Go where the white lines are and the hidden parties. It can't be hard to find someone who lives like that.

I wonder if he lived this lifestyle before the success as gaining money can make habits snowball further, either way I find it quite a sad story and how easily some people can be led down a darker road.

probably there before he had the money but spiralled out of control when he had it. he was living the dream with his company and owning a football club, its crazy how things turn out.

The results:

Hull City 3-0 Cardiff City
Swansea City 1-2 Middlesbrough
Barnsley 1-1 Charlton Athletic
Port Vale 3-2 Wigan Athletic
Doncaster Rovers 0-5 Morecambe
Newport County 1-1 Grimsby Town
Dagenham & Redbridge 0-2 Wealdstone
Dorking Wanderers 1-2 Woking

---

A lot of games that looked predictable weren't at all. Our best scorers this round were @KingWilliams and @nottsnutter!

@KingWilliams, @nottsnutter - 7
@allardyces tash, @DonnyNotts, @gtownjohnno - 6
@Dan - 5
@4everapie, @DangerousSausage, @magpiejue, @thommo - 4
@liampie - 3
@ARLukomski, @Chris, @CliftonMagpie, @william1984 - 2
@cheeky~k8, @Fan of Big Tone, @Joshua, @Megan_Elizax, @super_ram - 1
@TheSkipper - nul points

---

This is our table. @ARLukomski still leads ahead of @gtownjohnno, but the lead has been reduced to nine points. Meanwhile, @nottsnutter joins the top three!

ARLukomski - 128
gtownjohnno - 119
nottsnutter - 108
4everapie - 106
cheeky~k8 - 104
DangerousSausage - 103
Fan of Big Tone - 98
william1984 - 95
super_ram - 94
magpiejue - 93
liampie - 90
Chris - 87
Megan_Elizax - 85
Dan - 84
upthepies - 84
Joshua - 76
DonnyNotts - 75
allardyces tash - 63
TheSkipper - 58
KingWilliams - 55
CliftonMagpie - 49
thommo - 49
OoooooTommy - 45
NottsCountyKev - 41
JIMBO - 40
jimbob - 38
Nocturnal-Magpie - 38
AmericanPie - 36
KB1862 - 22
George L - 6
Canadian - 4

---

The next round is this coming Saturday, the 23rd of December, so the fixtures will be posted on Wednesday. See you all then for the last pre-Christmas round!

On 16/12/2023 at 11:41, DangerousSausage said:

No. Happy belated birthday though

Wasnt belated, it was on the 16th ,

I was obviously joking anyway haha

Looking forward to the next round, well done to all and let’s aim for more than 7 points in the upcoming round. Let’s add a bit of excitement. I might not stand a chance, but it’s all part of the learning process.

Nottingham City Council should probably look at some of their highest earners and start to thin them out, instead of giving lower down people more roles to juggle which means they can't effectively manage their main duty.

All these overspending issues are a big concern.

My nearest library is a good resource. It's being closed for the central one which makes it harder for me to get to. Therefore I won't bother. A lot of councils across the UK need to take a look at their staffing. Most faults fall on them.

The Tories seem to consistently make life more difficult for people, but the Nottingham Council isn’t blameless either. They rescue companies that are losing money, funds that could be put to better use elsewhere. Robin Hood Energy is one such company that received inadequate support multiple times despite its constant financial losses.

On 15/12/2023 at 15:17, JIMBO said:

There’s been too much emphasis on modernising the city, when the funds could have been utilised to enhance it in more effective ways. Now, the central library and underdeveloped areas will hold the city council accountable for not investing more prudently.

The council is certainly mismanaging its budget, almost as if they’re living in a fairy tale like Jack and the Beanstalk. While the Tories aren’t likely to improve the situation, they need to be more prudent with their spending.

I wonder if the club is taking note of some of these players mentioned here. I’m hoping we can secure a reliable defender in January.

Easiest afternoon of his footballing career. One player who did alright and one who was on my recruitment doc was Matty Daly

Yes @ARLukomskihe was good too

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matty_Daly

i dont really rate him as a manager, he seems to be nothing more than a lower tier manager and shows no signs of improving on this.

Yeah, he's a lower tier manager who isn't learning anything higher up. Rotherham have really transformed themselves into what Peterborough got known for by bouncing between the 2nd and 3rd division of English football.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/67723313

i thought it might have been due to the other player being near to the keeper and it falling under obstruction, but i dont see the offside that is claimed myself. i dont see any interference from the player who is jogging back as the cross goes in. when the ball is being struck, i dont see anything.

