English Franchise League Season 2015/16

[davidcotton]

So Timmo, how's the season going so far for you

[merman]

Ah well, it was good while it lasted...

[RareBirds]

Ah well, it was good while it lasted...

Indeed, back crashing down to Earth at Portman Road as we got thrashed 2-3. And bizarrely, having got it back to 2-2 I thought we were going to win (like an ever optimistic twat). That would have been day-light robbery though. Ipswich were terrible in the first half and just gave the first two goals away. Any ball over the top looked like it was going to lead to a goal. Without Berra, Smith looked completely lost - I sit next to a bloke who spends every single game going on and on about how we need a proper right back and to move Chambers to the middle (it's my Dad so I put up with it) but Smith and Chambers in the middle today was terrible.

Second half, a lot better but still nothing special. The penalty was a stupid challenge - I'd be livid if one of our guys gave that away. And then having done all the hard word, from what looked like a fairly innocuous attack (we'd slowed it down and pushed them out wide) they bloody score the third. Just terrible defending all game and a lot for Mick and Terry to sort out.

Thought Brighton looked pretty good moving forward but we made it very easy for them - they hit the post before we got our first back and it wouldn't have been too outlandish for them to win by three or more. They brought over 1,000 so fair play to them.

[Plissken]

Bristol City 0 Burnley 2. Yet again Burnley take a 20 minute battering at the start of a game, score and go on to win. Even the Clarets commentary, which is as biased as can be, said going in 2-0 up at half time was the biggest steal since the Great Train Robbery.

With the goals coming from Mee and Keane, the Burnley forwards have still only contribute one goal so far this season. 1300 Clarets made the journey, which is pretty remarkable.

[Rsdio]

Thankfully we seem to be drawing the line at flogging Butterfield with Derby and Burnley having put bids in (Burnley offered £2.75m plus Marvin Sordell then presumably came back with an improved offer of £2.75m with no Marvin Sordell). I'd really fear for us if he was to go.

lol

[Rev]

Wednesday shit everyone up by bidding £10m for McCormack and seem to have settled on selling a striker instead as of right now. We've signed Barry Bannan though, which isn't the most thrilling of signings but he is a decent player and will definitely fit in well.

[Plissken]

Lukas Jutkiewicz becomes the fifth Burnley player in 18 months (and fourth this calendar year) to be out long term with a cruciate injury. And before anyone suggests it, we've lost two at t'Turf and three away from home, three in tackles (two fair, one not) and two who simply turned badly.

[Rev]

Wednesday didn't sign Hooper because he demanded a £30k p/a VIP box, despite the fact he'd be receiving £32k p/w in wages. Even by footballer standards, that's fairly cunty. "I'd have to work for another week to afford that!"

We've signed Westwood up until 2018 though, which is good.

[dr_manhattan^]

Lukas Jutkiewicz becomes the fifth Burnley player in 18 months (and fourth this calendar year) to be out long term with a cruciate injury. And before anyone suggests it, we've lost two at t'Turf and three away from home, three in tackles (two fair, one not) and two who simply turned badly.

That's awful. Dicko suffered the same for us last weekend. He'll be out al season

[Rsdio]

Huddersfield's main forum is a grim place to visit at the best of times (probably like most team forums, I imagine) but even the more balanced or overly positive posters are struggling to find the good in our transfer business this summer aside from 'we made loads of money, very little of which has gone back into the squad'. We've somehow not managed to address even slightly the glaring problem areas from last season (central defence, strikers, right-back) whilst also weakening ourselves in midfield and downgrading our goalkeeper.

Fair enough if players have to go for one reason or another but our recruitment doesn't seem to have had any strategy to it at all. Rougher times ahead I reckon.

Still, at least we signed the Paterson we were all hoping for when Martin turned up. Hopefully he'll do a bit better than our last loanee from Forest, I think Majewski's disappeared off the face of the earth since he rolled up here.

[Plissken]

Wednesday didn't sign Hooper because he demanded a £30k p/a VIP box, despite the fact he'd be receiving £32k p/w in wages. Even by footballer standards, that's fairly cunty. "I'd have to work for another week to afford that!"

Someone on WSC suggested a little more to it than that - seems that Hooper had bought a box at Norwich in the off season and wanted a refund so he could buy one at Wednesday instead, but Norwich refused, so now the Canaries are stuck paying the £32k p/w.

[Charliemouse]

Reading went a bit crazy this transfer window and ended up with 12 new players.

The best part about it all, Hal Robson Kanu shouldn't get much game time now, which will please my brother so much.

[Rev]

Someone on WSC suggested a little more to it than that - seems that Hooper had bought a box at Norwich in the off season and wanted a refund so he could buy one at Wednesday instead, but Norwich refused, so now the Canaries are stuck paying the £32k p/w.

As far as Wednesday are concerned, it's still only a week to him to pay for one. Still cunty.

As far as Norwich are concerned...That is insane. And also quite funny. There must be a right jobsworth there who stuck to a no-refunds policy that will cost them £1m+ assuming he sticks around for the season. Top work, that person.

