| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League 06:44 - Oct 14 with 15212 views | Asa |
On Saturday we'll be one game out from November and it'll be our 4th home game of the season. 4th!!!
Say what you want for League One but with 46 games, the League Cup, the Pizza Cup and even the FA Cup about to start the games came thick and fast.
Not far off either in the Championship. All those Portman Road matches under the lights.
Of course I want us at the top level. The post is slightly in jest. But the fixture scheduling this season is something else! [Post edited 14 Oct 2024 6:46]
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| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 13:46 - Oct 14 with 1729 views | greyhound |
I'm glad this discussion has come up with plenty of honesty on the thread.
It's really early in the season and a review when all is said and done however this turns out will be interesting. I don't know if it's just been the start we were handed, the last result or what but I just find myself week on week scratching my head thinking where do we find our first win.
It's become telling really quickly the damage that so long out of this league has done, the ability to invest 100m in a squad this summer was something we could never of dreamed of, but the shocking reality is that the team assembled is still one of future prospects and those at the start of their own premier league journey which brings its own challenge.
The reality of it is not winning isn't very fun no matter what league your in, and we are off the back of 2 seasons of being winners.
17th is all we need, and this league has some weak teams in it, i just hope we can find the all important first win this weekend before we give other teams a chance to bunny hop us and the season turns into a pure battle.
I'm just glad we have got mckenna taking us through this. If the situation would of been the same with a different man in charge it would of been a grotty mood around the place I think. | | | |
| 100% re the TV on 13:46 - Oct 14 with 1720 views | Marshalls_Mullet |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 13:42 - Oct 14 by BlueForYou |
Agree with everything on this thread. I'd add the difficulty of watching us live on TV to the list. For those of us who don't get to games regularly or can't get tickets, there was Town TV & pay £10 to view the match. That option is gone in the Premier League, replaced by having to use VPNs, dodgy/illegal streams. I don't understand why the the Premier League can't allow clubs to stream games on their own platforms? |
I dont live locally, and cant get to many matches due to other commitments.
Got used to seeing us loads on TV. Hardly see us at all now.
Feel much less connected this season. |  |
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| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 14:02 - Oct 14 with 1679 views | Sharkey |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 13:17 - Oct 14 by Freddies_Ears |
Get a cat 1 Academy. It's coming... |
You also need to be invited. There are only 16 places available, and i think there are currently 28 Cat.1 academies. I don't know if participants are chosen by rota, or by how well they do in the competition, or by how money they should generate for the lower league clubs ( e.g. if Colchester and Orient play West Ham U21s, quite a few will turn up to support West Ham.) |  | | |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 14:05 - Oct 14 with 1663 views | Blueschev |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 14:02 - Oct 14 by Sharkey |
You also need to be invited. There are only 16 places available, and i think there are currently 28 Cat.1 academies. I don't know if participants are chosen by rota, or by how well they do in the competition, or by how money they should generate for the lower league clubs ( e.g. if Colchester and Orient play West Ham U21s, quite a few will turn up to support West Ham.) |
There inclusion makes a mockery of the entire competition. Is it still the case that the U21 teams can't compete in the final? Ridiculous. |  | | |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:18 - Oct 14 with 1644 views | textbackup |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 13:28 - Oct 14 by Bloots |
....but to clarify, I've mainly been thinking about what's the best pub to go to before and after the game.
It may seem defeatist, but I've pretty much resigned myself to us not winning so the match itself seems to be a bit of an irrelevance really.
The predictability of the Premier League means that unless you are playing one of the teams in your "mini league" whether that's top, middle or bottom then there's very little jeopardy involved.
Saturday will be more tense, but in general it's all just a bit "meh".
The Championship was much more fun. |
Incredibly I’m even 50/50 if I’ll go Saturday, I’m on call for work and there’s a massive change going on… so might be worth being sat at home incase the phone rings!
