Sunderland have the potential of being a massive club if they make it to the PL. They have a large stadium which has the potential of being extended to around 65K, which they could regularly fill easily.

The big six won't like it because it will be another club threatening their dominance & likewise their European revenue.

In my opinion, parachute payments should be abolished. No team should be rewarded for being relegated.

If a club cannot afford players wages after relegation, they can easily make money by selling those players & scaling the club down to fit it's new level.

To even out the PL, there should be a transfer cap & wages cap. Also, clubs should be restricted in the total value of the players allowed in a squad. This would stop the richest clubs farming off the best players. 

These are all sensible ideas to make the PL & all the other leagues in the football pyramid competitive, but unfortunately these ideas will never come to fruition.

Just look at the problems of putting  a football regulator in place with a clear mandate & powers to oversee professional football in this Country.

Just look at the way they keep kicking the decision on the 115 charges against Man City down the road. Delay after delay even though we were promised a decision before the end of the season.

Absolutely spot on @Robbie

One frustration, Jatta standing beyond the last defender  on Notts goal kicks...and then we play it short...duh...

There are two ways to look at it.

Possession-based football as a good attacking, well-structured team, or one that uses possession as a means to maximise the amount of points picked up when their squad isn't as polished as others. Personally, there's nothing wrong with either, but you have to accept limitations and that reflects on a healthier level of expectations. To some level of degree, we suit both of these.

As it's just a means of how to get the best out of the squad. Playing 'pretty' football, you need to play with the desire to run and take on players. That level of creativity is important with the overall goal of being quality, not just in control, but with how to punish teams. I think we are over halfway to achieving this, as I would like to think Jodi Jones with his confidence back and Will Jarvis coming into the XI would most certainly give us wing backs who aren't afraid to run into space. Defensively, I think we are one solid defender away from being completed at the back. I believe that Lucas Ness and Lewis Macari will effectively strengthen this area, with Rod McDonald perfectly suited for rotation.

I do think Notts needs more attacking options if we are to be the complete possession-based team.

The thing is, now we have sacked Stuart Maynard and said our goal is promotion, we can't really fall back on possession-based football that is aimed at making the most of a team that needs to strike when a chance comes. We need another striker, a solid attacking midfielder, and one more creative outlet in the centre of the park to go alongside Matt Palmer and Scott Robertson.

Weak teams can become effective by making the most out of a system which suits the players, but comes with a lack of star power/quality.

I just want to see Notts treat Meadow Lane as a place where we must win, and be competitive away from home. Yet, I am not sure "promotion" will just accept possession-based football, with a lack of quality on goal. We need to become more clinical for this to work out, with a fair level of depth. The right signings could breed confidence, as would the right head coach appointment.

Pretty football is great, but you need to be creative. Players must want the ball, willing to make runs or draw players off them. I think our work ethic and stamina in games really needs to be boosted more than we need to see improvements in quality. The only exception would be clear goalscorers, as they make all the difference in football.

I see no reason to change the style of play, I fully believe you can get promoted playing whatever style you want as long as you recruit both players and coaches that can do it! We have assembled a squad that has a lot technically very good footballers whose skills are better suited to spending more time on the ball than off it.

I don’t think the style was the sole reason we didn’t get promoted, we were just far to lack-lustre and safe at times this season. I’ve seen lots of teams in League 2 play direct football and it be pretty useless, of course it can be effective if done right, but lots of teams in the division play this way and are worse off because of it.

I totally agree there has to be touch of pragmatism, if the pitch is truly awful then I would expect any half decent coach to tell the team to take less risks playing it out from the back. And you can still play possession based football and play direct balls, they just need to partnered with a good attacking run.

I fully believe we can get promoted playing this style of football, this season we’ve been pretty average and still finished 6th!

I would like to believe Notts allowed Charlie Whitaker to leave due to them not wanting to match potential wage demands, rather than the club believing he isn't good enough. I personally would have given him a two-year deal. He looked very promising for us, and I know he only scored a few times, but he was a creative spark. Him and Will Jarvis, I felt could be the future of Notts.

The rest make a lot of sense to me.

Regarding Sam Austin, I have defended him in the past, but he hasn't been the same player we know he can be this past season. Much like Adam Chicksen, there are moments of brilliance, but the overall consistency is lacking. I wouldn't have started him in our away leg against the Dons, so I think he would have been more of an impact/squad player. The fact he could fill-in in several positions, that is something, but really there are better and more consistent players.

That said, Whitaker leaving seems like a loss, whereas I completely understand the retained list.

