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League 1 strength
Views: 1381
Plenty of people saying L1 is much stronger this season.
Is it? Outside of the top 2-3 spenders?
We've added several players who should be regular starters as well as strength to the squad in almost every position.
So if the league is stronger but we are also stronger, shouldn't we be looking to finish above 12th? Which is 3-4 places higher than many have us ending up?
Unless of course we are nervous about the gaffer getting the maximum from the squad.
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1066
I'm with you on this. The important elements of last year's squad are currently intact, TVC excepted, and the additions appear to be a significant step up from those who've gone, including the loanees. So why wouldn't we see ourselves as top six contenders? Do hope we sign Jake Young to complete the set of ex Northampton and Swindon signings (currently 5 and counting). If not maybe Don Rogers is free...
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1119
On the Young , possibly going to Crawley per rumours.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 935
Sadly I don't see us finishing anywhere top half.
Despite having a better squad, which we have.
And that's not because the league has got stronger around us, though it might have.
It's because Revs is still an unknown quantity for me. An absolute grafter and a genuinely nice bloke, but is he a decent FL manager?
I hope so.
Edited by BALDOCKBORO at 22:17:38 on 6th August 2024
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5 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 863
I have an opinion on it which borders on an absolute conviction but it won't bring any positivity into the universe if I express it.
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6 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1193
I’m quite optimistic. Last time when Revs managed the club was in a much worse state, he’ll have learnt a lot from SE, Scotty and Neil could be good assistants, the squad has been strengthened and you get the feeling the players are with him.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 839
I'll grant you Revs is the big question mark. But there are some big characters in that dressing room (another one joined yesterday). I think they will keep the show on the road. Won a nice few shillings on the handicap last season. At +27 points the few shillings are being reinvested.
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 2774
The squad should be our strongest ever. Revs has been backed in the transfer market and deserves enormous credit for keeping 90% of the squad intact.
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Fantasy EFL
Views: 1105
Many of you putting your knowledge to the test and doing it?
I see Lewis knows his stuff 👍
https://www.fantasyfootballscout.co.uk/2024/08/06/fantasy-efl-scout-squad-gameweek-1
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Re: Fantasy EFL
Views: 902
I’m doing fantasy EDL this year.
5 points if they like a racist tweet.
10 points if they RT a racist tweet.
20 points if they poster a racist tweet
-10 if they “accidentally liked it”
-20 if they “accidentally RTd it”
-50 if they were hacked.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1020
I think we will finish between 10th & 14th.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1058
I think there's about 10 "big" sides and that may be more competitive than last year's. So who finishes top 6 is hard to call.
But then there's about 10 sides who you'd think we could finish above if we have the form of the first half of last season.
This is without knowing who each club have side etc but just based on their size and resultant estimated budget.
Shrewsbury
Cambridge
Northampton
Crawley
Bristol Rovers
Mansfield
Wycombe
Orient
Burton
Exeter
Lincoln
None of them you think are "out of our league"
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 975
"If we have the form of the first half of last season" doing a lot of heavy lifting there.
If we can come close to August-December form it'd be fucking brilliant.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 989
That's why I'm preparing myself for relegation 🤣
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3 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1011
It'd be lovely if Cambridge and Orient went down
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 962
Not Cambridge. I like the bragging rights a win brings!!!
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1087
To be honest, I don't expect us to get promoted this season. Unlike last season, when I had a strong feeling that we had a good chance of promotion due to having a very experienced manager at the helm, which unfortunately we didnt get promoted, I don't have the same confidence this year.
No disrespect to Alex Revell, of course, but my main hope this season is that we avoid relegation. I’d be happy with a mid-table finish.
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2 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1165
I would add that I am absolutely certain we wouldn't have been promoted this season even had Evans stayed, for what it is worth.
Edit: Partly because of the strength of the league, and partly because of Evans.
Edited by Chuds at 18:24:29 on 6th August 2024
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2 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 656
Agree. You couldn't ever question him at the time but there were some games January to March and you were left thinking we didn't do enough to win that. We spent too many games looking uncertain for 30 minutes and then trying to find an alien way to win.
