I would hope by Now @Robbie  Stuart Maynard is fully aware of that, if Notts do get off to a Poor Start I just hope the Owners Don't keep hold of him Hoping things will get Better, before bringing in a New Coach.

But lets Not be to Negative hopefully 4 more Senior Players will be Recruited to Bring the Squad up to Full Strength and Stuart can Mould them into League 2 Champions. Who knows?

@Wheelbarrow repair man don't get me wrong, I want very much for Stuart to succeed and I do feel with four more players Notts will have a squad strong enough to make a challenge this season.

All I'm saying is that it is all on Stuart now, the honeymoon period is truly over 

@Robbie

You Ain't Wrong Fella. Stuart hasn't Got any Excuses Now, It's his Team and with them He'll Either Sink Or Swim.

@Blake

I don't think there is any Question regarding the New Players Not Being Supported By The Fans.  As they are Now Magpies.

@Robbie

I think the Euphoria of Notts getting Promoted back into the EFL had more than a little bit to do with the Notts recruitment. Players who were Not up to League 2 standard were kept at the Lane, in the Hope they could take Notts into at least the Play offs.  A Case of the Heart Ruling the Head. Sadly when Luke Williams left and he took his Man Management skills with him it affected the Notts Players. perhaps more than they Realized. I would think that if Notts do get Promoted the same Mistake won't happen again and New Players with higher League Experience would be bought into the Squad. While Players thought not to be League 1 standard would be Realised.

I'm sure they will support the new signings, but setbacks must be balanced by new arrivals. If Crawley gets good replacements, they should become stronger. At least, that's the goal.

If they had managed to retain more of their top players from the team that won the promotion, it might have been beneficial when bringing in new players. Nothing is impossible, and while it’s unlikely, they might have been able to compete at the higher end of League One. It would have been a challenge, but with the unity their squad developed in League Two, it could have been achievable. In our first match against them, they seemed average, but they improved significantly in our subsequent encounter. Adam Campbell was particularly challenging.

This is likely one of the most disappointing signings in recent memory, as he seemed to be a high-quality player when he arrived. Whatever the reason for his lacklustre performances, it didn’t pan out. I personally believe Will Randall probably wanted to play consistently, but joining our squad, he was unlikely to achieve that without putting in the effort. He paid too much attention to the praise given before the signing, rather than seizing the opportunities presented to him. It’s more of a letdown on his part, as we offered him a chance to step up, and he didn’t seize it.

I have just read an article stating that both John Bostock and Will Randall, have recently played in a game for Swindon as trialists, against the U21 Southampton team. 

This could potentially be a beneficial move for both footballers. However, there are some concerns regarding Will Randall’s motivation to excel in a team like Swindon. Swindon has a reputation for cycling through players at a faster rate than we were accustomed to in the past. It’s something to consider.

2 hours ago, Fan of Big Tone said:

We shouldn’t begrudge him a chance of playing in the championship a footballers career is short and career threatening injury could be just around the corner, let’s wish him well and thank him for the memories.

This one contract on its own is also probably going to be enough for Macca to buy himself a nice house and have enough in savings to dip into for the rest of his life. It's easy to forget that the vast majority of footballers have to take a significant pay cut once their playing careers are over and they transition into "ordinary" life. They absolutely should do what they can while they're playing to make that transition as smooth as possible.

I’ve come to terms with Macaulay Langstaff’s departure and there’s no use dwelling on it. I wish him all the best and hope he scores frequently for Millwall. I hope their fans appreciate his contributions. Many players move on when the time is right, and it was his time. He’s accomplished more in his seasons here than some who have been around for many seasons.

Looks like the Council wants to increase the rent for the City ground I'm sure there may well be a compromise agreed, but Forest may decide to move to a different site. Could have repercussions for Notts. We'll have to see what happens.

So the Nottingham CC is offering to sell the Land that the City Ground stands on to Forest for £10 million.

Notts should look into buying the freehold for the land that Meadow stands on from NCC if given the opportunity. Surely the land wouldn't cost so much anyway. 

Notts don't want to have to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds a year in lease charges,  if they can own the land, even if they take out a loan to finance the buy.

