2025 relegation dogfight thread

[Conker]

I’m always more confident away from home.

 

[YEO YEO YEO]

You can't call this relegation scrap. Shrewsbury lost a couple of home games on the bounce, Crawley not able to string any wins together, Cambridge and Burton seem to be doing the business but still in the drop zone. Exeter going down?

 

[Throbber_for_Dunk]

Doing the business once, out of 12/13 opportunities.

Massive massive vibe shift though today, big game against Crawley next time out. Shame a lot of the other contenders all got good (and unexpected) results today, but it keeps it all alive. Ish.

 

[Conker]

I watched the Lincoln vs Burton game, few outtakes, firstly it’s embarrassing we lost 3-0 to that Lincoln side on Tuesday, secondly that narrows our gap to the relegation spots to only 6 points (admittedly 5 teams in the way and games in hand)

Burton away next week is gunna be a nervy one if we don’t win tomorrow.

 

[YEO YEO YEO]

I watched the Lincoln vs Burton game, few outtakes, firstly it’s embarrassing we lost 3-0 to that Lincoln side on Tuesday, secondly that narrows our gap to the relegation spots to only 6 points (admittedly 5 teams in the way and games in hand)

Burton away next week is gunna be a nervy one if we don’t win tomorrow.

Burton make it a scrappy game to do their best to nick it, whilst you rolled over and let us tickle your belly. No fight from yourselves at all.

 

[EricSabin]

PPG Last 10


15) Mansfield 0.7
16) Wigan - 0.9
17) Northampton - 1.5
18) Exeter - 0.5
19) Rovers - 1.3
20) Peterborough - 1

21) Burton - 1.8
22) Crawley - 0.9
23) Shrewsbury - 1
24) Cambridge - 0.9

Gives the following totals

15) Burton - 55
16) Northampton - 55
17) Rovers - 53
18) Wigan - 50
19) Mansfield - 49
20)Peterborough - 48

21) Exeter - 43
22) Crawley - 42
23) Shrewsbury - 40
24) Cambridge - 39

Again not sure how useful this is, Shrews recent downturn has affected their prospects and Exeter look like they’ve not stopped the free fall, huge game vs us next week.

Big winners are Burton who look like they’ll pull clear with a fair bit to spare, so if they can continue their promotion form they’ll be safe and sound and avoid any last day jitters.

Included Wigan and Mansfield in it as well this time as they’ve not pulled clear.

 

[Stocky]

Said for a while the bottom four won't all go down.

May only be one who survive. But they've all pretty much got their sleeves rolled up for a battle. That may catch somebody out.

I had Peterborough down for being the most likely to not have the heart but great win for them today.

 

[YEO YEO YEO]

Interesting, didn't realise how terrible Exeter have been.

 

[Throbber_for_Dunk]

Think it's the opposite from this perspective, no one side of the bottom four have stood out enough to think they'll be the one.

 

[AdamStag]

Think it's the opposite from this perspective, no one side of the bottom four have stood out enough to think they'll be the one.

burton.

 

[AdamStag]

Concerning for mansfield given were only 6 clear of burton.

But with our loss to wrexham tomorrow we’ll go into that game against burton next saturday in a very dodgy situation.

 

[Bartonyellow]

Concerning for mansfield given were only 6 clear of burton.

But with our loss to wrexham tomorrow we’ll go into that game against burton next saturday in a very dodgy situation.

We are not amazing so you are quite capable to of still winning. We might even get complacent. Not also forgetting our defence still has plenty of comedy moments in them.
I see this game a lot harder than perhaps you do.
The first game was a good one.

 

[EricSabin]

Concerning for mansfield given were only 6 clear of burton.

But with our loss to wrexham tomorrow we’ll go into that game against burton next saturday in a very dodgy situation.

Judging on the PPG at your current form you’ll still get to 49 points and surely you won’t continue as bad as you’ve been?

 

[AdamStag]

Judging on the PPG at your current form you’ll still get to 49 points and surely you won’t continue as bad as you’ve been?

Watch us tomorrow, you’ll soon change your mind!

 

[dannylad01]

The run of 3 home defeats has put a dent in our survival hopes. Had the Stevenage game been the first of the 3 I think we'd have beaten them. Half of our team were blowing out of their backsides early in the 2nd half after 5 gakes in 2 weeks and had little on the bench Worth changing it with. Can't believe that Stevenage are comfortably mid table as they're one of the poorest teams I've seen this season, but won 1-0 without a single shot on target all game.

