I suppose I've given myself ten games, so my analysis is as follows.

At the current trajectory, we're looking mid-table. That's not a criticism of what we look like in a footballing sense, merely statistical. At present we’re averaging 1.375 points per game. If we continue in that vein, we’re seeing us finish 11th at best (this is based on the last 4/5 seasons.

Let’s look at the scores:

• 1-1 draw against Newport (who are now 22nd)

• 2-1 loss against Salford (who are 3rd)

• 1-0 loss against Wigan - played a strong squad and garnered 65% possession

• 2-1 loss against Barrow (who are 21st)

• 4-1 win against Shrewsbury (who are 23rd)

• 2-2 draw against Bromley (who are 7th)

• 2-1 win against Tranmere (who are 16th)

• 3-0 loss against Lincoln (second squad put out)

• 1-0 win against Fleetwood (who are 11th)

• 1-0 loss against Gillingham (who sit in 2nd)

MP sits on a 30% win rate - we also have scored 8 goals excluding the 4 we scored at Shrewsbury which feels like a bit of an outlier in scores. 

Now that’s the data side done, what have we been told about what’s expected. 

• First and foremost, he’s been told by the club that they want promotion, “as simple as that” - 1st August, Martin Paterson (bbc).

• We’ve also been told that this is one of the highest budgets that we’ve had to date with the Reedz brothers, one which MP, up until recently deemed unsatisfactory as he wanted a new GK and a new striker.

• Lastly, we’ve been told physical elements and directives on changing the club to be more involved in the “dark arts”.

1 - We will not achieve that on the current trajectory.

2 - Whether or not we ever were able to compete or make inroads about getting in more players, it’s not his job, publicly, to say that.

3 - Although more physical players in terms of size have come in, we’re much more susceptible to crosses and set pieces than we ever were under Williams and Maynard.

Onto MP himself.

Forever the socialist, “it is not I, only we!” MP is driving the “we, the team” in terms of narrative. Whether that’s a collective call for unity or that of concealment of his real thoughts which come out in training or the dressing room, we’ll never know.

We get versions of himself via interviews, which haven’t won me over. I think personally, that his career is something he links to hard graft and perseverance, and that he’s trying to change the club’s playing philosophy, not adapting or moulding it.

There are occasions whereby I’ve enjoyed bits, because I’ve seen technical flair and exciting play happen, but then I question myself, is that because of him or in spite of him?

There are players we’ve seen that have improved/deteriorated from his managerial/coaching style with Matt Palmer being the standout. If MP were to go, I’d worry about how it might affect his game for the remainder of the season. Bedeau and Jones have dropped in terms of a really high bar we’ve had here for a while, so suggests his methods are much more jarring than what we’ve seen before.

I think MP is on a short contract here, given that it wasn’t mentioned in the press when he was appointed, so suggests he wasn’t highly regarded or was a backup to a backup - if this is indeed the case. If the owners have the foresight that it only takes one bad transfer window to throw out a DOF, then time is ticking very quickly for Martin. Lastly, Martin had 20 games at Burton before he was sacked, which I can see become a real big possibility if we don’t see improvements all over.

(I think I deserve praise for not mentioning Roos or Grant once!) - also I have posted this on Footymad also, but thought it's an engaging conversation peice at least!

Good topic for discussion & good analysis of the current situation at Notts so far @piedestrian

In my opinion the Club has clearly regressed from last season regarding overall performance & the way that Notts are now playing.

I get that Notts need to be a little more physical & less at risk of being bullied by teams, but Notts are still conceding goals by giving the ball away in their own half & being susceptable to crosses & dead ball situations into the box every match. Notts still have problems against an aggressive high press.

A big issue for me, Notts are missing a playmaker & have never effectively replaced either Ruben or Dan in the AM role.

I can see why Martin is trying to use Jodi in a similar role, however I still think he is more effective on the wings, which seemed to bear that out against Gillingham when he came on in the 2nd half.

It's a shame that Notts couldn't get a result on Saturday. They very nearly did. They were just let down by another defensive mistake that gave the ball away & led to the Gillingham goal.

We are where we are. Notts have to do the best they can up to the next transfer window & try to stay as close to a playoff place as they can. All said & done, it only takes a good run of form to climb this league.

Despite some of the problems I still remain optimistic of our chances of making the playoffs again.

I have to admit, the current style of football we are playing is the worst I can remember since before the relegation to the National League. I was hoping that the slow start would turn into gradual improvement. We seem to be very static in that respect. In terms of league games we have only lost by an odd goal, so while we are competing physically, it has been pretty dire to watch. It would be easier to accept if we could see some progress but it’s hard to see it happening at the moment. Is Gagliardi’s departure the first sign the brothers don’t like what they are watching either? We will have to wait and see!

@piedestrian, I can't argue with this analysis but I am still clinging onto the (perhaps desperate) hope that the high quality, high tempo and exciting football football we have been given very brief glimpses of (e.g. Newport first half) will translate into a proper 90 minute performance at some point soon.

I do have some worries though. Here is my top 4:

1. The players are currently too tentative and look like they don't fully understand what is being asked of them tactically.

2. There is a lack of movement when we have possessionand there are too many examples of miscommunication between players (understandable at the start of the season but won't be after 15 matches).

3. Jodi hasn't smiled all season and hasn't yet really got going in his new role. (How many players are enjoying life under the new regime?

4. Dennis in his most recent interview appeared to be dwelling on the challenges of adapting to a new environment more than the excitement of being at a new club and starting well. It is hard not to imagine that Paterson is currently passing on slightly more of the stress he feels under than is good for the players.

