Our current predicament: which way will we go

[Ollessendro]

Genuinly interested in people's views on what our current performances and form means. I am genuinly torn.

I think even the most hardened 'knocker' couldn't deny that we are playing well, but still losing games. We are dominated possession, playing with passion and commitment, creating chances and running games. However we are conceding sloppy goals and cannot find the back of the net. Lady luck is not on our side (hitting the woodwork, poor officiating, keepers playing well etc) and there is an argument we should be pulling away from the relegation zone. However we have slipped into the bottom 3 and our form on paper is simply awful. Only Scunthorpe have had worse results in 2011. So what dpoes it all mean?

1) we are doomed. Playing well and losing games is a sign of a team heading down. Hust the same as a team heading for promotion would win games they are not playing well in, we are doing the converse. Relegation can be smelt.

2) we'll turn it around. Adams has instilled passion, commitment and pride. We are playing better and will pull away from the relegation zone. The law of averages suggests that we simply cannot keep having bad luck. The poor decisions will start going our away, the ball will hit the bar and go in (rather than bounce out) and we'll start taking our chances.

3) Feck knows. It is too close to call. It will be between us, Palace and Bristol and will depend on who is worse. I could see us pulling away, but I could also see us going down.

So what do you think Blades? Personally I am in camp 3, although I change my mind by the hour. I am torn. I could see us starting to take our chances, stop giving away silly goals and start convincingly beating teams. I could see us pullig away from the likes of Palace, Bristol and even others. However, I could also see us staying in the bottom 3. If we lose heart, lose confidence and start palying poorly then we could go down. We are playing well and losing, so what happens if we stip plying well.

 

[dingledog]

Unfortunalty its league one for us next season, should make for interesting season ticket pricing in a few weeks.

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

It's a poor division. Two or three results and a bit of momentum could make it look very different.

Mind you I've seen this sort of form/luck before with SUFC and I also remember the outcome

 

[axel smeets]

As I said in another post yesterday, we are the only Yorkshire club in the past 20 years that has not played in the third tier. That will change come May I'm afraid. Throw in derbies against the pigs, Rotherham, Chesterfield and there's not much to look forward to really. The drop into the third tier will be a disaster.

Unfortunatley for some of our supporters, they are going to get a massive shock come May. There is a blase attitude amongst a large number of our support that thinks everything is going to turn out alright, we'll be okay. It wont.

 

[Gareth]

As I said in another post yesterday, we are the only Yorkshire club in the past 20 years that has not played in the third tier. That will change come May I'm afraid. Throw in derbies against the pigs, Rotherham, Chesterfield and there's not much to look forward to really. The drop into the third tier will be a disaster.

Unfortunatley for some of our supporters, they are going to get a massive shock come May. There is a blase attitude amongst a large number of our support that thinks everything is going to turn out alright, we'll be okay. It wont.

Nice posative thoughts, I bet you're a luagh a minute.

 

[axel smeets]

Nice posative thoughts, I bet you're a luagh a minute.

Pray tell, when it comes to affairs of Sheffield United Football Club, what is there to be positive about squire?

 

[SteelCity Blade]

Too close to call, but IMO a frighteningly real possibility and it wouldnt surprise me in the slightest if we did go down. Its going to take a lot of heart and huge determination to scrape out of this and even with that I think it will be only just. The odds are stacked against us at the moment if you ask me.

 

[Paulus]

Although I haven't managed to get to a match since the Villa game I've been encouraged by what I have read about performances recently. I still think our squad is one of the weakest in the division and that whatever Adams does it's going to be a bloody tight squeeze but I really was resigned to us going down with Speedo in charge. Despite my hopes that he could do the business he was in deep trouble when he left and was reacting to the growing crisis like a rabbit caught in the headlights. Adams is showing he is a manager, he is making some tough decisions, eg the Bartley one, and I think he is making some good calls. It isn't going to be pretty and no question he needs a bit of luck to break his way, and soon, but overall I think we have more of a chance of staying up now than we did before the managerial change.

 

[SwissBlade]

100% nailed on that we'll get out of this shite...
















... woohoo, league one here we come!

