angieram

Just posted in another thread, but Eíran Cashin won the Supporters' Clubs Player of the Season award. Lovely to chat with you and your dad, @B4’s Sister.

Eíran won the Supporters Clubs Player of the Year trophy tonight. Photo courtesy of Jembie.

And me! I saw a SS regular with a photo of one on his bed at home after the Portsmouth game. This week he's telling people not to take them, so hopefully most are just people like him, who took them home without realising and will bring them back next week. Mostly season ticket holders in there, aren't they?

I've heard of one or two players who are unhappy that they don't get invited back enough, but some of them expect freebies every time. I have a certain sympathy for the players from the 70s and before, but after that, we paid good wages, and probably have less money to spend on this sort of thing than we did prior to administration. How many ex-players have we? Something like 1800, although many no longer with us. I like that we invite people back when there's a reason e.g. anniversary of a promotion etc but otherwise, most players could afford to pay for their day in hospitality! Not saying Mel Sage falls into this category, btw, and it was good to see him. We were the highest level he played career-wise, so he probably deserves his day out.

I agree. Good to see him still supporting and encouraging the team from the touchline, though. Hope he does well in his coaching role at Villa.

Mostly agree with you, but laughed out loud at your comment about Hourihane!

Of course, as was the comment about his looks.

Yes, it was mentioned to Warne on the Radio Derby interview. He replied something about most points, most set pieces, best looking manager aside, what we will really be judged on is promotion. (I paraphrase!) It was quite amusing.

Before others go off on tonight's matchthread tangent, I just wanted to say what an enjoyable afternoon at Pride Park. A cracking atmosphere, good football and a deserved win. I had assumed Warne would revert to a back three, simply because it allows Sibley and Wilson to get forward more. I thought both were excellent, but it was the inclusion of Thommo that made all the difference. It gave us a midfield three with tenacity and bite. As a result, all the other parts of the team played better than midweek. Collins, especially, looked so much better in the role today, and although Mendez-Laing's traditional wing play is sacrificed in this formation, he managed to get out wide at times, delivered good set pieces and could have had a couple of goals on the break. Although I loved the set-piece goals, I do wish we could finish some of our chances created in open play, as it would do our confidence the world of good. Still, the defence was excellent, snuffing out the few chances that Orient created, and providing the goals, too. It was difficult to choose a MOTM today as there are so many contenders. And as Warne said afterwards, no further injuries. Results went our way so automatic promotion is back in our hands. Play like this for the last two games and we are there!

Yes, and you, HorsforthRam. It's a small world! Do you ever get to away games? If so, say hello. Good to meet many of the Punjabi Rams who I know from X, too.

Rams 2 - 0 Orient FRGS Mendez-Laing (I keep trying!)

Heavy pitches this season seem to be a factor, judging by the injury lists at most clubs at our level.

I've never used a dodgy box or vpn fix to watch games, as both seem to be illegal.

And because we had such a small squad, we had to make plenty of signings in a single season. We're still playing catch up.

Lincoln supporters up in arms about this as they won all their games in March. Maybe we could gift it to them?

76 - 81. Gosh, I feel old!

Dangerman Fireball XL5 When the Boat Comes In Cheers gets a mention from me, too. We are currently re-watching it, racist, sexist but very funny.

Sadly, they lost 2 - 0 tonight.

Yes, I've seen comments on that. Tbf, it's a long stand with not very good acoustics and our end was pretty quiet. Maybe the commentary team were nearer the singers.

Not trawled through all the matchthread (gave up around p40) but I think last night was a game that has summed up our season. Take both those early chances and we would have been celebrating another "get the job done" win and admiring a disciplined second half defensive performance. But we all know to score two, we need six chances, not just two or three. To create six chances, we need the football to flow. Ward makes that happen in recent games. He's injured, so we replace that role with Collins, playing out of position. He's a striker, not a midfielder. We leave Tommo on the bench, who would have been the natural link between our deep sitting midfield two and the attack, would have been available for the pass from Wilson and Sibley (who were both desperately looking for feet to play into and finding no-one there) and who can press and harry just as well as Collins. Warne needed to select either Washington or Collins, not both, and play an attacking midfielder. If he doesn't rate Thommo, he could have put Hourihane in there. He didn’t, and we faltered. I wish Warne would stop trying to create new systems and patterns and just do the simple stuff sometimes. Footballers are a bit simple too. They play instinctively in patterns that are ingrained from an early age. Take them out of their natural positions, play them in different systems and they have to think more quickly in order to be successful. It fails more than it works. Add in the factor that our forwards aren't world beaters, we need to be giving them all the help we can to play their natural games. I think we were one player choice away from that routine win last night. So disappointing.

He'd at the very least have started a few chants last night. Away end was well below par (a bit like our attack!)

I thought it was the referee breaking the tempo of the game rather than the two sides. Seemed to take forever to get a free kick or corner going, lecturing and issuing warnings about holding, where the ball was placed, counting out his ten yards and ushering players about. Ponderous.

1.26 am just got home after numerous road closures and diversions. It's hard work sometimes.

Wycombe 1 - 2 Rams FRGS Mendez-Laing