I can see the logic behind it. It'll be tough to replace Sam Slocombe - whoever comes in to replace him will know he's going to be second choice behind Bass. In Slocombe we had someone who accepted he would likely be second fiddle, but who could also step in and do a job if called upon. I really don't want to go back to the days of panic-signing a keeper when our first choice gets injured. He may have wanted to leave though.

I'm disappointed about Austin, like Jones he was out for a long time this season and was clearly rusty when he came back. But then the fact that we were relying on him also tells a story. As we found out to our cost last season, we can't be sentimental when we need to improve the squad. I hope they all find new clubs, the promotion squad are all club heroes in my eyes.

Just an observation

Notts announced their retained list. Did Stuart Maynard have input in that decision before he left Notts?

Surely it would have been better to wait until the new Head Coach had been appointed first.

Contracts weren't up in most cases until end of June. The decision could have waited a little longer.

9 times of of 10 96 points in any other league gets you promoted, so I totally feel for all the York fans right now.

I think the 2 relegation spots in League 2 give teams a false sense of security at times, but the reality is if you get relegated into the NL it is so much harder to come straight back up - as we know all to well! 3 up and 3 down will actually make it easier to get back into the EFL if you do get relegated.

I think had we not gone up in our season where we got 107 points, it would've sparked some sort of action. But because we won the play-offs, everyone got to say the right outcome happened, so in the end it didn't really matter. I can see this topic and debate dragging for a long while yet.

It's long overdue. Once upon a time, losing your league place was like being cast into oblivion with little chance of ever regaining it. Luckily those days are gone and there's a bit of movement between the leagues - 17 of the 23 teams in League Two have played in non-league - but not enough. Teams getting 90+ points and not going up is ridiculous.

I'm sure the NL would love another promotion spot, it's the Football League that needs to move. In a way it's like the turkeys voting for Christmas, but as @menzinho says it would make it easier to come back up. After all, while you're in L2 you're only ever one bad season away from the void.

Vastly underused by us, at a point where he would have got us goals and did when he started playing. Much like Jonathan Forte, so I am pleased to see Kristian Dennis extending his style with Tranmere Rovers.

In our opening game, he took quite a lot of banter and just smiled.

That's something about ex-players I really respect, not taking it the wrong way or allowing it to become more hostile.

He’s one of a few ex Notts players I keep an eye on, I’m pleased he’s been offered a new contract.

It's a shame that all those tunnels were not put to good use. A small underground system to service the City & adjoining towns would have been a godsend today. 

Those who made the decision to close it obviously didn't look very far forward in their thinking.

Victoria station & it's adjoining infrastructure was a fantastic piece of engineering & it's demolition was a great loss for future generations.

I remember catching a train at the High Level Station on Arkwright Street (or was it London Road) and getting off at Victoria Station to do some train spotting, I’d be quite young but my brother accompanied me he was five years older.

He had one season where he played quite a bit in the Championship but he’s struggled since then. He needs to playing regularly, dropping down to the NL would give him more of a chance of reviving his career.

We are in a bit of a tough scenario when it comes to signing a new keeper, because they are basically going to be second choice. I think the recruitment team would have excelled themselves if they can find someone better on half Bass’ wages. Yes a new keeper will have hopes that they could become our new number 1 but the chances are he’ll be sat on the bench for most the season; a tough sell!

Good analysis @Chris . Like when #Notts lost in the playoff final against Bradford at Wembley, 1996!, the feeling this season and of that season, we weren't no where near good enough. A better Dan Crowley replacement could have made the difference

@Chris said "I was disappointed that Stuart Maynard didn't implement wise changes earlier".

This was one of the issues I had with Stuart's management decisions in relation to substitutions throughout the season.

Stuart's substitutions always appeared reactive rather than proactive & much of the time the substitutions were just too late to make a difference.

For me this came from his perpencity to er on caution & playing safe instead of being bold & being prepared to take a gamble to change the course of a match.

Overall, we got what we deserved. Our start was really positive and aggressive, just what we were hoping for really. Then Wimbledon scored out of nothing and it knocked the stuffing out of us. From that point on the home team were much the better side. We were uninspired and it was painfully obvious how much quality we were missing.

Having to go into a match like this without Jatta and McGoldrick is a fitting end to a season plagued with departures and injuries. We performed the juggling act well enough to make the playoffs, but with a fit Jones and a motivated Crowley still at the club we'd have gone up automatically. Alongside the four I've mentioned, we've also lost Langstaff and Nemane since the summer, and on Saturday it was painfully obvious that we didn't have adequate replacements.

