Chris

Burton Albion 0-2 Bolton Wanderers Joker Exeter City 1-2 Reading Leyton Orient 1-0 Doncaster Rovers Wigan Athletic 3-1 Wycombe Wanderers Chesterfield 2-1 Salford City Crewe Alexandra 0-0 Bromley Fleetwood Town 1-1 Harrogate Town Tranmere Rovers 2-0 Barnet

I think the harshness some players receive can be a major hindrance to their performance. Some players want to prove themselves, such as Jodi Jones, but others just quietly get on with things. I do wonder if Conor Grant has read any of the messages about how some fans think of him? You wouldn't think he was all that well-liked, a natural, and again, players who deserve such stick never seem to get it. We are talking about the likes of Richard Duffy, who would be blindly defended for making constant mistakes and passing short balls back. Not every player needs to score; they just have to be better in other areas, and the way I see it, you build a team at this level based on what makes you stronger. If we had 10 outfield players who could score regularly, then we would be losing them far more often, as it would suggest League Two wasn't their level. There are Championship teams who have midfields outscored by their defence come the end of the season. Conor Grant does take too many touches, and I think he overthinks when shooting. This sounds like confidence, but we know Grant can score. Being a midfielder, even an attacking-minded one, doesn't guarantee goals. There have been exceptional wingers who thrive on assisting; Palace had a player a few seasons ago who missed some sitters during a game I watched. Yet his crossing was dangerous and very exciting to watch, as they were pinpoint and very well placed. Grant has scored the same amount of goals as Palmer, but in considerably fewer appearances; the two players are different. I hope Grant can improve, because he is a smart footballer.

I think this season will be one of the biggest lessons for the club and for the Reedtz. It highlights the importance of being organise, assembling a squad as early as possible, at least the bulk signings. Having them stagnate effectively means they would be learning to gel together during the season. The German tour, although nice, just seems like it wasn't the best timing. I mean, I get that it's done so work could have been carried out at Meadow Lane. With the massive overhaul of the new coaching team and other appointments, there will be something to learn. So, I understand the concerns. I was impressed watching Notts at Newport, but then I felt we were massively behind compared to other clubs. I have said it before a few times; the biggest mistake was saying we are aiming for promotion and sacking the head coach not long after exiting the playoffs. This said, I am all for being patient and trying not to be critical of matters for the sake of it. I could see positive signs, and I did feel things could come together. Our home performances have largely been good, and we look a much different team. Away from home, especially Barrow, was just difficult. I remember posting the full-time score and instantly seeing people complaining to me. I saw it unfold; I watched us being outclassed by Barrow, so I felt the frustration before even posting it, and I did post as myself, saying as much and that we need to be better, but that the midfield needs to settle. Patience is very important over a long season, especially when things start poorly or eventually hit a rough patch. Walsall could have turned the tide last season if their supporters had rallied behind their team during a tough period marked by dwindling morale and a series of disappointing performances when their strategies were no longer effective. The spotlight was squarely on their manager, who had previously done an exceptional job of guiding the team to the top of the table. They exceeded all expectations, and while I had accurately predicted this success in the PON predictions before the season started, their decline ultimately stemmed from a loss of unity among club and fans.

Gossip and rumours can seem harmless, but they can cause problems, and for a club wanting to achieve promotion, it can cause difficulties. It can create problems with players which would not otherwise happen, and while I understand the element of wanting to know what is happening or going off. I would say sometimes it is best to conduct it privately, but there are times when open transparency is a must. I think the Notts fan base is a little quick to jump to knee-jerk reactions, or pressing the meltdown button but a lot of it does come from wanting better. I don't always understand it. In this scenerio, Notts handled things very well and managed to get Jatta back doing what he does best: scoring goals!

A considerable amount of work has gone into PON this week, with a lot of fixes and improvements. I feel quite satisfied with it, and I know things could always be better, but it's nice when you start to tick off problems. I know I need to get back into writing and other things that make the site work. I do think a lot of members have been contributing towards some excellent discussions, and that is encouraging to see. There are two features almost completed, one being another type of feed and the other being a quicker way to change between dark/light mode. I had my back fence put in for £700; when my front needed replacing, my wife was quoted £3-4k. @magpiejue's husband and friend did it for a much fairer price, and they did both the front sides too. Even part of my land at the back of my garage was reclaimed from a neighbour who had wonkily put in their wooden fence and later straightened it, but left behind heaps of concrete.

I am still trying to seek donations to help PON reach the target required to finalise the remaining resources. If any members are in a position to donate, please consider it. I can assure you that it will help the overall goal of the site. Please don't if you already have done this year; those who have are incredible, but there should be others out there open to assisting this target. I will be looking into ways of selling merch more regularly, but since upgrading, no new purchases have happened, and I believe it's due to the banners I used to display on the home page and inside articles. Also, I will be hoping to attract support from businesses with fair sponsorship and advertising prices. None of this silly stuff where sites claim they get x amount of views and demand £500. This would be affordable, but a partnership with PON where I would actively try to shed light on those who take us into consideration for representing their businesses.

