Hello @Dave Dornan, welcome to the Pride of Nottingham. I hope you enjoy being a part of our Notts County community.

Would you care to tell us a little about yourself?

DKE credit for the pinpoint pass to Wootton for the first, and the step over to set up Wootton

Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham site @colin savage, I hope you enjoy being a part of our Notts County community.

After Casper Sloth's departure, Ardley admitted that he wants another central midfielder to replace him, with similar attributes to Doyle and Reeves. Also said the ones they are looking at are likely to be on loan, but didn't rule out a permanent transfer.

I'd be interested to see who we can get on loan and the quality. I'd like to hope that it'd be a damn sight more impressive than the Knowles loan.

I would imagine Sloth wasn't on peanuts, so there is probably a bit of wage budget there. Perhaps it could stretch to a loan + a Regan Booty? I know he has had his injury problems, but there's certainly a player in there. As far as I'm aware he still doesn't have a club. Neither does Mitch Rose, but I'd like to think that ship has sailed.
 

I listened to BBC Nottingham today and they said that Nottingham is the friendliest city in England.

Few day ago I watched "TheOriginal African" youtube channel and there one guy asked people at Hartlepool streets: ''Which area in England has the best looking people?''. A lot of answers was Newcastle.  

So, what do you think about it?

The Notts live stream is hitting the airwaves tomorrow - an all-singing, all-dancing media extravaganza with four cameras, replays and commentary for 12 quid a pop. That's a bit on the expensive side for my taste (I'd have been happy with a more no-frills production for a bit less) but I'm glad it's there. And I hope it works!

Is anyone else tuning in?

Slocombe - 6 - The second goal could have been pushed anywhere but where it was. Perhaps a harsh criticism.

DKE - 4.5- He was poor. I said in the ratings against Altrincham that DKE was pushing to replace Brindley as the first-choice RB. On this performance, Brindley will feel at ease. Poor distribution, beaten constantly down his side. 

Rawlinson - 6.5 - More comfortable alongside Lacey.

Graham - 5.5 - Won a lot of headers but clumsy at times in possession. Him and DKE made a mess of the 1st  and he let his man go for the 2nd.

McCrory - 6.5 - Needs time to get back up to speed but was OK. Barnet's threat came primarily from their wingers.

Roberts - 8 - He's soo good. Made his goal look effortless.

Doyle - 8 - MOM. Really impressive passing range and a goal. Captain fantastic. 

Reeves - 8 - Seems to be taking the ball from one of the CBs one second, and breaking into the opposition box the next. Dynamite. 

Enzio - 7.5 - A bit more like the Enzio we know. Loach maybe will be upset he didn't keep the shot out.

Ruben Rodrigues - 7.5 - What a player. You can see he is adjusting already, a few more games and he will be firing on all cylinders. 

Wootton - 8 - Can't stop scoring and assisting. What a player


O'Brien - 7 - Solidified when he came on.
Thomas - 7 - Turns his man so many times, including for our 4th.
Brindley - N/A 

Hurray! The Premier League is going to save English football! But be warned - there are strings attached...

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/54499998

The owners of Liverpool and Manchester United have tabled a proposal, with the Orwellian name "Project Big Picture", according to which the PL will hand over 250 million quid to the Football League, plus 25% of its TV revenue every year. Great. But coming from American billionaires, this amazing offer has strings attached:

Only nine Premier League clubs will have "special status" and thus voting rights - Liverpool, Man United and City, Spurs, Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, West Ham and Southampton (it's interesting here that Aston Villa (25 PL seasons) and Newcastle (21) have been ommitted in favour of Man City (18) and Southampton (16)). If six of these clubs vote for a proposal, it will be deemed passed. As the PL will essentially be holding the Football League's purse strings and will therefore have FL clubs by the goolies, this narrow PL cartel will essentially have complete control of English football. The rest of the Premier League won't have a voice, never mind the other pro clubs.

