Last time we were struggling in this division

[BillyStubbsTears]

21/22.

Boxing Day fixture.

This was our side.

L Jones
B Blythe
B Horton
J Olowu
L Hasani
L Ravenhill
K Knoyle
Matt Smith
T Rowe
J Hiwula-Mayifuila
J Dodoo

Subs
A Barlow
D Gardner
T Cukur
E Williams
B Faulkner
O Bogle
P Dahlberg

That team, that season, never got fewer than 9 points in a 15 game run.

I get that standards have improved, but the sides were are putting out at the moment are, man-for-man, miles better than every single one in that list, bar potentially Rowe, Knoyle, and very occasionally, Smith. (To say Olowu was "raw" then would be a huge understatement)

But the current side is performing significantly worse over a long period.

When you look at it in this way, it feels like we really are not making anything like the best of the hand we have got.

[sedwardsdrfc]

That side would get relegated from the national league

[Chris Black come back]

Can you imagine as a manager turning round to that bench if you had just gone 2-0 down.

[GazLaz]

I was just looking through the same thing, had a feeling you would be posting about it.

In mitigation to Grant, performances up to the last 4 games have generally been ok and we should have had more points. That season we looked hapless pretty consistently. Our current run of one win in a third of a season is diabolical. If this form continues for another month we won’t survive. Even 8 points from the next 8 games and we will be deep in it. 

[BillyStubbsTears]

I agree Gaz that, generally performances this season have been much better than that year. But at the end of the day, we don't look potent up front, and we regularly look like conceding at the back. However technically well we might be playing and however the basic data looks, we look like a side that is now accustomed to defeat. When we play well, we lose closely or maybe scrape a point. When we play badly we get mauled. I can't get away from the feeling that it is entirely due to the style of play. It's too open and too risky for the position we are now in.

I like it. It's lovely to watch when it works. It's probably the best chance a club of our size has of getting out of this division.

Trouble is, that last sentence works in both directions.

[BillyStubbsTears]

By the way.

Hapless as we might have been that season, if Omar Bogle hadn't got injured at 3-0 up at Morecambe, we'd have stayed up. That's how badly we are underperforming at the moment.

[LincsRover]

21/22.

Boxing Day fixture.

This was our side.

L Jones
B Blythe
B Horton
J Olowu
L Hasani
L Ravenhill
K Knoyle
Matt Smith
T Rowe
J Hiwula-Mayifuila
J Dodoo

Subs
A Barlow
D Gardner
T Cukur
E Williams
T Cukur
O Bogle
P Dahlberg

That team, that season, never got fewer than 9 points in a 15 game run.

I get that standards have improved, but the sides were are putting out at the moment are, man-for-man, miles better than every single one in that list, bar potentially Rowe, Knoyle, and very occasionally, Smith. (To say Olowu was "raw" then would be a huge understatement)

But the current side is performing significantly worse over a long period.

When you look at it in this way, it feels like we really are not making anything like the best of the hand we have got.

Thiago Cukur, so good they named him twice! Well, on that team sheet anyway! 

[BillyStubbsTears]

21/22.

Boxing Day fixture.

This was our side.

L Jones
B Blythe
B Horton
J Olowu
L Hasani
L Ravenhill
K Knoyle
Matt Smith
T Rowe
J Hiwula-Mayifuila
J Dodoo

Subs
A Barlow
D Gardner
T Cukur
E Williams
T Cukur
O Bogle
P Dahlberg

That team, that season, never got fewer than 9 points in a 15 game run.

I get that standards have improved, but the sides were are putting out at the moment are, man-for-man, miles better than every single one in that list, bar potentially Rowe, Knoyle, and very occasionally, Smith. (To say Olowu was "raw" then would be a huge understatement)

But the current side is performing significantly worse over a long period.

When you look at it in this way, it feels like we really are not making anything like the best of the hand we have got.

Thiago Cukur, so good they named him twice! Well, on that team sheet anyway! 

My mistake!

Corrected now.

Cukur was so slow it looked like he was carrying himself on his back.

[graingrover]

The EFL has absorbed a lot of Premiership cast offs since we were last in League One and the quality is much higher .Maybe everyone underestimated the level we were returning to.

[Nudga]

The EFL has absorbed a lot of Premiership cast offs since we were last in League One and the quality is much higher .Maybe everyone underestimated the level we were returning to.

I certainly did. Mad to think its not a level playing field in lg1.
Quite demoralising really being a club of our size, the glass ceiling is getting lower and lower.

[Fal]

The EFL has absorbed a lot of Premiership cast offs since we were last in League One and the quality is much higher .Maybe everyone underestimated the level we were returning to.

This, thats my one takeaway from this season that League One is of a much higher standard than what it used to be. Much fitter, much stronger etc. Almost feels like the gap we had going from League One to Championship.

[Prez]

The EFL has absorbed a lot of Premiership cast offs since we were last in League One and the quality is much higher .Maybe everyone underestimated the level we were returning to.

This, thats my one takeaway from this season that League One is of a much higher standard than what it used to be. Much fitter, much stronger etc. Almost feels like the gap we had going from League One to Championship.

