nPower Football League Thread 2010/2011

[Lineker]

Result of the day though - bottom of the table Scunthorpe smashed QPR 4-1!!

[GA!]

Result of the day though - bottom of the table Scunthorpe smashed QPR 4-1!!

Fantastic result. I really hope QPR gain 10 points or more over everyone else ultimately though in case they're docked them. It would be a travesty if, after leading the entire season, it's taken away from them.

[Timmoru Suzuki]

I watched my team be effectively relegated today, as Sheffield United lost 2-1 to Middlesborough with an 89th minute goal. What makes it worse is that we should have been 3/4 goals up at half time. They scored just about the only time they went into our half in the first half after a lot of early pressure from us, after a bit of a defensive mix-up (one of the stories of our season), but we fought back, should have equalised right away; didn't, wasted another good chance and finally equalised. We had another couple of chances before the break.

The longer the second half went on, the more our confidence dropped (another trait of our season) and Middlesbrough's grew some. Still, at 1-1 with 10 minutes to go Darius Henderson, who had missed two good chances in the first half missed an absolute, my grandmother who's been dead for 14 years would have scored SITTER which would have probably won us the game; and then they scored late on to nick it.

A lack of confidence and a lack of goals have been major issues, as well as defensive frailties and relying far too much on loan players. Next year a lot of players are going to be moved on, most for the better and we need to rebuild in League One (and beat the Wendy - nice local league with them and Chesterfield who ARE going up from League Two).

On a plus note, our U-18 team just made the FA Youth Cup Final (to play Man Utd or Chelsea), so we're obviously doing something right. Hopefully some of those lads, as well as some younger players (aged 19/20) in the reserves will come through for us in League One and help the re-building process. In these last few games in the Championship it might be worth giving a couple of the older ones a run-out; see who adapts, see who swims.

Anyway, the short of it is: I was fucking depressed about 5PM today.

[hugobomb]

League One surely, unless relegation gotten slightly more harse since Brum got promoted.

They should do that in the Premiership: 18th goes down to the Championship, 19th to League One and 20th to League Two. Would have been a fitting punishment for Derby's Prem season

[Timmoru Suzuki]

League One surely, unless relegation gotten slightly more harse since Brum got promoted.

They should do that in the Premiership: 18th goes down to the Championship, 19th to League One and 20th to League Two. Would have been a fitting punishment for Derby's Prem season

Indeed >_>

[Adam]

Referees are bloody stupid. Not that that's the sole reason, or even the main reason why we are where we are. But that was never a free kick that Koumas dispatched, it's getting nervy now. We MUST beat Preston on Tuesday, I think we'll be alright if we manage that but being that we've only won 1 of our last 13 and they're in decent form for a change, I'm not too happy. I'm just glad Scunny are coming from so far back, and Sheffield United are too awful to get too many more points. If we stay up this season, the whole squad needs overhauling in the summer.

And meh @ Crawley, they've somewhat bought the title there haven't they?

[Starvinho]

Brighton got promoted to the Championship tonight after beating Dag & Red 4-3.

[Lineker]

This whole Martin Allen/Barnet/Notts County thing is threatening to take on a life of its own:

Barnet have reported Notts County to the Football League and Football Association following boss Martin Allen's defection to Meadow Lane.

Allen left Underhill after only 19 days in charge to take over at the League One strugglers on a one-year deal.

Barnet, who are battling to stay in League Two, are seeking compensation from the Magpies for Allen's services.

The Bees claim Notts County only made contact once Allen told Barnet chairman Tony Kleanthous he was leaving.

In a club statement, Barnet insist that Allen joined the club on 23 March for the remaining eight games of the season after agreeing the deal with Kleanthous and director of football Paul Fairclough.

The statement said suggestions that Allen, who was in his second spell in charge of the Bees, did not have a contract were "palpably nonsensical".

Kleanthous said: "We agreed a deal with him until the end of the season and we helped and supported him throughout.

"I told him that we were prepared to offer a new long-term deal that would certainly have provided him with a comfortable six-figure living but he made it clear that he wanted a chance to manage a team in League One next season.

