If you discount the points we've earned, we're bottom of the table with zero points and frankly that's just not good enough.
Cambridge another poor side, we’ve no problem beating them. It’s the decent sides we struggle against, we need to improve against the likes of Portsmouth, Oxford etc
Can we just stop this knee jerking nonsense. We've won 4-0 tonight - it doesn't mean we're better than 1970 Brazil. We lost 1-0 on Saturday - it doesn't mean we're worse than Athersley Rec nor is Collins the Anti-Christ. Just chill.
It is funny though. We were in the top half after 10 games & there were fans throwing wobblers on here despite Collins having to start with a new keeper, a new back 3 & a new holding midfielder. Add to that Norwood left late on & Phillips has missed as many as he’s been available for & it’s no surprise we didn’t start the season in automatic promotion form. My favourite has been ‘doesn’t know his best 11’ like any manager would so soon after all that upheaval. Just give them a chance.
Don't waste your time ehh Fonzie lad!. Tonight's result and performance shows us a few more positive things doesn't it, after Satdy's big disappointment.
1 point worse off than this stage(11 games) 12 months ago. No Collins Andersen Kitching Norwood Tedic Thomas all sold/loan ended no Connell due to illness.
Plenty of positives tonight, and of course a fantastic result, but don’t let’s get carried away. Against the likes of Cambridge, Russell and Kane for example look streets ahead of their opposite numbers. They are streets ahead, their best player is probably Paul Digby. But we don’t play them every week. We’ve seen against better sides with a midfield that has any mobility, they are both too slow and in Russell’s case he is often a passenger throughout. Even with them two looking as good as they did at times tonight, we still conceded a lot of chances and lost possession far too easily, Roberts made eight saves (albeit run of the mill ones); better finishing on their part and we might have had a different game on our hands. Against a lot of the teams in this league we will get away with it; but against the better ones, of which there are probably seven or eight at least, we may well not. I’m still not convinced - though as I said Saturday, I suspect he will be given time; and fair enough. Three points Saturday won’t harm his chances. One will probably do tbh. Exeter aren’t mugs and it’s a bloody long way to travel. I’d say we haven’t really learnt anything tonight we didn’t already know, and so I’ve not massively altered my view. We will be fine against a lot of the sides; with respect to them, a lot are pretty poor. Not so much against the better ones though. Cambridge are in the former group, not the latter. However, to offer balance in fairness, Mael has played well back to back and got himself a goal, Watters is also off the mark, and our overall points return is ok given the upheaval. It hasn’t been a disaster and comparisons to Schopp or Asbaghi are laughable. I still think a hell of a lot of improvement is needed to ensure a top six finish though, and we’re nowhere near top two standard.
Tonight Collins may have finally found his strongest starting 11. Problem comes again when Connell and Lopata are back fit.
To be honest my opinion is that this is a much weaker division than last season. But look where we are with a new coach and a host of new players. I'm quietly optimistic.
Lopata shouldn’t get back in ahead of De Gevigney. Since his bad debut he’s looked every bit as good of a defender but he’s far, far better on the ball. Lopata hasn’t done a lot wrong by the way & I think he’ll prove to be a decent signing but De Gevigney’s got far more to his game & could become a star.
Portsmouth, Oxford, Peterborough, Blackpool all will be top end of the table come the end of the season, & we’re struggling against them. Cambridge will easily be bottom half finishers, in other words *****. We are bang average. Mid table finish for us.
I hope i’m wrong but i still think we will get battered at some point. Other than Blackpool, the teams we have lost to have carved us open so easily and even the games we have won we have given the other team chance after chance. We are lucky the league is full of a lot of poor teams.
Away form is pure luck? What? So our crap home form is down to crap manager, but our good away form is due to luck? Eh?