There are a few moments that could trigger it, but as the commentator says, it's not actually offside. In his eyes and that's exactly how I see it.

1 hour ago, Fan of Big Tone said:

Are we safe from relegation?

We’ve definitely been sussed by teams and they know how to play against us, I’ve never heard Luke Williams so angry in an interview. I hope he can figure a way to get us out of this sticky patch. I feel sorry for all the travelling fans who made the journey.

It's hard not to think about relegation but I think we should be OK. Staying up is all I hoped for. Anything else is a bonus. 

3 hours ago, Fan of Big Tone said:

Are we safe from relegation?

We are 21 points clear. We could conceivably lose all our remaining games (which we won't) and still stay up.

As for being sussed out, we were sussed out years ago. Every team we play knows that the best way to play is is to press us high and stop the back three play it out. It's not rocket science, but it didn't use to matter because we were too good.

What we saw yesterday was nowhere near as good as last season, let alone as good as we need for L2. The game got away from us due to two straightforward goals, but we didn't threaten at all either. Time and again our defenders had the ball and were forced to play it back because there was no movement in front of them, no one was making himself available for the ball. We miss Palmer badly, and LW moving Austin into the middle instead of bringing on Gosling speaks volumes as to the latter's chances of staying. The January window will determine whether we can push for the top seven, or whether we'll end up in the bottom half.

I was expecting us to lose a few this season, but not as lethargically as that. I expect to see a bit of fight when things aren't going well, not a limp surrender. It was a deserved and easy win for Harrogate. 

Yeah, that was not good. Shrewsbury was all about individual errors, the Walsall game (although I didn’t go) was a dreadful second half. Well this was the complete performance, pretty dire for the whole 90.

Harrogate looked up for it at the start, almost waiting for us to make a mistake, but they didn’t need to. They did in 5 minutes what we struggled to do all game, attack and get us running backwards, a neat-cut back and an annoyingly great finish and that’s us 1-0 down. Then Harrogate just sat back, and let us pass it around for a bit until they decided to string together another 5 passes and score. For all our possession it was too easy for Harrogate we played far too safe and just had the ball for the sake of having it. Far too many backward passes when a bit of bravery was needed. We must have played about 1 or 2 balls in behind their defence that first half, I could’ve played in at CB they were that untroubled. Our ability to get the byline and put dangerous crosses in has just gone.

2nd half wasn’t any better, our goal came out of nowhere but it gave me hope we could nick a draw... That hope lasted for about 90 seconds, just an inability to read the game, it’s like we got too over excited and went all out to immediately equalise. Just like in the first half, Harrogate made about 4 passes, got up the pitch and nice bit of play in the box and it’s 3. No defensive howlers, Stone's contribution for the second aside, but that was so passive we just let them run past us constantly and failed to make tackles time and time again. It reminded me of the Sutton game.

We had our best spell in the last 15 minutes of the game, not a positive though, Harrogate had pretty much given up by then, they knew they could take it easy and we hadn’t really laid a glove on them all game. I don’t know why we’ve gone so off the boil at the moment, we’ve gone from all-out attack to no attack. We look off the pace, we look vulnerable as soon as we lose the ball. So yeah, all in all an awful day out! Only made better by the fact I was there with an old friend who lives nearby, so I was able to have a few drinks after and forget (try to) the whole 90 minutes.

I saw the Stockport score and they are next up. Play like that and we are in serious trouble, don’t even bother turning up in fact. What’s the punishment for not fulfilling a fixture? A fine and a 2-0/3-0 loss? I’d take that.

They can be quite distracting and, to be honest, it’s silly to have the same advert looping all around the stadium. I hope Notts opts for a more traditional look, with different adverts that switch positions. I just don’t want to see a whole row of the same advert.

The new CEO is about getting as much needed revenue into the club. I've heard that we've purchased the units behind the Pavis stand car park and it's going to be a fans zone.

On 15/12/2023 at 15:30, Fan of Big Tone said:

This is a really good idea I hope it generates some income for the club, as long as we don’t have that advert with the annoying black dog running round that I’ve seen on televised matches it puts might of the game.

How about magpies flying majestically accross

celvin miller is also someone who has, at this rate of him moving around clubs we might see him being a common name.  

@allardyces tash https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Bolland

On 13/12/2023 at 18:00, allardyces tash said:

I think Paul Bolland ended his football career at Harrogate Town.

I think he’s got some kind of position there, Mark Stallard said on the radio he had been chatting to him before the match and catching up.

This is all quite surprising, but then again, there are some suspicious occurrences in Turkey. That being said, there’s no justification for taking matters into your own hands and attacking a match official. I bet this evokes memories of our own fans from a past era when violence was more prevalent in the English leagues.

