Next 2 games

[MrFrost]

What do people realistically expect?
Personally I would settle for 2 draws. 2 defeats and things would be looking very bleak.

[Superspy]

Same really, would be happy with 2 draws, but 2 defeats wouldn't be unexpected.

[Jonathan]

Hard games. No doubt that 2 defeats would be depressing, but look at the teams we're facing realistically and are we expected to get anything? An impartial observer would undoubtedly say no. Optimists will feel we can get something and of course we are capable if things go right for us (i.e. we have a good day and the opposition doesn't) but I expect the SO'D bashers will be sharpening their claws with zero regard for the fact that it's two away games against very strong teams that would be expected to be in the play off battle at least.

If we go into our next home game with more points than we have now then I'll be pleased, but even if we lose both then we shouldn't be despondent. It's still very early days, there are lots of points to play for and lots of key players to return. The fact we are now off the mark is a psychological boost if nothing else and I'm sure the players will take confidence from it.

I would say that the two home games that follow are more important than the two away games coming up.

[MrFrost]

Hard games. No doubt that 2 defeats would be depressing, but look at the teams we're facing realistically and are we expected to get anything? An impartial observer would undoubtedly say no. Optimists will feel we can get something and of course we are capable if things go right for us (i.e. we have a good day and the opposition doesn't) but I expect the SO'D bashers will be sharpening their claws with zero regard for the fact that it's two away games against very strong teams that would be expected to be in the play off battle at least.

If we go into our next home game with more points than we have now then I'll be pleased, but even if we lose both then we shouldn't be despondent. It's still very early days, there are lots of points to play for and lots of key players to return. The fact we are now off the mark is a psychological boost if nothing else and I'm sure the players will take confidence from it.

I would say that the two home games that follow are more important than the two away games coming up.

My main worry is being cast adrift at the bottom.

Had a quick look at the table from our first season in the Championship, and I don't think we were ever any more than 8 points away from safety. If we see a points difference of any more than that then I would start to seriously worry.

SOD needs to pick the players up and like you say a point yesterday is a big boost. He has done it before, and I sincerely hope he has what it takes to get us out of.

I just wonder how much of a boost our support was to the players in our first season here. We were a lot better supported home and away, and good support is a massive boost to the players.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

Win one, lose one will do me.

[keith79]

knowing the rovers we will win both

[Dimples-D]

I would be happy with one point but think we will get none..

[MiKA]

6 points, no more no less  

[i_ateallthepies]

My main worry is being cast adrift at the bottom.

I think at most other clubs Frosty your concern would be a reasonable one. Those who subscribe to the 'it's a results business' cliche actually paint themselves into a corner if they find themselves cut adrift at the bottom.

But this is where SO'Ds philosophy of concentrating on performance has allowed us to come back from the dead because when you put in a good performance and don't get what you deserve it is still possible to focus on the positives and credibly maintain within the players the belief that they are good enough and their luck will change.
We saw this in the first season, where despite a horrendous run of results the standard of football never dropped, and eventually luck did change and we sailed away from the bottom.  That simply wouldn't happen at a club where the the focus is only on the result.

[sheffieldROVER]

My main worry is being cast adrift at the bottom.

I think at most other clubs Frosty your concern would be a reasonable one. Those who subscribe to the 'it's a results business' cliche actually paint themselves into a corner if they find themselves cut adrift at the bottom.

But this is where SO'Ds philosophy of concentrating on performance has allowed us to come back from the dead because when you put in a good performance and don't get what you deserve it is still possible to focus on the positives and credibly maintain within the players the belief that they are good enough and their luck will change.
We saw this in the first season, where despite a horrendous run of results the standard of football never dropped, and eventually luck did change and we sailed away from the bottom.  That simply wouldn't happen at a club where the the focus is only on the result.

 good point mate! thats very positive gotta agree with that. it will come we always start off slow anyway. last season we started off quicker than usual, right up to all the injuries. this season its the other way round and we got all the injured out of the way now.    so after the break sod and squad are gonna open a massive can of wooop ass and our season will begin!!!
bring on cardiff and reading i say!!!!  who are they??????

[roverssam1879]

happy for 2 points, expect 1

[RobTheRover]

6 points, no more no less  

I want more than 6!

[benaldo]

I hope at least 3 points will be on board, but I fear for the worst.