SM was very proactive in making changes when he started, but has become increasingly cautious. Bringing on a defensive midfielder late on when we should have been throwing the kitchen sink at the opposition says it all (not that having both Traore and Morias on the pitch would have made any difference anyway).

Reaching the playoffs was a marked improvement over last season, but we're just not good enough for L1 yet. 

Interesting story. A battle that  possibly led to the formation of the Scots under one ruler.

I found out an Interesting fact about  Ecgfrith the defeated Anglo Saxon king. He probably introduced the earliest Penny coinage.

"Ecgfrith appears to have been the earliest Northumbrian king, and perhaps the earliest of the Anglo-Saxon rulers, to have issued the silver penny, which became the mainstay of English coinage for centuries afterwards.

Coins had been produced by the Anglo-Saxons since the late 6th century, modelled on the coins being produced by the Merovingians in Francia, but these were rare, the most common being gold scillingas (shillings) or thrymsas.

Ecgfrith's pennies, also known as sceattas, were thick and cast in moulds, and were issued on a large scale"

Source Google.

On 18/05/2025 at 10:36, ARLukomski said:

Keep

Alex Bass, Jacob Bedeau, Matty Platt, Lucas Ness, Lewis Macari, Rod McDonald, Matty Palmer, Jack Hinchy, Scott Robertson, Jodi Jones, Will Jarvis, Nick Tsaroulla, Mai Traore

Release

Sam Slocombe, Tyler Miller, Robbie Cundy, Kyle Cameron, Adam Chicksen

Transfer list

Conor Grant, Curtis Edwards, Junior Morias, Kellan Gordon

Offer 1 year

David McGoldrick, Sam Austin

Undecided 

Charlie Whitaker

Sell

Alassana Jatta

Loan out

Ryley Reynolds, Madou Cisse

 

Take the armband off Matty Palmer as I think it's made him play worse. He's not a captain and I think taking off of him will relieve some pressure and he actually won't mind.

I'll have a recruitment doc out soon

I believe we should retain Conor Grant, while I'm uncertain about Curtis Edwards.

The rest I agree with.

I don't agree with the comments about Matt Palmer, but someone more suitable to command and organise the squad would be wise. Palmer has been decent all season, and isn't a bad captain, but he's not a strong leader. Leadership like David McGoldrick shines, but he has experience and is a strong leader. The signings we make need to add more leadership to our group.

Quality, experience and strong leadership.

I know the list has been announced but - regardless of contract - mine would be to keep:

Austin

Bass

Bedeau

Jarvis

Jatta

Jones

Macari

McDonald

McGoldrick

Ness 

Palmer

Platt

Reynolds

Robertson

Whitaker

That leaves plenty of room for quality signings and gives a depth of squad we've been missing this season. I fully expect some of our contracted players to move on although I also expect players like Grant and Edwards to play far more games next season than I'd want. But 'd be delighted for them to prove me wrong!

I wonder how Morais got a 3year contract???....after last Saturday's  spellbinding 8 minute cameo surely we have seen the last of him!!!!!

It was an overcast & much colder day as late here. Thankfully the rain kept off & I managed to get a couple of hours gardening work done.

Spent the late afternoon watching three westerns from the forties & fifties. Two starring Henry Fonda, with Dana Andrews & Anthony Quinn in supporting roles in one & a young Anthony Perkins in the other

The third film starred Richard Widmark from 1956. They were three good stories that I'd not seen before. All three had good endings too.

I haver no issue with Luke going to Swansea. As a working man who has worked away from home, he had the opportunity to wake up in the same house as his family. No brainer. 

Luke Williams isn't the answer, with all respect and appreciation for what he did. He's far too attacking-minded. Stuart Maynard isn't perfect, but if he gets a stronger squad and manages to figure out the best starting lineup/when to make changes, I think he would be fine.

Williams decision to move made sense, but he left us at the worst time and is at fault for the slump we experienced.

The move made sense from his personal perspective. I doubt he could have turned our season around, and he probably knew we were overachieving somewhat. The magic created from promotion could have worked, but in truth it seemed to be fizzling out. I also strongly believe that Williams wouldn't have done any better this season. I think the defensive improvements would have been more focused in midfield and up top.

That's my opinion, this romance with him returning I won't buy into.

