Play Off watch, edit courtesy of a Mills finger to League 1

[floyd__streete]

Well what a load of painfully obvious lilly-livered w@nk from back-bone devoid self-important toss like WBA; you are absolute cadswallop and you are managed by an utter c*nt. Leicester, you are total, total @rse; you have always been total @rse and you were total @rse when you poached McGhee. A bunch of midlands @rse-wipes who speak like they have heavy colds, you cheated your way to promotion in 02/03 when you should have been deducted 10 points or more, yet your worst crime is being supported by the snivelling wretched toad Gary Lineker. Sheffield United, you also lost today because you are absolute long-ball cadswallop, always have and always will be and if Reading go down this season as we almost certainly will do then we shall deserve to do so for conceding 6 shoddy points to a side as rancid as yours.

[Niko]

Well what a load of painfully obvious lilly-livered w@nk from back-bone devoid self-important toss like WBA; you are absolute cadswallop and you are managed by an utter c*nt. Leicester, you are total, total @rse; you have always been total @rse and you were total @rse when you poached McGhee. A bunch of midlands @rse-wipes who speak like they have heavy colds, you cheated your way to promotion in 02/03 when you should have been deducted 10 points or more, yet your worst crime is being supported by the snivelling wretched toad Gary Lineker. Sheffield United, you also lost today because you are absolute long-ball cadswallop, always have and always will be and if Reading go down this season as we almost certainly will do then we shall deserve to do so for conceding 6 shoddy points to a side as rancid as yours.

i think i might just quote this in case he tries to delete this in the morning

[Tails]

Ignore it Tails. I'm interested in what''s going on down the bottom, and I'm sure a lot of other people are to.

Anyway, I thought you were dead?

I fear this may be my calling card - the poster that no-one knew but all thought was dead...


Come on URRZZZZZZZZZ

[Avon Royal]

LOL at worrying about other teams.

If we play as well as we can we will win enough games to stay up. End of.

[Tails]

Sadly this is rarely the case for any club and the reason why we are in the predicament at present...so not quite end of.

Love the blindingly positive post though


*Flip 'blind' and 'positive' at your own discretion

[Barry the bird boggler]

Derby at home on Wednesday is a critical game though as it is a game in hand and it is at home.

Derby though seem to have picked themselves up and are a much better team than the dreadful side that beat an even worse Reading back in November.

If we don't win it, watch the doom and gloom merchants back out in their droves on here on Thursday.

[LUX]

So, 5 wins from 6 and 1/4s of the cup, and someone starts a thread about other teams winning?

4 wins from 14 and we're safe ffs, stop flapping!

although the Cup run has (to my pleasant surprise) clearly helped our League form, this sort of post hides the predicament we are almost in.

Look at the table. We are one point out of the relegation places. With games in hand, yes. We've got a key run of winnable games, followed by a very tough run.

Who believes 50 points will be enough this year?

I for one desperately hope that Sheff Wed get beaten at WBA and Swansea this week.

How about QPR v Plymouth? Who do we want to win that on Tuesday? Tempted to say Plymouth, but that could see them coming back from the dead. Draw probably, no real good to either.

[Tony Le Mesmer]

I couldnt care less whos playing who on Tuesday or who wins. There are so many teams in the mix its all down to us. Everyone cant win!

I think 52 is the record for 3rd bottom, and that didnt include a team having 10 deducted. If we win 4, we are bound to draw here and there, so 4 wins from 14 WILL do it. Not to mention we still have 8 home games left.

Just LOL at flapping over other teams. you know it will be 49-53 to stay up, its just a question of which 1 of 8 teams doesnt make that target.

[SLAMMED]

[RoyalChicagoFC]

With due acknowledgement to all of the pushback that seems to be intent upon making this a forbidden topic (on a board where everyone's expected to congregate on a regular basis for the apparent purpose of saying absolutely nothing)...

Who believes 50 points will be enough this year?