If we get no ponts from the next two games I think SOD will, to quote Bricktop in Snatch, be \"on very thin ice my pedigree chum, and I will be under it when it breaks\".

If SOD isn't having sleepness nights, he should be.

[hoolahoop]

Hard games. No doubt that 2 defeats would be depressing, but look at the teams we're facing realistically and are we expected to get anything? An impartial observer would undoubtedly say no. Optimists will feel we can get something and of course we are capable if things go right for us (i.e. we have a good day and the opposition doesn't) but I expect the SO'D bashers will be sharpening their claws with zero regard for the fact that it's two away games against very strong teams that would be expected to be in the play off battle at least.

If we go into our next home game with more points than we have now then I'll be pleased, but even if we lose both then we shouldn't be despondent. It's still very early days, there are lots of points to play for and lots of key players to return. The fact we are now off the mark is a psychological boost if nothing else and I'm sure the players will take confidence from it.

I would say that the two home games that follow are more important than the two away games coming up.

My main worry is being cast adrift at the bottom.

Had a quick look at the table from our first season in the Championship, and I don't think we were ever any more than 8 points away from safety. If we see a points difference of any more than that then I would start to seriously worry.

SOD needs to pick the players up and like you say a point yesterday is a big boost. He has done it before, and I sincerely hope he has what it takes to get us out of.

I just wonder how much of a boost our support was to the players in our first season here. We were a lot better supported home and away, and good support is a massive boost to the players.

Don't be daft very few games are going to form at present and there are loads of teams getting draws , now if you said this 10 games down the line and we were 9/10 points away from safety then and only then would I admit that we had a serious problem.
We have a break and players coming back, getting match fit and SO'D has time to work with them the future is still very bright.

[big fat yorkshire pudding]

We shouldn't expect too much but with Stock et al coming back we'll be in those games.  It would not surprise me at all if we win at least one of them, simply because the players are good enough to.

[OxonViking]

Like Hoolahoop said, very few games are going to form at the moment, which is why we need to take advantage of this and start getting some unexpected points ourselves.
One win for me.

[VikingJames]

Pretty much all of our games have gone to form so far: We've lost four out of five - the sort of form we've been showing since January.

[hoolahoop]

Pretty much all of our games have gone to form so far: We've lost four out of five - the sort of form we've been showing since January.

VJ you really do need to learn to relax and think positively from now on . Every post I read is a negative one. Generally the team are playing well, we've had/ still are having injury problems but we will get there. This is not Manure, Real, Barca etc we are talking about here but a real football club with it's 'ups and downs' and limitations.

Now run along luvvie,

Marje x.

P.S it's 3 points from me btw.

[OxonViking]

I really think we can get 3 points, if not more from these two games. Its our turn to upset the form book. Reading are hardly on fire at the mo!

[VikingJames]

Pretty much all of our games have gone to form so far: We've lost four out of five - the sort of form we've been showing since January.

VJ you really do need to learn to relax and think positively from now on . Every post I read is a negative one. Generally the team are playing well, we've had/ still are having injury problems but we will get there. This is not Manure, Real, Barca etc we are talking about here but a real football club with it's 'ups and downs' and limitations.

Now run along luvvie,

Marje x.

P.S it's 3 points from me btw.

How is it negative? It's just facts.

And don't talk down to me either.

[prince]

2 points would be an achievement. Reading always seem to beat us as they are pretty much just a better version of us. Cardiff will be tougher than when we played them last time as it's too early in the season for them to be choking but we were looking good for a point against them until Wilson came on.

[Chrisd_123]

Reading are having a bit of a tough time at the minute (well, kind of) Losing a few good players and replacing them with untested players at this league, it could be a good time to play them. Got a feeling that could be a victory for us.

[hoolahoop]

Pretty much all of our games have gone to form so far: We've lost four out of five - the sort of form we've been showing since January.

VJ you really do need to learn to relax and think positively from now on . Every post I read is a negative one. Generally the team are playing well, we've had/ still are having injury problems but we will get there. This is not Manure, Real, Barca etc we are talking about here but a real football club with it's 'ups and downs' and limitations.

Now run along luvvie,

Marje x.

P.S it's 3 points from me btw.

How is it negative? It's just facts.

And don't talk down to me either.

