Bristol City away on a Friday night, too. Which is a charmer of an away day. On one hand, they provide a crucial revenue stream. On the other, it's not fair on the fans and the clubs the way they dick around with fixtures. We play on Sky twice in a week soon - Brighton on a Thursday night then Leeds on the Sunday. Two fewer recovery days than Leeds, who play on the Tuesday. You can't tell me that doesn't hand an on-pitch advantage to one of our play-off rivals.

Certainly, there's a huge onus on it at this level, and for a lot of clubs that don't have PL-era revenue streams or big brand identities from the past (Leeds, Forest, maybe Wolves), its a necessary evil. But I thought it was bad enough in the Premier League with their over-the-top fixture meddling - it feels like up there clubs have to put up with less bollocks like the 10 in 10 thing that now features before Christmas or re-arranging things at seemingly a moment's notice.

The slightly scary thing is that it makes you sympathetic to a point of view by Cellino at Leeds. That big protestation before a match last season when Sky were locked out until the final 3 hours before kick-off did touch on this point and may well have struck a chord with a lot of people on this issue.

#366673 The Lower League Thread

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14 Jan 2017 20:24:21

Brentford had more shots and possession. So there'll be some who'll use that as a stick about not dominating games, like I saw from a few people after the Burton Albion game before Christmas. Although today was a slightly different case given the psychological blow from losing our top scorer, and then the tactical shifts we would have had to do following the quickfire injuries to Hayden and Anita.

#366637 The Lower League Thread

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14 Jan 2017 17:25:59

Tricky one - 3 forced subs through more injuries, including Gayle after he got goal 20, and Anita after he was already been subbed on following an injury to Hayden, then Gouffran limping to the end, and against a team that like pressing and sounded like they played very well. But given this recent slump, that could be a very important result in the long run.

By terriersmad | On 10 January 2017 - 19:03 PM GMT

Town v Leeds moved AGAIN. So that's five times the time or date has changed. From Saturday to Sunday to Monday back to Sunday and now slightly earlier on Sunday. Bugger off, Football League and bugger off, Sky.

Yeah it does seem slightly mental how much authority they get to fuck around the lower league schedule. This weekend was bad enough - Reading v QPR on the Thursday, Leeds v Derby last night, and would've had our game on Monday had we not required a replay in the FA Cup, which duly lead to a re-rescheduling only a week ago after a lot of people had already booked travel and hotels.

It does feel as though they have more of a fixture-wrecking authority than normal this season. And they sounded bad enough before.

#366631 Newcastle Thread

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14 Jan 2017 16:38:06

Gayle, Anita and Hayden all taken off injured.

With a squad getting thinner as the week's gone on, that's hardly ideal. And on a day when Brighton are losing for once.

#366602 London City FC - A City On The Rise

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14 Jan 2017 12:37:39

Still even getting into the play-offs was an achievement, nevermind almost getting one game from promotion and still in a 5,000-capacity stadium. Promotion the game for next season?

#366601 Transfer Rumours 2016/17

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14 Jan 2017 12:34:58

Diego Costa has not travelled in Chelsea's squad to Leicester following a row with Conte and his fitness staff amid rumours he's joining the Chinese exodus.

Even amid the talk of Chinese riches and takeover, it'd be quite something if the Premier League's top scorer was taken there in the middle of a season.

#366460 London City FC - A City On The Rise

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12 Jan 2017 23:14:22

Blimey congrats on staying up, a good start to the following campaign and the possible new stadium.

#366394 Transfer Rumours 2016/17

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12 Jan 2017 10:26:05

Bilic is saying Payet no longer wants to play for West Ham.

Chinese teams got the cash ready yet?

#366283 London City FC - A City On The Rise

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10 Jan 2017 22:05:13

Just had a paruse. Done extremely well. KIU and good luck in avoiding a return to the 3rd tier.

#366220 World Cup 2018 Qualifying

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10 Jan 2017 13:02:01

Following a FIFA vote earlier today, the 2026 World Cup is going to be 48 teams, with 16 groups of 3 followed by a knockout round.

This is going to be a bit of a clusterfuck.

#366167 2016/17 FA Cup

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09 Jan 2017 19:27:11

Round 4 draw

Tottenham v Wycombe
Derby v Leicester
Oxford v Newcastle or Birmingham
Sutton or AFC Wimbledon v Cambridge or Leeds
Plymouth or Liverpool v Wolves
Southampton or Norwich v Arsenal
Lincoln or Ipswich v Brighton
Chelsea v Brentford
Manchester United v Wigan
Millwall v Watford
Rochdale v Huddersfield
Burnley or Sunderland v Fleetwood or Bristol City
Blackburn v Barnsley or Blackpool
Fulham v Hull
Middlesbrough v Accrington Stanley
Crystal Palace or Bolton v Manchester City

Some ties are a bit more interesting than R3, but still fairly unremarkable.

