A belated welcome to PoN from me too @Bren Shep

Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham, this is a great community. Glad to be saying hello to you @Bren Shep.

Hello, @Bren Shep. Welcome to PON, I hope to see you take part in the community here. It's good to have you with us.

you cant find stability changing managers so frequently and signing 22 players almost every season, we know this.

A club needs to have some stability and give players time to help together. Players need to be able to fit into the Carlisle system if they have one. 

Chipping and changing managers and players isn't a good recipe for stability.

No matter who the owner is, they need to have some understanding about association football. If they don't, they need to have a C/O that does.

Paul Simpson probably surprised himself when he defeated Stockport County in the play off final...

EFL1 was always going to be a challenge but the hike in tv distribution monies at EFL1 level should have helped.

Perhaps the turnover of players at a geographically distant club hasn't helped and the costs of finding them accommodation too. It seems obvious the turnover is far too high

Carlisle targeted MK Dons Head of Recruitment but he was persuaded to stay. Presumably the same HoR that targeted Dan Crowley

EFL2 is tougher than most imagine... Accrington winning at Gillingham a case in point.

Sounds like the League of FAI really needs to shape up. I do hope it gets the reform needed to thrive because the Irish leagues are a good area for EFL clubs to pick up talent. It would also benefit them as a nation having better talent, which a troubled financial system might cause problems within.

i cant say i read all the article but i get the jist and it does seem like there needs to be big improvements.

It seems that the only FA that isn't a complete shambles at the moment is the Welsh FA.

Welcome to the Prde of Nottingham, @Richard Eley. We hope to see you join in when you feel like it, it would be good to see your thoughts being shared.

Hello, @Richard Eley. Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham. It’s good to have you here. If you jump into PON, like many others, you will find it fun. It’s a great site and community.

Welcome to the Pride of Nottingham, this is a great community. Glad to be saying hello to you @Richard Eley.

I agree with @Robbie, all the back 3 had good games. Ness did well coming in, Platt solid as always and Macari moved over to the left but didn’t look out of place at all. My only caveat is that Newport didn’t really commit many players forward though, so it was always very manageable for our defence. Not much between Palmer or Abbott for me, other than Palmer looking a bit dead on his feet by the end of the game. So Abbott just shaded it for me too.

The Poll is now closed.

Thank you to all who voted.

I am pleased to announce, that by a large majority of PON members, George Abbott is the Pride of Nottingham's Man of the Match for his outstanding performance against Newport.

Excellent work, George Abbott!

If my memory serves me right, this is his second so far, so it's racking up - I am sure he will have a few more to his name come the end of the season.

@liampie They have improved immeasurably from last season.

@Robbie they do seem to be making the right progress and with the recent fans forum with the talk of bringing all the teams closer, it sounds like something that will only benefit the womens and junior teams.

Up to date League table after today's games. Notts are up to fifth place at the halfway point of the season.

About his departure to Zagreb

there was possibly interest in him but i dont think rumours tend to be all that true. not like we were going to offer him a deal, but was tracking or opening early stages to see if he had interest in us but nothing concrete.

Anyone on here a student a the Uni of Nottingham? Little scouting mission for the week... 

I reckon they could have put some real talent in the spotlight instead. Feels like someone's trying to mix oil with water by pushing influencers into football.

It’s certainly a curious move. They must have some plan up their sleeve, but I'm not sure how it helps the sport.

Let’s be honest, would any bona fide fan be thrilled with this? It’s disappointing to see a familiar yet underwhelming approach. I’d much rather see a new, talented youngster get their chance to shine. Fresh faces bring excitement, energy, and a sense of hope for the future. It’s what keeps the spirit of the game alive and the fans engaged. Giving young players an opportunity can lead to unexpected successes and make the team more dynamic.

Storm Bert, you say?

It feels like the start of the year again, wondering when the summer would come, but now it's winter and much gloomier. It's likely to stay this way for longer, so buckle up, keep warm, and make sure to stay inside when it gets worse if you can.

