| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now 07:03 - Mar 11 with 1476 views | Dubtractor |
Almost no margin for error at all, and those home games against boro and Millwall are pretty much the definition of must win games.
2 really damaging results in the last few days, and the combination of mistakes from us plus remarkably poor refereeing decisions have made it feel even more contentious.
Fan mood can be so easily swayed can't it? Take that mad last minute out from last night and this place would be buzzing, instead it feels like a lot of us have (understandably) thrown the towel in.
Oh well. The playoffs are always fun.... |  |
| |  |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:16 - Mar 11 with 1318 views | SuperKieranMcKenna |
I’ve been clinging onto the feint hope of a 5 game winning run, but we are past approaching the end of the season, and I just don’t see this squad doing that now.
Can accept going in at half time 2-0 down having had a good go, but yet again we were lethargic and passive. This against a side who had very little to play for and an extensive injury list. Boro have also been chipping away at our goal difference.
The two pen incidents in the last two weeks were cr@p but in the wider context of the season largely irrelevant. I dare say Boro and Cov have also had some dreadful decisions against them. We’ve simply not been consistent enough. |  | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:44 - Mar 11 with 1231 views | davblue |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:16 - Mar 11 by SuperKieranMcKenna |
I’ve been clinging onto the feint hope of a 5 game winning run, but we are past approaching the end of the season, and I just don’t see this squad doing that now.
Can accept going in at half time 2-0 down having had a good go, but yet again we were lethargic and passive. This against a side who had very little to play for and an extensive injury list. Boro have also been chipping away at our goal difference.
The two pen incidents in the last two weeks were cr@p but in the wider context of the season largely irrelevant. I dare say Boro and Cov have also had some dreadful decisions against them. We’ve simply not been consistent enough. |
Longest unbeaten run is 6 games, think that says it all really. We go well then drop a result and we are never really able to make up ground. |  | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:46 - Mar 11 with 1216 views | billlm |
I think your clutching a bit,.I hope your day out at Wembley is fruitful |  | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:47 - Mar 11 with 1213 views | portmanking |
You simply can't trust this group to see things over the line. That's the bottom line. We've been there or thereabouts all season, but always chasing our tail, and that mentality has left us always feeling like we're behind the 8 ball. | | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:51 - Mar 11 with 1196 views | MattinLondon |
We need to win all of our remaining matches for automatic promotion. Last night and Leicester put pay to having some sort of leeway.
It’s not impossible to win all of our remaining matches, and both Boro and Millwall could well have surprising results. But, the fact that we’re not in a far stronger position reflects badly on the team and KM. |  | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:55 - Mar 11 with 1167 views | Herbivore |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:51 - Mar 11 by MattinLondon |
We need to win all of our remaining matches for automatic promotion. Last night and Leicester put pay to having some sort of leeway.
It’s not impossible to win all of our remaining matches, and both Boro and Millwall could well have surprising results. But, the fact that we’re not in a far stronger position reflects badly on the team and KM. |
We don't need to win all of our remaining games. Boro aren't going to win 9 of their 10 remaining games and they'd need to do that for us to need to win all of our remaining games. We likely need to win 8 of 10 though, ideally not losing more than 1, and the 8 wins need to include wins against Boro and Millwall. |  |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:02 - Mar 11 with 1116 views | Herbivore |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:16 - Mar 11 by SuperKieranMcKenna |
I’ve been clinging onto the feint hope of a 5 game winning run, but we are past approaching the end of the season, and I just don’t see this squad doing that now.
Can accept going in at half time 2-0 down having had a good go, but yet again we were lethargic and passive. This against a side who had very little to play for and an extensive injury list. Boro have also been chipping away at our goal difference.
The two pen incidents in the last two weeks were cr@p but in the wider context of the season largely irrelevant. I dare say Boro and Cov have also had some dreadful decisions against them. We’ve simply not been consistent enough. |
In a tight promotion fight you can't just dismiss the shite refereeing decisions as insignificant. This calendar year we've had three stoppage time decisions or non-decisions that really shouldn't happen at this level that have cost us 6 points. It's easy to say others have probably had decisions go against them, but not decisions like this that change a result right at the death and directly impact how many points we have. And these aren't the only decisions we've had against us either, just the ones that have had a massive impact.
