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I think the important point here is that nobody should expect Cal to suddenly produce something special every week just because we remember the best moments from his first spell. There will be games where things do not come off and he might frustrate people. That comes with being the sort of player who takes chances. What I like is that he seems prepared to try things that other players might not. When you see him pick the ball up and move towards a defender, you start wondering whether he is going outside, cutting in or having a shot. Football needs players who create that little bit of uncertainty. Three league games tell us very little about the season, but there have already been enough flashes to remind us what he can bring.

I think at times Notts puts extra pressure on themselves, which makes it harder to break down a side that is well organised. Harrogate looked stronger going forward than they did at the back, but they committed plenty of players to both. We had our own way of playing and kept trying to send crosses in from the left. A little more creativity would have helped, but I give credit to Martin Paterson for making attacking changes and not settling for a draw.

it was a frustrating game and i think the players did well not to get involved lashing out, well outside of matthew dennis pushing over on of their players but its not like we drew the game due to a lack of effort. it was more that harrogate made it hard, and we just did not have that spark of quality to overcome the occasion but i do think this reflects on some important subjects.

its good to have cal roberts back, he has the quality to do well and i dont worry so much having seen him play for us about his injury past. the club has done well to protect those with serious injuries, and even though all players get them we know what we are getting with cal. just look at his performance against luton town for example.

The bit about everyone leaning forward when Cal gets the ball really sums him up. You never quite know what he is going to try, and that is part of the fun.

A nice article we'll put together. I think one of the things that Martin Paterson has brought to the club is on the preparation side when it comes to matches in league 2. I think that it is making a difference. One area where the team was failing was it's failure to respond to what our opponents were doing & their tactics, however Paterson has demonstrated his ability to be able to change things mid game to Notts advantage, & I think that good match preparation is the key to that change.

Football is about learning while you play, and sometimes this season it has looked like promotion might not happen. Then we go on a good run and it feels possible again. There are still lots of games to play, so there are plenty of points to win. Harrogate will not be the only team to show where we are weak. I think back to the matches against Gillingham and Barrow. Those games really showed us a lot and made us think.

Credit to the back line for how they handled the late balls into the area. Ness and Bedeau took the first contacts and when the knockdowns fell, we had bodies around it. Roos’ decision-making was the difference between panic and control. A couple of high takes, one low claim, and we reset our shape. We also managed the bookings well. Bedeau takes one for a strong challenge, but after that we avoided cheap fouls near the box.

It’s not even his unpredictability that makes him such an exciting player to watch. For me, he has that winning attitude, and players who want to do well often help bring consistency to the squad. This past Saturday against Burton Albion, Cal looked very lively. He wasn’t pushed off the ball and stood out as our main threat, especially in the poor first half.

Makes sense. Harrogate showed how fragile we can be when we carry the weight of expectation.

Harrogate did not have to do much more than keep shape and wait for errors. We freeze when a weaker side comes to spoil the game. It has happened too often to ignore. I liked the bit about mental preparation because it is a side of football most fans never get to see. We talk about tactics and shape but the real battle is often inside the head. If Paterson can fix that, we will look a different side in tight games.

It is good to have Cal back, just hope hes not too badly injured after that tackle on saturday, he did seem to be hobbling about at full time.

a very enjoyable away game, fans were class! i thought they did well to make a game of it in the second half, i did not see their goal all that well due to being blocked but i thought despite it notts deserved the three points. i am going to enjoy the rest of my trip home now. 😀

A brilliant article. Cal has a special place in the hearts of the Notts supporters. I would like to thank the powers that be at Notts for brining him back. Some players have a knack of being able to produce a moment of quality and flair & Cal is that type of player along with Jodi Jones & Macaulay Langstaff. But it's not just the flair and the quality, it's about how they resonate with supporters on an emotional level too. I think that Cal has a big part to play this season, & along with the new signings that the owners have recruited, it's going to be an exciting season.

