Tombwfc

I think across the season we've been too quick to be happy enough taking draws at places. However, with the situation as I'd probably take a point and keep the gap to Plymouth as it is. We are going to have to beat someone though.

Those stats don't happen in isolation though. Teams generally score first against us, they then sit back and we have a load of shots trying to get back into it. We've conceded in 72% of our games this season, which is the same as Port Vale. We concede first in 43% of all our matches. If you chuck in last season, we've conceded first in over 50% of our league games under SS. Given how shit teams in the third tier are - and how many would take 0-0 against us - that's nowhere near automatic promotion standard. Our strikers aren't prolific by any means, but they're having to score two goals every game to win which is unsustainable. Especially when it's always coming from behind against teams who have something to hold on to. The defensive stats look good in terms of goals conceded. But generally when teams want to score against us they do. Orient and Blackpool at home recently scored almost the instant they put an attack together, and that's the kind of thing which has been happening all season.

Before yesterday they'd taken 13 points at home. Next fewest is Northampton's 22. Last 10 league games, including yesterday's win, they're 20th. So much like us, if this is their purple patch it still isn't very good. The cup results are genuinely miraculous. Maybe they excel against teams who make a load of random changes and turn up looking like strangers.

Before Wigan away we were 9 points behind Lincoln and 13 behind Cardiff. We've been lauded for 13 game unbeaten run which has now ended with us 11 behind Cardiff and 18 behind Lincoln. I would like to be hunted by us.

Yeah, I don't follow the logic that we've improved drastically from last season. Especially when most of that is based on the collapse at the end that SS was in charge for. As has been stated many times this season, this is a particularly poor set of L1 teams. 2nd are currently going at less than 2ppg. In the last two seasons 6th finished with 78 and 76 points. You might come third with that this year. For a team with clear, endlessly stated ambitions of getting automatic promotion, being a distant third in this division isn't progress or an achievement of any kind. A month ago Lincoln were a flash in the pan destined to fall away, now they're being painted as a juggernaut we could never compete with. They aren't anything special, but they have just beaten the dross over and over again. As has come up before on here, we're not a patch on the side that finished 3rd two years ago. But the fortunate thing is we don't need to be to win the playoffs this time.

Port Vale have the worst home record in the league by miles - yesterday was their first win since New Year's Day and their third all season. It's not a difficult place to go.

The route to them closing us down is pretty simple - half have got games in hand and they all play us. I think we'll be ok, but relying on everyone else below us to stay shite is a dangerous way to live. Looking at the fixtures, if we lose to Plymouth there will suddenly be a lot of pressure on that Stockport game. And I can't see us not losing to Plymouth.

A lesson never to judge a signing until he's played for us (and this goes both ways). In January you'd have thought we'd signed Franck Ribery. I'm not sure he's an upgrade on Schon.

Lose to Plymouth and at least we won't have to worry about having dead rubbers at the end of the season. That's also how a 13 game unbeaten run suddenly becomes two wins in seven.

Whoever we play there will be no more than one goal in it, we'll concede first, score late and we draw loads so extra-time will probably be involved at some point. I have a feeling that this season is destined to end with something that will be remembered forever. But we'll probably have to go through hell to get there.

Any stat that suggests that, in any universe, we could be 15 points clear in first place and on course for 100+ points can obviously be discounted as lunacy. We're the biggest argument against anyone ever taking xG seriously as a thing.

Are we talking about the players here? I don't think they get to have that as an excuse. That's how we've played for the vast majority of the season. The only difference was that we didn't find a 90th minute winner against Doncaster or Rotherham this time.

Can't believe people were still looking at Cardiff's results tbh. We've played two relegation threatened teams, they've lost a game and yet the gap is bigger than it was a week ago. It was over when we didn't beat Lincoln.

This was closer to our average level of performance than say, Exeter away. As a rule we're quite uninspiring (from 0-90mins anyway)..

We haven't played anything like well enough at any point this season to take anything for granted. To take our foot off the gas now would imply it's ever really been on it. Tons to play for and just about every player still has a lot to prove. SS needs to find a consistent way of playing and getting results that doesn't rely on 90th minute turnarounds. Playing well at home and winning comfortably would be a decent start.

It was funny watching that Big Sam doc that I don't recall any thought of a pitch invasion when we stayed up against Boro. Now we've had three in recent memory celebrating far lesser achievements. I do think it's a harmless bit of a fun though. And really had there been no pitch invasion we'd still have got bounced by Oxford, so at least people got some enjoyment out of that playoff run.

They were not significant at all, but I couldn't tell you what happened in a single game between drawing 2-2 with Blackpool under Dougie Freedman and getting relegated with Lennon. Other than a sense of disappointment I can't remember anything of the Watford game at Wembley.

One. P9 W2 D6 L1 GD 0 Plus a defeat to Wycombe themselves. So it'll be close. Which is what I said. And one of our better wins of the season if we get it.

We've beaten two teams above Wycombe all season (both with last minute winners). So I expect it'll be close because all of our games are, barring last week.

There's nothing at all between us, Stockport and Bradford. And it looks a big drop off from teams 6-10 (having said that, we're P6 W1 D4 L1 against those teams). Reading would be my pick based on what we've seen. It's going to be a weird end to the season, as the last four/five games might literally have nothing on them.

Also there were 24.5k on vs Barnsley in the second leg a couple of years ago at £20 a ticket. Absolutely zero chance the club are going to give up hundreds of thousands of pounds by doing cheap tickets. And nor should they really.

They haven't been confirmed but they're broadly the same every year. First leg Friday-Sun and the second midweek. 10 days off before the final. All at dogshit times for TV. So get ready for a Friday night or Saturday morning in Stevenage.

Not forgotten but I was surprised after the Sky Sports doc to learn that Henrik Pedersen (just) outlasted Big Sam here. Had a weird career going from ineffectual striker to passable left back. And despite playing nigh on 150+ Premier League games he never got a look in for Denmark. Another name - The Juke played on the most forgettable Bolton team of my lifetime, but is probably the best striker we've had in the last 15 years.

Probably whoever plays in midfield for Lincoln & Cardiff.

We've scored 14 fewer than Lincoln, 19 fewer than Cardiff. Scored more than one goal in an away game once all season. If you have a team full of 'well you can't just judge them on goals' types, you end up not scoring enough goals.