Postion Predictions for next season

[Highbury_Blade]

So, based on the current ingoings, outgoings, state of the squad and backroom staff, where do you think we'll finish next season?

This poll will timeout in a couple of weeks, and i'll run another one shortly after. Could be interesting to see how the mood changes over the summer

Remember this is how you feel now with the squad in it's CURRENT state.

 

[Selly]

Top half, outside the playoffs for me. I'll be happy if we avoid leaving the division in the wrong direction TBH.

 

[Highbury_Blade]

I think the current squad is good enough to get in the playoffs. But it remains to be seen how many of them are still here in August.

 

[stannyblade]

playoffs for me provided we get stability.

 

[Darren]

In a strangely optimistic moment, I actually fancy us to finish top.

I'll call for the nurse now....

 

[Highbury_Blade]

In a strangely optimistic moment, I actually fancy us to finish top.

I'll call for the nurse now....

I should have put a champions option. I didn't think anyone would be mad enough to vote for it though....

 

[norfolkblade]

I think top half, but with some stability in the club both on and off the pitch, there's no reason why we can't push for play offs IMO.

 

[SwissBlade]

I think we'll struggle as the result of poor preparation, the wrong types of players for the type of football that Wilson intends to play and yet again failing to sort out the set piece issue

 

[sheffielder]

I think we'll struggle as the result of poor preparation, the wrong types of players for the type of football that Wilson intends to play and yet again failing to sort out the set piece issue

Another chance to have a good moan hey!

 

[Peezablade]

Think back to the Leeds game at BDTBL. If our CURRENT SQUAD had played like that all season then we would have made the play offs, not been relegated.

Based on that, the current squad should be capable of winning League 1. But will Danny the Pig be capable where all others failed? And are the players suitably embarrassed and ashamed to put things right or will they do a repeat season long performance. Only time will tell.

I haven't voted because in my opinion the current squad don't give a damn. I hope to be proved wrong.

 

[stannyblade]

Another chance to have a good moan hey!

Wouldnt be Blades if we didnt

 

[sheffielder]

I think we will finish within the top 3. We have a good mix of experience and youth I can see us doing well; ffs everyone thought we would be battling for the play offs of the championships last year with the same equad.

I admit Swiss, could go wrong but why aim low unless that is just your mentality

---------- Post added at 01:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:38 PM ----------

Think back to the Leeds game at BDTBL. If our CURRENT SQUAD had played like that all season then we would have made the play offs, not been relegated.

Based on that, the current squad should be capable of winning League 1. But will Danny the Pig be capable where all others failed? And are the players suitably embarrassed and ashamed to put things right or will they do a repeat season long performance. Only time will tell.

I haven't voted because in my opinion the current squad don't give a damn. I hope to be proved wrong.

I semi agree with this, but I think our new manager has time and preseason where Adams and Speed didn't and Blackwell didn't deserve one. I look back at most games at the lane and wonder how we got relegated. The players who want it need their confidence back and the ones who don't can fook off

 

[Ollessendro]

I have gone for bottom half, but I was torn between that and top half outside play offs. The current squad is not good enough to get promoted (imo). The lack of pace, width, creativity and flair means we would not finish top 6. However, we have snippets of qulaity in Quinn and Williamson and Hendo/Evans/Slew could potentially bag lots of goals. The likes of Yeates and Bogdanovic (i.e. hit and miss) could also do some damage at that level. However the defence is very poor and I think we would ship goals in. Decwent wingers would tear Taylor, Kozluk and Parrino apart. Morgs and Ertl are injured and that leaves us thin on the ground. The other factor that influenced my decision is morale. These players were rock bottom under Adams and Wilson will have a big job on his hands picking them up. Without fresh faces I just cannot see a promotion push.

I really hope there are personnel changes aplenty in the next few weeks. However I am resigning myself to a season of mediocrity whilst Wilson tries to build a squad. I think we might be stuck with the overpaid crap for a while and it will take time to bring through the youth and acquire players from other clubs that fit our (hopefully new) style of play.

 

[Darren]

I think we will finish within the top 3. We have a good mix of experience and youth I can see us doing well; ffs everyone thought we would be battling for the play offs of the championships last year with the same equad.

I admit Swiss, could go wrong but why aim low unless that is just your mentality

---------- Post added at 01:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:38 PM ----------



I semi agree with this, but I think our new manager has time and preseason where Adams and Speed didn't and Blackwell didn't deserve one. I look back at most games at the lane and wonder how we got relegated. The players who want it need their confidence back and the ones who don't can fook off

Why did Blackwell did not deserve a pre season? Compared to Speed and Adams he was like the bloody messiah given that in his three seasons in charge we got to the play off final once and were, in 2008 and 2010 respectively, one game and two places off the play offs. We never remotely flirted with relegation under him.

 

[Cool Clint]

I have gone for bottom half, but I was torn between that and top half outside play offs. The current squad is not good enough to get promoted (imo). The lack of pace, width, creativity and flair means we would not finish top 6. However, we have snippets of qulaity in Quinn and Williamson and Hendo/Evans/Slew could potentially bag lots of goals. The likes of Yeates and Bogdanovic (i.e. hit and miss) could also do some damage at that level. However the defence is very poor and I think we would ship goals in. Decwent wingers would tear Taylor, Kozluk and Parrino apart. Morgs and Ertl are injured and that leaves us thin on the ground. The other factor that influenced my decision is morale. These players were rock bottom under Adams and Wilson will have a big job on his hands picking them up. Without fresh faces I just cannot see a promotion push.

