Macca to Leicester?

[laddo]

That's a very interesting question and we will obviously find the answer come next May. Unsurprisingly I don't know their side and didn't see them play last season. Their results show they are a talented but streaky inconsistent side, going on good runs followed by disappointing periods more than once.

Tbh Mansfailed have underperfomed for a long time now, they have a generous long standing chairman who has backed his managers with sufficient finances, they have a talented manager who has successfully operated at L1 and Championship level. I don't know the ins and outs (nor want to) and am only commenting from a distance admittedly but those two things combined should have now given them promotion to L1 or at least more playoff appearances at L2 level. I'm still surprised the unpleasant Mr Steve Evans didn't manage to take them up, as that is what he does at almost every lower league club he managers.

If I had to guess why they haven't had more success under Radford I would guess it comes down to substandard recruitment, or their is a curse on Field MFI.

[slack_pie]

That's a very interesting question and we will obviously find the answer come next May. Unsurprisingly I don't know their side and didn't see them play last season. Their results show they are a talented but streaky inconsistent side, going on good runs followed by disappointing periods more than once.

Tbh Mansfailed have underperfomed for a long time now, they have a generous long standing chairman who has backed his managers with sufficient finances, they have a talented manager who has successfully operated at L1 and Championship level. I don't know the ins and outs (nor want to) and am only commenting from a distance admittedly but those two things combined should have now given them promotion to L1 or at least more playoff appearances at L2 level. I'm still surprised the unpleasant Mr Steve Evans didn't manage to take them up, as that is what he does at almost every lower league club he managers.

If I had to guess why they haven't had more success under Radford I would guess it comes down to substandard recruitment, or their is a curse on Field MFI.

They did some Trew-style chopping and changing for a while, recruiting the youth team coach as manager and then sacking him a few months later. That can't have helped. But they've had Clough for a while now, and from what I can see, they have a strong L2 squad that's good enough to challenge at the top. They'll get there eventually, but it just goes to show that L2 isn't a walk in the park. We can't just expect to turn up and turn teams over.

It's way too early for predictions, but I suspect we'll have a shaky start as we acclimatise to the new level. We might even have to adjust our style when we realise that decent teams can take advantage of our high line. But we'll eventually pick up some momentum and finish top half.

It all depends on who comes and goes over the summer though.

[Robertomac]

Comparing the standard of one division to another is almost impossible. I watched all the playoff games and thought the standard in L1 and L2 was pretty poor. I'm probably living in fantasy land but thought that we look a much better side than all the teams I saw. In some respects, certain teams looked more like my perception of a non-league team if you'd asked me 5 years ago - lots of knocking it long into the channels and no-nonsense defending.

The only thing I keep thinking is that we managed to finish 5th under Nolan in L2 having been in the automatic spots for much of the season. That team was pretty dreadful really and got to within 2 games of promotion. I remember when we were top of the league and winning games, I never thought we looked the part - polar opposite to this season, Munto and Big Sam.

[MAD_MAGPIE]

Comparing the standard of one division to another is almost impossible. I watched all the playoff games and thought the standard in L1 and L2 was pretty poor. I'm probably living in fantasy land but thought that we look a much better side than all the teams I saw. In some respects, certain teams looked more like my perception of a non-league team if you'd asked me 5 years ago - lots of knocking it long into the channels and no-nonsense defending.

The only thing I keep thinking is that we managed to finish 5th under Nolan in L2 having been in the automatic spots for much of the season. That team was pretty dreadful really and got to within 2 games of promotion. I remember when we were top of the league and winning games, I never thought we looked the part - polar opposite to this season, Munto and Big Sam.

It’s a good point about the Nolan playoff season and the question we could ask is whether this team is better or not than that one? The style of football is certainly a lot different but what it was is effective at that time.

For years people used to say that you couldn’t progress in the lower leagues or even non league playing “pretty” football without the physicality that those leagues demanded. The Cowleys at Lincoln were probably the last to adopt the traditional lower league style and do it well. It brought them success as a result.

I think the culture is changing in this country and we are starting to appreciate good football and also it is being proven that if you can play a good style of football in the lower leagues then it can be successful.

Doncaster at one point were referred to as the lower league Arsenal when they rose up to the championship.

I don’t expect us to turn up to league two and be in the top three. It would be foolish, arrogant and disrespectful to the league we are going into. There will be tougher challenges ahead but based on Stockport I don’t think it’s unrealistic to think depending on who stays and who comes in that a top ten finish would be out of reach.

[countygump]

It's way too early for predictions, but I suspect we'll have a shaky start as we acclimatise to the new level. We might even have to adjust our style when we realise that decent teams can take advantage of our high line. But we'll eventually pick up some momentum and finish top half.

More than likely along these lines^^^

A season of consolidation in L2 will do us no harm at all, if memory serves, it took Luton 4 years to get out.

[keldsyke]

It's way too early for predictions, but I suspect we'll have a shaky start as we acclimatise to the new level. We might even have to adjust our style when we realise that decent teams can take advantage of our high line. But we'll eventually pick up some momentum and finish top half.

It all depends on who comes and goes over the summer though.

I would be happy with that scenario

[slack_pie]

I would be happy with that scenario

Definitely, me too. Steady progress year on year is what we need to aim for. Eventually that strategy pays off. If we keep doing what we're doing, eventually we'll be challenging for promotion to L1, whether it's next year or in three years. No more boom and busts.

[MAD_MAGPIE]

Definitely, me too. Steady progress year on year is what we need to aim for. Eventually that strategy pays off. If we keep doing what we're doing, eventually we'll be challenging for promotion to L1, whether it's next year or in three years. No more boom and busts.

Absolutely. What concerns me is some fans patience. Even towards the end of last season there were still sections of fans moaning and complaining about “getting the ball in the box” or “get it forward” where I sit and not understanding how we play and what we are about. It’s a high line with pressing and possession and we probe the opposition in and around their area looking for gaps and that killer pass.

This team and manager have lots of credit in the bank and have earned it more than any other team. So if we do find it tougher to start with or even if it takes a season or two or even longer then so be it. Steady progress finishing higher each season.

[slack_pie]

Absolutely. What concerns me is some fans patience. Even towards the end of last season there were still sections of fans moaning and complaining about “getting the ball in the box” or “get it forward” where I sit and not understanding how we play and what we are about. It’s a high line with pressing and possession and we probe the opposition in and around their area looking for gaps and that killer pass.

This team and manager have lots of credit in the bank and have earned it more than any other team. So if we do find it tougher to start with or even if it takes a season or two or even longer then so be it. Steady progress finishing higher each season.

Yeah, I know what you mean about patience. Notts fans have always been quick to start moaning, and I think four years in the NL where we expected to win pretty much every game has changed our mindset a bit. We'll have to get used to much tougher opponents and more draws and losses.

[MAD_MAGPIE]

Yeah, I know what you mean about patience. Notts fans have always been quick to start moaning, and I think four years in the NL where we expected to win pretty much every game has changed our mindset a bit. We'll have to get used to much tougher opponents and more draws and losses.

Yes that is something that will need to accepted. When you have won 32 games, scored 117 goals in the regular season and only lost once at home, and have a player scoring 40+ goals it’s a bar that is so high it’s a freak event. We are lucky we have been alive to witness this once in the clubs 161 year history season.

So on this basis people should understand that a league higher things will be much different and more like a typical season for most clubs.

To win over 20 games next season would be an achievement. Likewise losing less than 1/4 of our games would be an achievement. That would be enough to see a challenge for the top seven.