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 731
Not to mention having the manager sitting away from the dugout for so many matches, which really does make a difference.
We were already having discussions towards the end of the season in our group, prior to his departure, about our fears that next (now this) season would become his classic third season where everything starts falling apart and he starts falling out with and blaming everyone (in addition to the officials).
I really wasn't that disappointed when he left, despite the wonderful memories he helped to give us.
Edited by Chuds at 19:52:37 on 7th August 2024
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2 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1251
And I think Phil shared those views.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 573
Agree, probably left at the best possible time/ way for us to keep his reputation where it stands.
Just wish we'd opted for someone else other the Revell.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 625
That's broadly my take. I am so glad he joined us....and transformed the club, but not sorry he left. We might get the benefit of the doubt from the odd referee for one thing. His antics in that regard were not only embarrassing, but arguably counter productive. The big unknown is how effective Revs 2.0 will be. The Guardian League One preview today had us in the relegation scrap, but that SHOULD be bollocks. This is the best squad we've ever had.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 974
How do you expect this season to be for Boro?
I think it's going to be a season of more downs then ups.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1093
I am prepared for a very long and difficult season.
If we go down with the squad we have then it has been an absolute failure and serious questions need to be asked (and sadly it would likely mean Revs' managerial career is over, without every really getting started) as we have definitely put in serious investment into the squad and it is the best we have ever had (on paper), but as I detail elsewhere in this thread, so many teams have massively strengthened and I have fears over our injuries and that I fear we will not be as solid at the back this season and will struggle to score (for which people will blame Revs and forget/ignore our horrendous lack of goals and wins since January under Evans).
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2 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 853
Call me boring, but my strategy would be to aim for the 3 points in home games, and in away games, play for the draw, as one point is better than none.
What would be your starting 11 ?
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 994
It is funny how the psychology works, but at times under Evans I felt we were much more willing to lose away from home (I.e. play to win, Wigan away springs to mind).
It was much more important not to lose at home, which feels a lot less defeatist than "settling" for a draw away from home and piling all the pressure on the home games.
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1057
I enjoyed that aspect of Evans management; an away loss is almost never a really bad result in L1/L2, whereas away wins are always a positive, so spin the wheel. If we're outmatched and need to settle for a draw that will become evident during the course of the match.
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 922
Beating Wigan away last season was the biggest away shock of the season I feel.
Like the 2013/14 season when we beat Bradford away 3-2.
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 905
I genuinely think we'll go down
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 737
I wouldn’t be surprised. I think that’s more adjusting my expectations so I can’t be disappointed than anything else though.
The squad should be good enough to keep us up and in mid-table. There are so many variables which could see it go massively wrong (or right) though.
My underlying concerns are that from what I’ve seen in pre-season and the back end of last season we look pretty toothless and that we had to endure Revs last spell as a manager so we have an idea of what to expect from him already.
While one game doesn’t define an entire season I have the feeling that what we see against Shrewsbury next Saturday will set the tone for the entire campaign.
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3 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 667
If the work ethic delivers a result in match 1, it should ease the jitters.
When we go on a poor run, and every team does, that's when the manager has to really earn their money and work smarter, because they can't work harder, Revs will have them all grafting no doubt.
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 2100
The first month is absolutely key, especially with the absentees. Get respectable results in August/ early September and we should be ok for lower midtable, which would be a decent season in my eyes. If not, the fans will quickly turn on the manager I feel given how things went last time and things could get very tough.
I think the opening (very winnable) game this year is so important to get right.
Edited by RockyBottom at 23:05:00 on 7th August 2024
Edited by RockyBottom at 23:06:19 on 7th August 2024
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 657
I do not understand why going from being a top six side for most of last season to lower mid-table is supposed to represent a decent season....
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1209
We looked pretty darn good in the opening two league games in 2021/22.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 852
The players are/were very keen for Revs to get the job, and one of them told me in Jersey that Revs basically ran things anyway so they don't anticipate much change. If things go badly this could change and things could quickly unravel of course, but as it stands there should be no issue from a commitment perspective.
