Swindon Town chairman to step aside when takeover goes through (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

louiscassius wrote:
Oh well, lets hope this goes through all well today or tomorrow.

I'll be honest, i'd take normal for a while just ticking over.....

I'll be even more honest, i've been so worried lately, i'd be happy to be solid league 1 Club still next season......

How sad, from my great expectations, to praying were all just ticking over nicely next year.....

But, the long term future of our Club is my greatest concern.....and hopfully like Clint Eastwood just said, hopefully, this deal will at least allow us to operate and move forward nice and slowly....Thank Gog!!!

Fingers Crossed today.

Louis :-))))

mattsingapore wrote:
I wonder if it would be better for there to be silence for a few days - no articles at all - until something newsworthy appeared!

the wizard wrote:
We will have a new board in the next few days should the guys pass the interview today, sounds good, sounds promising. Job done.
However, if SWP is the role model of modern day politics and diplomacy then it is plain to see why there is so much distrust in todays world. He has communicated little, hardly inspired confidence, and appears to be as blunt as it comes. So as Wyatt Earp rides out of town into the sunset let us hope not too many casualties are left laying dead on the ground, now or in the future. One cowboy dispatched.

Lazaat wrote:

the wizard wrote:
We will have a new board in the next few days should the guys pass the interview today, sounds good, sounds promising. Job done.
However, if SWP is the role model of modern day politics and diplomacy then it is plain to see why there is so much distrust in todays world. He has communicated little, hardly inspired confidence, and appears to be as blunt as it comes. So as Wyatt Earp rides out of town into the sunset let us hope not too many casualties are left laying dead on the ground, now or in the future. One cowboy dispatched.

I'm not defending the guy wiz and I agree with you that he has been a PR disaster but he was brought in solely to sell the club, which he has now done...so thanks and goodbye SWP.

Stickshaker wrote:
Well the man from Del Monte has now sorted out Afganistan and Swindon - where next on the world map?

Lazaat wrote:
For those who want a few days news free can I suggest you don't read any newspapers, listen to the news and don't come on here for a few days? But I for one will be checking those site out every hour today as I want to know how the meeting goes today!

The results last night show that we wasted a glorious chance on Saturday, we have had a lot of draws lately which isn't promotion form so unless we can go on a really good winning run we can forget auto promo! Bournemouth now look favourites for the title with one other? We have got a very tough run in so play offs now likely, maybe if we had the foresight to have kept Ritchie we would have had a more realistic chance of auto!!

louiscassius wrote:

louiscassius wrote:
Oh well, lets hope this goes through all well today or tomorrow.

I'll be honest, i'd take normal for a while just ticking over.....

I'll be even more honest, i've been so worried lately, i'd be happy to be solid league 1 Club still next season......

How sad, from my great expectations, to praying were all just ticking over nicely next year.....

But, the long term future of our Club is my greatest concern.....and hopfully like Clint Eastwood just said, hopefully, this deal will at least allow us to operate and move forward nice and slowly....Thank Gog!!!

Fingers Crossed today.


Louis :-))))

"God"........

Thank 2God"....

Sorry.....half alseep.....

gingerdad wrote:
Ritchie gone. Bournemouth top. Was this what they set out to achieve?

London Red wrote:
Automatic is so unrealistic isn't it!
.
Bein what 3 points off top WITH a game in hand
.
Unbeaten since November - stretching over 11 games
.
The best goal difference in the division by a country mile which is basically an extra point
.
Plus we could have Pack Green and BWP join this week to strengthen our push
.
Yeah but other than that it is all looking cr@p!

London Red wrote:
Automatic is so unrealistic isn't it!
.
Bein what 3 points off top WITH a game in hand
.
Unbeaten since November - stretching over 11 games
.
The best goal difference in the division by a country mile which is basically an extra point
.
Plus we could have Pack Green and BWP join this week to strengthen our push
.
Yeah but other than that it is all looking cr@p!

Lazaat wrote:
For those who want a few days news free can I suggest you don't read any newspapers, listen to the news and don't come on here for a few days? But I for one will be checking those site out every hour today as I want to know how the meeting goes today!

The results last night show that we wasted a glorious chance on Saturday, we have had a lot of draws lately which isn't promotion form so unless we can go on a really good winning run we can forget auto promo! Bournemouth now look favourites for the title with one other? We have got a very tough run in so play offs now likely, maybe if we had the foresight to have kept Ritchie we would have had a more realistic chance of auto!!

TheDukeOfBanbury wrote:

London Red wrote:
Automatic is so unrealistic isn't it!
.
Bein what 3 points off top WITH a game in hand
.
Unbeaten since November - stretching over 11 games
.
The best goal difference in the division by a country mile which is basically an extra point
.
Plus we could have Pack Green and BWP join this week to strengthen our push
.
Yeah but other than that it is all looking cr@p!

Thanks LR for posting this.

I mean it.
It's all about where we go from here (the next few days).

I need some positive thoughts after the past few weeks (you may have noticed) :)

Oxon-Red wrote:
To be fair to Patey, his job was never going to win him friends. Is he a Football Club Chairman, no, but his job has been to find new investors and I wonder how others would have handled this !!! What would you guys have said ? Think about it because it is not easy. Hopefully it all goes through and we will get the chance to strenghten a now threadbare squad which has suffered from injury and illness. Most teams have hiccups at some point, we may have just had ours. Hoping all goes through soon, fingers well crossed. COYMR

louiscassius wrote:

louiscassius wrote: Oh well, lets hope this goes through all well today or tomorrow. I'll be honest, i'd take normal for a while just ticking over..... I'll be even more honest, i've been so worried lately, i'd be happy to be solid league 1 Club still next season...... How sad, from my great expectations, to praying were all just ticking over nicely next year..... But, the long term future of our Club is my greatest concern.....and hopfully like Clint Eastwood just said, hopefully, this deal will at least allow us to operate and move forward nice and slowly....Thank Gog!!! Fingers Crossed today. Louis :-))))

"God"........ Thank 2God".... Sorry.....half alseep.....

Lazaat wrote:
For those who want a few days news free can I suggest you don't read any newspapers, listen to the news and don't come on here for a few days? But I for one will be checking those site out every hour today as I want to know how the meeting goes today!

The results last night show that we wasted a glorious chance on Saturday, we have had a lot of draws lately which isn't promotion form so unless we can go on a really good winning run we can forget auto promo! Bournemouth now look favourites for the title with one other? We have got a very tough run in so play offs now likely, maybe if we had the foresight to have kept Ritchie we would have had a more realistic chance of auto!!

billbst wrote:
I wonder if Sir Will had much to do with bringing the new consortium in. From yesterday' reports it seems like they were looking for a club. As to getting the deal done quickly I suspect Nick Watkins had more to do with setting out the needed info for due diligence. What might we realistically of expected from a Chairman over recent weeks. An explanation of the process requested by the FL and their timescales. An explanation of the position with the loanees both with the FL and the club. How the NDA was to work. How he planned to communicate with the manager through the interim. How finances were to be handled in the interim and why this led to Ritchie's sale. Bored now but I think he has been a very poor blinkered chairman.

