League 2 relegation thread 14/15

[1884 Belmont]

I don't think Tranmere fans have been overconfident, but to say Micky Adams hasn't worked is wrong. We may well go down, but this last week aside, we were on a run of 3 defeats in 19 or something like that - we lost 8 of our first 12! We were so far behind everyone else that, alongside Hartlepool, we have had to claw and scrap just to get back into the mix for safety. The last few games have been very poor, but to be fair to Micky it is the first time since October we have had such a bad week and it is the first time we have lost 2 in a week since November - not bad for a side at the very bottom.
That Mansfield win against Luton has really put the pressure on the Portsmouth game next Tuesday, as it is our game in hand and a chance to gain 3 points over the bottom 2 on a night they aren't playing. However, with Shrewsbury on Saturday we could end that Portsmouth game winless in 5, which would be very concerning. I'm getting very nervous now - I'll be honest, I didn't see the last week coming and expected us to beat Carlisle, but to take just 1 point from the 3 game we have just had has really hurt us.

 

[shoddycollins]

Changing manager can be a complete and knee-jerk reaction - yes, it worked for York last season for instance, but Hartlepool, Tranmere, York, Carlisle, Cheltenham (twice) and ourselves - 6 of the bottom 7 have changed our manager - where have any of us gone? Not far.

To be fair we've gone quite far... we were in Hartlepool's situation when Curle came in.

 

[shoddycollins]

Out of interest - when we had the old football forum - someone ran some table which showed not only all teams on it, but what you needed for safety and promotion in previous seasons, what is predicted safety and all that - can't remember who did that

I did, but I nicked the idea from JJ in the League One forum last season, Nick the Dagger has done it since this forum started though.

 

[AdamStag]

Where is it then? Or just not been ran

 

[daviejones]

To be fair we've gone quite far... we were in Hartlepool's situation when Curle came in.

A lot of people seem to forget how deep in the mire we were when Curle came in. If he keeps us up then he deserves all the plaudits, I didn't think it would be possible when we were already 6 points clear of the drop before he came in. As it is now I think we'll stay up (only just) - we seem to be developing a good core to the team of Troy/O'Hanlon, CMW/Griffith, Dempsey/Rigg/Wyke, and then if you put Kearns and Asamoah into that we've actually got a decent team which is being managed pretty well it seems. I also can't wait to get these next 2 games out of the way so that we can have a few winnable games and hopefully get confidence back up a bit, and actually judge whether we're looking like going down or not.

 

[DarkSithLord]

Talking about teams throwing money they didn't have at the Conference while we were down there, off the top of my head I can think of Crawley, Fleetwood, Mansfield, Forest Green, Alfreton, Histon and Grays. There's probably more but to summarise, we were down there 9 years and there's normally one a year to contend with.

Then there's always a Wrexham, Grimsby, Bristol Rovers, Luton, Oxford type who are far too big for the league so will invariably compete at the top. It's a nightmare to get out of.

We have never chucked money we dont have. We are 100% debt free. We we able to afford Akinde apparently via our Cup prize money

 

[Boz]

While I don't think Rovers fans are quite as pessimistic as Carlisle, we run them close. Overall, don't feel there's been much over-confidence, though maybe a bit of getting carried away with a flattering 3-0 win over Accrington. However, the York game was a real eye-opener. Not so much for the odd team selection, Adams had done something similar at home to Southend, or even the apathetic approach from some of the players. It was Adams' total failure to try and change things when they were so clearly going wrong that baffled and concerned me. I was expecting much better after he'd managed to ship out some unwanted players replacing them with his own selections and Iain Hume, but it hasn't happened yet. At the moment, our priority is to stay in touch and not get cast adrift at the bottom.

 

[shoddycollins]

Where is it then? Or just not been ran

There's one in this thread from a couple of weeks back... doesn't look like anyone's put one up since then.

 

[BigDaveCUFC]

While I don't think Rovers fans are quite as pessimistic as Carlisle.

Of course your not, we took the most pessimistic fans title for L2 this season a long time ago and are just enforcing that title as the season goes on.

Life as a Carlisle fan would be boring if you remove the total negativity and misery of following the club weekly.

 

[AdamStag]

Skybet relegation odds -

Hartlepool 1/12
Cheltenham 11/8
Tranmere 11/2
Mansfield 6/1
York & Carlisle 13/2
Dagenham 8/1
Oxford 20/1

 

[hellogregory]

Skybet relegation odds -

Hartlepool 1/12
Cheltenham 11/8
Tranmere 11/2
Mansfield 6/1
York & Carlisle 13/2
Dagenham 8/1
Oxford 20/1

Free money

 

[hellogregory]

Of course your not, we took the most pessimistic fans title for L2 this season a long time ago and are just enforcing that title as the season goes on.

Life as a Carlisle fan would be boring if you remove the total negativity and misery of following the club weekly.

It wouldn't be boring, it would be heaven. When the club actually give us something on or off the pitch to be positive about, everyone is happy.

 

[shoddycollins]

Free money

You've changed your tune from 'who'll go down with us'

 

[hellogregory]

You've changed your tune from 'who'll go down with us'

How?

