Anyone know when it’s safe to book trains ? (So not moved for sky)

5 hours ago, desperado said:

Oh bloody hell mate, that’s a tough one to take!

The “tick” was the deciding factor for me today 83/92 (in my rules not @Marc505 😉) 

If you're a WSC reader there's a good discussion about this in the letters page

20 minutes ago, Krimzon said:

Based on the league table this season as it is . Take Lincoln out and we would have spent the last 4 months in the top 2 . We wouldnt have let that go and our performances would have improved holding on to second rather than settling for the play offs which is what we have done for the last 2 months . 

 

As for the positions we would have ended up oin due to other seasons totals , well we once got in the play offs on 69 points . 

 

What have we done at any point this season to say we 'wouldn't have let that go'? Cardiff (an underwhelming 2nd place team who won't finish on 2ppg) have been there for the taking in the last month and we gone backwards.

Trying to suggest we've switched off knowing autos is out of reach is nonsense. We've been inconsistent from the start. If anything we've been better since Lincoln started running away with the league. When it was up for grabs we were nowhere to be seen.

3 hours ago, Bertie said:

Burstow’s got lead in his boots today as well. 

That's his normal pace, I'm not having a cheap shot at him after a defeat because he has some qualities, but he's painfully slow.  Dalby is too but makes up for it to an extent with his physicality and heading but anyone suggesting we sign Burstow next season is accepting another season of mediocrity up front given that Dalby is a certainty to stay.

Just now, Tombwfc said:

 

What have we done at any point this season to say we 'wouldn't have let that go'? Cardiff (an underwhelming 2nd place team who won't finish on 2ppg) have been there for the taking in the last month and we gone backwards.

 

Similar to Derby beating us to autos other season.

Only ourselves to blame.

3 hours ago, Eddie said:

Is he though? Because he doesn’t go forward well either - he rarely beats a man and i can’t think of many assists that he’s got.

He’s definitely better as a wing back, his defending is embarrassing. The amount of times a full back stands him up and then has him turning around in circles is unreal.

Apart from the wingers (on a good day) he's literally the only player that beats a man, and he does it every game from what I see.  Did so again today.  I thought he was our best player - very low bar, but did OK, the only player other than Sheehan that had a bit of composure on the ball.

Well that was a bit shit!

Hard to disagree with the negative outcry today. And I’ll also include the criticism of Schumacher.

Definitely wrong team/formation to start (despite the omissions) and too slow to react (which TBF is unlike him)

The only positives I’ll take away from that are 

- Seeing Toby getting a run out

- Ticking off number 83 (yes @Marc505 😂)

- We are not now comparing ourselves  to Lincoln and Cardiff - it’s the other inconsistent fuck ups around us. Our best 11 can still do this. Tuesday is a little dress rehearsal. 

3 hours ago, Walkden White said:

SS is a good manager, not a great manager but one of his pluses is he has given young lads a chance. Good to see Tobias on

I'm a bit puzzled with that.  To be clear I don't have enough knowledge of the youngsters to know if they deserve a chance or not.  But other than Conway which is an absolute gimme for SS, who else has had a chance before the token sub today after the game was lost.

Missed the game. I'm guessing another defensive masterclass 🙂

2 minutes ago, deeane Koontz said:

Missed the game. I'm guessing another defensive masterclass 🙂

Virtually a complete surrender. 

3 hours ago, Lt. Aldo Raine said:

I actually think our best left winger is probably JOT

But then that means christie at RB, which gives me a nightmares

Maybe we have to take a punt on Cissoko

I agree Tutu is our best left winger, its easy to forget how good he was when he played there regularly around that Birmingham game etc, full backs used to get sent off playing against him, he took the piss.  

As much as Toal is getting a bashing on here today, he's the least bad option at RB, because Tutu is poor there and Christie shouldn't be playing pro football. 

And if Toal's at RB, it guarantees Forino plays, and adds to our threat at corners (Toal can be half decent attacking corners for his other frailties).

Bottom line is SS has ballsed up the RB position, he's had a poor season whatever happens from now.  I hope its reflected when he has his annual appraisal.

1 minute ago, Mounts Kipper said:

Virtually a complete surrender. 

Just looking at the backline. I mean, it looks like suicide. If he's not clocked Forino is our best defender by far there's not much hope for him.

3 hours ago, little whitt said:

Feel sorry for the Lads who were up at 4/5 AM

Hats off to them for bothering and genuinely hope they're enjoying their weekend away.

But they knew what they were letting themselves in for regaring the match.  The games away from are dire to watch, not having a shot that actually troubles the keeper has become the norm.  I can't remember us looking so toothless in L1 before, its painful to watch and just speaking personally I've no appetite for travelling to watch that type of football.

Just now, Johnnyrotten said:

Hats off to them for bothering and genuinely hope they're enjoying their weekend away.

