This team is better than the one we had for the 1st 15 games last time

[Icy Gull]

Surely??

Don't have the programmes but I seem to remember Zamora, Kuipers, Kitson and Butters hardly played. It was made up with kids and an initially impressive Barratt who went downhil rapidly.

Blackwell and Rodger hadn't arrived.

I'm optimistic that by the time 15 games are played we will have at least 4 new decent standard loanees or signings but I don't hold out much hope of seeing Rodger or Blackwell playing for us again

 

[CHAPPERS]

Yes, yes it is.

The likes of Marney and Wlikinson are elsewhere because we have better players all around the park.

 

[Gritt23]

I absolutely agree, and that is why I - unlike all my mates, so it seems - am actually pretty confident.

We are playing in a higher division and we will find it tough. For me you have to base your campaign on a sound defence. We absolutely have that this time, and were completely woeful last time.

We have a very strong 4, good combination of youth at full backs and experience in the middle - plus, cover across the whole back 4. Add to that we have 2 very good 'keepers.

Last time, the loss of Morgan was HUGE, and we never really recovered from that until Blackwell arrived. No cover for FDM cost us dear as the loan cover was pretty ropey. Watson and Mayo were struggling, but we had no-one to bring in.

Letting in cheap early goals to Walsall, 4 rubbish goals vs Gillingham and a capitualtion in the ;ast 20 mins vs Sheff Utd. They are my vivid memories of the start of teh campaign. They showed us up for being a long way short of teh mark defensively.

That will NOT happen this time.

I, for one, am confident. If we could sign a couple of midfielders and get Rodger fit, then I'll be looking at mid table onscurity.

 

[trueblue]

And we have an experienced manager who's been in place all through the summer too.

 

[Set of Tracksuits]

yes, you're right. no disrespect to martin hinshelwood, but we also have a more tactically astute manager in charge now, who has far greater experience of managing teams at this level.

man-for-man, i think brooker and zamora would still get into the present team, but other than that the team is the same or better in every area.

 

[Yorkie]

I think the same but was accused of having rose tinted specs on.

I am glad to see I am not the only failry confident one.

 

[Yorkie]

Did you have Sidwell for the first 15 games?

No he didn't arrive until late Oct/ November

 

[Set of Tracksuits]

I think the same but was accused of having rose tinted specs on.

I am glad to see I am not the only failry confident one.

i still think we'll struggle though. we just won't lose 13 straight games (or whatever it was).

we're not a great side by any stretch of the imagination and we still need a couple of quality players to be able to compete.

 

[Hadlee]

I'm also in total agreement, I've said on here before that we never replaced Morgan until October and by then it was too late.

Another factor is all the time Bobby played the whole team played to him and whenever he got injured we lost confidence and struggled. (that was pretty much the first half of that season)

This time we do not have one player who dictates the whoile team performance (if you know what I mean

 

[lost in london]

yes, you're right. no disrespect to martin hinshelwood, but we also have a more tactically astute manager in charge now, who has far greater experience of managing teams at this level.

man-for-man, i think brooker and zamora would still get into the present team, but other than that the team is the same or better in every area.

No disrespect to Martin Hinshelwood? The man lost us 15 or so games!

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I finally lost all respect for Hinshelwood in the game towards the end of the losing sequence at Withdean where BZ had got a bad knock, was clearly struggling and the whole of the South Stand was screaming for him to be taken off . Hinsh of course kept him on the pitch for far longer than he should, in what looked very much like a last desperate attempt to save his job. Thought the youth squad did marvellously during that period, but feel infinitely more confident having eleven grown men (OK ten grown men+Leon) on the pitch. No way we'll have such an abysmal run this time around. McGhee simply won't let it happen.

 

[Don Tmatter]

August 26th 2002 v Walsall H (lost 0-2)
Team:
Petterson
Watson Cullip Pethick Hinshelwood
Marney Carpenter Melton Oatway Brooker
Kitson
Subs: Jones on for Kitson(inj)
Wilkinson for Melton

Zamora had been injured 10 days before against Norwich,
Butters wasn't fully fit (was he ever? that season)
The only one who would add anything to our present team would be Brooker.

 

[pasty]

You can add me to the confident of staying up gang. Last time in this divsion we only went down by one point, after having given everyone a nice head start, on the last day of the season.

I agree we have a better team, and even if, worst case scenario, we go on a 7 game losing streak from the start this time around, we've got our guaranteed 3 points against Wolves at home for our 8th game !

 

[Wardy]

i still think we'll struggle though. we just won't lose 13 straight games (or whatever it was).

we're not a great side by any stretch of the imagination and we still need a couple of quality players to be able to compete.

But last time we went down by 4 points. I am sure from those 13 games we lost on the trot lasttiem we will pick up at least 4 points.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

forgetting that the division is a lot stronger tho

and we still have oatway in starting line up, before accused of hating oatway again he would be a good back up player but not a starting player

 

[CHAPPERS]

forgetting that the division is a lot stronger tho

Why is it much stronger? How does a division improve so much in two years?

 

[Hadlee]

and we still have oatway in starting line up, before accused of hating oatway again he would be a good back up player but not a starting player

Not necessarily, McGhee has gone on record saying that Oatway & Chippy will be too combatative so I suspect he will play one of them with Reid or Piercy (or a new signing )

 

[Seagull Stew]

Chippie would not look out of place this time around either, and Oatway will hopefully be brought in just for games where he would have to do a man to man marking job. I remember him playing a blinder against Portsmouth keeping Paul Merson quiet last time around.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Why is it much stronger? How does a division improve so much in two years?

wed walsal bradford grims have all gone being replaced with
cardiff plymouth qpr crewe
plus teams like west ham and leeds

gillingham spent 300k on two players at the end of the season to help them stay up we cant even dream of doing that

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Chippie would not look out of place this time around either, and Oatway will hopefully be brought in just for games where he would have to do a man to man marking job. I remember him playing a blinder against Portsmouth keeping Paul Merson quiet last time around.

chippy didnt stuggle last time?

and is that the same merson that set up 2 of the 4 goals and scored the other?