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Reply | Promotion to the Premier League is tough.But is survival effectively impossible?
at 18:19 31 Dec 2024
Of course there is a big gap between The Premier & The Championship, with many promoted clubs only lasting the one season.
However, this also applies to many a team that is promoted from League One. It wouldn't be over surprising if the three relegated this season were all promoted in the last two seasons. Barnsley & Rotherham look as though they may have problems in continuing to yo-yo though. |
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Thread | Ipswich v The Pensioners
at 09:21 31 Dec 2024
I was fleetingly looking at this match last night & at times it was like watching The Alamo & Zulu. Combined!
I'm not sure how Ipswich withstood 60 minutes onslaught, it certainly wasn't by controlled defending, but every save, every block & every wayward shot gave them confidence. Indeed, in the last part of the match they were calm & started to move the last line of defence from the goal line to half way in their half. The Pensioners substitutions did help them as well.
Liam Delap was magnificent & bullied the defenders into submission. Will they manage to hold onto him in January? The night reminded me of our 1-0 win in 2011 & I was reliving that game in my head throughout! |
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Reply | Budgies vs Rs Match Thread
at 17:20 30 Dec 2024
I've only just got round to looking at the match thread & was thankful when supporters who were at the game started to post! The difference in the negativity at full time was a stark contrast to how we all reacted at the ground.
IMO, we failed to settle after the three substitutions were made & thought that we missed Field to an incredible degree. I think there was only the one real fault by Varane (not as bad ass when Nardi & Paal set up Norwich chances), but it cost us badly. I'm sure his intention was to invite being fouled, but just play the ball down the line & all is well. Also get straight back into position rather than debate who has the throw. That's two faults then, but both from the same situation! None of the three incoming players improved us, which is always going to hurt the team.
I was very pleased with the first half where we put together three or four very good moves (admittedly not creating anything apart from the Andersen miss). We also defended well, with the midfield supporting the defence. Dunne was the only defender playing that I would like to see in our team & that was in a position I don't think he is suited for, but all of them passed the test. No, I don't know who I would play instead of Paal!
At half time I was commenting that Morgan was by far the best player on the pitch, demanding the ball & stroking it forward or into space for Chair & Smyth. Along with Field's aggressiveness, the two of them controlled the half. For me, that 45 minutes was better than any of his previous performances (of which some have been good) & showed what a good signing he may prove to be. He definitely faded, but I feel that was mainly because we dropped deeper rather than as a fitness concern.
The performance was certainly good enough for me to decide to leave Ipswich at 9.40 on Wednesday morning rather than watch us on Sky. I'm even considering going next Monday & arriving home at a time I forgot existed! |
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Reply | xmas fixtures, a mystery
at 09:57 28 Dec 2024
The logic is that clubs are at home on Boxing Day or New Years Day, therefore one set of clubs has to have two away games over the period. We do seem to play Swansea, Cardiff or Plymouth over the festive season more than we should though!
It appears strange to me that Rangers, Fulham & Brentford were away & The Pensioners being the only one of the four at home. |
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Reply | QPR v Ride A White Swansea Match Thread
at 09:08 24 Dec 2024
I've just checked Steve & Sky will be showing all EFL Boxing Day games. This is also the case for New Years Day, Good Friday & Easter Monday. |
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Reply | Christmas Games a great test
at 13:20 23 Dec 2024
Are Norwich & Watford any better now than when we played them recently? The three matches are no easier/harder than what we have faced in our seven match unbeaten run.
Of course, we may lose all three games, but we are equally capable of winning any/all of them. |
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Reply | Comfortable in mid table
at 12:19 23 Dec 2024
I would say that the top three teams are far better than most of the division, with Middlesbrough, Sunderland & West Bromich sitting just below them. Not that any of them will have any impact in The Premier (Leeds?).
At the opposite end, I think that Cardiff, Oxford, Plymouth & Preston are worse than the rest. That leaves fourteen clubs that are equally capable of winning & losing to each other!
