I realise some of you may have zero interest in this which is fair enough but from time to time I like to have a snoop on OppositionWays out of curiosity. Thought it was worth compiling some together which I'll do in this thread whenever I get chance. 

Seems like Lincoln have some pretty level headed fans but then one or two absolutely bitter fuckers. 

Pick of the bunch includes:

THE BITTER

Quote

How about 10 points deducted for every £million of debt a club has?
Wonder just how low these perennial cheats would drop?

Quote

Red Wimp said:

Bolton stayed in Lincoln last night. Not leaving much to chance.

No that was so they could rack up extra debt.

Quote

Surely we can't lose to these cheats?
Why are they not on multiple minus points?

Quote

I'd rather be us than them. How long do they have to pay their debt?

Quote

The simple truth is, as much as the away fans won't want to admit it, we lost to one of those vile clubs tonight. One of those that has spent beyond their means, and clearly continues to do so.

 

THE PRAISE

Quote

Good game. Shit result.
By the standards of last season Bolton should be pushing for promotion. But then that was last season.

Quote

Beaten by the better team. Good to see a big away following.

Quote

FT. Good game. Credit to Bolton - they did enough to control the game throughout, although we had some bright moments, especially in the first half. They also scored at exactly the right time and managed the game out. 

Quote

Bolton also look like a really good side who should be in the top half of the table.

Quote

I have backed Bolton to win the league as I think they are a decent team. They looked like a very settled team that are used to winning.

Taken from https://forums.vitalfootball.co.uk/threads/match-thread-lincoln-city-v-bolton-wanderers.117675/page-25 

Ace work @matty2094, especially with how much you've got going on.

Great stuff.

7 hours ago, TM Trotter said:

Yes, Rico is prone to a howler, but in the third tier, how many CBs can outsprint most attackers, get their head on everything, AND spray 60-yard cross-field passes for fun? 

Apart from when it’s an attacking set piece. Imagine if he could chip in with even half of the goals either Beevers or Wheater did in the 16/17 league 1 promotion season. They scored 16 league goals between them.

I rate Rico a lot (and I appreciate he’s there to defend, not score) but he should be doing better as a goal threat. No goals in 88 games for us.

Cheers @matty2094

As mentioned above they seem extremely fair and level headed.

Nice one Matty once again for compiling. 
Love reading this thread following a win.

Interesting to read about Santos. My thought on that is that the difference between footballers capable of Premier League or Championship football and the better League 1 players often boils down to the frequency of mistakes/lapses in concentration. On a good day Santos is very much capable of football above this level - on a day when he makes a couple of daft errors he's not at that standard. It's probably why no side from the top two divisions has taken a punt on him yet. To use Evatt's frequently deployed catchphrase: "there's still improvement to be made".

1 hour ago, Jol_BWFC said:

Apart from when it’s an attacking set piece. Imagine if he could chip in with even half of the goals either Beevers or Wheater did in the 16/17 league 1 promotion season. They scored 16 league goals between them.

I rate Rico a lot (and I appreciate he’s there to defend, not score) but he should be doing better as a goal threat. No goals in 88 games for us.

On corners yesterday, he was stood blocking the keeper and not attacking the ball.

Hardly likely to score like that!

Don't understand it.

10 hours ago, Lt. Aldo Raine said:

Very old school Dutch!

I'll take that.

There were a lot of good words there for Santos and Charles too.

 

It’s very apt saying Dutch total football is regarded to be invented by a ex Bolton wanderers player jimmy hogan here is a quote by him 

During a pre-season tour Bolton beat Dutch club FC Dordrecht 10–0; Hogan vowed to return to Dordrecht in order to "teach those fellows how to play properly".^[2]

 

 

3 hours ago, Jol_BWFC said:

Apart from when it’s an attacking set piece. Imagine if he could chip in with even half of the goals either Beevers or Wheater did in the 16/17 league 1 promotion season. They scored 16 league goals between them.

I rate Rico a lot (and I appreciate he’s there to defend, not score) but he should be doing better as a goal threat. No goals in 88 games for us.

That's a hell of a stat, re Wheevers. Wow.

I know we're supposed to be focusing on improving on set pieces across the board. As a team, we are largely hopeless at corners, Santos not being the only culprit. Still desperate for him to get his bonce on something... maybe he'll wait til the playoff final for it 🙂

Garp was right years ago. Corners are a waste of time anyway. No fucker scores from em.