We created quite a few good chances no on another day could have won easily. I do agree with @menzinho our attack play is too slow, we tend to pass the ball around really prettily but very often it’s a slow patient build up meanwhile the opposition have time to set up their defence and get everyone behind the ball.

It would be nice if once or twice we could break quickly and catch their defence off guard.

However if you can’t win make sure you don’t lose and that’s exactly what we did, fourth in the league isn’t bad but it could be better.

newport came to draw, they had no intention of trying to win. that is disappointing, but there was times when the officials made poor decisions which benefitted them. i dont think they did it on purpose, i just feel they were incompetent. i just wished notts would not insist on walking the ball into the net. i dont mind seeing matt palmer drive an effort over the crossbar because its something different.

the issue is we try to force the opening and we need to gamble a little more at times.

i also would have kept jevani brown on, sam austin did well in spells but we could have afforded him to be subbed sooner than he did. i also think bringing on kellan gordon did not work, he was quite poor. 

We had a chance in the first half. I don't know how Newport County managed to keep it from crossing the line. Had it gone in, the game would have been a lot easier in the second half. I think it was Sam Austin who had an effort that clipped the inner crossbar and deflected out. I agree that we rely on trying to walk the ball into the goal. Notts put on a good performance, but we lacked that cutting edge in the final third. It shows how much Dan Crowley and Jodi Jones both bring to the team with their presence.

@Chris The Monorail seems a bit passe now! Unless one has a one track mind!

23 minutes ago, Piethagoram said:

@Chris The Monorail seems a bit passe now! Unless one has a one track mind!

I'm thankful that I don't actually get the latter part. ????

I don't mind winter games. Supporting a sports team that plays outside is part of it. Last Saturday's game against Newport County is an example of how the cold and the game's outcome can lead to disappointment. It's not about the performance, but sitting in the rainy cold for a goalless draw sums up winter games. You would prefer to see more of an outcome by the end, but that's football for us.

Your Weather for Saturday Afternoon 

Your Saturday Evening Weather 

Your Sunday Afternoon Weather

Good afternoon.

It's been raining all morning here. All the lying snow in the back garden has gone. 

The wind is getting up somewhat. Hopefully it won't be too bad.

Doesn't look like we are going to get any snow as forecast yesterday, here.

Will be tuning into the Radio for the match today. CMON U PIES

Morning all, it’s a wild, wet, windy morning here, I don’t think we’ll be doing much today, although we have been invited to our sons for tea, he’s cooking one of my favourites garlic chicken so I won’t be troubled by vampires tonight. 

Stay warm and dry if you can and take care if travelling.

Back to a drab rainy day this morning . A little windy but looks like we've missed the worse of Storm Bert.

Pleased that Notts got a clean sheet even though they couldn't score even though they had plenty of opportunity.

If Notts keep a clean sheet they are not going to lose in a league match. Then it only needs one goal to win.

A good defence is a prerequisite to have a successful promotion push.

If the defence remains strong, there is every chance of having a successful season.

Sorry to read that you are leaving PON@Wheelbarrow repair man. Over the year that you have been on PON you have made many valuable contributions to the site.

I can certainly say for myself that you have enriched the site in many ways.

Some of your threads have been fun threads & got members to show their funny side.

Your articles have always been well put together & interesting, & have encouraged debate. 

I for one liked to debate with you & looked forward to your articles & posts.

As far as I'm concerned I'm sorry to see you go & will miss your contributions which, as far as I'm concerned, added to the PON site.

Wrap up well if going out. It's going to be cold one 

Good News.

Relief for Pensioners, the Vunerable, and less well off.

Storm Bert is going to sweep away the cold air by Saturday night. 

Got another one.

- Smoke bombs and pyrotechnics in football grounds. Chucking smoke bombs on the pitch is chavvy behaviour and it's about time that trend died a death.

- Related to that, pyro. In Germany, pyrotechnics aren't allowed in football grounds. This has led to a kind of arms race among ultra groups, which try to outdo each other with ever bigger fireworks displays, costing their clubs hundreds of thousands of euros in fines. As well as being dangerous and expensive, lighting up bengalos is lame and low-effort compared to the tifos and displays ultras became known for.