But they knew what they were letting themselves in for regaring the match.  The games away from are dire to watch, not having a shot that actually troubles the keeper has become the norm.  I can't remember us looking so toothless in L1 before, its painful to watch and just speaking personally I've no appetite for travelling to watch that type of football.

I don't understand why we play it so slowly, it annoys the crap out of me and isn't how we started the season or how I expected a SS team to play.

16 minutes ago, Johnnyrotten said:

I'm a bit puzzled with that.  To be clear I don't have enough knowledge of the youngsters to know if they deserve a chance or not.  But other than Conway which is an absolute gimme for SS, who else has had a chance before the token sub today after the game was lost.

Back end of last year he played lots of them. Off the top of my head I remember Big Dave, Inwood, Lawrence, Sharples-Ahmed, Hutchinson. Seen some of them this year too along with Smith, Irwin, Ritchie? 

Think you’re off the mark calling that one out. 

3 hours ago, Tonge moor green jacket said:

Maybe some are actually happy to earn a reasonable level of corn in division three, perhaps knowing they won't actually cut it a league above. If so, they need moving on. 

I don't think they go out with anything other than a desire to do their best, get a result for the team and to impress the manager as well as any potential future employers.

But absolutely an issue in the cold light of day that for more than half this squad their only chance of playing much for Bolton next season is to stay in L1.  There will be exceptions who are determined to be in the championship next season and hope to make it happen with us, most of these players won't ever set foot above L1, but nobody can be sure which one's those are.  If Reading get in the play offs that will be 3 years running for Randell Williams and he's about as much chance of playing in the championship as I have!

2 minutes ago, Johnnyrotten said:

 If Reading get in the play offs that will be 3 years running for Randell Williams and he's about as much chance of playing in the championship as I have!

He played 2 seasons in the Championship for Hull

All footballers are uber-confident in their own ability/confidence.

There’s fuck all chance that some are out there thinking “I’d prefer Bolton to fuck-up this season because I know I’m not good enough for the league above and it’s better for me, because I’ll continue earning a decent corn from this  club in L1”.

 

As any player actually improved under SS since he as been here saying he is a coach can’t think of any off hand ? 

3 hours ago, bwfc4ife said:

To be fair it was a massive salvage job following Evatt, if we don’t make it this year I’d give him another season and fully expect autos next year as a minimum

Autos as a minimum?  Are you expecting the autos plus a couple of cups? 😀

 

They'll earn even better corn in the Championship

Where do I start with this shambles.

All this passing at the back between the keeper, Toal and Johnstone is just as bad as the ian evatt tactics. It's ingrained into them. They will never change. Where was Forino today, our best defender by a mile. Conway slow, gives his marker way too much space. Maybe he should watch a tape of how close the opposition stick to CDubarry. He always takes throws-ins backwards towards our defenders (usually Tooal) even when we are half way into the opposition half. Sometimes as a result it then goes all the way back to our own keeper from an attacking position. I'm totally baffled at this negative tactic which must have come from somewhere? I would go so far as banning him from throwing it backwards in the opponents half. What's the worst that could happen. Even with 88mins on the clock, we are still spraying the ball sideways in our own penalty area like it's a training ground exercise. What's wrong with the lot of them. Last week we hoofed it straight down field avoiding our lightweights in midfield and grabbed two scrappy goals. What the fuck is wrong with that. 

No shots on goal until min 60 in a promotion match. Instructions from the bench must be laughable. Subs should have been made at half time but SS didn't have the guts to change it up.

Terrible all-round and Tuesdays match another must win against hungrier team. Big rant over with until the next time. 

ps Dalby MOM today

 

3 hours ago, Krimzon said:

Lincoln have been the anomaly . Without that we would have been top two . 

What about Bradford, Stockport or Stevenage?

The anomaly is how few points we've got and still been 3rd till recently.  The 3rd placed team in the last 2 seasons has got 87 points.  We're on 70 points with 4 tough games left.  We would have likely finished 7th in the previous 2 seasons with our likely total of 74 or 75.  Massive under achievement however its dressed up.

1 minute ago, Johnnyrotten said:

What about Bradford, Stockport or Stevenage?

The anomaly is how few points we've got and still been 3rd till recently.  The 3rd placed team in the last 2 seasons has got 87 points.  We're on 70 points with 4 tough games left.  We would have likely finished 7th in the previous 2 seasons with our likely total of 74 or 75.  Massive under achievement however its dressed up.

It doesn't really work like that

3 hours ago, Kane57 said:

If we hadn't drawn 15 games we'd be top

If we'd drawn today or at Vale it would have been 17, we didn't trouble the keeper again.

Those draws have given us a great chance of being in the play offs with some great late comebacks.

11 minutes ago, Johnnyrotten said:

Autos as a minimum?  Are you expecting the autos plus a couple of cups? 😀

 

Has to  be lower league double title and the poxy cup otherwise don’t bother going up