally terrible and when games like this tend to cost £25-30 it is little wonder that both struggle to get people into the ground. Garrett is useless, shouldnt be near the side. Chrisene and especially Ayari are examples of how we borrow the cheapest players possible and end up with dross. Szmodics looks like a player both on the brink of injury and totally fed up with the new tactics and Tronstad is a shadow of himself without Wharton. Hyam also was all over the place. Buckley was a huge improvement when he came on, McFadzean is proving to be a wise sticking plaster in the defence and Wharton was solid albeit is the polar opposite of his brother on the ball. Pears made a few fairly routine saves competently and the clean sheet against an impotent Cardiff is at least a step in the right direction there.

The social media stuff you talk about is bizarre. Lots of people excitedly sitting down to watch a game they normally seemingly wouldnt and turning it off when he was subbed off. For me, the sale of a player like Wharton isnt the issue necessarily. Hes clearly above this level already so to an extent I could even normally understand his sale, albeit IMO it was too early and it made more sense to wait at least 6 months with his fee set to rise. The biggest barrier to us being like Brentford etc is that the money vanishes. It always vanishes. We should only sell at a time when we can reinvest a bit chunk into more potential stars that can improve the team to get better results and also by filling it with potential assets.

What experience do you have as a director of football, surely only a valid counter argument to suggesting that you should take the job. Being asked to have a complete scouting knowledge of European players is one thing too, but random fans arent going to be able to recite potential DOFs. Doesnt mean they dont exist.

Its a chance for a memorable highlight of a an otherwise dire season and to get into the quarter finals of the FA Cup. It wouldnt be a good look so soon into the Eustace era if he does anything but treats that game seriously.

We cant start writing off games especially considering the fact that you could throw a blanket over the majority of Championship teams in terms of quality and how poor our squad is beyond the first 11. We just have be cautious with subbing off our better/most important players whenever we can when the game allows.

Eustace said "it offers another opportunity to someone or maybe someone playing slightly out of position." Perhaps he has realised that Garrett is not up to it but I cant think of anyone who could feasibly slot in.

Hopefully he makes a quick recovery.

To be fair, that last bit does surely imply that younger fans than yourself are inferior.