Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Match Threads & Player Ratings => Topic started by: Legion on May 21, 2011, 08:26:23 PM
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Available Sunday evening.
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I love football.
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Well 9th and the Blues go down. It doesn't tell the full story of how shit this season has been but it salvages some respect.
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What a beautiful day... I don't think I could have written it much better. 2 excellent wins to finish the season, and heartbreak for the knuckledraggers.
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Top half finish after the season we had is some going - we were in the bottom three not too long ago.
SHA and Blackpool going down just tops off the perfect day. Amazing afternoon.
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Frankly, that couldn't have gone better unless every Villa fan got a free blowjob.
Still a shit season, considering what we might have hoped for this time last year, but it's great to end it on a positive note, and things have gone as well as they could have over the last couple of weeks. Perfect end to the season.
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9th good prize money. We played well today, great goal. Bye bye Ash, thanks for the memories! And Blues gone!!
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A great place to be is in Birmingham tomorrow. Hold on a minute. That's where I'll be. I think I might grab a copy of the Mail to enjoy the day - keep the pics of the tears of the animals.
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Brilliant end to the season! Young looks like he's gone? Shame.
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How crap is the rest of the league for us to finish 9th...dear me
The one day in the whole season where the Premier League has lived up to all the hype...and then some
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A great end to a tough season
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When that ****** left 5 days before the season kicked off, if someone had said at the end of the season we'd finish 9th and the Blues would get relegated I'd have snapped their hands off.
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Ye gods.
Amidst all the fun I missed the Newcastle score. Last I heard they were 3-0 up.
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When that c*** left 5 days before the season kicked off, if someone had said at the end of the season we'd finish 9th and the Blues would get relegated I'd have snapped their hands off.
He is indeed a ****** and with the noses sent to their doom is has been a cracking end to the season
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Albion gave us an extra million!
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Unbelievable, can't believe we finished top half.
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Albion gave us an extra million!
makes up a little bit for the money we wasted on buying Curtis Davies from them
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Albion gave us an extra million!
Sort of pay back for Curtis Davies.
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So so good!! What a fantastic final day!
Great stuff from us today (from the bits I watched, anyway....), and a final position that is very respectable, considering. It might mask how dire we were at times, and as Richard said just how poor some of the other teams have been this year, but it's a good, solid top half finish.....and I would have accepted that at the start of the season.
Now, back to the laughing and pointing.........
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Albion gave us an extra million!
How come?
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What a wonderful day. Best day of the season. Everything went right, good triumphed over evil.
And we won as well, brilliant!
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Albion gave us an extra million!
How come?
We finished above Newcastle when WBA took a point off them
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Albion gave us an extra million!
How come?
improved our league position because they drew at Newcastle
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Gary Mac has come in for a fair amount of stick in recent months -very odd for an assistant manager. I don't recall any other assistant copping that level of flak.
But whatever he's done in the past two games has had the desired effect. If you'd told me after the Wigan match we'd win two games on the bounce against the calibre of opponent we were due to face I'd say you were stark raving mad.
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When the dust has settled on today's events, there are some serious questions that still need to be answered about how this season has gone.
They say that the final league table doesn't lie, but I'm not so sure that 9th really reflects AVFC 2010-11.
A very important close season ahead and some significant decisions need to be made sooner rather than later.
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In before ye that time TV.
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Hard to believe we finished 9th after our manager walking out, no summer transfer window, the worst injury crisis for many a year, at least one player revolt, the manager being hospitalised, and just generally being crap for most of the season. I predicted 7th or 8th at the start, even if MON had stayed, but it has been a funny old PL this season. Makes you wonder how we could have done with a more stable set of circumstances, but I think it demonstrates that outside the top 6 or 7 places there isn't much quality.
But well done to all at the club for a good finish to the season. Think we may well have seen the last of A Young. Oh well.
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Delighted.
Also delighted at how happy GMac looked at the end of the game.
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Albion gave us an extra million!
How come?
improved our league position because they drew at Newcastle
Also finishing as Top Dogs in the midlands once again.
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What a amazing day of football that was..........the strange thing is cause I really wanted Wolves to stay up, Blues and Blackpool go down I missed the fact we ended up in 9th....wow!!
Brilliant......now where is that link to the Villa fans at the Arsenal?
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that and conceding only 1 goal in those two games
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WHAT A DAY!
How we ended up 9th I still don't know. Back to back wins over Arsenal and Liverpool.. surely the current management team must be doing something right..
I've been shaking most of the afternoon with excitement and nerves. I wanted them to get relegated so much. The way it all happened was amazing. Such great viewing. Absolutely amazing! I feel for Blackpool a bit. I don't like Holloway - but I do like the city so it's a shame they're down.
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Albion gave us an extra million!
How come?
improved our league position because they drew at Newcastle
They just said on Sky that the places we moved up today are worth and extra THREE MILLION in prize money. Bloody hell...
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we beat some of the top teams when it mattered..this is the deciding factor..The others didn't! Feel proud..respect!
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Blackpool are in Europe via the Fairplay League apparently... Gera's sending off cost Fulham the spot.
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Doug will be happy at the extra 3million.
