So where will we finish this season?

[Jim Chimmerney]

If we get two defenders as good as Walker and Kilgallon, I'll be amazed.
Although Naysmith was injured, last season we had a back four of Walker, Morgan, Kilgallon and Naysmith on our books at the start of the season.
You really think we're going to approach that?

Probaly not but I said overall (and I'm ignoring the fact that loads on here wanted shut of Killa as his attitude was wrong etc). Considering we started last season with a midfield of France, Monty, Howard and Quinn..........

 

[lenners]

Naysmith's irrelevent as he didn't feature at all. We may see Walker back. Nosworthy would be a decentr signing. That said, it looks like we'll be weaker at the back. Then again, we could be stronger in midfield / going forward, and I really hope Blackwell has learned some lessons and uses this a bit more.

UTB

As it turned out he didn't feature though I seem to recall he was actually expected back much earlier than he eventually was.
I don't see anyone in our frontline who has the speed and ability of Camara.

 

[mattbianco1]

Get Nosworthy and Bartley and a left back then i'm afraid we're going to Wembley again!

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

I don't see anyone in our frontline who has the speed and ability of Camara.

True, but then again Camara only made a few more appearances than Naysmith ! Different kind of player but Boggy might surprise a few this season and as you know, I keep hoping Ched is the player we invested so heavily in.

 

[BornOnShorehamStreet]

You could argue being in the bottom half means we will be fighting relegation as it's likely to be the usual tight league.
I do think it's a shit league, the worst we've been in for years but sadly within that context we've got weaker over the last 12 months and we weren't good enough last year.
At the moment, it would be difficult to pick three teams definitely worse than us but I'm hoping they're out there.
Maybe Blackie will pull off a managerial miracle, Chedwyn will score 30 goals, Kozzy will win player of the year for 25 assists from long throws and we'll go up.
But we appear leaden, slow, no depth - in fact not even a full team less than three weeks from kick-off - and lacking drive from the top.
Difficult to see anything other than a season of wading through treacle.

Good Grief!

I agree with Len.......

 

[Ollessendro]

Help me out a little... What you describe could be a good or bad thing. Can you give me examples of what worries you?

Where did I state that I was worried about the situation? Blackwell is a yes man and I've accpeted that. But him bowing down to the board wanting to sell best players, decrease the wage bill and settle for mediocrity for the time being isn't a major issue for me. I've accepted it.

The big issue for me JD is KB's merits as a manager. I just don't think he is up to the job. His tactics are awful, his man management has been brought into question, his choice of players in usually poor, he never gets the best out of players and he never has a plan B. Some people will say that he has had one hand tied behind his back, but I still feel that with the resources he has had then he should have done better. Yes he's decreased the wage bill and been forced to sell good players, but he inherited a fantastic squad. He's also had numrous decent players who haven't performaned under him or who he has never given a chance. Some might say he has been unlcuky with injuries, but it was incredibly naive of him to have such a thin squad and no defensivce cover. He was lucky to inherit a very good team and over time (as he has made his mark on the team) then he has been shown to be out of his depth.

 

[alcoblade]

As it turned out he didn't feature though I seem to recall he was actually expected back much earlier than he eventually was.
I don't see anyone in our frontline who has the speed and ability of Camara.

I really can't remember, but did Camara get past the magical 3 goal mark for us? Bogdanovich scored 16 in a poor side. Britton is definitley a step up for us. Getting Ward and sicknote Williamson back is key to our season, if we make the right defensive additions. And I really hope we don't keep on trying to justify Evans' expensive waste of a signing. It really has to be his last chance.

UTB

 

[alcoblade]

Where did I state that I was worried about the situation? Blackwell is a yes man and I've accpeted that. But him bowing down to the board wanting to sell best players, decrease the wage bill and settle for mediocrity for the time being isn't a major issue for me. I've accepted it.

It doesn't matter if you've accepted it or not. All managers in employment do as they're told, or they're off. Blackwell is no different.

His management style is definitley questionable and I really believe we'll try and change it next season. I have major doubts about his ability to do it, but I'll give him chance to prove he can.

UTB

 

[Ollessendro]

It doesn't matter if you've accepted it or not. All managers in employment do as they're told, or they're off. Blackwell is no different.
UTB

Agree mostly, although I feel that not many managers would have put up with what he has put up with so easily. I get the impression KB knows he is out of his depth and hence readily accepts everything the board throws at him very easily. However I admit this could be harsh and I do not know anything about the inner goings on and hence am not in the best position to talk about it.

 

[alcoblade]

Agree mostly, although I feel that not many managers would have put up with what he has put up with so easily. I get the impression KB knows he is out of his depth and hence readily accepts everything the board throws at him very easily. However I admit this could be harsh and I do not know anything about the inner goings on and hence am not in the best position to talk about it.