Wilesy wrote:
Yes looks like Cherries have bought their way to promotion but fair play to them. I doubt Eddie Howe came cheap, plus convincing Pitman to drop a division will have cost, and of course Ritchie, which smacks of Blackburn buying Duncan Shearer to a degree.

Patey has (hopefully) achieved his goal of selling the club but I still don't see why he was appointed as Chairman should have just been a consultant. If Wray was spending too much, Black / Patey could have just stopped it?

Hopefully Black's health is OK and not the reason for the panic sale. (Funding another £500k in Feb surely cannot be that much of an issue to a man of his wealth). Will be interested to hear his reasons at some point, and we should be grateful he has written off millions debt, even if the last few weeks have been painful.

Wilesy wrote:
Yes looks like Cherries have bought their way to promotion but fair play to them. I doubt Eddie Howe came cheap, plus convincing Pitman to drop a division will have cost, and of course Ritchie, which smacks of Blackburn buying Duncan Shearer to a degree.

Patey has (hopefully) achieved his goal of selling the club but I still don't see why he was appointed as Chairman should have just been a consultant. If Wray was spending too much, Black / Patey could have just stopped it?

Hopefully Black's health is OK and not the reason for the panic sale. (Funding another £500k in Feb surely cannot be that much of an issue to a man of his wealth). Will be interested to hear his reasons at some point, and we should be grateful he has written off millions debt, even if the last few weeks have been painful.

Oxon-Red wrote:
Do we know the full story behind his installation as chairman ? Was he told at the time by Mr Black "I want out by the end of January, I want a buyer in place by then." ? How do you handle this ? Do you release all the information ? Do you handle it 'diplomatically' and say "I have been brought in to find new investors in the club' ? What could have been the outcome in October if he had released all the information ! Paolo gone, players affected, attendances down, position in the league down. What has happened ? The whole situation has been very difficult and may turn out to have been handled well. Judging what and how much to say is not an easy job. Say too much and people panic, leave, stop committing themselves 100% etc I feel he is being used as a scapegoat because people fear the worst. We may never know the whole story but hopefully it will have a happy ending :-) COYMR

Stickshaker wrote:
Well the man from Del Monte has now sorted out Afganistan and Swindon - where next on the world map?

ciclosporindorset wrote:
This all goes to show how having a single or dominant benefactor can lead to problems when their own circumstances change. I feel the last 18 months have been exciting yet expectations - mine,PDC, fans, are raised to an unsustainable level. I feel I have woken up to reality and yet we are on the threshold of a new dream. A group - not a dominant invester - want to invest. We have 18 players almost universally better than the (larger) squad of 2 years ago. We have a larger fan base, we are fourth in the league so a better place than for many many years. My hope for the future is that as a club we can nurture the likes of Thompson 1 & 2, Storey, Oakley, Bedwell, retain an experienced core and regain the strategy of Fitton around sustainable development. We are a more attractive proposition for incoming loanees. The ground redevelopment is mentioned above and many above cannot see the opportunities mentioned by Patey above. It is not necessarily a new set of goals but perhaps it was time for a different strategy. I doubt that Patey will be too troubled by the inevitable flack. He is not that sort. He got - hopefully today - a win-win - from a difficult position 3 momnths ago.

madterrier wrote:
Technically, Patey has 'succeeded' in helping find new owners for the club. I don't know that we needed a chairman to do much in this regard though - just someone to pick up the phone to a financial intermediary like Deloitts or PKF, that's all that is required. It's a simple admin job, as Black would decide which deal to go for.

But what does his list of successes really look like?

- Failed to get the 'bidding war' he said he wanted.

- Can't pre-judge yet, and probably we will never know, but doesn't sound like he has found wealthy new owners with any money, either to recompense Black for his investment or to fund the club's future dreams.

- Lobbed various hand grenades around the County Ground about the perilous state of the club, including the dreaded 'A' word (no, not Afghanistan), leading to a national media feeding frenzy and accusations of 'cheating' from the likes of the Football League Paper and Talksport's Adrian Dumb Durham.

- Failed to develop any kind of rapport with the club's manager, leading to Paolo openly contradicting Patey's remarks in the local media.

- Didn't have the courtesy to tell Paolo that Ritchie was being sold from under his feet.

- Annoyed the fan base, even though he barely communicated with them.

- Did he also add cart horse meat to the Paolo burgers on sale at the CG? (sorry, Adver should have said 'SN1'). Actually, what happened to Magera??

OK probably he didn't do the last one but he has hardly covered himself with glory in his time here. No doubt his CV will read differently though. As the old adage goes, you know when a politician is lying because his lips start moving.

Davidsyrett wrote:

madterrier wrote:
Technically, Patey has 'succeeded' in helping find new owners for the club. I don't know that we needed a chairman to do much in this regard though - just someone to pick up the phone to a financial intermediary like Deloitts or PKF, that's all that is required. It's a simple admin job, as Black would decide which deal to go for.

But what does his list of successes really look like?

- Failed to get the 'bidding war' he said he wanted.

- Can't pre-judge yet, and probably we will never know, but doesn't sound like he has found wealthy new owners with any money, either to recompense Black for his investment or to fund the club's future dreams.

- Lobbed various hand grenades around the County Ground about the perilous state of the club, including the dreaded 'A' word (no, not Afghanistan), leading to a national media feeding frenzy and accusations of 'cheating' from the likes of the Football League Paper and Talksport's Adrian Dumb Durham.

- Failed to develop any kind of rapport with the club's manager, leading to Paolo openly contradicting Patey's remarks in the local media.

- Didn't have the courtesy to tell Paolo that Ritchie was being sold from under his feet.

- Annoyed the fan base, even though he barely communicated with them.

- Did he also add cart horse meat to the Paolo burgers on sale at the CG? (sorry, Adver should have said 'SN1'). Actually, what happened to Magera??

OK probably he didn't do the last one but he has hardly covered himself with glory in his time here. No doubt his CV will read differently though. As the old adage goes, you know when a politician is lying because his lips start moving.

Out of interest, how would you have gone about selling a club that was losing £100K's a month? Some people really do not have a clue!!

If SWP have not of found a buyer ADMINISTRATION!!! simple.

Who cares whether he spoke to the fans, PDC or press, I don't. We could easily been docked 20 points by now and had a relegation battle looming.

Because of SWP we still have a club with a chance of promotion and keeping PdC. If the deal goes through I for one will be grateful for what he has achieved.

stfc2012 wrote:
He did the job he was paid to do. You lot prefer administration? Swindon fans love a scapegoat.

Lazaat wrote:
For those who want a few days news free can I suggest you don't read any newspapers, listen to the news and don't come on here for a few days? But I for one will be checking those site out every hour today as I want to know how the meeting goes today! The results last night show that we wasted a glorious chance on Saturday, we have had a lot of draws lately which isn't promotion form so unless we can go on a really good winning run we can forget auto promo! Bournemouth now look favourites for the title with one other? We have got a very tough run in so play offs now likely, maybe if we had the foresight to have kept Ritchie we would have had a more realistic chance of auto!!

