Chris

Grimsby won't be the same that we played at Meadow Lane, they will be more switched on now, and I can see the game unfolding similar to Tranmere Rovers. I think they will want to be direct and take the game straight to us, I can't see them being passive on the ball. If I were Jim, I would approach the game mindful of our defensive issues. If we do play Luca Ashby Hammond we do need to be cautious of this because it's very much an unknown and matches are very different to training. Defensively we need to be tight, on the ball ideally creative and forward-thinking. With us taking our chances on goals which present themselves, a good all round performance will be a good sign. I'm hopeful that the departure of Luke Williams is a smooth transition for us, as it will help whoever comes in if we can maintain a level of good form.

Huddersfield Town 2-0 Plymouth Argyle Millwall 1-1 Middlesbrough Northampton Town 1-3 Wigan Athletic Joker Reading 1-0 Port Vale Wycombe Wanderers 1-2 Lincoln City Accrington Stanley 0-0 Gillingham Doncaster Rovers 1-0 Newport County Eastleigh 2-2 Southend United

I saw his interview on East Midlands Today. He looked quite different, and it was horrible to see just how much he had changed. I know, he's 75, but he's always looked rather healthy. It's such a shame; I really wish him and his family all the best. I don't feel it's appropriate to share an image of him from the interview, but for anyone who saw it will understand what I mean. It's awful! When I worked at Harts Restaurant and Hotel, I met him many times and due to our first encounter whenever he was in - he would ask to say hello to me. The first time I met him, I froze and thought that I would be sacked instantly because I was working as a kitchen porter. I had to fetch something from the store room and, the general manager hated kitchen staff being seen in the lobby areas, but there was no other way to access it. The head chef used to pop his head out of the kitchen door to see if the coast was clear for us 'unseen workers'. It just so happens that I was wearing an old Notts shirt (plain white), I was coming down some stairs as I noticed Sven walking from the direction of the men's room. I was overwhelmed and a little starstruck. We're not supposed to interact with dinners or guests, he walked up to me and said "Hello", I didn't reply. He said, 'Oh, I see. You support Nottingham County;. ???? I replied. 'Yes, I support Notts County.' He asked me how long I had supported them, he replied 'I like Nottingham and Nottingham County. He also enquired about Forest, which is where I politely mentioned that it is Notts County and Nottingham Forest, informing Sven that people wouldn't like it and would pick up on it. He thanked me and asked if I would be watching the next Notts game. I told him I would be working, but I do make games when my rota is free. A little side note, one of the other times Sven spoke to me, I mentioned that I was floating the idea of taking my Notts forum more seriously. It was him, who told me to do it. I called @GrannyPie on my break and told her about this, briefly speaking to @super_ram. In 2006, I started a basic forum under the domain notts-county.co.uk. It was just family and select friends, quite a simple setup. It merged into the Pride of Nottingham. I'm very thankful for the kindness Sven showed me because it proved what a gentleman he is.

If we can gain promotion, it may take him a bit of time (just as it did this season) but there's no denying his quality. The thing which enables him to adapt to playing higher up, is his work ethic and relentless desire to do well. It also helps that he's so down to earth. When I saw calls for him to be dropped when he hadn't scored in a few games at the beginning of the season, I felt it would have been a huge mistake because it was simply down to chances. Dropping a player like Macaulay Langstaff to me seems a very negative move, because his instinct is to have efforts on goal and to surge of the chances which present themselves. He's by far more than a poacher, fox in the fox or tap in merchant. He's such a good talent, that it's hard to believe he was playing park football with his friends before making his move into the game. Our ambition must be to grow alongside him, but at some point unfortunately he will move on.

This is another area I need to educate myself on, as I don't know many tennis players, but I do like to watch it. It would be nice if we had more than Andy Murray competing for grand slams, but we put way too much pressure on talent. Emma Raducanu is a prime example of this. I'm also pleased to see the tweet about Alfie Hewett. Someone can correct me, but I believe it was Alfie who did that powerful video about treating him the same and not criticising disabled athletes for being boring.

@Robbie I am a bit ignorant to rugby, I don't find it very interesting - except for big games. Did they almost go up to the top level during COVID? A little while ago, my wife's family was discussing the Leicester Tigers. It was mentioned that they were close, I don't remember if it was said they made the playoffs or something. I did show a brief interest when they were part of us, but I tend to be less interested in sports I struggle to get excited about.

