2024/25 League Two Promotion Thread

[leedsvaliant]

I haven't been to Vale Park for a good 20 years has that changed much ?

Structurally not that different. We've given away fans the worst end now, but they have made a bit of a fan zone for away fans. There's been lots of work in the last 5 years to tart it up but it's an old ground, so there's still bits that are tired. Great scoreboard though!

 

[valefan16]

Structurally not that different. We've given away fans the worst end now, but they have made a bit of a fan zone for away fans. There's been lots of work in the last 5 years to tart it up but it's an old ground, so there's still bits that are tired. Great scoreboard though!

Wonder what its like for the away fans now as I haven't been around that end to see the fan zone etc is like, where even is it as there doesnt seem much space for one?

 

[jacobncfc]

Fan zone is pushing it, it’s a tiny bar in a little yard haha. Does the job though.

 

[valefan16]

Fan zone is pushing it, it’s a tiny bar in a little yard haha. Does the job though.

Yeah when it was home end there was nothing there and can't drink in the concourse as its in view of the pitch (left hand side as you're in it, think the idea is to make a more permanent one, the whole car park behind the old away end is now a home fan zone with stalls etc but assuming the Vale Campus goes ahead all that land behind the current away end, including the dimensions centre, training ground and across the front to the college is set to become one giant football campus so might develop it more then.

 

[Soz]

Wonder what its like for the away fans now as I haven't been around that end to see the fan zone etc is like, where even is it as there doesnt seem much space for one?

Think it's behind the steps for the old family stand, they knocked the turnstiles down so there's a bit of a paved area for food/beer stalls

 

[The_Viking_Magpie]

I like the away fan zone at Cheltenham.

 

[GTFCfish]

Just noticed our 44th game of the season is away at Port Vale, as long as we don't fall away that one could be really tasty, if we're still in the play off hunt then I think we'll be close to selling it out with it being so close to the end of the season.
Last game of the season is at home to AFC Wimbledon too fucking hell.
Really hope we're still in the mix as these are the sorts of games you want something riding on them.

 

[kieran_vale]

Just noticed our 44th game of the season is away at Port Vale, as long as we don't fall away that one could be really tasty, if we're still in the play off hunt then I think we'll be close to selling it out with it being so close to the end of the season.
Last game of the season is at home to AFC Wimbledon too fucking hell.
Really hope we're still in the mix as these are the sorts of games you want something riding on them.

Think it's on the Easter Bank Holiday Monday as well. Hopefully this doesn't get moved for TV to a Tuesday or some nonsense like that. That and Wimbledon at the following weekend as our final away game, that will be lucky to get past the third stage on loyalty points unless we massively fall away.

 

[Son of Cod]

Just noticed our 44th game of the season is away at Port Vale, as long as we don't fall away that one could be really tasty, if we're still in the play off hunt then I think we'll be close to selling it out with it being so close to the end of the season.
Last game of the season is at home to AFC Wimbledon too fucking hell.
Really hope we're still in the mix as these are the sorts of games you want something riding on them.

MK Dons away sandwiched between them too which will be another big away following if there's anything riding on it.

 

[saddler78]

We have Crewe away last game of the season that'll be fun again

 

[mozzavale]

Not wanting to reignite the conspiracy chat again. I've been guilty of falling into that chain of thought out of pure frustration. It's incompetence, deep down we all know it really.

A point highlighted at last night's meet the manager event. When asked about the pgmol reaction after the Bromley and Bradford incidents, Moore told fans, the pgmol stated that the ref "forgot he didn't have goal line technology in L2". Not sure what difference it would have made, had he remembered, he relied on his liners competence unfortunately. Either way, what a thing to say as a defence.

Re the Bradford offside, apparently it was a miscommunication between the liner and the ref. The liner should have kept his flag up and the goal wouldn't have stood.

So frustrating. 3 points directly lost due to sheer lack of competence. The Bradford one I can get over. Was a close call, it happens. The Bromley one was just scandalous. And how did the EFL PGMOL punish his incompetence? He ran the line in the Championship 5 days later.

 

[Limerick Mariner]

MK Dons away sandwiched between them too which will be another big away following if there's anything riding on it.

At last, our turn to take n thousand to MK, recently been Tuesday nights. It does mean we need to be in the hunt mind…

 

[FiRTHYY]

Decisions go for and against every club throughout the season. I can give multiple examples affecting our club, too.

Draw a line under it and don’t allow it to be an excuse come season end - simple!

 

[クレイグ]

Decisions go for and against every club throughout the season. I can give multiple examples affecting our club, too.

Draw a line under it and don’t allow it to be an excuse come season end - simple!

Aye, like in the playoff season when we had numerous apologies from refs. It happens.

 

[Si Robin]

Last season we played Bolton (lost 1-0) and Derby (lost 2-1) in consecutive games. Against Bolton we had an equaliser ruled out for offside when no-one was in an offside position, especially the goalscorer who was at least 3 yards onside. Then against Derby at 1-0 up George Lloyd was booted in the midriff in the box. A foul so blatant that even Paul Warne said in his post-match interview that he couldn't believe a penalty wasn't given. If we score that we go 2-0 up and it makes Derby's comeback much more difficult.

We were relegated by two points. Effectively, those two decisions cost us safety. Darrell Clarke received apology letters from both refs. I don't think we ever considered taking legal action against PGMOL though.

 

[leedsvaliant]

Decisions go for and against every club throughout the season. I can give multiple examples affecting our club, too.

Draw a line under it and don’t allow it to be an excuse come season end - simple!

