00:00Baggies fans, welcome to ExpressAndStart.com, I'm here at Vicarage Road alongside Lewis
00:13Cox after Albion have lost, no draws, not a win, they've lost for the first time since
00:19October the 1st here at Watford, 7th against 8th, it's 8th that prevail and now 7th, and
00:28Albion drop down, Albion did score the second half, Jason Mowenby pulled one back but it
00:33was 2-0 down by that point, I could not get back into the game. Coxie, an old cliche for
00:39me of a game of maybe not two halves for Watford but certainly for Albion, very good in the
00:45first half, not as good in the second. I honestly thought that, like you say, we both thought
00:54that Albion were good in the first half actually, possibly edged it, Watford hit the bar before
01:00they goal but Albion probably for me had more moments, weren't clinical enough, specifically
01:05on the stroke of half time, biggest chance of the game really, certainly for Albion where
01:10Grant couldn't get out of his feet and Carlos has just said to me in there, that goes in,
01:15we're talking about a different result, probably a different game. Apologies for the noise,
01:23we've got about four mowers behind us, and a plane, and a plane's just gone over it.
01:27I think, we were speaking about the game's opening goal very quickly, a shocker from
01:33Albion's perspective, balls crossed into the box. And the field is allowed to run 40 yards
01:37at the backfield as well. Albion have three centre-halves today, they play about five,
01:43three towering centre-halves, crossing from the left. Stryker, Baio, Watford, top scorer
01:49who scored both goals today, allowed a free header from the three centre-halves. I mean
01:52that's just a shocker really, and people might overlook that, but that shouldn't happen at
01:56all, and undoes a lot of the good work, hard work from the first half. Sometimes it feels
02:02like it's hard work for Albion to score a goal I think at times, and that was so painfully
02:08easy that first goal. But then, Albion should equalise on the show for half-time, they deserve
02:13something, it would have been the fair result on half-time, they didn't manage to do it.
02:17There's a change at half-time, Stiles went off for Johnston, which we'll get into, I
02:21know you've got a feeling on that, and Corbyn's just said to me there, look, I wanted an attacking
02:26winger like Johnston on the pitch, because we were in those positions, rather than someone
02:29like Stiles. Stiles did fine for me, as well, it changed the formation, I think Carlos said
02:35he wanted to also match them up, but for whatever reason, whether it was tactical or not, Watford
02:41dominated the first 10-15 minutes of that second half. They could have got a second,
02:46it's a Palmer save, they did get a second, they could have then had a third, could have
02:51been four, yeah they played it all around Albion for 10-15 minutes, really dominated
02:57that period. What we must mention and get onto is the second Watford goal, which has
03:01proved decisive, 2-1, shouldn't have counted. Gavin Ward, the referee, missed the foul on
03:06Josh Madger, I think he must have been trapping back in that moment, just before Bayo the
03:10striker gets his shot away for the second goal. What I would say, I saw the foul live,
03:15and my vision's not the best, so I could see it from miles away. The ref was right there,
03:20I did only see Kyle Bartley protesting, for me that was a blatant one where you want all
03:24the players screaming in the ref's face, but they didn't bother and nothing was overturned.
03:28Ward was not popular at all, certainly with that away end, and deservedly so.