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Delighted - top Midlands club as well. 9th place doesnt really tell the whole story but at the start of the season i only predicted 7th 8th or 9th so we've finished around where i expected but with far fewer points. First home win over Liverpool since 1998 and the SHIT ARE DOWN!!!!!!!!
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Just back in the car, could'nt tell you how we played as the whole match was spent with the radio, what an atmosphere, simply hilarious, respectable 9th place finish after the season we've had, oh and a clean sheet.
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Blackpool are in Europe via the Fairplay League apparently... Gera's sending off cost Fulham the spot.
I don't think they will be because it has to go to a Premier League side next season.
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turns out we were safe after the Spam game...
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How crap is the rest of the league for us to finish 9th...dear me
The one day in the whole season where the Premier League has lived up to all the hype...and then some
Enjoy it Richie instead of complaining! And just think, the £3m extra prize money we gained today can go towards paying the extra amount your fave player Nigel Reo-Coker will want in wages to sign a new deal ;)
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Well that was a turn up for the end of the season. I don't think anyone would have predicted that finish.
We were playing some good stuff and I think the signs are there to start being positive.
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How crap is the rest of the league for us to finish 9th...dear me
The one day in the whole season where the Premier League has lived up to all the hype...and then some
Ray Wilkins has just been sounding off about how it is the greatest league in the world. 10 points covering 12 places (8th - 19th) suggests an awful lot of dross and the football would generally support that.
It was an amazing day with so many twists and turns, but I don't think that is by design, it was just coincidence.
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I'm glad we beat Liverpool and a top ten finish and Small Heath are down doesn't get much better but it does I met Amanda Holden what a day roll on next season.
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For all it's faults, it is the best league in the world. Where better? The snoozefest that is la liga, the deteriorating serie a. Bundesliga is good but the quality is mediocre.
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Darren, what's she like?
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How crap is the rest of the league for us to finish 9th...dear me
The one day in the whole season where the Premier League has lived up to all the hype...and then some
Enjoy it Richie instead of complaining! And just think, the £3m extra prize money we gained today can go towards paying the extra amount your fave player Nigel Reo-Coker will want in wages to sign a new deal ;)
Cheers me old mucker eamonn, even I am deliriously happy today - the inbreds down, that disrespectful twat at Blackpool with 'em and I had Fulham and Newcastle go draw their games at 10/1!
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We kept a clean sheet as well!
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Gary Mac has come in for a fair amount of stick in recent months -very odd for an assistant manager. I don't recall any other assistant copping that level of flak.
But whatever he's done in the past two games has had the desired effect. If you'd told me after the Wigan match we'd win two games on the bounce against the calibre of opponent we were due to face I'd say you were stark raving mad.
Agreed. Some of the shit he's got has been a bit much. That said I do hope he and Houllier go but I will be wishing them both all the best.
I do think that we have all been a bit hysterical this season. Considering all the mitigation ninth isn't half bad.
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Been a while since I left VP after a league game having enjoyed the atmosphere, our result etc like I did today.
Although it did get a bit surreal for the last 10-15 minutes when it looked like they were staying up, then Wolves scored and it seemed hardly anyone knew who was dropping. Fortunately, someone made it all irrelevant.
I've had worse days.
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To finish 9th given the problems and disruption is not bad going - a poor season but a lovely way to end it by beating arsenal and liverpool and seeing blues go down- now let's hope for a quick decision on geds future so we can start making transfer moves.
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Frankly, that couldn't have gone better unless every Villa fan got a free blowjob.
and for the girls?
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Great atmosphere at VP today. We played really well. I am pleased we have put this no win over Lppol at home for a while right.
Enjoy today but there is some serious work for the Board to do come Monday.
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Frankly, that couldn't have gone better unless every Villa fan got a free blowjob.
and for the girls?
He's just said surely?
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Frankly, that couldn't have gone better unless every Villa fan got a free blowjob.
and for the girls?
He's just said surely?
To give is bigger than receiving....
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Frankly, that couldn't have gone better unless every Villa fan got a free blowjob.
and for the girls?
A busy evening with those kind of ratios. At least 5 each I reckon.
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Half decent game, even if it did have a last game of the season with not much at stake feel to it, the Europa League really isn't a prize attraction like the old UEFA cup was.
Downing took his goal well and we played some lovely counter attacking in the second half, we also defended well after a flaky start and Brad pulled off a super save.
We can't be far off the top of the current form charts, fifteen points from our last eight games.
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There's only one Glen Roeder!
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Oh yeah, the match. Well, it was alright wasn't it? Delighted with the performance. Now over to you Mr Learner.
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Only just got back. Stuck on car park for an hour after the game but gave me plenty of time to sit and reflect with a smug grin on my face.
When I looked at the fixtures at the start of the season and saw Arsenal away and Liverpool at home to end the season I thought 'nul points' from those 2 games - but we got 6, giving us a respectable finish in the league. History will show that we were 6th, 6th, 6th then 9th - a drop of only 3 places and, with Man City coming into the money, that's all it will show. But realistically it has been pretty consistently shit.
Terrific atmosphere today. Not sure what the players thought when huge cheers went up for no apparent reason, but the end couldn't have been better. Bloose down. Blackpool down (I might be in a minority of one here but after Holloway called us a half-arsed club I was particularly glad they ended up second from bottom after all his media rent-a-quote bollocks). And a top half finish. A great end to a crap season.
