Yesterday Hurts (almost as much as the final games of the 74/75 when we were relegated)

[Big_Bill_Irwin_Fan]

Yesterdays performance at QPR was pretty lacklustre from a team in the bottom three supposedly fighting for survival.

It was an attacking line up with our highly rated youngsters - Colwill, Ashford, Davies and Alves all starting but they came up against seemingly bigger more physical players for QPR and I thought we were bullied.

It is OK having a lot of skill players but every team needs a midfield general/wily old fox like Willie Carlin and more physical players like Phil Dwyer and Jason Perry to make sure our younger players do not get bullied.

Our team cries out for a centre midfielder who is a 'leader' and we have not had one for a while.

As others have said there was no passion from the team and even in injury time there was no rush to take throws ins or get the ball back into play. Even the City fans were not as vocal as we usually are.

We do have good players like Fish, Salech,O'Dowda, Colwill, Ashford, Robertson and Robinson but as we all know the team is not performing.

In 74/75 after lucky escapes in 72/73 and 73/74 we finally went down - as a 15 year old it was my first City relegation and it really hurt. Jimmy Andrews was a relatively inexperienced manager and after 41 games we had 9 wins, 14 draws and 17 defeats similar this seasons stats of 9 wins 14 draws and 17 defeats after 40 games. He had experienced campaigners like Gil Reece, Willie Anderson, Bill Irwin, Willie Anderson and Johnny Vincent and less younger talent in his team but they also had a bad start picking up one win, two draws and 7 defeats from the first ten games. This season feels like Deja Vu and I wish it didn't.

[Father Dougal]

Blimey we got the clean sheet everyone was crying out for AND we are unbeaten in 3.

No pleasing some people.

[Big_Bill_Irwin_Fan]

Blimey we got the clean sheet everyone was crying out for AND we are unbeaten in 3.

No pleasing some people.

Three points is what we really needed - After the performance against Luton we cannot rely on the team turning up for the six pointers against Stoke and Oxford.

As we sang yesterday "All we are saying is give us a goal"

[Father Dougal]

Three points is what we really needed - After the performance against Luton we cannot rely on the team turning up for the six pointers against Stoke and Oxford.

As we sang yesterday "All we are saying is give us a goal"

Yeah only joking. I agree. Yesterday felt the final nail in the coffin.

[Bobby Dandruff]

Yesterdays performance at QPR was pretty lacklustre from a team in the bottom three supposedly fighting for survival.

It was an attacking line up with our highly rated youngsters - Colwill, Ashford, Davies and Alves all starting but they came up against seemingly bigger more physical players for QPR and I thought we were bullied.

It is OK having a lot of skill players but every team needs a midfield general/wily old fox like Willie Carlin and more physical players like Phil Dwyer and Jason Perry to make sure our younger players do not get bullied.

Our team cries out for a centre midfielder who is a 'leader' and we have not had one for a while.

As others have said there was no passion from the team and even in injury time there was no rush to take throws ins or get the ball back into play. Even the City fans were not as vocal as we usually are.

We do have good players like Fish, Salech,O'Dowda, Colwill, Ashford, Robertson and Robinson but as we all know the team is not performing.

In 74/75 after lucky escapes in 72/73 and 73/74 we finally went down - as a 15 year old it was my first City relegation and it really hurt. Jimmy Andrews was a relatively inexperienced manager and after 41 games we had 9 wins, 14 draws and 17 defeats similar this seasons stats of 9 wins 14 draws and 17 defeats after 40 games. He had experienced campaigners like Gil Reece, Willie Anderson, Bill Irwin, Willie Anderson and Johnny Vincent and less younger talent in his team but they also had a bad start picking up one win, two draws and 7 defeats from the first ten games. This season feels like Deja Vu and I wish it didn't.

It is funny that you mention this as I was thinking about the same comparison after yesterday’s result. One of impending gloom that I recognised from somewhere else and you have just described it.

We can still stay up but the signs aren’t great.

[Big_Bill_Irwin_Fan]

Yeah only joking. I agree. Yesterday felt the final nail in the coffin.

I appreciate you were only joking but Riza sent out an attacking line up and in the last 20 mins we started to create more half chances but there was a lack of urgency.