03:32I do think you've got to defend a box better, but it was a foul, but you mentioned there
03:36what I've said about the system, you looked at it on paper, Albion played 4-5-1, I expect
03:40Albion to sit in, soak pressure, play on the break, they didn't do that, they came out,
03:45they had a right good go, arguably for me I wasn't at Sheppard United, but Albion were
03:49as good in going forward today as they've been for me since that first six games, maybe
03:55apart from Cardiff where they battered Cardiff. So that's why I was so surprised, why he took
04:00Stiles off, who for me, a lot went through Stiles in that first half, as it did Fellows,
04:05but it felt like a case of, if it's not broke, don't fix it. Hats off to Corbrandt for going
04:12a bit more attacking and playing 4-4-2, but Albion looked a shambles at the start of that
04:15second half. I feel bad coming out here and criticising Corbrandt for chucking on Johnstone
04:22and taking Stiles off, but Stiles was having a great game and Albion were looking good,
04:26I thought they looked dangerous even though they were playing 5-5-1 at the back, and it
04:29felt that, I'm not saying that cost Albion the game, but for me it turned the tide, you're
04:332-0 down here, they don't get beat at home, it's a mountain to climb. We're not wanting
04:36to get bogged down too tactically and neither of us want to do that, but Carlos has just
04:39said to me there, Watford played 4-4-2 at the back today, which they never do, so Watford
04:43switched it, and at half-time Corbrandt wanted to do the same, go with the 4-4-2, so perhaps
04:50it's food for thought moving forward that back five, three centre-halves and wing-backs
04:55can do well attacking. We saw it at Sunderland, it's the only time we saw a back five start,
04:59we didn't see any attacking, it was a certain story that night, no defenders, back to the
05:03wall, we saw it today and it got forward well. You say it's a back five, people might say
05:07it sounds negative, but actually it's Callum Stiles playing wherever he wants, all over
05:13the shop, number 10, whatever, and Furlong can attack as well, Albion's right-hand side
05:17and Furlong to Fellers was ripping them apart. But it worked well for Stiles because he had
05:20that protection where he hasn't really got to defend as much because he's got players
05:23behind him, but it's a defeat for Albion, in case they reset and go again, the long
05:28unbeaten runs over, it didn't feel like an unbeaten run at times because they had a lot
05:31of them draws, but yeah, if they reset and go again, it's not the end of the world. Corbrandt
05:35said what I agreed with, after Malumby made it 2-1, still with 20 minutes plus left of
05:40normal time, then six minute stoppages, I thought watching it, I can only really remember
05:45one clear chance after that, and it was stoppage time, Furlong from a corner, and I thought
05:50that Albion were just lacking that composure, that moment to create the chance, to score
05:55the chance, and he said that as well, so it was pretty clear that I thought they lacked that.
06:02I don't think there'll be, it was a big game today, 7 against 8, two clear rivals going
06:07for the same positions, both managers have just said that, so it's a bit deflating on
06:11that part isn't it, what could have a game in hand, but I saw a very competitive game
06:15I think, that on another day, decisions, moments, could have quite easily finished level, and
06:21look, Watford's record here, they haven't been beat here under Cleverley at all since
06:25March, so not defending Albion on that count, but yeah, not just draw, only a third defeat,
06:33some of those draws have felt like defeats at times, haven't they, and one thing I'll
06:37leave a vid on, that I thought was a very interesting line from Carlos in that press
06:43conference, that I'm about to write on, and I don't know if it was sung in chief, but
06:47I sort of mentioned, there haven't been many defeats, we don't really know how the side
06:51will react to defeats yet, I said yes there have been some disappointing draws, and he
06:56said in essence, in a nutshell, in a roundabout way, maybe we should have, maybe some of those
07:04draws should have been valued more, and had more value on them, and it didn't surprise
07:10me he said that, he's put some emphasis on that before, not all draws are tragedies or
07:16negative or disasters, I understand what he's saying, and he certainly would have taken
07:19one there in the closing stages, but not to be, and thankful for this week off, now before
07:26Bristol City next Sunday, because it's a welcome week off, but then it goes into the Christmas
07:30week of free games, doesn't it, and Albion I think in part look a little bit weary to
07:35me, a bit tired, and maybe that should be no surprise, because the depth hasn't been
07:39able to be relied on this season has it, the options to come in have tend to weaken
07:44the side unfortunately, and that is a problem, I think we all know that, hopefully one that
07:48can be rectified in January, just a shame, leaving empty handed today.
07:52Yes, a couple of embarrassing collapses from the neighbours yesterday, not quite a collapse
07:58here but a bit of a bump in the road for Albion, final score Watford 2 Albion 1, all the rest
08:04of the reaction head to ExpressingStar.com
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