Edit - just read the 'half arsed club thread. Apparently I'm not in a minority of one
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There was a match?
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If the back 5 had shown this level of commitment with last ditch blocks in the dark days of December and January instead of just these last two games, then we'd have finished 6th no problem this season.
I too can't quite believe we've finished 9th after some of the shite we've served up; this season but will take it.
Collins was superb today, my MOTM, infact the whole back 5 were very good.
Suarez not being able to hit a barn door all afternoon amused me no end aswell.
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I thought we were pretty good today. It was such a departure from the misery of this season, we've signed off in a good way and the Blose are gone, brilliant.
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The defence today was surperb. Kyle Walker - fantastic. Dunne and Collins had great games too. Likewise with Friedel.
Downing - class act
Albrighton - battling till the end
Reo-Coker - always trying
We're are those negative nigels now who were writing off the last two games?!
Oh well, we finish 9th. What a season lol.
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Nice touch by McAllsiter to take Ash off towards the end to give him his standing ovation. Pretty much confirmed he's off.
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Considering this season has largely been arse cakes, just another four wins would probably have qualified as a good season. As weird as that seems. Just two extra wins at home, two away. Better than that and you'd be in the ballpark of CL qualification.
Makes it even more frustrating, considering some of the games thrown away from winning positions, the managers seemingly casual (almost philosophical) reaction to poor results in the first few months and so on.
But today is not a day for those kind of considerations.
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Amazing to think we've finished 9th with only 48 points. We finished 11th in MON's first season with 50.
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Yeah I said to my dad before the game, if we did that, he'd be off. Same happened with Milner a few times...
I think we'll be o.k without him if we can an N'zogbia or Adam Johnson as the replacement.
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That two point difference between the two managers first seasons is quite interesting - it's not much, is it?
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
Imagine if we hadn't been absolutely crap for most of the season.
I'm not gonna get carried away what with our last 2 results but seriously how do you explain such ineptitude for most of the season when we just picked up 6 points from the 2 games I expected nothing from.
I'm ending the season utterly confused.
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That two point difference between the two managers first seasons is quite interesting - it's not much, is it?
Indeed not - O'Neill followed a time with a small underperforming squad with previously a Bozo (DOL) in charge who underminded his players confidence and finished 16th. Houllier and co inherited the best squad in Villa's history (3 seasons in Top6 and remind me when that happened as I am 38) in the season of a comparatively average Premiership and we finished on 49 points. I am still angry as it is a wasted season.
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
Imagine if we hadn't been absolutely crap for most of the season.
I'm not gonna get carried away what with our last 2 results but seriously how do you explain such ineptitude for most of the season when we just picked up 6 points from the 2 games I expected nothing from.
I'm ending the season utterly confused.
We were rarely as bad as some suggested - certainly we were worse under DOL's final season and under GT mark 2.
We had some good luck in our last two games, certainly at Arsenal, and we defended better, including set pieces.
I still maintain that the quality of most of our player has been as good, if not better, than it was last year. But we've been much worse defensively.
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We were cack for alot of the season.We fucked away so many points due to idiotic defending and stupid late goals.
We had a season of turmoil, an injury crisis that I have never witnessed in my nearly 30 years of following the Villa and yet we have finished only 3 places lower than the best efforts of The Blessed St. Martin the spiteful egotist.
Football, it's a funny old game.
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We were rarely as bad as some suggested - certainly we were worse under DOL's final season and under GT mark 2.
Of course, the team we have now is better, but I think we've probably done worse comparatively when you consider the potential of each of the teams.
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Looked like GH was right all along - 7th to 12th.
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That two point difference between the two managers first seasons is quite interesting - it's not much, is it?
Well actually there is. Not a MON fan myself BUT he took a shambles of a team and got 50 points. Houllier took a near CL team and gave us a miserable season. In short O'Neill over delivered in his first season Houllier has under delivered by keeping us in relegation mire in his first season up to the last but one game.
A big difference.
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Best Villa player today was Petrov, closely followed by Downnig. Both were superb. LY was excellent, NRC pretty good. Dunne - poor, in my opinion. Times when we played really well.
Great and slightly surreal atmosphere at VP today ...
Weird season; glad it has ended and hope that the questions that remain get answered ASAP.
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That two point difference between the two managers first seasons is quite interesting - it's not much, is it?
Well actually there is. Not a MON fan myself BUT he took a shambles of a team and got 50 points. Houllier took a near CL team and gave us a miserable season. In short O'Neill over delivered in his first season Houllier has under delivered by keeping us in relegation mire in his first season up to the last but one game.
A big difference.
I have to agree with that.
New management please.
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bet we wont be first match on MOTD tonight, bias bloody BBC !
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bet we wont be first match on MOTD tonight, bias bloody BBC !
No chance we beat their beloved Liverpool. and there were one or two other things going on :)
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bet we wont be first match on MOTD tonight, bias bloody BBC !
Well I'm up early so if I can go to bed A.S.A.P. with the pictures of sobbing blue nose bastards fresh in my mind, I cant ask for any more....and it is my birthday tomorrow. Sweet.
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bet we wont be first match on MOTD tonight, bias bloody BBC !
Did we play?
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Looked like GH was right all along - 7th to 12th.