4 massive games now with Peterborough, Bristol Rovers, Exeter and Burton the next 4. That is likely to define the season

 

[Casey]

We cannot stop crosses into the box, might have something to do with no wide defenders and when the crosses come in the central defenders (two of who are first year pros) have been pulled out of the box to wide areas. That tends to leave our tricky winger up against a centre forward for a header. I wonder why we have the second worst defensive record in the EFL (take a bow Plymouth).

When we didn't buy any full backs or wing backs in January I gave up on our chances and while this Tobias Phoenix is our dof, and doesn't think wide defenders are necessary, I don't have much hope for next season either.

Casey

 

[HutchECFC]

We’re in free fall, cannot see where we’re gonna get our next win.
The next two Saturday’s we have Northampton (H) and Shrewsbury (H) which are absolutely massive for our season. Win both and I’ll feel a bit more comfortable, lose both and I’m resigned to the fact we’ll be going to Bromley next season.

 

[Conker]

When am I going to be told I’m right?

Saturday evening probably

 

[SVH]

We’ve still got to play Crawley (a) Stevenage (h), Northampton (h), Shrewsbury (a), Wigan (a), Burton (a) and Peterborough (h).

Win at Crawley next week and I might just start to believe.

 

[thewwfc]

You also have Brum on the final day who will be on the beach as champions by then - maybe playing the kids?

There aren’t any nailed on brown trousers winner-takes-all relegation classics on the final day, sadly.

Mansfield v Exeter *might* be, but I think it’s unlikely that both will be in the drop zone by then considering they aren’t at the mo.

And you’d have to think that one or both of Shrews/Crawley will be down by then anyway - I’m sure that a dead rubber between 2 relegated sides would be box office gold.

 

[Conker]

We are only half decent in the first half, if we continue with this second half issue it’s hard to see how we can win a game, that on top with the fact our starting line up is almost entirely our reserve side at the minute, it’s not looking good bruv.

 

[AdamStag]

Mansfield and wigan stink the place out to both get a point and move onto 40.

Draws also for exeter, bristol rovers, northampton, with 21/22/23 all losing it gives everyone a little more breathing space - realistically wigan mansfield and peterborough have an extra point due to the better GD.

With Rotherham winning tonight it looks from Wigan downwards.

 

[EricSabin]

Teams in the drop zone not making any headway tonight. Chances missed for Shrews/Rovers/Wigan/Mansfield and points gained for us and Exeter.

 

[AdamStag]

I love how we’ve not won in 11 and and there’s still like 8 sides below us

Obviously our first season up here in ages but surely there’s no chance 50 is going to be needed this season - wouldn’t want to try it but i reckon 45/46 should do

 

[YEO YEO YEO]

Big opportunity missed for Cambridge and Shrewsbury you would think. Crawley terrible and didn't expect Burton to get anything at Wycombe.

That's a fair number of home games that Shrewsbury have failed to win after their promising start under Ainsworth.

 

[BRFC_Gas]

Big opportunity missed for Cambridge and Shrewsbury you would think. Crawley terrible and didn't expect Burton to get anything at Wycombe.

That's a fair number of home games that Shrewsbury have failed to win after their promising start under Ainsworth.

I'd relegate them now just for having that f'kin awful drum

 

[thewwfc]

With Rotherham winning tonight it looks from Wigan downwards.

Yeah, I'd say that's fair.

No-one's 100% adrift yet at the bottom, but to state the obvious, the longer the current state of affairs goes on, the harder it gets for the dropzone teams to make up the gap.

Burton still looking like the most likely to pull it off, and they didn't look like a relegation side tonight, but their up-front threat was pretty minimal.

 

[EnglishRed]

Yeah, I'd say that's fair.

No-one's 100% adrift yet at the bottom, but to state the obvious, the longer the current state of affairs goes on, the harder it gets for the dropzone teams to make up the gap.

Burton still looking like the most likely to pull it off, and they didn't look like a relegation side tonight, but their up-front threat was pretty minimal.

View attachment 21721

Burton seem to have gambled on the fitness of many of their new signings. All three they got from us are decent players but all have had fitness issues recently- Jon Dadi Bodvarsson started off really well there but is now injured (which was why he's not still at Bolton and why we didn't retain him after Jan) - so a lot will depend if they can start getting minutes out of these players.

 

[Luke Imp]

Do many of the bottom 8 still need to play each other?

 

[AdamStag]

Do many of the bottom 8 still need to play each other?

We’ve played most of them, we’ve got peterborough home, bristol rovers away and exeter home and away (the home fixture being last game of the seadon).