For those working out the chance of us getting top 2, it is actually pretty simple and almost in our own hands. Realistically, Saints need to win all our remaining fixtures. If we win all our games, we finish above Leeds, so ignore them. If we win our games, that includes beating Leicester, so we would just need them to draw or lose one of their other 3 games to finish above them. Ipswich would likely need to lose (maybe draw but depends on GD) one of their remaining fixtures. So it is actually pretty simple and I'm very confident that if we were to win all 5 of our games then we go up... the trouble is I am even more confident we don't get maximum points!
To illustrate the weird way that Ipswich's remaining fixtures fall, this is the order of the remaining kick-offs: Saints Leicester Saints Leeds Leicester v Saints Leeds Saints Ipswich Leicester Ipswich Leeds v Saints, and Ipswich, and Leicester No two matches kick-off simultaneously again until the final day.
Further to that I would say, if we win all of our remaining games, bearing in mind we have Leicester City and Leeds United away from home, then we deserve to go up. Let us see what happens - who'd have thought Leeds United would lose at home to Blackburn Rovers?
Leeds losing at home to Blackburn definitely makes our visit there than tiny bit easier to imagine us winning now too.
Shep, you/your avatar appears to have come out of the shadows. Is this a sign of your new-found confidence?
Copied from Twitter …. Saints have 5 games left. If they win these they will end on 96 points. So what do we need the others to do? Let’s start with Leeds; the points they have dropped now means that they can only get 6 more max IF Saints beat them. That leaves them on 93. Leicester next. They can only get 9 points max IF Saints beat them. That takes them to 97 points therefore they need to drop 2 points (to allow for the superior goal difference) they have WBA, PNE and Blackburn. Ipswich; they have 3 games left so they can end on 98 so they need to lose one game. They have Hull and Coventry (away) and Huddersfield last up (who are fighting relegation) So it is not impossible. It is the hope that kills you!!!
When it looked like 4 teams could be cruising past 100 points mid way through the season, Leicester are now the only ones mathematically who could even touch 100 points. As Don Goodman said during the Leeds game yesterday, it looked like we had 4 of the best teams the championship had ever seen, now I’d say that Burnley and Sheff Utd from last season are better than all of them
Not really. Whittaker has absolutely carried Plymouth single-handedly. Adarma's figures are good, but he misses at least one sitter for every goal he scores. Strong case for Sargent being picked ahead of Rutter imo. Norwich were w@nk while he was injured. Completely transformed them.
Ha, ha - no my anger at the 5-0 defeat at Sunderland has finally subsided. I change my avatar every now and then, I mean it's still a stylised cartoon I drew, you'll never see my ugly mug on here in real life. I don't mind chatting about Saints to be honest but usually I'm talking out of my arse and I have been so wrong so many times it's not even funny. Also being an old fart I've seen all of this before, life really does seem to go in circles.
Bet we lose to Preston now. So many Saints fans (on social media) getting cocky again thinking we are right back in the mix and like the top 3 should fear us because we are the 'form team' because we've just about scraped our way through 2 games whilst playing well for no more than half a game at a time. In reality it's still such a long shot, that the top 3 are purely focused on each other. Theres so much to do to even get to the position to be in with a shout on the final day. It's possible, and I'll be at St.Marys tomorrow night shouting the team on, but it's so unlikely that I really don't think it's worth looking any further ahead than the next game.
Yeah, if we were in the form of Oct-Jan then I would be a lot more hopeful but the truth is that we always keep the oppo in the game lately and concede far too many, that's why i'd like to see THB and Janny B as CBs with KWP at RB and preferably Bree at LB (but Manning or Jack are ok) and stick with it. We need clean sheets and then we have a great chance of 3 points because we almost always score.
Good graphic of games remaining for the top 4 and when they are played. Looking at those games, there isn't what I would call an easy set of games for anyone. All 4 teams could slip up at any time.
It'll be even worse that if we did lose, Would end our chances of Autos that Pompey basically guaranteed promotion to the championship.