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Northants Pie

Youth Team Report

By Northants Pie, in News,

Saturdays game for the Youth Team provided them with the opportunity to start the new year in a positive manner, unfortunately the lads lost 3 - 0 to Rotherham United putting in another disappointing display after a good win just before the Christmas break against Burton Albion.

They went 2 - 0 down early on and never recovered despite starting the second half brightly, in truth poor decision making and a lack of a cutting edge proved to be their downfall.
They go again tonight away against Mansfield Town with a 7pm kick-off looking to put in an improved performance.
Mick Halsall said on the defeat to Rotherham "We will be working on decision making and options on the ball throughout the week and we will go again. We didn't produce enough. To get straight back on the pitch is great for us. We know Mansfield are decent at this level and have done well this season in the cup especially, as they knocked out Aston Villa, so it will be a difficult game against a confident side".
The updated league table can be found here, the fixture grid can be found here
 
 
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Chris

Crewe - Scouting Report

By Chris, in News,

Crewe Alexandra currently find themselves in decent form having picked up 3 points at home against Gillingham. Whilst also successfully obtaining points against Doncaster Rovers, Bristol City and Preston North End. Their form prior to their recent spell wasn't as good, however they are a reasonably decent side.

The Railwaymen are not to be under estimated and although in form it would suggest Notts would come out the likeliest of winners, they cannot be written off so easily.
 
Run down of their last six games.
Saturday 29th November – Crewe Alexandra 1 Doncaster Rovers 1
Saturday 13th December – Scunthorpe United 2 Crewe Alexandra 1
Saturday 20th December – Crewe Alexandra 1 Bristol City 0
Friday 26th December – Oldham Athletic 1 Crewe Alexandra 2
Sunday 28th December – Crewe Alexandra 1 Preston North End 1
Saturday 10th January – Crewe Alexandra 3 Gillingham 1
 
The Players – Fact Sheet
Highest Goal Scorers; Nicky Ajose 4, Marcus Haber 4, Billy Waters 3 and George Cooper 3.
Persistent Foulers; George Ray 2 Red Cards and 4 Yellow Cards, Anthony Grant 7 Yellow Cards, Oliver Turton 4 Yellow Cards and Adam Dugdale 3 Yellow Cards.
 
The Key Players.
Nicky Ajose, Marcus Haber and Uche Ikpeazu would be considered Crewe Alexandra's key front men.
The former Magpie Marcus Haber is well known for being a battler and the occasional goalscorer, whilst Nicky Ajose is the one to watch out for with Uche Ikpeazu being a player who can drift in and out of games, combining especially well with Ajose upfront.
Anthony Grant one of their experienced players, who is also a physical player who likes to make his presence known to the opposition. He creates play, whilst linking up well with the strikers.
Billy Waters is an academy player who is steady all round performer, he has a good set of skill within his locker but he plays the 'simple' passes very well.
Jamie Ness is a direct player who looks to involve himself with every passing phase, when played in the centre of the park he offers the creativity and the forward momentum with his calm influence and his natural ability to string out long distance passes.
 
Style of Play, Strengths, and Weaknesses.
Crewe Alexandra are not the underdogs to under estimate, they're also not to be fooled by their league position either. They try to play direct football especially within the right way and although they can be a tad bit physical. The Railwaymen look to always get the ball forward, keeping their movement free by picking out the right passes.
Their height and strength are a key pluses, something Crewe find to be very effective within set pieces and when dealing with weaker inexperienced defenders.
The effort they put into the games, whilst looking to explore opposition sides through their attacking play can often foresee decent build up play and this is the method they have put well into practice within recent games, resulting in several impressive results.
Main weaknesses is scrappy play, rushed passes and a general panic when put under pressure. When sides look to get into goal scoring opportunities, players make poor decisions and runs, resulting in other players finding available space.
They have a tendency of dropping behind their opposition and paying too much attention to the ball, better players can use this very effectively.
When hit with pace, there is a vulnerability which suggests space and time will always open up for opposition sides to gain and take chances. Their inability to close down their opposition is a direct result to many teams having scored against them within this season.
 
 
Match Thread - League One Preview - League Link-Ups  
Chris

League Link-Ups

By Chris, in News,

The importance of networking and making club connections, especially within the local community has never been as beneficial for lower league teams as it is under the new financial fair play rules. Teams within League One and Two have far more to gain by opening their doors to the local teams which play around them.

This of course means clubs will have to put aside rivalry for the betterment of their own development if they struggle to bring in that additional quality.
 