Stuart Maynard is our head coach. Yes, he is frustrating, but most managers/coaches are. I don't hold him responsible for not achieving promotion, nor do I blame the players. I think whilst we could have gone up, we simply weren't quite ready. It's life as a football club, I am afraid, but at least we have good owners now who are trying and a squad which does care about the future. 👍

@Chris I agree that Luke Williams isn't the answer. 

I can understand that Stuart Maynard is a very likable person & I would say he is a safe pair of hands who has improved the team markedly since Luke left.

Stuart has also been unfortunate with the number of injuries to key players, which upset the form & the flow of the team during the season.

However, I come back to the safe pair of hands description. Yes, he has improved the defense & Notts have conceded 30 odd goals less with 16 clean sheets, & his team have a goal difference of 19.

The trouble is the lack of positive results against the top ten teams. His team is just not aggressive enough for this league. The team mirrors his personality, & there is no leadership on the pitch.

It needs someone who is going to take the job by the scruff of the neck & produce a team that is strong physically & can hold their own against the toughest teams in the league. 

It also needs someone who can implement a plan A,B & C. Notts are just too predictable & play only one way.

I would like to see a Manager who's League 2 smart with experience,skill,& personality who can lead from the front. Who is prepared to take a risk when necessary & look to bring positivity rather than negativity.

Tea is taken.

Notts are 305 for 5. Lead by 48 runs

Notts are 347 all out.

Durham need 91 to win from 18 overs.

It's an agonising defeat for Notts as Durham get a last gasp win which inflicts Notts first defeat of the season.

Durham 92 for 3 win by 7 wickets 

Good morning happy Sunday, the sun is trying to peek through the clouds, how are we all this morning, feeling sad, resigned, philosphical? I’m sure we’ll get over it, no one died. We’ll be back next season cause that what we do.

Anyway last night I watched Eurovision which I actually thought was half decent this year some good songs and fantastic stage production.

Today we’ll have a walk and later we’ve got some pork steaks and sausages to put on the bbq.

Have a great day everyone.

It was overcast here all day. Can't remember the Sun coming out at all. It was still reasonably warm nevertheless.

We've had a quiet Sunday here. Watched a couple of films this afternoon, "Rebecca" with Laurence Olivier & Joan Fontaine. 

The 2nd film was "Dangerous Crossing" with Jeanne Crain & Michael Rennie.

The Poll has now closed.

The last Pride of Nottingham's Man of the Match award for this season goes to Goalkeeper Alex Bass.

I wonder if it’s worth leaving the poll open longer next season to give people more time to see it. Only two votes this week and no vote from you @Robbie 

@Fan of Big Tone At the very least every member of the PON team should be casting a vote.

This is the first vote I've missed, however it wouldn't have made a difference to the result because I would have voted for Alex Bass too.

In the beginning I used to extend the vote, however it was agreed to keep the vote open to 9pm the next day after the match which I have done.

It may be worth looking to extend the vote a further 24 hours from the start of next season to allow more time to cast a vote 

I understand members are disappointed because we lost, but even in defeat there can be a good performance like we saw from Bass on Saturday. 

The players deserve our support whether they win, lose or draw a match.

I've been disappointed with Traore I think we paid a fee for him didn't we? Maybe after a pre season he will come good but he certainly hasn't hit the ground running like Jatta did.

I might be wrong but I feel Traoré hasn't settled into playing League 2 football.

I've come to the conclusion that Traoré & Morias should be loaned out next season or just sold on.

The fact Viking, who are a very good top division Norwegian side, identified and signed Traore a few years ago does give me hope he'll come good. It is harder for overseas players to settle sometimes, I think because Jatta came in a did so well when he arrived everyone kind of expected the same to happen with Mai.

The case for Stuart in my opinion.

The Club has improved from last season. Progress has been made. Defensively much better, 16 clean sheets, 37 less league goals conceded. 14 defeats compared to 21 last season.The owners like him. Guided Notts to the playoffs despite all the injuries.

The case against.

Less goals scored compared to last season. Offensively not as potent. Over half the goals scored are by just two players. Relies on a plan A, no plan B & C. One style of play only. Unwilling to change style of play.

When a player is out of favour, he stays out. Use of substitutes poor & too predictable. He's too cautious, his inclination is too hold on rather than make a game safe. He isn't prepared to gamble. He's too nice.

The Club's lack of success against the top 10 teams proved to be a big factor with Notts not getting promoted.

In the end it's up to the owners to decide about the Head Coach's future, & I'll stick with whatever  their decision is. 

If Notts had won 10 games instead of 20, they could have been relegated with 42 points instead of having a chance to get to a playoff final.