Yep - best we can accept under him. Under the previous one (who was not without faults) we managed 6th 3 seasons running. When did that last happen as I genuinely can't recall?
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
Imagine if we hadn't been absolutely crap for most of the season.
I'm not gonna get carried away what with our last 2 results but seriously how do you explain such ineptitude for most of the season when we just picked up 6 points from the 2 games I expected nothing from.
I'm ending the season utterly confused.
man Utd didnt play like normal this year, good home record but loads of away points dropped, and the standard of there football not to high,
they still won the league by a 9 clear points
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That two point difference between the two managers first seasons is quite interesting - it's not much, is it?
Well actually there is. Not a MON fan myself BUT he took a shambles of a team and got 50 points. Houllier took a near CL team and gave us a miserable season. In short O'Neill over delivered in his first season Houllier has under delivered by keeping us in relegation mire in his first season up to the last but one game.
A big difference.
The team was a shambles well before MON left. If the form of the last three months of MON's reign had continued into this season we would have been relegated before West Ham (and Blues would have stayed up). MON was a busted flush, and GH probably had just as much of a mess to sort out as MON did when he took over.
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The team was a shambles well before MON left. If the form of the last three months of MON's reign had continued into this season we would have been relegated before West Ham (and Blues would have stayed up). MON was a busted flush, and GH probably had just as much of a mess to sort out as MON did when he took over.
Agreed - the drama of MON's departure does obscure the fact that things were going tits-up some time earlier.
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But if we had matched MON's last season points wise in this we would have been clear 5th. Weirdly Citeh spent another £100mil and finished 1 point higher then last season. So another Billion will give them the title.
Just shows how crap this season has been.
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
By being the ninth best team, in the league. The table doesn't lie, as we've been told all season.
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We've finished 9th because we deserve to be there, based on all results since the season started.
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
By being the ninth best team, in the league. The table doesn't lie, as we've been told all season.
and two places better than MON's first season,
if we carry on like that we'l make top 4 next season,
but probably not
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bet we wont be first match on MOTD tonight, bias bloody BBC !
And for once, I'll have no complaints.
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It is on bin-dippers tv tonight at 12
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
By being the ninth best team, in the league. The table doesn't lie, as we've been told all season.
Ah come on now Mr. Woodhall. I am well aware that the table doesn't lie. Are u not slightly surprised we finished that high up considering what has gone on at V.P. since MON bailed and the GH one P.R. disaster after another season that we have endured ?
I for one am delighted. Suprised and delighted.
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The table dosent lie, it shows how ordinary or worse the teams outside the top 6 are.
Walking to the ground today, i was thinking that VP has everything that a top team should have.
Great atmosphere, a full stadium, passionate fans. Its time to get the set up right on the pitch.
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That two point difference between the two managers first seasons is quite interesting - it's not much, is it?
Well actually there is. Not a MON fan myself BUT he took a shambles of a team and got 50 points. Houllier took a near CL team and gave us a miserable season. In short O'Neill over delivered in his first season Houllier has under delivered by keeping us in relegation mire in his first season up to the last but one game.
A big difference.
Did Mon start his season several games in with a disgruntled unfit playing staff. Did he have to sort out a club left totally in the shit by the previous manager who left 5 days before kick off. Did he go off to hospital really ill at a crucial time in the season leaving us manergeless again. Did he manage 9 th in what is generally considered to be the best Premiership season of all?
For a none Mon fan you did ok on his behalf.
In time with reflection 9 th is going to be considered a remarkable achievement. It was. I still can't believe it, the last few games have been remarkable performances and results so is finishing 9 th.
I don't expect any of the media to appreciate that, I don't expect anyone at VP to shout it loud either, but its about time more fans woke up to the fact that from out of a pit of doom and desperation a new Phoenix might have started to form.
Amazing finish well done all those involved and thanks. Top dogs in the W.Midlands and still officially no manager
Makes those so certain we were relegated at Easter look a little inane.
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
By being the ninth best team, in the league. The table doesn't lie, as we've been told all season.
Ah come on now Mr. Woodhall. I am well aware that the table doesn't lie. Are u not slightly surprised we finished that high up considering what has gone on at V.P. since MON bailed and the GH one P.R. disaster after another season that we have endured ?
I for one am delighted. Suprised and delighted.
No. It was obvious that the way things were going all through the season there would be a small points spread between a few clubs somewhere in the table. It was also obvious there was nothing radically wrong with our team that a couple of wins wouldn't put right.
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Just realised I hardly heard/noticed the Liverpool fans during the game, noticed them more outside the ground than inside. One Liverpool supporting acquaintance of mine was at the game and said Villa fans made more noise when Spurs scored, which is probably a fair comment.
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Why did the woman on the news say if you don't want to know the results, look away now, and then proceed to say what the results are. Looking away doesn't make you deaf.
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If we're going to use the "the final table doesn't lie" to appraise our 2011-12 season, it is also worth noting that 48 is the worst points haul for 5 seasons and 16 down on last year (and conceding an extra 20 goals in the process). In my opinion, those figures are of as much, if not more, relevance than a league placing when it comes to an analysis of what has been a twelve months best forgotten.
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It's been a shite transitional season.
The sort Spurs had the first season, Redknapp was there and also Man. City had under Hughes. Look where both finish in 08/09.
