DangerousSausage

Seems to have been something of a bit-part player wherever he's gone - his 28 appearances this season were the most he's managed to date, and half of them were off the bench. However, he's also a veteran of Port Vale's successful play-off campaign the other year and has played in League One. We'll see what happens (or doesn't).

Blackburn Rovers 2-1 Coventry City Cardiff City 2-1 Middlesbrough Huddersfield Town 1-1 Birmingham City Millwall 1-2 Plymouth Argyle AFC Wimbledon 2-0 Walsall Gillingham 0-2 Doncaster Rovers (joker) Swindon Town 2-0 Morecambe Wrexham 2-2 Stockport County

And now, the end is near. And so we face the final curtain. My friends, I'll say it clear, I'll state my case, of which I'm certain: this is the FINAL prediction league round for this season. The games all kick off at 3pm on Saturday, and you get a joker each. Now predict them your way Blackburn Rovers v Coventry City Cardiff City v Middlesbrough Huddersfield Town v Birmingham City Millwall v Plymouth Argyle AFC Wimbledon v Walsall Gillingham v Doncaster Rovers Swindon Town v Morecambe Wrexham v Stockport County

It's paper talk. The stuff on that website is pure speculation, in the hope that people click on their articles - they earn money from advertising with each click. That's not to say I couldn't see it happening, Wrexham are one of the clubs that could afford a hefty transfer fee, they can offer a step up and must be a genuinely exciting club to play for right now. But there's no point worrying about speculation like that, he's under contract and Notts don't have to sell.

It's bonkers. I know they had injuries, but they looked such a poor side during both games I thought they might struggle to stay up. It just goes to show you can't really judge a team based on two games. I can see them going up too, based on the form of the teams around them...

My heart goes out to Coventry, what an amazing comeback and an incredible moment taken away because of a situation in which no unfair advantage was gained. It's sickening. I wouldn't blame the official in the TV room, an offside is a binary decision after all. But this fundamentalist interpretation of the offside rule needs a rethink - the point isn't penalising players whose big toes are 1 mm behind an imaginary line, but to prevent forwards gaining an unfair advantage.

Florist were hard done to, but that statement is a total embarrassment and completely unprofessional. Claiming that the official is corrupt is also surely libellous. If the VAR wanted to benefit Luton, surely he'd have given a penalty to engineer a draw? Florist's owner is an accident waiting to happen. Another Portsmouth in the making.

For some added context, Barnsley have looked dead certs for the playoffs at least, but after a string of defeats they need to win their final game to be sure of a spot on the top six. All the same, this is a panic move aimed at saving their season. The idea that the players were deliberately throwing away their chances of promotion in protest against the head coach is absurd.

Scandalous. Gateshead adhere to the rules, but couldn't provide proof until after the 1 March cut-off date. It has no relevance to next season at all. And a special gold star goes to the National League, which announced that Solihull had a bye before, after consulting THEIR OWN RULES, realising that Alty should actually have the bye and Solihull have to play. And all this 48 hours before the playoffs begin. What a shambles!

I remember watching him on his debut, pointing, organising and looking like the only one who cared. He didn't deserve relegation. As the only member of that team who stuck with us throughout the National League years and helped restore our League status, he has a special place in the hearts of Notts fans. I'd love him to stay, but he's an academy coach at Sheffield United so he has an iron in the fire there too.

The results: Stoke City 3-0 Plymouth Argyle Sunderland 0-1 Millwall Blackpool 3-2 Barnsley Charlton Athletic 1-1 Shrewsbury Town Cheltenham Town1-2 Lincoln City Doncaster Rovers 4-2 Barrow Grimsby Town 2-0 Swindon Town Sutton United 2-2 Crawley Town --- Congrats to this round's winner, @william1984! Apologies for the avant-garde mobile screenshot style this week... --- So with one round remaining, @ARLukomski is five points ahead of @gtownjohnno and nine points ahead of @william1984. Don't ask why the second table is larger, see it as a consolation for being in the bottom half! But the final word has not yet been spoken - the last fixtures will magically appear on Wednesday and will be played on Saturday. Thanks for playing and see you all then!

You'll be devastated if Crawley win 29-1 now @super_ram.

Nice to see Notts making a statement too. The FA have responded with a tone-deaf statement and have doubled down. Apparently it was mentioned in some meetings and more games will be televised (involving extra inconvenience for fans), so it's all OK. The sooner these amateurs are replaced by an independent regulator the better. https://www.thefa.com/news/2024/apr/19/statement-emirates-fa-cup-format-update-20241904

Stoke City 1-2 Plymouth Argyle Sunderland 2-0 Millwall Blackpool 3-1 Barnsley Charlton Athletic 1-1 Shrewsbury Town Cheltenham Town 2-2 Lincoln City Doncaster Rovers 2-1 Barrow (joker) Grimsby Town 1-0 Swindon Town Sutton United 1-3 Crawley Town

I had just come here to share that Tranmere statement but was beaten to it! I agree with every word. As usual, the FA can be relied on to doff their caps to the rich and powerful, even if it means degrading their own competition (again). The PL clubs that wanted this seem to have no problem with playing an ever growing number of Champions League games or going on extended tours of whatever despotic Middle Eastern state is throwing money at them (one of the changes is starting the PL season later so players can be "completely rested" - yeah right!). A dozen clubs have no right to overrule the rest of English football, no matter how rich they are. Replays are one of the things that make the FA Cup special - if winning outright doesn't seem realistic, you could always drag your bigger opponent back to your ground, or have a day out at a top stadium. Alas, the bean counters have decided that pre-season tours and European games are more lucrative to half a dozen clubs so the rest of us have to go without. This announcement is three years to the day after the European Super League was formed, and that example shows that we don't have to let the wealthy ride roughshod over the rest of us. Something needs to be done. How about clubs from outside the PL withdrawing from next season's FA Cup?

