Thetownend.com

So, we have a game today after the excitement of deadline day. Off work so making the trip up, only 92 pre-sold so not expecting many there!

Going for a 2-1 win with Ajose and Robert scoring.

3-0 defeat!  A bit depressed today after the anti-climax of yesterday, going to find my Smeeton Happy Pills!!

oh shit, are we playing today?! er 0-0, no shots on goal from either team, 4764 passes made in front of a crowd of 4765

92 sold in advance?

:Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

We have the same team that has seen us go on a decent run recently.

if it helps my prediction is based on a combination of Saturdays performance coupled with Port Vale away on a damp Tuesday in January being one of the least inspiring fixtures of the season (imo).

And our failure to sign messi.

3-1 Vale.

Are you laughing at the 92 going? Or the rest of us that are working or have family bits that cant make a rearranged fixture? I'm not sure.

2-0 Vale. Game ends in a whimper.

Same team - but different formation which ended up with very little service for the front two!

I hate our fans  ::)

According to stfc store tweet a day or two ago!

It was 1 game against the form team in the league, which followed a pretty decent run of form of our own.

What Tails said

I was ready to go the first two times. Tonight I can't. Vale are looking a lot better than when the fixture came around first time. Would take a point and hope for a win.

 Shrewsbury at home to Sarfend tonight...we could do with them not winning.

Or here is a crazy thought.If we win we go a whole 3 points behind Southend so we could do with a Shrews win

You know reg is the uncartoon version of Eeyore. Gloom rules.

Other way around for me... Couldn't make the first two, but am going tonight. With a friend, so it's at least 94. Boom!

Arrived nice and early, few beers/fish and chips and hopefully 3 points!

Home win. 2-0

Eurgh that team/bench.

No Branco or Ajose?

.. or Turnbull?

Town starting XI: Vigouroux, Barry, Thompson (C), Ormonde-Ottewill, Doughty, Kasim, Rodgers, Balmy, Robert, Obika, Hylton #STFC

Odd line up. Could be genius.

What the frig?

Well, this is going to be interesting. 2-1 Hylton brace

Adver Sports Desk ‏@AdverSport  1m1 minute ago
We're told that Ajose, Branco and Turnbull, who did travel today but has a niggle, are all injured

Not this again. What the fuck do they do in training, some sort of pissed up It's a Knockout course?

Looks like Preston away last season.

Think we will do well to keep it down to 3-0

Blimey. Are we playing any central defenders?

Doughty is playing CB (with NT presumably)

Turnbull - slight hamstring
Branco - groin
Ajose - concussion

Away win.

So our paper thin squad is tested to the limit, Doughty in at centre back!!  

Well, I'd like to say we can't defend worse than we usually do, but that feels like tempting fate.

Even more surprising given these niggles that we didn't add to the squad yesterday :ph34r:

Concussion?! How is that even possible?

He hit his head on the transfer window when it slammed shut.

collision of heads in training or previous game? Not sure how you can consider a professional footballer suffering from concussion an impossibility

He beat his head on the desk reading this thread

But surely the club or player would have known about since Saturday. Not saying it doesn't happen, just seems a poor excuse. Did he go off on Saturday?

Yes for Smith...

After all is said and done, we ARE playing Port Vale.

I can't remember losing to them in a while.

I still don't understand.

I'm relieved it's 'only' concussion.  6 day rule so should be OK for Saturday, if no complications

Hmm I don't think i'll be keeping an eye on this somehow. We'll get 0 for sure, they'll get some, possibly lots ,absolutely mental no CB's available.

Bare squad now being tested by injuries.

It will be interesting to see how Hylton does.

Not feeling overly confident, Vale are very good at home this season.

Best post on here for months. Might be true though.

We know how we do with "lots of injuries" Pity the poor bastards watching up there, If this pans out how I feel it will.

I'm with you on that Sutton.

If we get hammered Powers gonna get some heat.

It has to be said that that is a joke of a team selection. If, as he declared the other day, Williams is really happy with the current squad of players that we have then we should be worried about his sanity. We've got 2 centre backs in the squad (3 if you count Nathan Thompson as a centre back....and it's really not his best position) and 3 strikers. 3 out of the 5 are injured and he really expects us to believe that we have adequate cover...?

Even the most optimistic of happy clappers can see we need more cover in defence. It's shit as it is. I'll be staggered if we don't get absolutely hammered tonight.

10 4 good buddy.

To be fair he was never going to come out and say "I'm not happy with x y and z and I want immediate change", both because I think he is the type to be very loyal to his players and because - with the set up the way it is - he'd be committing suicide.