I think the stat is 2% overall

Folk def get too worked up about em

50 minutes ago, Casino said:

I think the stat is 2% overall

Folk def get too worked up about em

Wasn't that direct from a corner though, as in first player to touch the ball scores? 

Doesn't include scrambles and stuff 

Long or short, get it in the box, anything else is a wasted opportunity 

I think Mourinho said 'only in England you celebrate a corner like a goal'

 

I think 1/10 launched in to the box result in a goal. Frustrates the hell out of me when I see young kids being told to do that

5 hours ago, Dr Faustus said:

I think Mourinho said 'only in England you celebrate a corner like a goal'

 

I think 1/10 launched in to the box result in a goal. Frustrates the hell out of me when I see young kids being told to do that

I think with the science about heading, I can see youngsters moving away from this.

However, I can understand it, as its practice for later on when they play senior games.

Not sure what the answer is in this regard to be honest.

As for set pieces overall, some teams maximise the opportunity and it yields them a good number of goals. 

Others simply don't.

30 minutes ago, Tonge moor green jacket said:

I think with the science about heading, I can see youngsters moving away from this.

However, I can understand it, as its practice for later on when they play senior games.

Not sure what the answer is in this regard to be honest.

As for set pieces overall, some teams maximise the opportunity and it yields them a good number of goals. 

Bolton  simply don't.

EFA

Yep.

I thought things were changing at the back end of last season, but none so far.

Third Saturday was from a set piece, but not one crossed in. 

7 hours ago, Tonge moor green jacket said:

Yep.

I thought things were changing at the back end of last season, but none so far.

Third Saturday was from a set piece, but not one crossed in. 

I think that may have been because JDB was playing, and he's probably the best we have in the air.  Without checking I think he got 1 or 2.  I recall an Aimson headed goal in a night game, obviously you need to be in the team to score.  I don't think there had been improvement from the current players, unless I've forgotten any.

1 hour ago, Johnnyrotten said:

I think that may have been because JDB was playing, and he's probably the best we have in the air.  Without checking I think he got 1 or 2.  I recall an Aimson headed goal in a night game, obviously you need to be in the team to score.  I don't think there had been improvement from the current players, unless I've forgotten any.

Aimson was the winner v charlton from a  free kick 

remember 1 of JDB’s at the south end with snow all round the pitch. Think it was his first for us?

struggling with any more.. 

Yes, you're right, his 1st goal for us was a header from Morley's corner, v Wimbledon. 

He did score a cracking header at Wigan but was from open play.

I thought he'd got more but maybe I've started to count the near misses!

Often struggle with midweeks however got a bit of spare time now. A lot of it is as expected however there is a thread titled 'The Meltdown'...

PRE-MATCH.

Quote

By 10pm, we could be anywhere from mid-table to the relegation zone.

Quote

TBH my knob isn't that confident.

DURING

Quote

Hmm, think that could have been a penalty.

Quote

We've become prime Gillingham. Hoof ball.

Quote

Anyway, 100% penalty.

Quote

Bolton just a bit quicker, a bit calmer and a bit more quality - small margins but have left us second best by a long way. They need to be brave in the second half and risk being opened up to get back into this.

Quote

MKAylesburyDon wrote:

Bolton just a bit quicker, a bit calmer and a bit more quality - small margins but have left us second best by a long way. They need to be brave in the second half and risk being opened up to get back into this.

100% this, we're showing a bit of willing but we just aren't quite there. It's frustrating because Bolton aren't exactly world beaters themselves, but they've got the measure of us so far.

Quote

This is one of the poorest games I've ever seen.

Quote

We deserve this. Bar Dennis and o'hora we have been shit. I predicted 2-0 Bolton and that's me being generous

Quote

Should be 3 nil...

Quote

I'd love to win ugly but we have got no threat in midfield. Bolton look like they are on a training game. They haven't needed to get out of 2nd gear. 

Quote

Lets be honest, this should be 5-0.

POST MATCH

Quote

 can't imagine how the casual fan feels. I've supported this club since the Wimbledon days. I've attended almost every home game and listened/watched/attended the large majority of away games over that time too.

There have been some incredible lows (and highs) over that time but I don't know what it is about this season, but I am genuinely losing interest and have no desire to attend another game or even watch on iFollow.