It was interesting to get an insight into the thought processes of the people running the club, but there were no major bombshells. The sudden appearance of party balloons on Paul Mace's screen was probably the best bit! ???? One of my main takeaways is that the head coach and his assistant seem to be more involved in player recruitment than I originally thought. The bit about season ticket prices was very brief and a little awkward. Someone really needed to mention the cost of living crisis. I know it's JP's job to maximise revenue and put the club on a firm financial footing, but raising prices just because other clubs are doing it isn't a socially compatible thing to do. Go too high and we risk freezing out a section of our supporters, some of whom have only recently started going regularly. Football should be affordable.

Well done AJ! Did he win a cake?

Colchester are where they are for a reason, but they've fought to avoid the drop and have won their last two. Earlier in the season they beat us 5-4 in one of those ridiculous games where we seemed completely in command yet kept gifting them a goal. Danny Cowley is their manager now, so expect aggressive pressing and long ball tactics. For the sake of the other teams at the bottom, we need to put in a professional display, play for pride and keep the hope of a place in the top half alive. If any of the players give it less than 100%, we could be in for an unpleasant afternoon.

Well I've pinned my hopes on an East Midlands rumpus in League One the season after next, so they'll have to stay put! I think they'll nail it though. If they get four points against almost-safe Cambridge and Carlisle, it won't matter what Posh or Bolton do. Three points would probably do it too. Say hello to our nearest and dearest next season!

We were on a bit of a hiding to nothing with Stockport needing a win to secure the title and us losing two of our best recent performers just before kick-off. But it's annoying all the same. To play the devil's advocate @menzinho, I think SM has realised that playing four at the back doesn't give this team any more stability defensively, but when we've played that way it has stunted us as an attacking threat. With Chicksen and Abebayo seemingly unavailable and Robertson probably not yet fully fit, the team pretty much picked itself. Which doesn't excuse some of the defending on display, of course. Langstaff should have put us in the lead, and until Baldwin's ridiculous slip it looked like we were going to give them a game. We looked shaken by the first goal and, like all good teams, Stockport were there to take advantage. Lady Luck deserted us for a bit with the penalty and the deflection, but at that stage the visitors were getting in so many attempts that more goals were inevitable. As they say in Germany, wipe your mouth and carry on.

The older posters remember it well And these are the kits worn in that first season: http://www.historicalkits.co.uk/English_Football_League/season/1888-89.htm

Congratulations to them and to our resident Stag @Dan. It was very clear they had what it takes when they gave us the runaround at the Lane earlier in the season, and they were probably due a shot at League One after all the time they've been away. Nigel Clough has been there a while now, and not every season under him has been glorious. Owners who are wiling to invest in the team tend to demand instant success, but Mansfield's seem to be different. Good for them. Now I'm pinning my hopes on a promotion campaign next season so we can have us, the Stags, Florist and Derby in the same division!

The time is coming ... get your predictions in by 3pm on Saturday and see how far up that table you can get. Oh, and remember your ! In an outrageous turn of events, I'm away on Saturday, but I will get your scores to you in plenty of time (even if they look more like a mobile screenshot than usual). Good luck! Stoke City v Plymouth Argyle Sunderland v Millwall Blackpool v Barnsley Charlton Athletic v Shrewsbury Town Cheltenham Town v Lincoln City Doncaster Rovers v Barrow Grimsby Town v Swindon Town Sutton United v Crawley Town

The results: Preston North End 0-1 Norwich City Sheffield Wednesday 1-1 Stoke City Bolton Wanderers 1-1 Portsmouth Oxford United 5-0 Peterborough United Harrogate Town 2-2 Sutton United Newport County 1-2 Tranmere Rovers Bromley 3-0 Solihull Moors York City 2-0 Woking --- This week's winner is... drum roll... @nottsnutter! @nottsnutter - 11 @DangerousSausage - 10 @4everapie, @super_ram - 8 @Dan, @william1984 - 7 @cheeky~k8, @Fan of Big Tone, @Robbie - 5 @ARLukomski, @Megan_Elizax - 4 @gtownjohnno, @Harry Buckley - 3 @magpiejue - 2 --- With two rounds to go, @gtownjohnno and @william1984 need something big to overtake @ARLukomski. And I've done my play-off hopes no harm at all ARLukomski - 210 gtownjohnno - 203 william1984 - 198 super_ram - 191 cheeky~k8 - 186 Fan of Big Tone - 186 4everapie - 185 DangerousSausage - 184 magpiejue - 179 Dan - 176 Megan_Elizax - 161 nottsnutter - 144 DonnyNotts - 136 liampie - 133 Chris - 123 Joshua - 90 upthepies - 90 Robbie - 83 allardyces tash - 70 TheSkipper - 67 Harry Buckley - 66 KingWilliams - 66 CliftonMagpie - 55 thommo - 49 OoooooTommy - 45 NottsCountyKev - 41 JIMBO - 40 jimbob - 38 Nocturnal-Magpie - 38 AmericanPie - 36 KB1862 - 22 George L - 6 Canadian - 4 --- The next round is on Saturday, so fixtures will be posted on Wednesday. In the meantime, make sure your crystal balls are well polished and take care!

Delighted for the team, the fans and Mr Maynard. It's important for us as a club to have a positive end to the season and instill the belief that we can be looking upwards next season. And so what if it was a bit jammy? Luck tends to even itself out.