Think he may just have... Hope It isn't as bad as it looks on paper.

It is what it is.

You Reds.

thanks rich, very insightful.

today it's a bit of a shit lineup , hth

Is the wonder of STFC Player working for anyone?

Nope.

Not had a problem with it for weeks.

Not me, the useless cunts.

Not a sausage

Fucking BT broadband not working so relying on the power of 3G and E on my phone due to the woeful reception in the house.

1-0 (Dickenson header). Oh well.

For Fuck's Sake - maybe its a good thing I cant hear the commentary

Did I really hear that Southampton offered us Jack Stephens but we turned them down?

Nah we don't need him. Got plenty of cover at the back.

You really couldn't make that up could you?

Fucking great start!!
 :no:

With no centere backs tonight fancy 6 nil vale .

What is funny is we all has opinions on whether we wanted Shrewsbury out Southend to either closer the gap or create a gap.

Oh how I'd ust like us to win and fucking forget about the rest of the league and what's going on around us.

 :cry:

literally two people mentioned that

STFC player working fine for me

Please tell me this is a wind up.

I'm sure power had said he was working on trying to get him back, why would we then say no we don't want him now

Haven't looked back yet...

I heard Ajose concussed on Saturday.

Where the fuck is Jordan Stewart as well? Is he still around or has he fucked off again?

Literally two people mentioned it but many more had the same thoughts I'm sure.
But i am sorry for speaking on behalf of you, won't do it again without written prior permission.

 Come on you Shrimpers  :)

He was homesick, perhaps he's gone up north with Michael Smith :)

Have Pompey relocated to Yorkshire?

much obliged

From STFC twitter when asked why not working

"We understand it's an issue with StreamUK the provider who are working to fix it. Other clubs having similar problems"

Going by tweets alone, we're giving it a good go.

Stephens was always going to be a Kasim replacement so there was no need to sign him with Kasim staying, we have no need to replace Branco and Turnbull as first choice centre halfs.

Come on you reds, lets have at least on shot on target.

While its 1-0 we are still in it. They've scored too early :)

probably use BT

Is that because we have plenty of options at centre half should one of ours get injured

Not like we are playing without any tonight

Done that.

Stephens was never going to come in as cover, get real.

But equally if you think he'd have come to play in defence rather than the oversubscribed midfield, who do you drop?  Power said "guaranteed game time" for Stephens, maybe Turnbull has the same, so Branco dropped? Move Turnbull to LB and drop Barry? Something else?

We need cover, no doubt. Lets hope the loan window brings us some.

Come on you reds, lets have a goal

Just because it worked last time. This isn't Noel Edmunds' and his cosmic ordering, you know?

Man U just scored. Does that count?

As much as I agree that we are thin on the ground, and as much as it pains me to say this.... the Chang has a point.

Obika should have done better but it was on target, Rogers was close.
Were still in it

Thompson gets yellow..

Pompey just scored, guess who.....

Gareth Evans, that's who

NT = tit.

Theo Robinson playing for vale. Is that the one we were supposed to sign ages ago but went to Huddersfield instead?

Yup

Yet, Coventry, who have a much better defence than us (much better record than us full stop) took him as well as another defender from Bournemouth. If Stephens couldn't be guaranteed a place in our team we've got a few suffering from delusions. Kasim has been shite more often than not, Rodgers is everybody's whipping boy....we've got Balmy playing tonight and he couldn't even get in Oxford CITY's team.....come on....

We'll get a red card tonight just to rub salt in the wounds.
Injuries suspensions treat!!

1-0 HT. Surprisingly tight thus far if the radio is to go by.

The tweet updates suggest we aren't out of this.

Lots coming through or to Obika by the sounds of it. No mention of Hylton yet though.

And someone mentioned it earlier but what the fuck is going on with Jordan Stewart?

Yea .frecin NT.

Can only assume he's not the player they thought.

He has made the bench a handful of times, can't believe we won't give him a run out.
We're hardly flush at the minute with scholars on the bench.

Came on at Millwall too.

Thompson, Branco, Stephens, Turnbull.

I'd settle for that as a back four.

Turnbull was left back when El Abd was still here, I'd say most of us would have kept him if we could have & Stephens would have just replaced El Abd.
Then it's a straight choice of Thompson or Barry at right back, assuming Nathan can stay fit for any length of time

Oh, and quite happy we're only 1 down at HT, means we could still get something from the game

Twitchy bum time at the Kassam, I'd actually rather Oxford won then get hammered, Might distract them from the league, plus Millwall fans are cunts.

