Early, but am I weird to be kinda looking forward to a fresh season under Schuey, with some of his players to come in? 

Just trying to move on from this catastrophe of a season as quickly as possible for my own sanity.

We know Cardiff City & Plymouth are joining us along with one other of either Hull City, Luton Town, PNE, Derby or Stoke. Would like Hull or PNE personally, think they'd be less of a challenge than the others.

Port Vale, Doncaster joining too along with potentially Bradford and one more. Nice to see some northern clubs coming.

Glad to see the back of Brum and Wrexham. I think as it stands we will be the favourite to go up, will also have the leagues largest attendances, and probably the biggest club by some distance with big hitters less prominent. Pressure will be greater than ever, yet I'm looking forward to it.

Its been one long season, I guess the first thing everybody needs is a big long break.

 

1 minute ago, Lostock Whites said:

Agreed but wouldn't worry too much about our final position.

The likes of Pompey, Ipswich, Derby all finished outside the play offs the season before they all got automatics.

Big summer ahead...

Our position was a reflection on our performances though and everyone including Schuey could see we were a soft touch especially towards the end. But as you say, big summer ahead and we can hope again.

1 hour ago, Lostock Whites said:

Agreed but wouldn't worry too much about our final position.

The likes of Pompey, Ipswich, Derby all finished outside the play offs the season before they all got automatics.

Big summer ahead...

I wonder if all three of those clubs had nobody from the previous season good enough. If they were all failures, all crocks, all passed their best, all fannies and needed a brand new 11 to get promoted.

Or whether some of those players just needed a few more players around them who were leaders and had something different to the usual clones around them, with a manager who has some different ideas and flexibility to achieve his goals? 

Edited May 5, 20251 yr by desperado

1 hour ago, Wanderlust said:

I don’t think they need to be much better to get promoted next season as the gap to Championship standard is so big and their better players will piss it in this league unless they have to sell them off. They will be expecting an immediate return and it’s up to the likes of us to improve on this year.

That's kind of what I was getting at.

Feels similar to this season with birmingham that one place is already filled.

No guarantees though as @Whitesince63 points out.

Feels like we've only got one place to aim at though.

Be tough again. 

47 minutes ago, desperado said:

I wonder if all three of those clubs had nobody from the previous season good enough. If they were all failures, all crocks, all passed their best, all fannies and needed a brand new 11 to get promoted.

Or whether some of those players just needed a few more players around them who were leaders and had something different to the usual clones around them, with a manager who has some different ideas and flexibility to achieve his goals? 

Think that's what we're hoping for mate.

Not giving up on all of these players but some of them need an attitude adjustment. 

Sounds like SS has already started on that 👍

Cardiff and Luton will be favourites for promotion with us, Plymouth, Reading, Huddersfield and the 3 who miss out in the play offs just behind.

8 minutes ago, frank_spencer said:

Cardiff and Luton will be favourites for promotion with us, Plymouth, Reading, Huddersfield and the 3 who miss out in the play offs just behind.

We won't finish top half 

Edited May 5, 20251 yr by L/H White

1 minute ago, L/H White said:

We won't finish top half 

Not the way we finished the season we won't. But as far as the pre season odds go we'll be in the mix. But I'd say there's 10 sides with realistic aims of promotion going into the summer. Player movement will dictate how those odds look come August.

Why are the relegated clubs favourites to go back up? Only one of them with an unlimited budget managed it this season. Can see Charlton or Orient if they don't win the playoffs, not many others 

21 minutes ago, Greg_BWFC said:

Think that's what we're hoping for mate.

Not giving up on all of these players but some of them need an attitude adjustment. 

Sounds like SS has already started on that 👍

Agree with that pal. I think Collins tops the list there.

But I don’t think I’m going to be persuaded otherwise that in terms of comparative talent in L1, that the likes of Forino, Toal, Morley, Sheehan, Collins, Tutu, Dempsey, aren’t good enough. Granted injuries are an issue with a few.

More debatable are keepers,  Cogley, , Tommo, Schon, Randall, McAtee all too inconsistent to be anything but debatable, but at their best have shown glimpses.

Get a few different qualities amongst them, pace, leaders, physicality then hopefully we see the best of them.  

Toal and Dempsey need to be moved on. I like them both but they simply take up 2 spaces in the squad that can be used for someone who could be available. Sadly they are part of the problem 

10 minutes ago, tomski said:

Toal and Dempsey need to be moved on. I like them both but they simply take up 2 spaces in the squad that can be used for someone who could be available. Sadly they are part of the problem 

Good point.

Not sure, but I reckon Dempsey will have age against him too.