Quote

Youre not on your own mate, i abandoned the game at half time with no desire to stay up any longer to watch that turgid football when i have work in the morning. Ive paid my season ticket cost up front but tbh i have no desire to go to games under this current regime and lack of identity. Tbh its beyond boring watching this team and with a girlfriend and family i can think of a million and one ways to spend the weekends and evenings that dont involve taking most of the day out saturday to watch what is the most lifeless manager and brand of football ive ever known at this club. I could put up with the not too high or low emotionless shit last season when the football gave us something to be excited about but when the football is this shit you need a bit of life off the pitch to cling on to. Its all a bit dull, unimaginative and downright boring now. The club is going nowhere but back to the start of the so called process still without this pipe dream of a training ground which the players and manager clearly need to get on to learn how to play the mk way if we can even claim to have an mk way when the only manager that delivered success playing a brand of football outside of pub football level was karl robinson.

Quote

Just got back home, wish I’d never left home to watch that dogshit, what’s happened to our the MK way of playing?

Quote

Worst thing about the game is Bolton actually didn’t look any better then when we last played them at SMK. A stronger team would have taken advantage of them being so ropey at the back. How many times did we get behind them!

 

THE MELTDOWN

Quote

I wasn’t going to write this, but last night’s performance was so bloody woeful it deserves a slot all of its own rather than be cobbled together with my usual Sunday offering.

I fear based on this game and the clusterf**k we had to witness at Exeter City, that the game on Saturday in the “Robbo Derby” will be more of the same even though Oxford have had their traditional slow start to the season and sit with a record similar to ours….by the way…. Happy Birthday to Dons finest manager for yesterday.

Anyway, I just fear that the moment would be gone, so here I am on a Wednesday.

I was looking forward to last night even with that embarrassing performance against Exeter still firmly on my mind, as I’ve said before, as kick off approaches the slate is wiped clean and hope and expectancy replaces any negativity…we go again.

The tribute to our late Queen and the National Anthem for King Charles 111 was excellently executed and respected by all as football fans were finally able to unite in grief and respect for a job more than well done, why this wasn’t allowed on Saturday beggars belief, but the football hierarchy decided no despite most other sports going ahead and performing respectful and extremely moving tributes to our monarch, the Test Match farewell proving in itself and showing it could be done.

The team news showed Lewie had been benched despite Pete and Sweeting’s glowing tributes at the Fans Forum on Monday night, apparently Jules had been drafted in to hopefully negate the pacey threat of the Trotters. The subs bench held some encouraging news though with Josh McEachran finally back in the matchday squad after a lengthy absence.

The game kicked off and as usual the Cowshed kicked into life with the drumming and chants but as it wore on you could feel the atmosphere being sucked out of the game, the chants got less, and the drum fell silent as the Dons offered up yet another woeful performance, it was painful viewing.

I’m not sure if I’ve said this before, but as fans you recognise when your team is performing badly and you do your best to lift them, but you have to see something on the pitch …. passion, effort, pride, whatever it is …it’s a two-way thing, the players need to lift the fans by showing something…anything…but I can hardly think of an occasion when you felt that they were coming to terms with the task in hand.

It has to be said those calling out “Prophets of Doom” are falling by the way side, and like Russian guns are slowly but surely falling silent as it becomes more than apparent this team has no direction, shape or formation, no real plan and little faith or confidence in what that are trying to or supposed to be doing, and I’m sorry to break it to you Filthy called it right from the start, but many dissed him into a self-enforced hibernation…hang your heads, and I will add this is not the first time we have seen this, oh yes Filthy has called it right before, but the rose tinted spectacles brigade amongst us have refused to acknowledge the writing on the wall, today if not before, reality is dawning in many Dons fans homes.

Those saying they prefer to make an assessment on the team about ten games into the season must be busily rewriting their analysis of the team already, but I think it is more likely they will step backwards into the shadows not wishing to comment and possibly just popping into view if we manage to win a game with the usual comments of “Where are all the Manning haters now”, and then retreating quickly as we put in another lacklustre performance…and there is little doubt this will not be the last time we talk about the “Franchise Flops” and this anti brand of football we are witnessing.

Personally, I loathe and detest those that wish to trot out the usual sayings like “We need time to Gel”, please just bugger off, I’ve had enough of it.

Be honest with yourselves every team goes through a passage of change in the summer, every team has injuries, its not an excuse unique to us, but we roll it out game after game, honestly give it up folks its depressing, other teams cope with change, why can’t we be just a bit better and stop making excuses for yet another poor display, and I’ll say it, this is not just the doing of the players, there is more to this than many wish to say, to coin a phrase “It’s in our DNA”.

Before we play the “Blame Game” I will try and summarise the match, don’t get excited as I can’t find much that would suggest this is a blip but just another stain on that bloody awful shirt, what was that comment…” we are the Dons, getting down and dirty” …. hmmm…. really.