Notts have actually been making their own progress in this department this year, whilst the club has actively put into place methods of balancing their financial outgoings by reducing agent fee's with their deals. This allows a club like Notts County to open their doors and to become a club whereby teams can trust Notts with their upcoming players. Shaun Derry has said himself that it is a good way of reducing unnecessary costs at the football club by working with local sides, the likes of Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest, Leicester City, Birmingham City and Derby County to name a few.
Locally based players will not have the cost of apartments, hotels and other fee's which come attached to signing players who have to settle a way from their home.
Becoming trusted by managers, whilst working on that reputation offers Notts a platform which they can work off. It promotes the club in an efficient and effective way which means once trusted with youngsters, clubs may trust Notts with their out of form players.
Of course it puts Notts in a situation where by free players might become interested in seeking the exact same opportunity, so it serves more purpose to be patience about signing young players on short term loan deals, as this enables Notts to really forge themselves within the transfer market.
The difficulties of balancing expectations, along with establishing a strong squad for promotion is a difficult game, especially when budgets don't permit a lot of movement.
This is where the abilities of being a good neighbour comes into it, it allows teams just like Notts to gain that extra special quality to bulk up their existing squad. It doesn't always mean the arrival of an established head, or a player with a known name. sometimes it means taking a gamble on youngsters eager to make that step up who are below that radar.
Who had heard of Callum McGregor or Jack Grealish before they arrived at Meadow Lane last season? Their hard work put themselves on the map, it opened the door to them to their respected clubs first team.
The same principles can be applied to this seasons loan players such as Reece Brown, Louis Laing, Stephen Mclaughlin, Michael Petrasso, Jake Cassidy and Zeli Ismail.
Louis Laing has that opportunity to prove himself at Forest, whereas Stephen McLaughlin will be in contention for the first team with both players being required under the embargo the club have found themselves under.
Michael Petrasso will possibly be loaned out to a Championship side, with Jake Cassidy and Zeli Ismail potentially ending up back on loan with a team lower than that.
Yet it does show the openness of Notts to work along side locally based teams, especially now that Alefe Santos and Kwame Thomas arrive at Meadow Lane, it is for Notts to show that they can look after them, make use of their talents and perhaps further doors will be unlocked with time.
 
Aided with the ability to produce young talent of our own, the budget in future seasons might be balanced out with a mix of players offering a vast variety of skills which can be used by Shaun Derry.
It's likely until Notts have a few good seasons, whereby crowds increase largely and with the addition of any possible cup runs that things may be different but even under those circumstances the ability to be trusted with loan players is of vast importance to the club.
You have to make use of every opportunity available in order to overcome the difficulties attached and really, we can consider ourselves lucky to already have the widening net under our current manager.
We have made a lot of ground this season and the way it's going, I see no reason why in the future we can't replicate a mix of aspects the likes of Walsall (youngsters), Peterborough (non league signings) and of course Swindon (parent club, i.e Spurs) have made in order for ourselves to progress.
Really you have to make sure that the club is doing all in which it can, I honestly believe Notts are. Whether you agree or not, this leads to a discussion which I openly encourage.
 
 
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william1984

League One Preview

By william1984, in News,

In this weeks PoN's preview to the League One games played on the 16thand 17th of January, six key games have been identified – This includes the important game between MK Dons vs Sheffield United, which several teams within League One will be looking out for. Whilst Doncaster take on Barnsley at the Keepmoat Stadium.

If the Dons win, they could close the gap on Bristol City and Swindon. If the Blades win they could pull away from the sides just outside of the play off places.
 
* Important Game – **Key Game
Friday 16th January 2015
*Preston v Leyton Orient – Kick Off 7:45pm – Score Prediction (2-1)
 
Saturday 17th January 2015
Colchester v Walsall – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-0)
**Doncaster v Barnsley – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-1)
Fleetwood v Oldham – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-0)
Gillingham v Coventry – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-2)
**MK Dons v Sheffield United – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-1)
*Notts County v Crewe – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-0)
Port Vale v Peterborough – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-2)
Rochdale v Crawley – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-1)
*Scunthorpe v Bristol City – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-3)
**Swindon v Chesterfield – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-1)
Yeovil v Bradford – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-3)
 
My Stand-out Games
MK Dons v Sheffield United
Doncaster v Barnsley
Swindon v Chesterfield
 
MK Dons against Sheffield United looks like the most important game this week as MK Dons try to push for a automatic promotion place whilst Sheffield United try to hang onto a play off spot.
A win for MK Dons could move them up to 2nd whilst Sheffield United could move up to 5th depending on the result of Yeovil v Bradford. Teams around Sheffield United will want them to mess up so that they might be able to gain points on them.
Doncaster against Barnsley is also another game that jumped out at me this week not only because it’s a local derby but also for the fact of whichever team loses could move further down towards the drop zone.
A win for Doncaster could move them up to as high as 8th which will make their fans think more about the play-offs again rather than relegation, whilst a win for Barnsley could move them up to 10th which could also ease their relegation fears.
Whichever team loses could move down to within 3 places of the drop zone which makes it a key game for more then the local rivalry.
Swindon against Chesterfield is a key match for effecting the automatic promotion places aswell as the play-offs and surrounding teams as Swindon try to hang onto top spot or 2nd whilst chesterfield try to push into the play off places.
A win for Swindon will put them top or maybe keep them in 2nd place whilst a win for chesterfield could move them up to as high as 5th and move them away from several chasing teams for a play off spot.
 