 

[Cheshire Cat]

That horrible word 'momentum' is everything in this division - same every year, a crap club gets into the play-offs and a club noone would have predicted to go down at the beginning of the season goes down.

My feeling even when we were at our most abject in October was that as long as we were in touch with the group come Xmas, we could regroup and get some reinforcements in in January and pull away. Also with the division being tight as usual, anyone putting a run of 3 or 4 wins together can suddenly find themselve in the top-half with a realistic outside chance of the playoffs.

Lack of confidence, quality, clue, luck or whatever means that we're now seeing the teams just above us doing exactly that. Long-term I think we're better off for having Adams, but this has the feel of Bassett's first season as we seem to be starting to slowly circle the plughole before getting pulled in. We need a run and we need some luck - we're getting both, but of the wrong type.

 

[Balham]

Unfortunatley for some of our supporters, they are going to get a massive shock come May. There is a blase attitude amongst a large number of our support that thinks everything is going to turn out alright, we'll be okay. It wont.

There's also a doom contingent convinced that we're going down and going bust. We won't.

 

[S64 Blade]

I've no idea which way it will go. One thing is for certain is that if it goes down to the last game of the season we'll probably get relegated.

 

[Highbury_Blade]

As I said in another post yesterday, we are the only Yorkshire club in the past 20 years that has not played in the third tier. That will change come May I'm afraid. Throw in derbies against the pigs, Rotherham, Chesterfield and there's not much to look forward to really. The drop into the third tier will be a disaster.

Pedantic point but the last time Middlesbrough dropped into the third tier was 86-87

 

[Grecian2000]

Too close to call? Not half.

The demise of this club, on the field, has been slow (St Andrews August 2009) but has picked up real pace in the last 3 months. Can we turn it around? I actually think we can, but it will be tight because those around us (Palace/Boro/Pompey) are of a similar ilk to ourselves quality wise.

We need our luck to change and we need to pick up the points when we play reasonably well (I am a firm believer in the "you DON'T always get what you deserve" philosophy) because there will be games when we play shite and get beaten by much better sides.

Oh, and if it goes to the last game it's time to lump on whoever we're playing and whoever will benefit from our demise because it always ends the same way in those circumstances.

 

[axel smeets]

Fair enough Highbury, but equally Middlesbrough have never ever even been a Yorkshire team. Plus 86-87 is over 20 years ago. Since we came out of Div Three in 1989, every Yorkshire club has been there except us.

 

[Selly]

The demise of this club, on the field, has been slow (St Andrews August 2009) but has picked up real pace in the last 3 months. Can we turn it around? I actually think we can, but it will be tight because those around us (Palace/Boro/Pompey) are of a similar ilk to ourselves quality wise.

We last played at St Andrews in August 2008. I'm not sure you can point at that season and say we were in decline, we were 3 points off Automatic promotion and we got to the PO final. The year after however...

3 points, of course, which we lost in the last minute at St Andrews....

 

[Grecian2000]

Sorry, meant 2008.

Yes, I do put our decline back to that date. That was the first time Hoofy decided we would go away for a point instead of trying to win the game. It's been downhill since then.
We got to the play-off final but had a squad capable (and paid enough according to KM!!!) of automatic promotion.

---------- Post added at 11:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:17 AM ----------

PS. With Highbury here, Middlesboro are a Yorkshire team.

 

[axel smeets]

---------- Post added at 11:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:17 AM ----------

PS. With Highbury here, Middlesboro are a Yorkshire team.[/QUOTE]

Nay Grecian, they've never been a Yorkshire team. They see Newcastle and Sunderland as their rivals, plus they are in Cleveland. They are as Yorkshire as bleedin' Hull, another shithole outpost.

 

[Highbury_Blade]

Cleveland hasn't existed for nearly 15 years.

They are part of North Yorkshire, now and historically, apart from a period in the 20th century when they were in Teesside, and then later Cleveland.

They're as Yorkshire as i am.

 

[Grecian2000]

I've seen Yorkshire play County Cricket at both Middlesboro and Hull and were the home team on each occasion. Good enough for me.

