Can Notts County make the playoffs?

[Robbie]

Last season, Salford City made the playoffs in 7th place with 22 wins, 9 draws, 15 losses & 75 points. I think to be safe in the playoffs this season 80 points may achieve it for Notts this season.

Notts have accrued 42 points from 26 games So far. So 38 points minimum from 20 games left is doable. 12 wins and two draws would do it, allowing for 6 additional losses. Anything more from those 6 games would be a bonus.

It is going to be a stretch though. We have some tough games still to come against the top four,  Mansfield, Barrow, Wrexham, & Stockport, & all the other games will be tough too,  but I am confident we still have a good chance of making the playoffs.

Thoughts?

[Fozzy]

All depends on two things now.

How quick can we get additional signings in that hopefully improve the side.

How quick can we replace Luke Williams (if he does go), and who will be caretaker.

I think we will fall short unless we improve our defence before the Grimsby game.

[DangerousSausage]

In terms of points, we definitely can. 80 points will pretty much always get you a playoff spot. We're currently on target for 74, which might be enough too but isn't always.

However, we've got a lot of work to do. We need more quality at the back and more competition everywhere. If LW leaves that'll be a hammer blow as the players clearly love working with him and we'll need to find a worthy successor. And that raises the chances of us losing important players this month.

Ideally you'll have one or two areas for improvement during the transfer window. This season hasn't gone as smoothly as hoped and I think we've got a bit too much to do to fix the issues we have. 

[Fan of Big Tone]

I just hope the season doesn’t go downhill from here after Williams goes, I feel most of the players will be gutted and it may affect their game, however they are professionals and have probably seen managers come and go before.

A lot hinges on who the new manager will be but the owners got it right last time so let’s hope they do again.

[Ohh Tommy Johnson]

Absolutely we can.  We have been on a relatively poor away run, and whilst we are doing well we aren't without issues that have been present for a good while.  So, there is an opportunity for new eyes and new ideas to positively impact the team.  That plus some new blood and I don't see why we can't make the play offs, and, let's face it, automatic isn't out of the question yet either (albeit much more of a long shot).

[Robbie]

Now that Luke has left and gone to Swansea, a New Head Coach I'm sure, will give us added impetus to make the playoffs with his fresh style of play,.adding something else for opponents to think about.

I look forward to that and the making of more history for our club 

[liampie]

we are good enough to reach the playoffs, its possible we can still reach the automatics if the away form can be improved. our next manager has that task to make sure we are a fortress still at meadow lane but a difficult team to face away from it.

right now i think the playoffs should be comfortable to achieve.

our squad is a bit thin with injuries but at least the new manager has the chance to bring in a few of his own players, well via our recruitment. it will be interesting to see how we strengthen defensively.

[Robbie]

I agree @liampie I also believe that Jim O'Brien being appointed as interim Head Coach, is a good move to get us kick started again.

[Robbie]

I believe we can now that Luke Williams has gone. Jim will hopefully get a good result at Grimsby.

When the new permanent Head Coach is appointed, Notts will get another big lift again.

Reaching the playoffs in our first season back in League 2 would be tremendous.

[menzinho]

I feel like the loss of LW has the potential to disrupt us a bit. I think the quicker we get a new head coach in the better. Happy for Jim to take the reigns for the meantime but I don't really expect too much from him, I'm hoping he can lead us to victory in the short-term, but it's a big job for someone to take on with limited experience and at the start of their coaching career.

I still think we can finish in play-offs though. The new head coach will have a real tough start, could potentially be in for Stockport and then it's Barrow and Mansfield. In Feb we've got Wrexham and Bradford away as well as facing Crewe and Wimbledon! Looks like we'll get all the tough games out the way and should have an easier run in.

Edited January 7 by menzinho

[Robbie]

I agree @menzinho if we perform as well as we did in our first 26 games, win more than we lose with a few draws in there, we can still make the playoffs. 

If we can get another 12 wins & 2 draws from the last 22 matches that's doable. On that model we could afford to lose up to 8 matches & still qualify with 80 points.

[Robbie]

Now that our new Head Coach has been appointed, Stuart  Maynard, the odds have increased that Notts may make the playoffs. The next 5 games starting with Barrow at home  on Saturday will probably go a long way in defining our season end position.

[Fan of Big Tone]

There’s a lot of water to flow under Trent Bridge before May and play offs but let’s keep our fingers crossed it would be an amazing achievement.

[Chris]

Mansfield, Gillingham and Wrexham will be big deciders on where Notts should finish.

I still feel we are good enough for automatics on paper, but you don't win games that easy and our squads' depth is one area where we need to manage more than just who we play. We can't afford any injuries, so strengthening now is something that will help and what we have done so far seems to be adding to the squad in areas where we need to improve.