Thoughts on Notts County v Crewe
This weeks match for us should be an easier match then previous weeks whilst at the same time Crewe’s form has picked up as of late.
Our current results against Crewe Alexander have been positive although previously we have had better results away from home.
The last time we dropped points against Crewe was back in 2013 when we drew 1-1 at Meadow Lane in the league.
The overall head to head record shows us as favourites as we have won 20 whilst Crewe have won 12 and drawn 7.
Crewe haven’t beaten us since 1997 when they won us 1-0 at Meadow Lane.
We have picked up 14 points out of 15 from the last 5 meetings.
I believe this is a match we should win but it wont be an easy game as Crewe’s form has improved over the past couple of weeks, I would at least hope for a point but Notts should get all 3 points.
 
 
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Chris

On The Table

By Chris, in News,

We're now starting to see which sides are real contenders for promotion from League One, Pride of Nottingham reflects on the league table with it's 'On The Table' feature. Form for many teams is rapidly becoming important, as the table changes for the better, as those who maintain their form are rewarded with contention for promotion.

Teams which slip or fail to progress increasingly lay in limbo, as they struggle to keep up with the pack and demand of the tough division.
 
Bristol City have regained the very top position after they cruised against a struggling Notts County, the final score 4-0 in the Robins favour.
Swindon Town haven't played, they face Coventry City away from home on Monday 12th of this month. If Swindon win, they move back to 1st, however this would leave Bristol City with a game in hand. A win for Swindon Town would be the best possible outcome, as this would leave for an exciting title challenge.
 
MK Don's move from 4th to 3rd within League One, they drew 2-2 against struggling Crawley Town.
Preston North End drop a position after losing to Sheffield United away from home, the final score at Bramall Lane was 2-1.
Bradford City and Sheffield United remain in their respective places, despite Bradford losing 2-1 to Rochdale and Sheffield United winning. Bradford sit 5th and Sheffield United 6th. If the Blades win their game in hand, this would leave them 4 points clear of 7th.
Chesterfield enjoyed a respectable 3-0 win over Port Vale, this leaves them in 7th position.
Rochdale move a position higher after their 2-1 win against Bradford City, they now retain the 8th position within League One.
Fleetwood Town jump from 12th to 9th after beating last years league leaders Leyton Orient.
Port Vale drop two places from 8th to 10th, they lost to the Spireites 3-0. Peterborough United remain 11th after their shocking defeat to the hands of Colchester United.
Notts drop two places from 10th to 12th as a dominant Bristol City went on the rampage at Ashton Gate.
Oldham Athletic move from 14th to 13th, they drew 2-2 to Doncaster Rovers. The Vikings (Donny) move from 15th to 14th thanks to the poor result from Walsall.
Walsall themselves drop from 13th to 15th after being defeated by the hands of Scunthorpe United 4-1 at the Bescot Stadium.
Barnsley move from 17th to 16th, they beat rooted Yeovil 2-0 at home.
Scunthorpe United move up one position from 18th to 17th, their surprising win over Walsall continues their claim away from the relegation where they had remained for a considerable amount of time within the 2014/2015 campaign.
Coventry City drop from 16th to 18th, they are scheduled to play Swindon Town on Monday.
Crewe Alexandra jump from 22nd to 19th, the League One strugglers beat Gillingham 3-1 at home. Leyton Orient drop from 17th to just outside the relegation zone at 20th, their 1-0 defeat to Fleetwood Town sees them dangerously close to falling into the drop. They share the same amount of points as Gillingham who sit 21st, after the Gills lost 3-1 to fellow strugglers Crewe Alexandra.
After Colchester United's impressive win over Peterborough United, this saw them move 23rd to 22nd. Crawley Town drop from 21st to 23rd despite their 2-2 draw to MK Dons, it wasn't enough to prevent them slipping.
Poor Yeovil Town remain rooted to the foot of the League One table, they ended the weekends fixtures with a 2-0 defeat to Barnsley.
 
 
Match Thread - League One Round-Up - Match Report - Aftermath  
super_ram

League One Round-Up

By super_ram, in News,

There have been some surprising victories for sides in League One within this past weekends fixtures, Crawley, Colchester and Scunthorpe are all within this bracket. Whilst sides like Rochdale, Crewe, Fleetwood and Sheffield United have all triumphed in close and difficult games within their own rights.

The most surprising result would be at the Bescot Stadium where Walsall lost to Scunthorpe, the West Midlands side will be stunned after this defeat.
 
