Best Of

It’s a good thing I’m not making these decisions because I’d currently be driving to Bolton with a truck full of cash.

Welcome @ChairboySupreme . I hope you stick around. We'll have you assimilated in no time as long as you promise to work on your cheese puns and join both prediction contests next season.......

We have had an amazing season but have now hit a comparative rocky patch. It happens. The few games will be a test of how good a manager Matt Bloomfield is. He is proven he can ride a wave. Now he needs to show he can turn around a less good patch. If he can do that as well, he may well have a long managerial career hopefully here and potentially at higher levels.

I do find depressinng the increasing tendency both in society generally and reflected on football fansites towards extremes, conflict and conspiracies. Some seem to revel in spreading negativity, some need to find scapegoats for every problem. We have performed beyond our expected level in the first half of the season with a team playing good football and owners seemingly willing to provide a very high budget for a team of our size. Is everything wonderful - probably not. Is it pretty good - yes absolutely. My expectation is that automatic promotion is beyond us this season at least but I may be pleasantly surprised. We would need a major collapse to miss out on the playoffs so I think we'll probably achieve that. Playoffs are pretty much a lottery so who knows how we would fare in that but of the four teams that qualify I would not expect us to start as one of the favourites. That's cool.

For many of us who started out in the Isthmian League, competing at the top of the third level and agonising on whether we may or may not reach the Championship (or Division Two as I still sometimes think of it) is beyond even the wildest dreams I would have held back then. I intend to enjoy the footballing ride whatever it may bring while reserving my angst for the future of our world as it lurches ever further into fear, hatred and possibly increased conflict. Never too high.................

It should be, as televised games in the UK normally are. It's on ESPN+ in the USA. The club normally provide a list of broadcasters closer to the game.

Ivan Koney

I'm surprised MB has come out and said he changed the style up because we didn't have a right back. Skura has done really well so far and looks very comfortable on the ball, I'm sure he would have been absolutely fine at right back.

I also thought Gideon was wasted at right back, he tried his best and had one electric run. I would liked to have seen him up top with Hanlan, stretching their back four. For me, he actually looked the most dangerous last night but couldn't have an impact from right back.

Leahy is an interesting one, he doesn't do huge amounts wrong but doesn't unlock defences that often either. When playing in the back line his one dimensional ball into the left hand channel, normally cleared by the right back or right centre back, is so frustrating. I thought Bradley played some really good long balls into the channels which they struggled to clear.

Leahy free kicks/corners have been average at best, unless he is taking a strike at goal. His shots are normally very good and I have no issue him taking those around the box. The little chip into the box when we get a central free kick has never worked, regardless of who takes it, so I'd like to see something different there. I'd like to see Humphreys taking corners.

Huddersfield were excellent defensively, they backed themselves to get a clean sheet and did so. They offered little going forwards. I have a few Town mates who are STHs and they are happy with the wins but are really bored of going to games as they are saying it's generally very dull.

We have so much to be positive about, we shouldn't let a couple of defeats and some indifferent play get too much on top of us. I'm sure we will sort it out over the transfer window. I think we've overthought things the last couple of games. With Morley we were winning by two or more goal margins. I'm sure if we keep the same team and shape, and played Bakinson or Scowen in the Morley role we'd create enough to win by one goal. Not sure it needs these re-thinks. Why we went long ball against one of the best defences in the league without Vokes I cannot explain.

Looking forward to Friday, COYB!

Really really impressed with Sonny Bradley last night. That first header had so much intent and their no. 9 crumbled to pieces like a Tom and Jerry cartoon. Didn’t put a foot wrong and there is nothing wrong with his pace. I can see a Caleb Taylor and Bradley combination when Taylor comes back hopefully. Almost certain Joe Low is off to pastures new.

I will reiterate that we are in second spot in the league with a better goal difference than the team in third.

Yes our recent form has been poor, but not dreadful, exacerbated by the loss of key players either due to recall or injury & a loss of form for other starters (Fred & Leahy in particular).

Rav is coming in for a lot of stick, but he has shown himself to be our best keeper for some time & has grown in confidence. As for last night, Kone blocked him from getting greater contact on his punch & Fred had gone to sleep & failed to shut down Kane, hardly all his fault as some you have said.

We are still creating lots of chances & having lots of shots even though our attacking set pieces have pretty much deserted us. We are also still stuggling with defensive set pieces, I am sure the coaching team are trying to resolve both but with the current schedule that is a big ask.

As someone once said "form is temporary, class is permanent".

We will finish in the top 6 at worst & 2nd at best - yes a positive window will definitely help.

The sensible thing surely would have been Leahy to LB and Harvie to RB. We already know Harvie's got an excellent right foot on him. I'm not buying the forced formation change claims when there was a much simpler, very obvious choice.

Maybe Dan Rice is deciding the formation now too 🤔

Plymouth 😂

I'm not suggesting that they are the same player. I have simply pointed out that statistically, Toney at 21 was worse than Kone is now, and even Toney's best league one season is similar to the output Kone is producing this season, in terms of goals. I don't think there is anything that shows that a 21 year old Ivan Toney is a different level to a 21 year old Richard Kone at all. Toney's development through the years was phenomenal and it will be incredibly impressive if Kone can match that, of course. In their age 20 seasons, for example, Toney scored 1 in 15 in league one (788 minutes) whilst Kone scored 3 in 17 (643 minutes). I don't think the young Ivan Toney was really as good as you think.