Kenilworth
Fuck The Falccid Franchise.
IF Micky gets his first win and we start to accumulate some points, which of the teams above us do you think we can overtake?
Scunny and Preston appear to be struggling worse than we are (despite Scunny having played two games fewer). So they just have to be the buffer zone - I think they will both drop. Phil Brown seems to be just as unlucky as we have been and is not making any real impact at Deepdale.
Ipshize seem to have turned the corner with Jewel now in the driving seat - they appear to have a much better squad and the ability to get some quality in through the loan market. - Mid table, touching a late Play Off surge.
Bristol City are still struggling and they concede a fair few goals. They have picked up a little of late but recently results seem to be dipping back to those of a few months ago. They have speculated and brought players in who must be costing them a few bob but the net result doesn't appear to be a vast improvement - catchable in my view.
Coventry are the perennial chokers and seem to defy the drop by just a couple of points purely on their early season form. They have dropped like a stone recently and Boothroyd will do well to stop the rot - but he has the pedigree to do so. I think Cov will still finish above us - but only just.
Portsmouth appear to be in self destruct one week and smash and grab the next. They are in deep doo-doo but have players of far greater ability than we have. The size of their squad may cause them problems if they get a few injuries and cannot take any more loans on. Still expect for them to finish a couple of places above us come May.
Middlesbrough are very poor and their own plight seems not too dissimilar to our own - where they have shed all the silver and promising academy players only to have replaced them with ageing journeymen. 3-4 at home to Swans must have been very demoralising for them. Expect them to continue to slide and one of the sides we could get above if we string a few results together.
Derby are imploding alarmingly, just like ourselves. They cannot seem to buy a win and are getting beaten all too easily, especially at home - Leicester being the last victors there - but without anywhere near as much fight as we seem to be putting up. Losing experienced players, conceding soft goals, they are as cash strapped as anyone in the division, it seems. We have a good chance of getting above Derby if we improve under MA this month and keeping the pressure on them.
Crystal Palace has to be one of the teams we get on top of and stay above. They have some decent youth players but their lack of experience could cost them. If we win tonight we will be out of the bottom three and Palace will drop into it on GD. It will be nip and tuck between the two but at least we will not have to face them in a game of shit or bust at the end of the campaign like the pigs did last year. Given our propensity to bottle big games of any significance I would not entertain any idea of us gaining a victory under such circumstances. Worried about this one - they could pick up enough points to beat us to the punch.
What about Donny? Everyone's blue eyed poppet. Dropping like a stone and only 9 points above the drop. Small squad on limited resources - if they pick up a few more key injuries by having some of the same kind of luck we have had this season then they could be dragged into it. That would put a few noses out of joint wouldn't it?
For me the conclusion is that our best opportunity is to hope that Scunny and Preston continue their form and take two of the three places. We can then escape by climbing above any of the following teams:
Palace
Derby
Boro
Bristol
I don't think we will better any of the others so hold on to your sphincters 'cos this is going to be a very uncomfortable ride.
Scunny and Preston appear to be struggling worse than we are (despite Scunny having played two games fewer). So they just have to be the buffer zone - I think they will both drop. Phil Brown seems to be just as unlucky as we have been and is not making any real impact at Deepdale.
Ipshize seem to have turned the corner with Jewel now in the driving seat - they appear to have a much better squad and the ability to get some quality in through the loan market. - Mid table, touching a late Play Off surge.
Bristol City are still struggling and they concede a fair few goals. They have picked up a little of late but recently results seem to be dipping back to those of a few months ago. They have speculated and brought players in who must be costing them a few bob but the net result doesn't appear to be a vast improvement - catchable in my view.
Coventry are the perennial chokers and seem to defy the drop by just a couple of points purely on their early season form. They have dropped like a stone recently and Boothroyd will do well to stop the rot - but he has the pedigree to do so. I think Cov will still finish above us - but only just.
Portsmouth appear to be in self destruct one week and smash and grab the next. They are in deep doo-doo but have players of far greater ability than we have. The size of their squad may cause them problems if they get a few injuries and cannot take any more loans on. Still expect for them to finish a couple of places above us come May.
Middlesbrough are very poor and their own plight seems not too dissimilar to our own - where they have shed all the silver and promising academy players only to have replaced them with ageing journeymen. 3-4 at home to Swans must have been very demoralising for them. Expect them to continue to slide and one of the sides we could get above if we string a few results together.
Derby are imploding alarmingly, just like ourselves. They cannot seem to buy a win and are getting beaten all too easily, especially at home - Leicester being the last victors there - but without anywhere near as much fight as we seem to be putting up. Losing experienced players, conceding soft goals, they are as cash strapped as anyone in the division, it seems. We have a good chance of getting above Derby if we improve under MA this month and keeping the pressure on them.
Crystal Palace has to be one of the teams we get on top of and stay above. They have some decent youth players but their lack of experience could cost them. If we win tonight we will be out of the bottom three and Palace will drop into it on GD. It will be nip and tuck between the two but at least we will not have to face them in a game of shit or bust at the end of the campaign like the pigs did last year. Given our propensity to bottle big games of any significance I would not entertain any idea of us gaining a victory under such circumstances. Worried about this one - they could pick up enough points to beat us to the punch.
What about Donny? Everyone's blue eyed poppet. Dropping like a stone and only 9 points above the drop. Small squad on limited resources - if they pick up a few more key injuries by having some of the same kind of luck we have had this season then they could be dragged into it. That would put a few noses out of joint wouldn't it?
For me the conclusion is that our best opportunity is to hope that Scunny and Preston continue their form and take two of the three places. We can then escape by climbing above any of the following teams:
Palace
Derby
Boro
Bristol
I don't think we will better any of the others so hold on to your sphincters 'cos this is going to be a very uncomfortable ride.