League One Results
Barnsley 2 Yeovil 0
Bradford 1 Rochdale 2
Bristol City 4 Notts County 0
Chesterfield 3 Port Vale 0
Crawley 2 MK Dons 2
Crewe 3 Gillingham 1
Leyton Orient 0 Fleetwood 1
Oldham 2 Doncaster 2
Peterborough 0 Colchester 2
Sheffield United 2 Preston 1
Walsall 1 Scunthorpe 4
 
Upcoming Fixture – Monday 12th January 2015
Coventry v Swindon – Kick Off 7:45pm
 
League Update
Home wins today for Barnsley, Bristol City, Chesterfield, Crewe, Sheffield United and away wins for Rochdale, Colchester and Scunthorpe. This means that Bristol City move 3 points clear of Swindon at the top, though Swindon will hope to beat Coventry in Monday nights fixture. MK Dons move up to 3rd after drawing away at Crawley, while Preston drop to 4th after losing away 2-1 to Sheffield United who remain in 6th place.
At the other end Yeovil remain rooted in bottom place after losing 2-1 at Barnsley. Crawley occupy 23rd place despite drawing away. Colchester move up to 22nd with a surprise 2-0 win away at Peterborough. Gillingham slip into the bottom 4 after their 3-1 loss away at Crewe.
Sheffield United have 36 points, while Gillingham have 25 points, so there are only 11 points separating a promotion or relegation place.
Notts having slipped to 12th place could be overtaken if Coventry win at home against Swindon on Monday and are now just 6 points clear of 21st placed Gillingham. They are however only 5 points behind 6th placed Sheffield United and have played fewer games than some teams around them.
 
 
Match Thread - League One Preview - Match Report - Aftermath  
Joe Jones
A rampant Bristol City performance left Notts County in tatters and sent out a message to the whole of League One that Steve Cotterill's side has what it takes to get themselves into the Championship next season.

The Robins dispatched the Magpies 4-0 to soar back to the top of the third tier, thanks to goals by Joe Bryan, Matt Smith, Jay Emanuel-Thomas and Derrick Williams.
 
Eight minutes is all it took for City to open the scoring, as a sizzling run from Emmanuel-Thomas carved open the visitors’ defence and led to a cross that was bundled in by Bryan.
When Notts talisman Mike Edwards was forced off with an injury in the 11th minute, you just know the tone would be set for the afternoon.
Notts were under the cosh for much of the half and required Roy Carroll to pull off a great save from Korey Smith, before substitute Taylor McKenzie cleared off the line.
And indeed, the hosts doubled their lead just before the break when Luke Freeman’s cross was tapped in by Matt Smith. The ball appeared to have gone out of play in the build-up, but the referee let the goal stand.
Notts showed more intent at the start of the second half, with some penetrating play causing some concern to City, even though Emmanuel-Thomas continued to show glimpses of magic at the other end.
Just after the hour, the visitors were undone again when the 24-year-old former Arsenal academy man surged forward and slotted a low ball past Carroll.
By this point it was game over, and City were enjoying themselves, even though Notts continued to push forward and saw Robins goalkeeper Frankie Fielding require to pull off a save from Garry Thompson.
However, the fourth goal duly came when Bryan cut the ball back from the touchline for Williams to drive a low shot into the far corner past Carroll.
The result means that Notts slip to 12th after a run of three successive losses.
Chris

The Build-Up

By Chris, in Match Previews,

All is to play for today as Bristol City, Swindon Town, Preston North End and MK Dons stride to continue their progress towards their title challenges. Whereas Notts will be trying to secure points which would allow them to remain within the top half of the division. A draw would be a brilliant result.

Sheffield United v Preston North End is the stand out game within League One, two top teams coming head to head with a lot on stake.
 
Key Fixtures
Saturday 10th January 2015
Bradford v Rochdale
Chesterfield v Port Vale
Leyton Orient v Fleetwood
Oldham v Doncaster
Peterborough v Colchester
Sheffield v Preston
Walsall v Scunthorpe
 
Prediction
Bristol City are likely to make use of their 12th man with the home advantage, whilst they will most likely put our defenders under a lot of pressure. A lot depends upon the way we play and set ourselves up, however I predict the final score will be 2-0 to the Robins.
 
Match Odds
Bristol City to win 1/2 – Draw 100/30 – Notts County to win 5/1
 
Head to Head
Bristol City – A win for Bristol City keeps them right in contention for the League One Title. Drawing would allow them to remain 2nd and they still have a game in hand over Swindon Town. A defeat could see them drop to 3rd if goal advantage favours MK Dons and provided the Don's win themselves, the likeliest case they will remain 2nd.
Notts County – A win for Notts could see them move back into the play-offs (this requires a lot of luck) or it would place them just outside. A draw, I think would move Notts to the middle of the table and a lose would most likely push them all the way down to 13th to 15th perhaps.
 
Key Man
Bristol City; Matt Smith – The on loan Fulham striker is currently in hot form and with the absence of two other main players, Matt will be eager to impress Steve Cotterill.
Notts County; Roy Carrol – The Northern Ireland international will be relied upon a fair bit tomorrow, his experience, ability to organize the defence and the way he foreseer’s danger makes him my Key Man for Notts.
 
League Table
 
A win for Bristol City will allow them to make the most of their game in hand over promotion chasing Swindon Town. Whilst if Preston defeat Sheffield United it allows them to move to keep right within the mix with MK Dons also hoping to keep within touching distance.
Sheffield United will be hoping to avoid losing, if they do lose this will open the gap for several other clubs who will all be eager to jump into 6th place.
If Notts lose they could fall into the bottom half of the League One table for the first time in the 2014/2015 campaign. A draw could have the same effect, however it's most likely that Notts will fall smack bang into the mid half. A win could see Notts return to play-offs or just outside, this is a vital game whereby the magpies will have to keep aware and cope under the pressure of their opposition.
 