Hence, six big clubs would have the power to force their B teams into the Football League, bring Rangers and Celtic into the English league system or basically anything else they want without the risk of being outvoted. They will also have the power to prevent their rivals from being taken over. They can run the show.

The more I think about it the angrier I get. These clubs are exploiting a crisis and greasing the palms of Football League clubs in a thinly veiled attempt to entrench their position at the top of the game. Man City and Southampton should be particularly ashamed of themselves - it's just an accident of timing that they're in the PL and not in League One.

I hope this plan gets squashed.

dion kelly-evans since joining notts has always give the club 100%, i feel so far this season, he has been the most consistent and deserves his place in the team despite being out of position.

if this means dropping brindley or whoever plays at left back, i feel, he should start provided he dont need resting.

People might disagree, but the thing about Michael Doyle is he's not able to lift the squad by himself. If the squad plays bad, usually he's one of the culprits for going missing. This said, he's proved within the past two games that he's a vital part of the jigsaw.

I realise now, that we might not appreciate what he does well when he doesn't perform to the standard in which we expect or, believe we should see.

I'm not his biggest fan by a country mile, but I do like his character.

He's not afraid to put himself about and, I am starting to feel I shouldn't judge him so harshly. Today, not just because of his goal but the way he commanded himself. I think his experience shines, but we have to rely on other players around him to bring the best out of him. Is it harsh to expect more from a 39-year-old?

Going into this season, I was worried that his legs had gone and, I really wanted someone to replace him as a captain. This is something I feel must be done at some point during this campaign, but I do acknowledge he will be a vital part in our promotion chase.

Slocombe 7 - Made a good few saves in the first half and always does his job well. Not much chance with a fantastic strike for their goal.

Brindley - 7 - Good interplay going forward at times. Still worries me, often out of position and not closing down his man quick enough. There is a case for DKE starting in his position.

Rawlinson - 7.5 - Seems more lean and mobile than last year? Much better with the ball at his feet too. For a 'does the basics right' CB, he has improved with the ball.

Lacey - 7.5 - Usual Lacey. Calm and composed.

DKE - 8 - Never gives up, tenacious and always battling. Showed some good touches and joined in the attack, too. 

Roberts - 8 - Very close control allows him to emerge from a sea of defenders leaving us all clueless as to how exactly he has done that. However, needs to work on his passing. Often beats 3 men to play a lazy pass and give the ball away. An area for improvement.

Doyle - 7.5 - Covered a lot of ground and spread the ball nicely. Typical Doyle performance. When we get countered though, Doyle often lacks the pace to keep up with their midfield running past him. This needs to be rectified against some teams, maybe by playing Reeves there at the base.

Reeves - 9 - MOM. Somebody should stop giving this kid too many E numbers. Just ran and ran and ran. He did 13 km against Dover on a cow field, would be interested to see how many he did last night. Not only did he put a shift in, he was very good with the ball at his feet, often driving forward. 

O'Brien - 6.5 - Very good going forward. Often knows when to turn and passes excellently. However, he is far too slow at being able to track back. More than once it was his lack of pace that allowed them to get in, especially on the counter. Furthermore, he is no defender. He dives in and doesn't face his man up. Some could say 6.5 is harsh, the lowest on the team, but defensively the weakness came through him. If we are being countered and have Doyle and O'Brien tracking back - forget about it - too slow.

Thomas - 9 - Expert at being able to turn his man. Calm under pressure and a lovely dink over the top for our second.

Wootton - 8.5 - A real partnership with Thomas. Give and go, a pleasure to watch. Finished well, but could and maybe should have had more. The penalty wasn't the greatest nor the worst I've ever seen - it was a decent save from the keeper.

Enzio - 6 - Nothing really of note.

Sam - 6 - Was going to be lower after the first few 'touches', but slowly came in to the game and actually had a couple of decent touches as he settled in. Could be a slow burner. Ardley saying he needs time etc... as he hasn't played in a year. OK, let's give him time, but I can't shake that feeling in me that he might be a bit of a dud. Hope not.

