theAnticlough

This is for sure. The shocker today was Norburn - the kind of performance that will stay with some fans, Harry Arteresque. Looking for positives, I thought Palmer followed up last week with another game looking like his old self. Well done, Jayden Luker for the goal and some other good moments of play. Bennetts was our best player IMO

Where to start? That's a bottom half team there if ever I've seen one. Starting randomly with Cotter, that's the 2nd game running he's had a good first 30mins, then faded dramatically. He's been far from our worst player but it looks like we have that old problem of a full-back playing as a 'wing-back'. MP will have to decide if that's what he wants to carry the attack down one whole side of the pitch. Playing him with Aljofree behind is what a releagtion threatened team might do. So keep that in your bag MP, but if we really have any ambition..?

Second best and especially in midfield. Palmer's been alright, but I've never seen a player allow himself to be marked out of the game so passively as Norburn today. It's reduced us to 10 ten effectively. I woudn't be surprised if he came off at HT, with Iorpenda back and Tyrese Hall on I feel sorry for Bennetts and Cotter. Individually, they've done OK as wing-backs. Without any semblance of team play though, it's very difficult for them to have an impact.

Excellent. That team makes so much sense after Newport. 2 changes, out go the players taken off at 54mins. Message sent that a performance is required to keep a shirt. All areas look strong, with the possible exception of the No.10s. We'll need more from Tom and Jodi today. Feeling much more positive now, let's hope we can send them back with nul points today. COYP

Hope it went OK. About 3 months ago I took a bite and knew something bad had happened. The pain and sensation went after a day but over the next few weeks, 2 different dentists couldn't find anything wrong, even from x-rays (although the first one offered to yank out my wisdom teeth while he was in there). I had a different emergency dental problem and holidays which stopped me dealing with this first problem, and lo and behold returning to the second dentist the molar I suspected all along is divided in two all along, you could park a bike there, and is pronounced dead! Now I'm going to have to go down the implant route. My jaw bone is about to become the recipient of plugs and screws drilled in by power tools.

Me too, it doesn't happen very often but we gave up in the away game - the Bass to Crowley cock-up for their first seemed to take so much out of the team. But the home defeat gets my vote as the worst, most annoying game of the season, the way we lost to them, the way they took advantage of a weak referee. I hate 'em!😄 A victory today would be so sweet. COYP

That's exactly how I see it @Robbie. When you have a squad of around 25 professionals, team selection is an aspect of a club's fortunes that can't just be left to one man's personal whims and favouritism. Although it has to be his final call. Not everyone will agree, but I imagine some will have been incredulous at that last example I mentioned. Apart from the goal at Cheltenham, Austin was generally out of his depth in games last season. Jarvis, on the other hand, found it far easier to tot up stats for dribbles, shots, key passes, shots created. Nobody really needs to revisit that, but I'd like to think that the technical board meetings won't be just people tiptoeing around each other sharing a plate of biscuits. There should be instant visual and statistical displays of what has happened in the game for passes completed, touches, turnovers, dribbles, tackles won, yards, aerial duels won and lost, etc etc. It's back to the point about having a big squad - there's no reason to suffer an out of form, low performing player week after week while others rot on the bench or out the squad completely.

Oxford United 1 Portsmouth 1 Stoke City 1 Derby County 1 Exeter City 1 Blackpool 1 Mansfield Town 2 Doncaster Rovers 1 Gillingham 1 Walsall 1 Oldham Athletic 2 Colchester United 1 Joker Tamworth 2 Scunthorpe United 2 Wealdstone 2 Truro City 0

I'm not sure I agree with that, my moustachioed friend. With such a big squad and no clear first choices in a few spots, I want MP to get ruthless right from the off. Having a couple of poor-performers drag the team down over a run of games is how automatic places are quickly lost. We lost all momentum in the 2nd half against Newport so on 54mins MP dragged off Gordon (having a stinker IMO) and Grant, who was fading and just wasn't going to do the business for us. Bennetts did way way better than Gordon and nobody was feeling bad about Grant going off (despite Iorpenda playing worse in the more advanced position). I admit they're far from my favourite players, but that should cost Gordon and Grant their starting places - already, after just one game. My hope is that the technical board helps MP to act decisively and nip things in the bud early. It's all subjective, and my examples won't be other fans examples, but I don't want to see things like successive managers pick Stead till we got relegated, Nolan to persevere with the likes of Duffy, Ardley pick Turner over better players in massive matches, Burchnall play DKE all season at WB (with no goals and assists) when he had Nemane all the time, SM to play Austin over Jarvis in last season's big finales. I hope the board can help MP by pointing it out when a player is doing jack **** and making a negative contribution to the team. Saturday was kind of alright overall, but there's still stuff there that needs acting upon early IMO.