On 02/03/2024 at 16:54, Chris said:

Does this make anyone think differently?

I don't see it happening but the council is far from to be trusted with regards to ground rent.

Forest are in a different situation to Notts, in that their lease only has about 40 years left to run, whereas the current arrangement at Meadow Lane still has well over 100 years to go. It's difficult for Forest to justify long-term redevelopment of the City Ground when ultimately it could potentially be short- to medium-term for them.

The current set up on Meadow Lane saved the club in 2019, when Haydn Green's family effectively forced Hardy out. I trust the Reedtz brothers, but not as much as I trust the Green family. I hope they have a stake in the ground for many years to come.

Check out these comments from our members.

@menzinho

@Joshua

@Robbie

@RetroPie

@Benji

@Wheelbarrow repair man

@super_ram

@TheSkipper

@KingMaynard

@CliftonMagpie

Perhaps once we are back in the UK, we might start seeing other arrivals, but Alex Kirk seems like a good option.

I was assuming that because he didn’t feature against Wealdstone, we may have dropped our interest, will wait to see if he plays this weekend. 

The only trialist I can find that did play the other night was Robbie Cundy, who I know has been training with Notts.

It’s possible that Notts have seen enough and are now trying to shield him from the gaze of other clubs while initiating discussions with his agent. Notts may have lost interest, or alternatively, Alex Kirk might not see a regular football opportunity for himself. We probably won’t know until he signs with a team, but he does seem to meet the criteria.

4 minutes ago, Wheelbarrow repair man said:

@Chris

@Fan of Big Tone Chee I Wonder Who He'll Pick ? It Will Be One Hell Of A Tough Decision For Him

Well of course Big Tony Hateley is my all time favourite player but of course there are many other great players who have graced the black and white stripes.

I guess Tommy Lawton has got to be among the greatest if not THE greatest player for us.

Others I would mention would be Jackie Sewell, Don Masson, Les Bradd and latterly Macauley Langstaff of course.

My earliest memories of Notts revolve around us being in League 2 and struggling so it's slim pickings for me and others from the younger generation. The munto season bought in some fantastic players albeit under false pretences, but had it not been we probably wouldn't have seen the likes of Ben Davies and Kasper Schmeichel. Agree Macca is the most recent best player, his goal record was incredible.

lee hughes @menzinho!!

neal bishop was a great captain and whilst not the best player, he made up for it by being reliable. mike edwards, michael johnson, mark stallard, danny allsop, ian richardson, so many greats.

7 hours ago, Wheelbarrow repair man said:

@allardyces tash

I think most Notts Fans knew that last Season would be Jim's Swan Song as a Player at the Lane. But Like Many others I Did hope a Position on the Coaching side could have been found for Jim at Notts. The Guys Experience and Fighting Attitude would have given Notts a Massive Boost, both to the Senior Squad and the Academy.

For Me it was the Speed in which Macca's move came about, that made me wonder if some sort of Deal had been Agreed a lot Earlier than the Off Season. Thus resulting in the Paltry sum of £750,000 Macca went for. Hopefully any add on's will Result in a Big Chunk of Cash Coming into the Clubs Coffers.

I believe Notts would have permitted Macaulay Langstaff to receive such applause if they had faith or had agreed on a deal for his services at that point. The rumoured sum could be entirely incorrect, and there could be addons in place that increase it. It’s unlikely that we will know either this or when the deal began.

1 minute ago, Chris said:

You make a valid point about Junior Morias. He had some time and performed decently, but he was frequently reported as injured or carrying a knock. When we were linked with Jatta, it appeared to be a move to potentially provide cover for Macaulay Langstaff and also to give him additional support up front. Morias seems to be a very fast player, so we now have players with different qualities.

I think the club felt the need to sign Jatta. We were desperate for better defenders, and we invested a significant amount in bringing Jatta into the team. His height is something we’ve been missing since Kyle Wootton moved to Stockport. I can envision the club seeking to recruit a striker again come January. As for Junior Morias, we do need to see more of him.

