Thetownend.com

Very good to watch these when we are not part of them.

Feel sorry for Walsall who, missed out on promotion by a point, are 3-0 down in their first leg.

Fuck 'em. Don't like any Midlands team.

Their good players will be gone, a la us. Chance to have a go for Bradshaw?

Although he's been shite this evening.

I've really come to hate the PO's from an STFC point of view....but that now means I can enjoy watching other buggers suffer.

I make it we've made 8 po's...of which we've only been eliminated the once at semi final stage by actually losing the tie on aggregate.

The book published last year based on the Play-Offs had us down as the second most successful PO side ever (including last seasons stats). Only Crystal Palace better Town.

Shame our recent history has been so poor.

is your stat of eliminated the once at semi final stage by palace

from a selfish point of view I'd rather Walsall stay down.

But the fa fixture computer will no doubt stuff it up by putting it on a Tuesday..

That's the one robbed by the woodwork, dodgy lino and Ian Wright's elbow.

It basically went tits up for us after I started going.

Sorry.

I second that, first I remember is Brighton.. sigh  :cry:

And when you get there it's called off cos of the snow.

Same, I think we are the same age. You must share my amazing Wembley record too  :suicide: unbeaten before!

Brighton was my first play off experience too. Great memories.

thats 2 semi final defeats then, palace and brighton

And Brentford.

Fucking hell, can you young lot just stop going to playoff games, we were fine without you.

I enjoyed the Derby v Hull and the Barnsley v Wallsall games mostly for the absence of pointless, pissy, passing game.

:deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse:

He's got you there mate.

haha, that's 3, Reg wont be happy

It isn't.

Brighton we didn't lose on aggregate. It was 1-1 at FT and 2-2 AET.
Brentford was 4-4 AET

Bloody Penalties.
 

I watched Brighton yesterday and had to laugh at their bad luck with injuries in that game.

Adam Virgo, that was for you!

Yep, 3 visits.. 0 goals scored

Been twice with England too and haven't seen them win either!

That still makes my piss boil....bit like Oldham this season.

A light dusting it was....cunts...I was in the KFC next to IKEA...turned up...bastards..

The playoffs are absolutely bonkers. Bradford conceded 1 at home since March 1st and they concede 3 in the first half.

The Play-Offs are brilliant.

That's all I've got to add.

Would love to see a Premier League "relegation playoffs"

20th and 19th go down, then 4 above fight it out. Whoever loses the 'semi-final' plays in a one off for survival

My Son has been to the same three games, we also took him to the FA Vase Final when Chippenham got there so he got to go to the Old Wembley, Chippenham lost 1-0 so he is an aggregate 8-0 down :(

At least I got to watch us in the two play-off finals in the 90s.


As for the play-offs, I had never seen us lose a tie until the Brighton game (I was on holiday when we played Palace but have been to every other Play off game).

They are great games to win, but horrible games to lose, especially the final.

The wins at Wigan & Blackburn were fantastic, didn't really enjoy the game at Tranmere until it was over

Hopefully FGR get dicked today especially with Cooper in charge. Their chairman wants to move them 12 miles away to Eastington so he can build a business park, Franchise on a smaller scale!

The New Lawn was a daft place to put a football ground in the first place.

But at least it's actually in Forest Green not Junction 13 of the M5 in an 'Eco Business Park'!

Currently, Cooper is a National League manager next season.

0-2 HT.

Those perfect preparations are paying dividends

Good, a club who only sell veggie rubbish to fans on a matchday have no place in the football league

Only offering advice!?

Not from what I saw going on.

Anyway fuck him.

Watching Plymuff vs Pompey....can't tell if the occassion has got to both teams causing nerves or they really are both shit.

If Portsmouth go up then it'll probably be one of the strongest selection of promoted teams that L2 has provided L1 in quite a while.

Jake Jervis is really shit.

I never noticed when he played for us....but did Danny Hollands have rickets as a kid?

Out go Pompey and off to Wembley go Plymouth.

Could be good news if we looking to sell Michael Smith to Portsmouth.

Would they not have had more money available for him if they went up?

Yeah and perhaps a different shopping list to go with that.

Massive revenue loss for all 1st Division clubs, if Portsmouth had been promoted, I'd imagine they would have the largest away following, with Swindon being in easy reach, would bring 3,000.

True, though Plymouth would probably bring about 2k given that they haven't been here for a while, and we're their equivalent of a local derby.

Possibly a bit of an overestimate basd on the 1500 they brought on a BH 3 years ago..

http://www.swindon-town-fc.co.uk/MatchCentre.asp?MatchID=20130124

Pretty good away support for a team at the time in the relegation zone.

Plymouth do not have a great away following, only once in 30 years have they brought more than 1,300 and that was in 2003 when they were 2nd in the league.

Fair point, though in recent times (with the exception of the one-off to which you refer) we always seem to have played them either on a Tuesday, or in April when their season is all but over.

It'd be interesting to see, anyway. The safe bet is that Accrington would bring about 99 if they were to come up, so LP probably isn't so keen on that prospect.

