TomThumb84

Scott and Semenyo. Have we got enough points yet to tuck them away in the U23’s for the rest of the season and keep the vultures away?!

A couple from me within 2 months or so of each other, not so glam but just magical times (and probably a bit personal to me for reasons different to others): 13 Jan 1990: Brum 0-4 City 20th Mar 1990: Swansea 0-5 City What horrible places to go and absolutely dominate. Some times and some team.

Gas - if/when Joey implodes (further).

Not a massive fan of LJ, and I thought he was a strange appointment for us, and he got overthinking paralysis after getting drunk on a ego-heavy Cup run….. However, who in Gods name do Sunderland think they are?! They are embarrassing from top to bottom, and their fans are vitriolic, deluded and completely unsavoury. This is a bit harsh I think but ultimately an amusing soap opera about our ex-manager and a bonkers club.

I love this post. YOUUUU REDDDDSSSSS!!!!!

I wouldn’t if not ready. Could damage your career longterm. Holden may never be a Number 1 again. It is more likely that he was convinced he was ready and was the right man so someone else could selfishly buy time to enact their own exit strategy.

Correct and I have a lot of time for Dean Holden the man. The number one at my football club not so much. He should never have taken it.

This was the problem in a nutshell though. Created a monopoly of responsibility with zero accountability which made it easy for Ashton to take credit for anything remotely good that his slimy tentacles had brushed. A competent CEO would have specialists in all areas, not a web of family, friends and money-makers that enabled him to have an almost unchallengeable coverage on the club.

I’ll have a go. The appointment of Holden as manager/head coach for the 20/21 season was not only bizarre but broke the back of the club, and has led to the 12 month rebuild we have been on. The games we won during Holden’s tenure, especially at the start of his ‘reign’ were smash and grab affairs, and were unsustainable. We were awful at home to Coventry first game of the season and scraped it. We got battered at Forest and won. Huddersfield at home was daylight robbery. I think the poster means, eventually, performances over a period of time will be reflected by your points haul, but there will be spikes of anomalies like with Holden. With Pearson, the performances are coming consistently and will translate into consistent point accumulation.

If we could find a side that we had only lost once to in 18 games I would be incredibly nice about all of their players!!

Superb footballer, always was and getting better under the current regime. Signed by Mark Ashton, so that he could add Monaco to his list of contacts on his self-indulgent portfolio, toyed with by LJ who thought in his head he could coach him but probably confused HNM, and discarded by Dean Holden - which frankly was like Audley Harrison coaching Lennox Lewis on how to box. Hope we build a side around him.

I thought Holden tried to played him more as a number 8 in a 3. He is also coming from areas that he was not during Holdens start last season. Appreciate your view, but his position, and our shape and fluidity are miles away from the early Holden days.

Another example of an experienced coach knowing how best to utilise a player, after our last two coaches not having a clue or offering Weimann consistent direction for a sustained period of time. The combination through our vanity driven transfer policy, of signing players who looked exciting but did not fit our style of play or system, and then messing about week after week blindly hoping for it to all click with no real vision is what has cost us in the last 4 years. Its what happens when you buy greyhounds and put them in horserace, then act with bemusement and shift accountability onto the squad - which ultimately leads to a disconnect between players and fans. Makes you think what could have happened had we had someone with genuine football knowledge solely responsible for splashing our cash all over the place when we were primed to push on.

A million miles away from the shambles of last year, and whilst definitely a “work in progress”, we are certainly heading in the right direction. I see the side as four signings away from being a unit that can consistently challenge. For me, a centre-half, a wideman, a physical striker and a keeper are key. Last night we dominated Luton through guile and movement in the first 30mins and sporadically in the 2nd half, and we are having “moments” in every game we play now. I fully expect to see a mid table to threaten the Top 6 season next year as the obvious development of our players and “off the pitch” progress continues. As for Luton. Riding their luck in this league and a horrible channel ball side. Nathan Jones is easily the most dislikable manager in the league and if coaching in the Championship means high-pitched screaming of “Shape, Shape”, “Squeeze, Squeeze”, swearing lots and directing every throw-in down the line, then I am applying for the next job that comes up.

Played well here. Luton look very poor. Channel, channel, second ball. Nathan Jones’ screeching and extraordinary repertoire of expletive-laden Sunday morning coaching is an eye-opener.

A lot of praise for Semenyo coming of age here and rightly so, not so many (unless I have missed it) mentioning that it is probably to do with NP coaching him and managing him in a way that no-one else has. Once we have cleaned house, we can be very excited that players with potential become better under a top pedigree coach.

Absolute nonsense. Respect your opinion but I have listed all of the games from that season excluding the two play-off semi’s that stick in my mind from that season and always will. This was a close knit team riding high off a promotion, providing entertaining and high octane football. Two speedy but bordering on nasty wingers, playing off a base of a showman cult hero keeper, with an all time club legend at centre half. Add in (more often than given credit for) sprinkles of genuine magic from Trundle and Noble, played out in front of a vocal and passionate genuine supporter base. Some people just do not view football the way I do and I genuinely feel sorry for them. QPR (h) Norwich (a) Norwich (h) Watford (a) Hull C (h) Coventry (a) Sheff Utd (h) Stoke C (h) Scunthorpe (h) Sheff W (a) Southampton (h)

Two performances v us this season that I liked. Got fitter training himself in his local park during lockdown than he would have done with us, then got played at left-wing when he was ready! Good player, great bloke.

I worry for the lad. Mad he is playing Championship football to be honest. I will defend a Bristol lad to the hilt but Towler is way off. The Watford (a) shambles last year was a hard watch and the fact he is near the first team says more about the club than him. Needs managing carefully.

Very good centre-forward. At a time when we seemed to be basing selecting our personnel on “good humans”, it was odd that we never signed this guy permanently as he is one of the best humans in the game. Go well Benik.

This thread has an almost unbelievable number of posts that make absolutely no sense. So….. on the logic here, any manager overseeing a side that comes from behind deserves less credit for picking a side that was behind in the first place. @RedNachos @Chivs - special mentions for you on this. Stupendous stuff. ?? Great 3 points. On we go.

My thoughts too, but the point is imagine being that pig-headed.

Strange post. However - they cannot be true Gas. I know a couple of Rovers fellas and they declined a Covid vaccine at The Gate.

That pass from God Taylor is the stuff of dreams. One of the finest moments of that era. Not sure we will ever see a more “all-round” centre-forward at the Gate again. Pretty much the perfect No.9. £300k for him was daylight robbery and the day he was sold to The Baggies was one of a number of times my club has made me cry, when my old man broke the news. Couldn't believe it.

In answer to this thread, if, and I hope it never happens, Mark Ashton rolls up in BS3, we summon the powers of all that have gone before in our Ashton Gate temple and have him tripping over his shiny suit trousers as he scarpers across Ashton Park after the most hostile of receptions from man, woman, boy and girl. Merry Christmas fellow Reds