To be honest, I reckon the problem is the opposite - Blackwell rates himself too highly in more than a few ways. But it doesn't matter - we'll either have a god run up until Chritmas and we'll agree he's changed, or he'll be ousted - IMHO.

UTB

 

[Wards]

5th or 6th

 

[lenners]

I really can't remember, but did Camara get past the magical 3 goal mark for us? Bogdanovich scored 16 in a poor side. Britton is definitley a step up for us. Getting Ward and sicknote Williamson back is key to our season, if we make the right defensive additions. And I really hope we don't keep on trying to justify Evans' expensive waste of a signing. It really has to be his last chance.

UTB

No idea but he had a scientifically proven 1768.7% more impact than Chedwyn Evans while he was on the pitch.
Pace is an ingredient we have virtually none of unless Ward stays fit and even then that is likely to only be out wide.

 

[kop_blade9]

If bookies are that good at rating why did they have QPR and all their big spending at favs last year?

 

[Ollessendro]

If bookies are that good at rating why did they have QPR and all their big spending at favs last year?

They got it wrong.

Outlier, randomness whatever you want to call it. Bookies get things wrong, but this point is they get it right most of the time (or at least more than their customers).

 

[JohnDenver]

Where did I state that I was worried about the situation? Blackwell is a yes man and I've accpeted that. But him bowing down to the board wanting to sell best players, decrease the wage bill and settle for mediocrity for the time being isn't a major issue for me. I've accepted it.

"Yes Man" is a negative term, so I assume you'd not approve of Blackwell being one. I think you've answered the question as to how he's a yes man - the agreement to sale of players.

What I don't get is why Blackwell's critics use the term "yes man" as a stick to beat him with in this context. Any manager has to accept a chain of command, and has to work within a budget. Like I said, on those grounds Bassett would have been a terrible yes man.

As such, the only valid use of the term for Blackwell would be if he was a sycophant or a pure puppet of the board. I don't see any evidence that either is the case. He carries out his job as he sees fit, within a budget. Whatever his failings are, I don't think this is one of them.

 

[Grecian2000]

Any manager has to accept a chain of command, and has to work within a budget. Like I said, on those grounds Bassett would have been a terrible yes man.

I think the term is used because he goes along without a word said in public about it. This is where he gets credit from the board because it shields the real decision makers from the blame. The fans see it differently though.

Bassett made it quite plain, especially when it came to the sale of Brian Deane, that the board were going against his (Bassett's) better judgement. Spackman made it even more plain that he wasn't happy with the family silver being hocked.

 

[DuncDisorderly]

Betting odds are influenced by the amount of money going onto that choice as well as the likelyhood of it happening. If you put £100k on the Blades, you would see the odds drop.

Anyway, not surprisingly, I feel we're pretty similar in strength to last year. We have replaced a few with better (Britton, Boggy), but are still a couple of defenders short. If the two or three expected signings do come in, and we avoid the worst of the injuries then I think we are top six. Say what you like about Blackwell but he is competant as a manager, and knows how to get a team up into the top spots, regardless of the lack of entertainment value.

However I do agree that the relative strengths of all the Championship sides has fallen. You only have to look at some of the names in the Transfer Tracker (http://www.sufc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10418~1999859,00.html") to see how crap most of these sides are becoming. I know that many think we haven't brought in the quality we need but when you look at some of the lists of other clubs signings, vs. ours, ours doesn't look that bad after all...

 

[JohnDenver]

I think the term is used because he goes along without a word said in public about it. This is where he gets credit from the board because it shields the real decision makers from the blame. The fans see it differently though.

Bassett made it quite plain, especially when it came to the sale of Brian Deane, that the board were going against his (Bassett's) better judgement. Spackman made it even more plain that he wasn't happy with the family silver being hocked.

I really don't see it that way at all.

If Blackwell were to be quoted in tomorrow's paper complaining that he can't assemble the squad he wants within his given budget, how would you react? Credit him for his honesty? Criticise him for moaning when his budget is still healthy by Championship standards? None of the above?

The reason Blackwell offered to quit after Wembley was because of his unhappy experience of running a club in the midst of budget cuts (Leeds). So I think it's quite clear he'd like more resources to play with - who wouldn't?

But having decided to stay on after Wembley, I think he understands the constraints and is willing to live by them. No amount of whinging in the media would be acceptable in my eyes.

Or am I missing the point here?

 

[Ollessendro]

"Yes Man" is a negative term, so I assume you'd not approve of Blackwell being one. I think you've answered the question as to how he's a yes man - the agreement to sale of players.

What I don't get is why Blackwell's critics use the term "yes man" as a stick to beat him with in this context. Any manager has to accept a chain of command, and has to work within a budget. Like I said, on those grounds Bassett would have been a terrible yes man.