Doing that was very wrong. It did not show a good example. It was an odd thing to happen.

Why have they put the season on hold? Pausing the season gives the impression there’s going to be a thorough investigation. Is there some sort of corruption happening?

This kind of penalty could ruin a club like theirs. I agree that action was necessary, but to further deduct points instead of targeting those responsible is appalling.

At some stage points penalties just become arbitrary. Why can't they just relegate them, give them another suspended penalty in case of further breaches and ban the responsible individuals from running a football club?

It seems like they prefer to hand out point penalties rather than more effective punishments.

This is truly distressing news. It must have been dreadful to be at the match or even nearby when it all happened.

This is dreadful, such a heartbreaking story. I hope they managed to commemorate the fan in some way.

Dying at a match is very sad for a fan. They did right by postponing it.

8 minutes ago, magpiejue said:

Mum and I had a look round the Christmas Market a few weeks ago, tried to get her on the wheel but she wasn't having any of it. Lol. My brother said they were charging £8 for a hot dog on there. Rob dogs more like. 

@magpiejueI wouldn’t want a ride on the wheel either, I don’t like heights, I get scared at the top of the Pavis stand. 

I think that it is spoilt by that high path linked to the ice rink . You can hardly see the tree from one end of the square; the big wheel is in the way.

"Cakeofagram" loves schwarzwälder kirschtorte

4 minutes ago, Chris said:

I'm not familiar with the other manager,

@Chris he’s the Leicester manager and he’s guided them to the top of the championship.

And here a slightly older brother.

Paul Warne appears to be the toughest of the bunch, resembling a ‘Phil Mitchell’ character that wouldn’t be out of place in the TV show Shameless. He seems quite puzzled in the image. They all look very alike! Being bald doesn’t distinguish them.

Very intriguing and valid observations, @Chris.

I do ponder what would have happened if he had restrained himself. I mean, his actions elicited a response and we performed well, but it might have made things more complex. The goals we’re conceding are much worse. Perhaps in one of the team meetings, Luke Williams could concentrate on what the players are doing correctly and commend that, as a way to foster improvement. Focusing solely on the negative can become overwhelming and lead to self-doubt. I’m certain the club does praise the players, but I’ve witnessed team meetings and they can be harsh. It’s a very judgement-based analysis.

Luke Williams didn’t seem very pleased, which is unlike him. I’ve noticed that when we lose, the interviews tend to be shorter and more direct. Sometimes, you’d like to hear more, as I don’t appreciate questions about a previous match being asked in a press conference for the next game. It just seems negative, unless it’s relevant to the story.

Luke Williams might be slightly concerned that he’s not getting the desired response from the players. However, to put things into perspective, we’re still performing quite well for a club that’s newly promoted back into the EFL. We just need to mix things up, improve, and work harder to ensure we get the results. We won’t win every match, but there’s no reason why we can’t improve our form and still be in contention for promotion at the end of the season.

That’s a lovely looking Notts cap! 

I appreciate this. It truly represents what PON stands for, and it's great to witness such things.

Well, if the cap doesn’t start bringing luck, you might need to find some holy water, perhaps a six-leaf clover, or place a rabbit’s foot under it. Something has to work eventually.

Ditto.

Come on @Piethagoram, cough up and tell us what you know. It's not a name I know of.

Well, I remember him signing

https://www.expressandstar.com/sport/football/west-bromwich-albion/2020/05/02/mark-briggs-the-albion-prospect-turned-mls-boss-in-waiting/

Though never made a Notts appearance!

and just look at that squad

https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/notts-county/kader/verein/1045/saison_id/2003/plus/1

i thought it would have been the 80s or later, but some of the names in the team back then bring back memories. it was before my time as an active fan but i know many of the players. my first game was 2 seasons later.

thanks @Piethagoram

I was unaware that he was a coach at Swansea City. It appears he’s done quite well for himself after retirement. I’ve always believed he was superior to a League One/Two player.

I would always wish the best for someone like Alan Sheehan. We may have had difficulties during his time at the club, but none of it was his fault. We are indebted to him for the penalty he scored that kept us in League One against Oldham. I hope he accomplishes his coaching aspirations.

I'd completely overlooked him. He's the sort of former player the club should consider inviting back for a match, given his intriguing seasons with us.

he reminds me a bit of liam noble, he has the talent but believes hes better than what he is and does not put the effort in to match his ego.

On 20/08/2018 at 13:45, Chris said:

His comments about Notts will be something that will put off most fans from wishing him well, he was very disrespectful of the club rather than the people who made the players train on a park.

