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A poor Christmas, the Peterborough debacle and an overreaction after Port Vale didn’t warrant SS getting the boot. Getting 7/9 iffy points and beating Wigan doesn’t mean we’re going up. Read a lot, but not been posting on here for a while, personal things mainly, but after Northampton I felt my thoughts would have just ended up being inflammatory, as I disagreed with the large majority and I thought some of the drama queens and Uefa A coaches were well wide of the mark. Then there was Peterborough. What a shit-show that was. I didn’t know whether I was starting to turn… I started to agree with some of the negative analysis and comments. The defence that day was a shambles, keeper worries, same issues not scoring enough, I hated that dragging off of Sheehan and Gale… But still some overboard shit about Sharon/FV, SS and the players. That said it was nothing compared to some of the drivel and click-bait extremities I was reading on Twatter/Facemither It seemed the whole fanbase became embossed in a cloud of negativity where amateurs were being listened to as if they were philosophers or esteemed scholars of the game SS out posts and polls Tailspins about what a mess the club is in. It felt like everybody was trying to outdo each other on what the tactical solution should be. The transfer thread is/was a case of realism and sense going out of the window. The screechers reaction v Port Vale was fucking hilarious! 😂 People crying out for change, he makes it in a game we don’t care about and gets a farcical and disproportionate amount of grief. Maybe they’d have preferred him gambling and experimenting at Wigan, rather than testing it and utilising it effectively it for that game. And then those first half comments in the Wigan thread fuck me. What a bunch of surrenderers you negative in-game posters are. Then the Wigan euphoria - that’s why we do it. Left my son’s hospital bed, so that release was quite emotional. Fucking loved it 👏 Don’t get me wrong I was as frustrated as anyone and really pissed off with that run of games over Christmas/New Year, even more so Peterborough. After Christmas I still felt we weren’t far away. Relative to the rest of the division, our defence wasn’t an issue then and isn’t now, despite every defender receiving criticism. I couldn’t believe some of the grief not only our standard players were getting, but also our best players this season and of course the manager (almost everybody who was posting thought they knew better than him)* Some of the criticism and discussion was fair. But crikey, some of the suggestions for what he should have done, (definitely, definitively, steadfastly, without doubt should have done) the different tactics/formation he should be adopting, who should be playing and where players should be playing, was a case of expert fan overload. One of the best things posted was that SS was told he had to play attractive (not winning) football in his interview! He’s Just like Evatt eh, not willing to adapt and change approach/formation 😉 Some posters totally absorbed in their own pontificating- something they excel in when things are going bad - they love it on here when things are going badly. Not so prominent on here when the manager and players are doing ok. Long way to go though. today was a tough watch, we need to do more to sustain a promotion charge. There will be more bumps in the road, it’s far from perfect. I just hope a bit of a balanced perspective will be applied the next time we play poorly and draw/lose a game or two. Anyway I’m back to fight the good fight and keep them doom-mongers and UEFA A coaches on their toes 😂 COYFWM 👏👏

Saw McAtee starting, thought fine, give him the benefit of the doubt and all that. Two minutes in, ball played up to him, he just runs looking at the defender and the ball hits him on the back of the head. Aye he’s still fucking useless.

Sat in’t posh seats today and you get to see close up how much shit the 4th assistant and ref gets. How the fuck do so many mangers and assistants get away with it? Wellens should have been sent off before half time as should his assistant. You see it every game on TV week in week out. The FA push all this respect bollocks but hardly ever act on it. Anyway shit game but massive 3 points.

Criticism is obviously allowed- but some of the comments on here are frankly pathetic. You can pinpoint at meltdown most weeks; last two Saturdays have yielded 6 points… the amount of FFS and fuck offs are yet to be tallied. Today we’ve had a ‘get out of my club you scouse cunt’, yet we’ve moved up to 3rd. I have my reasons for not attending as much as I used to this season, but the vitriol I’ve heard directed at our own club the past few years is disgusting. It’s not happy clappy to support the team; we can all see faults, just choose not to scream abuse. Empty vessels and that innit