The concerns for me are his in-game management and whether he can or will adapt tactically. That was his biggest failing last time round, and I have seen some signs of concern in pre-season that this will remain the case. As I recall we resolutely stuck with the diamond midfield last time around, and appear to be doing so again this time, as well as playing four at the back (which unless trying it in the BCD games and we will go with a back 3/5 to spring a surprise on Shrewsbury, we have gone with a back four in every PSF). I personally think both of those are not going to get the most out of our players and will hold us back or hamper us, and won't help us in creating chances or scoring goals, which I fear may be a big issue for us this season.
In his favour already is that it seemed many fans thought lots of players would leave and we would struggle to bring in top quality players now Evans has gone and Revs is in charge, and we have already very much seen this is not the case with the number of players who have signed new contracts (granted this could as much be a case of then simply wanting to be paid more) and the quality of those who have joined us.
But I will be backing him as long as possible and have never wanted a manager to succeed more than I do him. Desperate for him to work wonders with us.
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5 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 714
Agree 100%, which makes a nice change.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1141
Me too 😁
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1 person
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1226
"Is it?"
All three relegated sides are stronger than all three promoted sides. Three of the four promoted sides are stronger than three of the four relegated sides. Charlton are infinitely stronger.
So that is a third of the league straightaway, before looking at any of the other sides in the league from last year.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1052
No teams starting on minus points this season either (yet).
Wigan will surely be stronger, are any other teams on transfer bans?
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1013
"Three of the four promoted sides are stronger than three of the four relegated sides"
Odd argument.
That's always the case, relegated sides are generally pretty shit for the league they've dropped out of, thats why they're relegated, sides promoted into a league are riding the crest of a wave, but they were strong in L2, they are completely unproven in L1. Sometimes they do well, sometimes they don't make the step-up (see Burnley last season -unbeatable in Championship, didn't step-up well despite investing).
As for the three sides who fell out of rhe championship, they've all rebuilt, no way of knowing if they'll click. I know the odds are in their favour.
Edited by BALDOCKBORO at 18:45:54 on 6th August 2024
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1021
It isn't always the case at all.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 970
It is mostly though.
In terms of form
The pyschological feelgood lift of being promoted.
The stability of not needing a wholesale rebuild.
Plus usually a bit of splashed cash to strengthen.
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Re: League 1 strength
Views: 916
My point was more that they are CONSIDERABLY stronger this year, not just stronger.
You normally get one side who should go well, one or two sides who tend to bounce between L1 and L2 every few seasons (see your Northampton, Swindon, Exeter types) and one who is smaller and unexpected (see us, Crawley etc.). This year there are two very strong sides coming up who could challenge promotion.
Had any of the four who went down stayed up at somebody else's expense I would have confidently backed us to finish above them all this year, even with them strengthening. Whereas I would only back us to finish above Crawley (we should finish above Mansfield, but I am not certain we will and think we may finish near to each other), but expect us to be a fair way below both Stockport and Wrexham.
Normally coming down you also get a club who is screwed off the pitch (either financially, points deduction, financial issues, fan ownership problem) and one who is smaller and was surprising to even reach the Championship. Whereas this year we have three big clubs with money, very good squads, and who are not in turmoil.
Then you look at those who were in turmoil but are now sorting themselves out and far stronger than last year, such as Charlton, Wigan and Reading.
Then there are other strong sides who usually challenge for promotion in Posh, Bolton, Blackpool and Barnsley (who I actually think will fall away quite a bit this season despite rating the manager).
The league is SO much better than last year that even with us doing great work in the transfer market I feel a host of clubs will be leapfrogging us.
Edited by Chuds at 20:31:53 on 6th August 2024
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3 people
Re: League 1 strength
Views: 1045
I'm not convinced Reading are sorted financially.
There will be other financial basket cases surfacing, happens every season now.
I think Birmingham could go horribly wrong like it did with Rooney, fans will be apoplectic if they deign to lose a few games.
I don't rate Blackpool at all and think the fans will turn against the prudent board.
Lots of "strong teams" should mean they take lots of points off each other as well as us minnows.
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