I just feel he should have said things better, but I wish him well.

I wonder if he regrets making the comments about Notts?

It did make him come across as self-important and one of those footballers who watch everything to perfection. Perhaps if he trained more on being a success in whatever conditions he played, his career would have been better, and he would remain more grounded.  I almost wrote humble, but since he doesn't like training on a park, I think ground is more befitting.

Good player, had something special about him but spending this amount of length fluttering around and settle for the irish league sums him up as a prima donna when it comes to football.

He was a strong player for us when he was at his best, and he could have achieved much more. However, he always seemed like someone who aspired to play at a higher level. I thought he would excel in the Championship, but it appears that the Irish league suits him better.

19 minutes ago, NottsTastic said:

Investigate that defender for potential match-fixing, it’s quite suspicious! I refuse to believe it was a mere blunder. Not at all!

That crossed my mind @NottsTastic but it seems too blatantly obvious.I keep thinking Why! Why! Why!

i cant believe my eyes, he needs to learn the rules of the game. lol

Ouch, that’s an incredibly foolish and awkward goal to concede. Their goalkeeper won’t be pleased with it, he should have given his player a kick up the backside.

i think dan gosling could do better if hes not thrown into our team when we are playing just as bad, he has been slowly eased into the team so far and he has been quite average. yet i dont think his teammates have helped with this. i have no issue with aidan stone, he can play with the ball at his feet and he kept us in the game yesterday. we were flawed throughout the squad defensively. kyle cameron was poor!

you can coach improvements from the back three, you cans start by making sure they know to stay goal side. actually attempt to defend, instead of standing still or being a bystander.

we have seen that they can do better, but it is clear a defender is needed at the back.

lewis macari played well i thought, he was one of the better parts of our defence but when richard brindley came on, i could not notice him. it was like we were a man down.

Got a list going. Some more realistic than others

I fully support giving Tiernan Brooks a chance, but fans must remember that everyone makes mistakes and no goalkeeper does so intentionally. If things don’t go as planned, there’s no reason why fans can’t accept the return of Aidan Stone or Sam Slocombe. We might just need to concentrate on improving our defence.

Luke Williams mentioned that the way we played, made it easier for Walsall, but they weren't as relentless as he explained.

They just did the simple things right and made sure to cause trouble; there were many moments when they didn't have to do that - as we simply did it ourselves. The lack of having the thought of where our challenges are going, it was very foolish. Just sticking your feet out isn't defending; it can work but most of the time it relies on a bit of fortune.

We aren't having much luck this season, but I think we need to make our own.

Defensively, we need to be more drilled towards watching how the space is developing and then secondly the ball, then the nearest player being man marked. We need to make sure that we can quickly pull into defensive positions, our wing backs MUST defend. Aaron Nemane and Jodi Jones can be pointed out as failing to do this against Walsall, no matter how good they are at going forward. If they want to win, they need to think about it.

Definitely, Walsall weren't a great team. We've defeated stronger teams that put up more of a fight. Notts just surrendered without putting up much of a fight of their own.

From Walsall’s perspective, their second goal was very well executed. From our side, our defence was not up to the mark, which is not what you’d expect from a team aiming for promotion.

From what I observed, I didn’t think they were any better than us defensively. We just didn’t pose enough of a threat. If we had played to our potential in the second half, Walsall wouldn’t have found it so easy. Their goalkeeper was also quite poor.

oisin mcentee can play in defence and midfield, he looked quite good.

From studying Walsall for the Match Preview and Match Discussion, I singled out Oisin McEntee as a very good part of their team.

@sadlad mentioned he can play in defence or midfield, I noticed on two of their fan sites that they prefer him in defence or as a defensive midfielder. That was very pleasing to learn, so I agree with @Piethagoram in regard to McEntee.

In my conversation with SadLad, he also mentioned Isaac Hutchinson.

Hutchinson looks to be a good upcoming player, he reminds me of the type of player our nearest locals would sign up hoping to make a profit on him within time. He's only 23-years-old too.

On 04/12/2023 at 15:43, Chris said:

From here on until the new year, I will be taking part in a pain rehab group.

Hopefully, it will make a difference to the pain I experience in my lower back. It's the one area I can't deal with or cope with. I would rather dislocate both my legs than to continue with the pain in my back as it's awful. I have learned over time to handle hEDS (very hypermobile).  I am sure others will relate, that back pain can be very intense, and it prevents you from doing so many different things.

Anywho, I had my first session today. I am the youngest there by a mile, I sort of had everyone staring at me at the beginning.