1 hour ago, tomski said:

Toal and Dempsey need to be moved on. I like them both but they simply take up 2 spaces in the squad that can be used for someone who could be available. Sadly they are part of the problem 

It’s a difficult one. Replacements would need to give 40 games per season AND be at, or better than, the level of Toal and Dempsey.

Cogley and Thomason are two players than will give you 40 games per season. In my opinion, though …

Toal > Cogley, and

Dempsey > Thomason.

We need a combination of the ability and fitness levels.

Obviously we need to shift cogley and Thomason nobody needs decent reliable players. What we need is injury prone folk like Dempsey and Toal.

toal was average at best when he’s played but obviously because he’s been out so long he’s become immense

Toal is plenty good enough if he can get fixed

Dempsey, im sure can be improved on and not just cos hes always fucked

I expect them both to feature first game next season

 

You having trouble with comprehension, E? I never said we needed to shift Cogley and Thomason. I just said we need better than them, to replace Toal and Dempsey, if that’s the decision.

But Dempsey isn’t better than Thomason so yes I don’t get it 

Cogley and Thomason are the least of our worries. They'd be the last to go.

We need a better than Toal, injuries aside, he gets rinsed against any form of physicality.

I didn't think Dempsey was good enough last summer and I still don't now.

We really do need to shift this culture of what if at the club.

 

2 hours ago, tomski said:

Toal and Dempsey need to be moved on. I like them both but they simply take up 2 spaces in the squad that can be used for someone who could be available. Sadly they are part of the problem 

Would definitely want to shift Dempsey on

Toal can have one more season for me

3 hours ago, Greg_BWFC said:

That's kind of what I was getting at.

Feels similar to this season with birmingham that one place is already filled.

No guarantees though as @Whitesince63 points out.

Feels like we've only got one place to aim at though.

Be tough again. 

From where we are now (8th but looking down rather than up - if the season had another 10 games left god knows where we'd end up) - I don't think we're realistically looking at top 2, given how many of the current squad will still be here in September. 

I'm fairly certain the 3 relegated clubs will finish in the top 6 plus one of Stockport and Charlton whoever doesn't go up, we need to be the best of the rest ((Huddersfield, Wycombe, Orient, Reading, Blackpool, Lincoln, Rotherham - that's going to be a big enough job). 

I'm not saying we can't finish above some of those top 6, but I'd take just being competitive, with a play off finish with a team we think can approach them with confidence, unlike if we'd scraped into them this year.  Bearing in mind the team that starts on 1st August may look very different to the team that may eventually enter the play offs with two transfer windows to help hopefully (rather than hinder like the previous 2).

It’s all about opinions, but mine is that a team of Cogley’s and Thomason’s will be reliable, honest and lead us to a solid midtable podition.

If we want to go up, which we all do, any replacements for Toal and Dempsey need to be better than the level of Cogley and Thomason.

If these two are first choice at right back and in midfield, next season, we aren’t going up again.

1 minute ago, Rival Son said:

It’s all about opinions, but mine is that a team of Cogley’s and Thomason’s will be reliable, honest and lead us to a solid midtable podition.

If we want to go up, which we all do, any replacements for Toal and Dempsey need to be better than the level of Cogley and Thomason.

If these two are first choice at right back and in midfield, next season, we aren’t going up again.

Tomo is more than good enough to be in our 1st choice midfield if those around him free him up to do what he does best and be able to be all over the pitch. His best performances have come when he's be closing down the opposition and not giving anyone a moment on the ball. That has lead him to be exposed in the past. Against Stevenage after another shocking pass from Jones he closed them down win the ball and it lead to a shot on goal.

3 hours ago, noxid said:

Why are the relegated clubs favourites to go back up? Only one of them with an unlimited budget managed it this season. Can see Charlton or Orient if they don't win the playoffs, not many others 

Stockport

4 hours ago, frank_spencer said:

Cardiff and Luton will be favourites for promotion with us, Plymouth, Reading, Huddersfield and the 3 who miss out in the play offs just behind.

Cardiff are currently a basket case

They'd have to have a very good summer

18 minutes ago, frank_spencer said:

Tomo is more than good enough to be in our 1st choice midfield if those around him free him up to do what he does best and be able to be all over the pitch.

Schumacher seems to prefer 4-2-3-1. If that is the formation next season, then Thomason would be one of two. This concerns me. Backup: yes. First choice, then I don’t think the squad is good enough.

The funny thing is that Dempsey couldn’t get a sniff second half of last year. Bench fodder. Now our best attacking mid. We need pace on either wing with a big man with pace who can win a header and hold it up. Another solid centre half, a decent left back and another good quality centre mid and we wouldn’t be far away.