11 games

[Fox92]

Some of the home games are winnable and I feel I have seen enough from Rowett to get us points. He has made us better, just, but keeping clean sheets is the issue which he has said. I'm glad he called out the players about 20+ games without a clean sheet as, he is right, they need to accountable. 

 

We should be aiming to get points out of the home games against Bristol City/QPR/Preston/Swansea. Hull and Millwall are more tougher fixtures. I can't see us getting anything at Ipswich/Watford/Portsmouth away. Wednesday is a must win. I just then hope it doesn't come down to us having to win at Blackburn.

Edited 2 March by Fox92

[DJW1]

3 hours ago, StonyFox said:

I think we need to get to 50 points to have a chance of staying up, that's 16 points from these 11 matches. Only 5 of those are in the bottom half, with a lot of them chasing play-offs. Other than Wednesday all of them are fighting for promotion or survival, and our team have no fight in them. I'm struggling to see where we can get enough wins to get that many points!

 

Away - Ipswich
Home - Bristol City
Home - QPR
Away - Watford
Home - PNE
Away - Sheff Wed
Home - Swansea
Away - Portsmouth
Home - Hull
Home - Millwall
Away - Blackburn

The run of games from Bristol City to Swansea is the crunch: we need at least 10 points from those games. If we fail to beat Sheff Wed then it´s curtains

[steve555]

16 minutes ago, Angus Scott said:

Usain Bolton?

😂 Must check, predictive text next time.

[DJW1]

3 hours ago, indierich06 said:

There's not a lot to get excited or even optimistic about with this side, but talk of us being dead and buried in March with 11 games to go is literally mental. There is so much criticism of the players on here for not caring about or fighting for the shirt - all I can say is I'm glad some of you lot aren't pulling it on either, **** me.

I agree but I´m sure that in some cases the fans are mentally  "accepting" the worst case scenario while hoping to be pleasantly surprised as we stay up.

In my case, every season there comes a point when I accept that the worst case scenario is likely but I don´t give up. This season that happened in November (!), last season in January, 2 years ago in March, and 3 years when we lost to Southampton in March.

This helps me to deal with bad performances/results more quickly - within an hour of the game finishing I´ve put it out of my mind. I think that´s healthier than fuming all week long.

[Finnegan]

2 hours ago, Pliskin said:

Problem for me is, I don’t see enough fight or enough effort. There’s been an increase from some, but not everyone. 
 

I just feel the general mood and atmosphere around the club is that we’re finished but no one dare say it. I felt very much like that was the towel going in on Saturday……

 

I don't know that that's true in the first two games. I thought there looked like progress straight away in terms of effort. 

 

The Norwich performance was definitely very subdued though. 

 

[David Guiza II]

As above, there were definitely sufficient signs of life from Rowett's first two games to give at least a glimmer of hope, plus the return of James and Lascelles (though, the latter hasn't had the required impact as of yet).

 

However, the limp effort on Saturday is clearly a huge concern. Plus the continuous foot shooting and general lack of effort/ability from key players. 

Who West Brom appoint and whether Blackburn/Oxford can keep picking up points is going to be vital too. All the bottom clubs, including Pompey and Charlton, are equally capable of imploding, as well as climbing out the drop. There's still a long long way to go. 

[Stadt]

We don't have the makeup of a squad that can keep clean sheets so we're going to score 3 or 4 a game to stay up - this set of players aren't up to that and Rowett, despite his organisation ability won't be able to patch up a defence so leaky.

 

You can slag the defenders off all yo like but there just isn't the cover ahead of them. Our only true DM is injured and not good enough anyway. Any combo of Winks/James/Skipp lacks the defensive ability and physicality to stop the opposition progressing up the pitch.

 

 

Never mind that it was a foul on Skipp this sums it all up, we concede a shot on target early on and Mukasa ends top applying the most pressure, Winks is totally bypassed - he djsut does;t have the commitment, legs and physicality to get near their midfield.

 

I can't profess that'd he'd have been the answer but recalling Cartwright might have provided a different option. Skipp and James is the best pairing defensively but they're still not good enough. Not replacing Ndidi is was stupid and reckless 

[turtmcfly]

19 minutes ago, Stadt said:

We don't have the makeup of a squad that can keep clean sheets so we're going to score 3 or 4 a game to stay up - this set of players aren't up to that and Rowett, despite his organisation ability won't be able to patch up a defence so leaky.

 

You can slag the defenders off all yo like but there just isn't the cover ahead of them. Our only true DM is injured and not good enough anyway. Any combo of Winks/James/Skipp lacks the defensive ability and physicality to stop the opposition progressing up the pitch.

