Welcome To The Play Off Thread...Where Dreams Are Fulfilled And Dashed...

[oakroader]

hi...we're back again...the year of the hat???

 

[BelizeHatter]

What an achievement two years on the trot AND with still 12 points to play for. Well done lads and ladies, from top to bottom. Thank you very much Very impressive.

 

[TomPNE94]

Luton vs Boro final should be good. Hope Luton do it but would be happy for Archer if they win.

 

[oakroader]

If sheff utd lose to WBA and Preston….????

 

[BelizeHatter]

Thats the spirt Oaky. Never quit

 

[BelizeHatter]

Hahah. Spirit. Spirt good enough typo to leave it there ;-)

 

[oakroader]

After boro losing to rovrum today 3rd place is confirmed for us…
Wind back to the beginning of the season who would’ve predicted that???

 

[BelizeHatter]

Second Tier poscast/twitter did. Everyone went into meltdown

Amazing job by everyone. Love my Club

 

[oakroader]

Welcome to Cov and the mackems…

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

Watching the League 1 game tonight hasn’t helped the nerves! Our playoff record is horrendous so not too confident, as edwards says - the playoffs are a different beast.

Not much in it first half but a mistake and a deflection, suddenly Peterborough are rampant. Shows how small things can spiral very quickly.

Looking forward to just getting it started tomorrow

 

[BelizeHatter]

I quite liked Peterbros young left sided centre back Edwards and their centre mid Kyprianou.

I might not be as relaxed in the morning but at the moment i feel its a free hit and its all good. We are up againsy a monster Club, but have a great shout if we play to our capabilities.

Tomorrow the toughest of any more games we have this season. Hope we react well to the big partisan crowd and they shrink rather than grow. We have to be smart tomorrow and stand tall. Hope we go for them and try cause problems not sit back.

 

[oakroader]

You know what…I’d prefer a backs to the wall performance,a la foster/donaghy 1988, for the first game. Not great for the nerves granted but would be a fantastic spectacle with heckles raised and teeth gnashing back at the Kenny
In an all out effort in front of our hatters…
Trying to do it the other way round would be potentially disastrous with
our goalie/defensive indecisions awaiting …
Park the bus up there…
Release the dogs down here…

 

[oakroader]

 

[oakroader]

Watching the League 1 game tonight hasn’t helped the nerves! Our playoff record is horrendous so not too confident, as edwards says - the playoffs are a different beast.

Not much in it first half but a mistake and a deflection, suddenly Peterborough are rampant. Shows how small things can spiral very quickly.

Looking forward to just getting it started tomorrow

Just goes to show that the final placing/points mean fuck all at the end of the day..,

 

[Kenneth E End]

Well today's the day ladies and gentleman. Part of me was quite glad that Sheffield Wednesday got a bit of a spanking last night - as it'll focus the mind for us today. Nerves are kicking in. I couldn't get a ticket because of the ridiculous 2,000 maximum that all teams have put in place (just 4% of the capacity!) for these play offs.

Make no mistake, any team can win these play offs. Everyone is back on an equal - zero points each.

Edwards has said we wouldn't sit back and go cagey... I'll believe it when I see it. A lot of players were rested on Monday given what was coming today, so they should be a bit more refreshed than Sunderland. This is the team I'd go with...

GK Ethan Horvath
RCB Reece Burke
LCB Amari'i Bell
CB Tom Lockyer
RWB Codey Drameh
LWB Alfie Doughty
CM Marvelous Nakamba
LCM Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu
RCM Allan Campbell
FW Carlton Morris
FW Elijah Adebayo.

Subs: James Shea, Gabe Osho, Sonny Bradley, Jordan Clark, Luke Berry, Luke Freeman, Joe Taylor

If I was at home first leg, I'd go Clark over Campbell. That back six is amongst the best defensive units in the division. The midfield full of hardworking battlers and have some creative skill too. Morris is a 20 goal striker and Adebayo a 17 goal striker last season. Considering the whole squad cost £5.5M in total, there are some real talents.

I would suspect also if things don't start off great at the SoL, the home supporters might over-expect and start getting on their backs. It seems that they have a bunch of injuries (8 out according to FlashScore) including talisman Ross Stewart.

 

[oakroader]

Premier League Discussion on LTFC
“ Mmm now let’s look at who’s coming up.
Burnley are back … tick
Sheff Und…. big enough ground and support…tick
Middlesbrough…. the Riverside… tick
Sunderland…..stadium of Light.. tick
Coventry…. Ricoh… tick ( we will overlook ownership)
Luton…. Erm hang on a minute, they have what? Beach Huts. Entrance through someone’s back garden, plastic chairs for the bench and not those nice soft padded ones, .. and Beech path closed?

No No No…. We can’t have that beamed across the best league in the world.

Right who’s reffing these 2 games?
Have we got some Brown Envelopes in the Stationary cupboard?

 

[Kenneth E End]

Just for the record - the referee today is the same one that (rightly) sent off Andy Carroll in our game a few weeks ago.