Argyle usually bring a decent number, if it's not midweek or something, just because it's 2 1/2 hours on the M5/4, not the usual slog.  They'd have loved Div 3 N this season.

You'd have thought the Devon clubs were begging for FGR's promotion ahead of Grimsby.

Alas...

Yeah, I always thought of Plymouth and Carlisle as having pretty reasonable support. Being such footballing outposts, I always imagined it to be something of a badge of honour if you support those Clubs, to go everywhere with them.

I know a few Carlisle supporters and they don't travel away, in fact when Carlisle were playing In Preston earlier this year they were over the moon as it made getting to games so much easier for them!

Probably true, but the bigger picture is that we've lost:

Wigan
Burton
Millwall / Bradford / Barnsley / Walsall [probably Millwall]
Crewe
Colchester
Doncaster
Blackpool

and gained:

Bolton
Charlton
Franchise
Northampton
Pox
Rovers
Plymouth / Wimbledon / Accrington

Even if Accrington get promotion, Power shouldn't be too disappointed about potential away ticket sales next season.

I can't be arsed to look myself, but I wonder how away attendances at the CG for 15/16 compared with recent seasons? I may be hopelessly way out, but this recent season did look pretty poor, and with good reason.

Our Average this season was 7409, with 517 away fans,
compared to
7926 (483) in 2014/15,
8130 (611) in 2013/14,
8529 (439) in 2012/13,
8411 (503) in 2011/12,
8455 (678) in 2010/11,
8389 (827) in 2009/10   (This season we had Leeds (3336), Norwich (2826) & Southampton (2995)

So about 500 less than last season (which considering the league position is not a surprise), but over a thousand less than when we got relegated in 2010/11. Although I guess the inflated number of Season Tickets hides the actual number of people going

If you added in a Bristol City and say Wolves or Leeds and we'd be back to around 8k so the majority of movement centres around who we have in the league. 09/10 was play-offs but had Norwich, Rovers, Southampton, Leeds etc who all brought a few.
Even in 10/11 we had Brighton, Southampton, Sheff Wednesday, Plymouth etc who all used some of the bank. We just haven't had those sort of teams this season which is the main reason for the dip.

Surprised its held up so well TBH

Cracking game at Brighton

Kind of reinforces my opinion that the vast majority of the big moaners saying they won't go anymore never went regularly in the first place.
Next season with Oxford and Rovers our average will be about 8k at least!

Enjoy the pain Brighton  :pint:

Unlucky Brighton. Bet you wished you had Adam Virgo now :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

(http://i68.tinypic.com/35dd95g.jpg)

Brighton seem to be a very obnoxious and ill disciplined unit epitomised by Lewis Dunk and that Bruno twat at right back. All their fans are now blaming the FA for not overturning a red card against Middlesbrough that left a hole in the 'Boro players shin. Good to see them fail again!

 :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick: @ Brighton

I thought I was over the whole Brighton thing, but seeing them dominate a playoff game and then lose it was really satisfying.

Cheers for this. I'm genuinely surprised the average away attendance was higher this season than last.

Great game currently going on and if it stays the same were guaranteed another southern side in division 3. Come on the real Dons

Lights out!  :idea:

 :eek:Holy Tranmere!

This is why Accrington should not come up. Tinpot.  :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

Lyle Taylor gets the goal and probably the headlines, but this goal is all about the run of Jake Reeves.

He bursts through one and then two challenges, rounds another defender and his shot is parried when one-on-one with the keeper.

But it falls kindly to striker Taylor to first time drill home his 22nd of the season.

Wimbledon are heading to Wembley.

Reeeeeeeeves. Wish we had kept him and not signed Rodgers.

I can't believe Akinfenwa is still scoring goals at a professional level. Be great to have him back at the CG. Imagine him stood next to Will Henry  :D

Went with the Wimbledon fans to watch that tonight, and managed to get a great video of us signing with Callum Kennedy on the pitch after calling him a Swindon legend  8)

That's just cruel :D

Is he deaf?

Probably after listening to me sing...

You aren't kidding. I'm not sure if this is Akinfenwa, or a repainted Harmony of the Sea.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/36263628

Akinfenwa's goal was the most Akinfenwa goal ever. Still does a solid job at League 2 level and will go on and on.

That second Accrington goal was quite a strike wasn't it (35" if you're lazy).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggHbif8oaLc

https://uk.search.yahoo.com/search?fr=mcafee&type=C211GB0D20160201&p=spinal+tap+stonehenge+measurement

But for a failed medical in 2007 he would have signed for us.
25 then and a much more slimline version, suspect that he might have done a good job at the time.

Doh! Seconds not yards/inches. Still, "Fuck the napkin" as they say...

Bet you though it only went up to 11.  ;)

So all the teams who finished 3rd (or 4th in Accrington's case) are out of the play-offs at the semi final stage after Barnsleys 3-1 win at Walsall tonight.

A bloke at work has got a £5 bet on Sheff Wednesday, Barnsley and Wimbledon winning the play-offs, set to win £380 if it comes off. A long way to go yet but he's in with a shout.