- Related to that, ultras (or at least most of them). The good ones that make an effort to get the rest of the crowd going can stay. The ones that spend all game droning through an obscure song to the tune of Big Big Girl while the rest of the crowd looks on in bored silence can go. You're not the greatest fans just because you're waving flags.

I would implant salary cap 

clubs treating certain fans better than they do the regular fan.

the price involved imo is part of the issue football clubs struggle financially.

making it easier to purchase the shirts you want as part of being a season ticket holder, instead of it being a lottery.

banning those who purchase large amounts to make profit once they are sold out by sticking them up on ebay.

making sure if clubs dont offer a programme that the digital content matches the lost information and media [nothing has increased with notts dropping it].

I echo the need to get things checked out. I had my prostate checked out after ongoing issues & it came through clear.

Best to get things checked out with your GP regularly if there are other issues too.

its wise advice, i hope more actually get checks and dont worry about seeming macho or unmanly. its important we look after ourselves and with the nhs we are fortunate to have the care available to us.

Do yourself a favour and get checked. Listen to people like Sir Hoy, who speak from experience. Don't let something be too late to act on. You will thank yourself in the long term.

There's a Brazilian supporters group that does a fantastic job in their community. 

The international groups are actually more beneficial to us than the ones directly connected to the club. They really help create a strong sense of support and connection among fans.

i love when foreign commentators turn their commentary up from 10 to 100+ just because of a well worked goal. its good coverage, hope our brazillian friends enjoy it.

Actually, the Brazillian Magpies do a lot of live-streaming, but I can't imagine them reacting so livelily as this commentator. I think it's a brilliant clip, it's certainly amusing when they go mental over a goal. It gives that extra bit of sprit to the commentary I think.

This is great news, I noticed some pictures on Twitter when I briefly went on over the weekend. It's encouraging, a few years back we played in a youth cup final against Walsall at their ground. I hope fans are able to go to the next round to give them support.

@Chris it will be great to see them test themselves against the Academy of Fulham who are a PL club.

Hope they can give a good account of themselves.

love it! well done to the under 18s, very pleased and proud of them. i would really like to see fans support them if possible because that encouragement could be a once in a life time experience if they manage to progress further.

I'm sure it will come to Sky Showcase at some point which I believe is on Virgin's TV bundle.

The first three episodes are great, the story builds, and it is very well-written. By the fourth, I started to appreciate "From" a bit more. Although, I have seen the third season, and I won't give any spoilers, but there are times when I felt disappointed with how the plot expanded. It's a very "Lost" style thing, which I said before, but you will see what I mean I believe. @Fan of Big Tone

Thanks @Chris yes I’ve got Sky Showcase so I’ll look out for it. ????

i think the pace leading into the third season really needs to give more answers, towards the end of the 2nd it looked like we might learn more about what is going on but they left with a bit of a cliff hanger. i will look out for tea cup too, i dont have sky though but hope it is picked up by one of their channels i do get with virgin media.

I thought Nick Tsaroulla was the best part of our performance yesterday. He played well and gave us an edge in a game that just didn't go our way.

Having now watched the full highlights of the game, I can safely put my vote towards Nick Tsaroulla. I think George Abbott, had he continued consistently throughout the game, would have been closer competition for my vote.

The Poll is now closed.

Thanks to all who voted.

I am pleased to announce that Nick Tsaroulla has been voted Pride of Nottingham's Man of the Match against Crewe for his outstanding performance.