The sort of season we've just had usually results in us finishing 16th so I'll happilly take top 10.
We have a goalscorer at long last so as long as we sort out the defence and central midfield, I'm confident we'll be fighting for the top 6 again next season.
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How the fcuk have we finished 9th.
By being the ninth best team, in the league. The table doesn't lie, as we've been told all season.
Ah come on now Mr. Woodhall. I am well aware that the table doesn't lie. Are u not slightly surprised we finished that high up considering what has gone on at V.P. since MON bailed and the GH one P.R. disaster after another season that we have endured ?
I for one am delighted. Suprised and delighted.
No. It was obvious that the way things were going all through the season there would be a small points spread between a few clubs somewhere in the table. It was also obvious there was nothing radically wrong with our team that a couple of wins wouldn't put right.
Well I must be a complete and utter tool then because i haven't feared for our well being as a club or worried so much about our safety in years....since pug nose was in charge I suppose.
I had resigned to being relegated a few months back due to the utterly spineless performances and the clueless leadership ( or lack of) that I was seeing.
I'm happy as a pig in shit what with they way we finished .I'm grey enough and I'm only 36 tomorrow.
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Just realised I hardly heard/noticed the Liverpool fans during the game, noticed them more outside the ground than inside. One Liverpool supporting acquaintance of mine was at the game and said Villa fans made more noise when Spurs scored, which is probably a fair comment.
They were quite loud until we scored and I think Stevie Me may have been amongst them? Someone sat in the North Stand might confirm?
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He was in the middle of them. Fair play to him.
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Just realised I hardly heard/noticed the Liverpool fans during the game, noticed them more outside the ground than inside. One Liverpool supporting acquaintance of mine was at the game and said Villa fans made more noise when Spurs scored, which is probably a fair comment.
They were quite loud until we scored and I think Stevie Me may have been amongst them? Someone sat in the North Stand might confirm?
Aye, saw him on the Villa Streams feed.
On the VS subject, it was awesome flicking between each game on one website.
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Watching Football First, and I could swear the commentator said that the family dog was going to come on for Liverpool...
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Best game on the Holte for me for many a year - cracking atmosphere and really eases the many pains of this season. Then again - ask me about the game and I probably couldn't tell you about it, spent more time watching the big screen :P
Terrific post match as well, and my dad shed tears and depicted it as "like the good ol' days". I don't care if it makes me sound small-time, but I'm absolutely ecstatic that Blues have got relegated, and thoroughly chuffed we've finished top half.
Great performance, and really glad to end the season on a high.
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Just watching MOTD and didn't realise how bad it was for Wolves. I just kept seeing the scores on the screen and thought as Wigan were winning and the rags were drawing, that was it.
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well considering the turmoil we suffered with a disloyal turncoat walking out at the start of the season, unfit and troublesome players, and technically 4 different managers in charge i'd say 9th is pretty par for the course. Here's to a summer of stability, a thorough jettisoning of the last clown's transfers mistakes and a few more arriving like Bent
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If we're going to use the "the final table doesn't lie" to appraise our 2011-12 season, it is also worth noting that 48 is the worst points haul for 5 seasons and 16 down on last year (and conceding an extra 20 goals in the process). In my opinion, those figures are of as much, if not more, relevance than a league placing when it comes to an analysis of what has been a twelve months best forgotten.
surely league placing is the only thing that matters in the end? man u came 2nd with 85 points last season. this season they got less points (80) and won the league. last season 39 points would see you finish 14th. this year blues and blackpool got relegated with that total. 62 points would have got us 5th this season, a place higher than last. yet because we would have had 2 points less than last season it wouldnt have been as good?. this season there has been less disparity between the top and bottom. the top teams have finished with less points than last season, the bottom teams with more than last season. it has been a closer league, points have been harder to get.
anyway excellent results the last 2 games, nice to beat liverpool at VP for the first time in a while. get some good players in over the summer (hopefully not waiting till the last few weeks of the window as we did under the previous manager) and we can get back up there next season.
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That two point difference between the two managers first seasons is quite interesting - it's not much, is it?
Well actually there is. Not a MON fan myself BUT he took a shambles of a team and got 50 points. Houllier took a near CL team and gave us a miserable season. In short O'Neill over delivered in his first season Houllier has under delivered by keeping us in relegation mire in his first season up to the last but one game.
A big difference.
This old chestnut...O'Neill took over a small but decent squad who O'Dreary had horribly managed in his final year, added Petrov and got half a season of Young and Carew. We were still close to the relegation zone in April in 2007, we finished 11th in the end. ''Over achieved'' is being very generous to Saint Martin. Midtable would have been a realistic, modest ambition for his first season when he arrived, given his reputation and the under-performing of our players under Dolly.
Nevertheless, this season, has indeed been a wasted opportunity. Everton are probably kicking themselves more. I don't think they'd have got fourth...though with Arsenal's wobbles who knows, but they are more than a match for Spurs and Liverpool. Their annual awful starts fuck them up completely.
Watching the game today, our football is still very much a halfway-house between MON's breakneck counter attacking and Houllier's desire for patient passing. We just don't seem to have the personnel for the latter. With our pace and power (which was noticeably racheted up when Gabby came on) we are a threat but the movement and touch that Suarez and to a lesser extent Meireles had for Liverpool, is something we lack too often. If Makoun and Delph are our centre-mids next season we need to spend big to get someone in there with them who can pass and move quickly and dictate possession. Well either that or hope Gary Gardner is as good as we hope him to be.
