Burns on Blues: Shooting blanks

Aug 25 2010

THE dreaded word for every striker playing at any level of football in the world is confidence.

If you have it you are unplayable. And if you don't have it you are unplayable too.

Wycombe have some good options up front in Ben Strevens, Jon-Paul Pittman, Scott Rendell and the recovering Stuart Beavon.

But they are letting down boss Gary Waddock and leaving him unsure of his best partnership up top.

Strevs and Rendell began the season as the top two and showed good promise together in pre-seasonm

Both work hard and drop deep to be the link up men in attack. Strevens at 30 is the elder statesman of the attack and he has impressed with his overall play without threatening a goal glut.

It has to be remembered that Rendell, Pittman and Beavon are still in their early 20s and learning their trade up front.

Pittman looks to be the only of Waddock's options who has the ability and desire to run in behind defences and use his explosive pace to stretch and backline; but does he do it well enough on a consistent basis?

Waddock hinted he did not think any of his strikers are doing enough when asked if he was any closer to knowing his best partnership up-front.

Rendell has struggled. He scored on his home league debut but has not had a shot at goal since and was dropped on the weekend.

Two goalless draws in a row have turned the spotlight onto Wycombe's attacking threat which seems ridiculous given their pre-season form.

Betsy has been dangerous while neither Lewis Montrose or Matt Bloomfield look like being goalscoring midfielders this season and more hustling and bustling engine room workers.

All the Blues' strikers need at Northampton on Saturday is a toe-poke, a lucky deflection, one to go in off their backsides and this debate will be over.

One thing is for sure; a team in League Two are set for a pasting when it all clicks for Waddock.

It is just a shame it couldn't be Oxford.

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