"He said he wanted to take this opportunity despite the perfect happy working environment which we provided for him at Barnet FC."

My take on it is that Barnet are just trying to clutch at any straw they think they can - they should instead look ahead and focus on trying to stay up. Personally I can't blame Allen for going having listening to him last week on talkSport.

[Adam]

I don't like what Allen did there. Maybe it's the nature of the game nowadays, and there is no loyalty...but leaving a relegation-threatened club in the lurch after less than three weeks? It's not exactly the greatest thing to do to a club.

Not that I need another reason to despise Notts County and everything about them, mind.

[Starvinho]

QPR up 1-0 early on against Hull, they win and they're up to the big time!

[Matt]

QPR up 1-0 early on against Hull, they win and they're up to the big time!

They're as good as up anyway, they've got to play us on the last day and we're currently 1-0 down to Palace I'm surprised they've gone up though, mark Taarabt out of the game and they're distinctly average, after we played them at Elland Road, we all thought they'd collapse and struggle to make the playoffs. Turns out that's exactly what we've gone and done.

[Starvinho]

Leeds need pull their socks up, I was looking forward to a good old United vs United next season if you got promoted.

[Jimmy]

Lost 5-1 to Norwich and we're 3-1 down to Swansea within 30 minutes. I don't know what's happened to Ipswich lately. The good form we were on has seemingly vanished.

[Matt]

Leeds need pull their socks up, I was looking forward to a good old United vs United next season if you got promoted.

Even if we turn this around, beat Burnley and beat QPR and hope Forest slip up somewhere, we're not going up via the playoffs. Our record is abysmal as it is and we've generally had shit opposition rather than three out of Cardiff, Swansea, Norwich and Reading.

Getting promoted probably wouldn't be a good thing, we'd be thoroughly embarrassed - we'd need to spend £12-15m to even have a chance of survival, we'd need a new left back, 2 centre backs, probably a right back, at least one central midfielder and a backup target man that's significantly better than Billy Paynter.

Forest 2 up now. Millwall are up, Burnley are level and if things stay the same, those 2 will be above us as well leaving us in 9th, probably a more accurate reflection of our squad and performances. As much as I dislike Norwich's annoying ability to consistently score late winners and earn penalties from nothing, I hope they go up ahead of the Welsh sides and that one of Reading and Forest go up via the playoffs.

1-0 Palace at half time, time to make some changes Larry - apparently the subs are warming up with the exception of Somma, McCormack and Kilkenny; surely Grayson who never makes unforced changes before the last quarter of an hour isn't going to make a triple change at half time

[DFF]

I don't think my nerves can take this. 2-0 down after 20 minutes to 3-2 up now. I never thought I'd be praying for Barnsley and Leeds to get some goals but, yeah. *shifty*

[Matt]

I don't think my nerves can take this. 2-0 down after 20 minutes to 3-2 up now. I never thought I'd be praying for Barnsley and Leeds to get some goals but, yeah. *shifty*

Yeah.... not looking too likely at the minute. We're having a lot of the ball but we're doing the sum total of fuck all with it, occasionally we kick it out of play or let them tackle us but that's about it.

[MJB]

Norwich vs Derby is quite entertaining at the minute. Norwich have dominated every single minute of the game but yet Derby have scored with both of their shots at goal.

[Timmoru Suzuki]

So many questions: Why wait until we were basically down before we started winning? When did Darius Henderson decide that some goals might begin to justify the stupid money he's on (for our level)? Why do Palace and Donny have to go and be winning as well?

Damn, damn and blast the cruelty of false hope.

[Matt]

So many questions: Why wait until we were basically down before we started winning? When did Darius Henderson decide that some goals might begin to justify the stupid money he's on (for our level)? Why do Palace and Donny have to go and be winning as well?

Damn, damn and blast the cruelty of false hope.

Sorry Sheff, we've apparently forgotten how to score - coupled with the fact we could never defend and there wasn't too much hope here.

[Starvinho]

Lol OPR thought they where up...