 
Match Thread - League One Preview - Scouting Report - Stat Attack  
Joe Jones
Notts County and Bristol City have faced each other a gargantuan 106 times over their history. This is because both clubs have been regularly playing each other since the 1900s.

Tomorrow will however be just the fourth league encounter between the two in just over ten years.
City only just hold the upper edge, having won 43 games to Notts's 39, while 24 matches have been drawn.
The city of Bristol is the largest metro area in England never to have won the English top tier championship.
 
In 1907 they finished runners-up in Football League Division One, which is their highest ever final position.
City won the Welsh Cup – despite being an English club – in 1934.
 
In 1982, Bristol City became the first English club to suffer three consecutive relegations.
Ashton Gate is the only ground in the English football league not to accommodate executive boxes.
 
Despite their underachievements, Bristol City is supported by some notable celebrities, including John Cleese of Monty Python and Fawlty Towers fame, Formula 1 great Jenson Button, and actor Russell Crowe.
Bristol City shares the English football league record for consecutive wins, notching up 14 wins in a row during the 1905-06 season. This record is shared with Arsenal, Manchester United, and Preston North End.
Bristol was home to Harvey’s Bristol Cream Sherry, created in Bristol in 1796, and J S Fry, who produced the world’s first bar of chocolate in Bristol in 1847.
Bristol has been voted one of the most popular places to live in Britain and one of the top three most popular cities.
The Plimsoll line, Ribena and Tarmac were all invented in Bristol.
---
City are looking to regain top spot in League One.
Matt Smith will be hoping to start up-front after scoring four against Gillingham in Tuesday's Football League Trophy area final first leg.
Notts midfielder Liam Noble is available after suspension, while Alefe Santos has joined on a youth loan from Derby.
Striker Jake Cassidy and winger Stephen McLaughlin, however, have both returned to their parent clubs.
Chris

The Match Officials

By Chris, in News,

Saturday 10th of January, Bristol City will be playing host to Notts County at Ashton Gate Stadium, this will be the Magpies first game within the new year. The Robins welcome Notts County in their worst form of the 2014/2015 season and it is important for Notts to oversee this blip by believing in themselves.

A win for Bristol City could see them return back to the very top of League One, whilst Swindon Town will face Coventry to defend the number 1 position.
The Match Officials for Saturdays game against Bristol City will be Simon Hooper, with his two assistants Stephen Daly and Lisa Rashid. The fourth official will be Brett Huxtable.
 
Match Officials
 
Referee; Simon Hooper
From – Wiltshire
His matches involving Notts County and Bristol City in the last four seasons;
Championship – Tuesday 19th February 2013 – Crystal Palace 2 Bristol City 1 – 4 Yellow Cards
JPT – Wednesday 4th September 2013 – Bristol City 2 Bristol Rovers 1 – 3 Yellow Cards
League One – Saturday 14th December 2013 – Colchester 0 Notts County 4 – 4 Yellow Cards
League One – Tuesday 19th August 2014 – Bristol City 0 Leyton Orient 0 – No Cards
League One – Saturday 1st November 2014 – Notts County 1 Walsall 2 – 2 Yellow Cards.
 
Run down of his last four games;
Championship – Saturday 29th November 2014 – 5 Yellow Cards and 1 Red Card
League One – Saturday 20th December 2014 – MK Dons 7 Oldham 0 – 4 Yellow Cards
Championship – Sunday 28th December 2014 – Nottingham Forest 1 Birmingham 3 – 2 Yellow Cards
JPT – Wednesday 7th January 2015 – Preston 0 Walsall 2 – 2 Yellow Cards
 
In his last four games 8 yellow cards have been shown and only a single red card.
So far this season in a total of 23 games he has shown 73 yellow cards and 3 red card.
That's roughly 3.1 yellow cards per game.
 
Assistant Referee; Stephen Daly
From – Middlesex
Last 3 officiated games;
Saturday 6th September 2014 – Stevenage 2 York City 3
Saturday 20th September 2014 – Cambridge United 0 Luton Town 1
Sunday 28th December 2014 – Swindon Town 1 Port Vale 0
 
Assistant Referee; Lisa Rashid
From – Birmingham
Last 3 officiated games;
Saturday 25th October 2014 – Cambridge United 2 Hartlepool 1
Saturday 29th November 2014 – Southend United 2 Northampton Town 0
Saturday 20th December 2014 – Coventry City 1 Fleetwood Town 1
 
Fourth Official; Brett Huxtable
From – Devon
 
Do you have an opinion on the game? - Match Thread
 
Also, please do leave us a comment below if you have time.
Chris
Being 2nd in League One with a game in hand of the 1st place Swindon Town, Robins fans have every right to be exited about this seasons campaign. Bristol City have lead the division and put together several impressive displays, as they hover around the two top positions.

Pride of Nottingham's taken the time to ask several questions to Robin's fan 'Hodge' who is currently exiled away from the club in which he supports.
 