Still not sure what to make of the defence. A tweak or an overhaul? Dunne and Collins both make the same types of mistake - lumbering, too slow to turn, shanked clearances etc. It's all a bit too last-ditch at times so maybe someone more agile and quicker in there.
Great to see Friedel keep a clean sheet on his 400th appearance. He's done really well in the last two games, and been noticeably more commanding in his box. But if someone like Foster is available on the cheap I think it would be time for Brad to step aside.
A curious end to a rather curios season then.
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Spot on eamonn
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Good post, Eamonn. I though Big Brad was MOTM. The big difference today and against Arsenal is when we go a goal up and need to defend it, we look a lot more comfortable. Neither game saw us desperately defending too much. Still lots of room for improvement though but overall another good performance, even if today we were a bit slow to get started.
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Where would we be without Darren Bent? Houllier won't be back for a variety of reasons. If someone told me three weeks ago that we would end up 9th, I would of asked them for some of the stuff that they were smoking.
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That last 15 minutes will live with me for ever, when Blues equalised and Wigan scored nobody around me had a clue what it meant, there was people frantically trying to listen to radio's, people desperately trying to get a connection on their phones and people looking at the league table in the programme, everybody then come up with different answers, so bloody funny.
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That last 15 minutes will live with me for ever, when Blues equalised and Wigan scored nobody around me had a clue what it meant, there was people frantically trying to listen to radio's, people desperately trying to get a connection on their phones and people looking at the league table in the programme, everybody then come up with different answers, so bloody funny.
i watched the blues match, and when wolves got that 2nd goal back, obviously no one on the blues bench realised they were going down. there was 2 minutes or so when they were just playing keep-ball with no sense of urgency at all. brilliant. what an utter shower.
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3 points. Clean sheet. 9th. Top Midlands team. Blues relegated.
An above average season.
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The table dosent lie, it shows how ordinary or worse the teams outside the top 6 are.
Walking to the ground today, i was thinking that VP has everything that a top team should have.
Great atmosphere, a full stadium, passionate fans. Its time to get the set up right on the pitch.
Wasn't this our first sell out of the season, I heard?
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Yep - sad really isnt it?
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Good post, Eamonn. I though Big Brad was MOTM. The big difference today and against Arsenal is when we go a goal up and need to defend it, we look a lot more comfortable. Neither game saw us desperately defending too much. Still lots of room for improvement though but overall another good performance, even if today we were a bit slow to get started.
Downing was the best player on the pitch. He is the player to build the side around next season. You can see why clubs are eyeing him as much as Young.
Great to see Villa Park full and rocking. A pretty perfect afternoon for us.
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McAllister deserves credit for the way he has stepped in, kept everything ticking over and noticeably grown in confidence in his ability to get tactics right. Won 2, Drawn 2 and lost unnecessarily against the Baggies is not a bad record when you are shoved into the front line unexpectedly, so well done to him. His tactics at the Arsenal and Liverpool games were spot on, although I did wonder why he subbed NRC who was holding the midefield together with Gabby, but even that one worked out.
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.....was that the first time the Holte has sung his name ?
Downing is the one to hold onto - he's got a genius of a left foot and a football brain like no other at VP.
Brad was immense yesterday, be interesting to see what happens with him this Summer.
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Nice goal! Glad we got 3 minutes on MOTD!
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What a great end to a very frustrating season :)
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What a great day, it's been a horrible season with so little to excite and then at the last it throws up a perfect storm of results and the best laugh in the ground since the Blackburn semi final. Looking round and seeing people in all 4 stands doing the "going up, going down" was something to savour.
One thing to ponder for those who think we were lucky to get to 9th, since Bent signed we've taken 26 points from 16 games, at the business end of the season they've done it when it mattered and although there are plenty of things I'm not happy with I have to give them credit for sorting things out - that's manger, coaches and senior players.
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One thing to ponder for those who think we were lucky to get to 9th, since Bent signed we've taken 26 points from 16 games, at the business end of the season they've done it when it mattered and although there are plenty of things I'm not happy with I have to give them credit for sorting things out - that's manger, coaches and senior players.
Very true. It might also be worth mentioning that G Mac has presided over wins against Arsenal and Liverpool, both of whom did actually have something to play for. His formation change was in no way a small part of these successes, so he has certainly played a part in the successes.
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If Houllier has worked this like he did Liverpool when he first went in then I'm of the opinion everything MacAllister has said and done under him has been strictly to a script, and we might just have had a glimpse of him out-from-under that script recently. Like anyone, I'm guessing and Gary may well be the clueless muppet so many have cast him as.
Whatever, a happy end to a shit season. Let's hope we can keep Downing.
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One thing to ponder for those who think we were lucky to get to 9th, since Bent signed we've taken 26 points from 16 games, at the business end of the season they've done it when it mattered and although there are plenty of things I'm not happy with I have to give them credit for sorting things out - that's manger, coaches and senior players.
Very true. It might also be worth mentioning that G Mac has presided over wins against Arsenal and Liverpool, both of whom did actually have something to play for. His formation change was in no way a small part of these successes, so he has certainly played a part in the successes.