When I were a lad M'boro was in the North Riding and Hull in the East Riding of the countries biggest and finest county. Border changes might have occured for political reasons in later years but they were (and therefore always will be) firmly in gods own county.

 

[axel smeets]

I just can't ever class them as a Yorkshire side, just like Hull City as well. It might be pedantic, but there you are.

 

[Highbury_Blade]

A pedantic point, but you can't be pedant if you are incorrect.

 

[axel smeets]

Maybe, Highbury, but we all know it's because Middlesbrough is in Cleveland and Hull is in Humberside.

Besides, why would we wish to have either place associated wi Gods own County?

 

[Ed Chevans]

"As I said in another post yesterday, we are the only Yorkshire club in the past 20 years that has not played in the third tier. That will change come May I'm afraid. Throw in derbies against the pigs, Rotherham, Chesterfield and there's not much to look forward to really. The drop into the third tier will be a disaster.

Unfortunatley for some of our supporters, they are going to get a massive shock come May. There is a blase attitude amongst a large number of our support that thinks everything is going to turn out alright, we'll be okay. It wont."

Why do you right like everything you believe is fact, you sanctimonious twot

 

[Highbury_Blade]

Maybe, Highbury, but we all know it's because Middlesbrough is in Cleveland and Hull is in Humberside.

Besides, why would we wish to have either place associated wi Gods own County?

I dunno, maybe it's because out of all the football fans i know, the boro ones are the most down to earth bunch i've met.

 

[axel smeets]

Why do you right like everything you believe is fact, you sanctimonious twot[/QUOTE]

Many Blades whom I have spoken to don't believe it's possible we will go down. I am merely commenting on what I have encountered. I think we will go down. I hope we dont. I sincerely hope that on May 8, Ed, you can come on this forum and say: 'Axel, what a load of bollocks you wrote on February 3.'

Do you think I want us to get relegated? That instead of going to Derby, Forest, Burnley, Coventry, Leeds, Barnsley, Doncaster, etc we can go to Yeovil, Dagenham, Exeter, Bournemouth, Carlisle or Plymouth?
I'd rather not personally. At 27 I can't remember SUFC in the third tier or below, and to be honest, I hope I never experience it.

 

[Torrix1889]

We are as good as down

 

[Selly]

Do you think I want us to get relegated? That instead of going to Derby, Forest, Burnley, Coventry, Leeds, Barnsley, Doncaster, etc we can go to Yeovil, Dagenham, Exeter, Bournemouth, Carlisle or Plymouth?
I'd rather not personally. At 27 I can't remember SUFC in the third tier or below, and to be honest, I hope I never experience it.

At 34 I bloody can.

I vividly remember the sh*t (figurative, not literal) thrown at me by Pigs the day after the BC game at school. it was not nice.

Relegation is never a good thing. Ever.

 

[axel smeets]

At 34 I bloody can.

I vividly remember the sh*t (figurative, not literal) thrown at me by Pigs the day after the BC game at school. it was not nice.

Relegation is never a good thing. Ever.

Exactly, SellyOak. I can remember at Coventry away on 15th Jan, a group of young lads I was stood near were opining that relegation would be okay, because "we'd get to see new grounds, piss the league and come back stronger."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing, TBH, even from young lads aged about 16-17. In fact, when someone at work said it the other day, I said, ask SWFC supporters whether they subscribe to that theory. For every Norwich, Man City and Leicester, there is a Charlton, Plymouth etc. Don't forget that even though Notts Forest and Leeds are in the top 6 now, it took both clubs 3 years to get out of the division, Southampton are in their 2nd season down and last time they were there, swfc needed a dodgy penalty in the closing stages of the play off final to turn it around and escape.

 

[Ollessendro]

100% nailed on that we'll get out of this shite...

that's the spirit soldier!!

Too close to call? Not half.
......
We need our luck to change and we need to pick up the points when we play reasonably well (I am a firm believer in the "you DON'T always get what you deserve" philosophy) because there will be games when we play shite and get beaten by much better sides.

Indeed.

I have argued that we were in an inflated position aerlier this season (we won games under Speed we should not have won) but now is the opposite. We probably deserve to be a few points away from relegation, rather than in the bottom 3.