Mike Dean declined to use VAR to save 'mate' and fellow referee Anthony Taylor from 'grief' - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/66612570

I find this shocking on the part of Mike Dean. I get that referees are subject to alot of abuse and grief but surely that comes with the territory of being a referee? 

The whole point of VAR is to catch anything the referee has missed on the pitch. The fact that Mike Dean spotted the incident but rather than telling his "mate" to go to the screen, he allowed the game to go on as though nothing happened to save him from grief. 

This is why VAR gets as much criticism as it does because the people behind it don't utilise it correctly. 

Neil comes out of retirement to Manage Aberdeen. It was one of his lifelong ambitions to Manage a top Scottish side.

The Rocky film franchise is my all time favourite. So it's sad news to hear about the passing of Carl Weathers who played the part of Apollo Creed. 

Rest in Peace ????

Jodi has been nominated for January's League 2 Player of the Month award.

A few of you might have received a survey from the club about a possible new standing area. As I'm only a very rare visitor these days I'm not sure it's my place to take part, but what do you all think?

Personally I much prefer to stand, and I think the lower Kop would be perfect.

No ticket for Mansfield for me today so will listen on iFollow 

I've been watching the Newcastle document recently and one episode included the fan group WAR flags. Essentially a fan funded group dedicated to improving the atmosphere in the ground with things like flags, banners and big displays.

Its a massive thing across mainland Europe especially Italy and Spain and we are now seeing it creep into English football.

Although painful to admit, our red neighbours do a fantastic job with the Forza Garibaldi group.

Newcastle have WAR flags, Aberdeen the union bears, Juventus have Bianconeri and our neighbours Forza Garibaldi.

With the drive to create a better atmosphere at Meadow Lane do you think something like this would appeal to our supporters? 

Is it something the OSA should do or a stand alone group maybe affiliated with the OSA
£1.25 a month over say 2000 members, you can get a hell of a lot of flags and banners with £30,000  (Yes I've had a look)

Do you ever find yourself keeping an eye out for ex-players to catch up on how they are doing? Do you have a favourite player that you follow more closely, who used to play for Notts such as Jack Grealish? Further, when they retire, do you make an effort to stay updated with their activities? Let's discuss...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64536218

Game 31 - The Stags (A)

Team: Mansfield Town

Date: 03/02/2024

Where: Field Mill

What line-up should Stuart Maynard opt for? What will be the key areas for the Magpies to get a victory? What do you think the final score will be?

Have your say below, join in with the Pride of Nottingham match discussion.

These all kick off at 3pm on Saturday, so get your predictions in by then and don't forget your joker. Good luck!

Norwich City v Coventry City

Swansea City v Plymouth Argyle

Burton Albion v Lincoln City

Exeter City v Bristol Rovers

Crawley Town v Morecambe

Sutton United v Doncaster Rovers

Halifax Town v Aldershot

Solihull Moors v Altrincham

Charlie Colkett has joined Notts on loan until the end of the season.

The 27-year-old arrives from Crewe Alexandra, bolstering Notts's central midfield options for the remainder of the campaign.

I think this signing till the end of the season is a good move by Notts, Charlie is a left footed central midfielder that has plenty of experience playing in higher leagues. He Captained Chelsea's successful youth team as a youngster. He's also played in Europe too. His signing gives Stuart Maynard more options in Midfield and increases the competition for places too.

Wishing him a happy retirement. I'm guessing it's for good this time.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/66793441

And hoping that he gets back to do that gig at the Playhouse next year.

Now Notts are promoted into the league I must admit I will probably still keep an eye on the National League to see how our old rivals are faring, particularly Chesterfield, I used to work there and have a lot of friends who are Spirerite fans so I will be hoping they are promoted so we can renew our rivalry in the league but of course by then we’ll be in League One won’t we? 
 

Anyone interested in keeping tabs on National League?

The English Football League is going after Match Day Vloggers, in an effort to stop them from filming match coverage. This includes videos of a fan reacting without showing match footage, something I feel very disappointed about. So far there doesn't seem to be any consistency with who they go after at the moment. I am aware of several vloggers being issued bans - two of which I know from having started Football Manics.

As most of you will know, we have our very own match day vloggers who have been doing it for years.

@ARLukomski for example puts so much effort into his own video content, that it would be a shame to see the EFL issue bans to restrict him from putting out his content.

Some people may be on the side of the EFL, although I would question why. There is no law restricting footage being captured in a public space; simply rules and guidelines.

Fan-driven content could easily be argued as a productive outlet for a club. While I acknowledge the concerns regarding goals and such, it is a fact that official highlights consistently outperform vloggers in terms of views. Football is a sport built on its fans, however little respect is given to us.

This isn't just about two AFC Wrexham fans who have been banned, a number of others have started to be warned by their respective clubs.

I see no reason to ban fans from being able to record their reactions, if a mutual line would be not to record the game.

One point I should be making clear, is so far all the people I know of are earning revenue from ads on YouTube - therefore it makes me think it's about money but most of the content vloggers put that back into their clubs by following them home and away.

It's a disgrace in my eyes.

Andy Cole definitely had a lot to offer. They called him Cole the goal for a reason. Prolific at both Newcastle and Manchester United during the 90's.

However, around that time, England had a whole host of strikers to choose from. The likes of Shearer, Sheringham, Les Ferdinand, Ian Wright, Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler. It was always going to be a tough ask to get in to that England squad as a striker. I think he perhaps could of or should have been given more of an opportunity maybe a bit of rotation every now and again. Had he been around a bit later, in a different generation, he would have been given more caps.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Long_(footballer)

Game 30 - The Bluebirds (H)

Team: Barrow

Date: 27/01/2024

Where: Meadow Lane

What line-up should Luke Williams opt for? What will be the key areas for the Magpies to get a victory? What do you think the final score will be?

Have your say below, join in with the Pride of Nottingham match discussion.

3 EFL "League" games in, an average 10,990

Where I sit in the Pavis, there used to be plenty of free seats ...now it's packed...but what is more encouraging, is the numbers of younger supporters coming through

Long may it continue