Yes, there's lots of areas where we could have been better. We keep throwing in these ropey first half displays and giving ourselves an uphill battle. We've not managed the game situation well at times, including last night at 3-2 up. That can all be true alongside it also being true that we've been cost points by terrible decisions that, if given correctly, would see us sat in second going into our last 10 games. | |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:02 - Mar 11 with 1117 views | SWLondonBlue93 |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:55 - Mar 11 by Herbivore |
We don't need to win all of our remaining games. Boro aren't going to win 9 of their 10 remaining games and they'd need to do that for us to need to win all of our remaining games. We likely need to win 8 of 10 though, ideally not losing more than 1, and the 8 wins need to include wins against Boro and Millwall. |
Eight is the number of wins I landed on, seven plus some draws might do it if Boro drop the ball. We need to improve our away record significantly, which is not impossible but there's precious little evidence to suggest that will happen. | | | |
Login to get fewer ads
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:03 - Mar 11 with 1116 views | Steve_M |
I think we needed to win one of those last two games really, just can not afford to only turn up for the second half two games in a row. I can't get that annoyed by the penalty last night, it was soft and there was far more of a foul on Furlong right after he missed the ball but Saturday's one still rankles.
All we can do now is get the win on Saturday and move onto Millwall and the international break. Hopefully we can have some injuries clear up by the time we play again after that. On the plus side, when we do play with real intensity we are very hard to live with, just haven't done it enough so far this season.
Shame Boro have two easy home games now, although them dropping points in one of them would help. |  |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:04 - Mar 11 with 1110 views | BlueNomad |
It’s the Norwich game that worries me. |  | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:06 - Mar 11 with 1097 views | Churchman |
It’s not a question of throwing the towel in. The team isn’t good enough. It’s as simple as that. The players for the most part are great individually and usually they’ll collectively play well for a period of a game. But then we will unravel, or start badly, or fall away.
When I watched Millwall the other week, they played a high tempo, up n at em, intense game for 90 mins. Absolutely ravaged Charlton. We don’t play that way at all. We play very much a Premier League way. Passing football which is great. But not all the players are good enough to play it.
There is insufficient unity in the team and it reminds me of L1 side half a season after KM joined. Disjointed. Playing out from the back? Great but there are alternatives to mix it up if your players are all marked up.
At times it’s brainless too which makes us an easy team to play against. All three goals were idiotic. Stoke Reserves didn’t have to do much to score them. Just press and watch us screw it up. It wasn’t good. I actually thought we started the game ok. First ten mins we got a grip of it. Looking good.
Then the cheap misplaced passes kicked in, the 50/50s all went Stoke’s way and we stopped playing. We looked soft and were all over the place long before the comedy first goal. The cliche of you have to earn the right to play is correct and we didn’t do that.
Second half? We were front foot good for 30 mins, but part of that was Stoke playing what we have we hold when they should have pushed for a third. People talk about the penalty, but you won’t get luckier than our first goal. The next two were good goals and well done Taylor for getting his after that howler.
Then we folded up, stopped, caved in. Our supporters were excellent. The team wasn’t. Referees? Not had the best of fortune with them but it’s swings and roundabouts and if you control the game, what they do isn’t important. You don’t collect bookings either.
I’m not going to criticise individuals. I hate that because it serves no purpose. We are nowhere near the autos and the play offs assuming we make them could produce a brilliant time or a miserable one. We are that inconsistent.
We didn’t lose, the players gave 100% and we are what we are. We move on and see how we do next time. |  | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:09 - Mar 11 with 1080 views | Chrisd |
Still feel that there will be plenty of twists and turns come the end of the season. What concerns me is the amount of performances we’ve had like the first half last night. I’ve lost count where we have looked toothless and ineffective this season. I was pleased last night we didn’t lose, but so frustrating to drop two points in the last minute of injury time. I’m hoping for the best, but my logic tells me we aren’t consistently good enough for a top 2 finish and the Play Offs look our most likely destination come May. | |
| |
| Hard not to fee aggrieved innit on 08:09 - Mar 11 with 1081 views | Dyland |
If that's a pen last night then so was the one not given Saturday. So that's at least two points, or four if we're getting the rub. However, pretty bad defending at the end there last night. And if we can't find some big boy composure, even IF Boro et al spectacularly fall apart, there's no chance of top two.
Also re bemoaning reffing... two really crap first half performances in a row... at the business end of the season. That's nowt to do with anyone but ourselves. As has been remarked a loit this season, we lack something mentally imho. Can't just be confidence surely?
