Play Offs - You're having a laugh

[jonnyt1]

Mid table at best, my best guess is 12th.

We had the chance to invest in January and failed to do so. We needed strikers not midfielders and defenders.

One last minute injury crock on loan from Derby didn't cut the mustard. What happened to doing our business early like the Manager said?

Mr Hardy you are going to regret this and next seasons going to be just as hard to get out this league.

[irishpete]

The honeymoon period is over for the spin dr.Fecked up big time in Jan with all the spin about players & agents ringing him.Lets see how he handles this spell now on his twitter.Signs that he can't handle criticism.Had the chance in the window to really push on & get out this division,could come back to haunt him next season.He let the cup run take over & his obsession with getting a big draw.
Sommat is not right at the club at the minute,maybe KN, the players,AH, tactics?.The cart is rocking for a reason.

[LaxtonLad]

The honeymoon period is over for the spin dr.Fecked up big time in Jan with all the spin about players & agents ringing him.Lets see how he handles this spell now on his twitter.Signs that he can't handle criticism.Had the chance in the window to really push on & get out this division,could come back to haunt him next season.He let the cup run take over & his obsession with getting a big draw.
Sommat is not right at the club at the minute,maybe KN, the players,AH, tactics?.The cart is rocking for a reason.

It's been said many times now, irishpete. All these players who were approached in the early season, all queueing up to join the Mighty Magpies - where are they now? Should we not have had our pick of the best?

Nolan continually repeating that he's satisfied with what he's already got (really?) is starting to ring a bit hollow now, we fans see what we can see and few are satisfied. Three out of four games that we should be winning turn into a one-sided shambles with no points return. In January the day to day increasing anticipation of a proven striker slowly led to disbelief as we signed several midfielders more than was necessary, one defender and one supposedly good striker with no plan B, such as, what happens if that striker gets injured? That striker may have come good but we'll never know now will we? No, so it's back to plan A, or to put it another way, hoof it up to"Lone Wolf" Stead and cross your fingers 'cos no one will expect us to do what we always do.

[jackal2]

The honeymoon period is over for the spin dr.Fecked up big time in Jan with all the spin about players & agents ringing him.Lets see how he handles this spell now on his twitter.Signs that he can't handle criticism.Had the chance in the window to really push on & get out this division,could come back to haunt him next season.He let the cup run take over & his obsession with getting a big draw.
Sommat is not right at the club at the minute,maybe KN, the players,AH, tactics?.The cart is rocking for a reason.

I don't really buy this "something is not right at the club" line. Stuff like this comes out whenever fans get a bit frustrated, and then they try to create a narrative that there's some sort of fundamental deep-lying problem, which most of the time there isn't.

The simple fact is we've had a moderately bad run of results in the past month, but at various times virtually every other club in the country will do the same. It's not a sign of some huge internal cancer, just the normal variances of form most teams go through. The likes of Luton and Manchester City are having very consistent seasons with few blemishes, but that's the exception rather than the rule.

I do agree that the winter transfer window was underwhelming, and that has been compounded by the injury to Mason Bennett, but we should remember that both Alan Hardy and Kevin Nolan are relative newcomers to their current roles and it's entirely understandable that they will make some mistakes.

Notts fans really do need to at least temper any criticism they may have of the chairman or the manager, because the last thing we need to do is to permanently disillusion them, especially Hardy. Overall, since the Chairman arrived, the turnaround at the club has been phenomenal and our current position in the play-offs would have surprised many at the start of the season, so any current concerns need to be balanced and viewed in that context.

Generally speaking, we're doing OK.

[MancMagpie]

I don't really buy this "something is not right at the club" line. Stuff like this comes out whenever fans get a bit frustrated, and then they try to create a narrative that there's some sort of fundamental deep-lying problem, which most of the time there isn't.

The simple fact is we've had a moderately bad run of results in the past month, but at various times virtually every other club in the country will do the same. It's not a sign of some huge internal cancer, just the normal variances of form most teams go through. The likes of Luton and Manchester City are having very consistent seasons with few blemishes, but that's the exception rather than the rule.

I do agree that the winter transfer window was underwhelming, and that has been compounded by the injury to Mason Bennett, but we should remember that both Alan Hardy and Kevin Nolan are relative newcomers to their current roles and it's entirely understandable that they will make some mistakes.

Notts fans really do need to at least temper any criticism they may have of the chairman or the manager, because the last thing we need to do is to permanently disillusion them, especially Hardy. Overall, since the Chairman arrived, the turnaround at the club has been phenomenal and our current position in the play-offs would have surprised many at the start of the season, so any current concerns need to be balanced and viewed in that context.

Generally speaking, we're doing OK.

Agree with most of that. Rational and balanced.

