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Landmarks
One game against Exeter was a landmark in the clubs rise from the doldrums. It was the one where we had to win to stay up, because it was the first season there had been automatic relegation from the Football League. Ever since, for fans of a certain. Again, matches against the Grecians have had a symbolic importance.
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Early days of Autumn
I’ve waited a few days before writing this. Sometimes it’s better to allow thoughts to gestate. Tuesday night’s game against Rotherham still represents a major improvement in the way we are playing. The result could be very important for us by the end of the season.
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Pessimistically Optimistic
It’s only two games in. Two games, with 44 still to play. We can’t get carried away, obviously. But it already feels like a better team than the one we had last season. We have exactly the same number of points as we did at this stage a year ago, and yes, things could still go belly up — this being a family website, you know what belly is standing in for — but there is something different about this side.
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The battles ahead
The season proper starts tomorrow. The summer has seen loads of new recruits, most of us will spend the time between now and Christmas getting used to encouraging the right names in the right shirts. But against Rochdale some of the new faces looked good. Just don’t ask them, apart from Davies, to take a penalty.
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Almost there
Tomorrow our season begins, sort of, with a preliminary round for the League Cup against Rochdale. The absence of real football, as opposed to those prancing ponies at the World Cup, is over.
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When you’re not ready it’s obvious.
The new season is 4 weeks away, the squad is still under resourced. We have been told that new arrivals are imminent, nobody comes. We have been linked with some interesting signings but there are no sign of them. It’s gone from being amusing to concerning. What is going on?
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Ruined
We are all distracted by the World Cup. It offered a respite from the trials and tribulations at Rovers. Yet in a way the tournament reminds us that the modern game is being changed in ways that aren’t healthy. The international stuff reflects some of the worst aspects at club level.
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We know what you’ll be doing next season.
The first sign that life is returning to normal is the release of the football fixtures. Gone are the weeks of wondering who you will be watching beat us, and on which dates. The list is confirmed. It looks daunting, given the absence of players and the fact that some of the catering staff might have to play.
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A place where nothing ever happens
Mark Huknall sang ‘Heaven is a place where nothing ever happens’. Maybe he was confusing it with Prenton Park?
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Getting Thumped - The World Cup Cometh
It’s back again, this time in the USA, Canada and Mexico. The northern and southern neighbours are portrayed as having a walk-on role. This is really an American, not Pan-American, World Cup.