I’m now set on pause. I can’t really recall anything of note until they scored and as I said following the Exeter game, once it hit the net we might as well have gone home, as we recorded our 5th game out of 8 played goalless.

Its depressing, boring stuff, misplaced passes, overhit, under hit, weak in the tackle and in the air, crosses in a similar fashion either sailing over the top or not able to beat the first man, no vision for runners, unable to beat a player and take them on, and defensively woeful, giving up chance after chance and if not for Cumming and Bolton not taking their chances it could have been a lot more, once again the score line flattered us and to some degree papered over the cracks of how bad we were, the void between the two teams was once again a yawning chasm, and lets not get confused, Bolton will not be the best team we play this season, far from it.

On social media Trotters fans have described us as the worst team they have played in years…not this season…years…and that’s something coming from then as they too have watched some desperate stuff in the last few seasons.

The opening goal, and in honesty the decider because that was game over right there, was reckless, naive, and unnecessary from Devoy and showcased everything that is wrong with this team.

Cumming vacated the centre of the goal for the penalty and Dion Charles thumped it home, Bolton could have declared right there and made their way to the coach home, we wouldn’t have scored if we had played past midnight.

The sparsely populated Cowshed was silent as the writing was on the wall and you have to say the quoted numbers of home fans of around 5,600 although considerably much less than that with all season ticket holders in the equation will dwindle further as people find it harder and harder to motivate themselves to attend when they are served up this rubbish.

The second half was no better, in fact considerably even more awful than the first as Manning cut a lonely figure on the touchline apparently helpless to aid his raw recruits, and this despite making three changes following the second Bolton goal after a poor challenge from Tucker that warranted a yellow card and from the resulting freekick Jones headed home unchallenged, nothing more than we or they deserved.

30 painful minutes followed before we were put out of our misery, and looking around, I would say at least half of the home attendance had deserted their posts well before the final whistle, many of those left, booing those that could be bothered to acknowledge the crowd, Manning himself seeking the sanctuary of the tunnel in double quick time.

The more I think about this, the more I believe we have been sold a pup. I understand why the likes of Twine, Darling etc have gone, I get that. I get we are under some sort of a rebuild, but to basically refurbish the team with inexperienced, raw, naive kids and expect them to be competitive without any sort of experience alongside them is equally as naïve by the club as it is by those that believed we could be challenging for a playoff spot at worst.

Any dreams that Johnson might just provide the glue and the guiding hand to propel these kids has fallen flat on its face, and I am coming round to the theory that this is Johnson’s swansong, the final pay day, initially I thought we were lucky to get him, now I know why we have got him as there is a fair chance nobody else wanted him as they realised like we do now that he is a shadow of himself, and more than likely, cheap.

In the summer the stadium was well populated during the Women’s Euro’s, sell out crowds for the concerts, and we made in addition £8-£10m in transfers and that’s without mentioning any sell on or add ons due to the club, and we still can’t compete on the transfer market with even midtable clubs, in return we have signed up largely unknowns that sent us scurrying to Google to find out who they are as we all let out a collective “Who”.

So, in line with modern day blame culture, who is to blame here, has Manning been found out, did last seasons players make him look like the hottest prospect in EFL football that saw several clubs court him during the summer. You could argue that last season it was not his team or the vast majority, but this season it is very much his team with the major overhaul and so far, its failed miserably. Is Sweeting a one trick pony that got lucky last season, and when asked to perform the same pulling the rabbit out of the hat trick has been found out, or, and this one won’t sit comfortably with some, but should we look to the very top of the table at where the blame lies.

Have the club tried to build a new team on the cheap, well you wouldn’t be shocked would you, but I will add the caveat that the club or the bean counters in the club could have believed the hype of the Liam’s and thought they could crap miracles again.

I honestly don’t blame the players, I really don’t, I can’t say as I have seen players lacking effort, they are just not up to the job although its obvious heads dropped at Exeter and again last night. Too much is expected for such young heads, and they are being schooled all over the park, is that their fault, not at all, so you have to decide if the Liam’s did what they did with hands tied or not, or to some degree chose players to fit the budget and not the ambition. I’m not saying a budget without limits, but just how many times did the Liam’s have their requests denied by those on the top floor.

Whilst I say I don’t blame the players I feel I should mention two, Oyegoke, can anyone believe that performance last night, and remarkably he got 90 minutes on the pitch, he was beyond dreadful.