100% this.

Spoke to my father in law on Xmas day who I had not seen for 3 months. He asked what’s gone wrong, to which I replied (after mentioning the recruitment) that league 1 is a big difference from league 2.

I went on to say that I used to think that there was not much between the 2 leagues but that’s not the case now. We won a poor league last season. Port Vale finished 2nd. They are now bottom. Even with how poor we have been these last 3 months, we’ve still gone to Crewe and Chesterfield in the cup and won. (Both of those in league 2)

Said it a few weeks ago that I’d snap finishing 20th off.

[GazLaz]

The EFL has absorbed a lot of Premiership cast offs since we were last in League One and the quality is much higher .Maybe everyone underestimated the level we were returning to.

This, thats my one takeaway from this season that League One is of a much higher standard than what it used to be. Much fitter, much stronger etc. Almost feels like the gap we had going from League One to Championship.

100% this.

Spoke to my father in law on Xmas day who I had not seen for 3 months. He asked what’s gone wrong, to which I replied (after mentioning the recruitment) that league 1 is a big difference from league 2.

I went on to say that I used to think that there was not much between the 2 leagues but that’s not the case now. We won a poor league last season. Port Vale finished 2nd. They are now bottom. Even with how poor we have been these last 3 months, we’ve still gone to Crewe and Chesterfield in the cup and won. (Both of those in league 2)

Said it a few weeks ago that I’d snap finishing 20th off.

We’ve watched league 2 football long enough to know it’s a horror show of a standard. I’ve even been vocal on here about L2 footballers and how poor lots of them are.

L1 is a different beast and it looks like we perhaps got the player profiling wrong from the outset and didn’t recognise what we actually needed. The management team certainly overrated some of our existing players and it’s biting them on the arse a bit now. We need a good January. Hopefully we get one.

[Barmby Rover]

I agree Gaz that, generally performances this season have been much better than that year. But at the end of the day, we don't look potent up front, and we regularly look like conceding at the back. However technically well we might be playing and however the basic data looks, we look like a side that is now accustomed to defeat. When we play well, we lose closely or maybe scrape a point. When we play badly we get mauled. I can't get away from the feeling that it is entirely due to the style of play. It's too open and too risky for the position we are now in.

I like it. It's lovely to watch when it works. It's probably the best chance a club of our size has of getting out of this division.

Trouble is, that last sentence works in both directions.

I think you have to wait and see what January brings us and if it makes a difference to the squad and its potency before writing us off. The season is only about half way, there are a LOT of points to play for and a lot of chances to change things round, I hope and trust GM enough to be able to improve things sufficiently enough to get us out of the current hole. First step is to become more resilient at the back, Blackpool scored one goal only, baby steps I know, but is that an improvement from the past 3-4 games? I reckon it is, let's see on New Years Day how they hold out against Bolton. I'm not expecting a miracle and a win, but it would be good to get a 0-0 or losing by one again. Will the new lads play as well as getting announced as our players? Maybe not, but 4 new members will change the dynamic of the squad. Fingers crossed.

[GazLaz]

I agree Gaz that, generally performances this season have been much better than that year. But at the end of the day, we don't look potent up front, and we regularly look like conceding at the back. However technically well we might be playing and however the basic data looks, we look like a side that is now accustomed to defeat. When we play well, we lose closely or maybe scrape a point. When we play badly we get mauled. I can't get away from the feeling that it is entirely due to the style of play. It's too open and too risky for the position we are now in.

I like it. It's lovely to watch when it works. It's probably the best chance a club of our size has of getting out of this division.

Trouble is, that last sentence works in both directions.

I think you have to wait and see what January brings us and if it makes a difference to the squad and its potency before writing us off. The season is only about half way, there are a LOT of points to play for and a lot of chances to change things round, I hope and trust GM enough to be able to improve things sufficiently enough to get us out of the current hole. First step is to become more resilient at the back, Blackpool scored one goal only, baby steps I know, but is that an improvement from the past 3-4 games? I reckon it is, let's see on New Years Day how they hold out against Bolton. I'm not expecting a miracle and a win, but it would be good to get a 0-0 or losing by one again. Will the new lads play as well as getting announced as our players? Maybe not, but 4 new members will change the dynamic of the squad. Fingers crossed.

Four lined up but some are developmental young players. Not experienced pros that will drag us forward.

[Barmby Rover]

And, of course you know that for certain because? Do you remember Herbie Kane or Malik Wilkes? I had never heard of them before they came to Rovers, and they had not been in the respective first teams. I am not saying that the players we get will be of the same quality, but unlike yourself I am not going to write players off before they even arrive.

[BobG]

I rather thought McCann said at least one was a player for development and would likely be off out on loan. I'll have to have a dig around for it.

BobG

[Barmby Rover]

I rather thought McCann said at least one was a player for development and would likely be off out on loan. I'll have to have a dig around for it.

BobG

I think you're right Bob, but that still leaves three to make a difference, it will be amazing how this sort of talk will disappear if Rovers win three on a trot and we are esconced comfortably in mid-table.