thommo

Birmingham City 2-0 Hull City West Bromwich Albion 1-0 Preston North End Blackpool 0-0 Wycombe Wanderers Doncaster Rovers 1-1 Northampton Town Grimsby Town 2-0 Gillingham Joker Newport County 0-0 Cheltenham Town Altrincham 0-1 Woking Brackley Town 2-1 Gateshead

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

Derby County 1-1 Southampton Swansea City 2-1 Leicester City Huddersfield Town 1-0 Stockport County Joker Port Vale 2-1 Northampton Town Bromley 2-0 Tranmere Rovers Salford City 1-1 Grimsby Town Braintree Town 1-1 Sutton United Wealdstone 2-1 Altrincham

Ipswich Town 1-1 Portsmouth Watford 2-1 Hull City Burton Albion 2-1 Plymouth Argyle Mansfield Town 1-0 Rotherham United Bristol Rovers 2-0 Salford City Joker Crawley Town 1-1 Barrow Halifax Town 2-1 Aldershot Truro City 0-1 Morecambe

Blackburn Rovers 2-1 Ipswich Town Sheffield United 1-0 Charlton Athletic Cardiff City 2-1 Bradford City Joker Wycombe Wanderers 1-0 Northampton Town Bromley 2-1 Chesterfield Salford City 1-1 Swindon Town Altrincham 1-0 Carlisle United Tamworth 1-1 Yeovil Town

Stoke City 2-1 Birmingham City Wrexham 0-3 QPR Joker AFC Wimbledon 1-1 Rotherham United Leyton Orient 1-2 Bolton Wanderers Bristol Rovers 2-0 Barrow Fleetwood Town 1-0 Walsall Hartlepool United 1-1 Brackley Town Wealdstone 0-0 Gateshead

I bet they’ll have to deal with the consequences much sooner than Manchester City. It always seems like the bigger clubs get more time or leeway. It’s frustrating when people talk about making football fair, but teams still get away with dodgy behaviour. The punishments often come years later, when the damage is already done. If the rules are there, they should be followed properly and dealt with quickly. That’s the only way to keep things fair for everyone.

I’m not sure it matters too much who takes over, as long as the focus is on the basics. Montague understood the squad and signed players that fitted both the system and the league. Since he left, there’s been a feeling that we’ve lost that eye for detail. Gagliardi looked like he wanted to roll the dice with loans, which is fine if you’ve got the budget of a Championship side, but we need stability. It doesn’t mean the season is doomed, but it does explain why things have looked uneven so far.

Yes, @Piethagoram. But I agree that having a prepared squad for these kinds of trips is much more useful. If the team isn't ready, the benefits are limited. A striker won't get better if they hardly touch the ball or have few chances. Playing against stronger teams can help defenders, but it doesn't do much for attacking players. Some of those games were tough to watch. They must have been draining and had a real effect on team morale. Even though they were only friendlies, the frustration would have built up.

I don’t think it’s helped us this season. There were plenty of things that needed improving, and for some reason Notts never seems keen to host friendly games. Maybe it’s because they don’t expect a big turnout, but I think these short tours in Germany cause more problems than they solve. One issue is the lack of media updates. The media team were clearly travelling and busy, but from a fan’s point of view, it felt like we were left in the dark. It didn’t come across as very open or organised. Better planning would make a big difference. I still believe we need a more grounded pre-season, with more games played at Meadow Lane. It would help new signings settle in and take some pressure off when it comes to building the squad. I was surprised we pretty much repeated the same pre-season as last year, just with different German teams. It felt like a missed chance to do things better.

Bolton Wanderers 1-1 AFC Wimbledon Doncaster Rovers 0-1 Bradford City Joker Cambridge United 1-1 Oldham Athletic Salford City 1-1 Tranmere Rovers Walsall 0-0 Chesterfield Forest Green Rovers 1-1 Hartlepool United Tamworth 1-0 Eastleigh Yeovil Town 0-1 York City

The first half was fine, but the goal we conceded came from trying to play out from the back. I don’t think we should be passing into areas where the other team is pressing and our players have to chase the ball. It’s something we can fix. Tom Iorpenda didn’t have many options and ended up passing backwards, which gave Tranmere the chance to press. I don’t blame Iorpenda for it. He’s still learning and it was just one of those moments. I was pleased with how we responded. Notts looked confident and clearly better than Tranmere, who only caused problems by pushing forward and being physical.

Blackburn Rovers 0-1 Norwich City Joker Watford 2-0 Southampton Barnsley 1-1 Huddersfield Town Wigan Athletic 2-1 Stockport County Barnet 1-1 Colchester United Bromley 1-1 Harrogate Town Hartlepool United 1-0 Boreham Wood Morecambe 1-1 Woking

There are plenty of quirky and silly superstitions out there. When I was a lad, the older men in my family used to say they were all just old wives’ tales. This is an interesting story though, and I was surprised by how good it was to read. It’s the sort of thing that sticks with you.

I am deeply saddened to learn about Steve Thompsons passing, I wish his family and friends well. Rest in Peace, Steve!