ExiledAjax

4 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

Preston Home -2

Millwall Away +2

Etc.

Two promoted sides at Home either-1 or +1.

Leeds and Leicester away.. well we lost at Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton.

Or how 18 points from 14 compared year on year.

Oh. Um. But the players and coaches have all changed to one degree or another, and in some cases even the actual clubs have changed. I'm not sure this really works as a method of comparing tbh Pop.

Ultimately I think we'll see that the squad is the squad. And finishes where it finishes. When Pearson was sacked I think I said something like "Barney the dinosaur could manage this squad and it would finish 11th".

Looks like they'll both finish with something around 1.3-1.4 ppg attributed to them.

Bar the drama at the end of October this season has simply been forgettable.

7 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

Another way to messure it is tjst we were 3 points off from the equivalent fixtures under NP to end of October from the closest equivalent vs 5. Possibly even 5.

I forget what it was 14 games vs 14 games verbatim.

I don't understand.

5 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

Yep Sir Geoff.

NP alone 18/14, extrapolate yo 59-60.

NP and CF, 1.4 PPG,.40% Win Ratio. 63-64, maybe with a bit of luck 65

Ah the 64 on Pearson's website includes Fleming's 3 points. Intriguing.

And should Manning get us to 60 then he technically exceeds Pearson's solo projection. Intriguing.

Just now, Natchfever said:

So...win all our remaining games to reach el supremo's target?

Blimey.

Manning will do very well to hit Pearsons projected 64 points imo.

Correct.

I would add that I think 71 is a pretty realistic target for us. In most seasons it would see you finish something between 5th and 8th. 

But yeh from where we are right now I'm expecting a final total of maybe 62. 

3 minutes ago, Natchfever said:

What were the stated pre season expectations of the club, can anyone recall?

I remember junior saying last year that the squad should be doing better.

Presumably statements emanating from bcfc top brass have enough gravitas to in turn influence the expectations of mere fans?

I do recall senior saying what the club earned it could spend hmm....

Not sure about pre-season, but based on what Tinnion said on the radio a few weeks back the target is 71 points, or 1.54 points per game.

Pearson was on 1.29ppg, and so on course for 64 points.

1 hour ago, MarcusX said:

2017/18 was a pin stripe remake of the 86 kit

+

11 minutes ago, pride of the west said:

We had pin stripes 17/18 as a nod didn't we?

If we did, then I couldn't find an express mention by the club that those stripes were a rethink/nod/reimagining of any prior kit.

There are ultimately only so many designs you can do with "mostly red and a bit of white" on a kit. Add in FA kit regulations and other factors and repeat or similar designs are inevitable. I focussed on looking for instances where the club had expressly said the design was "retro" in some way.

Here's the press release from 2017 https://www.bcfc.co.uk/news/new-home-kit-for-201718-revealed/

1 hour ago, MarcusX said:

Not sure 21/22 is really a retro, all 3 kits were new styles.

I didn't say they were specifically "retro", but they did lean on historic elements in their marketing, and the marketing uses this term "a nod" to past kits.

1 hour ago, MarcusX said:

All the adidas and puma shirts were fairly original designs, and tbf so were most of the Bristol Sport ones - 17/18 actually the exception in being retro.

Yes. I was just trying to find the last season where we didn't have any kind of retro/nod/reimagined element. 

I did not conduct a forensic or exhaustive review of our kits. I googled a bit whilst having breakfast. My methodology was not perfect.

1 hour ago, MarcusX said:

Since then retro has had a comeback all across the board so can see why the club have done it but I agree I'd like to see something more modern next time.

Yeh 80s/90s retro is en vogue because people (like me) who were young then now have disposable income and decision making power coupled with a powerful nostalgia and desire to relive their halcyon days.

Jon, if you're reading this then announce a red and white tie-dye kit with neon trim now you coward!

12 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

We’re not in the relegation conversation either , seat of your pants stuff at Ashton Gate. 
Anybody want to buy shares in Isewater’s Squeaky Bum oil ? 
No, I thought not. 

It's been a thrill-a-minute season.