Nice to see Dara have a little tantrum at the end there. Maybe we can use this to our benefit. But as you say, there is no room for error now. I haven't thrown the towel in just yet.
COYFB |  |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:14 - Mar 11 with 1063 views | Herbivore |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:03 - Mar 11 by Steve_M |
I think we needed to win one of those last two games really, just can not afford to only turn up for the second half two games in a row. I can't get that annoyed by the penalty last night, it was soft and there was far more of a foul on Furlong right after he missed the ball but Saturday's one still rankles.
All we can do now is get the win on Saturday and move onto Millwall and the international break. Hopefully we can have some injuries clear up by the time we play again after that. On the plus side, when we do play with real intensity we are very hard to live with, just haven't done it enough so far this season.
Shame Boro have two easy home games now, although them dropping points in one of them would help. |
The frustrating thing with the penalty last night for me isn't just that it's another stoppage time game changing decision that's gone against us, although that's bad enough, but the inconsistency from the ref throughout the game. It was much more of a foul on Azon in the build up to the first goal than it was for the penalty, for example. There was a clear tug on the shirt as well as a nibble at his legs before the defender eventually gets the ball. There were other incidents where players were held or pulled or given a little shove and it was a coin toss whether he gave it or not. Then right at the end, a player's shoulder gets brushed and he throws himself to the ground and the massive numpty gives it. I can't remember a season where we've had three or these kinds of incidents in the space of a couple of months that have all gone against us. So I am feeling the injustice. We absolutely need to be much better, especially first half in games, but feck me we are also being actively screwed over by terrible decisions as well. | |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 09:28 - Mar 11 with 874 views | tractorboy1978 |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 07:47 - Mar 11 by portmanking |
You simply can't trust this group to see things over the line. That's the bottom line. We've been there or thereabouts all season, but always chasing our tail, and that mentality has left us always feeling like we're behind the 8 ball. |
Chasing our tails is spot on. I've seen a lot about us not being able to win from behind but for me the bigger issue has been how many away games we've failed to get started in meaning we have to try and find something in the later stages of games.
Birmingham
Preston
Bristol City
Boro
Hull - we managed to get over the line, but started poorly
Oxford
Blackburn (twice)
Leicester
Sheff Utd
Stoke
7 points from the above. Is that an unfair reflection of those games? Not IMO. | | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 10:08 - Mar 11 with 816 views | portmanking |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 09:28 - Mar 11 by tractorboy1978 |
Chasing our tails is spot on. I've seen a lot about us not being able to win from behind but for me the bigger issue has been how many away games we've failed to get started in meaning we have to try and find something in the later stages of games.
Birmingham
Preston
Bristol City
Boro
Hull - we managed to get over the line, but started poorly
Oxford
Blackburn (twice)
Leicester
Sheff Utd
Stoke
7 points from the above. Is that an unfair reflection of those games? Not IMO. |
We are dreadfully slow starters away from home. I don't understand it either. You would've thought Stoke had the carrot of closing the gap to Boro last night in the opening 30 mins, the way they harried and committed bodies forward.
Do this group believe they can be PL players? Do they feel that they'd be discarded within weeks of promotion?
The 23/24 squad was so unique in that they knew it was a once-in-a-career chance to get to the PL. Do these lads have the collective mentality to genuinely compete at the highest level? | | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 10:18 - Mar 11 with 793 views | Swansea_Blue |
I think it was before last night tbh. We needed 3 points against Stoke. Things have suddenly become a lot harder and we’re now relying on us improving recent form and other teams worsening theirs. There may be twists yet though. |  |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 13:06 - Mar 11 with 564 views | LA_Tractor_Boy |
Top 2 isn't happening.
We might have the ability, but IMO there is no way this squad has the heart or desire to win 7 or 8 matches out of 10.
Our best (only) hope is that we can rely on some individual brilliance from Jaden in the play-offs. | | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 15:55 - Mar 11 with 386 views | Dubtractor |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 09:28 - Mar 11 by tractorboy1978 |
Chasing our tails is spot on. I've seen a lot about us not being able to win from behind but for me the bigger issue has been how many away games we've failed to get started in meaning we have to try and find something in the later stages of games.