 

 

Never mind that it was a foul on Skipp this sums it all up, we concede a shot on target early on and Mukasa ends top applying the most pressure, Winks is totally bypassed - he djsut does;t have the commitment, legs and physicality to get near their midfield.

 

I can't profess that'd he'd have been the answer but recalling Cartwright might have provided a different option. Skipp and James is the best pairing defensively but they're still not good enough. Not replacing Ndidi is was stupid and reckless 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Mark 'expert' Lawrenson]

44 minutes ago, Stadt said:

We don't have the makeup of a squad that can keep clean sheets so we're going to score 3 or 4 a game to stay up - this set of players aren't up to that and Rowett, despite his organisation ability won't be able to patch up a defence so leaky.

 

You can slag the defenders off all yo like but there just isn't the cover ahead of them. Our only true DM is injured and not good enough anyway. Any combo of Winks/James/Skipp lacks the defensive ability and physicality to stop the opposition progressing up the pitch.

 

 

Never mind that it was a foul on Skipp this sums it all up, we concede a shot on target early on and Mukasa ends top applying the most pressure, Winks is totally bypassed - he djsut does;t have the commitment, legs and physicality to get near their midfield.

 

I can't profess that'd he'd have been the answer but recalling Cartwright might have provided a different option. Skipp and James is the best pairing defensively but they're still not good enough. Not replacing Ndidi is was stupid and reckless 

I assume we were already skint, so replacing Wilf was probably never going to happen, added to that we’d already got Hamza, Skipp and Winks. 

[Stadt]

6 minutes ago, Mark 'expert' Lawrenson said:

I assume we were already skint, so replacing Wilf was probably never going to happen, added to that we’d already got Hamza, Skipp and Winks. 

We didn't fill our loan quota 

[Stuntman_Mike]

43 minutes ago, turtmcfly said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I can't believe how slow he is now.

 

He still has quick feet at times, but he just looks like his head has completely gone. 

[ourla]

Despite wanting Top to sell and Rudkin to leave with him I really don't want to see us relegated.

 

Rowett has given me some hope, because I think he's no bs manager who will fire them up a bit but that is all it is.

 

We've spent one year in third tier and it was dog awful. I really don't want to go back there.

 

If I could guarantee Top would sell if we get relegated it would be tempting though.

[indierich06]

5 hours ago, Officer Doofy said:

 

What makes you think we will completely break the pattern that has now been in play for over 80 games of football? 

 

What did you see on Saturday that suggests your optimism is better placed than others realism? 

I'm not saying it's nailed on that we're staying up, just that it's ridiculous to claim that we're basically down when we're 1pt from safety with 11 games to play. If we hadn't had a pts deduction we'd be in 19th. We're shit, but we're not dead and buried.

[tickler28]

I think any team that gets 47 points or more stays up

[Mark 'expert' Lawrenson]

1 hour ago, Stadt said:

We didn't fill our loan quota 

The point still stands that we probably were skint and we had the 3 mentioned plus Soumare at the time. 
None as good as Wilf however due to poor recruitment we’d backed ourselves into a corner and couldn’t keep signing players to cover a position we had players who “supposedly” were deemed to be good enough.

A striker should/would have been a priority if there was any money. 
I do agree with your point that Wilf wasn’t adequately replaced but that’s down to terrible recruitment and haemorrhaging money. 

[Sol thewall Bamba]

3 hours ago, Stadt said:

We don't have the makeup of a squad that can keep clean sheets so we're going to score 3 or 4 a game to stay up - this set of players aren't up to that and Rowett, despite his organisation ability won't be able to patch up a defence so leaky.

 

You can slag the defenders off all yo like but there just isn't the cover ahead of them. Our only true DM is injured and not good enough anyway. Any combo of Winks/James/Skipp lacks the defensive ability and physicality to stop the opposition progressing up the pitch.

 

 

Never mind that it was a foul on Skipp this sums it all up, we concede a shot on target early on and Mukasa ends top applying the most pressure, Winks is totally bypassed - he djsut does;t have the commitment, legs and physicality to get near their midfield.

 

I can't profess that'd he'd have been the answer but recalling Cartwright might have provided a different option. Skipp and James is the best pairing defensively but they're still not good enough. Not replacing Ndidi is was stupid and reckless 

That's disgusting. The ones from Boro for their goal are even worse. It's just a case that he doesn't want it enough. 