Junior does seem to have had a Raw Deal at Notts so far, he's never been given much of a chance to show his capabilities and so far I think he's scored a single goal in the Matches he's played in. Now Macca's gone he could get the Chance he's been waiting for.

i dont think the deal was ever in the pipeline until they came forward, i am not sure notts had even rejected a bid. i think that was scaremongers trying to wave the negative storm of clicks to get them some ad revenue and site visits. i think if macca was going to leave, we would not have seen him training with us.

the fact he was here for a brief time before leaving leaves me to think it was a very quick move, where millwall managed to attract maccas interest and i can understand the lure of championship football.

The majority of individuals who engage in this behaviour are fans who take their team’s rivalry to an extreme level, even going as far as to sew Stone Island labels onto their garments. They represent the most undesirable kind of supporters any club could have.

I think some people think it's banter, but in fact it's sickening. I think these days, a lot of stuff which isn't "banter" gets given that title as an attempt to make it acceptable or to normalise it.

I have been at games where I have heard these types of chants and comments.

Ideally more banning orders would be given.

you have to be a sick person and not a real football fan to chant sickening stuff like the article mentions, thankfully a lot of fans come together over the passing and its just small pockets of people i would suspect looking to be controversial. they are not football fans but people looking to get a reaction out of opposition fans.

this behaviour is not the sign of someone wanting to support their club.

@Chris

That's Strange but when you mentioned the Fact about Sheep/Lambs being used to keep the Grass down at Meadow Lane. I got a vague recollection of someone telling me that many years ago. Reading Facts from other members it's Funny how long forgotten memories Suddenly Resurface.

@Wheelbarrow repair man Colin Slater told me that he didn't believe Notts had any connections to The Lamb gang. I have spoken to a lot of club historians and knowledgable people and I do believe it was more down to footballing reasons. With Notts having played in what I was told was a plain white shirt before 1891.

It's a good job we didn't re-think our nickname in 1936; we could be called 'The Free Birds' or the "Burgulars". Obviously a joke, but I have always thought it was interesting how we went from a white shirt, to a bumblebee orange and black horizontal stripe kit, to what looks like the Netherlands to the infamous chocolate kit.

I think it's an obvious sign that we were experimenting and trying to find our real identity.

@Chris

The Connections between the Club and the Lambs was told to me and it was like somebody had said this and somebody else said That and by the time I heard about the Story it had probably been Told and Retold Quite a Few Times with things added to it along the way. That's why I said before I didn't think the Club would associate with a Gang of Thugs.

White shirts before 1891 could that have something To Do with the Lambs nickname? After all Lambs wool is White, in a Majority of Cases.

@liampie

I have indeed watched Notts live with my Sons. The First time I brought my Eldest to Meadow Lane was with Tickets given to his School by the Club. In my Younger Days I did go and watch Derby at the Old Baseball Ground and even on one (just one mind) occasion I went to the City Ground and watched Forest get thumped 3-0 by Arsenal the year the Gunners did the Double, 70/71? I think it was.

It’s disappointing that they didn’t honour your win, even with your parents’ permission. I don’t see why your age should have been an issue, especially with your dad’s support. It’s simply wrong that they let you enter, announced you as a winner, and then let it amount to nothing.

@CliftonMagpie

I Guess that's what it was like back then. As a Kid I soon got over the Disappointment and  forgot about it. If I hadn't have found the Letter stuck in the rollers of the Draw, it never would have crossed my mind again. When I found the Letter I thought I'd share it with the Rest of the PON Membership and compared to what @Robbie and his Daughter went through my disappointment  pales into insignificance compared to the Horror they saw.

Today started really nice and sunny but it’s clouded over a bit now and cooler than yesterday. We are going for our daily walk after lunch and popping in to Morrisons to get some salad stuff for tea tonight, if the weather stays fit I’m going to bbq some pork steaks we’ve got and have them with salad.

Have a great day everyone.

I’m enjoying a relaxing day in my garden, having a few beers and later I’ll fire up the BBQ. The weather has been pleasant today and yesterday, with plenty of warmth and a nice breeze to cool things down. On days like this, it’s lovely to cook a burger outside and see who else might want to join.

i know i am late to this but i had a really nice weekend, saturday my aunt had all the immediate family over and we had a buffet. it was nice to catch up, especially now i am feeling better. these types of things are always nice when the weather is good.

sunday, i did my mums shopping and went out on a bike ride around ilkeston.

