I tend to agree with @Robbie taking on Belshaw at his age would be short term, we need to find a youngish goalkeeper we can develop, I don’t think Griffiths is the answer from what I’ve seen of him.

The issue is really neither Notts keepers are of the quality needed to help ensure automatic promotion this season

Best Harrogate Town player for me was:

Ellis Taylor, 22. He looked like a very good winger and had good delivery on him, both from crosses and set pieces.

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

It was something I noticed, just how their wider players gave them something when we were tight in midfield. Early on, we gave them little space, and it was a case of both teams winning and losing the ball. Harrogate did well to get the ball out wide, and that opened up the play.

Levi Sutton also stood out to me.

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

16 hours ago, Piethagoram said:

Still think James Belshaw could do a job for us

Very disappointed with just how much of a wind-up merchant he played, he's never been like that in previous games or for previous clubs when we have played against him, but I wouldn't take him.

Scott Robertson is quickly becoming as important to the squad as Matt Palmer is; yesterday, for example, we desperately missed Palmer in the first half. Robertson is a brilliant player; he works so hard, and in time he should be exactly what Palmer is to us. Right now, they are the midfield pairing that we need to win games. These two work so well together; it seems unlikely that they wouldn't be starting together at the beginning of the season, especially with the arrival of Ollie Norburn.

Norburn should be pushing his experience as a contender to be starting, and I think he's okay, but for me, he's more of a rotational player. Tom Iorpenda, for me, is the more exciting option, who could come in for either Palmer or Robertson.

Conor Grant moves brilliantly; he's intelligent on the field and wins the ball back in situations where it could create a lively encounter. He does struggle at times to pick his pass, and yes, his finishing could do with work, but he's one of those unappreciated players that can move between the channels and into attacking positions in front of the opposition's D, and it just takes someone else to make the run for him to assist.

The main thing is we have options and players who can do different things. I overheard a fan say, "Grant is exactly the same as Sam Austin," and to some degree I can see the similarities.

@Chris said: Conor Grant moves brilliantly; he's intelligent on the field and wins the ball back in situations where it could create a lively encounter. He does struggle at times to pick his pass, and yes, his finishing could do with work, but he's one of those unappreciated players that can move between the channels and into attacking positions in front of the opposition's D, and it just takes someone else to make the run for him to assist.

I agree. He's so unappreciated & always seems to get the criticism from some Notts fans. The thing is, the Head Coach rates him or he wouldn't pick him. Grant is one of those unsung players who's work never seems to get noticed, but he is a vital member of the squad in my opinion.

I'm one of the detractors in the everyone vs Grant case. I think with this formation and its iterations over the last couple of years, I've been spoiled in Ruben and more-so Crowley. Ruben was brave and clinical - almost a second striker. Crowley was very technically gifted with decision making and vision alongside being brave. That said I have just re-watched quite a lot of Crowley and Ruben's goals/assists and see closer similarities in Kouhyar than I see in Grant. With the way we play, we put so much stock in this position and when the AM's fail, we fail given that Jatta is not a big brutish bastard and he plays better when stuff is played in front of him.

6 minutes ago, Robbie said:

@Fan of Big Tone Yes I mean that but I don't see it either on the dashboard page or Topic page. Wonder if it's not available on mobile view.

@Robbie I’ve just checked on my mobile and it’s available, obviously you need to look at a topic with more than one page, it’s at the bottom of the page.

@Fan of Big Tone Okay. On a single topic I have the page numbers, but on the general topic page I have 25 topics on the page, & at the very bottom you can "load more activity" for more topics up to 365 days, but there is no longer a page number widget at the very top of the general topic page, that gives you a choice of pages from between say, 1 & 500, that you can choose a particular page & browse it.

@Robbie Hmmm, here’s a screen shot of the introductions section of the forum you can choose a page number. This is mobile view on my iPhone.

i dont think we really need him, it would be like going backwards despite the quality he could bring. being amongst the league one divisions most shots, says something that he still has it but maybe he is just struggling to convert challenges. i would rather persist with tyrese hall at this stage, because much like dan crowley we have learned to live without david mcgoldrick now.