That I’m at 50/50 is pretty depressing for me 😂 |  |
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| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 14:22 - Oct 14 with 1636 views | VanDusen |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 14:02 - Oct 14 by Sharkey |
You also need to be invited. There are only 16 places available, and i think there are currently 28 Cat.1 academies. I don't know if participants are chosen by rota, or by how well they do in the competition, or by how money they should generate for the lower league clubs ( e.g. if Colchester and Orient play West Ham U21s, quite a few will turn up to support West Ham.) |
I've found it's now very difficult to find info about gates for these games as when it was first introduced in 2016-17 it rightly led to a boycott among most lower league clubs - which I think many fans still embrace (myself included, much as it pained me as up until then I would have relished us participating as at least some consolation for relegation). There was a lot of media attention given to the astonishingly low turnout, particularly for the U21 games ("look at these 8 Sunderland fans at Scunthorpe" type stuff). But they've persisted under pressure from the big clubs and have got round that by just not drawing attention to the paltry crowds.
Let's not forget though one of the reasons they've persisted is the original plan was to try and force B-teams into League One and Two. This was a sort of sop to try and stop that happening but make no mistake that's still what these brands are gunning for and then they won't even need to loan out their starlets any more... | | | |
| There's more important things than football.... on 14:28 - Oct 14 with 1628 views | Bloots |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:18 - Oct 14 by textbackup |
Incredibly I’m even 50/50 if I’ll go Saturday, I’m on call for work and there’s a massive change going on… so might be worth being sat at home incase the phone rings!
That I’m at 50/50 is pretty depressing for me 😂 |
....FFS, you've got me at it now! |  |
| "He's been a really positive influence on my life, I think he's a great man" - TWTD User (May 2025) |
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| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:33 - Oct 14 with 1620 views | withyblue |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 13:28 - Oct 14 by Bloots |
....but to clarify, I've mainly been thinking about what's the best pub to go to before and after the game.
It may seem defeatist, but I've pretty much resigned myself to us not winning so the match itself seems to be a bit of an irrelevance really.
The predictability of the Premier League means that unless you are playing one of the teams in your "mini league" whether that's top, middle or bottom then there's very little jeopardy involved.
Saturday will be more tense, but in general it's all just a bit "meh".
The Championship was much more fun. |
God people do seem to have incredibly short memories. Yes, the Championship last season was more fun, but it was one of our greatest seasons in decades. It will be difficult to ever top it.
If you cast your mind back a few years and recall our 17 year stay in the second tier, we usually went at least a third of the season knowing we'd neither be promoted or relegated. That's what very little jeopardy looks like! When I think of "meh" I think of crowds of 13,000 at Portman Road, watching painfully dull Mick McCarthy teams play other painfully dull Championship teams, often with nothing more than a 10th-18th Championship finish on the line. On Saturday you get to see an exciting and attacking Ipswich side coached by one of the best young managers in the game, in front of a full house, play against a giant of English footballing history. I don't see how you feel so "meh" about that, unless the last couple of years have given you a false expectation of football fandom.
The smaller size of the Premier League actually means there is generally a lot more jeopardy than in the championship, where half the league tends to know its destiny by January/February.
Of course winning our games most weeks like we have for the last couple of years was incredible, but realistically that is not what football is usually like, in any league. | | | |
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| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:46 - Oct 14 with 1575 views | Blueschev |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:33 - Oct 14 by withyblue |
God people do seem to have incredibly short memories. Yes, the Championship last season was more fun, but it was one of our greatest seasons in decades. It will be difficult to ever top it.
If you cast your mind back a few years and recall our 17 year stay in the second tier, we usually went at least a third of the season knowing we'd neither be promoted or relegated. That's what very little jeopardy looks like! When I think of "meh" I think of crowds of 13,000 at Portman Road, watching painfully dull Mick McCarthy teams play other painfully dull Championship teams, often with nothing more than a 10th-18th Championship finish on the line. On Saturday you get to see an exciting and attacking Ipswich side coached by one of the best young managers in the game, in front of a full house, play against a giant of English footballing history. I don't see how you feel so "meh" about that, unless the last couple of years have given you a false expectation of football fandom.
The smaller size of the Premier League actually means there is generally a lot more jeopardy than in the championship, where half the league tends to know its destiny by January/February.
Of course winning our games most weeks like we have for the last couple of years was incredible, but realistically that is not what football is usually like, in any league. |
All of the points you make are fair, and I think most people are delighted with where we are. However I think there is an underlying feeling of "what now?", which I think is pretty understandable. | | | |
| To say that there is.... on 14:46 - Oct 14 with 1575 views | Bloots |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:33 - Oct 14 by withyblue |
God people do seem to have incredibly short memories. Yes, the Championship last season was more fun, but it was one of our greatest seasons in decades. It will be difficult to ever top it.
