❔Score, scorers and attendance predictions v Walsall [H] 09.12.2023 [EFL L2]

[nw6pie]

Everything is a gamble in this game, to the point that it's a gamble not to gamble.

If it's correct that we only have a top 8-10 budget then I wouldn't expect too much to happen in January. It's often said that it's the worst time to buy because clubs are desperate and the prices are higher.
All well and good if the team is improved but it would be somewhat out of character for the owners to make significant moves for players you would need to slot straight in, rather than take time to settle in and be coached into our way of playing over a pre-season at least, or several months.

Adam Hassel describing fans "pouring out of the ground" prior to the final whistle and the boos that greeted it would suggest it's more than just a few on here who are becoming restless. I'd tend to agree that it's way too early to start rocking the boat, but that's easy to say if you're not travelling up and down the country in all weather to watch it every weak seeing the obvious problems with your own eyes.

I think the top 8-10 budget is something of a misnomer (and my recollection of the forum night is that Rich Montague queried Sky Sport’s description of us having a “top 10” budget, so we could have something more like the 12th).

From my understanding, when the club set the 2023/24 budget, it wasn’t because that was all the money they had available. It was because the ethos is always to have a competitive budget in the respected league, but definitely not the highest. They underestimated how much quite a few others were going to spend, though, so the overall budget probably wasn’t as competitive as they assumed it would be.

I guess that’s one of the consequences of being out of the league for four seasons. Our income is also higher than was budgeted for, so that’s another reason to expect us to sign a few improvements on the current team.

[Elite_Pie]

Adam Hassel describing fans "pouring out of the ground" prior to the final whistle and the boos that greeted it would suggest it's more than just a few on here who are becoming restless. I'd tend to agree that it's way too early to start rocking the boat, but that's easy to say if you're not travelling up and down the country in all weather to watch it every weak seeing the obvious problems with your own eyes.

The home support was as bad as I've known it for a few years in the second half on Saturday, especially with 10,000 home fans in the ground. For a long time it's been a mutual thing at Meadow Lane - give us something to cheer and we'll oblige, give us nothing to cheer and we'll sit quietly. I know that as fans we should become the 12th man and sing even louder when things are tough, but that defies human nature. It's not just us, I've seen it many times home and away. The 'You only sing when you're winning' chant is a valid one for most clubs.

[magpie_mania]

I just don't see it as enjoying an opportunity to complain. I've always seen it as a different way of expressing disappointment and frustration.

I think they hurt as much as any of us after games like yesterday.

I have always thought that there are some who, while they might not want us to lose, seem to be happy when there is something to moan about. I hear it at games ..... certain players make a mistake and they are on their backs immediately, sounding as if they are happy to get on their backs. Look at many of the match threads how people post things like ...... waiting for the usual mistake from ......

Seems to be a thing with England supporters too (I went to a game at Wembley and it was embarrassing to hear the boos for Maguire when the team was being announced). Can't understand it myself.

[Elite_Pie]

I hear it at games ..... certain players make a mistake and they are on their backs immediately, sounding as if they are happy to get on their backs.

So these people pay for a ticket and make the effort to get to Meadow Lane........... just so they can get a degree of happiness from getting on the back of a player who makes a mistake!

Interesting theory, but I'll stick with all of us expressing our emotions differently.

[nw6pie]

So these people pay for a ticket and make the effort to get to Meadow Lane........... just so they can get a degree of happiness from getting on the back of a player who makes a mistake!

Interesting theory, but I'll stick with all of us expressing our emotions differently.

But I’m sure we all have regulars around us who only ever seem to voice criticism rather than support, leaving you to wonder why they actually bother coming.

I’m a very vocal supporter, which probably annoys some of the quieter people around me, but I can’t go to a game and sit there saying nothing - it’s part of the brief for me. I’m there to do my bit to help the team win a game of football.

[magpie_mania]

So these people pay for a ticket and make the effort to get to Meadow Lane........... just so they can get a degree of happiness from getting on the back of a player who makes a mistake!

Interesting theory, but I'll stick with all of us expressing our emotions differently.

Of course that isn't the reason they go - I have never said that not intimated it. For some though it seems part of the day.

Everyone pays their ticket price and it is up to them what they do. I just don't get it.

What do you think about booing players before the game starts? Just supporters expressing their emotions?

[LaxtonLad]

I'm not blaming LW totally for Saturday's debacle but too much emphasis on defenders passing the ball to each other without looking to progress forward isn't likely to get fans cheering, nor are multiple subbings likely to increase team understanding. Having said that, the players do or should know not to pass too risky balls to each other in front of enemy midfielders, they aren't performing against non-leaguers anymore.

Fun factoid - if you lob the ball big and high forward occasionally it will make a difference to crowd noise and might - just might - make the enemy pause and think a bit.

[OchPie]

Fun factoid - if you lob the ball big and high forward occasionally it will make a difference to crowd noise and might - just might - make the enemy pause and think a bit.

Stone did plenty of that in the second half, mostly giving them a throw-in as a result. It didn't seem much like the crowd was impressed.

I think our level without Palmer (and without replacing him with someone who can start our transitions effectively) is 5-10 places lower than with him. It look like Bostock was the intended replacement in this match but it wasn't nearly as effective - I thought it looked better in the closing part of the first half. Then he was off and things really fell apart.

[LaxtonLad]

Stone did plenty of that in the second half, mostly giving them a throw-in as a result. It didn't seem much like the crowd was impressed.

I think our level without Palmer (and without replacing him with someone who can start our transitions effectively) is 5-10 places lower than with him. It look like Bostock was the intended replacement in this match but it wasn't nearly as effective - I thought it looked better in the closing part of the first half. Then he was off and things really fell apart.

Oops! I forgot to say accurately.

[countygump]

If you lob the ball big and high forward occasionally it will make a difference to crowd noise and might - just might - make the enemy pause and think a bit.

As others have said we did do that more than a few times in the 2nd half, but it only actually resulted in an accurate pass on a couple of occasions, the rest sailed into the blue yonder. It was another thing that seemed to make the crowd somewhat, errr, restless shall we say. As did passing the ball around the back 3/goalkeeper when you're 2-1 down with 5 minutes to go. I spose that's the thing about Billyball, when it works it looks brilliant, but when you concede poor goals through sloppy passing and keep giving the ball away, it looks awful.