Preseason schedule

[Greg N'Ash]

we always play walsall, the asia cup, my guess was agreed in march? As for last season, are you claiming that was an ideal pre-season? As you say the derby one was probably arranged by GH. So that leaves Braga which lets say AM has arranged which idoubt. I'm not sure what he's going to learn from that except what N'Zogbia looks like BUT I'M GUESSING when he arrived most clubs had already  got their pre-seasons set in stone so if he fanced a more competitive game it wasn't an option

[dave.woodhall]

Walsall, Basingstoke and (I think) Posh were reserve teams last season.

[ozzjim]

Fulham are way ahead of us fitness wise. They will give us a battering next week if we are not careful.

[Greg N'Ash]

Fulham are way ahead of us fitness wise. They will give us a battering next week if we are not careful.

thats my worry. Hopefully AM is a bit more of a taskmaster than MON and GH. I read Phil Neville's piece about Moyes' pre-season and i'm hoping he's similar. Moyes sounds a sadist.

[Chris Smith]

we always play walsall, the asia cup, my guess was agreed in march? As for last season, are you claiming that was an ideal pre-season? As you say the derby one was probably arranged by GH. So that leaves Braga which lets say AM has arranged which idoubt. I'm not sure what he's going to learn from that except what N'Zogbia looks like BUT I'M GUESSING when he arrived most clubs had already  got their pre-seasons set in stone so if he fanced a more competitive game it wasn't an option

When might we have played these additional games?

Five seems about average, except for the clubs out to market the brand rather than get fit.

[Dave]

we always play walsall, the asia cup, my guess was agreed in march? As for last season, are you claiming that was an ideal pre-season? As you say the derby one was probably arranged by GH. So that leaves Braga which lets say AM has arranged which idoubt. I'm not sure what he's going to learn from that except what N'Zogbia looks like BUT I'M GUESSING when he arrived most clubs had already  got their pre-seasons set in stone so if he fanced a more competitive game it wasn't an option

Let's take tonight's craziness one bit at a time:

"we always play walsall, the asia cup, my guess was agreed in march?"

So are you suggesting that McLeish would have wanted us to cancel the normal Walsall fixture? Or not enter the foreign tournament that generates cash like we normally do?

"As for last season, are you claiming that was an ideal pre-season?"

I assume this is to do with O'Neill leaving? If so, the drum you've been beating for the last 12 months is how shocking it was that he left us right before the season started (a view I for one, subscribe to). So what the fuck has it got to do with how the pre-season games were arranged and then conducted?

"BUT I'M GUESSING when he arrived most clubs had already  got their pre-seasons set in stone so if he fanced a more competitive game it wasn't an option"

More competitive than the UEFA Cup semi-finalists? The week following our game with the Premier League runners-up? Who would you suggest to act as a more competitive game?

[PeterWithesShin]

What if we'd lost to Blackburn and ended up with only 4 games? Doesn't seem that would have been enough to get the squad up to fitness, especially with a new manager maybe trying different things.

I know it's hypothetical because we obviously did have the Chelsea match, but makes me wonder if they had any plans in the event we lost.

[Greg N'Ash]

we always play walsall, the asia cup, my guess was agreed in march? As for last season, are you claiming that was an ideal pre-season? As you say the derby one was probably arranged by GH. So that leaves Braga which lets say AM has arranged which idoubt. I'm not sure what he's going to learn from that except what N'Zogbia looks like BUT I'M GUESSING when he arrived most clubs had already  got their pre-seasons set in stone so if he fanced a more competitive game it wasn't an option

When might we have played these additional games?

Five seems about average, except for the clubs out to market the brand rather than get fit.

yeah..to me the asia cup we could have done without this season. Came over as a bit of a jolly. But i suppose money comes first.

[Dave]

we always play walsall, the asia cup, my guess was agreed in march? As for last season, are you claiming that was an ideal pre-season? As you say the derby one was probably arranged by GH. So that leaves Braga which lets say AM has arranged which idoubt. I'm not sure what he's going to learn from that except what N'Zogbia looks like BUT I'M GUESSING when he arrived most clubs had already  got their pre-seasons set in stone so if he fanced a more competitive game it wasn't an option

When might we have played these additional games?

