The game died in the 49th minute. We should have equalised immediately at the start of the second half but snatched at a good  opportunity ( not the first time or last time) and the opportunity went begging. Poor defending  minutes later and we were out of it. A depressing further 40 minutes followed where we began to exert some sort of control.. but all, ultimately, to no purpose. There really is a pattern that has emerged here:-
We are a side full of good footballers, comfortable on the ball and who want to play slick, attractive football. When we meet sides who are not fully organised or hard working enough, and they give us space, we exploit them  and play through them often to fantastic effect. We are a delight on the eye.
However when we encounter sides ... whatever their quality and league position... who suss us out and work very hard to stop us playing by denying us any time or space,  we simply have no  answer. Bath were simply more aggressive, "professional" and savvy than us for the first half. We got bullied ( Caine nearly lost his shirt twice) and pushed off the ball and not allowed to play the way we wanted to or know how to. Our problem is that, although we have quality players, we also lack qualities that also make up any successful side... namely,some real steel, "character" and toe-to-toe fighting ability.  I agree with the above comments about one or two players yesterday who simply didn't seem to be remotely in the right frame of mind for a full-blooded Derby game. We almost seem offended if opposing teams don't play football.
For me, the only real member of the warrior class we have in the side at present is Luke Haines ..who does his best to be our back line enforcer and leader. 50/50 balls with him usually end up in his favour.  For several others, sadly,  the opposite applies... and it did embarrassingly often yesterday.

Trying to keep a disheartening Derby defeat in perspective, though... we did create goal-scoring opportunities...but couldn't convert one of them.  We did find some sustained rhythm and control, but the game had effectively sunk over the horizon by then.
Utterly depressing to see AAH go off again.. presumably for another prolonged spell out. His adductor tear (?) is sounding more and more like a chronic weakness, which doesn't bode well. This gives us a CB problem , much as we had last autumn that allowed  Dan Ellison to step up. Jac Poffley has the chance of a lifetime here.... if he's up to it. As I've said before, we badly miss Freddie.. who brings some much needed steel and character to the side.
I will be at WSM. The 2 sides know each other extremely well. They are a big outfit and know petty much how to deal with us,. All we can really ask for  is a much more intense, full blooded commitment from everyone as befits a Derby.. ....and, in fact, any League game With the Hornchurch result excepted.. we are on a string of 4 defeats in 5 games which needs checking before it becomes a worry. The next set of games don't look at all easy... with Worthing (H), Boreham Wood (A) and Torquay (H) all coming up in January.
For the record: some of the insulting chanting and antics from (I hope) only some of our behind-the-goal support was  demeaning  and embarrasing.. making us look even more the pitiable  country half-wits that opposing fans just love to latch on to. If that is supposed to create  "atmosphere"  and "support", I'll take a monastery thank you.

 

These Chippenham “fans” that are disgusted and embarrassed with the fans behind the goal and with some of their language, it’s a derby first of all and if the players come celebrating infront of their faces they aren’t just gonna stand there and not care, these lot of fans are behind the goal every home game and cheering on the players for the whole 90 minutes and there are some fans that clearly don’t want them here anymore which is embarrassing because they must have not been to a derby game with at least 5,000 fans abusing the opposition. Without these lads behind the goal the atmosphere and drive is non existent.

Some interesting comments on here. I suggest you all download the sofa score app which provides some objectivity outside of ‘no pride or passion’ or we ‘just passed it sideways and backwards’ after a defeat and ‘we played forward more often today’ after a win.

Sadly this forum does not support attachments and pictures but I would encourage you to all have a look. For the record, Chippenham had more shots, passes, possession, crosses, penalty box entries, penalty box touches, dribbles, final third entries. By more, a lot more. Dominant. They also won more aerial duals and the same number of ground duals.

Bath blocked 6 of Chippenham’s 14 shots and made 18 interceptions and 24 clearances.  Bath defended their penalty box superbly well and we did not show enough quality to beat their defending.  Meanwhile at the other end, they get given a generous penalty (IMO) and their second goal is offside but missed by the incompetent linesman. The third is a big mistake but you can argue that the game is almost gone at 2-0.

Download the app, look back at old games and compare. Chippenham played well, Bath defended brilliantly and Chippenham made some small errors that were ruthlessly punished.

Sadly, the ground nowadays is like a morgue in comparison to how it once was. Driving away the lads behind the goal who are trying to make some noise, which is something the club has been doing for some time now, is destroying the atmosphere. While I might not agree with every chant, and remark they make, I value their presence. 

Dauntsey Boys wrote:

Sadly, the ground nowadays is like a morgue in comparison to how it once was. Driving away the lads behind the goal who are trying to make some noise, which is something the club has been doing for some time now, is destroying the atmosphere. While I might not agree with every chant, and remark they make, I value their presence. 

Sorry guys but the foul language used in almost every chant is in my opinion totally unacceptable. Many young supporters along with their parents sit in the stand at the cricket ground end and the multiple use of the “f” and “c” words is not acceptable.