#366121 2016/17 FA Cup

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09 Jan 2017 11:50:55

By BR. | On 08 January 2017 - 20:40 PM GMT

You beat us in 2012 didn't you? Though we had Steve Kean in charge then, so maybe it doesn't count.....

By Shedender | On 08 January 2017 - 22:05 PM GMT

You're absolutely correct, I apologise. I meant our last away FA Cup win at the first attempt came in 2006.

Tbf that one required a FIFA Goal of the Year contender and a 95th minute strike to come from behind and win a game Blackburn lead for a long period.

But yeah - no away win in the FA Cup since 2006, and only one Third Round tie won first time in that time period too. Shit record either way.

#366008 2016/17 FA Cup

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08 Jan 2017 15:29:35

By Shedender | On 08 January 2017 - 14:23 PM GMT

Cannot believe how poor our Third Round record is. Without needing a replay, we haven't won a Third Round tie since 2006.

That season was the last time we won an away FA Cup tie as well.

We're not brilliant at this competition are we?

By Sam | On 08 January 2017 - 14:29 PM GMT

Liverpool with 80% possession at HT.

No goal though. Credit to Plymouth getting themselves a replay and presumably more TV money out of it.

#365952 2016/17 FA Cup

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08 Jan 2017 00:20:59

So, a replay required, 2 fixture rearrangements, Mitrovic being stretchered off - albeit not with the leg break some thought it was - and another failure to win. Magic of the FA Cup indeed. Maybe that £33m injection from Ashley is an indication someone's going to be bought in.

Oh well. Would've been nice to see an Eastleigh or Stourbridge go through as well, but maybe not this time. Especially in Eastleigh's case, given that Brentford spanked them.

#365951 The Lower League Thread

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08 Jan 2017 00:11:57

Northampton's manager Rob Page used the phrase "men against girls" to describe the performance after his lot lost 5-0 at Bristol Rovers.

I'm not 100% sure if its flat-out sexist, but why add to your team losing heavily by making a spectacle out of yourself with such bizarre phrases?

#365363 The Lower League Thread

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03 Jan 2017 21:24:06

They kinda go hand in hand really - not going forward enough and further not being bullying enough to other teams. More assertive forward thinking would benefit. Although on Monday we were definitely the more forward thinking side - more possession, shots, and having penalty appeals and goals turned away. But still, work required either way.

Feels like I've said this before but the whole issue in comparing 2014 and now is how relative it all is. 2013/14 was disappointing purely on the parameters of that campaign, which is going to be the way for sleepwalking to the end from being 6th and with a shot at the top 4 at Christmas to nearly dropping out of the top 10 in the final month, but that was still preferable to the twisted tortured mess of the following 2 seasons, and now whatever the fuck this is. Still, its easy to doom monger. The win attrition means something might come about. And its one thing for being resigned to be finishing behind Brighton. They might walk away or they might collapse. Still got 4 months to go yet. Maybe its still too soon to be doomy, if not too soon to recognise things aren't really going the way they should be.

I knew Forest did alright in the last campaign we shared a tier with them, but not specifics. 19 game unbeaten run in October 2009-January 2010, then fell face first over the line with 8 defeats after mid January, and losing both legs of their play-offs, or least so says Wiki. Which isn't too bad a run but seems to have stunted them - they seem to have been permanently stuck in midtable since. But I don't recall the Cardiff, Leicester and Blackpool teams that rounded off the top 6 being that great.

As an aside, Luton may well have their moments of being arrogant dickheads judging by what little I know of Jones in post-match comments, but there's really no excuse for booking McGeehan for striking the pitch in pain or serenading him in a manner akin to that Alan Smith got at Liverpool in 2006. Shame as well as McGeehan seems like a decent player.

#365239 The Lower League Thread

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By Shola | On 02 January 2017 - 21:35 PM GMT

This was all relevant when we were winning games - We were just lucky to eke them games out with no one really paying attention.

The Shelvey thing is an easy excuse - no other team has a 'creative' midfielder and goals still happen. We need pressure - which we rarely provide. No real pressing, no bombardment of the box, no one willing to beat a man - very little through balls or crosses, CM's rarely getting into the box, Wingers not holding width, and full backs never overlapping. And never any substitutions.

Its a weird one all told. Its an easy excuse but the performance against Wednesday was bad. Yesterday was as much the issue of nobody stepping up to get goals when Gayle was effectively muted, but the midfield was still pants going forward. But it goes back to stuff I wondered earlier in the campaign about not asserting ourselves during games. Clearly we haven't learned.