Yeah, the he calls for his return have quietened down now he hasn’t scored a goal or provided an assist in the League since August…

If we had an unlimited budget I’d say yes, but I just can’t see how we can justify paying his wages (he’s probably on even more than he was at Notts now) knowing he can’t play every 90 minutes anymore. There’s also an argument that due to how we press more and play more direct he might also be less effective now.

At this point, he would be a luxury at the expense of what is currently working within the squad.

His arrival would come at the cost of someone else's place, and I would rather Notts focus on improving the younger players we have. Someone of David McGoldrick's age and experience really should be fighting for his place and position in Barnsley's team.

Ed Francis, signed for Notts from Harrogate

We got Calvin Miller on loan from them.

Who knew this? Miller is the reigning SPFL's Scottish Championship Player of the Year

and now plays in the Scottish Premiership.

Jamie Turley is another ex player of both teams, can we make a starting XI?

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@NottsTastic you’ve got 2 followers now. 👍

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Any one of a number of players could have won the award, it was a great team performance, congratulations Scott Robertson.

It was a close vote for the Top spot between Nick & Scott. Scott has been putting in some great performances of late so I'm pleased that he won. It was richly deserved.

I am pleased for Scott Robertson, he deserved the Man of the Match no doubt.

This will be better promoted and highlighted moving forward; it slipped my mind due to two reasons one being health related but it's not good enough. I apologise to the community, and to @Robbie.

I am greatful for the understanding, but the process needs better handling and I should have reached out to a team member.

You can’t beat a good Sunday roast my favourite has to be lamb, Yorkshire pud, roast potatoes, brocolli, garden peas and of course mint sauce made fresh from the mint growing in the garden. My mouths watering writing this.

I picked up a copy of Left Lion at the Fleetwood game and it felt like the paper version is going downhill fast. I know it's free, but it used to shine a light on everything going on in the city. The Notts content was stronger when the previous writer was involved. It felt easier to connect with and had more of a local voice. Now it seems a bit distant and not quite as engaging.

7 hours ago, Piethagoram said:

A great read. 👏

Our form is even more impressive when you consider how poorly we started the season, with one point from our first three games and MP not having a clue what his best team was. The quality of football we play is still up and down at times, but the new additions look integrated in the team now and the results speak for themselves.

It's partly about availability. At the start of the season Jatta was suspended, Robertson, Tsaroulla and Ness recovering from injury (I think), and Macari and Hall not considered match ready. So basically MP has been doing a brilliant job since he's had key players available.

@Robbie you make a good point about the missing players against Cheltenham, when I saw the team I feared we might suffer but the first half performance in particular was very good so it shows that we can rely on the players who come in to give a good account of themselves when we have injuries and suspensions, at the moment the future looks bright, long May it continue.

Can't see the opening post.

In jest, did Gagliardi get Roos and Roefs mixed up😉

36 minutes ago, Piethagoram said:

That’s a shame I thought he was doing a half decent job there.

Alan Sheehan's overall managerial record at Swansea City across all competitions was 17 wins, 10 draws, & 12 defeats from 39 matches, a win percentage of approximately 43.6%. He served in two spells as caretaker manager and then as the permanent head coach. (Source Google)

Seems even a decent record doesn't save a Head Coach nowadays.

I'm sure it won't be long before he's snapped up by another league club.

We’ve played with a variation of a 3-5-2 (3-4-2-1) for years now and it’s worked for us so far. Also when you look at the teams that were promoted last season Bradford, Port Vale and Wimbledon all played some variation of a 3-5-2 as well.

Every formation has its strengths and weaknesses, I think the 4-4-2 covers the pitch well but you can be overrun in midfield if you face a team that plays with 3 centre mids or a box midfield. With the 3-4-2-1 we are very solid in central areas but it demands a lot of the wing-backs because they almost have to do the job of two players and they sometimes get pinned in if facing a full back and a winger.

I’m not overly concerned with the formation, I think it works well for how we want to play, the two attacking midfielders and two central midfielders mean we should be able to get a lot of control in the middle of the pitch and dominate. Sometimes I just wish the wing-backs play a tad higher, they were really deep under Stuart and that seems to have followed on with Martin. Maybe Luke Williams has warped my mind as to how wing-backs should play (because under him they were basically wingers!)