I know it can be kind of morbid, but I have always liked watching true crime documentaries. In the 90s, I would watch Crimewatch UK and The FBI Files. I don't recall seeing other popular American shows, such as Unsolved Mysteries. America's Most Wanted and the like I have always been fascinated with, whereas these days it's somewhat of a buzzword to say you follow one of the million podcasts or YouTube channels that cover them. One of my favourite YouTube channels is called 'What Likely Happened', but I also like That Chapter and a few others. The issue with some of them is that they seem to narrate old TV episodes, to the point of directly copying, and it becomes apparent when the next thing they release is from the same show or uses AI, and that puts me right off. I can instantly tell if a YouTube video has been based on something like Unsolved Mysteries or UK crime that comes from Crimewatch. There is an interesting Jack the Ripper channel called "The House of Lechmere." A lot of cold cases have been solved due to people continuing to highlight and shine a light on cases, but I do not like disingenuous hosts or channels.

These three could easily come in and do a job, Theo Vassell can be a bit hit and miss. Decent player, but would be most suitable as a rotational/backup player. He could be worth giving a contract until the end of the season, I can't imagine his wages being a problem. Jamal Blackman would be excellent competition for Kelle Roos, he's a very good shotstopper and would be suitable to push for the first team. I do get the feeling Roos might be on a decent wage, which might be the reason the clubs is hestitant to look for a replacement but the fact he makes so many mistakes, and looks uncomfortable at times I do think it would relese pressure. It's funny hearing people telling me they want Sam Slocombe back, who was never all that bad but we just insisted he did things outside of his comfort zone. Max Woltman has a good pedigree, I recall him signing for Oxford and it looked like a good move. I think provided he didn't end up sitting on the bench or in the stands, he could give us an option over Mai Traore. It might allow for Traore to play in a more suitable role, than as a striker.

I thought we would put out a squad and get dismantled in all honesty, but Martin Paterson got the best out of the players he gave a chance and that's exactly what you want to see. I think Barnsley felt they could play some of their fringe players and that they would still be good enough. So, I don't think it reflects badly on us but on them for not mounting more of a game against a weaker League Two team when you consider how many aren't regular starters. The competition I don't really care for, but I am proud of the players for grafting a positive result because it will have helped with the league.

It was a good game, though there were spells where the game just sat and it became a little boring. This is a credit to both teams playing the waiting game and just getting familiar with each other. Oldham surprised me that they were very focused on keeping the ball on the ground, whereas it was Notts especially in the final 20 minutes of the game, keeping the ball in the air. Oldham looked like they wouldn't score until their keeper booted the ball and found their player clean through. This will sound harsh, but the moment the ball flew through the players, I knew Roos would make the wrong decision and end up being lobbed. I would say they looked lacking in confidence, but I think much of it goes down to the way Notts played. Oldham aren't a bad team, but they aren't that threatening. The goal gave them a surge, and if we weren't 3-1 up at this stage, I would have felt like "here we go again," but credit to Martin Paterson; his changes introduced fresh legs, even though at the time I was pondering why we made certain changes. Isn't there a noticeable difference in making such changes now compared to the start of the season? I think the changes at the beginning of the season would have been negative, considering how lively Oldham became after scoring and how wobbly we started to look. We had spells where we couldn't clear the ball very well, and this all stemmed from us almost scoring a fourth goal.

Hello, @Michelle Robson. Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham, I hope you enjoy being a part of our Notts County community.

I am more inclined to play the game, and it's interesting compared to previous seasons where a lot of fans were inclined to say the same thing. I guess it's a reflection of where we are hoping to go, but we can afford to miss Jacob Bedeau for one match. I think Jodi is more of a loss, and even then I have to acknowledge it would give someone else the chance to come in. Postponing the game will give us time to train and prepare for the upcoming games, but it will come at a cost of routine and potentially form. There is also the possibility that Swindon might be much stronger and in better form the next time we play them. Whereas right now, I think it shows that we see them as a threat without a plan. I trust the judgment, but my preference would always be to play games where possible. Some fans will never be happy and will flip their complaints. If we have suspensions or injuries for the rearranged fixture, people will say that it would have been better to have played the game. This will be more a problem if we end up with a backlog of postponements, but the point is the club needs to worry less about pleasing fans who just find fault.

Such a lowlife, I hope he spends the rest of his life in prison because that's where people like him belong.

English football wouldn't be the same without promotions and relegations; it's what has made the sport exciting, and there have been too many negative changes, which are starting to become tiring. Suggesting that "elite" clubs shouldn't be relegated is pure desperation and saddening to see. It's also a level of delusion to say Birmingham City is within the same setup as Arsenal, Liverpool, and Manchester City. The only reason they don't want relegation is because they fear things going wrong or fully expect to struggle if promoted to the Premier League, which is natural.

Hello, @NottaCounty2001. Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham, I hope you enjoy being part of our Notts County community.