37 minutes ago, 1960maaan said:

Retro ? .... Exactly what I said on page 1 , I'm bored with it now. Lets have a new design.

I took a trip down Google's memory lane as I wondered when we last had no mention of anything retro or similar. I make it 2017/18.

23/24 - for the second home kit in a row we went straight up retro "The red and white pinstripe shirt, which was inspired by the 1989/90 'Hirerite' kit..."

22/23 - straight retro home kit "City has turned back the clock for the 2022/23 home shirt with a 1950s-style kit for its men’s and women’s teams."

21/22 - nod, nod, nod with "‘One for the Bristol City’ is printed on the inner back hem and B.C.F.C. features on the back of the neck – both of which are a nod to when the club crest previously appeared centrally on a playing shirt."

20/21 - no nods, but a big tribute as "City have launched their new 2020/21 home shirt which pays tribute to the Ashton Gate Eight."

2019/20 - was a special year as this was the season we had the mash up 125 year kit "Including nine different kits dating back to the club’s 1894 birthdate...". A kit now notable for being what we wore in our final game prior to the Covid-19 shutdown.

We also did a cringe-inducing April fool's joke where we announced that "Inspired by City’s 1909 FA Cup final kit, the club will wear a bold blue coloured away shirt next season." 

2018/19 - home kit was "original", but this season it was the away kit that did the nodding with "...the return of the crest featuring a Robin perched on a football in front of the iconic Clifton Suspension Bridge. It hints at the kit of the late 1980s, an era which saw City lift the Football League Trophy in 1986, followed by promotion from the old Third Division in 1989."

2017/18 - first season I can see where there was no nodding, no tribute, no retro.

3 minutes ago, glastored said:

For all those fans who love the purple and lime kit, would you still feel the same if the colours were reversed, with lime shirt and purple shorts?!

Nope. IMO The green works as an accent colour, but green shirts don't work.

17 minutes ago, Supersonic Robin said:

In the long term, the biggest off-field metric is the size of the city the club is based in.

If you look throughout any football league system in the world, there's a strong trend that the biggest/best teams are those based in the biggest cities.

For instance, in the UK, the 4 biggest cities are responsible for 8 of the 10 biggest teams in the country:

• London (Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea)
• Manchester (Man U, Man C)
• Liverpool (Liverpool, Everton)
• Birmingham (Aston VIlla)

Not sure about this to be honest. 

Firstly, Liverpool is far from one of the UK's biggest cities. Leeds is bigger, Glasgow is bigger, I'm pretty sure even Southampton is bigger. 

Secondly, if home city size is a determining factor then how do you account for the fact that all of these cities have many other teams that are nowhere near the size of the ones you quote.

It's perhaps more a case that home city size is a factor that gives a team the potential to be "big", but the more important factor is that they have the ability to capitalise on that potential. For example the Woolwich Arsenal are not a "big" team simply because they are based in London, they're big because long ago they became a franchise and moved from peripheral Woolwich to leafy Highbury, and disrupted Tottenham Hotspur's dominance of that area. They then used their connections to raise investment and became the first big spenders etc. They shrewdly, perhaps even nefariously, capitalised on the potential that their (new) location granted them, but it wasn't simply because of that location that they became "big".

4 minutes ago, Northern Red said:

The EFL have announced the nominees for their awards:

Manager - Farke, McKenna, Rosenior

Player - Dewsbury-Hall, Summerville, Szmodics

Young Player - Archie Gray, Jordan James, Jon Rowe

Marlon Pack nominated for the player award in L1.

https://www.efl.com/news/2024/april/03/efl-awards-2024--shortlists-revealed/

Farke and Rosenior...ok. Personally I think that when you take into account the resources available to him and his experience Farke has just about met expectations. Rosenior has done well granted, so I see no issue there. McKenna will win it comfortably anyway tbh.

Of those three players I'd probably go Summerville.

@Fjmcity to save derailing that other thread I'll answer your question here.

Basically, I expect that for Bristol City the impact of the IFR will be minimal.

We may have extra reporting requirements, and we might need to update or create a few policies - such as a fan consultation policy - but the burden should be low on us.