I would cash in on the bet, would probably get £50.
Then have a £20 treble on the same three sides obviously at reduced odds.
Can't lose and if the treble came in would still win around £180+, if it loses £25 profit with both bets. :nod:

I had £2 on Wednesday, Barnsley & fucking Pompey. Lost to a 91st goal at Plymouth!!!

I've got a tenner on Hull, Barnsley and Plymouth!

Well, if you lose 91-0 what do you expect!

My inability to pick winners knows no bounds. My patent bet of Accrington, Bradford and Brighton to win the playoffs is dead before the finals.

I had £15 on Hull, Barnsley and Plymouth.... Still a long way to go but at least they're all still there.

Barnsley beating Wall 2.0, cracking 2nd goal, as Ricky Wilson once  sang, I predict a riot :beers:

3-1 now. Couldn't be arsed about the CL last night, but I'm enjoying this one.

Oh great. We have the 'lovely' Millwall next season.

Barnsley were bottom of the table in mid-December.

Fairytale!

Ha ha ha ha ha!

How do 'ya like that!?!?

(In the style of Samuel L Jackson)

Fuck off you odious Millwall cunts!

Next person to say fairytale gets bournemouth, leicester and marcus fucking rashford rammed up their shitter.

Well I needed that "ironic" emoticon, but compared to the others you mention, this is a bit closer to the proper definition of the word. I'm quite happy to see Barnsley go up (and Wall stay down of course).

Lots of pictures and videos doing the rounds on Twitter of the Barnsley fans (mainly women and kids) running, lovely club Millwall.

Millwall fans broken through police barrier and Barnsley fans now running to other stands."

Scum!

Fine the cunts points..

Jesus Christ, total fuckwitts.

They get fined every time. Deduct them points.

Agreed.

I actually watched that game! Barnsley were by far the better team.

What's the return on this then?

So far both games have been won by teams that have had the opposite end to the end we have had on recent visits.

On that basis Plymouth are going to win

£770, covered myself by putting £170 on Wimbledon though, so max of £600 profit.

I hope that's Wimbledon to lift the trophy, not simply them to win in normal time...

Lucky you did at the moment...

AFC v Franchise next season as a league fixture.

Stuff you FA Commission, who said that a fans club wasn't 'in the interest of football'.

Yes! Next season is brilliant for the London Reds!

Callum Kennedy and Jake Reeves were both outstanding. Liked the look of out-for-contract Darius Charles too.

Reeves was an unfortunate loss for Town but we couldn't give him games at the time.

I'm pretty sure Callum Kennedy was released by Wimbledon and later given a reprieve. Seems to have taken the opportunity.

Liking the look of the league line up for sure. Last trip we did to AFC was hilarious

Apart from Hull, I'm happy with the outcome of this weekend's playoff matches!

I don't think having 30,000 Millwall fans in the same place is not a good idea. Maybe ban them from the next play-offs they qualify for, so their own fans have denied them a possible promotion.

You know as well as I do they will be fined about £25.00 and warned about there future conduct, whilst most other clubs would have points deductions and Swindon likely to have been thrown out the league.

They obviously know where the compromising photographs are?

What odds one of the three London away games is on Boxing Day, and the other two are mid week?!

Wouldn't surprise me at all!

Barnsley will probably get fined for their fans having the audacity to complain about the Millwall fans over exuberance.

Seriously though, with Millwall having history of trouble in the play-offs (I can remember trouble against Derby years ago at Millwall), it's time for the FA to get tough (even though I'm not holding my breath). Denying them a chance of promotion via banning them from the next play-offs they qualify for, might be an option. It's certainly better than a fine.

Not sure if it's Wembley or Ticketmaster who control how blocks of tickets are made available for PO finals.
But the upper tier at the Barnsley end looked to be empty apart from the section right next to the Millwall bit.

Selling the upper tier blocks behind the goal first may have prevented the problem or at least meant that the Millwall lot had a bit further to go!

Interesting that the League 2 final attendance was better than the League 1 turnout.
Noticed big gaps in the Millwall end as well. Looks as if the Wembley experience is popular first or maybe second time around then starts to wear a bit thin.

Same for the Championship final where Wednesday sold out but Hull, on their fourth? recent visit, didn't.

The ridicule of the Hull fans attendance was ridiculous.

As you say they have been there a lot recently, only averaged about 17k this season so they don't have a massive fanbase by Championship standard. You have to be a little bit hardcore to go that many times in a relatively short space of time.

The day trippers will dwindle for second and subsequent visits

As Swindon Town know only too well.

Dont forget thats the 2nd time in 2 months Barnsley have been to Wembley. I doubt all of their fans could afford 2 trips in such a short space of time.

The trouble is Millwall to Wembley is relatively a piece of piss journey. That means all the plastics can happily go along to the big games. Just in their case a plastic isn't someone with a half and half scarf, it's someone who wants to get involved.

Play off final ticket prices are a scandal. It is little wonder that the Wembley experience is taking its toll. The PO final is, in effect, another league game, not the cup final it is made out to be. Prices should reflect the finalists' match day prices, not the exorbitant greed of Wembley/FA. Presumably the participating clubs acquiesce.