@gtownjohnno

This 20/20 season has been the worse for Notts, 2 wins only,  since it's inception. They need a serious rebuild. Hales is past his peak. Last year's team was broken up to quickly.

Speechless..... Another all time low for Notts CC.... Loosing to the part timers from Lincolnshire.... Admittedly a very close game but nevertheless a defeat... Let's hope Trent Rockets put on a better show next week... 

@gtownjohnno

It's been a season to forget for the Outlaws. They need a complete rebuild for next season.

Hello @Pies79! Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham. It's fantastic to have you with us. We're a friendly bunch here, always ready to chat about our beloved Notts County. Don't hesitate to join in the discussions. Looking forward to getting to know you better. Cheers!

Hello, welcome to the community here at the Pride of Nottingham @Pies79.

Enjoy, discuss and come back when you can.  

Have you settled in well, @Pies79? It's good to have you on board PON. Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham.

I hope you like the community and site.

Welcome to PON, @Morten Johansen. Good to have you on board.

Hello, welcome to the community here at the Pride of Nottingham @Morten Johansen.

Enjoy, discuss and come back when you can.  

I’m not sure how this escaped my notice, but you’ve been a member since September 2023. I’d like to extend a warm welcome to you, @Morten Johansen. It’s wonderful to see you on PON.

New British National Record in the Women's pole vault.

Keeley Hodgkinson ran a national record today in the 800m of 1:54.61 and it was a British 1-2-3  too 

New British record for Matthew Hudson-Smith of 43.74 in the 400m in London.

I would be in the camp of wishing nothing like this would happen, because it would mess with the way scores have been handled for decades.

Yet, by drawing, earning no points - theoretically would mean managers and players would push themselves more to win. It could have an impact that makes games more exciting because teams will want those points.  

Good point @Chris regarding nil points for a draw.

No more shutting up shop to play for a draw. Would certainly make a difference to the World Cup and Euro finals, & Champions league. 

The organisers may as well go for just pure knockout once again. 

i think 0-0 could equal no points, where as anything higher could be rewarded with a point because it shows that the teams did not settle for a goalless draw.

then again giving no points for draws would mean teams had to attack.

i dont think any of these would help the underdog teams that might have a great one off season due to winning and drawing games though.

@Wheelbarrow repair man

Makes me wonder why Notts  haven't thought about rolling out a big screen at Meadow lane and open up the Cop or Jimmy Sirrel stand so that supporters can watch an away match and the club make some more money that way.

On the other hand, I bet they probably have.

They could certainly do it with the Nest and make a packet doing that.

Although I suppose they will look to attract away supporters going to the Forest matches, so that idea might not be feasible.

But I'm sure they are looking at all the options 

@Robbie

You know that's Not a Bad Idea. Open the Nest Up when the Magpies are away, so Fans can Watch their Favourites in Action. Yeah I can See the Appeal. As long as they made it affordable to watch so a Family can also watch. Maybe a Quid A kid . A Fiver for the over 60's and a Tenner for everybody else. I'm sure the Club would Get Plenty of Takers. Food and Drink also available you'd be on a Winner There.

The only issue is this would lose a lot of revenue in the Champions League group stages. It would have a further impact on the broadcasting side, as they won't want to lose the potential coverage that the games offer. It would be good for the players, in principle.

However, I think teams just need to be more aware of how frequent players are playing.

Squads are usually large enough to make changes, which would reduce the fatigue caused by playing often. Yet, clubs and managers are more inclined to field their strongest squad, but from a development point of few making the odd change in games which aren't as crucial or where other fringe players could keep up, then the obvious answer would be not to over play first team players.

The UEFA Nations League should have been introduced with the mindset that nations must only choose x senior players and enforce them to bring in newer talent. This has added more games but the answer to reduce fatigue is to make use of your full squad. For example, if Liverpool are playing a club considered smaller, would playing 3-4 of their fringe/younger players make much difference?

 Ha! Almost a military drill.

Losing team gets to do twenty press ups...  It's a good insight, some of which may be for the camera (not a negative) but it shows the strictness of the training process. All smiles and joking, it's good to see that the group of players are amongst each other.