[SwalePie]

I don't really buy this "something is not right at the club" line. Stuff like this comes out whenever fans get a bit frustrated, and then they try to create a narrative that there's some sort of fundamental deep-lying problem, which most of the time there isn't.

The simple fact is we've had a moderately bad run of results in the past month, but at various times virtually every other club in the country will do the same. It's not a sign of some huge internal cancer, just the normal variances of form most teams go through. The likes of Luton and Manchester City are having very consistent seasons with few blemishes, but that's the exception rather than the rule.

I do agree that the winter transfer window was underwhelming, and that has been compounded by the injury to Mason Bennett, but we should remember that both Alan Hardy and Kevin Nolan are relative newcomers to their current roles and it's entirely understandable that they will make some mistakes.

Notts fans really do need to at least temper any criticism they may have of the chairman or the manager, because the last thing we need to do is to permanently disillusion them, especially Hardy. Overall, since the Chairman arrived, the turnaround at the club has been phenomenal and our current position in the play-offs would have surprised many at the start of the season, so any current concerns need to be balanced and viewed in that context.

Generally speaking, we're doing OK.

I was seriously tempted to yellow card you for being calm and rational after reading that.

[tarquinbeech]

I don't really buy this "something is not right at the club" line. Stuff like this comes out whenever fans get a bit frustrated, and then they try to create a narrative that there's some sort of fundamental deep-lying problem, which most of the time there isn't.

The simple fact is we've had a moderately bad run of results in the past month, but at various times virtually every other club in the country will do the same. It's not a sign of some huge internal cancer, just the normal variances of form most teams go through. The likes of Luton and Manchester City are having very consistent seasons with few blemishes, but that's the exception rather than the rule.

I do agree that the winter transfer window was underwhelming, and that has been compounded by the injury to Mason Bennett, but we should remember that both Alan Hardy and Kevin Nolan are relative newcomers to their current roles and it's entirely understandable that they will make some mistakes.

Notts fans really do need to at least temper any criticism they may have of the chairman or the manager, because the last thing we need to do is to permanently disillusion them, especially Hardy. Overall, since the Chairman arrived, the turnaround at the club has been phenomenal and our current position in the play-offs would have surprised many at the start of the season, so any current concerns need to be balanced and viewed in that context.

Generally speaking, we're doing OK.

Agree with everything.....up until the last line.....I can correct that for you....."Generally speaking, we WERE doing OK"

[jonnyt1]

We have a top 5 wage budget for this League so anything below top 5 is under par however you cut it.

Expectations were always Playoffs at least pre season until we saw the crap that was brought in.

So in my view we:

Expected the playoffs at least after last season ended following our Chairmans noises
We didn't make anyone stand up with our summer recruitment despite what was said on ****ter so expectations were lowered
We started the season exceptionally well and everyone was beginning to think that us and Luton would be fighting it out for the Championship. This was above expectations.
In 2018 the team is getting the kind of results that on paper looks about right for the squad we have, i.e. Mid table.
The wage budget we have should have bought us a much better squad. The recruitment has been poor and below expectations.

That's my thoughts.

I give AH 5 out of 10 and KN 6 out of 10

[LaxtonLad]

The inexperience of Nolan and the naivety of Hardy, their over-caution in the Summer and January transfer windows when the squad should have been strengthened has come back to bite us on the bum. There is always room for an input of quality but we signed mediocrity. We ain't skint, but Nolan's "satisfied with what we already have" is now echoing round a lack-lustre changing room, you can almost see the cobwebs hanging in the corners and the tumbleweed rolling down the corridors and out onto the pitch. Dissatisfaction and murmour are rife on the fan's websites, gone are the expectations of regular wins at home. We're doomed, I tell ye - doomed!

P.S. Can't wait for Saturday - come on you 'pies!

[legs77]

If we was told we would be 10-12th at the start I think most fans would see that as respectable progress.

Nobody has the right to be promoted you have to earn it over 46 games (49 if in the play offs) what concerns me is Nolan is picking up the same habits as Curle 4-5-1 when it clearly does not work he is a very stubborn man and obviously has confidence in his ability but this can also be a weakness the two games against Exeter and Crawley were a complete disaster results wise and everything has gone wrong after those games.

I thought 5-6 weeks ago if we fall apart we are still a strong bet for the play offs with the points cushion we had now if teams below us win a few games we are going to be sucked into 9-10th position which makes it very hard for us to recover.

I have read on social media people saying finish 10th and build again yes thats the positive spin but everyone else will be thinking the same for example Cambridge finished 9th & 11th last two seasons that didnt stop them sacking Derry as they thought 15th is not good enough, also not on our side is we have lots of ageing players and 3 youngsters in Bird, Saunders & Hodge who are a waste of a contract its a Notts disease sign these types EVERY season but never play them !!

Just for a confidence point of view we need to win Saturday and hope some of the others below us lose to give us some breathing space.