True Magpie

The discussion can be broken down into clear points. Most teams prepare for promotion in advance and I think it is a fair subject to debate. Notts will benefit from recruitment. It might not have been the strongest this season, but the signings have added to the squad and helped get the best out of the players already here. Our playing budget may not match many other teams, but it is about how the money is used. We have a strong spine in place. Promotion would not mean a complete rebuild, but smart signings in the right areas to add depth and quality. Off-field assets will also help. The Nest makes money when Forest are in the Premier League, as opposition fans often use it on matchdays. Liam makes a fair point about the rise in pay-on-the-day prices. It does seem to have affected attendances and that will have an impact. If a few friends decide to join you and you all go into The Nest for a couple of drinks, that is income for the club. If you buy food from the tea bars, that adds more. By raising prices, fewer people may take it up. Football should be more affordable. The club can sell 7,000 season tickets when results are good, but more could be done. If prices were lowered for existing season ticket holders and kept the same for new buyers, it would encourage early renewals and help bring in casual fans too. Promotion would bring in good money. If it came through the play offs, the reward would be even greater than finishing as champions. The Reedtz may need to invest, but that does not mean Notts could not compete in League One. We will likely need to get used to selling players more often. It is vital that we do, but also that we recruit well to replace them. I would not want to see Notts selling to rivals, as we did with Dan Crowley, but instead to clubs we do not have to worry about until we grow further. Moneyball or not, players who are unlikely to renew should be sold when possible. It all helps the finances. None of us truly know what life in League One would be like. Only those who understand the finances and the board will have a clear idea. It would be interesting to see how our current budget compares to League One teams. The first year after promotion is usually about survival and finding your feet. If the squad keeps its momentum and is strengthened in the right way, it can carry us forward.

Both teams will be thinking the same thing. Crewe will want to improve their home form and Notts need to start picking up important points away from home. It should be a good match, but I hope Crewe focus on proper football and don’t turn to tricks or time-wasting. Even their fans have admitted on one of their messageboards that they got lucky with the officials in a recent game. Notts need to stay calm and avoid getting frustrated. The focus should be on creating chances and playing our way.

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Crewe made a strong start to the season and looked like a solid side. They picked up good wins against Salford, Crawley and Fleetwood, which showed what they’re capable of. Since then, though, they’ve struggled a bit, losing to Swindon, Barnet and Barrow. That dip in form shows they’re not quite consistent yet. They seem to play better away from home, so it’ll be interesting to see if Notts can rise to the challenge and put in a strong performance on the road. I’d like to see Notts come out with energy and try to put Crewe under pressure early. It feels like the sort of match that could end in a draw, but it really could go either way. Hopefully, the return of players like Scott Robertson and Jayden Luker will give us something to build on, as it gives Martin Paterson more choices to work with.

Getting the Director of Football role sorted before climbing higher in the league feels quite important. Some might see it as a role we don’t really need or as a bit of a luxury, but having stability in key positions can make a big difference in football. When it comes to networking, I like knowing the Director of Football is the one making contact, looking at players and having those early talks. It means the manager can focus on coaching. Football has changed a lot since the days when managers did everything themselves. While some might still prefer that, it does come with problems, like being less open to feedback. It depends on the manager’s style. If he enjoys scouting and has a good eye for talent, it can work well. But it’s easy to fall into bad habits, like signing mates or missing what makes a player truly good. Martin Paterson has said he watches the opposition, which makes me think he’s fairly confident when it comes to judging players. Still, having someone who understands the data side of things and can handle the time-consuming jobs is a real help. I like knowing the head coach has choices and people around him suggesting players. I’d be interested to know how much say Paterson actually has, especially since he asked for reinforcements and nothing came of it. Was it someone above him who decided not to bring anyone in? The interview with Chris Reedtz made it sound like they were happy enough and maybe thought Paterson was just being cautious because of the injuries. I do think the head coach should have a voice in these matters, and I wonder if Paterson shares the fans’ view about needing another striker. I’m fine with the head coach not being too involved in the early stages of signings and scouting. But once things move forward, his input should count. It’s about finding the right balance.

