Expectations after 6 games

In a similar thread before the season started, I said I couldn't see why we can't be top ten and pushing for a play off spot. This is not an expectation on my part at all, but we have the backing from the fans and the board, and most importantly, we have an excellent management team, supplemented by a much improved back room staff.

PH has got to 6 play off finals in his career, including Shrewsbury, who he took from the bottom of league 1 to the top of the league in a year, before just missing out on an automatic spot. They were favourites for relegation in his second season there, just like some pundits think of our chances this season. They are about comparable to us in terms of supporter numbers, albeit playing a division higher.

When he left us to go to the Shrews, we were near the play off spots in league 2 with what I consider to be an inferior team to the one we now have.

I think the worst we will do is mid table.

There is a far more professional management and backroom set up now, which will be added to, once the new training ground is finalised and in full use.

I hope that with all these new things in place  that potential new players on the next transfer wanted list will be less likely to kick us into touch on location grounds.

Longer contracts for players on the A list wll also give more settlement to players with families.

Would purchasing or renting a couple of good quality local properties for single players be cheaper and more home like for new additions on their first arrivals?

Perhaps a housekeeper in place for the weekly laundry and shopping needed to keep young and / or new players on board, and away from attractions that would stop them concentrating on their games.

4 of next 5 at home. Ask again after that

Quoted from ginnywings

In a similar thread before the season started, I said I couldn't see why we can't be top ten and pushing for a play off spot. This is not an expectation on my part at all, but we have the backing from the fans and the board, and most importantly, we have an excellent management team, supplemented by a much improved back room staff.

PH has got to 6 play off finals in his career, including Shrewsbury, who he took from the bottom of league 1 to the top of the league in a year, before just missing out on an automatic spot. They were favourites for relegation in his second season there, just like some pundits think of our chances this season. They are about comparable to us in terms of supporter numbers, albeit playing a division higher.

When he left us to go to the Shrews, we were near the play off spots in league 2 with what I consider to be an inferior team to the one we now have.

I think the worst we will do is mid table.

All of this plus no dirty black cloud.

Quoted from ginnywings

In a similar thread before the season started, I said I couldn't see why we can't be top ten and pushing for a play off spot. This is not an expectation on my part at all, but we have the backing from the fans and the board, and most importantly, we have an excellent management team, supplemented by a much improved back room staff.

PH has got to 6 play off finals in his career, including Shrewsbury, who he took from the bottom of league 1 to the top of the league in a year, before just missing out on an automatic spot. They were favourites for relegation in his second season there, just like some pundits think of our chances this season. They are about comparable to us in terms of supporter numbers, albeit playing a division higher.

When he left us to go to the Shrews, we were near the play off spots in league 2 with what I consider to be an inferior team to the one we now have.

I think the worst we will do is mid table.

After 6 games, we have 5 more points (45%) than that 2016 side did. Another 40 to go in the league of course, but all the signs are that our current crop are superior to 6 years ago.

I was actually doing a comparison in my head earlier on of the 2016/17 team to this one.

That teams was something like:

                          McKeown
Davies       Gowling        Collins      Andrew
Chambers Summerfield Comley     Berrett
                  Bogle            Jackson

Pearson, Bolarinwa and Vernon also played a good bit.

Apart from 2016 Omar, can you honesty say anyone else walks into our current team? There’s just about a case for Andrew and Davies to be made, but they aren’t givens. If Omar had stayed until the end of the season, we’d probably have ended up on the fringes of the playoffs, if not in them. Having said that, I genuinely think promotion is a realistic ambition. I have said on numerous occasions how our extra fitness, belief and set piece delivery (especially now we have Hunt), plus throw in a deep squad with options to change it from the bench when it’s not working, will make the difference in plenty of games given how close games seem to usually be at this level.

Quoted from DB

Being positive and optimistic we might need to replace other players who aren't League 1 quality when we get promoted. While the squad is more than adequate for the challenge this year I wonder if some are up to League 1 standards. There is a large gap between NL and League 1 so I hope most of the squad are up to it.

good point Think it was Jason who said that if you want to be promoted to league 1 we need to recruit, or have players in your team, who are capable of playing league 1, whilst still being a league 2 team.
Think you've probably got that in Morris, Glennon & Smith (& Clifton given that FGR were keen on signing him) plus the injured McAtee & Scannell.
we will know about Orsi, Efete & Crocombe in the next 6 months!

on the fitness/tiredness comment , given the short ore season, thank god we've got the strength and conditioning coaches and the analysts to pick up on that sort of thing.

Under the old regime everything the club did was amateur with a capital A. That included training facilities and methods. Now we seem to have invested in professional coaching resources in depth, so we have excellent off field backup in terms of fitness and preparation. The way we got Holohan and MacAtee fit for the Wrexham game five days after they could barely walk off the pitch at Notts County in the playoffs is testament to how well it is working backstage.

At Walsall  though we looked so much fitter than the opposition in the last quarter of an hour. It explains why we score so many late goals.

Added to that the quality of players in the squad now is the best I can remember since the team we had when we were last in the Championship.

To be just outside the playoff after a pretty tough set of opening fixtures, having played a game less than everyone above us and having played only two home games is incredible.

Three away wins on the bounce. Make no mistake, we are a handful in this division, and will only get stronger when MacAtee and Scannell return and Orsi, Kahn, and Maher are fully fit.

Quoted from Mariner_09

Chambers Summerfield Comley     Berrett

And some people moan about Clifton playing on the left!

Quoted from Mariner_09

I was actually doing a comparison in my head earlier on of the 2016/17 team to this one.

That teams was something like:

                          McKeown
Davies       Gowling        Collins      Andrew
Chambers Summerfield Comley     Berrett
                  Bogle            Jackson

Pearson, Bolarinwa and Vernon also played a good bit.

Apart from 2016 Omar, can you honesty say anyone else walks into our current team? There’s just about a case for Andrew and Davies to be made, but they aren’t givens. If Omar had stayed until the end of the season, we’d probably have ended up on the fringes of the playoffs, if not in them. Having said that, I genuinely think promotion is a realistic ambition. I have said on numerous occasions how our extra fitness, belief and set piece delivery (especially now we have Hunt), plus throw in a deep squad with options to change it from the bench when it’s not working, will make the difference in plenty of games given how close games seem to usually be at this level.

Jackson