Though someone in the background looks to be struggling with heavy panting.

We do need to try not to overdo things in the heat though, yet I am sure this is fully something the coaching team are aware off.

I think Southgate looked upon Ollie Watkins as a man who could come on and change a game, nothing more than that. 

Football has become a squad game nowadays where it is no longer looked upon as 11 players and their substitutes.

Now we have a starting 11 & a finishing 11 with every player in that 18, or 20 in the PL, or even 25 in international matches, having a specific purpose to perform depending on the circumstances 

I Don't See the point of calling him a Super Sub, just because he scored a 90th minute winner ( even if he's the youngest to do so). If he'd had done it 3-4 more times in different England Matches Fair Enough.

Is that All England have to Celebrate then? Ollie Watkins being the Youngster Sub ever to score the Winning Goal as a Substitute in the Euro's and Kyle Walker got into the Team of the Tournament Side.  We're just Clutching At Straws Now.

Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden are good players but in my opinion are over rated. They are not world beaters.

Apart from Bellingham scoring a wonder goal he had a very average tournament. He looked tired and jaded and he was quick to go down as though he was fouled a lot of the time.. He did lots of complaining too.

Foden had an average tournament too, looked tired & jaded & got frustrated very easily. Both players looked like they had left their best performances for their club sides.

Both of them lacked fire and motivation. Those two players impress in their club side, but they are surrounded by great players at their clubs, which can make a big difference. For England they both looked ordinary.

@Piethagoram they’ve got a monorail? Are they owned by Munto? 

i can eat any type of veg that goes with gravy, even if i dont like it by its self. i was a fussy eater when i was younger but in my teens i found trying things opened up a lot of new options for meals. i also quite like cooking, so i do tend to use veg.

one of my favourite things is a stew that my grandmother used to make. this is heavily reliant on things like peas, carrots etc.

Rhubarb, celery, gooseberries, 

Stuck in the 70's ...could live on Black Forest Gateau everyday

1 hour ago, Piethagoram said:

could live on Black Forest Gateau everyday

Now you’re talking I love Black Forest Gateau but I don’t think it qualifies as a vegetable. 

I don’t make an effort to rise or respond to the doorbell, even though the sight of a hand emerging from a secondary door and gesturing towards a sign seems quite reminiscent of Monty Python.

A Simple Sticker With the Words NO JUNK MAIL is Fixed to our Letter Box. But it Doesn't Stop the Postman or Woman from pushing all Sorts of C**p through the Door. I Think I May have to make Up some sort of Poster to Deter That. Suggestions Very Welcome.

19 hours ago, Wheelbarrow repair man said:

A Simple Sticker With the Words NO JUNK MAIL is Fixed to our Letter Box. But it Doesn't Stop the Postman or Woman from pushing all Sorts of C**p through the Door. I Think I May have to make Up some sort of Poster to Deter That. Suggestions Very Welcome.

I don’t think you’ll stop the post office putting stuff through your door unless you seal up your letterbox, they are contracted to deliver that stuff so they have to do it.

I’m still cautious to predict and top 3 spot, we did finish 14th last season and getting in the top 3 would be quite a jump, I think play-offs is a very realistic goal though and I’d hope we’d finish in them or at worst miss out by just a point our two. And again I could be completely wrong here but the two big spenders in Wrexham and Stockport are gone and Mansfield weren’t exactly on a shoe-string budget either so I’d expect the league to be quite close when it comes to the promotion spots this season.

Still think we need a few signings before the season starts, so maybe I'll predict an exact position just before the Tranmere game!

For me it would be very dissapointing if Notts didn't make at least the playoffs this season. 

The first half a dozen matches will be a big pointer to what could happen, however the three pre season games have been encouraging, so I do remain hopeful of success in 2025.

yes I agree play offs is the minimum, automatic next then ultimately title winning. 

Last season we scored the most and conceded the most.

We have a new defence and got rid of our goal machine, which leaves the questions:

Will the new defence do what it has been brought into do?
will we score goals?

We have held on to the Assist Machine JJ so in the numbers game we will score goals

The defence have been brought in for what we lacked last year and on paper it looks good.

The future is unwritten.