[Stadt]

1 hour ago, Mark 'expert' Lawrenson said:

The point still stands that we probably were skint and we had the 3 mentioned plus Soumare at the time. 
None as good as Wilf however due to poor recruitment we’d backed ourselves into a corner and couldn’t keep signing players to cover a position we had players who “supposedly” were deemed to be good enough.

A striker should/would have been a priority if there was any money. 
I do agree with your point that Wilf wasn’t adequately replaced but that’s down to terrible recruitment and haemorrhaging money. 

Possibly but I think Rudkin & co are just so myopic they didn’t think it was an issue. Had we shifted Soumare for whatever his PSR breakeven was and got even a standard DM we’d be much better off now

[ozvaldo]

On 01/03/2026 at 09:21, lcfcfoz said:

4 wins and a few draws should be enough to finish above baggies and oxford. 

Go to bed, Rudkin. 

[Dan]

Ipswich - 1-1 draw

Bristol City - 1-2 loss

QPR - 0-2 loss

Watford - 2-1 loss

Preston - 1-1 draw

Sheff Weds - 1-1 draw

Swansea - 1-2 loss

Portsmouth - 2-1 loss

Hull - 2-3 loss

Millwall - 0-1 loss

Blackburn - 0-3 win (while already relegated)

 

Ultra pessimistic prediction but it really isn't beyond us. We go on extraordinarily terrible runs.

[Dan]

On 01/03/2026 at 09:29, HP1 said:

Oxford have accrued more points in the last week than we have in the last 2 months. Wouldn't be surprised if its us and West brom who go down. 

These do appear to be the three worst teams.

 

Leicester, West Brom and Sheffield Wednesday would surely be the collective biggest trio to go down from this league in the same season. That's a bigger trio than you often get drop from the Premier League.

[Guest Jonboy1999]

Oxford quite clearly have some fight in them to get out of it whereas us and West Brom are rapidly sinking into the abyss! It’s painfully sad to see what’s happened to the club. TOP and C**tface have destroyed it 

[Gazza M]

3 wins, 4 draws, 4 defeats gets us to 47 points. Might be enough with better goal difference. Would mean Oxford still need to get another 16 from 11 matches. Highly unlikely. West Brom are worse than us so 13 from 11 matches seems unrealistic for them too. 

[Fox92]

18 hours ago, Stadt said:

We don't have the makeup of a squad that can keep clean sheets so we're going to score 3 or 4 a game to stay up - this set of players aren't up to that and Rowett, despite his organisation ability won't be able to patch up a defence so leaky.

 

You can slag the defenders off all yo like but there just isn't the cover ahead of them. Our only true DM is injured and not good enough anyway. Any combo of Winks/James/Skipp lacks the defensive ability and physicality to stop the opposition progressing up the pitch.

 

 

Never mind that it was a foul on Skipp this sums it all up, we concede a shot on target early on and Mukasa ends top applying the most pressure, Winks is totally bypassed - he djsut does;t have the commitment, legs and physicality to get near their midfield.

 

I can't profess that'd he'd have been the answer but recalling Cartwright might have provided a different option. Skipp and James is the best pairing defensively but they're still not good enough. Not replacing Ndidi is was stupid and reckless 

That was awful when everyone basically parted to let him run clean through.

 

I must say though Norwich's movement was ridiculous. Plus they had individual players' fantastic close control but their movement was something I don't think I've seen us play against all season. 

 

[STEVIE B]

13 hours ago, Dan said:

Ipswich - 1-1 draw

Bristol City - 1-2 loss

QPR - 0-2 loss

Watford - 2-1 loss

Preston - 1-1 draw

Sheff Weds - 1-1 draw

Swansea - 1-2 loss

Portsmouth - 2-1 loss

Hull - 2-3 loss

Millwall - 0-1 loss

Blackburn - 0-3 win (while already relegated)

 

Ultra pessimistic prediction but it really isn't beyond us. We go on extraordinarily terrible runs.

What are you on ? 

You seriously think we'll score 2 against Hull ? 

Edited 3 March by STEVIE B

[Manley Farrington-Brown]

16 hours ago, indierich06 said:

I'm not saying it's nailed on that we're staying up, just that it's ridiculous to claim that we're basically down when we're 1pt from safety with 11 games to play. If we hadn't had a pts deduction we'd be in 19th. We're shit, but we're not dead and buried.

Exactly.

Over eleven games we need to get one point more than West Brom and not let Oxford make up more than two points on us.

Now, we're clearly absolute rubbish, so it's perfectly possible we won't manage even that. But it's hardly out of the question, especially as they're both as bad as we are (arguably a tiny bit worse, as they're down there without having had six points deducted).