GET MORE SHOTS ON TARGET FROM THE POSSESSION WE ARE HAVING

GET IT FORWARD. SCORE MORE GOALS THAN THE OPPOSITION. JUMPERS FOR GOAL POSTS.

Balmy<->Lee Marshall
Hylton<->Jordan Young (Who, oh, a 16 year old)

Timmy sent off for Southend, don't tell Reg.

School kids coming on now.

If it comes off great but.....FFS!

We are really shit at corners.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/15755863 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/15755863)

Has everyone got their commentary back now?

Pardon.

No .player completely dead for me.

Interesting. Hope.

Do we look or sound like scoring... Can get 100-1 on a town victory at the moment!

From the radio, not really, but we aren't on the back foot or anything.

Guess we must be in last few minutes now.

Yeah, about 3 or 4 left?

Into 3 minutes of added time...

Cmon Town!!!!

All over, 1-0. A lot better than feared, still a shit result mind.

Shit!!

Did we deserve more from it?

Expected defeat, didn't expect to lose narrowly so overall not such a bad evening given the side we put out.

Fearful for Saturday mind you and then another away test at Colchester. We could still be lookin nervously over our shoulders yet.

Fucking count fuck player shit bollocks!!!

Well, it sounded like we gave it a good go anyway.

Or, should I say, that I read that it would have sounded as though we gave it a good go had I been able to listen.

Yes, not the most satisfactory way of following a football match.

Shrimpers did us a favour....Shrewsbury and Fleetwood have both got to visit the CG, Shrewsbury last game of season.... :suicide:

The game at ColU is starting to look, must win.

Does say something when everyone is relieved at a 1-0 defeat

Yup.

It was what is was....

Well personally I think it's fucking disgusting that we can't fill a bench 1 day after deadline.injuries or not

Power said a while back we've too many players....Williams said he didn't expect much inward movement in the window, and if there were injuries he'd make up the shortfall with youth players.

To me it looks like a dangerous gamble with our Div 3 status, but others expect a strong end of season and PO push  :hmmm:

Fine lines. If we'd won the last two, that would have been a possibility. Not many would think that now. Certainly finished my optimism.

How come Louis wasn't involved?

Not fit yet.

Fucksake.farcical

You've lived in Bristol too long Rich  :)

He's the TEF Ian Holloway

I drove past port vale earlier today, I considered stopping for the game... I'm glad I didn't

No such place ;)

Bur-slem-tish

I used to go out on the piss in Burslem a fair bit in the day. Some people they say are suited to Hollywood, me I fitted right into Burslem..

I know, but it's just north of Stoke and I coupdnt remember what it was called :)

Back in the day, I fitted right in to this not quite Burslem but near enough Hollywood extravanganza....

http://www.ukrockfestivals.com/hollyhype.html

The population of Burslem is about 20 odd thousand, making it about the size of Chippenham. Probably the smallest place to maintain a league club.

Bit misleading though, since it's one of the integrated six towns. Playing that game, the Charlton ward of the borough of Greenwich houses only 14,385.

You wouldn't have made that point if they'd instead chosen the name Stoke United (which given the history of the city would have been a more appropriate choice than most other Uniteds).

Now if you'd said their name itself was home to the smallest resident population of any league club, you'd probably be onto a winner. About 6?

Thoughts on last night

Thompson/Doughty did pretty well at CB i thought, made countless interceptions and tackles. Boo/Barry gave good width but was very little movement around the box for them to help create anything.

We can't have Kasim and Rodgers both starting as CM, we lose every 50/50 and the defence have nobody at all screening them hence the two CB having to make last ditch tackles all the time. Balmy didn't do anything. Robert looked decent on the ball again but lack of movement/options impeded what he could create.

Obika worked hard and had a decent chance in first half that he may have been able to do more with. Hylton looked alright but we need another option if Obika/Ajose gets injured.

We had plenty of the ball but it was just too slow, when Vale got it they broke at pace and managed to fuck up at least 3 occasions when they had an extra man around our box, thought they were shit which makes the defeat even more irritating.

Shout out to Jordan Young who did well when he came on, always looking for the ball, tidy on the ball and had a decent shot on the turn which wasn't far over. Promising cameo from him I thought.

Team for next game if all fit:
                   Vigs
Barry N thompson Turnbull Boo
                    Kasim
   Doughty.          L thompson
                  Robert
          Okiba.     Ajose

You make a classic error....the administrative construct of Stoke on Trent, was forced through in 1910, after much local opposition in Burslem. Vale had been going since the 1880's,  the football club of Burslem, which they remain. Of course, then as now anybody from the hinterland was free to go and watch.