Wilesy wrote:
Yes looks like Cherries have bought their way to promotion but fair play to them. I doubt Eddie Howe came cheap, plus convincing Pitman to drop a division will have cost, and of course Ritchie, which smacks of Blackburn buying Duncan Shearer to a degree.

Patey has (hopefully) achieved his goal of selling the club but I still don't see why he was appointed as Chairman should have just been a consultant. If Wray was spending too much, Black / Patey could have just stopped it?

Hopefully Black's health is OK and not the reason for the panic sale. (Funding another £500k in Feb surely cannot be that much of an issue to a man of his wealth). Will be interested to hear his reasons at some point, and we should be grateful he has written off millions debt, even if the last few weeks have been painful.

Pewsham Red wrote:

stfc2012 wrote:
He did the job he was paid to do. You lot prefer administration? Swindon fans love a scapegoat.

Some may say he has yet to do the job he was paid to do as the deal has not yet been done. One may also argue that had he done his job better administration would never have been an option, let alone mentioned.

We are all entitled to look at the situation as we see it. No need to get on your high horse about it.

the don69 wrote:
Another manager bites the dust!Westley couldn't hack it at PNE,heard from Jed on twitter!he's on his way to meet the boffins!at the FL lets hope it all goes well!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LeGod wrote:
Bournemouth will slip up as all clubs will at some stagethey have coventry and sheff utd coming up and cant see them winning all their games.
By all accounts they were lucky last night and what is more annoying Ritchie set up one of the goals we have shot a massive hole in our foot selling him to Bournemouth you cant get a worse bit of business than what we did.
For what everyone has said about AB yes he has put money in the club and im grateful for that but i also feel he has crapped on the club, the fans, the players and the manager.
He couldnt have picked a worse time to do what he did and my respect for him has disappeared. He knew the score he decided to opt and back Paolo and then changes his mind.

Now he has put the whole club under pressure.

SAPFanSTFC wrote:

the don69 wrote:
Another manager bites the dust!Westley couldn't hack it at PNE,heard from Jed on twitter!he's on his way to meet the boffins!at the FL lets hope it all goes well!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

...and another club change manager just before we play them!...Why can't we play these clubs just as they've lost all hope and before the manager resigns!?
...
Aah well - we'll just have to try harder.
...
Roll on Tranmere on Tuesday!!

madterrier wrote:

Davidsyrett wrote:

madterrier wrote:
Technically, Patey has 'succeeded' in helping find new owners for the club. I don't know that we needed a chairman to do much in this regard though - just someone to pick up the phone to a financial intermediary like Deloitts or PKF, that's all that is required. It's a simple admin job, as Black would decide which deal to go for.

But what does his list of successes really look like?

- Failed to get the 'bidding war' he said he wanted.

- Can't pre-judge yet, and probably we will never know, but doesn't sound like he has found wealthy new owners with any money, either to recompense Black for his investment or to fund the club's future dreams.

- Lobbed various hand grenades around the County Ground about the perilous state of the club, including the dreaded 'A' word (no, not Afghanistan), leading to a national media feeding frenzy and accusations of 'cheating' from the likes of the Football League Paper and Talksport's Adrian Dumb Durham.

- Failed to develop any kind of rapport with the club's manager, leading to Paolo openly contradicting Patey's remarks in the local media.

- Didn't have the courtesy to tell Paolo that Ritchie was being sold from under his feet.

- Annoyed the fan base, even though he barely communicated with them.

- Did he also add cart horse meat to the Paolo burgers on sale at the CG? (sorry, Adver should have said 'SN1'). Actually, what happened to Magera??

OK probably he didn't do the last one but he has hardly covered himself with glory in his time here. No doubt his CV will read differently though. As the old adage goes, you know when a politician is lying because his lips start moving.

Out of interest, how would you have gone about selling a club that was losing £100K's a month? Some people really do not have a clue!!

If SWP have not of found a buyer ADMINISTRATION!!! simple.

Who cares whether he spoke to the fans, PDC or press, I don't. We could easily been docked 20 points by now and had a relegation battle looming.

Because of SWP we still have a club with a chance of promotion and keeping PdC. If the deal goes through I for one will be grateful for what he has achieved.

The answer to how I would go about selling a club was in my first paragraph. I would contact a confidential business intermediary with a specialist football department or expertise - Deloitte and PKF for example. Whether it was Wray or Patey I don't see why Black had to expect the Chairman to do all this - he could have done it himself covertly, or hired a consultant. Maybe he did.

Having worked with both of those firms I assume your 'some people really don't have a clue' comment doesn't refer to me, unless my understanding is wrong and you know of different ways that businesses are bought and sold? EBay?

One of the Chairman's main roles is to act as intermediary between the owner and the manager and ensure the smooth running of the football club. Another is to front up the club to the fans. Good communication is usually good for business, which is why so many companies pay small fortunes to PR companies. You might not care that Patey did little in this area, but many supporters do.

However, I do agree that Patey's hands were tied by Black, and you also don't do your negotiating in public. As another poster said, I look forward to seeing Andrew Black's tweets (!) once this episode is over.

Davidsyrett wrote:

madterrier wrote:

Davidsyrett wrote:

madterrier wrote: Technically, Patey has 'succeeded' in helping find new owners for the club. I don't know that we needed a chairman to do much in this regard though - just someone to pick up the phone to a financial intermediary like Deloitts or PKF, that's all that is required. It's a simple admin job, as Black would decide which deal to go for. But what does his list of successes really look like? - Failed to get the 'bidding war' he said he wanted. - Can't pre-judge yet, and probably we will never know, but doesn't sound like he has found wealthy new owners with any money, either to recompense Black for his investment or to fund the club's future dreams. - Lobbed various hand grenades around the County Ground about the perilous state of the club, including the dreaded 'A' word (no, not Afghanistan), leading to a national media feeding frenzy and accusations of 'cheating' from the likes of the Football League Paper and Talksport's Adrian Dumb Durham. - Failed to develop any kind of rapport with the club's manager, leading to Paolo openly contradicting Patey's remarks in the local media. - Didn't have the courtesy to tell Paolo that Ritchie was being sold from under his feet. - Annoyed the fan base, even though he barely communicated with them. - Did he also add cart horse meat to the Paolo burgers on sale at the CG? (sorry, Adver should have said 'SN1'). Actually, what happened to Magera?? OK probably he didn't do the last one but he has hardly covered himself with glory in his time here. No doubt his CV will read differently though. As the old adage goes, you know when a politician is lying because his lips start moving.

Out of interest, how would you have gone about selling a club that was losing £100K's a month? Some people really do not have a clue!! If SWP have not of found a buyer ADMINISTRATION!!! simple. Who cares whether he spoke to the fans, PDC or press, I don't. We could easily been docked 20 points by now and had a relegation battle looming. Because of SWP we still have a club with a chance of promotion and keeping PdC. If the deal goes through I for one will be grateful for what he has achieved.

