Midweek Championship matches / Come on Ipswich [Merged]

[Simster]

Ipswich v Middlesbrough 19:45
Ipswich in last chance saloon in terms of getting to the play offs (I think they really have to win every game now), but Boro will feel they MUST get something from this game, with Saturday's match at Fortress Amex on the horizon. DRAW

Leicester v Nottm Forest 19:45
Forest have been in good form and will not want to lose a local game. For Leicester, Forest is always the big one and they are another team in last chance saloon. And anyway, a motivated Leicester will be far too good to Forest. HOME WIN

Peterborough v West Ham 19:45
Can't see Posh getting anything here. Not that this match is really relevant to us. AWAY WIN

Portsmouth v Hull 19:45
Northern team heads a long way south in mid week. Exactly the sort of game Pompey will need to win to head off relegation. I don't think they will, as Hull are desperate for the points. DRAW

[Jim D]

I'd agree with 1, 3 and 4. Forest are getting better and also need something from the game. Leicester will be without Danns - who's playing really well at the moment - so I can see a draw.

[ArcticBlue]

Yep. It would be fantastic for us if Boro get no more than a point so we are ahead of them going in to Saturday's game. Keeps the pressure off us and on them for that game.

[Nathan]

Ipswich were poor and saturday, so i can see them losing again on tuesday - hope i am wrong.

[Brian Fantana]

I can certainly see both 'Boro and Hull drawing.

[Rugrat]

Ipswich had a mediocre performance against a Watford team playing as well as they have all season, otherwise they've not been doing to bad themselves. I think Boro are in danger of falling off a cliff and if Ipswich can do them tonight and we take 3 on Saturday that might be the end of them - IPSWICH

Leicester are out of it I reckon .. should be a home win but possible draw with Danns missing and Forest still not safe - DRAW

Who knows with Peterborough? Ferguson was seriously pissed after Saturday and they will have a lot to prove ? West Ham looked fortunate Saturday and have proven they are more than capable of underachieving - DRAW

Hull can't score and are draw specialists apart from at an out of sorts Cardiff. Portsmouth are crap and can't score either except against Birmingham for some reason - DRAW

[seagullondon]

Ipswich had a mediocre performance against a Watford team playing as well as they have all season, otherwise they've not been doing to bad themselves. I think Boro are in danger of falling off a cliff and if Ipswich can do them tonight and we take 3 on Saturday that might be the end of them - IPSWICH

Leicester are out of it I reckon .. should be a home win but possible draw with Danns missing and Forest still not safe - DRAW

Who knows with Peterborough? Ferguson was seriously pissed after Saturday and they will have a lot to prove ? West Ham looked fortunate Saturday and have proven they are more than capable of underachieving - DRAW

Hull can't score and are draw specialists apart from at an out of sorts Cardiff. Portsmouth are crap and can't score either except against Birmingham for some reason - DRAW

have you got your latest predictor table with all the colors lol I always enjoy looking at it and working things out

[Rugrat]

have you got your latest predictor table with all the colors lol I always enjoy looking at it and working things out

I'm not calling it a predictor any more given my obvious inability to predict correctly ... so here's the "what if"

The key issue now is trying to predict number of points for play offs .. I'm saying here 75 ... seems a lot of support for 73 on NSC so perhaps 74?

[LondonBlue]

Ipswich v Middlesbrough
Ipswich now mid table mediocrity and not going anywhere. Can see Boro sneaking all three points.

Leicester v Forest
Looking at the table now it is definitely not beyond the realms of possibility that Leicester can haul themselves into play off contention. A win will see them 4 points off 4th (us), with the same games played. Predict three points to Leicester.

Peterborough v West Ham
West Ham look there for the taking currently. Would be a good point but a possible point for Boro, and they could still do with a few to make certain of not getting pulled into any possibility of a relegation scrap.

Portsmouth v Hull
Hull are definitely off the boil right now. Portsmouth are still playing like the mid to bottom half team they were before the points deduction. Both teams getting inconsistent results. I'd go for a draw with a slant towards Pompey if the three points were settled.

Any other views out there?

[Simster]

*sigh*

Midweek matches

[LondonBlue]

Apologies... can a mod merge this please... thanks.

[Austrian Gull]

Peterborough v West Ham 19:45
Can't see Posh getting anything here. Not that this match is really relevant to us. AWAY WIN

Don't rule out Peterborough - beaten Blackpool and West Ham in their last two home games.

[Rugrat]

Don't rule out Peterborough - beaten Blackpool and West Ham in their last two home games.

Erm ... Reading, but fair comment

[kevo]

...in terms of Championship fixtures (starting to get really obsessed with this now!)

Tue 27

Ipswich v Middlesbrough
Portsmouth v Hull
Peterborough v West Ham

Two of our play-off rivals use up their games in hand, both potentially tricky away fixtures.

West Ham also use up their game in hand. Still think the top three will finish above the rest. Even defeat would leave them seven points ahead of us, on the same number of games.

Fri 30

Doncaster v Birmingham

Would normally think this would be an odds-on away win, but not after Birmingham's capitualtion at Pompey. They were also apparently pretty awful against Cardiff.

(after this match, it means all our immediate rivals will have played 39 games - so the table on Fri night should give a true reflection of where we stand, at least until Sat evening).

Sat 31

Cardiff v Millwall
Brighton v Middlesbrough
Hull v Coventry
Leeds v Watford
Peterborough v Leicester
West Ham v Reading

Blackpool v Southampton (evening ko)


Should be to our advantage that Middlesbrough have played in mid-week - and the fact that they have another long journey south to face us.

Cardiff and Hull have easy-looking home fixtures, so any dropped points would be a bonus.

Hopefully SCC can do us a favour at Blackpool in the evening match.

The result of the West Ham v Reading game could have a big influence on which of them finishes up in the play-offs.

Anything other than wins for Leeds and Leicester and we can surely write them both out of contention for good.


(EDIT: apologies - didn't see Simster's thread!)

[Austrian Gull]

Erm ... Reading, but fair comment

Oops...maybe it was a premonition?

[Jim D]

...in terms of Championship fixtures (starting to get really obsessed with this now!)

Cardiff v Millwall
Hull v Coventry

Cardiff and Hull have easy-looking home fixtures, so any dropped points would be a bonus.

No game against a bottom 6 team at this stage of the season is easy. Every one of them has taken points off a top 6 team recently.

[Czechmate]

Ipswich v Boro 2-0
Leicetser v Forest 3-1
Peterborough v West Ham 1-1
Pompey v Hull 2-1

[Rugrat]

...in terms of Championship fixtures (starting to get really obsessed with this now!)


West Ham also use up their game in hand. Still think the top three will finish above the rest. Even defeat would leave them seven points ahead of us, on the same number of games.

Obsessed! Welcome to the club ... I've been obsessed with this for the past 6 weeks and can happily fill a day contemplating the various combinations!

As for WHU .. if Posh do mange to do them and if Reading give them a seeing to on Saturday then our game becomes a 6 pointer ... unless freak results in between .. WHU also still have to play Birm and Hull too and although at home they are hardly massive fav's. I still agree they are well beyond us but given the results of the past 3/4 weeks anything can happen!

[Simster]

Would also be nice if Donny won in midweek for two reasons:

a) they're playing the Nigels
b) they're at home to Birmingham this weekend, and back to back wins might propel them out of the drop zone

[CliveWalkerWingWizard]

Can't see any team getting more than 13 points now (including us) I think position 6 may be as low as 71. Still means we need at least 3 wins and a draw in a tough run in.