I first brought it up in the match thread after Plymouth at home on 9th February (our third of four consecutive wins in the league)

[mode=obvious] If sides in the mix keep alternating wins and losses instead of drawing, drawing, drawing, then the bar is going to be higher (what with three points from a win plus a loss being one better than 2 from a pair of draws, and the difference mounts up over 12 or 13 games --it's why you'll see me rooting for draws, in matches played between fellow relegation candidates, with almost the same fervour as I'm rooting for our guys to win) [/mode]

Here's how I addressed your question a few posts after that one; to wit:

Here's how the division's safety/relegation picture ended up in the eight most recent seasons

2008/9: 21st/51 pts 22nd/46 pts
2007/8: 21st/53 pts 22nd/52 pts
2006/7: 21st/49 pts 22nd/42 pts (Leeds deducted 10 pts; would "of" finished in 22nd on 46 otherwise)
2005/6: 21st/50 pts 22nd/42 pts
2004/5: 21st/50 pts 22nd/50 pts (relegation decided on goal difference)
2003/4: 21st/51 pts 22nd/51 pts (relegation decided on goal difference)
2002/3: 21st/50 pts 22nd/46 pts
2001/2: 21st/49 pts 22nd/49 pts (relegation decided on goal difference)

That can be a bit skewed, and in particular in cases wherein promotion and relegation are settled before the final matchday (why should a side safe on 51 points risk getting legs broken and three-match bans to take effect in August, for instance, and meanwhile a side already relegated could send out a buncha kids eager to prove against smug and safe mid-table opposition and come out of it looking three points better in the final accounting...or, in the alternative, they could just mail it in once they're down), but there ya go all the same

[Ian Royal]

We're still very much in a relegation fight. This is an important thread. Get cocky and we'll fall right back into serious trouble again.

[Dirk Gently]

We're still very much in a relegation fight. This is an important thread. Get cocky and we'll fall right back into serious trouble again.

But it's looking increasing like there are lots of clubs fighting over 1 relegation place, rather than lots of clubs +2 fighting over three relegation places, which is much better than it was 2 months ago.

Personally, i still think Scunny are the key. Stay ahead of them and we'll be fine.

[Ian Royal]

We're still very much in a relegation fight. This is an important thread. Get cocky and we'll fall right back into serious trouble again.

But it's looking increasing like there are lots of clubs fighting over 1 relegation place, rather than lots of clubs +2 fighting over three relegation places, which is much better than it was 2 months ago.

Personally, i still think Scunny are the key. Stay ahead of them and we'll be fine.

Oh we're certainly in a fairly strong position with our form, games in hand and given some of the other teams around us.

[Tails]

A whole plethora of league matches on tonight (who needs CL anyway)....

Crystal Palace v Bristol City
Ipswich v Cardiff
Peterborough v Sheff Utd
Preston v Doncaster
QPR v Plymouth
Watford v Swansea
West Brom v Sheff Wed


Let us hope for more favourable results than the Saturday just gone.

[Arch]

Relegation watch

[gonesy]

Ha nice one Arch! One thing I've noticed is that people keep saying our good league form was galvanised by our cup run but we only started winning league games once McD was made the permanent Manager. I think (and hope!) that is a more likely reason for our good league form.

[T.R.O.L.I.]

Ipswich 1 up at home to Cardiff whilst Palace v Brizzol and QPR v Plymouth are goalless.

[Arch]

I'm not homophobic. In fact some of my best friends are gay. But I feel compelled to say that West Brom are bunch of fags! One shot on target? Grow a friggin spine!

[Ian Royal]

Ipswich, QPR & P'boro now winning. Plymouth & Watford losing.Donny, Preston, Palace, Bristol & Wednesday drawing.

Ideally I'd say we want Plymouth and QPR drawing & Ipswich losing.

Doesn't seem too bad so far. Mixed, but as long as it isn't all bad we're ok really.

[leww_rfc]

Ipswich 2-0 Cardiff