menzinho

What's with people not from Brazil adding a Portuguese suffix to their name... Couldn't really fault his technical ability when he was with us, just a shame everything else was lacking!

Disappointing that this was called off and it just means we've got more games to fit in, however Halifax losing at Maidenhead and Chesterfield losing in the week and drawing yesterday means the gap to the top hasn't really increased. Good wins for Stockport against Dagenham and Bromley against Grimsby though means they gain. Only six points points separating the top 7 now, with us occupying the 7th spot with 2 games in hand...

I do think it’ll be harsh not to start Sam in the same way I thought it was harsh Mitchell didn’t get to start after he bagged two goals earlier in the season. I think attackers/strikers need that run of games, and I think it’s why we are yet to see the best of both Sam and Mitchell. I can't see either Woots or Ruben being dropped for him though. Assuming everyone is fit then you'd have to probably switch to a 4-3-3 to get Sam in the team. Then you can have Sam and Roberts/Ruben playing alongside Woots and still get numbers in midfield with Palmer, Vinny and Ruben/Roberts. I don't think we'll play 4-3-3 so he'll probably be back on the bench - just means he'll just have to come off and score! As for Barnet Mason Bloomfield, Adam Marriott, Ephron Mason-Clarke and Sehat Tasdemir are all out so that's 4 decent attacking options we don't have to worry about. They've got more out too so we definitely won't be facing them at their strongest and right now there form has dropped a bit so on paper it's a good time to play them. Fingers crossed we get a performance that can honour the memory of Colin Slater.

Do you think he can push on from here now and get himself in the first 11 on a regular basis? This is his second season with us and until recently he was the forgotten man. Then he got a chance and made an impact in the Wrexham game and could’ve/should’ve scored but against Eastleigh he got his goals. I really liked his interview afterwards as well, that can only help in keeping the fans on his side with his ‘working hard’ and ‘not giving up’ attitude. l think he can help us out in the second half of the season. On the social media training videos he’s always showing some bit of great skill using his size to his advantage and finally we’ve seen more of it on the pitch where it counts. I think he’s got a point to prove and if IB can’t get the best out him I don’t know who can!

I don’t think Tshimanga will go anywhere he’s too important for them, Chesterfield have spent big and gambled on getting promoted this season. If by the end of the season they haven’t been promoted I can see him moving on.

Let that be the last time Cal Roberts ever plays LWB! When we went in 1-0 down at half-time I did fear the worst and wondered are we really this bad without Cameron. But credit to the team and IB for changing it, we got the result we wanted.

So, Dover communicated to Notts that they had no issues this morning… Yet their fans thought (knew) it would be off. These are from their fan forum: “Any pitch inspections planned for tomorrow? Looked like a plough field last week and rain is forecast all day tomorrow” “Watch this game get called off at the last minute and drag our name further into the mud! Can’t seriously see the pitch passing an inspection!” “I knew about 11 am this morning it would be off as did many others, WTF is wrong with the club right now.” Don’t know how a ‘professional’ club can be so blasé about the state of their pitch. Knowing the forecast there should’ve been a pitch inspection early. Apparently, it was raining there all morning as well… Unbelievable lack of thought and foresight, feel for the fans that put in the miles only to be the last thought in people’s minds (again).

Very interesting, it's mad how many mistakes in big tournaments England goalkeepers have made over the years. Pickford so far so good but you'd think given his form this year Ramsdale should be in with a shout for that number 1 spot going into the World Cup.

He's staying for the rest of the season! Great news imo, he's been superb since signing and has really strengthened us in the RWB spot.

I fully expect them just to just sit and play for the 0-0, so the earlier we can score, the better. The only points they’ve got at home this season weirdly have been against Chesterfield (how?) and Solihull (Ardley’s bogey ground), both were 0-0’s. Surely Dover are going to win a game at some point… Everything would suggest it’s not going to happen this weekend but I'm still a little nervous about this game! Also I've just checked the weather and it's going be heavy rain from 8am tomorrow morning, right through until kick off! Do Dover have anything in the way of covers or irrigation? My prediction is P-P! (But I sincerely hope it's not another wasted journey).

https://www.nottinghampost.com/sport/football/football-news/notts-county-roberts-chesterfield-transfer-6447480 Wow, didn't think I'd see them in for him. Looks like we won't sell to a national league club anyway. I don't have an issue if Cal moves on and up at some point but the idea of strengthening a promotion rival just seems completely counter-intuitive. And I just find the whole financial system at Chesterfield very odd, why do you have to crowdfund frost covers but then are able to go and bid for someone like Roberts (who will cost a hell of a lot more than 15k!)

Yeah almost everything I've read about him has been very positive. I think most Southend fans thought he was being recalled to then be loaned out to a L1/L2 team. Excited to see him play and I've got quite high expectations now! This is from the guy who does the National League BT Sport commentary...

I was only able to listen to but I find it more nerve-wracking then being at a live game. I’m never 100% sure where the ball is and I feel Charlie Slater can just say “ball into the box and a goal” from out of nowhere. I finally felt confident of the win by about the 85th minute! Thread bare squad but credit it to them it, that was a big win for us. Red card changed the game but that’s not in our control and we still had to push on and make sure of the 3 points. Sometimes playing against 10 can be trickier (as we know). Sounded like the players that haven’t featured as much as they’d like this season like Francis and Chicksen had great games. And even Sam put himself about a bit and sounded like he should’ve got himself on the scoresheet. Couldn’t ask for a better start to 2022!

The problem is that we don’t know who has it and how many have it. By the definition of several we could just have 4 players with COVID, and if they were Knight, Sam, Chicksen and Francis (for example) it doesn’t really impact the strength of the first 11. However if it’s Slocombe, Cameron, Palmer and Wootton or a whole lot more then yes get it called off! And you have to factor in that Ruben will miss this game. Equally with all the uncertainty there’s a potential opportunity for fringe players to make an impact and we could change things up and give Wrexham something they didn’t plan for. I’d argue this season Cal has taken more of a hit to get him and Ruben in the same team, but now that the first 11 doesn’t have to accommodate them both we can get him in his natural position. I’d like to play Wrexham with as strong a team as possible, and IB (who knows which players are unavailable) will know if it’s a big risk or more of an inconvenience…

Given what's been happening lately it felt like this was inevitable, but if any more players test positive it probably won't go ahead. And as we've had the last two games off this really isn't great timing! Hopefully everyone who has contracted the virus is doing ok.