@Piethagoram belated birthday wishes to you! The decorations is @cheeky~k8 department, I would have them up all year round - along with most of our children. Don't listen to Super, nobody ever complained about him taking them down, it was more complaints about getting him to actually put the things up. ???? I actually miss helping to sort and find them, it always brought the Christmas excitement with it and made my parents home feel all the merrier around that time of year. Besides, Super could be like Scrooge in more ways than one.

It looks nice in the picture, but puts the fear of god into me if I saw that amount of birds in person.

I wished they included a picture of what it normally looks like, no doubt its mostly flooded now, but it doesn't look great. It reminds me of a story @cheeky~k8 shared with me about a man who built a wall around his home to stop the floods getting in. Only these can't do much about it. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-67888641

Yes, I suspect the form is mostly down to what unfortunately happened to Adam Johnson. I don't think a death such as that would be very easy to just continue with, as it happened live and was quite graphic. I haven't watched the Panthers live yet, but I have always wanted to go watch them.

I am sure it's not directly due to Robbie Fowler, or at least nothing dodgy on his behalf. He's made a good income investing his career earnings into properties, and although I don't know much about this story, I suspect he may have been fooled into any promises he gave simply because of his passion. Things like this are always sadly such a huge gamble.

@Robbie Yes, of course. I still aim to go through the forums just to ensure things are in the right locations. This is something I should have done before now; however, it's good to have it all settled. The refresh looks fantastic. ????

Yes, Notts Women's team now has a forum for all their discussions - including any match based ones. So if it's related to the ladies team, that's where it goes. I have also added a general sports forum. Thanks, @Robbie. ---- Additionally, I have updated all the forums descriptions. On the community index page, Notts forums are at the top, followed by PON, then All things related to sports. English, Domestic World Football, International and the 'Sports Stage'. https://prideofnottingham.co.uk/community/forum/27-the-sports-stage-everything-outside-of-football/ Admin announcements are at the very bottom, partly to encourage people to view the bottom end of the site and because I like using the announcement feature to pin important posts, which makes it more convenient to have the section out of the way. As suggested by @Burnz3r0, I will also rewrite the welcome message new members get sent automatically - along with updating the introduction section.

@Fan of Big Tone I was trying to figure out where best to place it. I have decided to place it as a sub forum to the 'Match Talk'. I didn't think leaving it inside the 'English Football' forum would be a good choice. I'm quite content personally with the layout, so I will begin to update the descriptions.

For now, I will add a general 'other sports'. If content within this section demands it's own forum, I will extend to this way within time.

He looks like a player of the right age, just waiting to fit into a team like Notts. If he settles in well and works hard, he should prove to be a good signing. I have heard he's got a bit of a bad attitude from fans of his former club(s). I usually wait to make my own judgement, but it's always interesting to see what people say. Personally, I think it's a good signing.

If I remember right, he's got a fair amount of pace about him. Other than that, I don't really know much about him, but the last name does stand out. I think he broke into Grimsby Town's squad before bouncing around on loan.

Sorry, @Piethagoram. I hide the forum it was posted in as a way to slowly move the posts in which are located inside (in bulk). I have relocated it properly now. You will be able to see it again.

After some feedback, I have decided to shake the forum categories up and structure things differently. I will be amending each section's description to make it clearer what should be posted within each area, as a means to remove any confusion. Also, we could consider creating forums for different sports apart from football. Should we opt for a general sports forum or split them up? I'm still very much in the process, but as always feedback is important. ????

I remember the news about the sentencing of certain Sub Post Masters, but I didn't really know much about it until around 2010. One of my favourite YouTube channels did a video on it. you know once multiple people have the same issue something is happening, and I don't see why they would suddenly start stealing money. The ITV drama is very good. I watched all the episodes earlier back-to-back, and it's a good crash course in what went off. Will Mellor was nice to see in it, I thought he did well alongside Toby Jones. It makes you mad to think such a naive cover-up can happen, without avoiding so much suffering. You're the only one experiencing the problem, no support and just trying to punish people without checking the facts. It's real madness. I strongly believe that Paula Vennells should return her CBE. Whilst ALL workers involved at board level and senior management at the time of the scandal should face a real investigation as to what really happened. Without any of them facing punishment, there isn't a lot of justice. Yes, it's great they stood together and managed to get some money back. I am under the impression not much of it was actually awarded and the Royal Mail continued to try to delay the payment, meaning further suffering. Additionally, if it's true claimants who have passed on end up losing what they're entitled to without it going to their next of kin, then something else is fundamentally wrong. If we die owing a debt, you can beat someone will be pestered over the debts. Back to the series on ITV, it reminded me of their 'The Thief, His Wife and The Canoe' which was also excellent. Only criticism would be it felt rushed as four episodes; I think a fifth would have helped it, but that's just preference.

