Most exciting games of the season, who we got?

Champ, Sheff U, Sunderland, Cov, Bristol C

League 1, Stockport, Charlton, Wycombe, Orient

League 2, Walsall, Wimbledon, Notts C, Chesterfield

 

Sheff U, Orient & Chesterfield for me

BS, you could have a team who's battled the top 2 or 3 all season and narrowly missed out, but in playoff you play a team who you got like 15 or so points less  and they beat you in a one off game, all them matches just for that to happen, hardly fair, I know you can have that gap in the playoffs already, but this will further it, bit like us v Oxford, we beat them 5-0 and finished 10 points above them but they beat us on the day.

A team who haven't been good enough to challenge the top shouldn't have a crack at promotion after so many games they've failed to be up there for auto's or normal playoffs.

36 minutes ago, Didledee said:

BS, you could have a team who's battled the top 2 or 3 all season and narrowly missed out, but in playoff you play a team who you got like 15 or so points less  and they beat you in a one off game, all them matches just for that to happen, hardly fair, I know you can have that gap in the playoffs already, but this will further it, bit like us v Oxford, we beat them 5-0 and finished 10 points above them but they beat us on the day.

A team who haven't been good enough to challenge the top shouldn't have a crack at promotion after so many games they've failed to be up there for auto's or normal playoffs.

In which case a team that finishes 6th, or 5th, or 4th, shouldnt get a shot either.

If you want it to be fair, only have automatic promotion.

If you want it to be fun, and for your team to be in with a shot for a long as possible, do it this way.

National League N and S have been doing this for years. 

Football isn't designed to be fair; it's designed to make money and entertain people. 

39 minutes ago, Didledee said:

BS, you could have a team who's battled the top 2 or 3 all season and narrowly missed out, but in playoff you play a team who you got like 15 or so points less  and they beat you in a one off game, all them matches just for that to happen, hardly fair, I know you can have that gap in the playoffs already, but this will further it, bit like us v Oxford, we beat them 5-0 and finished 10 points above them but they beat us on the day.

A team who haven't been good enough to challenge the top shouldn't have a crack at promotion after so many games they've failed to be up there for auto's or normal playoffs.

That as a ring to it

Is that not what they do in the Conference?

2 hours ago, thebells said:

football isn't designed to be fair; it's designed to make money and entertain people. 

just draw lots to decide who goes up. 

2 hours ago, bwfc6ix said:

Is that not what they do in the Conference?

It is and the lower teams seem to do better as the better league finishers end up having a break. Love the play offs but I don’t think this brings anything to the party

Except cash

Not just the play off games, either

Should reduce dead rubbers even further

1 hour ago, e2e4 said:

just draw lots to decide who goes up. 

People have blindly accepted that a penalty shoot out is the ‘fairest’ way to decide the best team in some games. So your shout isn’t a million miles away. 

We only care about fair when it affects our team. So if they bring this in next season, and we finish 8th and go up, we’ll all be delighted. 

Remember when rugby league had clubcall? 😂

2 hours ago, Casino said:

Except cash

Not just the play off games, either

Should reduce dead rubbers even further

It's all unbudgeted income....but there wouldn't be much of a discernible difference in cash, because you're splitting the gate receipts between 6, not 4. Of course there are 2 more games.

Edited September 11, 2025Sep 11 by jmjhb

43 minutes ago, jmjhb said:

It's all unbudgeted income....but there wouldn't be much of a discernible difference in cash, because you're splitting the gate receipts between 6, not 4. Of course there are 2 more games.

Except sky, who’ll no doubt have a couple more games to stream. Drop in the ocean like

16 hours ago, thebells said:

In which case a team that finishes 6th, or 5th, or 4th, shouldnt get a shot either.

If you want it to be fair, only have automatic promotion.

If you want it to be fun, and for your team to be in with a shot for a long as possible, do it this way.

National League N and S have been doing this for years. 

Football isn't designed to be fair; it's designed to make money and entertain people. 

Which he intimated to. 

We've now come to accept the current set up, but by continually expending the system, it begins making a mockery of the idea.

As for dead rubbers; teams a little way off the top two, could end up taking their foot off the gas if they're well ahead of the lower teams. Resting players to ensure full fitness etc.

That may result in poor entertainment for fans as teams go through end of season motions.

It extends the season still further, and where does it end?

Not for me.

