Finding Our Feet in League One: Nerves, Patience and Progress

Similar to the discussion about us being a quarter of the way through the season, as stated by @Sheffield Pie. I thought I would share some of my own points, rather than focusing on where we are now. I aim to reflect on areas of our game that I feel Notts must overcome.

I might be wrong with my perspective, but I feel at times Notts have been "nervous" to play some of the teams we have, and naturally we do have many new signings who, early on, required time to settle. By nervousness, I don't necessarily mean that the players are intimidated by the opposition. It's more that I feel we sometimes hesitate when we should be playing our natural game. There have been moments where we seem less assured in possession, and I do wonder whether the pressure of adapting to League One has played a part.

I thought against Leicester City back in August Notts should have won, but the draw was a very credible point. I think there were only some elements of nervousness being shown in the game, which at the time I felt I overlooked. It was a good time for us to play them, as their start wasn't the brightest, but they seem to have picked up since the opening game, which is to be expected.

Against Luton Town, I felt Notts were the better side and that it could have been another three points. The home win against Burton Albion gave me further confidence that Notts would establish themselves at League One level.

Doncaster, for me, either team could have won, but I think for the first time a draw was about right. I still think the mood after Jodi Jones's departure had dampened the mood around our camp, but the lads showed signs that we were fully capable without his brilliance.

Optimistic in a positive sense is how I would sum up going to Huddersfield, but despite the game being slow in spells. I wasn't among the fans who felt Notts should have done better or that it was a glimpse of doom to come. I thought the goal we conceded was very sloppy, but this is where I feel signs of nervousness starting to show.

I felt we were perhaps showing the opposition too much respect at times, rather than having the confidence to impose ourselves. That's not to take anything away from Huddersfield, because they were a very good side, but I wondered whether we were starting to become more conscious of avoiding mistakes than playing our usual football.

Huddersfield were very good, especially in attack and on the counter. They pressed and caused us a nightmare, but defensively after their opening goal I don't feel we put a foot wrong and left happy with the point. It was at this stage that, if we wanted to stay up, we would need to start winning and turn these games into wins.

That seemed fair to say, but at the same time I am of the mindset that being new to a league sometimes results in uncertainty and difficulty in winning.

Bradford City: I felt disappointed by the defeat; I don't think Notts gave their best account, and although a draw was possible, there was a turn to win. Bradford were decent, and again I noticed some signs of nerves.

I didn't see the Reading game, but I felt Notts responded brilliantly with the win against Grimsby. In the following game against Oxford, we had spells, but they showed their class and we sort of stumbled to create good chances. I felt we struggled against sides that play direct passing and persist with constant pressure. I do wonder whether some of what I see as nervousness is actually a result of the opposition forcing us into mistakes. When teams press us and don't allow us the time to settle, we can look uncomfortable. Perhaps it's something we are still learning to deal with at this level.

This is an approach where I was away, so the games beyond aren't something I can really comment on.

I didn't watch the Wycombe game as I was away with my family; I kept tabs on the scores and avoided scrolling through social media due to reading comments about Notts being back to being poor (polite terms).

Fans always seem quite capable of falling out with each other when the results don't quite build confidence; I wasn't worried. I do think the squad has been hampered by injuries, a lack of playing to strengths, but it's nothing of major concern. Martin Paterson seems capable of change, learning, and lifting the spirits. Seeing some usual suspects declare at this stage that he should be sacked made me laugh. For me, the important thing is whether Paterson recognises what isn't working and looks to address it. I don't expect him to get everything right, especially when we're still finding our feet, but I do want to see signs that we're learning from difficult games rather than repeating the same mistakes.

I felt the Sheffield Wednesday game gave our lads some confidence and was an unexpected win. I didn't see the game. I might dig up the matches on the official site and give a full watch of which complete games exist, but I do feel that at this level performances might be less than perfect. I will seek stability and establish ourselves as a League One team.

At this stage, I would happily accept being an average team at this level.

I think sometimes it's easy to forget how much work went into getting us out of the National League. We didn't become a promotion-winning side overnight, and I don't think we should expect to immediately become one of the strongest teams in League One either. Establishing ourselves, learning how to compete consistently and gradually improving the squad would be progress in my eyes.

The ambition to play in the Championship, some perspective and patience would go a long way. We had a spell at the other end of the table, and some time nearer the footer. The prospect of the new signings is very promising; Notts look more than capable of playing good football. The question is to find consistency and slog out those draws and wins that come from those harder matches.

I feel a level of match-day nerves has played a factor in some of the poorer form, but despite all this I feel we are in the right position to improve.

As I write this, I have the Burton game on, and I feel we have played quite well.

I might write off this competition; to me it means little, but the performance can build belief. The brilliant opening goal could have been followed up with a nice looping cross that met a header. The only final point I have is that, with a single striker, we need to play to their strengths, and I don't think this has always been the case for Daniel Kanu.

I believe we had two against Mansfield, with one dropping into midfield at times, and if this is right. It does show Paterson's understanding of how to get those crucial wins.

Ultimately, I think Notts are in a good position to improve, and I don't feel there's any reason to be overly concerned. We have shown that we can compete at this level, but finding consistency and learning how to approach different opponents will be important. I still feel confidence has played a part in some of our performances, although it could just be part of adjusting to League One. Do others feel we've looked nervous at times, or is it more a case of finding the right approach against stronger opposition?

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