One year ago ..

[mcmigo]

Sitting a point from 3rd place, we entered the festive period with some easy fixtures ahead. A struggling trio of stoke, hull and Cardiff awaited, and we were winning in all sorts of different ways. We were smashing teams like Boro and forest with first half all out attacking performances, yet winning ugly when we needed to as well like Wigan at home. The new players borner, iorfa, Luongo had settled well. Murphy was starting to show a bit of form. The recalled goalkeeper Dawson had stopped the rot in goals that had got out of control in Westwood’s last few games.

Fans were feeling positive about our new manager Garry Monk and the improvements we were seeing in the team . The programme notes of this game had an interview with Tom Lees, who confirmed how happy the dressing room was. Our crowd was enjoying their football, a mix of solid defending, good goalkeeping, and efficient attacking play finished off by the in form fletcher and super sub Nuhiu.

 

to be 12 months on ,  second bottom of the table , managed by Tony Pulis , with 2 goals from open play all season , and not one fan having stepped in the stadium for over 6 months is absolutely sickening and must represent , even in our miserable history of consistent failure, a horrific new low. 
 

2020 can go and f.ck off. 
 

but as he thinks about 2021 , Tony Pulis should focus on what made us a good team for that first half of the season last season under Garry Monk and Lee Bullen. We largely have the same players, save for starters fox, fletcher and Hutchinson, and the subs in that first half of the season  Murphy and Nuhiu. 

 

1. a goalkeeper that can be trusted not to charge around the penalty box like he is being attacked by a swarm of bees

2.  A defence built around iorfa and borner.

3.  Attacking play and being really aggressive in the first half of matches, especially away. Shock teams with attacking them from the off when away from home. 

4.  Passing football with good quality crossing.

5.  A lump up top and another lump on the bench to bring on.

6.  Play without fear , and ffs don’t concede in the last minute.

 

 

 

[Plonk]

You can try and rewrite history any way you want mate. It doesn’t work.

[Mike Hunt]

Looking at that table Forest are not much better off and they have got the manager every body wanted 

[mcmigo]

it is also interesting to observe the team who are the lowest scorers in that table.  Middlesborough, post Pulis, having had all their creativity and goalscoring coached out of them and trying to find another identity.

 

 

[Guest]

With only 24 games left we was 18 points above 23 Rd place Wigan 

Had it not been for their points penalty they'd have finished above us 

 

Shows how far we fell 

[matthefish2002]

At Christmas I thought we were in a bit of a false position and were not playing like a Play Off side.
I wouldn't have predicted such a crap 2020 though.

[areNOTwhatTHEYseem]

17 minutes ago, mcmigo said:

it is also interesting to observe the team who are the lowest scorers in that table.  Middlesborough, post Pulis, having had all their creativity and goalscoring coached out of them and trying to find another identity.

 

I don't think Pulis can be blamed for the fact Middlesbrough turned to sh*t after he left.

 

He had them in and around the top six and left them in May - that they were crap six months later is probably down to Woodgate more than anyone else.

[FreshOwl]

Ah yes...that false 3rd place position 

Edited November 30, 2020 by FreshOwl

[Plonk]

35 minutes ago, FreshOwl said:

Ah yes...that false 3rd place position 

Not sure if your being sarcastic. But I wasn’t convinced. Always thought w3 were in a false position. The football was pretty crap, didn’t think it would go as bad as it did but never felt we would go up

[FreshOwl]

1 minute ago, Plonk said:

Not sure if your being sarcastic. But I wasn’t convinced. Always thought w3 were in a false position. The football was pretty crap, didn’t think it would go as bad as it did but never felt we would go up

No I agree it really was false 

 

as fake as a pair of stripper knockers

[Ellis Rimmer]

If we were gonna have a rough football year better it's this one when we didn't have to go

[Plonk]

1 minute ago, FreshOwl said:

No I agree it really was false 

 

as fake as a pair of stripper knockers

Nowt wrong wi strippers knockers

[Sefton owl]

2 hours ago, mcmigo said:

Sitting a point from 3rd place, we entered the festive period with some easy fixtures ahead. A struggling trio of stoke, hull and Cardiff awaited, and we were winning in all sorts of different ways. We were smashing teams like Boro and forest with first half all out attacking performances, yet winning ugly when we needed to as well like Wigan at home. The new players borner, iorfa, Luongo had settled well. Murphy was starting to show a bit of form. The recalled goalkeeper Dawson had stopped the rot in goals that had got out of control in Westwood’s last few games.

Fans were feeling positive about our new manager Garry Monk and the improvements we were seeing in the team . The programme notes of this game had an interview with Tom Lees, who confirmed how happy the dressing room was. Our crowd was enjoying their football, a mix of solid defending, good goalkeeping, and efficient attacking play finished off by the in form fletcher and super sub Nuhiu.

 

to be 12 months on ,  second bottom of the table , managed by Tony Pulis , with 2 goals from open play all season , and not one fan having stepped in the stadium for over 6 months is absolutely sickening and must represent , even in our miserable history of consistent failure, a horrific new low. 
 

2020 can go and f.ck off. 
 

but as he thinks about 2021 , Tony Pulis should focus on what made us a good team for that first half of the season last season under Garry Monk and Lee Bullen. We largely have the same players, save for starters fox, fletcher and Hutchinson, and the subs in that first half of the season  Murphy and Nuhiu. 