I'm feeling more negative about this game than I should be. After a few days to take in the Newport game, I'm wondering if we know who we want to play and where & how we should play them. Having a couple of the same below average performances we had on Saturday would be enough for Salford to extend their winning run against us IMO. All selected players will need to be at it.

Possible isn't it @Robbie, but at 29 I don't think he'd hang around for 2 years collecting a wage. Also, I don't think Salvador is one of the easiest Brazilian cities to live in. If he gets another month to catch up fitness wise, and Vitoria are still struggling (highly likely) he should be given his chance. I suppose we'll see then. I think there's a very strong chance he's somewhere else by this time next year.

@Piethagoram, I don't know how bad the crash was but I hope it can fade with time, even after 10 years A bus in southern Poland is where I retired my teeth as beer bottle openers. I had a good run but there it ended!

Personally, I think Grant should be first in line for a short loan up til xmas/new year. He's on a 3 year contract and we need him to improve. He's not going to produce the goals and assists we absolutely need to do justice to that key position to support a promotion push. He has to go somewhere (NL probably) where he can learn to do that, know what that feels like and gain the confidence he can do it. And then come back.

Vitoria got a nice 2-2 draw against Palmeiras (they were 2 up) but Ruben Rodrigues was an unused sub again. I see the most he's played is 3mins or so as a sub a couple of times. Maybe's he's still catching up on his fitness. Vitoria now no win from 5 and are just above the relegation slots, but have played 2 or 3 games more.

Yeah, noticeably better than his typical game last season. Let's hope it sets the tone and he maintains this more positive way of playing. Last season was about him recovering from major injury, but also about the toothless style SM created. Paterson's a different kettle of fish and the team will play with more purpose.

I once attended a hurling fixture and was taken aback by how fast and violent it is - a great spectator sport for sure

Like many fans, I've been waiting to see JJ tried out in this role for ages because if he's at his best he could wreak havoc. Today gave me a really bad feeling though. Out wide he can spend time teeing up his marker and choose his options. What we can't have is what we saw at times today - wanting time on the ball but being overpowered and dispossessed, then appealing to the ref for free kicks that will never come. If this is going to work out, he's going to have to think faster and be stronger. Early days, If he doesn't get a run of at least 5 games there we will never know.

Stall summed it up well, MP will be searching for the right combination of attacking players. Watching the game, it was a bit Maynardesque in that we couldn't get on top of the game but there were some positive differences... The midfield was far more positive in it's approach, it seems we might just get the fully recovered version of Palmer we were hoping for The substitutes came on and asserted themselves, Bennetts, Norburn and Edwards came on and did really well The negatives today might even be positive if the technical board helps MP realise there are certain losing players that you should hesitate to give a shirt. His early substitutions suggest he can get on top of this himself anyway. Finally, shout out for Dennis - excellent debut, I don't think anyone else was going to do anything to stop us losing today.

I went Bedeau - as good as he was for the whole of last season Dennis and Platt were his competition and some subs played to a good level

Looks pretty strong, despite Jatta, injured players, departures etc. And looks to be in line with the set-up of recent years - 3-4-2-1? If Aljofree is the answer to our long-standing RCB problem, then we'll have taken a big stride forward anyway

If the OP is true, handle it like the Crowley situation... A catastrophe would be a panic sale now, leaving ourselves short and only being able to target promotion in 2027. That's a lot worse than a Ruben-Wootton scenario

With all our changes, a positive prediction needs a leap of faith. I'm ready to make that leap for MP, working with the technical board, to drive us up the table. 6th place again! After just 2 seasons, I've already got too much dislike for the contending teams to make a promotion prediction. But from Mapperley's prediction table above, I think we'll finish over the likes of Colchester and Grimsby. The bottom two looks right - Accrington & Harrogate

Well the planet would be a lot healthier and if other life forms could vote on it, we'd be gone by an absolute landslide (thanks dogs, for your support - I think cats would take their chances and vote with the 99.99% :) ) But at the risk of coming across completely anthropocentric, we are pretty much the world, aren't we? Us 8.23 billion are a work in progress, give us another shot, we might come good yet!

My rookie season begins with... Bradford City 1-1 Wycombe Wanderers Doncaster Rovers 2-0 Exeter City Lincoln City 1-2 Reading Plymouth Argyle 2-2 Barnsley Barnet 1-1 Fleetwood Town Cambridge United 2-0 Cheltenham Town (joker) Grimsby Town 2-0 Crawley Town Walsall 1-2 Swindon Town Happy New Season to all!!!