STFC, is a bit different, insofar as the club, was born in Old Town, at a time when the places of High Swindon, and New Swindon were separate. The club then moved to New Swindon, in time for the 1900 amalgamation, nobody much minded as there wasn't a local rival on the doorstep.

Smith ?   :doh:

I've played against him  8)

The Smith that didn't want to be here, and hasn't scored since the last time the tramp down our high street showered?

Yeah that one, you know, the one that went back up north to Pompey.

Keep Swindon out of this. I don't care what happened in 1910, you're still comparing apples and pears. Burslem is part of the city borough of Stoke, spanning two wards, while Charlton is a single ward of the borough of Greenwich. Just proves it's a bit pointless only applying the population of the wards in question to an urban club.

I give up you're clearly beyond reason...are Gallic traits inherent or acquired ?

I can answer this complex question with authority.

WHO GIVES A SHIT ;)

Touché.

Anyway, you're still wrong: Charlton and South Norwood are both smaller than Burslem, while Falmer is home to 284 residents (Saturdays excepted).

You could accept defeat graciously with that famous phlegm of yours.  8)

(http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj571/frenchreds/imgres_7.jpg) (http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/frenchreds/media/imgres_7.jpg.html)

How did Lee Marshall do?

Can't remember him doing anything wrong and got stuck in. Would play him ahead of Balmy

The district of Charlton, was part of London, many years well about 25, before the Addicks were formed.

Keep up wiz ze wriggling Smeeton. If your point is that Burslem was once a small town that hosted league football, then so was Irthlingborough (pop. 8k). Since 1910, I don't see much difference in its status from that of other two-club agglomerations like Sheffield or Bristol.

 :deadhorse:

Burslem still hosts league football. As a point of information R and D's Nene Park isn't physically in Irthlingborough, merely by Irthlingborough. Sadly an excellent facility no longer used for football, or much else.

It's only meant to be 80% bollocks, chaps.

Bramall Lane is also somewhere in a big borough that still hosts league football.

As is often the case, your point ceased to be relevant in 1910.  ;)

I'll stop when the codger with the todger admits defeat.

Then you aint stopping...

We drove past a Port Vale Road last night, which I'd never seen before. I hope the team was named after that. Be a bloody small area if so...

FFS don't start them off again.

The name is thought to have been taken from the house in which the club was formed, Port Vale House in Longport, but this has not been proven and there are also several other theories.
http://www.onevalefan.co.uk/site/2012/01/1876-1912/ (http://www.onevalefan.co.uk/site/2012/01/1876-1912/)

(http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj571/frenchreds/imgres_8.jpg) (http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/frenchreds/media/imgres_8.jpg.html)

 Froggy will be telling me next that Walsall is in Birmingham...

No cher Reg, telling you Burslem is in Stoke would be more akin to telling you that Handsworth is in Birmingham. Which will probably also come as a surprise to you, since it only happened in 1911, so you probably haven't had time to process that yet.

Incidentally, what was the population of Burslem around 1900?

Was that the 'Andswort Revolution?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XXpQFyP7RA

 The population of Burslem remained stable around the 20 oddK mark through the 20th Century.....demographic has changed now mind.

So Glossop, with a population of 18000 during their last season in the First Division in 1899-1900, was a smaller town.

I think you must have interpreted my use of the verb maintain, to mean at any time. I feel it conveys a sense of still keeping, when used in the original context. Glossop North End were massive compared to New Brighton Tower....New Brighton being one of the weirder places I've been to on this island.

You're right of course. I've never really counted Port Vale though - always thought Aldershot or Hereford must have been among the smallest towns to hang on in the league for decades.

Both Hereford and Aldershot are bigger than Burslem.... the centre of the Potteries conurbation is in fact in Hanley, which due to not having a league club gets overlooked, the centre of Stoke being about like Cricklade Road, Gorse Hill.

Lot of controversy atm, because the Council, are spending a pile of dosh to move from Stoke to Hanley.....in return Hanley gets to be called the "City Centre", a move not backed by the locals, but since when has democracy prevailed in the UK?

Reg's google search bar has been working overtime.

Aldershot is an odd one.  The town itself is fairly small (pop: ~35,000), but the Farnborough/Aldershot Urban Area (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farnborough/Aldershot_Built-up_Area) or 'Blackwater Valley Conurbation' (pop: ~250,000) - a continuous urban area that also takes in Camberley, Frimley, Farnborough, Sandhurst, Yateley, Farnham and a number of other smaller 'villages' - is much bigger.  Probably larger than Swindon, in fact, when taken together - albeit without a single town/city centre.

None of which is all that relevant when it comes to football.  A few of the locals around here follow the Shots or Farnborough, but it's the big London clubs that mop up most of the support.