Strangely its been pointed out that at this point in 2009/10, we had 52 points and were 6 points clear of the team in third - on those two stats, its identical this time around. Only this time we're winning a shitload - more wins than anyone else in the division - but guilty of being shit when going behind, and there's also stronger competitors. Brighton are probably going to win the league, and the likes of Reading, Huddersfield and Leeds are providing a stronger challenge than I thought they would. Certainly its a stronger league than it was 7 seasons ago.

#365145 2016/17 Barclays Premier League Thread

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02 Jan 2017 17:56:27

Genuinely thought for a second Jones got sent off... might not have been paying attention properly but very full throttle challenge from the pair of them. Not convinced it was a red.

Also that double one with the super Randolph save and Lingard hitting the post from 2 yards - how the fuck did that stay out?

#365143 The Lower League Thread

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By BR. | On 02 January 2017 - 17:08 PM GMT

They'll still go up, but they need to remember they couldn't score in 180 mins against a team set up by Owen Coyle, clearly a lot of work needs to be done.

I don't think we're as sure a bet as everyone thinks. We're winning lots of matches, but we're losing games we need to draw, and we're way too cautious in certain games. We seem unable to respond to going behind, as if we lack the something Brighton has, and our back-up options are not working. This pair of defeats to Wednesday and Blackburn is a hefty slap in the face, and the teams below us all winning is a worry. Couldn't care about the title - avoiding the fucking play-offs is the must.

We're going to have to make signings. Especially in midfield - Hayden & Colback lack creativity as a duo, Shelvey is still banned, Diame and Atsu are off to ACON, Perez isn't looking the answer, Ritchie has gone off the boil.

So. Yeah. Happy New Year.

#365131 The Lower League Thread

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02 Jan 2017 16:48:59

How the fuck is it we have more wins than anyone else, have the division's top scorer, and yet can't get one goal in 180 minutes against fucking Blackburn?

Maybe we're doomed to fuck this all up.

#364856 The Lower League Thread

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30 Dec 2016 23:12:12

Does sound like we did our best to make things difficult tonight against Forest, but win's a win.

#364636 2016/17 Barclays Premier League Thread

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28 Dec 2016 21:08:46

That Kane penalty was spectacularly shit, divot or no divot.

Although clearly given Spurs were winning when he missed it, and they then got 2 more, it ultimately didn't matter.

By Shedender | On 27 December 2016 - 19:27 PM GMT

Swansea have sacked Bob Bradley after only something like 80 days in charge.

85 days, in the end. For some reason I thought it was closer to the Allardyce reign in numbers.

So weird how Swansea did well to get to 8th in 2014/15 and have made seemingly nothing but bad decisions since.

#364493 2016/17 Barclays Premier League Thread

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27 Dec 2016 00:52:46

I'm puzzled as to what the FA charging Harry the Hornet for diving in front of Zaha after the Watford-Palace game is supposed to achieve.

#364488 The Lower League Thread

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26 Dec 2016 23:18:24

Hmmm... very concerning that we seem unable to respond in games when we concede first.

#364374 Merry Christmas!

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25 Dec 2016 17:23:21

Merry Christmas everyone

#364057 The Lower League Thread

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23 Dec 2016 16:35:43

I had a read of the evidence and testimonials from the Newcastle and Wolves players called before the FA for the Shelvey hearing, and all I feel I learned is that on a pitch, footballers seem to spend a fair amount of games being pricks towards one another.

By probability, Shelvey probably did say something rude - if not quite the original Twitter rumour of "couscous nonce". Not that I envy those who had to make the judgement, given that on both sides there were a lot of evidence consistency issues.

#363951 The Lower League Thread

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22 Dec 2016 20:33:14

Shelvey will not appeal so will sit out the games against Sheffield Wednesday, Forest, Blackburn and Brentford, along with the FA Cup tie at Birmingham City.

The lack of submitted audio/video makes it a very tricky case to judge and I suppose its not to know what's been said as evidence either which way - there's a claim, for instance, the Wolves players said conflicting evidence. But I guess now the judgement is there and the punishment has been accepted, its up to RB to find alternative options for those games. Which may also have to be an incoming given Diame is going ACON soon (not sure when that is). Its not ideal any which way in any case.

#363888 2016/17 Barclays Premier League Thread

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22 Dec 2016 15:23:01

Yup - sacked in the last 20 minutes.

Dunno why but it is a bit of a surprise, even after the fact they've had a well documented struggle to get points in 2016. But I suppose its enough to bring a smile after all those slagging us off last year for complaining about his abilities to go on seemingly unending negative runs.