[Football] Staying in the prem

I saw that piece, it is very good as Nicholson's usually are and he is of course right. BUT personally this season has been my most enjoyable in the 30 years I've been watching the Albion and I was desperate for us not to go down.

I agree with a lot of the article. Certainly the point about boring 'damage limitation' games where the limit of the team's ambitions is to make sure the goal difference doesn't take too much of a hit is valid, but lower league football can be boring too - and at least a turgid 0-0 draw in the Prem is usually (for lower-half teams) seen as a precious point gained.

Following on from that when people talk about the joys of lower-league football they presumably mean winning lower league football? I.e no one want to see us drop into the Championship and end up in mid table? That brings its own pressure. Wins become mundane and expected, they become the everyday norm, and that to me has been the great joy of the Prem: the wins, especially the unexpected ones, have been huge highs. Personally I much prefer the rollercoaster mix of boring 'damage limitation' defeats and ecstatic wins, to the workaday 'must get three points' grind of the top of the Championship.

And if you grind out the wins but not enough to get automatic promotion and then lose in the play-offs ...

I've enjoyed this season more than I thought I would to be honest. I feared it would be peppered with thrashings, and thought I'd probably end up longing to be back in the Championship, where there are more games, more wins (unless Sami Hyypia happens to be in charge), and a chance of achieving something.

But the longer the season's gone on, the more desperate I've been for us to stay up. Various reasons- there's a couple of stadiums I still haven't been to that I wasn't able to do this year. I'm looking forward to seeing Spurs' new stadium if the fixtures are kind. It would be nice to think we might be able to beat Palace in a league fixture at some point in the next decade. And just the general novelty of people other than Albion fans giving a shit about our games has been quite nice, and that hasn't worn off yet.

I daresay it will at some stage, although if you watched Palace fans- a club that has been in the PL for five years now so might reasonably consider themselves established- celebrating avoiding relegation like they'd won the Champions League, then perhaps that novelty does still linger beyond the initial thrill.

Anyway, of relevance to the original article: I very much hope Boro fail in the play offs, as I've no desire to go to that absolute dump ever again.

Brovion said:

I agree with a lot of the article. Certainly the point about boring 'damage limitation' games where the limit of the team's ambitions is to make sure the goal difference doesn't take too much of a hit is valid, but lower league football can be boring too - and at least a turgid 0-0 draw in the Prem is usually (for lower-half teams) seen as a precious point gained.

Following on from that when people talk about the joys of lower-league football they presumably mean winning lower league football? I.e no one want to see us drop into the Championship and end up in mid table? That brings its own pressure. Wins become mundane and expected, they become the everyday norm, and that to me has been the great joy of the Prem: the wins, especially the unexpected ones, have been huge highs. Personally I much prefer the rollercoaster mix of boring 'damage limitation' defeats and ecstatic wins, to the workaday 'must get three points' grind of the top of the Championship.

And if you grind out the wins but not enough to get automatic promotion and then lose in the play-offs ...

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Agreed. Every point seems massive and every match actually feels like a big event, especially the home games. That's not always the case in the lower divisions.

Plus, the standard of football in the premier league is far superior to the lower divisions no matter what anyone says. Watching the likes of Coutinho, Willian etc and the way they use the ball has been a joy at times. Being in the premier league also means we get to watch players with the technical ability of Propper and Gross play for the Albion who are in a different world to most of the players we've had over the years.

I don’t think Tony Bloom has stopped quite yet either, he doesn’t seem the sort of bloke who rests on his laurels. He’ll have his own plan for the club mapped out and staying up will have been a vital element.

I’m glad we’re able to come along for the ride.

spence said:

West Ham ? West Brom ? Even some of the home draws like Everton we should have won. 4 home defeats all season. No idea what you were expecting

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I am glad you had no idea. Saves me replying to you.

Like many others, I've enjoyed this season much more than I thought I would. I think a lot of it comes down to the brilliant home form – as someone who doesn't travel to away games, I've missed out on what many have called poor performances (certainly the low goal tally alone makes me think there aren't many that would make the end of season highlights DVD...) and that is something that will hopefully be addressed over the summer, somehow!

I get that some in the media wax lyrical about the PL and make it sound like it's the ONLY place to be. And to a point they are right – I've seen the argument put forward on here that 'if you don't want your team to win, then what's the point?' Plus it is the top of the football pyramid, where every player, manager and owner wants to be (some fans might not, but the majority, I would bet, do). However, I don't for one second buy into the hype and the 'Greatest League in the World' cobblers. It's been great for the Albion because – aside from a few performances – the lads have held their own against more expensive, more experienced and more technically gifted sides. But many objective observers have noted the quality of the league as a whole is pretty poor and the way that the 'top four' or 'top six or seven' is referred to with ease, is an admission of that fact.

I do wonder how matey felt when Boro went up at our expense the other season, and/or how he will feel after the play-off games (win or draw)...