Blackwater Massif, eh?  Sounds like the Shots should be regularly qualifying every year for the Champions League to me. 

In some ways Blackwater sounds similar to that Hanley, Port Vale, Stoke, Burslem  agglomeration, conurbation or blob thingy but without the funny accents.  I'm sure the connoisseur can distinguish the funny accents, road by road, including Port Vale Road with which all us thread followers are now familiar.

With a little goodwill here (and ill will there) I'm sure TEFers can help make this mid week Vale v Town thread the longest in all football with STFC finally punching its weight

It's like talking to some daft uncle. Since 1910, Stoke-on-Trent has been the name of the urban entity you're struggling for, of which Burslem is part. Stoke has a population of 249,000, which is considerably larger than both Hereford and Aldershot (though not, perhaps, of the Blackwater Valley Conurbation). Port Vale is part of the 36th largest urban district in the UK, and therefore by no means the smallest place to host a league football team under any *valid* description you care to offer.

As a fan of democracy, you should be able to appreciate that recognition of the amalgamation of the six towns in 1910 by popular local accord does not require your individual approval.

Down the years, I've had many dealings with The Potteries and find it an interesting part of the country.  I've also had dealings with Ardilesland, and have never been enthused in quite the same way....despite our famous visit to Farnham United Breweries  :)

Yes, Reg. We'll go out for a little walk later.

Was it as one sided as the score suggests?

You can get a train in to London in just over 30 mins from here.  And if you caught one of those trains at 11am on a Saturday you'd understand why the local teams around here have never made the big time.  Everyone is Spurs, Arsenal or Chelsea...with a smattering of West Ham and Reading.

You also have Woking and Guildford just up the road, both 100,000 towns without a League side between them.


And I thought you were a William Cobbett fan, Reg.  Disappointed!  ;)

Never liked them since they invaded the Falklands...

You lot really have excelled with the bollocks quota. I'm impressed. What a glorious load of bollocks this is.

Get a fucking room

I am a Cobbett fan, but although born in Farnham, his work and writings were mainly elsewhere. I'm not sure he'd approve of of the stock jobbers and rentiers from the Great Wen who have appropriated this corner of North Hampshire.

 :doh:

Going to bed

Just cos you can't pull.

And you pulled Reg.

You have absolutely no idea how jealous I am.





















Not

We can't all ponce round in a sports car. It's not good for Reg's heart.

Hmmmm. Now let me consider the options.

1. Poncing around in a British supercar
2. Spending frantic hours trawling Wikipedia and archives about the history of some norvern shithole

I think the former is probably kinder on the heart?

Your 400-post advantage over me says you waste more time chasing skirt that's out of your class than I spend trying to haul Reg into the 20th Century.

I bet you call your ride a "bird-catcher" don't you.  ;)

You are so out of tune.

"Fanny magnet", please.

 One of my lady friends has an MG Roadster....nice little number, but it feels a bit wrong to me as it's the fella who is supposed to have the mid life crisis....unlike TT I'm still waiting.

The length of this conversation says more about the current state of STFC than any match report ever could

+1 post

I love it that Reg has 'lady friends'.

(http://www.theaudience.co.nz/assets/resized/sm/upload/ij/8b/un/jn/what_a_bounder-234-234-234-234-crop.jpg)

Don't mock it. Sadly, in the current situation that we find STFC in, this has given us a reason to live. It's like a breath of fresh air... bit musty mind.

Which begs the question does space smell like Swindon?

http://www.westerndailypress.co.uk/Astronaut-Tim-Peake-asked-Does-space-smell/story-28671923-detail/story.html

 :alien: :alien:I'll let you know when I get back  :alien:

Are you off to the Baikonur Cosmodrome?

 
If I answer that Reg, I'd have to kill you ... and any Tefer's that read the post.:lamo:

Vale were the Hanley club for a period of time:

http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/epw053355?search=hanley&ref=46

The site is now the city's major shopping centre - Hanley was always the retail and cultural hub when I lived there in the early 90s.

I spent three great years in SoT, living on the borders of Hanley and Shelton (after a brief spell in Cobridge near the lubricants factory and prossie-frequented streets). In several ways, it was a lot like Swindon - unpretentious, fine industrial history, down to earth locals, but with a far better gig scene. It was also a top location for getting to Town away games.

I think If I could be anyone in history I'd be Terry Thomas. Or maybe Sid James at a push.

Was Hanley were Eric Bristow's nightclub was?

No idea. If it was, I was totally unaware of it! Looking on the net, he did have a pub in his hometown, Leek.