If you cast your mind back a few years and recall our 17 year stay in the second tier, we usually went at least a third of the season knowing we'd neither be promoted or relegated. That's what very little jeopardy looks like! When I think of "meh" I think of crowds of 13,000 at Portman Road, watching painfully dull Mick McCarthy teams play other painfully dull Championship teams, often with nothing more than a 10th-18th Championship finish on the line. On Saturday you get to see an exciting and attacking Ipswich side coached by one of the best young managers in the game, in front of a full house, play against a giant of English footballing history. I don't see how you feel so "meh" about that, unless the last couple of years have given you a false expectation of football fandom.
The smaller size of the Premier League actually means there is generally a lot more jeopardy than in the championship, where half the league tends to know its destiny by January/February.
Of course winning our games most weeks like we have for the last couple of years was incredible, but realistically that is not what football is usually like, in any league. |
...more jeopardy in the Prem than there is in the Champ is simply laughable.
You can use us last year as a perfect example of that!
Anyone with a vague interest in football can predict how the Prem will shape up before the season starts.
If you ask an ITFC fan how they think this season is going the vast majority will say "pretty much as expected so far"......unpredictable it isn't. | |
| "He's been a really positive influence on my life, I think he's a great man" - TWTD User (May 2025) |
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| It’s early days, it’s a mix of emotions towards the Premier League to date on 14:50 - Oct 14 with 1565 views | unstableblue |
I’d start by saying that the Premier League has some fundamental issues as a competition and spectacle that could get worse. It’s a hugely popular global brand, which is built on the pace of the games and the atmosphere. But the Man City domination and that top three who have pulled away from the next pack is causing a deterioration in the excitement.
The Premiership is a series of groups - Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool; then Spurs, Chelsea, Villa; then this other pack that includes big clubs like Man U and Newcastle; then the stable pack that includes Brighton, now Fulham, and perhaps Brentford and West Ham. Then this other pack who are a bit lost in purpose Wolves, Palace, Everton. And to that pack come the newly promoted teams.
There was a great podcast from the Athletic talking about Wolves, how they’d spent large and used the Portuguese agent to get up to 7th, but the energy has gone out of that and the Molineaux atmosphere is decaying. Forest’s City Ground atmosphere is also falling away, because what are they hoping for?
West Ham’s atmosphere was woeful last week - in part the ground, but also in part where West Hal are.
The away support at PR from Liverpool was weak, only Villa have impressed - well a little.
Man City away was just plain weird. Because there’s just no jeopardy for the home fans. So they’re quiet and leave early.
So we’re entering the Premier League at a strange time.
Having said all that, overall I am enjoying it and at times loving it. The away grounds are bigger and slicker, and crucially the quality of player we are up against is amazing and challenging. That second half against Villa was incredible - not just from a PR atmosphere perspective but the quality and pace of the game.
What we need is a win. And to see some further promise. We need to survive. And aim to be a Brighton. A team that is enjoying the Premier League.
We need to make PR very loud, very intimidating, and that will increase our enjoyment and chances of beating the likes of Everton and Leicester.
COYFB - let’s enjoy it and reassess in May! But certainly the powers at be need to make it a level playing field. And be tougher on the big three.
Note - one positive I hear is how well Arsenal have improved the Emirates atmosphere - which has been poor - done it part because they have a goal and excitement. But it has to be a focus for the Premier League. Quiet grounds without passion ruins the ‘product’ |  |
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| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:57 - Oct 14 with 1516 views | VanDusen |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:33 - Oct 14 by withyblue |
God people do seem to have incredibly short memories. Yes, the Championship last season was more fun, but it was one of our greatest seasons in decades. It will be difficult to ever top it.
If you cast your mind back a few years and recall our 17 year stay in the second tier, we usually went at least a third of the season knowing we'd neither be promoted or relegated. That's what very little jeopardy looks like! When I think of "meh" I think of crowds of 13,000 at Portman Road, watching painfully dull Mick McCarthy teams play other painfully dull Championship teams, often with nothing more than a 10th-18th Championship finish on the line. On Saturday you get to see an exciting and attacking Ipswich side coached by one of the best young managers in the game, in front of a full house, play against a giant of English footballing history. I don't see how you feel so "meh" about that, unless the last couple of years have given you a false expectation of football fandom.