Firstly, could you please tell prideofnottingham.co.uk a little about yourself such as how long you've been a Robins fan?
I've been a City fan for around 13 years having started watching them at about the age of 10. Outside football I'm currently studying a masters degree at UCLan in Preston so a bit of an exile but managing to get to a fair few away games.
 
At the start of the season where did you hope Bristol City would be by this point and what is the difference compared to last season?
Given that least season was our first back in the division and we started it by being rooted to the bottom until sacking Sean O'Driscoll and replacing him with Steve Cotterill its hard to compare, Cotterill did a great job to get us back to 12th from taking over in January so going into this season I wasn't sure what to expect. However given our activity in the transfer market bringing in players who were attracting interest from championship clubs such as Luke Freeman, Korey Smith, Aaron Wilbraham and Kieran Agard (who left promoted Rotherham as their top scorer to join us) I was expecting us to be around the play-offs.
 
Which three players do you feel will be runners for your 'Player of the Season' and why?
Luke Freeman - Great engine, never stops running and chasing the game when we're not on the ball, his influence only grows game by game as he becomes accustomed to a unfamiliar position while being dangerous going forward.
Aden Flint - Rock of our defence, great aerial presence and along with Luke Ayling and Derrick Williams has been a big factor of success in our defence.
If Aaron Wilbraham hadn't been injured the last few weeks I'd have said him, but Korey Smith. Does the job that no one really notices, cleans up any opposition attacking play well, recycles and gets us going forward again. Also has a mean right boot on him when given the chance.
 
What are your thoughts on Steve Cotterill as your manager? Do you always agree with his lineups and substitutions?
Honestly when I heard Cotterill was the manager we were after, not even interviewing someone else I really didn't feel enthusiastic about what the club was doing, never have I ever been so wrong. Cotterill was an inspired choice as he managed to take us from bottom at Christmas last season to top at Christmas this season. In the calender year of 2014 we picked up around 84 points which put City 9th overall from all 4 divisions. As for his line ups well, we're going to play 532 with wingbacks, you could practically bet your mortgage on it and the line up will rarely change.
GK - Frank Fielding
RWB - Mark Little
RCB - Luke Ayling
CB - Aden Flint
LCB - Derrick Williams
LWB - Joe Bryan
CM - Wade Elliott
CM - Korey Smith
CM - Luke Freeman
ST - Matt Smith
ST - Jay Emmanuel-Thomas
 
Only way that will be different will be if either Kieron Agard or Aaron Wilbraham have recovered from injury where they may replace Emmanuel-Thomas. Its hard to argue against the team as its one that has only found itself being knocked off the top spot for the first time in over 100 days due to Swindon playing a league game while we were playing an FA Cup game.
As for his substitutions, occasionally I feel Cotterill can wait a bit too long to make subs, as if he's hoping things stay like they are (having been top all season and results generally being in our favour). Sometimes you can see and feel the game changing and as a fan think something needs to be changed where as Cotterill does nothing, sometimes it costs us, sometimes it doesn't.
 
At Ashton Gate what is the atmosphere like, which away teams have impressed you with their support and why?
This season the atmosphere can be very hit and miss I find, with the main bunch of loud fans having to be relocated due to the redevelopment it has meant that some have split up and gone to other areas of the ground leading to some quieter games, but when the fans get going it can be a fantastic atmosphere. As for away fans, I've only been able to get down to a few games this season given my distance from Bristol. Yeovil Town provided a decent atmosphere on boxing day, however the distance between the two sides geographically probably helped in that regard.
 
How much does football mean to you in general and what attracted you to supporting Bristol City?
Admittedly Football is not my main sport, I never played it apart from at school. However I have watched Football since a young age and was glued to it instantly, I try and watch as much as possible, whether watching Bristol City games where I had been a season ticket for around 5 years before moving for university or when possible watching any games on tv. As for what drew me to City, I moved to Somerset when I was 8 and my dad started taking me along to games within a year or two so I have probably been watching City for a good 13 years or so.
 
Which Bristol City players are currently inform and how would you expect your side to play on Saturday?
While limiting it to three is hard as so many are playing well I'd have to say Matt Smith (on loan from Fulham), Luke Freeman and Aden Flint would probably be my three picks for players in the best form. Smith has scored 8 in 4 games (4 against Gillingham in the JPT semi final), Freeman despite being a winger has found himself being played in central midfield with license to go forward and has adapted brilliantly. And finally Aden Flint has been our rock in defence a really commanding centre back both in terms of his game play and as a presence within the team.
 
Out of the Notts County players which would you be concerned about and who would you set to mark them?
Apart from the well known players such as Smith, Carroll, Mullins etc I admit Notts County are a club I'm not so well clued up on for their best players. However I remember Stephen McLaughlin from his time on loan with us and that he can cause problems, also given that we operate using wing backs, he could get some free runs at them.
 
Which two games this season stand out for you for good and bad reasons, please tell us why?
Sheffield United away first game of the season, pre season Sheffield Utd had been tipped as the favourites by many to run away with the league, so for us to win away there on the opening game sent a clear message of our intentions for this season.
Peterborough away, despite their league position p'boro is never an easy place to travel to, so given we won 3-0 and dominated while on TV it again sent out the message of what we were capable of having come off the back of successive defeats the previous two games.
 