That probably leaves the Championship in the poor but competitive category & I still have more faith in Rangers taking points from the top six rather than the bottom six!
I think that your team have now reached the stage that it will be difficult for them to be relegated in the near future & you will have to put up with the joys of top of the bottom half of the Premier! |
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Reply | Blackstock's wonder goal seals crucial PNE victory - History
at 18:41 20 Dec 2024
Oh, What a Night! I can't recall being so exhausted watching a game!
The pure joy of Dexter's goal, the excitement of Jimmy Smith galloping down the pitch in time added on convinced we're scoring a second! The angst when we didn't score & wondering if we could hold out for the win. The roar at every challenge we won or shot saved & every time that Preston got wrong.
And then the absolute relief when the final whistle went giving us the belief (for the first time that season) that we could stay up! All this against a team that were a regular in the play offs at that time.
Undoubtedly my favourite game between Hillsborough & season 2010/11. |
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Reply | Angus Gunn charged by FA
at 10:02 18 Dec 2024
I've been a couple of times in the past with my wife to watch Ipswich there, so it will be reliving my youth! All together now "You can stick your yellow budgies up your a***".
Seriously though, are clubs allowed to report "dubious" behaviour to the FA, or do they only act on reports from the official match observer? Not that Norwich supporters would accept we've not been involved!
I think I will be at Carrow Road, but I've not been told whether my Christmas present list of match & train tickets has been granted! |
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Reply | Ashby
at 10:22 16 Dec 2024
I'm not sure that I can agree that we have a centre back playing out of position Dorse!
Not only has Jimmy Dunne made the right back spot his own, he is a far better player that he is when he plays in the middle. I suspect that he has found his natural role & won't be considered as a central defender in the future.
Not that this has any relevance to Ashby's performances! |
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Reply | Norwich Away - Trains
at 20:20 13 Dec 2024
Absolutely right about the date Sir!
I did look at the schedule for the 29th & NYD, but that's a feeble excuse for posting the wrong date! |
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Reply | Norwich Away - Trains
at 19:20 13 Dec 2024
As much as I've moaned about them in the past, I'm of the view that Greater Anglia is one of (if not the best) the better run Train Companies & that there will be no problems with the trains on New Years Day.
As a company they have no control as to when Network Rail close the lines & it is not often that carriages are reduced in number. What is possible, of course, is that the buffet bar won't be operating & that the toilets are out of order! Last Saturday with 12 coaches on the train there was just one toilet available & they didn't expect that to be usable for long! However, the timetable was run as scheduled. |
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Reply | 4 Clean sheets in a row
at 16:24 12 Dec 2024
There both right sided players & it might be that Dunne wouldn't have the same impact on the game at left back.
Dunne is the best right back at the club, so why move him from where he has performed well? |
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Reply | Last night’s ref
at 10:18 12 Dec 2024
What was strange about this was giving a free kick to Oxford. Having a perfect view of the incident (for a change), it should have been a goal kick as neither player did anything wrong. |
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Reply | Last night’s ref
at 10:15 12 Dec 2024
9 seemed excessive to me, but there were 6 substitution windows, the Madsen injury & the Nardi injury. It had to be a minimum of 6. |
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Reply | The perfect day
at 00:30 12 Dec 2024
Great stuff stow.
Sitting on the train at White City & being told that the train is being held due to an obstruction at Marle Arch, I thought I might miss that train, but I was at Liverpool Street well before the 10.30 departure.
It's strange how the journey home is so much more enjoyable after we've won! |
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Reply | Chair
at 16:57 10 Dec 2024
Why would a right footed player not be effective playing on the right? I accept that he wouldn't be able to cut inside & shoot as he often does, but other options would be available for him. Surely he is capable of varying his game.
Having said that, my preference would be for him to play centrally in front of Field & Varane. |
| | terryb
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