The Fans' Roar: Defence still needs sorting

He spoke of improving the club each season to establish ourselves at this level then one season things will click and it will be our turn to get promotion to the Premier League.

I trust Jackett and believe he is the best manager we have had in many years at the club, but thoughts of getting into the Premier League are a long way off for us.

Indeed the hope brought about by the victory over Middlesbrough before the international break feels like a very long time ago now.

The most worrying aspect is how many goals we are conceding this season.

True we have been unlucky in having skipper Paul Robinson missing from our defence for all but one game this season and Tam Mkandawire also still absent from the first team, but by now you would have hoped we would be letting in fewer goals than we are.

Robbo was back in the starting line-up for the Hull City match as Jackett switched a winning team and formation to go with three centre-backs to accommodate Robbo.

With us going in 4-0 down at half-time that change was obviously not a success and the manager reverted to a more familiar flat back four.

We won the second half 1-0 but that was scant consolation after being torn apart by former Lions loanee Jay Simpson.

With that defeat and our resulting slip down the table the tough home game against Cardiff took on greater importance.

Robbo missed this match as well with an ankle injury picked up in the Hull City defeat.

We were a match for the Welsh team in the first half, but they were more clinical in taking two of their chances in the second half and also kept a clean sheet, something we are really struggling to do this season.

With us facing Brighton at home this Saturday, another team who have started the season well, we must sort our defence out.

Whether that means Danny Shittu coming into the starting line-up or not, Jackett needs to make that call.

Whatever the manager chooses, we need to build on solid foundations at the back to give us more of a chance of winning games.

At the other end of the pitch Jackett has made what looks like a decent signing.

West Bromwich Albion striker Chris Wood joined on a 2 month youth loan prior to the Cardiff match.

Wood scored a hat-trick against us while on loan at Birmingham last season so if he shows that form he will be a real asset to us, although we really need to focus more on sorting the problems at the other end of the pitch first.