If my predictions don't quite pan out, I'd take 12th. The danger of coming much higher than that without getting promoted is that people take notice of how well we're doing and rip the spine out of the team.
You all seem very optomistic but the fact is the team sets up to spoil & destroy the opposition playing rather than being more positive or creative. So we will be safe but far more likely to end up somewhere near where we are now - say 16th to 18th. All that said, he has eventually given Murrey some game time so there is hope and if we do get in a striker on loan who knows where the net is then I will change my opinion.
I hear what you say Chris, but believe this team has enough about it to come twelth from where we are now. A better finish than we managed under BR and Malky would be a beautiful, Churchill style two fingers up at media types who waxed lyrical about them from day one but didn't give Sean the time of day.
It's called 'playing to your strengths'. There's little point in trying to do something that your players at the moment can't do or aren't good enough to do.
I don't disagree with that BB (playing to your strengths). Personaly though I have always felt SD has always just set his ambitions this season at survival & no more. As a result he has not risked playing inexperienced players (until recently) whilst I would have prefered to watch a team playing like they did against Spurs each week than the team that regularly (my opinion) plays turgid games such as Coventry away or Palace or Forest at home. So as we come to the Forest return game the question is does SD consider that they are still a threat to us? If he does he will set out the standard away formular to stifle the opposition and first and formost not give the 3 points away. To be fair we are actually set up better to play away from home but my beef is that I honestly believe that with a little more ambition from the start we could have been challenging in the top half rather than mid to lower half of the table. I believe we do have strengths that could have been utilised but were not risked. Maybe he has learned or maybe he has found a compromise. Or maybe he'll drop Murrey to the bench and play Jenkins to minimise the danger of losing at Forest. ok, he probably won't go that far......
Hi Chris. I am a little concerned that one or two people are beginning to give the impression that because we are a reasonable amount ahead of the teams in the three positions of doom, we are home and dry and relegation is out of the question. From my childhood many years ago, I remember a tale all about a hare and a tortoise, and I'm sure most people are familiar with it too. Whilst I am not sure that our current team is best described as a hare, and it may be a little disrespectful to describe teams below us as tortioses, there may be a lesson to be learned. But I really welcome youth being given a spot in the team, something I have advocated from the first game of the season even if the goal for the season was not to be relegated. But goal setting is a completely different subject.
We could catch up an 11 point deficit on 6th place. Ok, maybe it's unlikely and a bit optimistic....but we are capable of doing it. If we loan anyone else in...it could add that extra bit of quality that we need in our side to challenge the better teams. Either way, I think we should be looking up rather than down. I just can't see us getting relegated.
From what I see, (limited to the occasional live game and highlights) we are not far away from having a top 30 team. We have a defence now that looks fairly secure most of the time, a mid-field with different options and we can create chances. The one missing ingredient seems to be the person who can take those chances. It can take just one player such as a Barry Endean, who no one has ever heard of to come along and bang in some goals. Of course every team is on the lookout for that player, but sometimes you are just plain lucky to actually get one.
Hear here. I've made some derogatory comments about specific things Dyche has done this season, but I said from the start that his strategy was sound and that we'd have a better than usual finish to the campaign.
In 98/99, we were 10 points off a play-off spot with just 10 games left - then looked what happened so it is possible. Can this current squad do something like that? As it is currently, no. If we get a finisher in on loan, then possibly.
According to Wikipedia, Gifton Noel-Williams was with 10 but I don't know if that's just league or in all competitions.
Some very good comments. Yes, first of all we have to make sure we aren't relegated by why not start looking up! Play-offs might be a bit out of reach but a top-half finish certainly isn't Dyche is building a squad... recently we've only really had a first team, with little depth, but now you think there are quite a few positions where if we lose someone, we know we can bring someone in to do a job - although at the moment I'd say that's mainly the defence and central midfield. But even on the wings with Murray breaking through and Alex in on loan, we have 2 for each side! I'd say we are missing that 15 goals a season man, but Deeney and Garner certainly work their socks off,a nd if they can get a little scoring run, why can't one of them be that person! I would probably say we are a striker and another winger off being a top 10 side. We need that little bit more creativity (what Kightly gave us) and that one person who you are confident can finish. Otherwise, I do think that it is looking good for us!
I agree with everything you have said Kev. We definitely in a better, stronger position in terms of depth of squad than we have been in a long time. On the books (with players out on loan) we have 3 Keepers- SL, RG, JB 4 Right backs- LD, AT, LH, AM 5 Center backs, LD, AM, MT(inj), NN, DM, 2 Left backs- CD, LD 3 Right wing- AK, MY, SM(inj), TD 4 Center mid- JH, JE, RJ, PB, Left wing- SM, CF, SM(inj), TD Stirker- TD, JG, CI. All we need now is a striker who will score, we have the set up, and the quality to make chances, we just need someone to get their head, toe even arse on it!!! I would hold off getting a winger as we have Kacaniklic on the right, Murray on the left and still await Steven McGinn who could be our answer. If he is not, then we can look elsewhere. But the guy has been out for over a year and deserves a chance and a run in the team, simply to reward his patience. Im sure he would be broken if we just got someone in and over looked him.
Ah, but we had a certain GT as manager then. That I suspect is the big difference. With GT as manager now with the current squad, such a run of 8 wins & a draw from the last 9 games would be possible. With SD still learning the managerial ropes, I would suggest that such a run is virtually impossible. Still, we can but dream..........