The smaller size of the Premier League actually means there is generally a lot more jeopardy than in the championship, where half the league tends to know its destiny by January/February.
Of course winning our games most weeks like we have for the last couple of years was incredible, but realistically that is not what football is usually like, in any league. |
I think we pretty much have known where we were going to land in this league from about May 4th this year though? Most of those seasons in the Championship we were still in with a shot at the playoffs until April, or had a great escape on our hands with Keane, Jewell and Mick successively. Plus at least every individual game is potentially winnable. More jeopardy than the foregone conclusions of going to Man City, Liverpool, Arsenal etc. already knowing you're just going to get spanked. [Post edited 14 Oct 2024 14:59]
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| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 15:01 - Oct 14 with 1499 views | _clive_baker_ |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:33 - Oct 14 by withyblue |
God people do seem to have incredibly short memories. Yes, the Championship last season was more fun, but it was one of our greatest seasons in decades. It will be difficult to ever top it.
If you cast your mind back a few years and recall our 17 year stay in the second tier, we usually went at least a third of the season knowing we'd neither be promoted or relegated. That's what very little jeopardy looks like! When I think of "meh" I think of crowds of 13,000 at Portman Road, watching painfully dull Mick McCarthy teams play other painfully dull Championship teams, often with nothing more than a 10th-18th Championship finish on the line. On Saturday you get to see an exciting and attacking Ipswich side coached by one of the best young managers in the game, in front of a full house, play against a giant of English footballing history. I don't see how you feel so "meh" about that, unless the last couple of years have given you a false expectation of football fandom.
The smaller size of the Premier League actually means there is generally a lot more jeopardy than in the championship, where half the league tends to know its destiny by January/February.
Of course winning our games most weeks like we have for the last couple of years was incredible, but realistically that is not what football is usually like, in any league. |
Not sure its true about the predictability of the league. In the Championship Oxford & Derby have just gone up and are 10th and 12th, Sunderland are top, Luton went down from the Premier League and they're 4th bottom. Coventry have been a top 10 side for the last few years and fairly recent playoff finalist and they're now 5th bottom.
Premier league top 3 is Man City, Liverpool and Arsenal. The only question is what order they'll finish, but I'll have a wild guess it'll be City again given they've won 6 of the last 7 including the last 4 (what fun!). All 3 promoted sides are in the bottom 6, and I'd wager there's a good chance they all finish there or worse.
I agree with your point about the Championship not being all milk & honey when we bounced around the middle of it for years, but its generally more even in the sense anyone can beat anyone. |  | | |
| To say that there is.... on 15:05 - Oct 14 with 1487 views | withyblue |
| To say that there is.... on 14:46 - Oct 14 by Bloots |
...more jeopardy in the Prem than there is in the Champ is simply laughable.
You can use us last year as a perfect example of that!
Anyone with a vague interest in football can predict how the Prem will shape up before the season starts.
If you ask an ITFC fan how they think this season is going the vast majority will say "pretty much as expected so far"......unpredictable it isn't. |
I'm not sure you understand what jeopardy is. Jeopardy is danger of loss harm, or failure. Its not about predictability.
In the Championship the bottom 3 are relegated and the top 6 have the possibility of promotion to the Premier League. That adds up to 9/24 (37.5%) spots which offer potential reward/punishment . In the Premier League the top 7 can qualify for Europe and bottom three are relegated, which adds up to 10/20 (50%).
As the Championship season is longer than the Premier League and more points are available , mid-table sides often know, by around the final third of the season that there have too many points to be relegated but too few to finish in the top 6. From that point, all jeopardy is effectively gone from their season.
In the Premier League, where there are fewer games and fewer points available, teams in the middle of the table can not be confident they either have too many points for relegation or too few to achieve European qualification until a later point in the season, so there is generally greater jeopardy. Most of the league know they are generally only one bad run of form away from being dragged into a relegation battle, where the risk is one of high cost. That is a high jeopardy situation. | | | |
| It’s early days, it’s a mix of emotions towards the Premier League to date on 15:07 - Oct 14 with 1472 views | _clive_baker_ |
| It’s early days, it’s a mix of emotions towards the Premier League to date on 14:50 - Oct 14 by unstableblue |
I’d start by saying that the Premier League has some fundamental issues as a competition and spectacle that could get worse. It’s a hugely popular global brand, which is built on the pace of the games and the atmosphere. But the Man City domination and that top three who have pulled away from the next pack is causing a deterioration in the excitement.