Blackpool 2-1 Northampton Town  
Stockport County 3-2 Wrexham  
Accrington Stanley 1-1 Swindon Town  
Barrow 0-2 AFC Wimbledon Joker 
Bromley 1-0 Carlisle United  
Braintree Town 0-3 AFC Fylde  
Hartlepool United 2-2 Eastleigh  
Yeovil Town 1-1 Halifax Town

Blackpool 1-0 Northampton Town  
Stockport County 2-1 Wrexham  
Accrington Stanley 0-2 Swindon Town ????Joker  
Barrow 1-0 AFC Wimbledon  
Bromley 2-1 Carlisle United  
Braintree Town 1-2 AFC Fylde  
Hartlepool United 3-1 Eastleigh  
Yeovil Town 2-2 Halifax Town

Ladies and gentlemen, the results:

Blackpool 0-0 Northampton Town  
Stockport County 1-0 Wrexham  
Accrington Stanley 2-2 Swindon Town
Barrow 1-3 AFC Wimbledon  
Bromley 1-1 Carlisle United  
Braintree Town 1-0 AFC Fylde  
Hartlepool United 0-0 Eastleigh  
Yeovil Town 0-1 Halifax Town

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Here are this round's scores. Congratulations to @Megan_Elizax for winning the round and @CliftonMagpie on being the only player to land their joker on the Stockport - Wrexham match!

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In our leaderboard, @ARLukomski and @thommo chip away at @super_ram's lead, while @Megan_Elizax jumps three places...

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The next round is on Saturday, so the fixtures for that should be online on Wednesday as usual. Thanks for playing and let the banter begin!

Where do I start?

Firstly, Stuart is absolutely correct when he says we weren't good enough. We got into some decent positions on occasions but our decision making let us down in the final 3rd. At one point in the first half, we played out of Crewe's press really well but we didn't create anything from it once we got into the final third. Another chance we got was when Tsaroulla took on 2 or 3 players with his shot deflected with Crewe's defender heading it out for a corner. 

Our game plan was working a bit. It was looking like a nailed on 0-0. We weren't creating much and Crewe were working hard and pressing, but they kept over hitting their crosses, whenever they got into a decent position. Then they broke from a corner. I originally thought Austin had a headstart on Shilow Tracey but it's equal and Tracey's pace gets him there before Austin or Abbott. I don't know why no one takes a booking on half way or before he even gets to the ball. If we lost 1-0 to this goal and we played how we did, then I could say it was a poor performance in a game that was lacking intensity and quality. The truth is the game was lacking in quality and intensity throughout. The Donny game felt like a genuine top League 2 clash. This was a genuine summary of the lack of quality in the division this year. Notts were 3rd and Crewe 5th before kick-off and it wouldn't have been surprising if no one had looked at the table before the game and wondered if these two were 11th and 12th. The quality compared to the top 3 last year is massive. 

Gordon and Didzy replaced Ness and Scott at half time. May I add, Lucas Ness was having a good game and had kept Omar Bogle quiet in the first half, winning the majority of his aerial duels. We started the 2nd half well with Jev playing a good through ball to Austin who cut in and shot, rather than taking a touch and hitting it at Filip Marschall's near post instead, which I think was the better option. Then the penalty, oh my lord, the penalty. The whole away end and supporters of other football clubs on Twitter are still flabbergasted as to how this was given. Omar Bogle slips on the ball. He slips and continues to try and play on, protecting the ball with Ryan Cooney (the penalty taker) the only one who appeals. Then again, Cooney was acting proper weird all game. Goading the Notts fans in the 2nd half even before the penalty and then unprovoked, celebrating in front of Alex Bass after he scored. He then put a video on Twitter as to why. Alex Bass has like an interaction with him that lasts 2 seconds and then he walks off. I don't know what he might have said in less than 5 seconds to make Cooney act like he did but some players are like that I guess. A Gills fan on Twitter also said he's got a bit of an ego. 

The game was dead after that. We were still in the game at 1-0 even though we weren't playing that great but that daft decision killed the game. You may as well have blew the whistle after the 62nd minute because the game was over. Macari had a chance late on where he didn't connect properly with the ball and Marschall made a save from a header (can't remember who headed it). 

We really need to hang on in there till January so we can get some reinforcements in. It's like waiting for the weather to be decent before launching the Normandy landings. These injuries are destroying us. It's not that the squad depth is poor again. It isn't. It's just our depth is all injured. Grant, Edwards and Robertson. Didzy and Scott have both just come back and Jones and Crowley are crucial starters.

Top analysis @ARLukomski