The answer to how I would go about selling a club was in my first paragraph. I would contact a confidential business intermediary with a specialist football department or expertise - Deloitte and PKF for example. Whether it was Wray or Patey I don't see why Black had to expect the Chairman to do all this - he could have done it himself covertly, or hired a consultant. Maybe he did. Having worked with both of those firms I assume your 'some people really don't have a clue' comment doesn't refer to me, unless my understanding is wrong and you know of different ways that businesses are bought and sold? EBay? One of the Chairman's main roles is to act as intermediary between the owner and the manager and ensure the smooth running of the football club. Another is to front up the club to the fans. Good communication is usually good for business, which is why so many companies pay small fortunes to PR companies. You might not care that Patey did little in this area, but many supporters do. However, I do agree that Patey's hands were tied by Black, and you also don't do your negotiating in public. As another poster said, I look forward to seeing Andrew Black's tweets (!) once this episode is over.

I think the real problem here was time, SWP was given a very short period of time to find a buyer, hence why he probably didn't go down the avenues you suggested. For whatever reason AB wanted to off load the club by the end of January, therefore making a public announcement that the club was for sale was probably the quickest way to get things moving. Maybe AB shouldn't have installed SWP as chairman, just brought him in as a consultant, therefore not having a need to communicate with the fans etc.

NewburyRobin wrote:

Lazaat wrote:

the wizard wrote: We will have a new board in the next few days should the guys pass the interview today, sounds good, sounds promising. Job done. However, if SWP is the role model of modern day politics and diplomacy then it is plain to see why there is so much distrust in todays world. He has communicated little, hardly inspired confidence, and appears to be as blunt as it comes. So as Wyatt Earp rides out of town into the sunset let us hope not too many casualties are left laying dead on the ground, now or in the future. One cowboy dispatched.

I'm not defending the guy wiz and I agree with you that he has been a PR disaster but he was brought in solely to sell the club, which he has now done...so thanks and goodbye SWP.

Yes he did do what he was brought in for but then so could The Milky Bar Kid, providing he was back in Town.

London Red wrote:
Bournemouth have NOT won the league yet by any means! . Like us (an the other 5 in contention) they have some tricky games coming up so are likely to drop points . If they don't - they will win the league and fair play to them - but by doing that they could also pave the way for us to finish 2nd - as they will have stopped pretty much ALL our rivals in the process . Now I would prefer the title but will be more than happy with 2nd! . Bournemouth have Preston away next - with Westley going that is not as easy as it was - as we saw when we faced teams changing their manager (Coventry, Colchester etc) . Then they have Sheff U and Coventry at home - not givens by any means . Then a Tricky trip to Orient's beach party - which we and Tranmere have seen is a tough game! . Then another tough home game against Doncaster! . They then have to go to Oldham, Colchester and Shrewsbury who are all fighting for their lives so they won't be a walk in the park . They then end the season at Tranmere - who could be in a 7 way battle for pormotion if it stays as it is! . I can't be asked at this point to do a mini league for the top 7 but there will be at least 4 or 5 encounters for each side in the run in - so the league is still anyones INCLUDING OURS!!!! . Sorry I must have got confused as I thought we had gone 11 unbeaten - not lost 11 in a row as the way some are talking you would think that was the case!

Wilesy wrote:

London Red wrote:
Bournemouth have NOT won the league yet by any means! . Like us (an the other 5 in contention) they have some tricky games coming up so are likely to drop points . If they don't - they will win the league and fair play to them - but by doing that they could also pave the way for us to finish 2nd - as they will have stopped pretty much ALL our rivals in the process . Now I would prefer the title but will be more than happy with 2nd! . Bournemouth have Preston away next - with Westley going that is not as easy as it was - as we saw when we faced teams changing their manager (Coventry, Colchester etc) . Then they have Sheff U and Coventry at home - not givens by any means . Then a Tricky trip to Orient's beach party - which we and Tranmere have seen is a tough game! . Then another tough home game against Doncaster! . They then have to go to Oldham, Colchester and Shrewsbury who are all fighting for their lives so they won't be a walk in the park . They then end the season at Tranmere - who could be in a 7 way battle for pormotion if it stays as it is! . I can't be asked at this point to do a mini league for the top 7 but there will be at least 4 or 5 encounters for each side in the run in - so the league is still anyones INCLUDING OURS!!!! . Sorry I must have got confused as I thought we had gone 11 unbeaten - not lost 11 in a row as the way some are talking you would think that was the case!

Anyone can beat anyone in this league which is why no-one is running away with it, but despite our unbeaten record we don't look as good as we did since the departures of Ritchie Hollands and Martin and the strikers in particular Williams are blowing cold after a very hot spell. Also too many draws not wins.

Bournemouth and Yeovil are clearly 2 teams in better form, Grabban Pitman and Madden are smashing in goals left right and centre.

If we can get the 3 loans in I fancy our chances of top 2, without probably just the play-offs and maybe worst case 7th place.

Maybe its just a confidence thing and we will come good again with what we've got, or as Paolo says a guaranteed starting place leads to too many going at 80%, either through complacency or a need to not get injured.

Not negative, just realistic.

Ollie Reed's Parky dance! wrote:

Wilesy wrote:

London Red wrote:
Bournemouth have NOT won the league yet by any means! . Like us (an the other 5 in contention) they have some tricky games coming up so are likely to drop points . If they don't - they will win the league and fair play to them - but by doing that they could also pave the way for us to finish 2nd - as they will have stopped pretty much ALL our rivals in the process . Now I would prefer the title but will be more than happy with 2nd! . Bournemouth have Preston away next - with Westley going that is not as easy as it was - as we saw when we faced teams changing their manager (Coventry, Colchester etc) . Then they have Sheff U and Coventry at home - not givens by any means . Then a Tricky trip to Orient's beach party - which we and Tranmere have seen is a tough game! . Then another tough home game against Doncaster! . They then have to go to Oldham, Colchester and Shrewsbury who are all fighting for their lives so they won't be a walk in the park . They then end the season at Tranmere - who could be in a 7 way battle for pormotion if it stays as it is! . I can't be asked at this point to do a mini league for the top 7 but there will be at least 4 or 5 encounters for each side in the run in - so the league is still anyones INCLUDING OURS!!!! . Sorry I must have got confused as I thought we had gone 11 unbeaten - not lost 11 in a row as the way some are talking you would think that was the case!

Anyone can beat anyone in this league which is why no-one is running away with it, but despite our unbeaten record we don't look as good as we did since the departures of Ritchie Hollands and Martin and the strikers in particular Williams are blowing cold after a very hot spell. Also too many draws not wins.

Bournemouth and Yeovil are clearly 2 teams in better form, Grabban Pitman and Madden are smashing in goals left right and centre.

If we can get the 3 loans in I fancy our chances of top 2, without probably just the play-offs and maybe worst case 7th place.

