Your top six.

[Chris Black come back]

Predicting a top 6 seems to me akin to expressing a fairly devout faith in the cause rather than making a truly reasoned judgment

If the Rovers team were unchanged from 2024/25 we could at least make some estimation of their likely performance for this coming season. As it is, anyone expecting them to get into the top 6 must be expecting them to be stronger, but without seeing the new team playing.

If people had studied League 1 last season they would have some knowledge of how 17 of the teams competed against each other plus knowledge of the 3 other League 2 promotees.

It would also be necessary to make a judgment of the variation in strength of those 20 teams.

No doubt McCann is better informed than most of us, but his optimism is surely aimed principally at the encouragement of his players.

I’d say that the champions of the league below ought to be capable of a half-way finish in the league above, but that only a team that had finished very comfortably ahead of second place would be an obvious serious contender for a top 6.

Lot of truth in this.

[scawsby steve]

Predicting a top 6 seems to me akin to expressing a fairly devout faith in the cause rather than making a truly reasoned judgment

If the Rovers team were unchanged from 2024/25 we could at least make some estimation of their likely performance for this coming season. As it is, anyone expecting them to get into the top 6 must be expecting them to be stronger, but without seeing the new team playing.

If people had studied League 1 last season they would have some knowledge of how 17 of the teams competed against each other plus knowledge of the 3 other League 2 promotees.

It would also be necessary to make a judgment of the variation in strength of those 20 teams.

No doubt McCann is better informed than most of us, but his optimism is surely aimed principally at the encouragement of his players.

I’d say that the champions of the league below ought to be capable of a half-way finish in the league above, but that only a team that had finished very comfortably ahead of second place would be an obvious serious contender for a top 6.

Both Wrexham and Stockport's finishes last season are in contradiction to that last paragraph, FR.

[Plumbster]

Whilst we weren’t runaway champions we gradually improved over the season and in the last few games were at our strongest. If we had played like that all season we would have been much clearer winners, so we should have momentum.  We stumbled upon the winning formula in those last few games though and my nagging worry is that we are going to revert, but in Grant we trust.

[selby]

  Our defence was more solid in those last games with a vastly improved and experienced keeper.
  Those were the reasons we did better alongside such as Crew finding his legs at the same time as he took time to get to grips with the tempo of the game compared to what he was used to before the loan.
  Plus we signed a consistent goal scorer on loan.  Four of those players, our best players in that period have left since the end of the season.
   Hopefully the rumours about Crew are true.

[The Dav]

I’m hopeful about the Tottenham lad, however can’t help but feel we need a proper striker who can make his mark in this league !! 

[ForsolongaRover]

Predicting a top 6 seems to me akin to expressing a fairly devout faith in the cause rather than making a truly reasoned judgment

If the Rovers team were unchanged from 2024/25 we could at least make some estimation of their likely performance for this coming season. As it is, anyone expecting them to get into the top 6 must be expecting them to be stronger, but without seeing the new team playing.

If people had studied League 1 last season they would have some knowledge of how 17 of the teams competed against each other plus knowledge of the 3 other League 2 promotees.

It would also be necessary to make a judgment of the variation in strength of those 20 teams.

No doubt McCann is better informed than most of us, but his optimism is surely aimed principally at the encouragement of his players.

I’d say that the champions of the league below ought to be capable of a half-way finish in the league above, but that only a team that had finished very comfortably ahead of second place would be an obvious serious contender for a top 6.

Both Wrexham and Stockport's finishes last season are in contradiction to that last paragraph, FR.

I agree that money does come into it, but it’s difficult for us to really know exactly how much and to judge the relative impact. There have been a lot of instances where it has not achieved anything at all - Gillingham at the bottom end and Man U and Spurs at PL level. And of course Bradford, perpetual underachievers.

It adds another imponderable factor to the business of forecasting who will finish where, thus strengthening the general case against our ability to speculate accurately.

[ncRover]

Luton
Stockport

Bolton
Huddersfield
Blackpool
Wycombe