Didn’t like the idea of changing formation and it proved to be a poor decision. I don’t get the idea that it’s a more defensive set up - I know you have a 3rd centre back, but you get 2 up front. We haven’t got the players to play through the lines to a centre forward who is making runs off the shoulder. We’ve got a big man who’s showing more and more that he’s an effective target man, and so playing off him with a 2nd striker and runners from midfield is far more effective. Add to that that most of our players are more suited in a 352. Tutu and Conway are better wing backs than full backs (I actually don’t think either are even half decent at full back so it’s not hard) Toal and GJ are shaky as fuck in a two - put Forino in the middle of them and it properly looks solid. McAtee isn’t a 10, nor is Burstow. They’re better in a front 2 Dalby is getting better and better, he’s causing problems and winning flick ons - funnily enough he looks better with a strike partner alongside him. The centre mids look more balanced, Erhahon went from having a poor game to having a really good last 25 mins - might be coincidence but the formation change helped. Dempsey and Morley are better in the 8 role. The players that lose out are ACD and Gale. One looks like he could now be out for a while and the other was really poor today (seems mad when he scored a good goal). They are great options to have but it’s got to be 352 home and away from now on - if we start with the same formation on Tuesday I genuinely wonder what SS has been watching over the past few games. Other than that. Great 3 points, results went for us, we’re 3rd, Burstow scored (I was dying for Morley to have it), Dalby is effective when utilised properly, Wellens is a cock, it was fucking freezing and our ball boys are useless. Bring on Tuesday

When we were up against Derby, I was sure we were the better footballing side, and I recall their fans arguing with players about how shit they were around this time of the season I'm not one for papering over cracks, I'm not convinced we have it in us to do what it takes But after 5 years of seeing what can get promotion in this league, I know for sure it's not about playing good football every week

Could have summed it up any better. No idea really what happened. We didn't deserve to win. A draw would've been shit. We didn't deserve to lose either. Just a really really bad game of football between two league 1 football teams. Found a way to win though. Same thing Wrexham did all last season and Derby the season before.

Is he shagging your wife or summat ?

Those who doubt his value only needed to have watched that today. There are bits of his game that are why he's at our level but more bits where he's arguably the best in the Division. Stevenage knew that on Tuesday and kicked him out of it

Been saying it all season mate. We micro analyse our games because it's our team and what we do. The whole league is fucking shite. Watch any other game they are all the same, littered with poor decision making. Keep them points coming by hook or by crook.

It’s a child in a dinner jacket.

This is one of those rare occasions where politics just shouldn’t matter at all. Every single Brit should be disgusted by Trump’s comments and condemn him for what he has said. No ifs and no buts.

We really missed Sheehan today.

Had a few beers, went to bed at 9pm and set alarm for just before 1am Slept through Woke up and got game on in 90th minute Went for a piss and missed second goal 3.40am and now wide awake

No it’s not. We’ve got some long standing posters like @Casino @tomski and others who aren’t posting at all or much because of doom-mongers who can’t offer balanced perspective. There’s nothing self-proclaimed about it at all. A few other balanced posters like @gonzo, who I’ve been in touch with, who have been sensible and open-minded about our position, batting off the extreme views. Those loving to dwell in negativity have been in abundance this month. I think you quite like talking us down, you rarely have much positive to say.

There's a real 'what have the Romans ever done for us' about the growing idea that we'd be better off without Duberry (and to a lesser extent, Gale). 10 goals and 10 assists between them, with Gale missing a big chunk through injury. Without them we're one paced and carry literally zero goal threat (outside of corners hitting defenders on the hand).

Did it fuck, we looked lost without him or Sheehan for most of today. scabbed a pen at 90mins. For the rest of the match we were shit all across the park whatever the formation. A win is a win and being in 3rd is nice but the performance was awful

Especially when you have fuck-faces like the guy behind me, who said fuck off Burstow, give it to Dempsey, if you miss this you can fuck off back to Hull… … he scores You can stay for another 6 months as long as you back this up. I honestly don’t know how I kept silent.

Best thing about today was the way Burstow took the ball for the penalty. Ninety odd minutes gone, crowd not too happy anyway and he took the responsibility. Hope it’s just the kick he needs.

Putting the poor performance to one side. We won. We scored two goals. We’re third. We’re closer to promotion than we were at 3pm. Enjoy your night

We just have to stick with it. I wish we were closer to second place but there are still more than three months of this season go. Transfer dealings over the next few days are critical - and not just here. Could tip the balance one way or the other. It looked like the wheels were coming off. That has not happened and we battle onward. Hopefully by 2 Feb we have some fresh blood in the squad and we can pick up some real momentum as winter moves in to spring. We have an uphill task to reach second but promotion is still up for grabs by whatever route.

He had no reason to change it in the first fucking place.

It's always been this way at BWFC. Moaning bastards everywhere. Even in some of the incredible ('Amazing') seasons under Jimmy Armfield, Ian Greaves etc., there was a fucking army of them at Burnden - particularly in the Manny Road each side of the tunnel. The difference then was their collective fucking whining could only be experienced 'live' on match days. Wakey touched on social media. As we all know it gives every knob spanker a soapbox. Better to ignore the negheads. It's not difficult. Would you have taken todays position if some time travelling tweet had shown you todays league table on the morning of the first match of the season? I know I would. We are in a great position to kick on now and get out of this division at last. If the excellent support we get at our games could get 100% behind 'em, we'd be up this season for sure and certain.