I think the approach to how you play is probably more important to us and that is to be brave (not sit too deep) play forward and be relentless with the press to pin-teams in. We’ve done it in phases and stages this season, just in the last two matches the intent and bravery hasn’t quite been there for me but there's no reason to suggest we can't get back into a positive approach.

Top post @menzinho 

These days I think a radical change of formation is a summer thing or an act of a struggling, desperate team. Our squad has been assembled and prepared for 3-4-2-1 this season. As you said it's served us well since 2021. The variations can come from 3-4-2-1 or 3-4-1-2, the height of the wingbacks and many other subtle moves the coach can make.

And there's the thing that always seems to happen on the rare occasions we've played with a back 4 or something different, the players look really unfamiliar with it and the impression given is that they think the formation is being evaluated and not them.

I think there are times when we should try to stick to our main formation, but I would like to see Martin Paterson be braver to change things when it's not working. I give Paterson credit, as he does appear to read games well and will make changes that do make a positive impact, and compared to Stuart Maynard, it doesn't lead to the feeling we are to salvage a point from a game we were winning easily at one stage.

Personally, I think there are times when we should be looking at the opposition and thinking of formations that will give us the ability to hold the ball and press. There have been away games where Notts have stuck to their formation, and you just know nothing is going to change.

Barrow away earlier in the season was one of the worst games I have ever seen. 5-10 minutes in, you could tell Barrow would pressure us. I think there was some hope from our managerial team that they would tire or Notts would get to grips with it. However, nothing changed, and that a game switching formations going into the game could have put Barrow on the back foot.

We tend to rely on quality, and even when playing well, we can be very predictable to the point that teams can sniff out an opening. Persisting to think one style will succeed and that there's a one-size-fits-all formation for every team isn't the way to play. I acknowledge we do at times switch things up, but not enough, and I don't think we are consistent.

That is one major issue with switching formations, because if a routine doesn't get the best out of individuals, mixing things up could lead to further complications. In general, I do think it would be worth trying. The Matt Dennis and Alasanna Jatta duo looked promising at Tranmere Rovers, but a few games later, along with the absence of Dennis, it was dropped.

Maybe if Manchester United had selected him for the bench but didn't play him, losing 2-0 to Arsenal, things might have been different for them? I do like Sonny Aljofree; I think he's a good player, but his age means he will make mistakes. Someone else like Godwill Kukonki might be prone in different areas, but he does sound like one to keep an eye on.

I'm going to watch the full game later; I haven't so far, and I do like how Notts lets us rewatch full games.

Not one of yours then @Piethagoram ?

@Fan of Big Tone Unfortunately I am closer to being 100 than being 22☹️

Morning all, I hope everyone is well.

I’ve just finished the word games, now I must get ready to walk up to the war memorial for the Remembrance parade, there’s no excuse because it’s only just up the road from us. Not that I need an excuse to remember the brave people that gave the supreme sacrifice for us.

lest we forget.

A pint of beer for less than 10p ?I remember that.

It was 5p for a Match Programme in 1971. The price went up after decimalisation.

Fish & chips bought from a fish & Chip shop in the UK in 1971 typically cost around 20 pence.

In 2025 the average price for Fish & Chips from a fish & chip shop can typically cost between £10:88p to £11:71p. In London it can be up to £15

(Source Google)

Welcome to the pride of Nottingham community @DavidUPies Thanks for joining us.

@DavidUPies thank you for introducing yourself it’s great to have you here, you’ll find we are a friendly community, I hope you enjoy being a member.

@DavidUPies ,welcome to PoN from me too.

This is Asda now, right?

I have never heard of this supermarket, but the building looks similar to what I recognise as being Asda. Just with some moderisation. How big of a supermarket chain was GEM?

@TheSkipper

The supermarket chain "GEM" no longer exists as an independent entity; its British operations were acquired by Asda in the mid-1960s, and its U.S. and Canadian operations ceased in the late 1970s and 1980s. Asda now occupies the sites of GEMs UK Supermarkets.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09593960500049183#:~:text=Abstract,Nottingham

I watched a programme about Anne Frank the other day, it reconstructed what it would have been like at the beginning of the invasion of German troops, going into hiding, and eventually how the Franks were discovered to be hiding. I couldn't imagine fleeing my home, my family and taking a risk to find safety like some of these brave souls.