It was a joke hence the VJ but you the games haven't run to form as you put it. We were good enough to beat/draw Brighton,West Ham,Forest and Leeds unless you saw something I didn't.
Bar some bad luck and some fantastic goals we would/should have won all four. I don't feel as though we have an inferior team or squad to any of these teams.
I admit Brighton have gone on to do well, however Forest and Leeds look very weak and imo will struggle at this level as we are doing with a depleted 1st. team. All 4 of those games were only just 'shaded' by the 'form' teams by a solitary goal FACT.
Imo we just have to be patient, things will knit together and bar the poor performance against Derby we haven't been outplayed and looked in 'poor' form.
A tad more luck and we would have been sat on 9/10 points by now and we would have been crowing (like both you, I and others were prior to the start of the season) about how well the strongest squad we had put together in over 50 years were performing.
Incidentally the form of West Ham, Leeds and Forest coming into the season wasn't the best was it ?

[VikingJames]

Pretty much all of our games have gone to form so far: We've lost four out of five - the sort of form we've been showing since January.

VJ you really do need to learn to relax and think positively from now on . Every post I read is a negative one. Generally the team are playing well, we've had/ still are having injury problems but we will get there. This is not Manure, Real, Barca etc we are talking about here but a real football club with it's 'ups and downs' and limitations.

Now run along luvvie,

Marje x.

P.S it's 3 points from me btw.

How is it negative? It's just facts.

And don't talk down to me either.

It was a joke hence the VJ but you the games haven't run to form as you put it. We were good enough to beat/draw Brighton,West Ham,Forest and Leeds unless you saw something I didn't.
Bar some bad luck and some fantastic goals we would/should have won all four. I don't feel as though we have an inferior team or squad to any of these teams.
I admit Brighton have gone on to do well, however Forest and Leeds look very weak and imo will struggle at this level as we are doing with a depleted 1st. team. All 4 of those games were only just 'shaded' by the 'form' teams by a solitary goal FACT.
Imo we just have to be patient, things will knit together and bar the poor performance against Derby we haven't been outplayed and looked in 'poor' form.
A tad more luck and we would have been sat on 9/10 points by now and we would have been crowing (like both you, I and others were prior to the start of the season) about how well the strongest squad we had put together in over 50 years were performing.
Incidentally the form of West Ham, Leeds and Forest coming into the season wasn't the best was it ?

Some games haven't gone to form, no. But ours have. If you think that's a negative observation then you're struggling to distinguish the line between negativity and honesty.

By the way, if you think I'm negative about our season so far, read my first post in this thread. Honesty with a glimmer of realistic optimism, or negativity? If you think it's the latter, then as I said above, you're struggling.

[benaldo]

How can you fail to be anything BUT negative about the season so far??

One game won against a team a league below....it's not exactly positive is it?

I'm all for being upbeat about things right now, but trying to put a positive spin on Rovers at the moment is like bailing out a sinking ocean liner with a teaspoon.

[steve@dcfd]

The realism that VJ talks about is there for all to see since Billy was injured early in the new year we have not replaced his goals with a striker any where near his quality. Unfortunately we have lost Billy again and still not loaned a striker near his quality. So if we cannot sign another player on loan then let's hope James Hayter and others can score the goals from the chances we create. If we can not bring in another Keeper on loan in the next week then let's hope Woods can improve over the next two weeks. So performance and chances created means you will get results if the players take chances and and the goal keeper saves shots against him.

[i_ateallthepies]

Can somebody explain to me why it is that those who perpetually pedal negative views always dress them up as 'realism'?

Just a question.

[Wellred]

That would be a very difficult question to answer Pieman seeing as you don't have any understanding of what realism is.

[benaldo]

Can somebody explain to me why it is that those who perpetually pedal negative views always dress them up as 'realism'?

Just a question.

Let's turn it on it's head. Can you explain to me what part of no wins in 7 months (apart from Tranmere) is positive? And after all, positivity in football is measured in points, whether you like it or not.

[steve@dcfd]

Can somebody explain to me why it is that those who perpetually pedal negative views always dress them up as 'realism'?

Just a question.

Therefore are you telling me that we did not need or haven't  needed a loanee striker of Billys calibre or a better goal keeper. Or do you like to blame Sean all the time when we don't win. The chances we have made in all our games this season tells me that a better striker would have converted more and the sloppy goals we have conceded  would have been saved by a better keeper. That's realism in my eyes not negativity it's like the way we play.