this was evident not only in TM having to go looking for whoever he could get on a loan basis, but also left him incapable of committing to any of the other strikers that the club had available. he had the eventual good luck of acquiring fortune - but he turned out to be more of a holding, control forward than an out and out goal-scorer. i can't remember how many times the ball came to him in and around the box, how he skillfully held the ball up, gained control and position and held off defenders, only to find there was no one getting into space on attack. if anyone was going to score, he would have to do it himself - and, indeed, he ended up with a fairly decent record of 5 goals in 17 matches.
simpson never really panned out - although he had his moments - and neither luke moore or roman bednar were really afforded much opportunity by the gaffer; who, and in retrospect, seemed lost for what to do going forward without his pet project. you see, mowbray was setting his team up as a 4-5-1 formation with miller leading the line. although, this formation also saw jonathan greening playing in an advanced position in support of the striker, and in much more of an attacking role than he is used to. once it all started to work - and i think it was probably against wigan and newcastle where this really started to gel - it was like finally seeing the method behind the madness... the idea had been made apparent and had become revealed!
the team saw this development reach its unfortunately early zenith with greening scoring the first goal in the home draw against portsmouth. throughout the early part of the second-half - and with a 1-0 lead - miller was showing menacing pace in several counter-attacks that made it seem only a matter of time before he might score the second and really impress the albion's dominance on the match - as well as vindicate an attacking formation that had long been criticized (and rightly so) for not producing results.
when miller went down under pompey keeper james in an ill-advised, over-enthusiastic tackle that would take him out for the season, there was a sudden and palpable shift in mood on the albion bench. the confusion, loss of focus, and gaps in the playing formation set in as quickly as its development and now apparent and converging success had been long in coming. within minutes, peter crouch - and against the run of play - hit a screamer from about 15-20 yards out and equalized.
i don't know what kind of relationship mowbray had with either bednar or moore; but it was certain that what he'd been working on with miller as the lone striker would not be a role suited to either of these two, and the gaffer even brought craig beattie back from a loan spell while waiting those last few desperate weeks and for the january transfer window to open. in the meantime, mowbray seemed like he just didn't really know what to do, except re-adapt to a 4-4-2 formation, rotate his three strikers in utility roles and target particular games that might be winnable.
even though i have heard no one else make this assertion, but i believe if miller had not gotten hurt the baggies would've stayed up. while mowbray's tactical focus also turned out to be a mistake, in that miller could not be replaced when he got injured - certainly not with the other strikers on the team - it was still tough luck on the gaffer, as he had genuinely invested a lot of time and faith in miller. it took awhile, but at the time of his injury miller had scored 3 goals in 7 games, looked to be on a 4th and really seemed to have hit his stride. the goal against wigan was a perfect example of the exploitation of a defensive mistake at the premiership level. it was opportunistic and finished with a steel-nerve; just as his skill had drawn the newcastle defenders inside with the goalie coming off his line; and then with his pace leaving everyone out of position as he moved the ball outside to the left and placed it neatly into an open goal.
of course, i am excited by the imminent arrival of simon cox. in case you haven't seen him yet, this kid has some really spectacular goals in him, as well as being a prolific scorer. i'm happy that we finally have a manager (or rather more properly now a "head coach") who i think is probably a winner above all, as well as a knowledgeable football mind; and as he is inheriting mowbray's squad more or less intact, i hope he finds a fitting and prominent place for miller in his vision of the albion.
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