As I said on the other thread though, there are a couple of things that Lansdown, Marshall and Rawcliffe should be aware of, and the need to prove that directors (and other senior people) are competent is one of those.

1 hour ago, zombie said:

Top 10 wages?

This is pretty much the only off field metric that's been shown to have a close correlation, maybe even a causal link, to league table position.

The others you mention are pretty irrelevant. Transfer budget fluctuates depending on transfer receipts amd FFP/P&S rules, quality of training facility might have a small influence on the quality of player a club attracts, but if it does it's hard to quantify.

Attendance/tickets sold is far from causal when it comes to team performance - if anything the link is reversed ie more success = more fans rather than the other way round.

It's really just wage budget that matters, and in that regard I think we're normally ranked at around about 10th. One of the highest non-PP teams, but small fry compared to those teams.

We're probably going to finish just below 10th this season. So it's going to be just worse than par, maybe a bogey for the season.

35 minutes ago, Fjmcity said:

Well I think by and large this is meant to govern against financial mismanagement and clubs futures being put at risk. Although they have many faults I don’t think our owners fall into this category. I don’t think a minister or third party who will review these regulations will want to hear about some city fans kicking and screaming because we don’t win enough football games

A fair summary.

But the specific new competency element of the proposed new Directors test will be relevant to our board of two. 

As will, potentially, any terms of the new Code for Football Governance. As and when that is published I think we will see that changes to our board of directors is necessary in order to comply.

4 minutes ago, Fjmcity said:

Yeh, we are who that bill is designed to protect 

What do you mean? Could you elaborate please?

3 minutes ago, Gol said:

Sam Morsy at Ipswich for player of the year

Good shout for an Ipswich player. They're relative lack of high ranking individuals I think supports McKenna's shout for manager of the season. He's got a team of limited players performing as a spectacular unit.

3 minutes ago, Fuber said:

Was about to say probably Szmodics over Armstrong.

For me I'd also have Sheaf over Fatawu (moving Sara wide right in the 4-4-2 as specified), otherwise Jack Clarke has been indispensable for Sunderland.

With regards to Keepers - this season there haven't been many strong ones. I'd actually have O'Leary on sheer shot stopping ability - him and Hermansen on 74.5 and 74.8% respectively, but Max making more saves, 117 vs 104. Really puts his performances in context to the rest of the division.

I think O'Leary's had it pretty easy given the defence in front of him. He's done very well, but I'd not back him for team of the season.

Really for goalkeepers I like to look for someone who's worked bloody hard and has outperformed their defence. This season that means someone like Rushworth at Swansea who has saved 71.4% of an astonishing 192 shots on target (second only to the frankly ludicrous 238 that Rotherham's Johansson has faced) that have carried an average xG of 0.31 per shot. Those are ******* impressive numbers and Fbref suggest he's saved Swansea 6 goals this season, the best of any goalkeeper.

5 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Dickie for Greaves in that team.  Bit of bias yes, but he’s been brilliant.

Re POTY, maybe not, but I just love watching Rutter play.

Dickie is definitely our only possible candidate for anything this season. He's been a delight, our best CB since Webster for me. I absolutely love a CB who can take the ball forward and ping those defence-splitters into the forwards. Nothing better. That he's also been an ever present in a very effective defensive unit is brilliant.

2 minutes ago, And Its Smith said:

Definitely McKenna for manager of the season.  Hard to argue with that Whoscored team really. Would be splitting hairs…apart from Hladky. Wouldnt have him as the best keeper this season. 

Ng's inclusion surprised me initially but I though back to our games against Cardiff and recalled that he was pretty influential. Then I checked stats and he's basically the highest-rated RB in the division both in terms of attacking and defending, so fairplay to him.

Who would you have over Hladky? Hermansen? 

Given we've started taking votes for our end of season awards I wondered who out there was thought of as being up for the wider Divisional awards. I don't watch every team forensically but will suggest a few to get the conversation started.