[merman]

Ha, Brighton with the double whammy of Manager & Player of the Month in the Championship. Jinx!

[Timmo]

https://m.livingsocial.com/deals/1514438-sheffield-wednesday-player-online-subscription?cvosrc=affiliate.awin-gb.47868&temp_skip_roadblock=1&utm_campaign=47868&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=awin

£14 for a year of Sheffield Wednesday player. I'm told you can log into any team after purchasing this! So essentially it's this price for any team. This is a really good price, I paid £40 and that felt like good value.

[Plissken]

I've paid £40 and got my moneys worth - and the club tweeted a picture of a new TV studio, so it looks like they are going for more down that road.

[merman]

Live on Sky tonight... At least we have the big guns back from injury.

[RareBirds]

We're just so bad at the back. I think it's been a pretty good, even game but we just consistently give away shit, easy goals.

[RareBirds]

Jesus Christ

[Charliemouse]

Reading haven't looked this good since our first season in the Premier League.

We look pretty shaky at the back though, but overall it's been a cracking game.

[unleashedmaniac]

I'm just surprised to see Blackman playing so well.

The past few seasons he's been average at best, so nice to see him getting a run and doing well! As for Orlando Sa, lovely!

[Mr Do 71]

Wow. Great 5th goal for Reading, they're on another level tonight.

[RareBirds]

Aye, Reading have been good tonight - just frustrating from Town's perspective that, much like in the Brighton game, we've been so poor defensively that the game is beyond us before the likes of Fraser, Sears etc can do anything.

And that's five. It's not undeserved - Reading have hammered us this evening. I think we need to revisit our formation - there's no point in starting with Fraser, Sears, McGoldrick and Pitman if we can't defend for toffee.

[Rsdio]

Reading haven't looked this good since our first season in the Premier League.

We look pretty shaky at the back though, but overall it's been a cracking game.

Noticed Norwood scored last night, how has he been for you on the whole? With us he had a tendency to look good and/or score a worldy if we were on Sky and maybe also have a run of four or five games in a season where he played to something like his capability. The rest of the time you wouldn't even know he was there.

[merman]

Aye, Reading have been good tonight - just frustrating from Town's perspective that, much like in the Brighton game, we've been so poor defensively that the game is beyond us before the likes of Fraser, Sears etc can do anything.

And that's five. It's not undeserved - Reading have hammered us this evening. I think we need to revisit our formation - there's no point in starting with Fraser, Sears, McGoldrick and Pitman if we can't defend for toffee.

McCarthy has held his hand up and said he should have not played such an attacking line-up.

We do need to sort out the back four and keeper - Gerken was poor, even if he did not have much chance with a couple of them. And Chambers and Smith continue to make individual errors that cost the team.

[Plissken]

Burnley 3 1 Sheff Wed

Pretty even first half, a cracking free kick from David Jones to open the scoring for the home side and an equaliser for Nihui (who basically is a Pound Shop Zlatan).

Second half and the visitors look much the more likely for the opening 20 minutes or so, not helped by Boyd and Arfields confidence being so low that it is being mined by dwarves. Gradually Burnley got back into it, Boyd showed a lovely bit of skill to hit a high ball on the volley which was deflected into the goalie.

Then Gray turned his man to break clear and put a lovely ball up for Taylor to volley in and in injury time, the home debutant paid back an undisclosed chunk of his undisclosed transfer fee by stealing the ball from Palmer and slotting home.

Scoreline unfair on the visitors. Forestieri is a cheap and niggly little sod though.

[Plissken]

Also, and I can't believe that I'm about to write this sentence, but our midfield really needs Joey Barton.

[smithstock]

Terrible performance but great result from Boro.

It looks like we'll be playing against anti-football teams for the entire season, people look happy to grant us possession and pack up their defence. We are struggling to break them down and had it not been for a Downing pearler and Nugent pouncing on a mistake, it could have been another snore draw.

Additionally, our team doesn't look the same without Kike and Adomah. Reach can't beat a man and Downing was cutting inside a lot, we lack sheer attacking instinct. Fabbrini however, is amazing, best player so far this season. Head and shoulders above Tomlin's contribution.

[dr_manhattan^]

Relegation to mid table for us this season I think.

Very unhappy with how the club is being run at the moment.

[Rsdio]

Relegation to mid table for us this season I think.

Very unhappy with how the club is being run at the moment.

You should come and watch us, it'll make you feel better! 3 wins in 24 (8 in 42 total for Chris Powell), one shot on target in the last two games, shite in defence, midfield and (especially) attack, playing two very defensive holding midfielders at home, selling your best players and replacing them with a squad full of loans, rapidly falling crowds as a result of all of the above etc. etc. That £9m we brought in won't do us much good if we're marooned by January (when we rarely buy anyway since 'there's no value to be had in January').

I don't think Powell will be able to last much longer at this rate but the squad's that much of a mess that it's hard to see someone new making much of a difference, especially if the appointment is as uninspired as our last few have been.