This has been one of my biggest issues about the way we play for a while. Almost all trow ins go backwards and end up with the goalie, and we end up punting it long anyway and lose the ball. McAtee was free almost the full first half for a throw to him between their defence and midfield and we wouldn't throw it to him, or throw it longer into the box. It got to 55 mins and the fans kicking off about it before SS told Conway to just throw it forward and all of a sudden we looked more on the front toot. Basic stuff you teach 7 year olds.

On another note, I thought the best player on the pitch was their left winger, Archibald. I remember him from a couple of years ago as he had a great 2nd half that day with his assist and goal (a few mentioned him here on the match thread). Today he scored, and deserved an assist with his crossing. Left footed from the left wing, that'll never catch on. His goal today was bizarrely similar to the one 2 years ago, at the same end.

That’s not what you were saying though. You said it was because ACD had gone off and Tutu was stretching the game because he’s right footed on that side. As for Gale going on the outside - I think everybody agrees that the wingers would be better doing it more often to add that variety, but to suggest it’s the first time in the whole season that Gale has gone on the outside of a full back either means that today is the first game you’ve watched this season, or you’re massively over exaggerating to make your point - I’d imagine it’s the latter. I generally agree with your point that the 451 wasn’t working, I just think you’re trying too hard in trying to prove why and how you know so much better.

Yes, agree entirely. Lots of teams in the 92 will have won a scruffy game by the odd goal today, and it doesn't make them a good team. And yes the late goals are very welcome. Last 7 wins v 11 men, include one 4-0 and the other 6 all by the odd goal where we've scored the winner in the last 10 minutes or so. That's a great habit to get into that we haven't always had.

Bad news Duberry might have ACL. But think we might get more wins with the big lumps who finished the game today rather than light weight wingers, give the wingers a rest and bring them back fresh when the weather improves also I’d like us to call time on playing a number 10 pack the midfield with ball winners and let’s bludgeon our way out of this league.

Yet another terrible ref. How we ended up with 3 bookings against their one, beggars belief.

Fucking happy clapper PS - hope your lad is ok mate.

There was only one person taking that pen. Love that in a striker. The less said about that performance the better. 3 points and onto fucking Burton. So many poor performances throughout the team today, but Dalby doesn’t half work hard for the team. Won loads of headers/flick ons, but pointless when McAtee is 30m away pointing at people and complaining when he’s just passed the ball behind them and out for a throw. Fucking shithouse, that was his last chance today, fuck him back off to Barnsley.

Different circumstances aye GT is doing well in a position we never played him in Seems PP has got the best out of him and knows what he's doing

Think SS made a big mistake changing the shape today, but scrapped a win, on to the next.

Looked better when ACD come off and Tutu was on the wing, and looked even better playing 3421 with 2 no 10's.

He must have been told " look we play dodgy suicidal football, can you quickly appear to learn this?"

Bore off.

He got left for dead! Loads on here clambering for him! Hes fuckin shite!

We look rubbish, we dont look like we'd score if this match was 900 mins long. This cutting inside stuff, im convinced this is the route of many of our issues.

The fact that we can go third with a win despite such a topsy-turvy season highlights just how biz this league is. Absolutely honking.

Injured in the last match. Yet people will ask why we let him go.

We've been good at home in the main, so surely it would be more concerning if he just threw that formation out because it doesn't work as well away?? Don't see why we can't set up differently home and away tbh, seems logical to me. If I was Forino I would be pissed off mind, not that gone to a flat back four, just that I couldn't budge Johnston.

I don't get why we're going back to a back 4. I'll reserve judgement till I've seen it but I don't like it. As previously pointed out, two clean sheets going to a back 3 before this. 4231 with no Sheehan puts a lot of pressure on the wingers.

Gobsmacked two clean sheets away and he has gone back to two wingers and Mcatee at ten Yes i get their defence could be fragile but Johnston, Toal walking out of defence does not fill me confidence

I do remember Wayne Entwistle and Ian Moore….. Toothless both of them.

Aye these are the days where it's pretty difficult to drag yourself up there. Hopefully all be worth it when McAtee bangs his hatty in.

If the opposition have a corner and just as it’s crossed into the box and I shout OUT the opposition as never ever scored . unfortunately I can only limit myself to one per game but I must of saved us 100s of goals over the years by doing this

Bang average is better than Cissoko is. 🤣

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He's doing a grand job in my opinion, given the circumstances. I don't agree with everything of course, and the comm's have been poor (they should be screaming from the rooftops about the things they're doing to better the lives of the average person), but the alternative is FAR FAR worse. You'll see in 3 years when we relapse to chaos and bullshit, rather than boring, plodding, sensible efficiency.