Maybe its just a confidence thing and we will come good again with what we've got, or as Paolo says a guaranteed starting place leads to too many going at 80%, either through complacency or a need to not get injured.

Not negative, just realistic.

Agreed Wilesy agreed

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

Med Red wrote:
Just read on BBC sport that Cheltenham now want to keep Marlon Pack.

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

the wizard wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote: Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

Does that mean we can breathe a bit now ??

ChrisWantageRed wrote:

the wizard wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote: Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

Does that mean we can breathe a bit now ??

I flippin' well hope so mate...hopefully there will be some kinda official announcement shortly!

ChrisWantageRed wrote:

the wizard wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote: Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

Does that mean we can breathe a bit now ??

I flippin' well hope so mate...hopefully there will be some kinda official announcement shortly!

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

NewburyRobin wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

I have been looking for Jed McCrory on twitter since all this began to no avail.
Is he under a pseudonym?.

RedArmy74 wrote:

NewburyRobin wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

I have been looking for Jed McCrory on twitter since all this began to no avail.
Is he under a pseudonym?.

@JedMcCoy

Just tweeted 'James Brown..... I Feel Good...'

Oi Den! wrote:
It's certainly true that we always seem to need somebody to blame. If we start losing games, stand by to hear that refereeing standards have mysteriously slipped, after being barely mentioned during our successful run!
.
I suppose it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion about Patey but I do think he could have been more communicative with the manager and fans. It seems quite clear that there was no open channel between PDC and the board after Wray left. Also, I find it irritating that after refusing to discuss ground redevelepment during his tenure, he wants to talk about it as he walks out through the door.

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
It was taken down pretty rapidly afterwards...seems the general vibe is good, but no official word until next week! So we're gonna be made to wait it seems!

the wizard wrote:
As they lay frozen side by side in the Lasagne, Shergar turned to Black Beauty and said, "Bloody great hiding place, but I knew they were always going to Findus.

spectacles testicals wallet watch wrote:
Why no word till next week? Surely they can say it has all be accepted and although the paperwork needs time to dry does it mean we can sign players?
This whole episode has been a complete fiasco, for the last 2 weeks they hoped it would be done on deadline day then the folowing friday prior to Hatlepool then mid this week now although the meeting has taken place and must be positive still we, utter nonsense. If we were a profit making business we would demand that we be allowed to trade otherwise how could we fullfil the obligations of making the business a succcess? The FL is a Fu$£1ng JOKE it is they who shoud be ordered to undertake their own fit and proper test W A N K E R S

Krazy Kammy wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

That's assuming that it is his twitter page and not some WUM

London Red wrote:
Bournemouth have NOT won the league yet by any means!
.
Like us (an the other 5 in contention) they have some tricky games coming up so are likely to drop points
.
If they don't - they will win the league and fair play to them - but by doing that they could also pave the way for us to finish 2nd - as they will have stopped pretty much ALL our rivals in the process
.
Now I would prefer the title but will be more than happy with 2nd!
.
Bournemouth have Preston away next - with Westley going that is not as easy as it was - as we saw when we faced teams changing their manager (Coventry, Colchester etc)
.
Then they have Sheff U and Coventry at home - not givens by any means
.
Then a Tricky trip to Orient's beach party - which we and Tranmere have seen is a tough game!
.
Then another tough home game against Doncaster!
.
They then have to go to Oldham, Colchester and Shrewsbury who are all fighting for their lives so they won't be a walk in the park
.
They then end the season at Tranmere - who could be in a 7 way battle for pormotion if it stays as it is!
.
I can't be asked at this point to do a mini league for the top 7 but there will be at least 4 or 5 encounters for each side in the run in - so the league is still anyones INCLUDING OURS!!!!
.
Sorry I must have got confused as I thought we had gone 11 unbeaten - not lost 11 in a row as the way some are talking you would think that was the case!

the wizard wrote:
Oh to be a fly on the wall in Preston and hear the questions and answers, priceless.

old town robin wrote:
If the FL were to lift the embargo on us signing the loanees we need, I don't think anyone on this forum would really care a toss when the transfer of ownership takes place, simple as that!!

London Red wrote:
It a shame you can't accept others do to you though hey Pewsham!

Davidsyrett wrote:

old town robin wrote:
If the FL were to lift the embargo on us signing the loanees we need, I don't think anyone on this forum would really care a toss when the transfer of ownership takes place, simple as that!!

But who's going to pay for them?

Davidsyrett wrote:

old town robin wrote: If the FL were to lift the embargo on us signing the loanees we need, I don't think anyone on this forum would really care a toss when the transfer of ownership takes place, simple as that!!

But who's going to pay for them?

London Red wrote:
On the SWP worth debate - I heard Phil Spencer had more to do with securing the deal than SWP!

class wrote:
Great news (?) Paolo is up for manager of the month!

Krazy Kammy wrote:
Saying early next week now

DarrenSTFCRomain wrote:

Davidsyrett wrote:

old town robin wrote: If the FL were to lift the embargo on us signing the loanees we need, I don't think anyone on this forum would really care a toss when the transfer of ownership takes place, simple as that!!

But who's going to pay for them?

But who's going to pay for them?

Well if thats the case,what player or even players will be sold next ??

RedArmy74 wrote:

NewburyRobin wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

I have been looking for Jed McCrory on twitter since all this began to no avail.
Is he under a pseudonym?.

@JedMcCoy

Just tweeted 'James Brown..... I Feel Good...'

RedArmy74 wrote:

NewburyRobin wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

I have been looking for Jed McCrory on twitter since all this began to no avail.
Is he under a pseudonym?.

@JedMcCoy

Just tweeted 'James Brown..... I Feel Good...'

mancrobin wrote:
Well let's hope Sir William has earned enough from this gig to pay for his charisma bypass reversal.

old town robin wrote:

class wrote:
Great news (?) Paolo is up for manager of the month!

My daughter said he had won it, haven't seen anything on Sky, so assume as per your post he is just a nominee, he certainly deserves it, but for some past winners it seem to be a poison challis.

old town robin wrote:

London Red wrote:
On the SWP worth debate - I heard Phil Spencer had more to do with securing the deal than SWP!

I haven't heard that LR, but wouldn't be surprised that Spencer was a key player in at least one of the bids . If Patey had anything to offer it would have been with his middle east contacts for which he obviously did not get any success

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:
It's certainly true that we always seem to need somebody to blame. If we start losing games, stand by to hear that refereeing standards have mysteriously slipped, after being barely mentioned during our successful run!
.
I suppose it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion about Patey but I do think he could have been more communicative with the manager and fans. It seems quite clear that there was no open channel between PDC and the board after Wray left. Also, I find it irritating that after refusing to discuss ground redevelepment during his tenure, he wants to talk about it as he walks out through the door.

Den, Of course someone or something has to take the blame if we lose games, the ref, the managers selection, subs, tatics, the players, the pitch, whatever, it doesn't matter who or what the reason is, true fans will always analyse why we lost a game and will very rarely come up with the conclusion the opposition were better, (Preston on the day have been the one exception).