As such, the only valid use of the term for Blackwell would be if he was a sycophant or a pure puppet of the board. I don't see any evidence that either is the case. He carries out his job as he sees fit, within a budget. Whatever his failings are, I don't think this is one of them.

Perhaps you are right. As I stated previously, I think many managers would have kicked up a big fuss about players like Naughton and Walker being sold. I think Grecian might be onto something when he states that previous Blades managers have challenged the board publically, but I don't feel strong enough to argue the point. Blackwell has had a lot to put up with (decreasing wage bill, sale of players and his transfer surpuls is a massive one) which I would have expected him to get pissed off about and challenge the baord, BUT this is not my qualm with him (as already said). For reasons stated earlier in this thread I think he is a shit manager and that is more important than whether he bends over to McCabe or not.

 

[lenners]

If one of our rumoured signings is Alex Bruce, anyone want to significantly downgrade their prediction?

 

[Kenilworth]

Get Nosworthy and Bartley and a left back then i'm afraid we're going to Wembley again!

Don't want to set foot in that place again.
Shit hole full of haunting memories of failure and despair.

If we do get to the POF again, by any miracle or monster slice of luck going, I will be thinking seriously about watching it on the telly instead and saving myself a whole load of wedge and a shed load of grief.

3 x POFs = 3 x defeats with no goals scored. Makes the World Cup look like a dream come true.

 

[shorehamview]

We'll finish. first. Champions. Top. We'll totally annihilate all of the second rate chancers in this poxy league, and be promoted well before the clocks go forward next spring. Top, by a country mile. Ched top goal scorer, Monty second highest. Record number of clean sheets, and Leeds thrashed like ginger step-kids both home and away.





Or ninth if we're lucky. I'm not sure which yet.

 

[GAZBLADE]

7th for me. Close but no cigar yet again!!!
UTB

 

[Scottyblade]

Like some others for me it depends on who we augment the squad with, I'm hoping for at least 4 more, hopefully decent, players - 3 in view of directly improving the first 11 in which circumstance I think we'll make the play-offs in similar fashion to a couple of years ago (maybe not as highly and comfortably as 3rd but all the same). Similarly if we're looking at just a couple who do improve upon the defense then I think 5th-8th. But we'll see won't we, difficult to predict this division at the best of times nevermind before we know at least 3/4's of the backline we will probably kick off the season with. I wouldn't even call myself optimistic in my prediction and im not even a huge Blackwell fan but I struggle to see the logic of why with what will hopefully be a more settled line-up and one would imagine and hope share less injury misfortunes than last season as to how we'd finish below 8th which we did with constant and incessant disruption. Or Maybe its just me and I should be more miserable and join the hyperbole and say 23rd as long as we get rid of Blackwell before the last game or else 24th.

 

[beightonblade]

Speculation .....

Not long to go before we start seeing facts

Cheap as chips in my opinion is an awfull manager and hence a BIG YES man...... good managers wouldn't take the shit... they'd be off in a flash to anaother club probably with a pay rise, but cheap as chips knows the ££££'s he's paid at BDTBL is his best option......

yes Mr McCabe ....
yes Mr McCabe ....
yes Mr McCabe ....
yes Mr McCabe ....
yes Mr McCabe ....

 

[JohnDenver]

If one of our rumoured signings is Alex Bruce, anyone want to significantly downgrade their prediction?

Tricky one that. Is a rubbish player better than no player at all?

I guess we could get him to lie down on the edge of the penalty area and form a human chicane for 90 mins.

 

[raul]

Presumably you've got Monty lined up for some programme selling in that scenario then?


Fizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.......

 

[Revolution]

I wouldn't even call myself optimistic in my prediction and im not even a huge Blackwell fan but I struggle to see the logic of why with what will hopefully be a more settled line-up and one would imagine and hope share less injury misfortunes than last season as to how we'd finish below 8th which we did with constant and incessant disruption.

One reason is that we had Killa and Naughton for half a season to help us, whereas this year at the back only Morgs is as good. We may be no worse than we were at the end of last year, but there's a good argument we are worse than we were before the January 2010 window opened.

 

[Scottyblade]

That's true, we did have Killa and Walker first half of season, most people wanted shut of the former if I recall. I think there is definitely some truth to what you're saying mate but we all know the circumstances there and for me as well I thought our season well and truly derailed when we struggled to replace them properly, especially Walker in that regard, but what has been has gone and looking at the team we finished with and how we are shaping up now - I think we'll be better, which is progress however minimal in my book, but like I say we're all looking at who we will bring in in these next couple of weeks to get a fuller picture but if we can get another decent centre half (Bartley?) to compliment Nosworthy-Morgs (i've heard the Bruce link, i haven't seen enough of him) and hopefully a couple of full-backs I think we'll be in for another top-end season with eyes on that top 6.

 

[Guesty]

Around the 10-13 mark. Below Leeds.