The Premiership is a series of groups - Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool; then Spurs, Chelsea, Villa; then this other pack that includes big clubs like Man U and Newcastle; then the stable pack that includes Brighton, now Fulham, and perhaps Brentford and West Ham. Then this other pack who are a bit lost in purpose Wolves, Palace, Everton. And to that pack come the newly promoted teams.
There was a great podcast from the Athletic talking about Wolves, how they’d spent large and used the Portuguese agent to get up to 7th, but the energy has gone out of that and the Molineaux atmosphere is decaying. Forest’s City Ground atmosphere is also falling away, because what are they hoping for?
West Ham’s atmosphere was woeful last week - in part the ground, but also in part where West Hal are.
The away support at PR from Liverpool was weak, only Villa have impressed - well a little.
Man City away was just plain weird. Because there’s just no jeopardy for the home fans. So they’re quiet and leave early.
So we’re entering the Premier League at a strange time.
Having said all that, overall I am enjoying it and at times loving it. The away grounds are bigger and slicker, and crucially the quality of player we are up against is amazing and challenging. That second half against Villa was incredible - not just from a PR atmosphere perspective but the quality and pace of the game.
What we need is a win. And to see some further promise. We need to survive. And aim to be a Brighton. A team that is enjoying the Premier League.
We need to make PR very loud, very intimidating, and that will increase our enjoyment and chances of beating the likes of Everton and Leicester.
COYFB - let’s enjoy it and reassess in May! But certainly the powers at be need to make it a level playing field. And be tougher on the big three.
Note - one positive I hear is how well Arsenal have improved the Emirates atmosphere - which has been poor - done it part because they have a goal and excitement. But it has to be a focus for the Premier League. Quiet grounds without passion ruins the ‘product’ |
You (or they) are right about the atmosphere and its importance in terms of the 'product'. I'm sure its one of the reasons I can't get in to women's football on TV, other than the significant disparity in quality (Ipswich v Plymouth highlights from Saturday are laughably bad by the way), I struggle to listen to kids counting down to full time, blowing vuvuzela's and doing the mexican wave. Its like watching Soccer Aid. | | | |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 15:08 - Oct 14 with 1452 views | Sharkey |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 14:22 - Oct 14 by VanDusen |
I've found it's now very difficult to find info about gates for these games as when it was first introduced in 2016-17 it rightly led to a boycott among most lower league clubs - which I think many fans still embrace (myself included, much as it pained me as up until then I would have relished us participating as at least some consolation for relegation). There was a lot of media attention given to the astonishingly low turnout, particularly for the U21 games ("look at these 8 Sunderland fans at Scunthorpe" type stuff). But they've persisted under pressure from the big clubs and have got round that by just not drawing attention to the paltry crowds.
Let's not forget though one of the reasons they've persisted is the original plan was to try and force B-teams into League One and Two. This was a sort of sop to try and stop that happening but make no mistake that's still what these brands are gunning for and then they won't even need to loan out their starlets any more... |
Last season (September I think), Colchester v Spurs U21 drew about 1900 people for a group match. (Spurs were extremely good.) I think for Colchester v M.K. Dons recently it was about 1200.
Statistics here for this season. Walsall v Birmingham hugely improved the average. (Shades of Port Vale v Stoke U21 a few years ago.)
https://www.espn.in/football/stats/_/league/ENG.TROPHY/season/2024/view/performa
Obviously, attendances can rise as the competition progresses. (Most famously, 85,000 for the 2019 final between Portsmouth and Sunderland.)
Personally I have no problem with these elite U21s being in it. You can see a whole different calibre of player skill/speed-wise in action compared to, say, MK Dons non-regulars. If a few north-Essex West Ham or Tottenham fans make their way to the stadium for the first time, there's at least a chance that some of them might come back for a league game.