Sorry if you don't agree, but from all the games at home, there has not been a team I've seen that I consider have out played us, if we have dropped points it has been because of individual mistakes at the back and inability to convert the many chances we create up front.

Concur with you on Patey, he will hardly go down in history of the club with anything rememberable.

super reds wrote:

RedArmy74 wrote:

NewburyRobin wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

I have been looking for Jed McCrory on twitter since all this began to no avail.
Is he under a pseudonym?.

@JedMcCoy

Just tweeted 'James Brown..... I Feel Good...'

Why would McCrory tweet under McCoy??? Just asking!!

Steve. Brentford wrote:

super reds wrote:

RedArmy74 wrote:

NewburyRobin wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

I have been looking for Jed McCrory on twitter since all this began to no avail.
Is he under a pseudonym?.

@JedMcCoy

Just tweeted 'James Brown..... I Feel Good...'

Why would McCrory tweet under McCoy??? Just asking!!

Maybe he is like J Ross and cant pronounce his R`s :O)

Steve. Brentford wrote:

super reds wrote:

RedArmy74 wrote:

NewburyRobin wrote:

ChrisWantageRed wrote:
Jed has just tweeted a "thumbs up". So I'm assuming the takeover has been completed!

I have been looking for Jed McCrory on twitter since all this began to no avail.
Is he under a pseudonym?.

@JedMcCoy

Just tweeted 'James Brown..... I Feel Good...'

Why would McCrory tweet under McCoy??? Just asking!!

Maybe he is like J Ross and cant pronounce his R`s :O)

madterrier wrote:
Some wag on Radio Five Live, in discussing Mourinho's next move to England, suggested Di Canio to Stamford Bridge and Mourinho to Swindon.

Makes sense, although would PDC get on with the Russian interference?

old town robin wrote:

DarrenSTFCRomain wrote:

Davidsyrett wrote:

old town robin wrote: If the FL were to lift the embargo on us signing the loanees we need, I don't think anyone on this forum would really care a toss when the transfer of ownership takes place, simple as that!!

But who's going to pay for them?

But who's going to pay for them? Well if thats the case,what player or even players will be sold next ??

I don't think that will happen Daz unless the take over fails. The Ritchie give away was supposed to tie us over to take care of the January outgoings.

old town robin wrote:

the wizard wrote:
As they lay frozen side by side in the Lasagne, Shergar turned to Black Beauty and said, "Bloody great hiding place, but I knew they were always going to Findus.

Nice one Wiz, made me laugh and already passed it ont a few friends.

Oi Den! wrote:

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:
It's certainly true that we always seem to need somebody to blame. If we start losing games, stand by to hear that refereeing standards have mysteriously slipped, after being barely mentioned during our successful run!
.
I suppose it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion about Patey but I do think he could have been more communicative with the manager and fans. It seems quite clear that there was no open channel between PDC and the board after Wray left. Also, I find it irritating that after refusing to discuss ground redevelepment during his tenure, he wants to talk about it as he walks out through the door.

Den, Of course someone or something has to take the blame if we lose games, the ref, the managers selection, subs, tatics, the players, the pitch, whatever, it doesn't matter who or what the reason is, true fans will always analyse why we lost a game and will very rarely come up with the conclusion the opposition were better, (Preston on the day have been the one exception).

Sorry if you don't agree, but from all the games at home, there has not been a team I've seen that I consider have out played us, if we have dropped points it has been because of individual mistakes at the back and inability to convert the many chances we create up front.

Concur with you on Patey, he will hardly go down in history of the club with anything rememberable.

OTR, you seem to imply that true Town fans will never accept that we can be deservedly beaten. I hope most of us are more open-minded than that. Results generally speak for themselves. It's very rare that any team can look back on a game and say they genuinely deserved more than they got. I would concede that occasionally we may be genuinely unlucky, but if it happens to us then it happens to everyone else as well, so it all evens out in the long run.
I think we are exactly where we deserve to be now, and we'll finish where we deserve to finish.
I'm not sure I'd agree that only Preston have outplayed us this season. Coventry gave us a football lesson and had us chasing shadows for 70 minutes. In that last 20 minutes we came back from two down to get a draw. Coventry fans might say they deserved to win that one. I would disagree with them. Colchester came to the County Ground as relegation canditates and played patient football along the ground, while we hoofed it. Even Macclesfield did the same. Both were worthy winners. If I'm not mistaken, you - like me - have bemoaned the quality of our football at times this season. So I'm surprised that you think nobody has outplayed us at home.
We could have pasted Hartlepool on Saturday but I thought they deserved their point for the sensible way they approached the game and, again, for playing good football.
.
I'm not trying to put our boys down. We are a good side, which is why we sit so high in the table. But we have been poor on occasions, and where other sides have taken points off us it's generally been because on the day we haven't done in enough. There's no shame in that. You can't win 'em all.

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:
It's certainly true that we always seem to need somebody to blame. If we start losing games, stand by to hear that refereeing standards have mysteriously slipped, after being barely mentioned during our successful run!
.
I suppose it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion about Patey but I do think he could have been more communicative with the manager and fans. It seems quite clear that there was no open channel between PDC and the board after Wray left. Also, I find it irritating that after refusing to discuss ground redevelepment during his tenure, he wants to talk about it as he walks out through the door.

Den, Of course someone or something has to take the blame if we lose games, the ref, the managers selection, subs, tatics, the players, the pitch, whatever, it doesn't matter who or what the reason is, true fans will always analyse why we lost a game and will very rarely come up with the conclusion the opposition were better, (Preston on the day have been the one exception).

Sorry if you don't agree, but from all the games at home, there has not been a team I've seen that I consider have out played us, if we have dropped points it has been because of individual mistakes at the back and inability to convert the many chances we create up front.

Concur with you on Patey, he will hardly go down in history of the club with anything rememberable.

OTR, you seem to imply that true Town fans will never accept that we can be deservedly beaten. I hope most of us are more open-minded than that. Results generally speak for themselves. It's very rare that any team can look back on a game and say they genuinely deserved more than they got. I would concede that occasionally we may be genuinely unlucky, but if it happens to us then it happens to everyone else as well, so it all evens out in the long run.
I think we are exactly where we deserve to be now, and we'll finish where we deserve to finish.
I'm not sure I'd agree that only Preston have outplayed us this season. Coventry gave us a football lesson and had us chasing shadows for 70 minutes. In that last 20 minutes we came back from two down to get a draw. Coventry fans might say they deserved to win that one. I would disagree with them. Colchester came to the County Ground as relegation canditates and played patient football along the ground, while we hoofed it. Even Macclesfield did the same. Both were worthy winners. If I'm not mistaken, you - like me - have bemoaned the quality of our football at times this season. So I'm surprised that you think nobody has outplayed us at home.
We could have pasted Hartlepool on Saturday but I thought they deserved their point for the sensible way they approached the game and, again, for playing good football.
.
I'm not trying to put our boys down. We are a good side, which is why we sit so high in the table. But we have been poor on occasions, and where other sides have taken points off us it's generally been because on the day we haven't done in enough. There's no shame in that. You can't win 'em all.