That said, we have to remember that Paterson has started a lot better than Maynard who, if my memory serves me correctly, won one and lost six of his first eight league games as Notts boss.

I think sometimes our expectations including mine are high, I like other supporters want Notts to do well and win as many games as possible with the ultimate goal being promotion to league 1. I'm not sure if we can achieve our goal this year but what i will say is were only 2 points from a play off spot and 7 points off the league leaders if we were in this postion with 8 games remaining I think we would feel we were in with a chance so we shouldn't be writing our season off just yet.

There is a glaring inconsistency - both between and during games.

Whatever the philosophy and plans are, we struggle to put a coherent performance together. We seem incapable, yet, of producing successive positive displays.

I cling to the hope that the extra steel & grit we are showing can be harnessed to more fluent and creative football. If enthusiasm and passion count then MP has tons of both - getting the players to respond accordingly appears to be a trickier, but critically important, factor.

The thing is, and it should be the main narrative, is that we're judging every match based on the fact that we should be challenging if not completely levelling teams like Gillingham. This is both from an evolution of what we've come to expect from the brothers ownership and the overall objective of the season. Every delayed pass forward, every 8 second countdown and flap from Roos and every conceded set piece we get further and further away from what we've been told is the complete objective, supported by a big ol' bag of cash (budget). It's a very short rope for MP, one I'm sure he realises is getting smaller and smaller with every passing interview.

Losing Didzy was a big loss, Jodi is being played in a position where he isn't going to play at his very best.

Jodi is very dangerous for opposition on the wing. He got a record number of assists from that position. If it were me I would try Hall in the number 10 position & put Jodi back on the left wing

If Paterson doesn't pick Jodi in the first eleven next Saturday against Crawley I will be very concerned. I also feel that having Norburn & Iorpenda in the same side, two defensive midfielders, isn't a good look for our attacking prowess.

I want to see the Notts team on the front foot looking to score goals, not on the back foot trying to prevent goals.

I think Martin Paterson needs to get the players moving more to create space. We are playing too slowly and his results so far have been underwhelming. I do believe we should try to support him, but at the same time someone with more experience might have handled the fixtures better. I like that he makes changes during games to try to improve things.

I also like that he keeps the squad mostly settled and does not seem to favour certain players. The main problems seem to be preparation and getting consistent performances from the team. I am not sure why he brought on Tyreese Hall. I have not seen enough of him, but I felt we had better options. I no longer listen to Paterson after games and instead choose to read his comments or watch them later.

Notts do not have enough individual players performing well on a regular basis. As a team, nobody is really taking it upon themselves to drive the side forward. At this stage, even with the new signings, the team should be playing with much more cohesion. I do not think Ollie Norburn is providing the level of experience in midfield that the club spoke so highly of when he signed. Jodi Jones, even out wide, was ineffective against Gillingham. He did try, but he does not seem comfortable in the attacking midfield role.

I hope that in a few more games things will start to click, but the players need to take more responsibility for the standard they are showing. The inconsistent performances are only holding us back. Martin Paterson could also look at running some team-based training camps or bonding activities to get the best out of the squad. I am sure Notts look capable on the training pitch, but too often in matches things go missing that you would not expect from this group.

Martin Paterson gives me hope, but he does not seem to be getting the best out of anyone so far. If his bond with the players was stronger, I think he could get the defence throwing themselves in front of every ball or at least making better attempts to block what they cannot chase down. The most frustrating thing is how disconnected the midfield looks at times. Against Gillingham, it might have been better to play with a single striker. I also thought Ollie Norburn could have been replaced to allow Jodi to play further forward.

I believed bringing on Barry Cotter and Jodi would help, but in truth only one of them got involved enough to give any real hope. Paterson needs to work out which players are giving their all and which are not. If he sees that someone else could do the job better, he must be braver in dropping players before a game. Right now, things feel very average, with the odd glimpse of promise but a lot of frustration as well.

Eight games in, I think we are starting to see what Martin Paterson is about. A couple more wins would help back up his comments about judging him fairly. As a coach, I think he is fine and improvements will come with time. I am not sure we are seeing clear signs of everyone working together yet. Performances have been a bit mixed, but there are signs of progress. His calls for reinforcements, alongside the return of injured players, feel like they could be an excuse in the making.

This squad should be strong enough to climb the table, so some of the slow start is on Paterson, some on the club, and a lot on the players’ desire to win. I see good qualities in Paterson and I want it to work. I like how vocal he is on the touchline, and this should improve as the players buy into his vision. The players need to work harder. At times it feels like they do not know how to break a team down, and the midfield has a big role in helping us play forward. I said with Stuart Maynard that a full season was the best way to judge him, and I felt he did achieve some improvement before his sacking after the AFC Wimbledon game.

I believe Paterson could do well with a full season, but right now the players seem to be struggling to adapt to a different way of thinking. Paterson talks about culture and the changes he is bringing in, but I am sure many players feel much of it was already here.

I feel like the biggest issue right now is what is it that we are trying to be? Martin Paterson wants us to on the front foot, yet I a lot of the time we play very deep. It's like we somehow want to press teams without leaving any space in behind for but that is just never going to be possible. We want to be in control of matches too but the general quality in terms of passing has dropped, we seem to knock the ball out of play/mis-control it a lot more than we used to and I don't know why.

I think it’s still too early to judge, but I wonder if Martin is trying to make too many changes that aren't really needed. Last season overall we set up ok, but we slow in possession, predictable, not very creative and over-reliant on individuals for moments of brilliance. I like that he wants us to be a little more direct with more of an edge but he is yet to actually get us playing that way.