Five seems about average, except for the clubs out to market the brand rather than get fit.

yeah..to me the asia cup we could have done without this season. Came over as a bit of a jolly. But i suppose money comes first.

Oh but Gregory, you wanted us to be playing competitive games? So you want us playing someone more competitive than Braga, but you don't want us wasting our time on a corporate jolly by playing Chelsea's first team?

[villajk]

What if we'd lost to Blackburn and ended up with only 4 games? Doesn't seem that would have been enough to get the squad up to fitness, especially with a new manager maybe trying different things.

I know it's hypothetical because we obviously did have the Chelsea match, but makes me wonder if they had any plans in the event we lost.

If we'd have lost to Blackburn we would have played against Kitchee for third and fourth place. 

[Greg N'Ash]

Dave, you've obviously missed my mantra this last 12 or so years - pre-season games mean nowt. some sort of asian harlem globetrotter tour where we play in a greenhouse. we lost to chelsea, beat blackburn, who cares? I'd rather have played someone who wants to beat us because its a scalp. - see tonight.

[PeterWithesShin]

What if we'd lost to Blackburn and ended up with only 4 games? Doesn't seem that would have been enough to get the squad up to fitness, especially with a new manager maybe trying different things.

I know it's hypothetical because we obviously did have the Chelsea match, but makes me wonder if they had any plans in the event we lost.

If we'd have lost to Blackburn we would have played against Kitchee for third and fourth place. 

Thanks Pauline, didn't know there was a 3rd/4th place game.

*Puts on a big pointy hat with a D on it and sits in the corner*

[Dave]

Dave, you've obviously missed my mantra this last 12 or so years - pre-season games mean nowt. some sort of asian harlem globetrotter tour where we play in a greenhouse. we lost to chelsea, beat blackburn, who cares? I'd rather have played someone who wants to beat us because its a scalp. - see tonight.

So we'll play say, Walsall and Derby who are lower league teams who really want to beat us, we'll play say, Blackburn and Chelsea because that's sensible preparation for the Premier League season (with them being Premier League teams and all that) and we'll throw in a game against, say Braga because they've got an awesome stadium.

Sounds like a pretty perfect set of pre-season games to me.

Which ones do think McLeish will have had a problem with?

[villajk]

What if we'd lost to Blackburn and ended up with only 4 games? Doesn't seem that would have been enough to get the squad up to fitness, especially with a new manager maybe trying different things.

I know it's hypothetical because we obviously did have the Chelsea match, but makes me wonder if they had any plans in the event we lost.

If we'd have lost to Blackburn we would have played against Kitchee for third and fourth place. 

Thanks Pauline, didn't know there was a 3rd/4th place game.

*Puts on a big pointy hat with a D on it and sits in the corner*

hehehehe

[Greg N'Ash]

Dave, you've obviously missed my mantra this last 12 or so years - pre-season games mean nowt. some sort of asian harlem globetrotter tour where we play in a greenhouse. we lost to chelsea, beat blackburn, who cares? I'd rather have played someone who wants to beat us because its a scalp. - see tonight.

So we'll play say, Walsall and Derby who are lower league teams who really want to beat us, we'll play say, Blackburn and Chelsea because that's sensible preparation for the Premier League season (with them being Premier League teams and all that) and we'll throw in a game against, say Braga because they've got an awesome stadium.

Sounds like a pretty perfect set of pre-season games to me.

Which ones do think McLeish will have had a problem with?

Its all about fitness dave. who do you want to play against? Frank lampard working off the summer intake of pies or someone who thinks yer a high paid prima-donna and wants to launch you into row Z so he gets a cheer from the home crowd If what i've heard about AM is true we'd have had a few more games with the latter players involved if it had been his pre-season. Obviously we'd have still have had the asian junket.