Stuart Maynard's Notts County Record

Total

Matches

71

Wins

28

Draws

15

Defeats

28

Win Percentage

39%

Notts have had six 0-1 defeats this season.

9 hours ago, super_ram said:

(I can hear the younger members asking what's a stereogram and 45)

They’re probably asking what a record is too, it’s all downloads these days I guess.

9 hours ago, Robbie said:

@super_ram  

My mum liked Adam Faith. We had Lonely Pup in a Xmas Shop. Green finger was on the B side. 

Won the singing competition at Warner's singing "Green finger" as a 3 year old.

Never sung in front of a big audience since.

My dad's youngest brother,my uncle Stan,now sadly no longer with us,took me to see Adam Faith at Derby around 1961.

First record I bought for myself was the 45 single Voodoo Chile by Jimi Hendrix. On the B side was Hey Joe & All along the Watchtower.

First Album was Very 'Eavy, Very 'Umble by Uriah Heep.

I think Millwall was never the right fit for Macaulay Langstaff, I said it at the time, and their squad doesn't suit his style of play. The spell in the Championship shouldn't really impact his career options, some other Championship teams might still be interested. I am hearing that Portsmouth are amongst one of the clubs sending scouts out to watch him. A better suite for Macca would be Coventry City or Derby County.

At least in the Championship, as both those teams have good midfields and room for a striker who will be given time to play.

That said, I think it's more than likely he will remain playing second fiddle in Millwall's team. The start of their season wasn't all that good, and even whilst signing Macca they were linked with Mihailo Ivanović who made a significant impact upon his signing.

Millwall are a bit top-heavy with forwards now, so I can only see them allowing Langstaff to go out on loan or sell him if the fee is bigger than they paid, which realistically doesn't seem likely. His stock value has fallen, his time in the Championship is being considered  a flop, so it's important that he takes what chance he gets or looks for an alternative move. Though his wages are allegedly around £12k, so a loan could be tricky because it will limit a lot of League One teams who are not sure he can repeat his magic here at Notts.

I agree with what you said @Chris Macca had to try himself at a higher level, & he had a big pay rise too when he transferred to Millwall.

It does demonstrate that the style of play between different clubs can affect how a player performs.

A lot of football science goes into the recruitment of players & you can understand why. Buying & playing players is an expensive business.

I'm sure that Millwall checked to see if Macca would integrate successfully nto their style of play, but unfortunately it didn't go the way they planned.

Macca is a great finisher & he's good at getting into threatening positions, however he does need the right supply.

Unfortunately he does have a long contract at Millwall so unless some club is prepared to pay close to the fee he cost Millwall, it does look as though a loan period for him would be the best option.

I do think jumping up from League 2 to the Championship was always going to be a challenge, even more so in team like Millwall that doesn't typically create a lot of chances. Not to disrespect the defenders in League 2 but the standard of defenders he has come up against this season are levels above what he was regularly facing with us.

Maybe from a footballing perspective he’ll have been disappointed, but like @DangerousSausage says considering not that long ago he was playing in the National League North, he’s secured himself a long-term contract in the Championship which gives him financial security that he probably didn’t expect would ever happen.

Gutted for all Notts fans.The injuries to my 2 teams just continue

Well it's up to Grant, Jarvis, Traore or Morias now.

My bet is on Grant, Jarvis,  Abbott or Whittaker being the front three..

It could end up working in Notts favour.

I get on the one hand you announce this for us as fans but at the same time it seems a bit daft as now Wimbledon can plan and change their tactics knowing McGoldrick won’t play.

It's a massive blow though and to be fair we got more out of him than I imagined we would this season. We cannot go into next season and still be in the same situation where McGoldrick, if he stays, carries our main attacking threat though. He is class but if we want to continue to get the best out of him, we’ll need to manage his minutes better.

My best guess 

 "All the fours".

But I'm sure it's completely wrong

3 hours ago, super_ram said:

One for all and all for one.Probably wrong but my best guess.

You’re nearly there @super_ram just the wrong way round.

As Captain Mainwaring used to say(Or something similar) - Well done @Fan of Big Tone ,I wondered who'd spot that first! 

Awoniyi in induced coma after surgery https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/articles/cn0g8qyjywjo

It's a very serious injury & shouldn't have been allowed to happen. A Forest player was clearly offside & the game should have been stopped immediately. 

The rules on VAR need to be changed after this injury that should have been avoided.

I just wish Taiwo has a speedy recovery.

It’s just awful, I really hope the authorities look at this rule.