Rodrigues - 6 - Only played a few minutes but showed some very good touches. Was too naiive once and jumped in to a tackle, turning his back to block the long pass, as the defender dribbled easily past him. 


Overall a very good performance throughout, 

The prediction league is in full flow now, it's tight and the title is still anyone's. So get your predictions in! The deadline is 3pm on Saturday, 10 October, and you have one joker each...

Accrington Stanley v Rochdale

Swindon Town v AFC Wimbledon

Cambridge United v Newport County

Port Vale v Carlisle United

Walsall v Colchester United

Bromley v Torquay United

Maidenhead United v Hartlepool United

Yeovil Town v Wrexham

Game 3 - The Bees (H)

Team: Barnet

Date: 10/10/2020

Where: Meadow Lane

What line-up should Neal Ardley 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.

As per the e-mail which I have sent out, I am keen to gather feedback from the community.

I realise that some fans might not be interested, however, it's a fun way to discuss the games when you have an active group of people who enjoy each others company. I would like to rekindled the interest which saw it being very popular under @anonypie - a fan who loved to discuss everything black & white with a loyal following which she had built over the years.

Firstly; I did use to promote the chat on social media.

This is something which I would like to try to focus on again, especially, since more fans know some of us behind the PON community.

I'll be encouraging friends to come on board, along with previous users which I am to reach out to personally. More as a gesture to see what has been keeping them away and, what can be done to improve things for them.

If you have any ideas for the match day chat, please discuss below.

You can also express your own interest by commenting or, simply liking my post.

One area I would like to look at, is the ability to include radio coverage directly linked into the chat - I obviously need to check this. However, I have seen other fan sites achieve similar and provided there's interest I will look into the possibility.

Game 2 - The Robins (H)

Team: Altrincham

Date: 07/10/2020

Where: Meadow Lane

What line-up should Neal Ardley 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.

Again a really excellent pod cast.

Really good words about Ricardo Moniz and Richard Thomas (Nolan's assistant)

I have asked members in the past to do similar, however, I am sure things have changed and I wonder what our creative bunch will come up with. Please share a video to a song on YouTube which you would consider a guilty pleasure.

When I used to be a member of a prominent song writers community, I shared this and, mentioned how the lyrics might be somewhat corny but it worked quite well. I had some banter directed my way for liking Darius Campbell.

Whilst this is by far his best work, I don't think he's a bad singer and his writing ability is a lot better than most these days.

I am rather gutted that Notts miss out on this quality

at what point do we start to form a plan on living with covid19?

i know theres a lot of danger, not just to people with underlined conditions. with the uk looking to be heading into another lockdown, i do wonder if we could learn to live with it? to some degree we are now.

biggest issue i see is the morons who think its a joke, or ignore the guidelines.

the amount of people who vape and blow their smoke towards you, its going to take a lot more awareness and consideration.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/54341314

Do you think Notts needs any more reinforcements or, are you happy with the squad now?

The depth is there, I would feel happier knowing we have another winger but since Notts can sign one at any point, I don't think it's a major issue. What are your thoughts?

It's time to dust down your crystal balls again - the latest round of fixtures for the prediction league kicks off on Saturday at 3pm, so I'll need your predictions by then. Newbies are expressly welcome. And remember your jokers!

And if these fixtures seem a little more tin pot than usual, that's because the Vanarama Blue Square Conference League is finally in action again. Hurray!

Reading v Watford

Swansea City v Millwall

Blackpool v Lincoln City

Peterborough United v Swindon Town

Carlise United v Barrow

Tranmere Rovers v Scunthorpe United

Altrincham v Weymouth

Wrexham v Boreham Wood

Neal Ardley has warning for Notts County as he aims for perfect start.

https://www.nottinghampost.com/sport/football/football-news/angry-neal-ardley-warning-notts-4570147

its not much of a warning or ardley being 'angry' but its interesting.

"You go through the basics of what it takes to win a game of football and the hard work, the stuff that was lacking against York City  last week,"