The other is Zak Jules, he was without doubt our best outfield player last night, but that speaks volumes about this team. This guy couldn’t get within 100m of this team last season and had to be shipped out to Fleetwood to get match time, he has developed to some small degree, but not that much, and now he is the MOTM excluding Cumming, doesn’t that say it all.

One final word on the team, even in our darkest hours there was always a player in our line-up that was capable of grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck, having the capabilities to change the game, but now there is nobody, not one seems capable of stepping up and dragging this team kicking and screaming to some sort of performance…nobody.

I’ve seen people question our pre-season friendlies, and you have to say that the likes of Rushden & Diamonds and their like is hardly a good test for our fledglings and their future life in League 1, there are certainly many questions, and I offer no solutions, that job is for others.

I recall when Cullen was here there was much talk about us following the Brentford model, I swallowed it, Andy is a decent guy and I got on with him well so I will say nothing bad about him, but I believe even he thought it was possible to follow this path…it isn’t, sorry Andy.

We follow the model in its loosest interpretation, we buy cheaply, get frees, out of contracts, and sell them for decent cash and then the cash gets swallowed in other areas as it certainly isn’t invested into the team, or at a very low level, anybody want to talk about the Dele deal, well the club don’t.

Does anyone really think Jack Tucker is on the same wage as Darling, Devoy on the same wage as Twine, of course not, so be under no illusion if any of these kids we have fostered do actually show they have a modicum of football in their bodies they will be long gone next season, and the whole cycle will start all over again, take no notice about talk that we have then tied well down for the future, like we are going to ignore the rustle of a cheque under our noses.

The pipedream of dining at the top table along with the greats of Manchester, the London big boys, or the legends of Merseyside are nothing more than that, a pipedream, I will never see it, and I doubt many attending SMK last night will ever see it too, it is a wish list that cannot be achieved with the level of recruitment or monies being made available to anyone never mind the Liam’s.

I marvelled last season at our amazing rise, I marvel further how in about four months we have sunk to a level far below that starting point and the dark day at Bournemouth when the Snake slithered into fast car and headed to Wales, and yet even in these desperate times of woeful football we can head down to Watford and win in such an impressive fashion…who can fathom it.

In normal life people are being forced to make important decisions, and the Dons are certainly making that decision making process much easier turning out this brand of football. Football is escapism from normal life, meeting your mates, having a laugh, seeing your team win or lose, but this is just depressing stuff that is hard to watch or even be bothered to go.

Before anyone tries to educate me in how much it costs to run a football club, although I feel that figure is undisclosed, yes, I get it, I really do, I would hate to try and balance the books but without any investment into the playing staff we are only going backwards. The attendances will sink quicker than the decline in the results and sooner or later we will once again be reunited with our bastard cousins. It is in reality a Catch 22 situation, invest or sink, invest and we could still sink, who would be an owner, but I feel it is inevitable that if we can’t find a billionaire sooner or later relegation or worse is a distinct possibility.

I apologise for this jumble of thoughts, I probably care too much about this club and its not easy at times to get it all down on paper, but as ever I try.
Tune in on Sunday for the next depressing edition of the MELTDOWN.

Cheers

 

Sounds familiar. 

Loads of prem twats 'i was there int 80s me, once in never out' never been since 2012

Loads more dripping away since. 

We've a hardcore of 8k who just won't budge. 

MK... That's gotta be about 500! 

Bleak. 

6 hours ago, stevieb said:

Sounds familiar. 

Loads of prem twats 'i was there int 80s me, once in never out' never been since 2012

Loads more dripping away since. 

We've a hardcore of 8k who just won't budge. 

MK... That's gotta be about 500! 

Bleak. 

It’ll take a long time to build up a reasonable fan base from the third division if you just introduce a league club to an area without such a thing. About 1.5 centuries have gone into building our fan base; each generation since 1874 adding their own children who, in turn, add their own children.

We go despite our shitness on occasion because it’s what we do and always did. What would keep you returning if all that got you there in the first place was place  of residence?

Some whopper purporting to be a Wanderers' fan, has appeared on both P/boro forums creeping to the locals & making snide anti Evatt & Santos comments.

3 minutes ago, bolton va va said:

Some whopper purporting to be a Wanderers' fan, has appeared on both P/boro forums creeping to the locals & making snide anti Evatt & Santos comments.

Doesn’t he comment on the BN? 
 

says what you need to know 

1 hour ago, barrycowdrill said:

Doesn’t he comment on the BN? 
 

says what you need to know 

Whitesince63?

Already seen a few "bolton are shite" comments from Posh fans on forums/twitter. Not sure what game they were watching.