It’s a process, isn’t it. You have to make changes that help improve the parts that aren’t quite working. The old saying about not fixing what isn’t broken fits well here. A shift in direction can be a big deal, and maybe we’ve seen signs of that already with how the season has started. Even though new people have come in and things seem to line up, there might be differences that aren’t easy to spot. For example, the club has changed its coaching setup. A new head coach and assistant have come in, and there’s also a new Director of Football. He might have suggested a different approach to recruitment compared to past seasons. There were a lot of signings, spread out across the window, and not much time to get the full squad together before pre-season. Martin Paterson will have his own way of doing things, and the players are now adjusting to what they think he wants. The coaching style has changed too. The whole team no longer trains together before kick-off. It’s just the match day squad, and some players aren’t even part of the warm-up if they’re not on the bench. A new head coach can be hard for players to get used to, and with so much going on this season, some of these changes should have been sorted sooner. I think Notts should stick to their core values and make small changes where needed. We should avoid too much disruption, because having a settled environment makes a big difference. Players need to come in and know what’s expected of them, beyond what fans might think. Paterson probably has higher standards than he shows in interviews. Even when things aren’t going to plan, the players will still be trying their best.

I'm worried about what might happen if one of the strikers gets suspended, or worse, if one is suspended and the other gets injured. That could really affect the good run we're on and knock the confidence that's come from winning games. Alassana Jatta coming back into the starting eleven has made a big difference. It's given the team a lift. Matthew Dennis has shown he can lead the line against certain sides, but in other matches, it might be better to stick with Jatta. There will be times when playing both makes sense, but unless there's a backup plan in case something goes wrong, I don't think Martin Paterson should rely on it every week. I'd rather see it used as a well-thought-out tactic, something planned to give us more variety up front. I'm not against using two strikers. The match away at Tranmere Rovers showed it can work, and that was encouraging. But the game against Gillingham reminded us that strikers need service. If both end up dropping into midfield too often, it doesn't help the attack and isn't always the best choice.

I thought he did commentary work? Though reading his obituary there is no mentioning of this. Rest in Peace, Dickie Bird.

It's a shame that people who can't afford to lose money were caught out. Even though Louis Tomlinson is in a different position, it's still worrying when someone gets involved in something that doesn't seem safe. Older people are sadly seen as easy targets. It's not fair, and it happens too often. But when a well-known figure like a popstar is fooled, it makes you wonder how convincing the pitch must have been. Louis must have really wanted to be part of the ownership. That kind of hope or excitement can make someone overlook warning signs. It's not right that it came to that.

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It was a routine day in the office with very little going on. I spent most of it handling documents and answering calls, just the usual bits. Even the monthly meeting passed without anything worth noting, but I won’t grumble. Quiet days like this don’t come around too often. The weather’s turned a bit gloomy. It’s darker than usual, slightly murky outside with the odd bit of rain here and there. Nothing heavy, just enough to notice. I managed to find a bit of time to post two short guides. One explains how to use the content editor, and the other shows how to make use of the follow function. I hope they’re useful to the community, as there are plenty of great features on PON that deserve a bit more attention. At the moment, I’m looking at tidying up some of the pinned content. I’m also thinking about what I can work on next to keep things ticking along.

Recently, a number of spam accounts have managed to get past the tools Pride of Nottingham uses to keep the site clear of unwanted content. This is unusual and has been checked by @Chris. To make sure this does not happen again, all new members will now need to be approved by a senior admin before they can join. Reports have been sent to CleanTalk, which is a trusted service for spotting spam accounts. Stop Forum Spam is also now in use to give extra protection. Any accounts flagged by IP, username or email in the SFS system will be banned automatically. Fans who are trying to join but find themselves blocked should use the contact system to get in touch. We know about the issue and will keep working to make sure Pride of Nottingham stays free of spam. Comments have been turned off for security reasons. At a later date, @Chris will share any updates or address any concerns.

Chris spoke to me in person about his ambitions, what he wanted to achieve and how he felt PON represented the fans but needed help to be more organised. He asked if I would consider joining the team. I was a little unsure at first. I already knew about the great work he had been doing with the site, especially on social media. I do not think the fan base realises how demanding it is to give so much time and effort to a team you care about. It was only after more conversations online that I understood how I could help and why I was being asked to join. Why did you join prideofnottingham.co.uk? I joined because I felt it was my duty to help a fantastic fan who clearly lives and breathes black and white. As I said before, joining something where I could use my skills, make a difference and feel wanted made the choice much easier. What is your main highlight of being a member? The highlight for me has been seeing more members get involved. PON is a labour of love for the volunteers and I think the gaffer works hard to give value to those who take part. Once you join in, it becomes easy and you start to enjoy it more. When I first arrived, I did not know any of the team and I felt I had something to prove. I always felt accepted, which matters a lot. How much have you seen PoN grow during your time? There will always be quiet times or moments when poor results make people less keen to contribute. Even so, I have seen the site grow a lot since the upgrade to v5. I think this shows the effort of the team and the members who want it to succeed. As a community, what would you say are the three core values to PoN and why? Core values are easy to name. Dedication, togetherness and professionalism.