Den, Nine times out of ten I don't have a problem with you having the last word, but this time I'm coming back to argue your point.
Agreed there have been a few home performances that have seen us below par, that's why we have dropped so many points at our fortress. That doesn't mean teams have out-played us off the park, if you read my post I clearly said we have dropped points because of individual mistakes at the back (e.g, Hollands own goal) and missed chances up front, (too many to even count). Granted, there are teams that have given good account of themselves, but I have not seen ANY team at the CG I would consider better than us and we should not have beaten. I really fail to understand why you seem to see things differently to almost everyone else in the ground, but hey-ho it's your opinion and you're entitled to it.

the wizard wrote:
One I forgot,

A young blonde girl in her late teens, wanting to earn some extra money for the summer, decided to hire herself out as a "handy woman" and started canvassing a nearby well-to-do neighborhood.

She went to the front door of the first house and asked the owner if he had any odd jobs for her to do.

"Well, I guess I could use somebody to paint the porch" he said. "How much will you charge me?"

Delighted, the girl quickly responded, "How about £50?"

The man agreed and told her that the paint, brushes and everything she would need were in the garage.

The man's wife, hearing the conversation, said to her husband, "Does she realize that our porch goes ALL the way around the house?"

"That's a bit cynical, isn't it?" he responded.


The wife replied, "You're right. I guess I'm starting to believe all those dumb blonde jokes."


A few hours later the blonde came to the door to collect her money..

"You're finished already??" the startled husband asked.


"Yes," the blonde replied, "and I even had paint left over so I gave it two coats."

Impressed, the man reached into his pocket for the £50 and handed it to her along with a £10 tip.


"Thank you," the blonde said, "And, by the way, it's not a Porch, it's an Audi."

the wizard wrote:
Chish, Cheers, but my better ones could not be put on here I assure you. I have merely tried to lift the mood with a bit of humour, sorry its not up to standard, but at least I've tried.

Chish and Fips wrote:

the wizard wrote:
Chish, Cheers, but my better ones could not be put on here I assure you. I have merely tried to lift the mood with a bit of humour, sorry its not up to standard, but at least I've tried.

Good on ya Wiz we all need some light hearted input after all the official cr@p we have gone through the last few weeks.

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:
It's certainly true that we always seem to need somebody to blame. If we start losing games, stand by to hear that refereeing standards have mysteriously slipped, after being barely mentioned during our successful run!
.
I suppose it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion about Patey but I do think he could have been more communicative with the manager and fans. It seems quite clear that there was no open channel between PDC and the board after Wray left. Also, I find it irritating that after refusing to discuss ground redevelepment during his tenure, he wants to talk about it as he walks out through the door.

Den, Of course someone or something has to take the blame if we lose games, the ref, the managers selection, subs, tatics, the players, the pitch, whatever, it doesn't matter who or what the reason is, true fans will always analyse why we lost a game and will very rarely come up with the conclusion the opposition were better, (Preston on the day have been the one exception).

Sorry if you don't agree, but from all the games at home, there has not been a team I've seen that I consider have out played us, if we have dropped points it has been because of individual mistakes at the back and inability to convert the many chances we create up front.

Concur with you on Patey, he will hardly go down in history of the club with anything rememberable.

OTR, you seem to imply that true Town fans will never accept that we can be deservedly beaten. I hope most of us are more open-minded than that. Results generally speak for themselves. It's very rare that any team can look back on a game and say they genuinely deserved more than they got. I would concede that occasionally we may be genuinely unlucky, but if it happens to us then it happens to everyone else as well, so it all evens out in the long run.
I think we are exactly where we deserve to be now, and we'll finish where we deserve to finish.
I'm not sure I'd agree that only Preston have outplayed us this season. Coventry gave us a football lesson and had us chasing shadows for 70 minutes. In that last 20 minutes we came back from two down to get a draw. Coventry fans might say they deserved to win that one. I would disagree with them. Colchester came to the County Ground as relegation canditates and played patient football along the ground, while we hoofed it. Even Macclesfield did the same. Both were worthy winners. If I'm not mistaken, you - like me - have bemoaned the quality of our football at times this season. So I'm surprised that you think nobody has outplayed us at home.
We could have pasted Hartlepool on Saturday but I thought they deserved their point for the sensible way they approached the game and, again, for playing good football.
.
I'm not trying to put our boys down. We are a good side, which is why we sit so high in the table. But we have been poor on occasions, and where other sides have taken points off us it's generally been because on the day we haven't done in enough. There's no shame in that. You can't win 'em all.

Den, Nine times out of ten I don't have a problem with you having the last word, but this time I'm coming back to argue your point.
Agreed there have been a few home performances that have seen us below par, that's why we have dropped so many points at our fortress. That doesn't mean teams have out-played us off the park, if you read my post I clearly said we have dropped points because of individual mistakes at the back (e.g, Hollands own goal) and missed chances up front, (too many to even count). Granted, there are teams that have given good account of themselves, but I have not seen ANY team at the CG I would consider better than us and we should not have beaten. I really fail to understand why you seem to see things differently to almost everyone else in the ground, but hey-ho it's your opinion and you're entitled to it.

Oi Den! wrote:

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:
It's certainly true that we always seem to need somebody to blame. If we start losing games, stand by to hear that refereeing standards have mysteriously slipped, after being barely mentioned during our successful run!
.
I suppose it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion about Patey but I do think he could have been more communicative with the manager and fans. It seems quite clear that there was no open channel between PDC and the board after Wray left. Also, I find it irritating that after refusing to discuss ground redevelepment during his tenure, he wants to talk about it as he walks out through the door.

Den, Of course someone or something has to take the blame if we lose games, the ref, the managers selection, subs, tatics, the players, the pitch, whatever, it doesn't matter who or what the reason is, true fans will always analyse why we lost a game and will very rarely come up with the conclusion the opposition were better, (Preston on the day have been the one exception).

Sorry if you don't agree, but from all the games at home, there has not been a team I've seen that I consider have out played us, if we have dropped points it has been because of individual mistakes at the back and inability to convert the many chances we create up front.

Concur with you on Patey, he will hardly go down in history of the club with anything rememberable.

OTR, you seem to imply that true Town fans will never accept that we can be deservedly beaten. I hope most of us are more open-minded than that. Results generally speak for themselves. It's very rare that any team can look back on a game and say they genuinely deserved more than they got. I would concede that occasionally we may be genuinely unlucky, but if it happens to us then it happens to everyone else as well, so it all evens out in the long run.
I think we are exactly where we deserve to be now, and we'll finish where we deserve to finish.
I'm not sure I'd agree that only Preston have outplayed us this season. Coventry gave us a football lesson and had us chasing shadows for 70 minutes. In that last 20 minutes we came back from two down to get a draw. Coventry fans might say they deserved to win that one. I would disagree with them. Colchester came to the County Ground as relegation canditates and played patient football along the ground, while we hoofed it. Even Macclesfield did the same. Both were worthy winners. If I'm not mistaken, you - like me - have bemoaned the quality of our football at times this season. So I'm surprised that you think nobody has outplayed us at home.
We could have pasted Hartlepool on Saturday but I thought they deserved their point for the sensible way they approached the game and, again, for playing good football.
.
I'm not trying to put our boys down. We are a good side, which is why we sit so high in the table. But we have been poor on occasions, and where other sides have taken points off us it's generally been because on the day we haven't done in enough. There's no shame in that. You can't win 'em all.