I am hoping Jaden Warner proves to be a massive coup at centre back.

If Scott Robertson can fill the gap we have in midfield, or just prove to be a very solid addition then those two areas should play out well. We also have no idea how Stuart Maynard will do, but I think it's a great appointment which for the long term should do well.

If under Maynard we become more confident, less pressure to score goals should see us improve away from home which is the area where we ideally need to improve on. Away form and defending better go hand in hand with what we need to see. I would like to say, I can foresee Maynard rallying the squad and getting us to forming good winning streaks.

It's still an unknown, but we should at least be in and around the playoffs, if Maynard fixes issues at the back, and we get some good results again then he may do similar to when Steve Cotterill took over. By this I mean play at our best, reduce the mistakes at the back and just become very consistent.

[Robbie]

I agree @Chris 

Mansfield drew again tonight, so they are not really pulling away from Notts, nor are the other contenders. I really do believe that we have an excellent chance of making the playoffs, Even if we just scrape into the 7th place slot, no side would like to meet us, with the firepower we have, I agree that defensively, we have to improve, that is a key area and I believe that Stuart is a little more defensively minded than Luke, so on Saturday, I will be looking to see if there are any small modifications to our shape and style. It will be interesting if Jayden goes straight into the side and if Stuart plays a back four or back 3 and if Scott will be holding in the centre.Not getting exposed when losing possession up front will also be key.

These next 5 matches will go along way to defining our season.

[CliftonMagpie]

In the short term, it would indeed be a letdown to have climbed so high only to lose our head coach and playoff spot. While the board and Stuart Maynard have stated that promotion is the goal, perhaps not this season, we must maintain a positive outlook. Otherwise, the season could quickly become uninspiring, dampening the magical atmosphere within the club. We must continue to strive forward, even if the best outcome doesn’t materialise.

[Robbie]

22 hours ago, CliftonMagpie said:

In the short term, it would indeed be a letdown to have climbed so high only to lose our head coach and playoff spot. While the board and Stuart Maynard have stated that promotion is the goal, perhaps not this season, we must maintain a positive outlook. Otherwise, the season could quickly become uninspiring, dampening the magical atmosphere within the club. We must continue to strive forward, even if the best outcome doesn’t materialise.

I've listen to Steve's pre Barrow press Conference today and I believe that we have an excellent chance of making the playoffs, we might not score as many goals but we will be more secure at the back which is important.

[Fan of Big Tone]

9 hours ago, Robbie said:

I've listen to Steve's pre Barrow press Conference today

I think you mean Stuart’s press conference. 

I really hope he gets off to a great start with a comfortable win. There’s absolutely no reason why we can’t make the playoffs. Hopefully things will continue as before just a different face in the dugout and a few tweaks here and there especially in defence.

[Robbie]

9 hours ago, Robbie said:

I've listen to Stuart's pre Barrow press Conference today and I believe that we have an excellent chance of making the playoffs, we might not score as many goals but we will be more secure at the back which is important.

 

2 minutes ago, Fan of Big Tone said:

I think you mean Stuart’s press conference. 

I really hope he gets off to a great start with a comfortable win. There’s absolutely no reason why we can’t make the playoffs. Hopefully things will continue as before just a different face in the dugout and a few tweaks here and there especially in defence.

Auto correct is a pain, have edited to correct it. Thanks for pointing it out. And yes I agree, There is every chance we can make the playoffs.

[Fan of Big Tone]

6 hours ago, Robbie said:

Thanks for pointing it out.

No problem @Robbie it might have been embarrassing for you if you’d stood up at the match and started singing “Stevie Maynards Black and White Army” 

[themightymagpies]

Teams are starting to strengthen and add quality to their squads, and we’re no different. However, I’m concerned about our recent foray into the loan market. While Jaden Warner is a quality addition, the young goalkeeper is relatively unknown. I’m worried that we haven’t adequately addressed squad depth, which could haunt us later. As other teams become more cohesive with new signings, we seem to be keeping our squad numbers on the lean side.

[Robbie]

Today's match against Barrow will tell us quite a lot whether Notts can go on to claim a place in the playoffs.

A good defensive performance and a narrow win today would give the team lots of confidence going into the next set of tough matches.

[Robbie]

What I've seen today has given me confidence that Notts can make the playoffs. We need 10 wins and a few draws in the last 18 matches to be sure.

[super_ram]

It's good to see the positivity continuing

[DangerousSausage]

We got one point out of Barrow, Mansfield, Stockport and Wrexham in the first half of the season. Anything we gain from the latter three will be an improvement on that, hopefully starting next week For the time being though, I don't think Mansfield and Wrexham are our direct rivals - Gillingham and Wimbledon are.