Guest Knightrider Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 It's been around 3 years since we were consistently playing well. I don't care what anybody says, even though we finished 5th that season, we massively under-achieved. When you look back, 4th was there for the taking because Liverpool were just as bad as us, and the likes of Aston Villa & Bolton weren't consistent enough to capitalize, else one of those would have finished 4th. Think we only won 2 away games all season, dropped some crazy points at home. We should have walked away with 4th. Agree there like, some of the performances that season were shocking, on a par with the Derby performance. That season was bitterly disappointing in that respect because everyone around us was just as poor and as you said, 4th really was there for the taking. We got off to a bad start and then went on a good run, then the season become a long hard slog where we'd win 3, draw 1 and lose 2 then repeat the same sequence. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NG32 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Agree there like, some of the performances that season were shocking, on a par with the Derby performance. That season was bitterly disappointing in that respect because everyone around us was just as poor and as you said, 4th really was there for the taking. We got off to a bad start and then went on a good run, then the season become a long hard slog where we'd win 3, draw 1 and lose 2 then repeat the same sequence. Aye, our last home game of that campaign against Wolves was a shocker! And the team paraded round and empty stadium. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest johnson293 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 From NUFC.COM's match report... In equal parts predictable and frustrating, this Monday night torture left Toon fans in the ground and watching on TV bemused, becalmed and more than a tad peed off as our decent start to the season melted away. A non-performance that was an unwanted return to the flawed administrations of messrs Souness and Roeder gave Allardyce plenty to chew over, as the team selected misfired in a game that they had been widely tipped to win. The ingredients were there - opponents who had failed to win a top-flight game since their return and were coming off the back of a six goal howking. An old boy (Andy Griffin) in the ranks and a self-confessed Magpie nut (Durham-born Steve Howard). For our part there was the nation's favourite striker fresh from his cantering round Wembley and giving TV viewers a glimpse of his wonderful life the previous day, as football writers fell over themselves to pen "back and better than ever" missives. And for the manager, there was a first taste of life at this club when things don't go to plan - cue the expected "honeymoon over" lines. In the event "Fred West" didn't maim anyone and the boyhood fan missed two golden chances to get off the mark in the top flight and have something to tell his bairns about in years to come. But debutant Miller provided the difference between this being a scoreless draw with a goal that, while not quite in the same class as his fellow Scot McFadden's recent high-profile effort, was still a stonker. While our stylistic shortcomings will be picked up by many, what will have depressed Sam as much as his injury tribulations was the fact that his side didn't want this as much as the Derby lads - all the fancy diets and conditioning programmes in the world won't give players an appetite. Those who labelled us as a Bolton clone this evening were off the mark, failing to appreciate how disorganised we were - physically intimidated and inert from set pieces. Once the initial anger subsided though, a sense of proportion hopefully returned ahead of the visit of West Ham and trips to Arsenal and Manchester City - a big week in anyone's calendar, with an important Cup avenue and two of our supposed rivals in the revivalist stakes. Not the time to go off-message. Pride Park cometh before a fall then? From the South Stand that viewpoint seemed to have some validity, certainly when considering the non-displays of Owen and Ameobi. The booing that accompanied the departure of the latter from the field was more an expression of frustration with Ameobi - Owen certainly wasn't at the races, but Shola was bloody dreadful - more the performance of a man giving up rather than straining to win a regular starting place. Big man, little man may be his desired front pairing, but Sam has seen now first-hand that Ameobi doesn't punch his weight. Frankly, we could have done better up front by going four junctions down the M1 and taking Carl Cort from Leicester back for one night. Things went from bad to worse when the second half brought no discernible improvement and even less to worry Bywater in the Rams goal, with Martins no better than what he replaced. Bewildering substitutions seemed to confuse those brought on and left on in equal measure, with alleged contract rebel Taylor uncomfortable when trying to push forward from right back and the deeply concerning sight of Rozehnal trying to make the plays. So, a bad night at the office/races/dogs/whatever, but no more than that - and hopefully a timely hoof in the derriere. However, a quick refresher of our reports this season to date brings forth some familiar issues that remain to be addressed. The square peg/round hole scenario still applies to both N'Zogbia and Smith, the former unable to provide an alternative to Milner's flank work and the latter exhibiting his frustration at being moored in a no-man's land of a position by launching into opponents to earn yellow cards. The enforced Geremi/Butt pairing still echoes the Parker/Butt mismatch of last season - with a handy reminder of the lack of current options in that area coming