Pride of Nottingham would like to thank Robins fan Hodge for taking the time to answer our questions, we wish him all the very best with his masters degree and we wish Bristol City all the best with the rest their season.
 
 
Match Thread - League One Preview - Scouting Report - View New Content  
Chris

Bristol C - Scouting Report

By Chris, in News,

Bristol City find themselves in second place within League One with a game in hand of Swindon Town. The Robins will be hoping that Coventry City will win, whilst pushing on with their own campaign. Their games have been coming thick and fast due to them being in several cups.

The Robins have won four of their last six league games, whilst losing to both Crewe and Preston. Their recent games come in as a draw in the F.A Cup and a win in the JPT.
 
Run down of their last six games.
Saturday 13th December – Bristol City 1 Crawley Town 0
Saturday 20th December – Crewe Alexandra 1 Bristol City 0
Friday 26th December – Bristol City 2 Yeovil 1
Sunday 28th December – Gillingham 1 Bristol City 3
Saturday 3rd January – Doncaster Rovers 1 Bristol City 1 (F.A Cup)
Tuesday 6th January – Gillingham 2 Bristol City 4 (JPT)
 
The Players – Fact Sheet
Highest Goal Scorers; Aaron Wilbraham 13, Kieran Agard 8, Matt Smith 7 and Adent Flint 5.
Persistent Foulers; Derrick Williams 1 Red Card and 4 Yellow Cards, Wade Elliot 1 Red Card and 1 Yellow Cards, Antony Kay 6 Yellow Card, Aaron Wilbraham 4 Yellow Cards and Korey Smith 2 Yellow Cards.
 
The Key Players.
Kieran Agard is a lively threat, the former Rotherham United player scored 32 goals in 91 appearances for the millers and he joined Bristol City for an undisclosed fee.
He has the ability to pull in behind players and strike lethal finishes to seal games.
Emmanuel Jay-Thomas, JET as the fans call him is the player Bristol City often look to change games. He's a quality player on his day and he can mix passes, create play and generally lead the line weather this is from Midfield or as a Striker.
Aaron Wilbraham is another striker who can be menacing when presented chances.
Korey Smith, Wade Elliot and Joe Bryan are Swindon Town's key players within midfield. Wade Elliot is the creator within their play, whilst Korey Smith and Joe Bryan bombard their opposition and are very skilful at breaking down their counterparts.
 
Style of Play, Strengths, and Weaknesses.
Bristol City play very fluidly, switching the ball around from out wide positions back into the centre of the park. Overlapping play allows them to keep the ball moving forward, which enables them to quickly find themselves in good positions within the field to take a chance or create the perfect opportunity for one of their talented centre forwards.
Their main strengths are their talented players, however Steve Cotterill has them well organized within the 2014/2015 season which enables their key players to truly thrive on.
Weaknesses are direct play, with balls which go through the middle. Bristol City's defence appears to allow opposition players too much time on the ball, so if players are able to get in-front of them the Robins typically fail to defend adequately.
They're far from the perfect side, however their ability to create play and score will always counter their own mistakes.
 
 
Match Thread - League One Preview - Youth Team Season Review  
Northants Pie

YT Season Review

By Northants Pie, in News,

With the New Year in full swing it seems like the perfect time to reflect upon what has been a very good first half of the season for the whole youth team and an unbelievable one for Colby Bishop who has gone from signing his Scholarship in December 2013 to starting for the first team in December 2014!!

The young lads started the season with consecutive draws against Doncaster & Burton Albion respectively.
 
The next three games all resulted in losses, the first coming against possibly the best team in the league Hull Tigers, the second loss was in the Youth Alliance Cup on penalties to Burton Albion after the two teams couldn't be separated for the second time in three weeks, the final loss came against Rotherham United 1-0.
After a two week break the lads got back into winning fashion with an emphatic 4-2 victory away at Hartlepool United. In the next two games the lads went goal crazy scoring a total of ten with only one coming in reply. The first of these games saw Lincoln City beaten 3-0, the second saw York City thrashed 7-1 in their own back yard, with this being the biggest result of the season so far.
 
After the massive high of scoring 14 goals in the three previous games the lads were brought down to earth with a thump in the next fixture losing 3-1 to Scunthorpe United. They quickly got back into winning ways in the next fixture beating Bradford City 3-2.
The next game brought the biggest fixture of the season so far with an away trip to Peterborough United in the FA Youth Cup. Peterborough ran out comfortable 2-0 winners, the only highlight for Notts coming from the highly impressive display by the two central defenders Keenan Layton & Thomas Rigby.
 
The lads responded to the defeat & most importantly the lackluster performance with their best performance of the season so far beating the league leaders and aforementioned best team in the league Hull Tigers 2-0, they quickly followed this up with another 2-0 victory just days later, this time against Grimsby Town. These wins were followed by a disappointing 3-1 loss to Doncaster Rovers.
The last game of 2014 provided the lads with the perfect opportunity to go into the Christmas break on the back of a positive result, they didn't disappoint beating Burton Albion 3-2 at the Eagle Valley Stadium in a thrilling game that was end to end from the first to the last whistle.
 