We varied it nicely. Bennetts and Tsaroulla gave us width early on, and the set-piece threat paid off, Jatta pounced, Hall finished smartly. Cheltenham had their spell after the break, but we stayed solid. Roos made a vital save, we handled the bookings, used the bench well, and saw it out with composure.

Proper away display. Two first-half goals, then managed it well when they came on strong.

The older players mentioned in the article were before my time, but I still understood the point Graham was making. Every generation seems to have a few players that supporters remember differently from the rest. It is not always the player with the best statistics either. Sometimes it is somebody who produced one moment that stayed with you or simply played in a way that made going to a match more exciting. That is where Cal fits for me. You know there is a risk that he gives the ball away, but there is also a chance he does something nobody else on the pitch has seen. Modern football can become very organised and careful, so having someone willing to break that pattern is refreshing.

The first half was an excellent performance one of the best I’ve seen this season, we could easily have been 4-0 in the lead but I said in the matchday thread that Cheltenham would be a different side in the second half and so it proved, I did get nervous when they scored but Notts showed great resilience and held on for a great away win.

Good win for Notts, sounded like we played really well.

Fantastic three points against an in form team. Was that Scott Robertson's best performance in a Notts shirt? I think it was right up there. Notts go into the promotion places in third place for the first time this season. I was worried when Palmer & Jones weren't playing tonight but the players that came in, Iorpenda & Bennetts did brilliantly especially in the first half. The performance in that first half was arguably the best half of football under Paterson.

Tsaroulla excellent down the left. Unlucky with the header off the post.

@Graham said: "One answer would be to say that we don’t have enough players with the right mentality and we need to make this a recruitment priority". I think that you have made an important point here. Players were brought in during the summer & we were told that they were more physical & could hold their own against those strong uncompromising teams in League 2. But we now find ourselves with 8 out of the 10 outfield players from last season now playing in Martin's first 11. The problems that we saw towards the end of last season is showing itself once again. The January window is going to be more important than ever to ensure that the club recruits players with the mentality to deal with the pressure & hold their own against those tough & physical sides.

If the brothers have any sense they won’t have any or certainly not read any social media, which is where the majority of the “supporters” who want them out seem to air their ridiculous views. I’ve said before that anyone who says the brothers should leave our club needs their head testing, they obviously have very short memories of the shambles our club has been in recent years under a succession of poor owners. People should be careful what they wish for. The Reedtz brothers are slowly building a sustainable club that is fit for higher divisions where we are hoping to be in the future and I for one hope they are here for the long haul.

Excellent Article @Graham. Well written and Valid Points all round. One problem that does raise it's Head is Certain Fans seem to think that as the Brothers Saved the Club, then they are above Criticism and Can Do No Wrong, and if any Notts Fan who thinks otherwise is Small Minded and Not a True Magpies Fan. Owning a Football Club Paints a Big Target on Your Back (Alan Hardy and Ray Trew are examples). You're going to get moaned at you're going to get Criticized, why? A simple Answer it's the Fans Money and Support that is the Lifeblood of any Football Club. Like Players, Owners Come and Go, one day the Reedtz Brothers will be gone, but the Fans Remain, And Every Fan has an Opinion which they are entitled too. It really doesn't Matter how Many Millions an Owner Puts into a Club, they will only be Judged on one thing by many of their Fans. Success On The Pitch. Even the Greatest Owner of Notts County F.C Derek Pavis faced Criticism when he Modernized Meadow Lane and he said as much in an interview. Fans who moan seem ungrateful, but that's Human Nature and the Nature of the Beast, that is Football. When they arrived at the Lane the Brothers had Plans, Perhaps it would be a Good Idea for them to Reissue those Plans and see how they are coming along and give the Notts Faithful an idea where they hope the Club will be in Five Years Time and maybe it would be an Idea to Communicate with the Fans more often, instead of keeping what's happening at the Club quite and leaving the Fans in The Dark.

Great read on such an exceptional player. In my opinion he was the best player I saw play for Notts who took us from the fourth to the Ist Division as Captain & Midfield General and playmaker. Simply a big Notts legend & he's top of my players hall of fame too.