 

[shoddycollins]

How?

I presume that by saying 'free money' you were implying you thought Hartlepool and Cheltenham were almost certainly going down.

 

[cufc17]

I presume that by saying 'free money' you were implying you thought Hartlepool and Cheltenham were almost certainly going down.

I thought HG was implying the odds on us to drop were so good

 

[shoddycollins]

I thought HG was implying the odds on us to drop were so good

Yeah my mistake... because the forum cut the odds he was quoting off after two lines I only saw the odds for Hartlepool and Cheltenham and him saying 'free money'.

 

[hellogregory]

I presume that by saying 'free money' you were implying you thought Hartlepool and Cheltenham were almost certainly going down.

No in my post I'd highlighted our odds in bold. I'm still the pessimist!

 

[BlueAndWhiteKieran]

We're signing a new player, hopefully a goalkeeper who can Kick.

 

[shoddycollins]

We're signing a new player, hopefully a goalkeeper who can Kick.

Apparently one who was on trial with us earlier in the season. My money's on that Canadian guy, he was on trial at the same time as Hanford and I think we kept him on for a bit before letting him go... although the rumours don't actually state it's a goalie.

I think Hanford's poor kicking is more of an embarrassment than it actually is a problem. I'd reckon that the benefits of him being a good goalkeeper outweigh the costs of the opposition getting several throw-ins on the half-way line in a match.

 

[daviejones]

Apparently one who was on trial with us earlier in the season. My money's on that Canadian guy, he was on trial at the same time as Hanford and I think we kept him on for a bit before letting him go... although the rumours don't actually state it's a goalie.

I think Hanford's poor kicking is more of an embarrassment than it actually is a problem. I'd reckon that the benefits of him being a good goalkeeper outweigh the costs of the opposition getting several throw-ins on the half-way line in a match.

Luton's first goal on Saturday would suggest that he isn't even that good of a goalkeeper. Beaten at the near post without even trying to go for it, shocking really.

 

[hellogregory]

Luton's first goal on Saturday would suggest that he isn't even that good of a goalkeeper. Beaten at the near post without even trying to go for it, shocking really.

Not to mention the other lucky escapes we had in that game when he came out and failed to catch the ball and then later stood and gorped at the ball sailing onto his cross bar.

 

[hellogregory]

Apparently one who was on trial with us earlier in the season. My money's on that Canadian guy, he was on trial at the same time as Hanford and I think we kept him on for a bit before letting him go... although the rumours don't actually state it's a goalie.

I think Hanford's poor kicking is more of an embarrassment than it actually is a problem. I'd reckon that the benefits of him being a good goalkeeper outweigh the costs of the opposition getting several throw-ins on the half-way line in a match.

So to compete with/replace Hanford we're signing a goalkeeper who was deemed to be not as good as Hanford while they were both on trial? I hope this is a joke.

 

[shoddycollins]

So to compete with/replace Hanford we're signing a goalkeeper who was deemed to be not as good as Hanford while they were both on trial? I hope this is a joke.

Well nobody connected to the story even suggested that it was a goalkeeper... it's just a couple of people on Cumbrians.net saying they think it will be a goalkeeper.

Gillespie out for six weeks, not sure if we actually are going to be in the market for a goalie for that length of time.

How many goals ahead would Shrewsbury have been come injury time last week were it not for Hanford?

 

[hellogregory]

Well nobody connected to the story even suggested that it was a goalkeeper... it's just a couple of people on Cumbrians.net saying they think it will be a goalkeeper.

Gillespie out for six weeks, not sure if we actually are going to be in the market for a goalie for that length of time.

How many goals ahead would Shrewsbury have been come injury time last week were it not for Hanford?

He made a couple of good stops I admit, but he doesn't command his area enough particularly on set pieces. This was evident from the extended highlights at Luton. His kicking doesn't need mentioned as we all know how shit it is, but there's other worrying aspects to his game.

Gillespie is a huge miss and he needs replacing imo. Whether that be a loan or permanent I don't know, but not a player who has already failed a trial to be our number 2.

 

[shoddycollins]

Gillespie is a huge miss and he needs replacing imo. Whether that be a loan or permanent I don't know, but not a player who has already failed a trial to be our number 2.

The thing to bear in mind with any player who has already had a trial with us this season, keeper or outfield, is that means more than likely it was Graham Kavanagh who judged them to be not good enough.

 

[hellogregory]

Kavanagh was generally right when it came to players not good enough. Can't really think of a player Kavanagh was wrong to release. It was Abbott who was the clown when it came to not signing or releasing good players.

I think Caig will probably be the judge of the goalkeepers rather than the manager.

 

[hellogregory]

Wow, Cheltenham leading 1-0 at accrington. Could be a big 3 points for them and a great start for the new man in charge.

Another nail slammed into our coffin?

 

[StagsForLife]

1-1 now, Cheltenham needing the 3 points is an understatement.

 

[daviejones]

This is potentially one of the easiest games they'll have left. Accrington have very little to play for, not near the play offs or relegation. Small home crowd so the home advantage is minimised. Going into a run of 6 pointers this would have been a very good time for Cheltenham to start winning games.