in the shape of Pattison sitting on the bench, while defenders were brought on to try and turn round a deficit. Beye and Faye's first taste of life in Toon was nothing to savour, but at least they've now started the process of integration with their new colleagues - something that Enrique needs to do. Still the earliest of early days then, with so much remaining to be done in terms of moulding the raw material brought in at regular intervals up to seventeen days before this game. It's fair to say that the cement is still wet. Sunday promises to be very interesting - not so much for the easy lines of returning ex-Magpies but more for the behaviour of the home fans if things don't instantly come good. The sweeping changes at this club were never going to instantly bring about the success that we all crave - in the same way that the new eras at Villa, Man City etc. have seen and will continue to see good and bad days. In the bonkers world of the Premiership, three bad results next week would see a welter of negative headlines about Allardyce, Ashley, Owen and all the rest. But just because over-paid clowns let loose on keyboards and microphones will relish swiping at us, there's no reason for those who follow this club to go along with the knockers. For better to try and remain in positive mode - not giving underachievers and shirkers an easy ride, but acknowledging effort and providing encouragement. The clue is in the word - supporters. Nail on head! Anyway, bring on the 'Ammers, and however many of our old boys as are available for them! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cajun Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Can't wait for the reaction if we don't win against West Ham :-[ Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nufcjmc Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Can't wait for the reaction if we don't win against West Ham :-[ lets hope that IF we dont win there will be at least some positives to take from the game unlike the sucker punch most have gotten from the Derby defeat. I personally feel positive we can beat them home soil, some back from injury and SA not wanting to repeat what happened on monday night is enough motivation needed as far as I'm concerned. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Parker wins the ball from Geremi, passes to Bowyer who finds Bellamy and the Welshman slots it home. Nailed on. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cajun Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Parker wins the ball from Geremi, passes to Bowyer who finds Bellamy and the Welshman slots it home. Nailed on. With Dyer boosting their morale being the 12th man in the stands. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nufcjmc Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Parker wins the ball from Geremi, passes to Bowyer who finds Bellamy and the Welshman slots it home. Nailed on. prefer Bellamy getting the ball and running into Taylor who does a perfectly timed tackle, Bellamy loosing his rag pushing him and being sent off or ala jenas getting the ball clear on open goal and shooting wide Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swissmag Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 When it comes to points, we had a really good start. But from a footballing point of view you just have to be disappointed. There are loads of teams who are more entertaining than we are...whitout the same sort of money and status. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cajun Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 When it comes to points, we had a really good start. But from a footballing point of view you just have to be disappointed. There are loads of teams who are more entertaining than we are...whitout the same sort of money and status. Its more difficult to keep that going though. West Ham were commended on their attacking play then the season after they had to fight till the last day to stay in the league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
McCormick Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 would be a big blow if we lost against west ham on home soil.. mainly cos i hate the bastards but like i said before, i had a dream tht we lost 3-2 just a silly dream but it'd be freaky if it were to come true.. *rubs crystal ball, smirking* Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BooBoo Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 I really dont kno where these outrageous expectations have come from. Our target this season should be one of the UEFA Cup spots. People are deluding themselves if they are expecting us to gatecrash the top 4. We'll have some good games this season and some pap ones but we need to control the extreme reactions. I think it was Souness (in rare "sense talking shocker") who rightly said the problem the club has is that if we win a few games we're the next big thing in the eyes of our fans and if we lose two it's a club in crisis. It's ludicrous really. Allardyce needs at least 2 years to stabilise the club and build his own side. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cajun Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 I really dont kno where these outrageous expectations have come from. Our target this season should be one of the UEFA Cup spots. People are deluding themselves if they are expecting us to gatecrash the top 4. We'll have some good games this season and some pap ones but we need to control the extreme reactions. I think it was Souness (in rare "sense talking shocker") who rightly said the problem the club has is that if we win a few games we're the next big thing in the eyes of our fans and if we lose two it's a club in crisis. It's ludicrous really. Allardyce needs at least 2 years to stabilise the club and build his own side. Spot on. