[Devongone]

We seem to be pinning our goal scoring hopes on Scott Boden, who is certainly capable of notching twenty in a season, BUT, in my opinion, ONLY in certain circumstances.

Throughout his career Scott has proved capable in the supersub' role of grabbing a goal in the dying minutes of a game, when having played only twenty minutes or so himself.

He also proved his capacity to score regularly for Gateshead last season when starting games.

Some players like Luis Suarez can score at any role at any point in a game .... even when injured or half-fit. I don't think Scott Boden is anything like that.

I think Scott was finding Gateshead's style last season similar to how many teams only play at the end of a game when desperate for a goal. Until Christmas Gateshead had Rigg, Boden and was it Armstrong (on-loan from Middlesbrough) pulling teams around up front and all capable of scoring. Boden liked it and scored. Now that is very similar to normal teams in the final ten minutes - you watch them and think why didn't they do this earlier, suddenly the opposition defence is struggling to keep its shape. In those circumstances Boden is very good at losing his marker, getting free, getting on the end of that loose ball and grabbing a goal.

My simple opinion is that if we want to score goals we have to re-create those conditions, provide threats on goal from several players and Boden will register plenty. Otherwise he's a player who will always score a few, especially towards the end of a game, but he probably won't do that much to help you win a league.

Similarly whichever club we ditch Lee Shaw to might look at how the team played and his role in it for whom he scored 65 goals in two seasons. One thing's for certain marooning him out on the wing is unlikely to be the answer. Goalposts very rarely seem to be located on either wing of a football pitch.

Interestingly Sam Scrivens who we've had on trial scored 27 for Penistone from out on the wing. That fact alone makes me think a gamble on a contract for him might not be the daftest move for someone at our level.

[Dancingwilldoit]

Last night Boden looked knackered, slow and was unable to hold the ball up.
OK I know he's more of a poacher and we didnt get the ball in their box much but when the goings tough you need to get going - he didnt.
Last season he benefited from Dentons knock downs but I cant see Denton doing anything other than coming on as a sub in the last 20 mins or so.
Boden may still be getting used to having some pace alongside him - which does make a change, but he needs to sharpen up in the next 2 weeks.

Shaw has moved out on loan, he had his chances both centrally and wide under different managers. He was fast but just couldnt put the ball in the net.
Maybe if he does well and gets his confidence back, we can take a second look.

[Devongone]

It's no surprise to me Scott Boden looked nothing against Sheff Utd. Not only is he not as good as ANY of their players, but we had no one alongside him capable of providing enough threat to compromise the opposition's organisation. Unless the ball dropped at Boden's feet from a Will Evans challenge at a corner he was never going to score last night, or look like it. I once saw him play for us at Exeter under Sheridan and he looked 54 (years old).

It's not so much that Boden needs help to be a goalscorer - he is one - it's that he needs to be part of what we used to call a forward line. He doesn't have any physical gifts, he isn't specially skillful, he isn't powerful, or all that tricky or quick ........ But he does know where to be to score and how to get free and do it (mostly when the opposition is struggling to hold the attack).

As for Shaw, he's lost the confidence to score. We can't play him, because scoring is what he does. What he has needed all along is goals in the reserve team ..... which we haven't got. Goalscorers do stop scoring though. Ricky Miller scored 45 when Dover finished runners-up in the National. He's done nothing at Peterborough and Port Vale ...... but if he was going to line up for us I'd be backing him for 20+. Lee Shaw may only be able to score goals in a team playing at the level he was at against defenders with the weaknesses of players at that level .......... I dunno the answer to him, but it does seem to me it was never going to be playing him out of position so that the one big ability he has ever displayed was never going to be used.