The Much Awaited Return of Promotion Maths

[paul_e]

I probably wouldn't have given the bloat a holiday in Oz.

It’s a difficult one, we saw how Lamburks bomb squad worked out, you have Micah apparently being great around the training ground.
Once he was sent to Oz then his value went to zero-.
Bruce gave up on him but luckily he replaced him with Hogan

but never replaced Gestede and only replaced Ayew this January.

[Hookeysmith]

Every team in any division can analyse every game and come up with a "what if". We can ignore the start of the season the chance for automatic was lost after the Wolves game at home.

Next 5 games /  15 points were

QPR home
Bolton Away
Hull Away
Reading Home
Norwich Away

On the understanding we were then next at home to the team we were chasing, Cardiff , it makes it all the more frustrating that we took 4 points out of those 15 available. Blues took more in the same period. In was in our hands and we choked - simples

[Clampy]

I love how Gestede and McCormack are being brought up. A sign of desperation when there's not too much else to moan about.

[Malandro]

I love how Gestede and McCormack are being brought up. A sign of desperation when there's not too much else to moan about.

I'd say Dr Tony has plenty to moan about. I'd suggest your viewpoint is desperation. Clinging to a mini tournament victory.
It's embarrassing. Our best players seem to be players Bruce did not sign.

[tony scott]

I can’t help wonder how the doc feels about the money that’s been squandered

[paul_e]

Hookey - we did choke, I agree, but a big part of the problem was that our good runs were always to catch up rather than to build a gap, that's why our bad start and bad run in December are so important because we put ourselves in a situation where we need a miracle, and we weren't quite up to that (fair fucks to Fulham who could well manage it).

We had 38 points after 23 games which meant we were likely to need 52+ in the 2nd half of the season and we just didn't have the legs for it.  If you do a custom table since Christmas day (https://www.statbunker.com/competitions/LeagueTable?comp_id=587&start_date=26-12-2017&end_date=12-05-2018&start_time=0&end_time=90) we've picked up 45 points and are 2nd (behind Fulham) ahead of Wolves on goal difference.  That form over a season is clearly automatic promotion, but we left ourselves with too much to do and I think a big part of that was down to poor planning in the summer.  If you watch the Cardiff and Reading games now we looked like we were still playing pre-season and they weren't.

[PeterWithesShin]

It's not really the greatest planning to start a season where your striker options are Hogan, Gabby and Samba. It's hardly a gallery of goals and fitness. We did have about 38 right backs though.

[passport1]

Every team in any division can analyse every game and come up with a "what if". We can ignore the start of the season the chance for automatic was lost after the Wolves game at home.

Next 5 games /  15 points were

QPR home
Bolton Away
Hull Away
Reading Home
Norwich Away

On the understanding we were then next at home to the team we were chasing, Cardiff , it makes it all the more frustrating that we took 4 points out of those 15 available. Blues took more in the same period. In was in our hands and we choked - simples

This. Looking at the start of the season as the root of our problems is taking hindsight to the nth degree.

[PeterWithesShin]

But it isn't as it wasn't really until the New Year we had striker options. By my reckoning on the last day of December our strikers had scored 4 goals, Gabby 1, Davies 2, Kod 1. And you can add another 1 for Samba if feeling generous. It's not much of a leap to think we could have picked up more points if we'd had better options during the first 25 games. Just an extra 6 points before the New Year and we'd be second on GD going into the last game.

[Clampy]

I love how Gestede and McCormack are being brought up. A sign of desperation when there's not too much else to moan about.

I'd say Dr Tony has plenty to moan about. I'd suggest your viewpoint is desperation. Clinging to a mini tournament victory.
It's embarrassing. Our best players seem to be players Bruce did not sign.

I'm not clinging on to anything. I'd rather have gone straight up, sat back with a pint and watched the other four teams battle it out so i'm disappointed. I'm not disapointed enough to bring up the likes of Gestde and McCormack in an attempt to pick faults mind because there's no point. We didnt go up because we lost games at important times, not because we didn't replace Rudy Gestede.

[Abbeyfealeavfc]

The start to a season is important and our poor start is one of the reasons why we are not going up automatically. Without a good start any team interested in auto promotion is playing catch-up. Our run of 7 straight wins helped us to catch-up but we needed another similar run to cement second, but unfortunately we have too many blips in a season (August, December, end of March). If the start is not that important why did monopoly city in the premiersh-te have the title wrapped up pre-xmas? I also feel Bruce targeting 87 points (I believe) and not 92ish was a lowering of expectations that I feel we could have done without. It is what it is. Onto the playoffs we go! Let's hope we approach them with the kind of intensity displayed in the 2nd half Vs Derby. UTV!

[Allan C]

I love how Gestede and McCormack are being brought up. A sign of desperation when there's not too much else to moan about.

I'd say Dr Tony has plenty to moan about. I'd suggest your viewpoint is desperation. Clinging to a mini tournament victory.
It's embarrassing. Our best players seem to be players Bruce did not sign.

I'm not clinging on to anything. I'd rather have gone straight up, sat back with a pint and watched the other four teams battle it out so i'm disappointed. I'm not disapointed enough to bring up the likes of Gestde and McCormack in an attempt to pick faults mind because there's no point. We didnt go up because we lost games at important times, not because we didn't replace Rudy Gestede.

“Replacing Rudy Gestede” made me a laugh. Did we not buy a new line marker???

[cheltenhamlion]

But it isn't as it wasn't really until the New Year we had striker options. By my reckoning on the last day of December our strikers had scored 4 goals, Gabby 1, Davies 2, Kod 1. And you can add another 1 for Samba if feeling generous. It's not much of a leap to think we could have picked up more points if we'd had better options during the first 25 games. Just an extra 6 points before the New Year and we'd be second on GD going into the last game.

Yep.

[Sexual Ealing]

Does anyone know whether this points target that Bruce is alleged to have set is genuine?

I can't believe that it is, because that would make him totally fucking stupid.

[Ads]

Why would a target be stupid?