Manager of the season - I think there are two stand out candidates: McKenna and Cifuentes. McKenna has a League 1 squad sitting on 87 points with 18 still to play for. Ipswich have been electric and have kept going until the end of the season and through the full 90 in every game. I expected them to collapse in the winter, and fairly they have not done so.

But I think there's a better candidate - Cifuentes. Good lord the miracle he's worked with a trainwreck QPR squad is remarkable. When he took charge on Halloween 2023 they were 23rd with 8 points from their first 14 games. They are now 16th with 46 points. The quick-minded will swiftly note that this means that in the 26 matches Cifuentes has managed, they've gained a stonking 38 points - 1.46ppg. Had the season started on 31 October when Cifuentes took charge, QPR would be 9th.

Notable mention to Danny Rohl at Sheff Wed who has overseen almost as good a renaissance (36 points from his 29 games in charge 1.24 ppg), but it's not quite the transformation that Cifuentes has managed.

Player of the season - The stats show Szmodics as top scorer with 23 and he's been involved in 41% of Blackburn's goals, Summerville tops both FotMob's and Whoscored's overall ratings and has a respectable 17 goals himself, Dewsbury-Hall has been exceptional for Leicester, and Armstrong has been very productive for Southampton. Jack Clarke at Sunderland has been key to their season, and Sara at Norwich has been fantastic. Further down the division or further back in the formations there's players like Coventry's Sheaf, Davis at Ipswich, Whittaker at Plymouth, and even someone like Chair at QPR could be in the conversation.

Young Player of the season - Caveat, I am not about to waste time checking who was 21 on July 1 2023, so this is just players who are currently aged 22 or younger. Also, I refuse to allow a player to win both YPOTY and POTY - so Summerville is in the chat for POTY, and if he gets that then as far as I'm concerned he cannot get YPOTY. They're separate categories for a reason.

Anyway, it doesn't look like a vintage year for young players (maybe everyone had a good tilt at the U18 FA Youth Cup). However,  Summerville's teammate Rutter is a standout candidate as he's had a spectacular season. Philogene is fun to watch, has a swagger, and has delivered with 8 goals and 6 assists this term. Rowe at Norwich is just 20 and has handed in 12 goals in just shy of 2,000 minutes, which is pretty impressive at that age.

I don't know, YPOTY would be one where I'd be interested to hear opinions.

For what it's worth, here's whoscored's current team of the season. The omission of Szmodics is probably the most interesting item, but the team is caveated by the fact they stick to a pretty rigid 442.

22 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

That is valid point and ironically the PL wish to introduce merit payments in the Championship as part of the Proposed New Deal or did.

Still I don't see why or how that should serve to mitigate if FFP has been failed.

Oh no "we budgeted assuming we'd finish in the top 8, but failed to do so" shouldn't mitigate failure of FFP.

Every team should be budgeting for every eventuality really, even the mega-rich teams at the top should have an a) get into the champs league, and b) don't budget.

12 hours ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

Mitigation owing to budgeting based on past Sporting Achievement?? Get ******. 

Ie. "We assumed we'd get into Europe in some form or other".

It's the underlying issue of income being so tied to sporting achievement in the previous season. If the football industry distributed at least some of its riches equitably or based on things other than league position, you'd not have clubs making this kind of risky assumption.

Well done to the young guys, sounds like they put on a decent display.

Oh well, time to focus on the league now.

I'm quite surprised that this thread isn't getting more engagement.

This is the pinnacle of our season. Our appearance in the semi-finals of the U18 FA Youth Cup is the apotheosis of 20+ years of investment and planning from the Lansdowns. 

This is what everyone at the club has sacrificed everything for this season. This showdown, this festival of football, it's what it's all about. Win this and we're in with a chance of hosting the final and capturing the attention of literally three football journalists.

I simply cannot wait to be vaguely aware of what's possibly happening on Pitch 14 of the Etihad Campus and will absolutely have this on in the background when I do the boy's bedtime tonight, and when I'm washing up after supper, and when I'm out for a run.

8 minutes ago, Chrizzler said:

How old is George Tanner?

24. He was 23 at the start of the season.

The "young squad" that Brian thinks we have is really not as young as you might think.