He also presided over defeat to WBA and hone draws to Stoke and Wigan.
However, 26 from 16 equates to 62 points over a full season and that's top 6 form, so there is reason to be optomistic. Adequately repalce Ash and sort out the defence and we should be back to where we were under MON.
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One thing to ponder for those who think we were lucky to get to 9th, since Bent signed we've taken 26 points from 16 games, at the business end of the season they've done it when it mattered and although there are plenty of things I'm not happy with I have to give them credit for sorting things out - that's manger, coaches and senior players.
Very true. It might also be worth mentioning that G Mac has presided over wins against Arsenal and Liverpool, both of whom did actually have something to play for. His formation change was in no way a small part of these successes, so he has certainly played a part in the successes.
He also presided over defeat to WBA and hone draws to Stoke and Wigan.
Not saying he didn't, just credit where credit's due.
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One thing to ponder for those who think we were lucky to get to 9th, since Bent signed we've taken 26 points from 16 games, at the business end of the season they've done it when it mattered and although there are plenty of things I'm not happy with I have to give them credit for sorting things out - that's manger, coaches and senior players.
Very true. It might also be worth mentioning that G Mac has presided over wins against Arsenal and Liverpool, both of whom did actually have something to play for. His formation change was in no way a small part of these successes, so he has certainly played a part in the successes.
He also presided over defeat to WBA and hone draws to Stoke and Wigan.
Not saying he didn't, just credit where credit's due.
I was thinking about this. We've been prepared to give leeway for the things that have gone wrong this season because of the shock of MON leaving 5 days before the start of the season, yet very little leeway has been given because of the shock of seeing your manager taken to hostpital with heart problems. Could the Stoke, WBA and Wigan performances have been affected by this? Just a thought.
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Not saying he didn't, just credit where credit's due.
I'm not trying to take anything away from those wins, the Arsenal one especially was a great performance, but it's too easy to view things from too favourable an angle when we've just had two back to back results like that. The 26 from 16 is a much better barometer of where the Gezza/Gary Mac regime has brought us.
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Had a great day at Villa park looking around and much more concerned about the "scums" destiny. Think the "up and down" song will run for another season at least. Great result and a dream end to the season. Aston Social disco was a great laugh ..........
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Was the final whistle at Villa Park & Blues going down both welcomed by a recording of the Trinity Church bells ringing out over the PA ?
Or was I hearing things ?
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Not saying he didn't, just credit where credit's due.
I'm not trying to take anything away from those wins, the Arsenal one especially was a great performance, but it's too easy to view things from too favourable an angle when we've just had two back to back results like that. The 26 from 16 is a much better barometer of where the Gezza/Gary Mac regime has brought us.
That would be around sixty points over the course of a season.
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As I said above 62 if extrapolated over 38 games and thats top 6 form.
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Not saying he didn't, just credit where credit's due.
I'm not trying to take anything away from those wins, the Arsenal one especially was a great performance, but it's too easy to view things from too favourable an angle when we've just had two back to back results like that. The 26 from 16 is a much better barometer of where the Gezza/Gary Mac regime has brought us.
The Stewart Downing's goal is a sign of where they want to take us. A patient build up, everybody looking comfortable on the ball, players moving and wanting the ball, incorporating a wonderful 16 pass move. Hoof football it wasn't.
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If we're going to use the "the final table doesn't lie" to appraise our 2011-12 season, it is also worth noting that 48 is the worst points haul for 5 seasons and 16 down on last year (and conceding an extra 20 goals in the process). In my opinion, those figures are of as much, if not more, relevance than a league placing when it comes to an analysis of what has been a twelve months best forgotten.
In a season when 39 points meant relegation, when 10 points separated 11 teams from 8th to 18th your figures mean nowt.
Each season 20 teams play the same number of PL games and this season everyone was beating most everyone. Your figures show one thing, a need to justify St Martin, finishing 9th shows Villa did better than 11 other sides in a competitive PL. Well done them after the start we were given, the hiccup with the manager towards the end, all the injuries, and so on, 9th was a bloody great achievement.
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great game yesterday,thought the team played really well,actually kept the ball well for a change and a couple of great saves from Brad to keep a clean sheet. Enjoyed cheering when the scores were coming up on the big screen!all in all good day and finished in 9th place,not bad at all considering the season we've had!
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You can spin it any way you like, sfx412, but we all know that it is been a dog of a season. That's why three weeks ago the general consensus was we'd got all the points on the board we were going to get, likely to get trashed at the Emirates and hope that there wasn't a perfect storm of results that would still see us relegated.
The worst thing we - Randy, the board, the supporters - can all do now is judge the season as a qualified success on the back of two good wins at the death and with them a fortuitous top-half finish. If we do that, 2011-12 could witness even darker days.
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You can spin it any way you like, sfx412, but we all know that it is been a dog of a season. That's why three weeks ago the general consensus was we'd got all the points on the board we were going to get, likely to get trashed at the Emirates and hope that there wasn't a perfect storm of results that would still see us relegated.
The worst thing we - Randy, the board, the supporters - can all do now is judge the season as a qualified success on the back of two good wins at the death and with them a fortuitous top-half finish. If we do that, 2011-12 could witness even darker days.