The session was a good introduction, it tired me out but so far my back just feels numb. If the exercises and routine can help make me tolerate the pain or reduce it, I will be very happy. As I say, I would rather dislocate parts of my body than live with continuous back pain that is horrible.

Fingers crossed it will help on the weight front too.

I've had a couple of bad back injuries (herniated discs from hockey and football) and had an operation and 'manipulation under general anaesthetic (which I don't want to know any more about as it sounds horrendous).  I found Pilates was absolutely brilliant for the managing of the issue as it builds up muscular support for the spine which also reduces the pain.  It takes time and persistence, but well worth it.  It wouldn't surprise me if the pain rehab isn't Pilates based, if so it is worth the effort.  

On 04/12/2023 at 22:23, Fan of Big Tone said:

@Chris good luck with the pain rehab I hope it helps with the pain and weight loss that would be a double bonus.

Third class today, I didn't enjoy it one bit, but you have to push on through it.

Out of a group of 8 people, we are now down to six including me, and I am the only male. 2 other males have dropped out. I do notice a small difference for a bit, but I am not sure if it's going to make a difference worth it. Yet, I will push on. I am a little more encouraged with my walking, as I have had issues with that, but we shall see. I'll continue, it's not like I expect instant results, but I am a bit wary that my back just might not like it.

On 06/12/2023 at 09:58, Ohh Tommy Johnson said:

I've had a couple of bad back injuries (herniated discs from hockey and football) and had an operation and 'manipulation under general anaesthetic (which I don't want to know any more about as it sounds horrendous).  I found Pilates was absolutely brilliant for the managing of the issue as it builds up muscular support for the spine which also reduces the pain.  It takes time and persistence, but well worth it.  It wouldn't surprise me if the pain rehab isn't Pilates based, if so it is worth the effort.  

Ouch...

The situation sounds absolutely dreadful, Ohh Tommy. I'm glad you have managed to find something that works for you. Yes, I think you are right about it being Pilates based. I keep meaning to give DDP Yoga more of a serious run, as I have seen ex wrestlers make no end of progress with Diamond Dallas Page's help. It seems a little more focused on people with injuries and limited abilities.

Thank you both for your support and encouragement.

@Chris Stick with it.  The idea of Pilates is that it builds the muscle structures that support the core and spine, so it is a long process.  It took me months to get there, so stick with it and hopefully those benefits will last longer and longer.

On 09/12/2023 at 06:08, 4everapie said:

As to postponed games for whatever reasons, why not have 3 extra matches as reserves. 

 don't think there are enough games postponed to be worth anyone's while - we've barely had a handful so far. But if a whole round of matches is wiped out like earlier this season, I'll do my best to get an extra round in!

The results:

Norwich City 0-0 Preston North End
Rotherham United 1-2 Swansea City
Exeter City 0-1 Port Vale
Wigan Athletic 0-0 Lincoln City
Wycombe Wanderers 0-1 Shrewsbury Town
AFC Wimbledon 4-0 Swindon Town
Sutton United P-P Harrogate Town
Tranmere Rovers 2-1 Newport County

---

Tricky round this one - the away teams did better than many of us thought. But this week's winners are @Chris and @gtownjohnno!

@Chris, @gtownjohnno - 8
@liampie, @thommo - 6
@Dan, @super_ram, @upthepies - 4
@ARLukomski, @CliftonMagpie, @DonnyNotts, @magpiejue, @Megan_Elizax - 3
@allardyces tash, @Joshua, @william1984 - 2
@DangerousSausage, @Fan of Big Tone, @nottsnutter - 1
@4everapie - nul points

---

Here's the table then - not a lot of movement this time:

ARLukomski - 126
gtownjohnno - 113
cheeky~k8 - 103
4everapie - 102
nottsnutter - 101
DangerousSausage - 99
Fan of Big Tone - 97
super_ram - 93
william1984 - 93
magpiejue - 89
liampie - 87
Chris - 85
Megan_Elizax - 84
upthepies - 84
Dan - 79
Joshua - 75
DonnyNotts - 69
TheSkipper - 58
allardyces tash - 57
KingWilliams - 48
CliftonMagpie - 47
OoooooTommy - 45
thommo - 45
NottsCountyKev - 41
JIMBO - 40
jimbob - 38
Nocturnal-Magpie - 38
AmericanPie - 36
KB1862 - 22
George L - 6
Canadian - 4

---

The next round is on Saturday, so the fixtures will be online on Wednesday or thereabouts. Have a good week everyone!

There’s still a lot at stake, so well done to everyone who’s at the top. Keep striving for the top spot, unless you’re @ARLukomski, in which case just hold your position.