Den, Nine times out of ten I don't have a problem with you having the last word, but this time I'm coming back to argue your point.
Agreed there have been a few home performances that have seen us below par, that's why we have dropped so many points at our fortress. That doesn't mean teams have out-played us off the park, if you read my post I clearly said we have dropped points because of individual mistakes at the back (e.g, Hollands own goal) and missed chances up front, (too many to even count). Granted, there are teams that have given good account of themselves, but I have not seen ANY team at the CG I would consider better than us and we should not have beaten. I really fail to understand why you seem to see things differently to almost everyone else in the ground, but hey-ho it's your opinion and you're entitled to it.

Come on OTR, we all see things differently. I think there might be a few other people who thought Colchester, Macclesfield and Coventry were worthy of their reward on the day. I'm not sure how we can conclude that we SHOULD have beaten those teams. Of course the results don't make them better than us. On the contrary, the League tables tell us we're better than them. All I'm saying is we should take the rough with the smooth - no more and no less than that. Individual mistakes, own goals and missed chances are all part of the performance... yep, we've had 'em - and so has everyone else. We may well end up winning the title, in which case we'll have the proof that nobody's better than us. But whoever wins the title will have won some, lost some and drawn some - and no doubt felt they should have beaten teams they didn't. That's football. We're just one of the teams that make up its rich tapestry.

London Red wrote:
Bournemouth have NOT won the league yet by any means!
.
Like us (an the other 5 in contention) they have some tricky games coming up so are likely to drop points
.
If they don't - they will win the league and fair play to them - but by doing that they could also pave the way for us to finish 2nd - as they will have stopped pretty much ALL our rivals in the process
.
Now I would prefer the title but will be more than happy with 2nd!
.
Bournemouth have Preston away next - with Westley going that is not as easy as it was - as we saw when we faced teams changing their manager (Coventry, Colchester etc)
.
Then they have Sheff U and Coventry at home - not givens by any means
.
Then a Tricky trip to Orient's beach party - which we and Tranmere have seen is a tough game!
.
Then another tough home game against Doncaster!
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They then have to go to Oldham, Colchester and Shrewsbury who are all fighting for their lives so they won't be a walk in the park
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They then end the season at Tranmere - who could be in a 7 way battle for pormotion if it stays as it is!
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I can't be asked at this point to do a mini league for the top 7 but there will be at least 4 or 5 encounters for each side in the run in - so the league is still anyones INCLUDING OURS!!!!
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Sorry I must have got confused as I thought we had gone 11 unbeaten - not lost 11 in a row as the way some are talking you would think that was the case!

Wilesy wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:

old town robin wrote:

Oi Den! wrote:
It's certainly true that we always seem to need somebody to blame. If we start losing games, stand by to hear that refereeing standards have mysteriously slipped, after being barely mentioned during our successful run!
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I suppose it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion about Patey but I do think he could have been more communicative with the manager and fans. It seems quite clear that there was no open channel between PDC and the board after Wray left. Also, I find it irritating that after refusing to discuss ground redevelepment during his tenure, he wants to talk about it as he walks out through the door.

Den, Of course someone or something has to take the blame if we lose games, the ref, the managers selection, subs, tatics, the players, the pitch, whatever, it doesn't matter who or what the reason is, true fans will always analyse why we lost a game and will very rarely come up with the conclusion the opposition were better, (Preston on the day have been the one exception).

Sorry if you don't agree, but from all the games at home, there has not been a team I've seen that I consider have out played us, if we have dropped points it has been because of individual mistakes at the back and inability to convert the many chances we create up front.

Concur with you on Patey, he will hardly go down in history of the club with anything rememberable.

OTR, you seem to imply that true Town fans will never accept that we can be deservedly beaten. I hope most of us are more open-minded than that. Results generally speak for themselves. It's very rare that any team can look back on a game and say they genuinely deserved more than they got. I would concede that occasionally we may be genuinely unlucky, but if it happens to us then it happens to everyone else as well, so it all evens out in the long run.
I think we are exactly where we deserve to be now, and we'll finish where we deserve to finish.
I'm not sure I'd agree that only Preston have outplayed us this season. Coventry gave us a football lesson and had us chasing shadows for 70 minutes. In that last 20 minutes we came back from two down to get a draw. Coventry fans might say they deserved to win that one. I would disagree with them. Colchester came to the County Ground as relegation canditates and played patient football along the ground, while we hoofed it. Even Macclesfield did the same. Both were worthy winners. If I'm not mistaken, you - like me - have bemoaned the quality of our football at times this season. So I'm surprised that you think nobody has outplayed us at home.
We could have pasted Hartlepool on Saturday but I thought they deserved their point for the sensible way they approached the game and, again, for playing good football.
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I'm not trying to put our boys down. We are a good side, which is why we sit so high in the table. But we have been poor on occasions, and where other sides have taken points off us it's generally been because on the day we haven't done in enough. There's no shame in that. You can't win 'em all.

Den, Nine times out of ten I don't have a problem with you having the last word, but this time I'm coming back to argue your point.
Agreed there have been a few home performances that have seen us below par, that's why we have dropped so many points at our fortress. That doesn't mean teams have out-played us off the park, if you read my post I clearly said we have dropped points because of individual mistakes at the back (e.g, Hollands own goal) and missed chances up front, (too many to even count). Granted, there are teams that have given good account of themselves, but I have not seen ANY team at the CG I would consider better than us and we should not have beaten. I really fail to understand why you seem to see things differently to almost everyone else in the ground, but hey-ho it's your opinion and you're entitled to it.

Come on OTR, we all see things differently. I think there might be a few other people who thought Colchester, Macclesfield and Coventry were worthy of their reward on the day. I'm not sure how we can conclude that we SHOULD have beaten those teams. Of course the results don't make them better than us. On the contrary, the League tables tell us we're better than them. All I'm saying is we should take the rough with the smooth - no more and no less than that. Individual mistakes, own goals and missed chances are all part of the performance... yep, we've had 'em - and so has everyone else. We may well end up winning the title, in which case we'll have the proof that nobody's better than us. But whoever wins the title will have won some, lost some and drawn some - and no doubt felt they should have beaten teams they didn't. That's football. We're just one of the teams that make up its rich tapestry.

It's a strange old season. The way we have demolished Tranmere, Bournemouth and Yeovil at home, yet lost to Orient and Colchester and drawn with bottom of table Hartlepool just shows anyone can take points off anyone if they play well on the day. Is that stating the obvious lol? Lots of twists and turns to come....