 

1. a goalkeeper that can be trusted not to charge around the penalty box like he is being attacked by a swarm of bees

2.  A defence built around iorfa and borner.

3.  Attacking play and being really aggressive in the first half of matches, especially away. Shock teams with attacking them from the off when away from home. 

4.  Passing football with good quality crossing.

5.  A lump up top and another lump on the bench to bring on.

6.  Play without fear , and ffs don’t concede in the last minute.

 

 

 

You say ‘largely the same team’... We’ve failed to replace each single player that has left 

 

- Fletcher 

- Fox

-Hutch

- Nuhui

- Murphy

 

All of the above players were miles better than what we currently have. Well to start, we don’t even have a left back (or one that has the chance to play). 
 

Monk inherited a decent team so frankly has no excuses for the way in which the side plummeted from January. 

[alanharper]

2 hours ago, mcmigo said:

Sitting a point from 3rd place, we entered the festive period with some easy fixtures ahead. A struggling trio of stoke, hull and Cardiff awaited, and we were winning in all sorts of different ways. We were smashing teams like Boro and forest with first half all out attacking performances, yet winning ugly when we needed to as well like Wigan at home. The new players borner, iorfa, Luongo had settled well. Murphy was starting to show a bit of form. The recalled goalkeeper Dawson had stopped the rot in goals that had got out of control in Westwood’s last few games.

Fans were feeling positive about our new manager Garry Monk and the improvements we were seeing in the team . The programme notes of this game had an interview with Tom Lees, who confirmed how happy the dressing room was. Our crowd was enjoying their football, a mix of solid defending, good goalkeeping, and efficient attacking play finished off by the in form fletcher and super sub Nuhiu.

 

to be 12 months on ,  second bottom of the table , managed by Tony Pulis , with 2 goals from open play all season , and not one fan having stepped in the stadium for over 6 months is absolutely sickening and must represent , even in our miserable history of consistent failure, a horrific new low. 
 

2020 can go and f.ck off. 
 

but as he thinks about 2021 , Tony Pulis should focus on what made us a good team for that first half of the season last season under Garry Monk and Lee Bullen. We largely have the same players, save for starters fox, fletcher and Hutchinson, and the subs in that first half of the season  Murphy and Nuhiu. 

 

1. a goalkeeper that can be trusted not to charge around the penalty box like he is being attacked by a swarm of bees

2.  A defence built around iorfa and borner.

3.  Attacking play and being really aggressive in the first half of matches, especially away. Shock teams with attacking them from the off when away from home. 

4.  Passing football with good quality crossing.

5.  A lump up top and another lump on the bench to bring on.

6.  Play without fear , and ffs don’t concede in the last minute.

 

 

 

 

Actually a year ago today we'd just beaten Charlton and were in 9th place having played 19 games.

 

[mcmigo]

Just now, alanharper said:

 

Actually a year ago today we'd just beaten Charlton and were in 9th place having played 19 games.

 

shows what a great job monk did to climb table to only a point from third.

[alanharper]

2 minutes ago, mcmigo said:

shows what a great job monk did to climb table to only a point from third.

 

We were pretty average, until that spell of 4 wins and a draw from 5 games which took us to third place at Christmas.  Then Stoke happened...

[Dick_Turpin]

1 hour ago, areNOTwhatTHEYseem said:

 

I don't think Pulis can be blamed for the fact Middlesbrough turned to sh*t after he left.

 

He had them in and around the top six and left them in May - that they were crap six months later is probably down to Woodgate more than anyone else.

They scored 49 goals in 46 games in his 2nd season - only 4 teams scored fewer and two of them got relegated. Woodgate tried to make them more expansive but he was hapless. 

[Dick_Turpin]

22 minutes ago, alanharper said:

 

We were pretty average, until that spell of 4 wins and a draw from 5 games which took us to third place at Christmas.  Then Stoke happened...

I was very surprised at climbing to 3rd. Never got too excited because I always felt if we'd been in the play off positions the points deduction would kick in. 

[areNOTwhatTHEYseem]

14 minutes ago, rickygoo said:

They scored 49 goals in 46 games in his 2nd season - only 4 teams scored fewer and two of them got relegated. Woodgate tried to make them more expansive but he was hapless. 

 

Yes, and they finished 5th and 7th under Pulis, which is a much better measure of the job he did there than simply goals scored.

 

Appointing Woodgate was a disaster, really. He made them far worse defensively whilst also making them less free-scoring than they'd been under Pulis.

[Dick_Turpin]

4 minutes ago, areNOTwhatTHEYseem said:

 

Yes, and they finished 5th and 7th under Pulis, which is a much better measure of the job he did there than simply goals scored.

 

Appointing Woodgate was a disaster, really. He made them far worse defensively whilst also making them less free-scoring than they'd been under Pulis.

 

Yep Woodgate was a disaster. No-one argues with that.  They scored 48 goals last season. 1 fewer than Pulis's much more free-scoring side.

 

Goals scored is a reasonable measure of how entertaining Pulis's Boro were to watch - or at least that's what my Boro mates tell me. 23 goals in 23 games at home. 

 

Enjoy your football.