I think the Colchester coaching staff also like it as playing West Ham, Arsenal or Tottenham U21s lets them see players up close, and Colchester will have an eye on some of them as possible loan players or even as proper signing if they are released. My impression is always that there is quite a lot of discussion after these games between the respective coaches, and Colchester will have a lot of respect for the people working at the elite clubs. (The McKennas of this world, basically.)
Answering a comment elsewhere, I don't think there is, or ever has been, anything to say that an U21 team can't win it. (I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure. At what stage would they be 'kicked out'?) Chelsea and Manchester C. have certainly got to the quarter-finals (2018, 2019?). [Post edited 14 Oct 2024 15:18]
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| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 15:08 - Oct 14 with 1451 views | withyblue |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 14:46 - Oct 14 by Blueschev |
All of the points you make are fair, and I think most people are delighted with where we are. However I think there is an underlying feeling of "what now?", which I think is pretty understandable. |
Yes, that probably comes from the extraordinary success of last season.
If we had consolidated in the Championship last season, finishing anywhere from 12th to 21st, before gradually climbing the league and being promoted 3/4 seasons later, fans would probably be more accepting of the fact we are trying to consolidate our positon in the Premier League before steadily improving and becoming a more competitive force. | | | |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 15:10 - Oct 14 with 1447 views | hype313 |
It's a bit like Christmas, the build up and excitement actually trumps the actual day.
Personally, I'm glad we got to the PL purely from a financial footing, to give us breathing space for the coming years.
But from a spectacle excitement view, not going to lie, spending your time looking for pockets of wins here and there isn't exactly mouth-watering is it? Not that winning is the be all and end all, but scratching around looking for 3 points potentially against the dross of the PL doesn't get my juices flowing.
I'm like others on here, if we get relegated then I'm non plussed, I actually think the yo yo effect is better as it gives you a better chance of a stronger squad when you are ready to attack it, we have had to spend £100m to not embarrass ourselves. Quite depressing really, but that's the 'Joy' of the PL.
Also if we get relegated we won't need 'world class' media facilities so I might get my seat back.
I'm so selfish. [Post edited 14 Oct 2024 15:12]
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| Thanks, but I do know what jeopardy means... on 15:12 - Oct 14 with 1435 views | Bloots |
| To say that there is.... on 15:05 - Oct 14 by withyblue |
I'm not sure you understand what jeopardy is. Jeopardy is danger of loss harm, or failure. Its not about predictability.
In the Championship the bottom 3 are relegated and the top 6 have the possibility of promotion to the Premier League. That adds up to 9/24 (37.5%) spots which offer potential reward/punishment . In the Premier League the top 7 can qualify for Europe and bottom three are relegated, which adds up to 10/20 (50%).
As the Championship season is longer than the Premier League and more points are available , mid-table sides often know, by around the final third of the season that there have too many points to be relegated but too few to finish in the top 6. From that point, all jeopardy is effectively gone from their season.
In the Premier League, where there are fewer games and fewer points available, teams in the middle of the table can not be confident they either have too many points for relegation or too few to achieve European qualification until a later point in the season, so there is generally greater jeopardy. Most of the league know they are generally only one bad run of form away from being dragged into a relegation battle, where the risk is one of high cost. That is a high jeopardy situation. |
...I is clever.
As I said, unless you play a team in your mini league, there is very little jeopardy. When we lost to City or Liverpool, nobody really cared because it was predictable and "wouldn't define our season".....that's what we kept getting told.
You can probably take out the top 6, 7 or even 8 in the Prem and say that results against them don't matter, they offer no jeopardy.
Anyway, I originally said "unpredictable" anyway. So there. | |
| "He's been a really positive influence on my life, I think he's a great man" - TWTD User (May 2025) |
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| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 15:13 - Oct 14 with 1435 views | Reuser_is_God |
Yeah, long live the EFL.
Having to spend £100m plus to have half a chance of finishing 17th is an absolute joke. |  |
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| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 15:15 - Oct 14 with 1415 views | withyblue |
| I've been thinking about the Brentford game quite a lot..... on 15:01 - Oct 14 by _clive_baker_ |
Not sure its true about the predictability of the league. In the Championship Oxford & Derby have just gone up and are 10th and 12th, Sunderland are top, Luton went down from the Premier League and they're 4th bottom. Coventry have been a top 10 side for the last few years and fairly recent playoff finalist and they're now 5th bottom.