Another performance which really hurt was Fulham away in the Premier League in April 19 - we had beaten Brighton away earlier in the month and Fulham were already down and Warnock set us up to keep in level for the first 70 mins hoping they would tire but his 'cunning plan' backfired when they scored in the 79th min and if I remember rightly he brought on Rhys Healey instead of Bobby-De-Cordova-Reid when we needed to score two to win.

As they say "It is the hope that kills you"

[Big_Bill_Irwin_Fan]

It is funny that you mention this as I was thinking about the same comparison after yesterday’s result. One of impending gloom that I recognised from somewhere else and you have just described it.

We can still stay up but the signs aren’t great.

We all remember the next season 75/76 in Div 3 when Jimmy Andrews had a relatively inexperienced front two of Tony Evans and Adrian Alston but Andrews wisely brought in experienced players like Mike England, Doug Livermore and Alan Campbell. I wish we had a player like Doug Livermore out there yesterday against QPR to help guide the youngsters.

[Father Dougal]

I appreciate you were only joking but Riza sent out an attacking line up and in the last 20 mins we started to create more half chances but there was a lack of urgency.

Another performance which really hurt was Fulham away in the Premier League in April 19 - we had beaten Brighton away earlier in the month and Fulham were already down and Warnock set us up to keep in level for the first 70 mins hoping they would tire but his 'cunning plan' backfired when they scored in the 79th min and if I remember rightly he brought on Rhys Healey instead of Bobby-De-Cordova-Reid when we needed to score two to win.

As they say "It is the hope that kills you"

Yes the fulham one is a good example. We werent mathematically down after that but it did feel that was it.

Sometimes the writing just feels on the wall and its all saying the same thing.

[The Lone Gunman]

Each to their own, but I reckon it's more than a little melodramatic to claim a 0-0 draw at QPR hurts, especially with six games left to play.

Disappointing? Naturally, but it was hardly on a par with the Fulham defeat mentioned in this thread.

[the other bob wilson]

Yesterdays performance at QPR was pretty lacklustre from a team in the bottom three supposedly fighting for survival.

It was an attacking line up with our highly rated youngsters - Colwill, Ashford, Davies and Alves all starting but they came up against seemingly bigger more physical players for QPR and I thought we were bullied.

It is OK having a lot of skill players but every team needs a midfield general/wily old fox like Willie Carlin and more physical players like Phil Dwyer and Jason Perry to make sure our younger players do not get bullied.

Our team cries out for a centre midfielder who is a 'leader' and we have not had one for a while.

As others have said there was no passion from the team and even in injury time there was no rush to take throws ins or get the ball back into play. Even the City fans were not as vocal as we usually are.

We do have good players like Fish, Salech,O'Dowda, Colwill, Ashford, Robertson and Robinson but as we all know the team is not performing.

In 74/75 after lucky escapes in 72/73 and 73/74 we finally went down - as a 15 year old it was my first City relegation and it really hurt. Jimmy Andrews was a relatively inexperienced manager and after 41 games we had 9 wins, 14 draws and 17 defeats similar this seasons stats of 9 wins 14 draws and 17 defeats after 40 games. He had experienced campaigners like Gil Reece, Willie Anderson, Bill Irwin, Willie Anderson and Johnny Vincent and less younger talent in his team but they also had a bad start picking up one win, two draws and 7 defeats from the first ten games. This season feels like Deja Vu and I wish it didn't.

One big difference between 74/75 and this season is that the team from fifty years ago beat two of the three promoted sides at Ninian Park (in fact, they were 3-0 up at half time against runners up Villa) and they also beat fourth placed Sunderland 2-0 at home. Contrast that with our played seven, lost seven record against the top four this season - we’ve barely laid a glove on Sheffield U, Burnley, Leeds and Sunderland.

I agree with you about the front four yesterday, the young players that did so well in the previous game looked a bit intimidated to me and then you had two experienced performers who came on in Robinson and Meite who both missed very presentable late chances.

Going back to 74/75, there was a game against Bristol Rovers, which might well have been game forty, which was a real six pointer against another team right down there and our injury weakened team were struggling at 1-0 down well into the second half, when they managed to score twice in three minutes from somewhere only to let Rovers equalise late on. I knew we were going down after that game even though I’d never experienced a relegation before - both of our last two home games have felt similar to that one to me.