Birmingham
Preston
Bristol City
Boro
Hull - we managed to get over the line, but started poorly
Oxford
Blackburn (twice)
Leicester
Sheff Utd
Stoke
7 points from the above. Is that an unfair reflection of those games? Not IMO. |
I posted on here back in January (i think it was January anyway) that us finishing top 2 depended on us getting more consistent away from home. As per your list, we've had some really poor away days, as well as some good ones, but the poor ones leave you wondering where it came from as we all know we can be so much better. | |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 16:31 - Mar 11 with 315 views | tractorboy1978 |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 15:55 - Mar 11 by Dubtractor |
I posted on here back in January (i think it was January anyway) that us finishing top 2 depended on us getting more consistent away from home. As per your list, we've had some really poor away days, as well as some good ones, but the poor ones leave you wondering where it came from as we all know we can be so much better. |
Too often we seem to start with the mindset that we can try and control possession without any real urgency for the first hour or so and then step on the gas/make changes and win it later in the game.
It's really frustrating because when we score the first goal we are imperious. The 6 times we have gone ahead we have won. Conversely, we've gone behind 10 times and not won any of them. I think the lesson there is that we need to be starting faster and with more intensity rather than we lack the bottle to come from behind. | | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 16:31 - Mar 11 with 314 views | Blue_Uprising |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 15:55 - Mar 11 by Dubtractor |
I posted on here back in January (i think it was January anyway) that us finishing top 2 depended on us getting more consistent away from home. As per your list, we've had some really poor away days, as well as some good ones, but the poor ones leave you wondering where it came from as we all know we can be so much better. |
When we came out for the second half it felt that suddenly we wanted to threaten the goal. I know that is overly simplistic to say that etc
But I feel too often this season possession has trumped attacking instinct. For example being happy to recycle possession repeatedly from advanced wide positions back to centre back / go
Very slow build up play through the pivot. Very different to 23/24.
Suddenly yesterday we were intent on moving quickly through the pivot, driving directly at the goal from centre mid, taking on full backs and using the overlap 70% of the time rather than 20% of the time.
It’s like they turned a switch.
People say we have tried to play in a way that would suit the premier league
Let’s try playing a way that suits the championship first and get there. In any event most of the first team will have to change.
No successful, surviving team in the prem plays as slow as us anyway. |  | | |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 17:23 - Mar 11 with 231 views | Blue_Heath |
Posted yesterday we needed a Barnsley style 2011 win, we nearly did, had we got that we could have built momentum. As it stands we can only hope we get a ref decision to balance things out in the play offs. | |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 17:37 - Mar 11 with 202 views | Joey_Joe_Joe_Junior |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 08:14 - Mar 11 by Herbivore |
The frustrating thing with the penalty last night for me isn't just that it's another stoppage time game changing decision that's gone against us, although that's bad enough, but the inconsistency from the ref throughout the game. It was much more of a foul on Azon in the build up to the first goal than it was for the penalty, for example. There was a clear tug on the shirt as well as a nibble at his legs before the defender eventually gets the ball. There were other incidents where players were held or pulled or given a little shove and it was a coin toss whether he gave it or not. Then right at the end, a player's shoulder gets brushed and he throws himself to the ground and the massive numpty gives it. I can't remember a season where we've had three or these kinds of incidents in the space of a couple of months that have all gone against us. So I am feeling the injustice. We absolutely need to be much better, especially first half in games, but feck me we are also being actively screwed over by terrible decisions as well. |
We were at fault for all 3 goals, you know things that we can control. You were on here moaning about the amount of penalties Leicester got the year we went up, seems to be a constant with you and officials. |  |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 17:50 - Mar 11 with 172 views | Joey_Joe_Joe_Junior |
Let's see how M'boro get on when they can almost taste it. We ran out of steam a little in those last few home games against mid table fodder (Watford and Boro).
I am more concerned about our ability to win 6-7 on the bounce and we probably need 7 wins and a few draws minimum to have a chance, likely 8 wins. i can't see it. | |
| |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 17:50 - Mar 11 with 169 views | Herbivore |
| Feels like sh1t or bust for top 2 now on 17:37 - Mar 11 by Joey_Joe_Joe_Junior |
We were at fault for all 3 goals, you know things that we can control. You were on here moaning about the amount of penalties Leicester got the year we went up, seems to be a constant with you and officials. |
Piss off, mate. | |
| |
| |
By continuing to use the site, you agree to our use of cookies and to abide by our Terms and Conditions.