I really hope there are personnel changes aplenty in the next few weeks. However I am resigning myself to a season of mediocrity whilst Wilson tries to build a squad. I think we might be stuck with the overpaid crap for a while and it will take time to bring through the youth and acquire players from other clubs that fit our (hopefully new) style of play.

I'm still looking for the irony and devils advocate approach - There must be some somewhere it was such a simple question and we got this. I've a feeling that Olle secretly believes we'll finish top but dare not say it because he don't want his reputation on here tarnished

 

[Patrick Suffaux]

Playoffs, but not with the current squad. I'm optimistic that we can improve between now and August, however I dont think the side will gel quickly enough to mount a top two challenge.

I would be happy with top six.

 

[davidpinder]

Still think the current squad should be capable of the playoffs

 

[Ollessendro]

Why did Blackwell did not deserve a pre season? Compared to Speed and Adams he was like the bloody messiah given that in his three seasons in charge we got to the play off final once and were, in 2008 and 2010 respectively, one game and two places off the play offs. We never remotely flirted with relegation under him.

Because he had lost the fans and taken the club has far as he could. Not only that, but he was slowly dismantling a very good squad.

Blackwell took over a very good squad. He did not do bad with that squad (though imo he could have done better) and you would struggle to argue he was not effective at getting results. However he slowly sold off our best assets and replaced them with crap. Hos hands were tied on outgoings, but his signings contributed to our downfall. Henderson, Cresswell, Evans and crew (players on big wages who contributed little) we might be stuck with. That's not to mention some of the new contacts he handed out.

 

[SwissBlade]

Far from this being a chance to have a good moan, its just what I think. Last year surprised me in terms of both performance and the weaknesses we showed up front and desperate defending at the back, but I don't see Wilson as a disciplinarian who will fix these problems no matter how pretty the football is.

Wilson is the wrong man for the job, but I have said that he is talking a good game and I have to admit that on this side, I've been impressed.

The preparation for a team wanting to make a promotion assault seems weak, not exactly leading from the front.

 

[Patrick Suffaux]

Still think the current squad should be capable of the playoffs

I wish I could speak with the same confidence. Normally sides that bounce back straight away and perform well following relegation are ones that went down narrowly and finished with some sort of forward momentum that just fell short.

When youre a side that struggled as badly as we did and lost vital games to those around us (e.g. Scunthorpe, Palace, Preston) it demonstrates a complete lack of confidence and ability to do the basic things well.

That side last season would have struggled in any of the four divisions in my view. Not because they're completely crap, just because the confidence and cohesion was never there. Freshening up the playing staff will give us a chance.

 

[PeterNdlovu081]

Why does it matter anyway? All the tables lie according to Olle's mate so we could actually be a top 6 Premier League outfit at the end of next season regardless of where we finish in League One.

 

[JJ Sefton]

Youre a bunch of confident buggers.

 

[Darren]

Because he had lost the fans and taken the club has far as he could. Not only that, but he was slowly dismantling a very good squad.

Blackwell took over a very good squad. He did not do bad with that squad (though imo he could have done better) and you would struggle to argue he was not effective at getting results. However he slowly sold off our best assets and replaced them with crap. Hos hands were tied on outgoings, but his signings contributed to our downfall. Henderson, Cresswell, Evans and crew (players on big wages who contributed little) we might be stuck with. That's not to mention some of the new contacts he handed out.

Arguably there was as much crap in 2009-10 as there was in 2010-11, yet we finished 8th in one and 23rd in the other.

 

[blade too long]

generally optimistic , weve finished 2nd on our last 2 seasons in this division , Im going for a third runners up spot

a lot of blades I know are generally down beat
If we got up to the prem and beat man utd 6-1 on opening day some would be on here complaining about the defending for man utds goal

 

[Blade58]

But the current squad wont be the squad will it?

We all know players (earners) will be gone. Couple that with the youngsters and bbb's from Swindon and the likes and this squad will bare no resemblance.

On that basis I find it difficult to predict our final position.

My gut feeling is that when Wilson has weaved his magic after the departures, we'll perform as good as Wendy did last season. I think we'll struggle to acclamitise to this division and I see no reason to assume we'll do really well with a bunch of relegated reserve players, academy players, bbb's and a manager who's record over recent years is as good as mine.

I'll happily eat humble pie if I've got this wrong tho

 

[Highbury_Blade]

I know it won't be the final squad, that's why i'm going to run another one in 3 weeks time and then more after that to see how the mood changes over the summer.

 

[Zlatan]

Far too early to tell. Half of the squad will probably leave, and we've only signed a couple of players.

 

[blade too long]

Still think with players back fit , well be better than half the teams to start with
and with some half decent organisation and coaxing being enough to cover the rest
I saw several league one games last year , trust me , we arent that bad

 

[Bergen Blade]

Just hope that those who will leave, will do so quickly, so we get some time to bring in replacements and make them adjust to Wilson's style and gel with the others.

 

[JohnDenver]

Bottom half given the current squad's capability and attitude.

Should we actually manage to exchange some of the useless blighters, we can only do better.