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thespence Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 I admit I got carried I really did think we would beat a team that had not won a Premier league game & was bottom of the league. I put it down to seeing a rare league goal for us at St James park. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BottledDog Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Can't wait for the reaction if we don't win against West Ham :-[ And what if we were to lose in the same manner, would people not be right in feeling aggrieved? I have to say I envy those that can take such performances on the chin so lightly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cajun Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 Can't wait for the reaction if we don't win against West Ham :-[ And what if we were to lose in the same manner, would people not be right in feeling aggrieved? I have to say I envy those that can take such performances on the chin so lightly. Is still very early days, Allardyce was never going to instantly change the team around from the shite we have seen for the last few years. Suppose we are the only team in the prem so far this season that has put in a very poor performance though. Shame we don't support one of those other teams where everything go's right every single game. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Parka Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 I really dont kno where these outrageous expectations have come from. Our target this season should be one of the UEFA Cup spots. People are deluding themselves if they are expecting us to gatecrash the top 4. We'll have some good games this season and some pap ones but we need to control the extreme reactions. I think it was Souness (in rare "sense talking shocker") who rightly said the problem the club has is that if we win a few games we're the next big thing in the eyes of our fans and if we lose two it's a club in crisis. It's ludicrous really. Allardyce needs at least 2 years to stabilise the club and build his own side. Agree although I stand by my prediction of an 8th place finish. One I would be fucking delighted with. We need to build on what we have now. Creativity is of utmost importance. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MaetihS Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 would be absolutely delighted if we finish at least above 15th considering the quality of the squad we have and also being a relatively new team. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChezGiven Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 I admit I got carried I really did think we would beat a team that had not won a Premier league game & was bottom of the league. I put it down to seeing a rare league goal for us at St James park. That assumes that performance is a constant, for both sides. Whereas in fact the magic trick a brilliant manager makes is to get close to constant performances. As BooBoo says, along the way we'll have some shit performances and some good ones. Assessment comes from looking at the trend over months. You therefore cant make your mind up after 5 prem games. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Phil K Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 From NUFC.COM's match report... Nail on head! Anyway, bring on the 'Ammers, and however many of our old boys as are available for them! Beg to differ. In a long winded article, they point out just WHY we are underachievers by backing crap and saying "Its what real supporters do" Currently Arsenal are demolishing Derby at half pace. Meanwhile certain Newcastle fans are STILL trying to seek excuses for a DISGRACEFUL, shameful performance against a side who are WAAAAYYY out of their league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChezGiven Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 There is no such thing as transitivity in football Phil. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Phil K Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 I presume you mean transition. To what ? Slow improvement ? Bad to worse ? My transition from someone who was reasonably confident to despondent and angry happened on Monday night. I feel as angry now as I did then. Derby are still as bad as they were pre-Monday, notice. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cajun Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 So one game completely changed your feelings, I think thats what is commonly known in "the business" as a kneejerk reaction. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChezGiven Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 I mean just because we beat Bolton away, arguably better than Derby, doesnt automatically mean we will beat Derby away. If we beat West Ham tomorrow will your confidence return? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crumpy Gunt Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 From NUFC.COM's match report... Nail on head! Anyway, bring on the 'Ammers, and however many of our old boys as are available for them! Beg to differ. In a long winded article, they point out just WHY we are underachievers by backing crap and saying "Its what real supporters do" Currently Arsenal are demolishing Derby at half pace. Meanwhile certain Newcastle fans are STILL trying to seek excuses for a DISGRACEFUL, shameful performance against a side who are WAAAAYYY out of their league. Exactly right. Derby WAS a fucking disgrace both the players on the pitch and the manager off the pitch. He (Sam) should really be held accountable for his post match statement. Probably one of the worst things I've heard any NUFC manger say. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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