Premier league top 3 is Man City, Liverpool and Arsenal. The only question is what order they'll finish, but I'll have a wild guess it'll be City again given they've won 6 of the last 7 including the last 4 (what fun!). All 3 promoted sides are in the bottom 6, and I'd wager there's a good chance they all finish there or worse.
I agree with your point about the Championship not being all milk & honey when we bounced around the middle of it for years, but its generally more even in the sense anyone can beat anyone. |
But for those cases there are Millwall, Stoke, Preston, Bristol, QPR etc. Teams who finish mid-table - lower-mid-table almost every season. Like we used to. There is a lot of mid-table fodder who are consistently unlikely to go up or down. | | | |
| To say that there is.... on 15:17 - Oct 14 with 1408 views | _clive_baker_ |
| To say that there is.... on 15:05 - Oct 14 by withyblue |
I'm not sure you understand what jeopardy is. Jeopardy is danger of loss harm, or failure. Its not about predictability.
In the Championship the bottom 3 are relegated and the top 6 have the possibility of promotion to the Premier League. That adds up to 9/24 (37.5%) spots which offer potential reward/punishment . In the Premier League the top 7 can qualify for Europe and bottom three are relegated, which adds up to 10/20 (50%).
As the Championship season is longer than the Premier League and more points are available , mid-table sides often know, by around the final third of the season that there have too many points to be relegated but too few to finish in the top 6. From that point, all jeopardy is effectively gone from their season.
In the Premier League, where there are fewer games and fewer points available, teams in the middle of the table can not be confident they either have too many points for relegation or too few to achieve European qualification until a later point in the season, so there is generally greater jeopardy. Most of the league know they are generally only one bad run of form away from being dragged into a relegation battle, where the risk is one of high cost. That is a high jeopardy situation. |
Your %'s might ring true if every side is even and its down to equal chance.
The point is that's further from the truth in the premier league vs. the Championship. There's such a slim, slim chance we finish any higher than about 12th. You only have to look at the historic performance of newly promoted sides to see that, whereas in the Championship the jump isn't as big. We proved it last season, a couple are making a good fist of it this season too. Very rare to see anyone 1/7 on in the Championship like City are when they host teams like us. | | | |
| Thanks, but I do know what jeopardy means... on 15:22 - Oct 14 with 1374 views | withyblue |
| Thanks, but I do know what jeopardy means... on 15:12 - Oct 14 by Bloots |
...I is clever.
As I said, unless you play a team in your mini league, there is very little jeopardy. When we lost to City or Liverpool, nobody really cared because it was predictable and "wouldn't define our season".....that's what we kept getting told.
You can probably take out the top 6, 7 or even 8 in the Prem and say that results against them don't matter, they offer no jeopardy.
Anyway, I originally said "unpredictable" anyway. So there. |
In the same way that teams in a Championship relegation battle won't have their seasons defined by results against Leeds, Burnley, and Sheff Utd. In any league, results against teams around you will always matter more. | | | |
| Starting to care less and less about the Premier League on 15:26 - Oct 14 with 1353 views | TresBonne |
Really agree with the majority of this thread. I've said on every away game so far, get me back to Wycombe away...
While it's great for the club and don't get me wrong, I'm so happy to be here, it's just not the same is it. So bored of it already. And there's another international break in what, four weeks?! |  | | |
| To say that there is.... on 15:31 - Oct 14 with 1326 views | withyblue |
| To say that there is.... on 15:17 - Oct 14 by _clive_baker_ |
Your %'s might ring true if every side is even and its down to equal chance.
The point is that's further from the truth in the premier league vs. the Championship. There's such a slim, slim chance we finish any higher than about 12th. You only have to look at the historic performance of newly promoted sides to see that, whereas in the Championship the jump isn't as big. We proved it last season, a couple are making a good fist of it this season too. Very rare to see anyone 1/7 on in the Championship like City are when they host teams like us. |
In the last decade Aston Villa, Burnley, Brighton, Leicester, Wolves, Newcastle have all qualified for Europe not long after being promoted. Brentford, Sheff Utd, Bournemouth , Fulham have all finished top-half.
Of course, in our case it will be extremely difficult to replicate any of that for a season or two. We were playing in league one 18 months ago. | | | |
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