Marina's Rolls Royce

Every player will come back onto the pitch with kiln dried hair. In the meantime, if @Davefevs could give us a pep talk? It's actually only half time and there are multiple occasions when we have overcome a 0-2 deficit.... albeit not recently.

Really bad news for Joe Low- two bookings in his first two games and seemingly not quite ready- a bit like when Towler was played and it's taken a long time and a loan in L2 to get him back on track. I guess no one's singing the proposed songs for Joe unless they changed the lyrics?

He's one of our Lown, he's Joe Low , he's one of our Lown

I think me personally putting forward a a new manager is above my pay grade. I don't tend to look at other Managers at other clubs unless they are high profile and in the media. I know a lot about what happens at BCFC but have no idea about the why, how and who of some of our competitors apart from maybe Mark Robins who I always liked and Joey Barton who I always haven't.

Absolutely-he accepted a poison chalice. He has had to make some hard decisions and has made progress off the field. He is another Sean O'Driscoll and will probably go the same way due to results on the field .

I'm not Steve Lansdown- I've never appointed a manager. I can tell you what pies I think should be sold or what beer and cider should be served but even that is controversial as every bugger has their own personal preference. The average Championship Manager lasts between 2 and 3 seasons for one reason or another but usually due to a lack of results. Unless there's a secret club, I dont think any fan has ever had any input on managerial appointments. Let's say, for arguments sake, I came up with a name - so what? You might agree and others might not but only one man makes the final decision of who is the target and then only one man decides if he wants the job. "We" dont get an input- thankfully. What is it about the right to criticise the performance of a Manager is invariably countered with the question of who you would appoint instead? I haven't a clue Dave- and despite my criticism, I have not once during the past Summer or this season stated that I want Pearson out. I just want to see progress with what we have and from my point of view just don't see it as many others do. I pay my money and have my opinions at what I see. It is rarely the fans who make the decision to sack a Manager and never the fans who make the appointment.The only place you get 100% agreement is in a referendum when putin is conducting it. SL will make the decision about what he wants or who he wants but in the meantime , I'd just like to see Nige making progress and whilst that isnt happening, I'll continue to say it as I see it. In the meantime our back and forth is becoming a bit 'ground hog day'! The good news is that if I'm wrong then it will be because City are on the up again which is the only thing I want to see

Me too.

SL made it crystal clear several years ago that the emphasis would be on bringing in players from the Academy and he has stuck with this, NP knew this when he took the job and credit where credit is due- he has ensured a pathway for the graduates.Some on merit and some due to circumstance. SL also said that this would have to be the source of future funding for the club - he told it as it is. We will sell one or two and hopefully this will ease the mistakes of high spending. It is little mentioned that whilst money was badly spent we did receive a significant dividend for Flint, Kelly, Brownhill ,Reid & Webster - three of which could still yet produce more vital income. Fam and Massengo have been really unfortunate situations but if someone wont sign a new contract what can anyone do?- it's how we got Naismith and is a problem for every club. Our most saleable assets, imo, are now Scott, Conway & Semenyo but there are others coming through as well. Benerous could also be a great asset but that's an unknown. I think all the three mentioned players are in the side on merit not because there's no one else and would likely have a starting place in most Championship sides.

I don't and didnt so keep to my stated words please, Dave. Of the last 36 points available to us we have picked up 9 points: 8 defeats, 3 draws and 2 wins. In the previous 8 games we won 5 , lost 2 and drew 1. That's not progress. It is similar to last season - almost identical so I just don't see the progress you and others do. The worrying trend is we are losing too many games and if that is expressed by a % -so what? Facts are facts. We have played more games than anyone below us and are 3 points clear of safety. My whole point has been and remains that ,imo, Nige is not getting the best or making the most out of the players available as a team and this has been a hall mark of his tenure. If Nige continues in a similar vein and is unable to create an average position from an average squad then SL will take action and make our differing points of view wholly redundant.

Yes, people do look at results because when you are in any position of trying to get promoted or stay clear of relegation- it's the only thing that matters. Impressive performances only make a difference if this either translates into points or consistency and we lack both. Stating that "if " we had won the last 2 games seems odd when we didnt.

Dave- I honestly think that you overthink. I'm just a BCFC fan and see an average team performing in a less than an average way- consistently. After over 80 games in charge, it is not unreasonable for us fans not part of the "stats intelligentsia" to question the fact that Nige is not improving his squad. That we are very close to the relegation zone, that we have averaged 1 point a game since Nige took over and our current season is looking less good than our last season, that we have won 2 games in the last 12. That despite three windows Nige has not been able to recruit a player that provides the spark that the team needs - even as a loan. The players that create the occasional spark were already here- Weinmann, Semenyo, Conway, formerly Bentley now O'Leary, and Scott. BCFC are not alone in being financially challenged and are actually in a much better position in that respect than many teams ahead of us. I'm bored of this " NP has been dealt such a bad hand... blame LJ/MA/Parachute payments/ Refs have it in for us, blah blah blah" I have supported BCFC for a very long time and have never ever seen a Manager get given such huge latitude from such a vociferous minority. Nige needs to get the best out of an average side, produce an average position in the table or SL needs to change his Manager.

Surely the fact that so much money has been spent on the Academy, the HPC coupled with the fact that SL has made it very clear that his ambition is to create home grown talent and income steam is working? How fabulous that we see so many coming through the ranks. Even better that they are likely to create ( or have created)big value. This has little to do with any Manager past or present - it has everything to do with BCFC long term strategy. I don't mean to stick your comment up you but I suspect you being Rudolf... you might appreciate it.?

Really? I didn't know that. Shame we don't have more Welsh internationals!

Sadly- I suspect you are right. It's his big moment on the world stage and whilst there is part of me that thinks who can blame him for wanting his big moment- there's another that makes me think about a certain striker who didn't want his son to have a Bristol accent. Thank goodness he still has a contract which has value.

YES

OTIB- why not become a supporter?? It's only £5 and you certainly have an opinion on these pages.

I have to think very hard to remember such a vile and ignorant comment being posted. putin would be proud of you- a reasoned point of view is unacceptable if you bully boys have an alternative narrative. After 17 years and about 18000 posts on OTIB, I think that @Bar BS3 has earned the right to an opinion.

That's the spirit!

It appears that ta bottle of Meths is being passed round before kick-off .

28 hrs on, 2 hrs before kick-off , 20 comments and 19 people browsing..... I think that must be a record and probably about where the enthusiasm is at the moment. We need a win to balance the books in our 20th game of this season but @Jerseybean on form as usual.

I feel like you just stepped into my thoughts.

I think we'll win this. Pleased with the forward line-up with Semenyo as super sub- hopefully. BCFC are always ready to up their game against the top but trip over themselves against the bottom. 3-2

We could still yet go up or down. 17 games into a season and you know where we'll be in about another 25 games? As for always being in games- sorry but that is total bollax. There is quite a lot of this type of talk on here. If you don't like the way it is- go and support someone else. That's not how football works- but you cant even support OTIB so perhaps you dont go to any matches either which are considerably more expensive than £5? I was struck by @RedM who after returning from the match at Reading described it as ( paraphrased) worse than awful and subsequently got grief because she dared say so and expressed her view first hand and as someone who goes to most away matches. Those who don't completely buy into The NP can't do wrong or is just the unlucky inheritor of a shit show since Feb 2021 are entitled to a contrary view and don't have to "go support someone else". Perhaps you should equally go post somewhere else if you cant handle a different view to your own ( so long as it's free)?

Dave- do you ever, just for a minute, think you may be posting in a very small echo chamber?

I think your comments were lost in the supermarket