I haven't read any anger here, but I have elsewhere on social media. There's worse times for a manager to decide to jump ship and there are ways where it's far worse, I can't let the disappointment lead beyond that. I'm just hopeful the next manager speaks sense and isn't dull.

Our platform and Luke Williams fitted each other, as a stable environment for him to further learn his trade as a manager. When Ian Burhcnall left, I wasn't that bothered because I thought he was decent enough but far from perfect. I felt more bothered that he went on about our fans, rather than the small minority that wanted him out. The current scenario of Swansea City's interest in Luke Williams stands apart from others. I firmly believe that if the clubs couldn't agree a compensation package between the two clubs, Williams wouldn't have gone. There were rumours with Burchnall that he was sending feelers out, I trust Williams when he said that there had been no contact before. The good thing about compensation is that it should give the new manager a bit more to play with and make suggestions to our board. We might even be able to make an appointment which sends a solid message that we are seeking promotion, however, I do think it's more likely that a lesser known manager will come in. Simply because it's worked so well previously, but I hope for experience. Not experience as in someone who's constantly being fired, but someone who has a record with leading teams and establishing clubs at a higher level. All managers get sacked at some point, it's about getting someone in who can bring further stability whilst understanding how to get results when we might be weaker.

The issue with young keepers is they will make mistakes. Tiernan Brooks most likely will, but it will help him learn from it. I believe a game could determine whether Brooks is prepared to further strengthen his skills, while Aidan Stone's development continues. I think Notts fans have a tendency to be harsher on the keeper(s) than defenders. I have criticised Richard Duffy multiple times on this platform and on social media. Only for people to defend him, he was dire! We all see things differently, so please don't take this the wrong way but when the defence is criticised too, I have to make the point about the midfield being at fault too. It's never just one way issue though. I think Aidan Stone could prove himself here if we were more solid and less focused on passing back. Ultimately, the new manager that comes in will have to choose about the situation with Sam Slocombe and Aidan Stone. If we don't use the keeper to play it out from the back, and we have tactics focused on moving forward, creating spaces and into positions which the opposition must defend and therefore commit players to defending. We shouldn't need to rely on the defence; I am hoping we see a vast improvement from Kyle Cameron, Aden Baldwin etc with a different focus. Provided we can gain promotion this season or the next, the whole situation doesn't matter because we should improve in stages.

I wish him all the best! Some fans will be a bit annoyed, but it's not like Ian Burchnall and although Luke Williams is by far the better manager. I think it makes a lot of sense as to why he decided to go to Swansea, I didn't believe it until it was confirmed, but I respect and understand why. There's some anger about him leaving us mid-season, but we are in a good position to find a new manager who can get the results we need to push on. A bit of time to access who to bring in, get onto the recruitment of players and allow the new manager to have the final say once the squad is accessed by him. Luke's left us in a great position, so it's hard to feel annoyed. He, unlike who he replaced, hasn't bad-mouthed us (at least yet) and I don't think he would allow a small minority to do so.

I missed the chance to celebrate our promotion with fans, although I did have the pleasure to speak to Luke Williams once. He was very kind. I had done a portrait of him prior to Wembley and had been trying to give him a copy. He was just as he comes across in the press conferences, I didn't have his print, but I showed him what it looked like via my phone. It impressed me how down to earth he was, as I could tell he realised how nervous I felt and the way he spoke to me helped settle that. Funnily enough, I strolled through Messenger and the conversation I had with @Ryan Raynor. He noticed all the player prints I had made and asked about each one, if the players had seen them etc. I actually did my best to scroll through it as fast as I could, as I knew the last image was the portrait I did of him. He told me to go back to the reception in the future and ask for him, however, I never did because that felt too much of a bother. I don't like feeling like I am bothering people, but I felt so proud by his reaction. Hopefully, whoever comes in next will have a similar approach to fans. I really enjoy listening to the way Luke Williams speaks in his interviews; he always came across as detailed and insightful.