I think this team has got attacking players who could win us three out of our next six if things drop their way which the 74/75 team didn’t, but there’s a softness and lack of nous to this team which has counted against them all season and you have to ask why, having won just five in something like twenty five, they’d suddenly win half of their remaining matches? Having now seen eight relegation teams I think it is, I reckon you reach a time when you stop trusting them and, after Luton, I don’t trust this team any more.

[Big_Bill_Irwin_Fan]

TLG - as Father Dougal says "We werent mathematically down after that but it did feel that was it. Sometimes the writing just feels on the wall and its all saying the same thing"

I agree we have six games left to play but after the Luton game I began to feel that maybe we will be going down this season.

Do you think the way we are playing we will stay up this season ?

Yesterday other teams around us like Oxford, Hull and Plymouth all picked up three points. It was only in the last 15 - 20 mins we started to create half chances and then in the last 5 mins plus the 3 mins of stoppage time we took the pressure off QPR but taking ages over take throw ins and Hovarth was slow realising the ball so it was a missed opportunity.

At Millwall we only woke up in the last 10 mins or so and managed to get an equaliser in the 6th or 7th min of injury time but yesterday we stopped pressing.

[Rjk]

Each to their own, but I reckon it's more than a little melodramatic to claim a 0-0 draw at QPR hurts, especially with six games left to play.

Disappointing? Naturally, but it was hardly on a par with the Fulham defeat mentioned in this thread.

spot on

[Taffy Blue in Berkshire]

I feel like I'm watching an old friend who is terminally ill. you try and be positive but know what's coming.

[delmbox]

Yeah only joking. I agree. Yesterday felt the final nail in the coffin.

Miles away from the final nail in the coffin!

[The Bloop]

Don't think any nails have been hammered into the coffin yet, but by 5pm on Easter Monday we'll have an idea of how many nails are in there.

[The Lone Gunman]

Miles away from the final nail in the coffin!

We haven’t even got the lid on yet.

[Rjk]

I feel like I'm watching an old friend who is terminally ill. you try and be positive but know what's coming.

relegation is not death.

I think it'll reduce our income by about £6m. Tan is more than capable of covering that, should he wish to.

[Pedro de la Rosa]

relegation is not death.

I think it'll reduce our income by about £6m. Tan is more than capable of covering that, should he wish to.

That's assuming he wants to, and can actually implement the changes required. We've got worse almost year on year under Tan's ownership.

[A Quiet Monkfish]

Relegation and the club becomes smaller, mentally and in status. We certainly won't bounce back up and at best find ourselves on a par with the likes of Huddersfield, Bolton, Charlton, etc. And I dare say that our more skilful and 'tricky' players will fight it a lot harder to display their silky skills..

[Sloop_Jon_Bee]

One big difference between 74/75 and this season is that the team from fifty years ago beat two of the three promoted sides at Ninian Park (in fact, they were 3-0 up at half time against runners up Villa) and they also beat fourth placed Sunderland 2-0 at home. Contrast that with our played seven, lost seven record against the top four this season - we’ve barely laid a glove on Sheffield U, Burnley, Leeds and Sunderland.

I agree with you about the front four yesterday, the young players that did so well in the previous game looked a bit intimidated to me and then you had two experienced performers who came on in Robinson and Meite who both missed very presentable late chances.

Going back to 74/75, there was a game against Bristol Rovers, which might well have been game forty, which was a real six pointer against another team right down there and our injury weakened team were struggling at 1-0 down well into the second half, when they managed to score twice in three minutes from somewhere only to let Rovers equalise late on. I knew we were going down after that game even though I’d never experienced a relegation before - both of our last two home games have felt similar to that one to me.

I think this team has got attacking players who could win us three out of our next six if things drop their way which the 74/75 team didn’t, but there’s a softness and lack of nous to this team which has counted against them all season and you have to ask why, having won just five in something like twenty five, they’d suddenly win half of their remaining matches? Having now seen eight relegation teams I think it is, I reckon you reach a time when you stop trusting them and, after Luton, I don’t trust this team any more.

[NYCBlue]

If we stay up, you'll have forgotten about this game by July.

[The Lone Gunman]

If we stay up, you'll have forgotten about this game by July.

I reckon if we go down he’ll have forgotten about this game by July as there will have been more home horrors that will be fresher in the mind.

[Eric the Half a Bee]

I reckon if we go down he’ll have forgotten about this game by July as there will have been more home horrors that will be fresher in the mind.

Plenty of away horrors as well after just 45 minutes