The lads sit third in the league just three points behind leaders Hull City having played 13 games, winning 7, drawing two and losing four, scoring 22 and conceding 22.
The first game of 2015 is this coming Saturday 10-01-2015 at the Eagle Valley Stadium against Rotherham United in an 11am kick off.
 
The League table can be found here and the Fixture grid found here
 
Colby Bishop
Colby Bishop continued his impressive form since he first signed his scholarship with the club in December 2013 by putting his signature on a two & half year professional contract in November 2014. He followed this up with an impressive display on his first team starting eleven debut in the boxing day loss to MK Dons.
Although not due to officially link up with the first team squad until the start of next season he has found himself increasingly involved within the first team squad in December which only bodes well for the future of not only Colby but the Notts County Academy as he is yet another member of the current first team squad to come through the ranks.
So when you see the lad involved on a Saturday lets all give him the extra support he deserves for his meteoric rise over the last 12 months.
william1984

League One Preview

By william1984, in News,

In this weeks PoN's preview to the League One games played on the 10th and 12th of January, several key games have been identified – None more important than the Sheffield United v Preston North End game, which several teams within League One will be looking out for.

If the Blades win, it will start to close the gap whereby sides hoping for the Play-Off will start to find it harder, if Preston North End win it keeps it wide open.
 
* Important Game – **Key Game
 
Saturday 10th January 2015
Barnsley v Yeovil – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-0)
*Bradford v Rochdale – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-0)
Bristol City v Notts County – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-1)
**Chesterfield v Port Vale – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-1)
Crawley v MK Dons – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-3)
Crewe v Gillingham – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-0)
*Leyton Orient v Fleetwood – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-1)
*Oldham v Doncaster – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-0)
*Peterborough v Colchester – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (3-0)
**Sheff Utd v Preston – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-2)
*Walsall v Scunthorpe – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-0)
 
Monday 12th January 2015
*Coventry v Swindon – Kick Off 7:45pm – Score Prediction (0-3)
 
My Stand-out Games
Sheff Utd v Preston
Crewe v Gillingham
Bristol City v Notts County
 
Bristol City could go back to top of the league temporarily with a win on Saturday until Swindon Town play on Monday who will be hoping to beat Coventry away from home.
Crewe will be hoping to ease their relegation fears with a win against fellow strugglers Gillingham.
Sheffield United's game against Preston North End gives the invitation for up to 6 sides to contest 6th place, with Chesterfield, Port Vale, Rochdale, Notts County, Peterborough and Fleetwood all in pursuit.
With several top teams and bottom clubs playing each other this weekend, I can see teams shooting up the league or dropping down a few places.
 
Thoughts on Bristol City v Notts County
This week’s match is a tough one for us.
Our current results against Bristol city have been poor especially away.
Our last victory against them away came back in 2005 in the F.A Cup when we beat them 2–0.
The overall head to head record slightly favours Bristol city also with them winning 41, us winning 38 and 22 draws.
Since Bristol city came back down from the championship we have only picked up 1 point from the possible 9.
I believe if we manage to get a point from the match we have done well, though that said I see us losing the match and I predict the final score to be 2-1 in their favour.
Joe Jones
Notts County are currently in ninth place, and just two points behind sixth-placed Sheffield United, but today's 1-0 defeat away at Bradford still proved a bitter pill to swallow, in that it was yet another negative result, the end of our unbeaten away run, and the realisation that we still need to put in a fair bit of work - and possibly invest in a few more players - if we are to actually put up a fight against the division's top sides.
 
The game began with the hosts on the front foot as they piled on the pressure against Notts, with Billy Knott and Andy Halliday missing two early chances for Bradford.
Soon enough, the visitors began mustering several efforts of their own, as Gary Jones’s free kick went out for a corner and Jake Cassidy struck the post with Jordan Pickford beaten.
Ryan Hall then came close when he latched onto a Thompson pass to fire a volley over the bar, but not long before half time, it was the home side that took the lead.
It was a soft goal to concede as well, as Roy Carroll got caught out when Hayden Mullins slipped with a Thompson pass going back towards goal, which allowed Halliday to retrieve possession and thread the ball through to Knott, who fired into the net with the help of a deflection.
 
Following the restart, the game found itself bogged down in midfield, with chances at a premium, and the longer the match went on, the more desperate Notts became.
Bradford nearly exploited this when Knott picked out an unmarked James Hanson inside the box, but Carroll was able to pull off a great save to tip the ball round the post.
In the last ten minutes, the Magpies huffed and puffed, but lacked penetration in the final third, which allowed the Bantams to see out the game and secure all three points.

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Pride of Nottingham

Pride of Nottingham is an independent fansite devoted to Notts County, the world’s oldest professional football club. Created in 2013, it has served as a source of Magpie news, features, match previews, reports, analysis and interviews for more than three years.

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