Swindon Town v Newport County - Matchday Thread

[Tails]

I managed to make the game at half time so only caught the second half, wish I hadn't bothered. Piss poor really except the last 2 minutes but that was only because Newport sat with a flat back 8 and invited us to pump balls at them. It was pretty clear after about 5 minutes that the 4-3-3 wasn't really working so frustrating that Flitcroft didn't make changes sooner. I actually thought Brophy did ok when he came on too.

In all fairness, the side that started going on that little run has been decimated by injuries. I think any team would struggle with that level of absence.

[Peter Venkman]

In all fairness, the side that started going on that little run has been decimated by injuries. I think any team would struggle with that level of absence.

Injuries yet again seem to be fucking us up badly, when you look at our injured list almost all would get straight back into the current team...

Vigs(maybe or may not be injured), Elsnik, Hussey, Conroy, McDermott and Linganzi.

[Posh Red]

Injuries yet again seem to be fucking us up badly, when you look at our injured list almost all would get straight back into the current team...

Vigs(maybe or may not be injured), Elsnik, Hussey, Conroy, McDermott and Linganzi.

And Norris

[Peter Venkman]

And Norris

Oops yeah forgot him.

[Mother Brown]

I prefered the Macari teams, they played solid at the back and everyone wanted to play for and with each other and our fitness levels were amazing, we also played a lot of very good football under him too it wasn't all hoofball by any means.

This season when we get the ball down we can play some good football but all too often we tend to hoof it up to Smith or Norris and with respect to them both neither is a proper target man and if we do want to play that way then we need somebody built for it like Akinfenwa, Nouble or Obika (not that I am advocating getting him back as hes burnt his ties).

Smith is far too lightweight and Norris not good enough to play the role.

For me a good target man would be a priority in January, send back Smith to 'Wall and try and get somebody else in instead who is stronger and can hold the ball up.

I think we also need at least 1 or even 2 central midfielders, Elsnik looks good when he is fit but Linganzi is frustrating and Dunne seems lost in a lot of games.

With those 2/3 additions I think we will make the play offs and maybe more as this league is really pretty shit and no teams running away with it, all it takes is another run of 3 or 4 wins and we would be top.

This league is "really pretty shit" because it is Div  4 and is made up of shit teams. Swindon being one of them.

[Peter Venkman]

This league is "really pretty shit" because it is Div  4 and is made up of shit teams. Swindon being one of them.

It is and we are, but it won't take much to rise slightly above their level of shitness.

[donkey]

It is and we are, but it won't take much to rise slightly above their level of shitness.

And I come back to the same point I've made before, it wasn't this shit the last couple of times we've been down here. The standard really is a lot worse.

[Tails]

And I come back to the same point I've made before, it wasn't this shit the last couple of times we've been down here. The standard really is a lot worse.

I remember it being this shit. Just not us.

[Abrahammer]

I remember it being this shit. Just not us.

Yep that’s exactly how I see it as well. Our style being similar to most teams this time around makes it look worse

[Flashheart]

I remember it being more fun last time we were here, but I can't remember much at all about the standard of the opposition.

Like JJ said, it may not take much to make the difference and I expect we'll see some new arrivals in January. We can't expect Flitcroft to get it right straight away with what's almost a completely new squad. The nutty Italian had a massive budget to play with.

[jayohaitchenn]

but I can't remember much at all about the standard of the opposition.

We won the league by 5 points. We were much better than the rest of the teams in the league

[Peter Venkman]

I remember the league being pretty shit but as others say we were better, the same could easily be true this season with just a couple of new signings.

The mental Italian used 41 first team players that season, our budget was probably 4 or 5 times the size it is now, there is no comparison, Paolo wanted the best....the board gave him what he wanted.

I am sure Flitcroft knows exactly what positions need strengthening in January, and its not that many TBH to make us competitive, probably 2 or 3 new signings at most that won't disrupt what we do already have.

The league is and has always been shit, we have been lucky in the past with Macari, Wise/Sturrock and PdC in that we were better than almost every other team in those seasons but the standard has always been shit in Div 4.

Under PdC there was a massive "feel good" factor in and around the club, we felt we were going places, that the manager cared, we had an owner willing to invest in the team at the time, but things change, lets just get out of this fucking division and start to build upon it again.

[Reg Smeeton]

It is and we are, but it won't take much to rise slightly above their level of shitness.

We are in Div 4 completely on merit.  It's that rise bit which is difficult as we've only a few obvious advantages over most of the sides in in Div 4.

Our current status needs pointing out... there are only 3 sides below us who've not relatively recently  been in the non league namely Crewe, BPV, and Chesterfield, all 3 are presently in the mix to drop. Power can say what he likes, but realistically for this season Flitters' job is to halt the slide, and begin the process of re-building the club.  So far he's done OK, but the rest of 2017 is crucial, we've got the top 3, top 2 at home and ColU who we often find difficult to beat at the CG. Crewe away may present an opportunity but we don't need to enter 2018 sliding again.

[Panda Paws]

It doesn't matter how may times you say it Reg, survival, or "halting the slide" is not the realistic expectation.

It's not the expectation of the manager, the club or (most of) the fans, and nor should it be. Start accepting we're a middle-of-the-road L2 club and you never know, we might start becoming one. Not going up this year is a failure for this club, this manager, this squad and our fans.

[chalkies_shorts]

I think people need to remember where we were end of last season and the radical surgery that needed doing. When we've been relegated before I don't think we've ever been in such a state on the pitch. Gutless capitulation after gutless capitulation interspersed with Colketts fancy flicks and Boos inability to be a footballer culminating in total tedium and soul destroying Saturdays.
We were a team capable of going straight out of the league. The first thing was to stop that happening. We've shown that is extremely unlikely to happen.
We've got a team that will compete to the last minute and leave it on the pitch. That's a good start. There is a reasonably good level of organisation. Defence is not bad. The forward line isn't too bad. The midfield is the problem. Neither supporting the defence of helping create. Get this right and who knows. Easily sorted if there is a desire to do so although Flitcrofts comments about anything outside the 18 yard boxes being unimportant worry me.
As for Flitcroft, I think he's done alright. Got it wrong Saturday. Couldn't really care about the spat with Vigs.
My expectation was top 10 outside play offs and that remains. A good January and who knows.