Sunderland AFC (First Team) v Luton Town (First Team)
Football League Championship
Referee: Robinson, Tim
Assistant Referee: Taylor, Craig
Assistant Referee: Byrne, George
Fourth Official: Davies, Andy
Reserve Assistant Referee: Dwyer, Mark

Coventry City FC (First Team) v MIDDLESBROUGH (First Team)
Football League Championship
Referee: Madley, Robert
Assistant Referee: Wild, Richard
Assistant Referee: Hyde, Robert
Fourth Official: Linington, James
Reserve Assistant Referee: Hodskinson, Paul

Luton Town (First Team) v Sunderland AFC (First Team)
Football League Championship
Referee: Hooper, Simon
Assistant Referee: Holmes, Adrian
Assistant Referee: Scholes, Mark
Fourth Official: Madley, Andrew
Reserve Assistant Referee: Kane, Graham

MIDDLESBROUGH (First Team) v Coventry City FC (First Team)
Football League Championship
Referee: Coote, David
Assistant Referee: Bennett, Simon
Assistant Referee: Wood, Timothy
Fourth Official: Brooks, John
Reserve Assistant Referee: Smith, Matthew

 

[BelizeHatter]

Feeling good. Not sure why as we are a disaster zone in play offs. If they have injuries at both fullbacks as rumoured, plus all their other losses, with O'Nien a bit of a hot head and playing centre half........ lets get at em.

Start hard and fast. Lets take control not sit back. We are prob better away than home so go for them. Fortune favours the brave.

COYH

 

[BelizeHatter]

Goes with Clark and Osho. Edwards really put confidence and trust in Gabe Osho. Needs to keep his head

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

Think my nervousness is not coming from expectation in us doing it, more the thought that we probably wont have as good an opportunity to do this again. But then again i thought that last year and here we are!

Goes with Osho & Clark in the only 2 positions which didnt pick themselves. I fancied Burke for it but Edwards knows best obviously. Osho really grew into the season but can be a bit rash at times, especially i think when hes finding his match fitness/form. Lot of speedy/tricky players today for Sunderland so really need him on it and composed.

The Sunderland side looks strong in attack & midfield but defence looks to be able to be got at. Looking for Adebayo especially to step and bully their inexperienced centre halves. Set pieces could be a real opportunity for us today from that

 

[Craig]

Would love to see Luton get to premier league

 

[Caitlyn]

Elijah 1-0 Luton!!!!!!

 

[oakroader]

Ffs PRM…you pratt

 

[BelizeHatter]

Yr fav Pelly had a howler........ Worse still was Nakamba.

Our engine room and supply route dead. We are lucky to still be in it and have no suspensions - esp Nakamba def 2nd yellow missed there and arguably could have gone earlier.

But........we are still in it.....very much in it ......A Tues night, under the lights, packed Kenny at full volume. Get in there

 

[Kenneth E End]

I’m genuinely shocked with the way that panned out. Without a doubt, the worst performance since the Watford (A) match. Our engine room totally stalled. Clark, Drameh and Nakamba having their worst performances ever in a Luton shirt. Mpanzu also had a total mare.

Sunderland have the youngest squad in the league, yet it was them who looked like the experienced outfit.

Mowbray did his homework for sure. He out-Lutoned Luton. They were EVERYWERE. I’ve not seen a team this season playing as hard and committed as that in the battle.

Diallo - what a goal. We haven’t really had that many goals against us this season where you stand up and applaud it. Sod’s Law that one of them happens in a play off semi final. He’s better than the pathetic play acting he seems to habitually enjoy.

BUT… Luton cannot play that bad again… surely? It’s only half time; just as well we’re only 1 down.

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

Felt we were doing ok up until the Diallo goal. He’s a special player at this level, we had done well to keep him well shut out up to that point, but that goal was a real turning point in momentum that we never wrested back.

Second half was a total shocker, key players well of their games, lucky to still be in the tie at this point. Fairly typical, “Luton in the playoffs” type performance which was my worry, this just isn’t our format. It’s a “moments”/cup sort of games which are not our forte

 

[BelizeHatter]

I feel a decent keeper gets that Diallo shot. Horvarth took a step left at contact rather than waiting to catch the flight. Too late then. It was good but wasnt full top corner unstoppable. He gets it quite comfortably with a 'tv save' if he doesn't step left.

 

[BelizeHatter]

I think Tuesday night gonna be a cracker. Blood and guts goals flying in. We need to score first, but even if we don't we gonna go hard, they gonna break fast and dangerous and tit for tat. Im thinking 5-3 and Wemberely ;-)

 

[Kenneth E End]

I feel a decent keeper gets that Diallo shot. Horvarth took a step left at contact rather than waiting to catch the flight. Too late then. It was good but wasnt full top corner unstoppable. He gets it quite comfortably with a 'tv save' if he doesn't step left.

Seriously? He had no chance

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

He looked a bit shaky on an earlier shot and the passage of play started with him needlessly putting the ball out of play if I r recall but that shot was spectacular. I guess the critique is it was “his” side but was perfectly placed

I’m certainly not keen on Horvath but that was just a fantastic goal