So what you're saying is that we should judge the season on 36 games not 38. Since we've had a full squad to pick from we've had a decent points haul and that's why we finished where we did.
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Picking up on sfx412's point about the closeness of the league. As crap as we generally were, I think I'm right in saying that we picked up at least a point off 17 of the other 19 teams in the table. Only Spurs and Sunderland got a double over us. The only double we got was West Ham. Of the teams above us we beat Arsenal, Citeh, Liverpool and Everton and as we are all too aware nearly beat United at home and ran Chelsea close away. On the flip side, for the first time in donkeys years, Wolves and the Baggies beat us in the league. We also failed to beat middling teams like Fulham, Bolton Stoke and Blues. Now don't ask me what this all means cos I haven't got a clue - and no my name is not Statto.
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Somebody posted some stats the other day showing that most sides from the top half had lost points from last season due to a more competitive division.
Now that won't explain the full (what was it? 16? 14? points we dropped from last year) but will account for at least some of them. Add to that the less than ideal pre-season preparation, the injuries, the gaffes and errors of the management, the lack of professionalism and so many other causes and 9th and 48 points starts to look very good indeed. That said I'd point to the arrival of Darren Bent as being the main spur to that rather than anything else.
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So what you're saying is that we should judge the season on 36 games not 38. Since we've had a full squad to pick from we've had a decent points haul and that's why we finished where we did.
Yes, in fact I would say that the situation after 36 games was more indicative of our season as a whole. And, frankly, anyone who says otherwise when, lest we forget, up until just over a week ago we weren't mathematically safe from the drop, is deluding themselves.
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I'm going to judge us over 36 games as well. The two I'm leaving out because they don't suit my agenda are Newcastle and Manchester City away. Our defence wasn't too bad was it?
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OK then, everything's hunky dory in B6 because we finished in the top half of table. And, of course, because our neighbours have been relegated. We'll all have a cracking summer on the back of that and come back and carry on in August as if nothing really needs addressing. The dire performances, the failure to hold on to leads - the failure to do basic defending at set pieces, the pedestrian midfield, the players played out of position, etc, etc, all forgotten because we finished 9th and the Blues have gone down.
Meanwhile, I hope those that really are the decision makers at Villa Park aren't similarly sweeping everything back under the carpet on the strength of winning the last two games of the season.
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Who mentioned anything about the Blues going down? We've just had two good results which have shown that there's a lot to build on for the future. This season wasn't particularly good, but in the circumstances neither was it the Sky's Falling In disaster that was regularly predicted.
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OK then, everything's hunky dory in B6 because we finished in the top half of table. And, of course, because our neighbours have been relegated. We'll all have a cracking summer on the back of that and come back and carry on in August as if nothing really needs addressing. The dire performances, the failure to hold on to leads - the failure to do basic defending at set pieces, the pedestrian midfield, the players played out of position, etc, etc, all forgotten because we finished 9th and the Blues have gone down.
Meanwhile, I hope those that really are the decision makers at Villa Park aren't similarly sweeping everything back under the carpet on the strength of winning the last two games of the season.
It's not so much that everything is hunky dory, it's that perhaps things might not be quite so bad as they seemed earlier on in the season. That doesn't mean that there aren't things that need addressing, and I'm pretty sure that they will be this summer, but it's at least a little reassuring to know that we do have a decent base on which to build, isn't it?
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Who mentioned anything about the Blues going down?
You and I have been around Villa Park long enough to know that there are plenty of our supporters whose seemingly sole satisfaction comes from the fact that however bad things might get at Villa Park, at St Andrew's things are worse. Most of the euphoria about yesterday had nothing whatsoever to do with what happened on our pitch - and I think that has in turn distorted lots of other views.
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If the board make future decisions based on last two games of the season they need their head examined. Over 38 games we have been poor and extreme surgery is needed both at player and coaching staff level if we are going to make any impact at all next season. If not I can see a repeat of this season.
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Who mentioned anything about the Blues going down?
You and I have been around Villa Park long enough to know that there are plenty of our supporters whose seemingly sole satisfaction comes from the fact that however bad things might get at Villa Park, at St Andrew's things are worse. Most of the euphoria about yesterday had nothing whatsoever to do with what happened on our pitch - and I think that has in turn distorted lots of other views.
Nothing that's been said on this topic has mentioned them at all. We finished ninth, we had a good end to the season. One defeat and 15 points in the last eight games. It takes some doing to find fault with that.
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Who mentioned anything about the Blues going down? We've just had two good results which have shown that there's a lot to build on for the future. This season wasn't particularly good, but in the circumstances neither was it the Sky's Falling In disaster that was regularly predicted.
It doesn't tell the whole story, though.
Until two games from the end of the season, we weren't even mathematically guaranteed to be in the top flight next year.
Ninth we've finished, but we've spent almost the entire season flirting with relegation. That's absolutely nothing like good enough.
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And since the problems of injuries and player unrest have eased it has been just about good enough for the season it was always going to be from that Monday afternoon onwards.
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And since the problems of injuries and player unrest have eased it has been just about good enough for the season it was always going to be from that Monday afternoon onwards.
It only seemed to get better when GH finally twigged that Ashley was'nt good enough to be Bent's strike partner and played in his right position.