I agree but it's happened so often to us recently it's ridiculous. You get the odd bad refereeing performance, which we can accept. What I can't accept is game changing decisions that are so obviously wrong to everyone else in the world except the officials.

People say it evens itself out. This season it feels like 95% going against us and 5% for. We have a podcast, and one of the guys on it is a qualified referee...he's pretty fair and will often call out decisions that went against us that most fans disagreed with but that he actually agrees with. There's been very few referees that he's given more than 2/10. The best ref we've had this season was last Thursday...no bookings throughout the game, he penalised both sides for going down easily and generally you didn't notice him. All referees should watch that game back as an example of how to referee.

Ultimately, we'll finish where we deserve to finish though and we just have to get on with it. But it doesn't half annoy you when so many things go against you in a single season.

 

[mozzavale]

Last season we played Bolton (lost 1-0) and Derby (lost 2-1) in consecutive games. Against Bolton we had an equaliser ruled out for offside when no-one was in an offside position, especially the goalscorer who was at least 3 yards onside. Then against Derby at 1-0 up George Lloyd was booted in the midriff in the box. A foul so blatant that even Paul Warne said in his post-match interview that he couldn't believe a penalty wasn't given. If we score that we go 2-0 up and it makes Derby's comeback much more difficult.

We were relegated by two points. Effectively, those two decisions cost us safety. Darrell Clarke received apology letters from both refs. I don't think we ever considered taking legal action against PGMOL though.

Who said anything about legal action against the PGMOL?

 

[mozzavale]

I agree but it's happened so often to us recently it's ridiculous. You get the odd bad refereeing performance, which we can accept. What I can't accept is game changing decisions that are so obviously wrong to everyone else in the world except the officials.

People say it evens itself out. This season it feels like 95% going against us and 5% for. We have a podcast, and one of the guys on it is a qualified referee...he's pretty fair and will often call out decisions that went against us that most fans disagreed with but that he actually agrees with. There's been very few referees that he's given more than 2/10. The best ref we've had this season was last Thursday...no bookings throughout the game, he penalised both sides for going down easily and generally you didn't notice him. All referees should watch that game back as an example of how to referee.

Ultimately, we'll finish where we deserve to finish though and we just have to get on with it. But it doesn't half annoy you when so many things go against you in a single season.

We'll all have examples of the odd decision that was poor. Most of them come down to interpretation. What frustrates the most about the Bromley one, was that the liner said after the game he hadn't seen the ball over the line as there was a player in the way. That was proven to be a lie shortly after the game, with footage of him looking directly at the ball, a foot over the line.

That particular linesman was a proven cheat. And going back to my first post on this earlier today, how did the PGMOL sanction him? They promoted him to a championship game days later. Regardless of what people think of Vale, that should concern all football fans. How do we expect standards to improve, when their incompetence is rewarded.

 

[lordofthepies]

We have a podcast, and one of the guys on it is a qualified referee...he's pretty fair and will often call out decisions that went against us that most fans disagreed with but that he actually agrees with. There's been very few referees that he's given more than 2/10.

Is that Dan? I've met him several times and I think he's mentioned being a ref every single time

At the last home game and I was saying that I hate to be that fan who always complains about refs but I can't remember the last time we had a vaguely competent one. Professionalism should drive standards up but they seem to be getting worse. I don't know why, maybe the refs who could be talented just don't want to do it anymore.

 

[Si Robin]

Who said anything about legal action against the PGMOL?

I believe Leedsvaliant has on another thread.

EDIT - Here: https://www.thefootballforum.net/threads/league-2-general-chat-thread.16825/post-1280771

 

[leedsvaliant]

I believe Leedsvaliant has on another thread.

EDIT - Here: https://www.thefootballforum.net/threads/league-2-general-chat-thread.16825/post-1280771

Stupid suggestion when I think about it. It's obviously never going to happen but they do need to start taking accountability in some form as genuinely some of these decisions can affect people's livelihoods. Instead, they gave that linesman a Championship game 5 days later. How is that going to improve standards?

 

[OneDecentLester]

Fucking hell are you lot still going on about referees!???

THEY’RE SHIT FOR US ALL FFS

 

[dedwardp]

Here's some action of a referee in a Port Vale game:

 

[iWomble]

Here's some action of a referee in a Port Vale game:

Ah, but what you don't hear there is PGMOL HQ constantly in his ear reminding him of his responsibilities when it comes to disadvantaging Vale.

 

[mozzavale]

I suppose it's easier to act like children than actually read the post, and why it was brought up again. So fucking lazy. Moore was asked 2 days ago if the PGMOL had come back to the club with feedback re the incidents. He answered, and their answers were so farcical they should concern us ALL.

But no we get the same old boring shite regurgitated, "are you lot going on about it still"..."didn't you know there's a conspiracy".

Embarrassing. Some of you clearly struggle with reading and comprehension.

 

[mozzavale]

Ah, but what you don't hear there is PGMOL HQ constantly in his ear reminding him of his responsibilities when it comes to disadvantaging Vale.

Are you fucking thick?

 

[mozzavale]

Here's some action of a referee in a Port Vale game:

Great referee, genuinely one of the best we've seen for years. Won't be at L2 level for long.

 

[Son of Cod]

Are you fucking thick?

Sometimes you just need to hold your hands up and admit that something was a good and fair bant and that iWomble one definitely was.

I started watching that video yesterday but got interrupted, looked interesting so will watch later.

 

[iWomble]

Are you fucking thick?

Pretty sure I'm not. Are you a bit upset?

 

[mozzavale]

No, just bored of shite childish responses to a subject that effects everyone in L2. So lazy.