File under Fylde - Division 3 2017-18

[jwdd27]

Looks like Charlton or Plymouth will come through to break up the northern monopoly of the play off spots, although I fancy Gillingham to make a late surge. Bradford will be the ones to drop out, they're somehow still 6th despite having lost the same number of games as Rochdale in 24th (albeit they've played 5 more games), and having conceded more goals than all of the bottom 4.
Automatic-wise, I wouldn't want to tempt fate for the Shrews on the board, other than that we can all agree Wigan deserve another year in Div. 3, which they seem to have forgotten is actually their level. So let's hope Blackburn overtake them.
As for Scunny, they've been 4th or 5th for so long it's a little tedious. It's almost as if they're the 4th or 5th best team in the league.

[Patrick Thistle]

Also with any luck Milton Keynes will stay in their current league placing until May.

[Ray de Galles]

Wimbledon are fucked. Four defeats in a row in February have destroyed the upturn in form of Xmas and January and put them right back in the relegation zone. I was almost reduced to hoping Franchise equalised at Oldham to pull the hosts down below the Dons who would have gone to the heady heights of 20th place.

The defence that was just about keeping the team afloat given the lack of goals has fallen apart and the near-inertia in the transfer window (albeit for understandable reasons of thrift) didn't address the obvious forward problems. The relelgation that seems extremely probable will be the club's first backward step since it's regeneration and is especially poorly timed given the progress on the stadium (which is probably the cause of financial straightening).

[Giggler]

Bury off the bottom. Jammiest point we'll win all season last night after Southend battered us. That said, a few weeks their pressure would have resulted in at least three goals against. Progress, after a fashion.

[Patrick Thistle]

Aren't Bury unbeaten in their last 5 now or something?

[ChrisJ]

Looks like Charlton or Plymouth will come through to break up the northern monopoly of the play off spots, although I fancy Gillingham to make a late surge. Bradford will be the ones to drop out, they're somehow still 6th despite having lost the same number of games as Rochdale in 24th (albeit they've played 5 more games), and having conceded more goals than all of the bottom 4.
Automatic-wise, I wouldn't want to tempt fate for the Shrews on the board, other than that we can all agree Wigan deserve another year in Div. 3, which they seem to have forgotten is actually their level. So let's hope Blackburn overtake them.
As for Scunny, they've been 4th or 5th for so long it's a little tedious. It's almost as if they're the 4th or 5th best team in the league.

Back-of-envelope sums based on form over last 10 games gives:

1st Rotherham (95 points)
2nd Shrewsbury (94)
-----------------------------------
3rd Wigan (90 GD +100,000)
4th Blackburn (90, GD +90,000)
5th Plymouth (81)
6th Scunthorpe (75)
-----------------------------------
7th Gills (75) just missing out on GD, probably.
8th Brizzle R. (72).

Of course it almost certainly won't work out like that, but 1. if it did, it would be very, very funny indeed and 2. should Salop slip up, the margin of error possibility of meeting Gillingham or Rovers in the playoffs is enough to make me feel nauseous.

So, c'mon Scunthorpe.

[Gangster Octopus]

That'd be pleasant. Can't see it, though...

[Felicity, I guess so]

On the Plymouth surge, I’ve had them on my coupon fir weeks, inc 4/1 to win at Shrewsbury

[NickSTFU]

Shrewsbury will fade away and end getting beaten in the play-off semi-final.

That's if the normally rock solid defence doesn't stop giving away silly goals.

We'll send Milton whatsit down first though.

[ChrisJ]

Shrewsbury will fade away and end getting beaten in the play-off semi-final.

That's what I've been predicting for a while - but about the same length of time I've been saying Wigan and Blackburn will show their class cash and pull away. Obviously, those form-based predictions are cobblers, but somehow, half-way through February, Salop are top.

Last time we were top of D3, I was in 4th form at Priory. I now have 6 grandchildren, so fuck it, I shall continue to enjoy this!

[NickSTFU]

... so fuck it, I shall continue to enjoy this!

Oh, absolutely.

Whatever happens this season it's been a joy.

[ChrisJ]

Spinal Tap 0 - 1 League of Gentlemen.

Salop again failed to impose themselves on an opponent who'd clearly got a well-honed game-plan and looked smarter, stronger, fitter and faster without playing much actual football. (Rumours of a sickness bug in home squad?) Probably a fair result after a pretty awful game. Salop conceded a softie after our 'keeper continued his recent trend of playing with his heart, rather than his head. But he's part of the reason we're doing well, so rough with the smooth and all that.

Ref was weak and awful, though not significant in the result, just added to the frustration levels.

I'm disappointed more than last week, mainly because it was such a poor match. Hurst made reference to the state of the pitch and the fact that this may lead him to reconsider how we try to play. I'm sure he'll be forgiven for going direct if we go up, but it'll need quite a bit of a formation and personnel change and we've not looked good with 2 strikers when we've tried it.

[NickSTFU]

The word is that half the team that played have been ill, or are ill and those not picked are just as bad.

Hurst said post match he wasn't sure what his team would be at 1.30 pm.

The word is that the health of the squad is a real worry for Tuesday night.

Having said that, a fit and healthy team would have still struggled to cope with Rotherham's direct style and Henderson would still have made the mistake.

The big worry is that our usually tight as a duck's arse defence is leaking silly goals. 5 out of the last 6 have been from individual or collective fuck ups.

[ChrisJ]

The word is that half the team that played have been ill, or are ill and those not picked are just as bad.

Hurst said post match he wasn't sure what his team would be at 1.30 pm.

The word is that the health of the squad is a real worry for Tuesday night.

Ah, missed that bit of the interview. (I was too grumpy to turn on the car radio until it was half-way through.) That would indeed account for most of what we saw.

With you on the defence thing, but randomness happens in clusters so it's not so much a worry unless it starts to undermine confidence.

[Gangster Octopus]

We're still more than a win behind the top three, all of whom have games in hand on us, so it should be play-off hell...

[Ray de Galles]

Is Blackburn v Bury on TV tonight?

[NickSTFU]

Yep.

[Patrick Thistle]

C'mon Bury!

[Ray de Galles]

Clearly a spoiler move to pull fans of north-west derbies away from Wigan v Man City.

[NickSTFU]

It's 0-0 and appears pretty even, but I'm not really paying attention because I'm posting shit on World.

[The Awesome Berbaslug!!!]

Clearly the wrong thread.

[jwdd27]

Blackburn win to go top.

Wigan and Rochdale's cup and pitch exploits mean we're heading for a good old fashioned fixture pile-up. Rochdale have played 6 fewer games than Scunthorpe and the other teams who got knocked out of the cups nice and early, looked after their pitch and have completed their 34 scheduled games. Wigan have 3 in hand on Blackburn, 2 on Shrewsbury and 3 on Rotherham, and will fall further behind after the quarter final. A few tricky looking away games in there too.

More frosty weather on its way as well, which has the potential to "play havoc" with the league programme.

Could be a busy April, with evening fixtures played in confusing daylight against opponents either wearing the proverbial flip flops, or else playing for their futures / without fear.
I'll be happy as long as one of these clubs has to play on Saturday, Monday, Thursday, Saturday so that Sky can get their last day drama.

[Patrick Thistle]

I'm beginning to loathe Blackburn.

[Patrick Thistle]

Well it's well and truly a wobble now

[NickSTFU]

Luckily the away form is good.