13 hours ago, jmjhb said:

It's all unbudgeted income....but there wouldn't be much of a discernible difference in cash, because you're splitting the gate receipts between 6, not 4. Of course there are 2 more games.

its also the extra games with a meaning

could bring 3 or 4 more teams into the picture

 

fwiw, i don't really mind what they do

 

maybe we could go back to 2 up 2 down

3 hours ago, Casino said:

its also the extra games with a meaning

could bring 3 or 4 more teams into the picture

 

fwiw, i don't really mind what they do

 

maybe we could go back to 2 up 2 down

bring in a simialr concept at the bottomculminating in a PL team v a Championship team (and so on) for a spot in the PL the next season

59 minutes ago, Zico said:

bring in a simialr concept at the bottomculminating in a PL team v a Championship team (and so on) for a spot in the PL the next season

Isnt that how the play-offs were originally 

1 hour ago, Krimzon said:

Isnt that how the play-offs were originally 

just looked it up and it sez " ...  and the two seasons they had it like this, only one team kept their status in their current division (charlton)" 

looking at some of the results, it were probably us that performed worst, we finished 21st in the third division , but ultimately lost to aldershot who finished 6th in division four in 1987 in the final

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1987_Football_League_play-offs

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Football_League_play-offs

the third vs forth division playoffs had a worse outcome the next year where swansea (6th four) beat torquay (5th four) because rotherham (21st three) lost to swansea in the semis

it also says they were re-sizing the divisions during this time. which may have unbalanced the expected outcomes, but you can see why they closed the shop. 

the german (and maybe the belgian and french) playoffs are like this *now* and the higher division "3rd from bottom" team nearly always wins out and keeps its place. 

 

Edited September 12, 2025Sep 12 by e2e4
extra stuff

4 hours ago, Zico said:

bring in a simialr concept at the bottomculminating in a PL team v a Championship team (and so on) for a spot in the PL the next season

Imagine the Prem clubs voting for a chance of 4 of them getting relegated! Any team in the bottom half in January would be just concentrating on survival,  declaring the season a success if they finished 15th.

Doesn't some league -  Italy maybe - have it that you have to be within a certain points margin of the team above to make playoffs? Or summat.

That does sound daft.

4 minutes ago, SatanGreavsie said:

Doesn't some league -  Italy maybe - have it that you have to be within a certain points margin of the team above to make playoffs? Or summat.

That does sound daft.

You are quite right sir. If the gap is 14 points or more they just knock the play offs on the head and let 3rd go up.

57 minutes ago, tomski said:

You are quite right sir. If the gap is 14 points or more they just knock the play offs on the head and let 3rd go up.

Adapted from the USA "Mercy" rule for amateurs , I think . 

1 hour ago, tomski said:

You are quite right sir. If the gap is 14 points or more they just knock the play offs on the head and let 3rd go up.

Tbh, that sounds fair enough

28 minutes ago, Casino said:

Tbh, that sounds fair enough

Absolutely; it resolves the problem of teams a long way back going up. I’d also do it the other way around. Any team within, say, 5 points of the highest placed team in the play offs qualifies. Play off numbers could be anything between 1 and 6 or more.

It's getting closer to the sort of nonsense they have over here. Nobody gives a shit who wins the league (the minor premiership), the real prize goes to the winner of the Grand Final tournament played out by the top 8. You can finish first and then end up losing to the eighth place team and they are then considered the best team. Absolute bollocks. I've had to try to explain how winning the league in England is the highest prize, they were under the impression it was winning of the FA Cup, baffling.

3 hours ago, perth_white said:

I've had to try to explain how winning the league in England is the highest prize, they were under the impression it was winning of the FA Cup, baffling.

You should have told them that winning the PJ Cup at the Wembley Soccerdome was the pinnacle.

4 hours ago, perth_white said:

It's getting closer to the sort of nonsense they have over here. Nobody gives a shit who wins the league (the minor premiership), the real prize goes to the winner of the Grand Final tournament played out by the top 8. You can finish first and then end up losing to the eighth place team and they are then considered the best team. Absolute bollocks. I've had to try to explain how winning the league in England is the highest prize, they were under the impression it was winning of the FA Cup, baffling.

Tbf if I had a choice of us winning the FA Cup or the Premier League then I’d always choose the FA Cup

Know what you mean though. Always enjoy going to the Super League Grand Final but still don’t necessarily agree with that being the method to decide the champions