The Home Straight

All my IP Addresses are blocked and it says I'm banned!!

 

So what are we reckoning this is about then? Teaser for this year's season ticket campaign? New stadium name re:the new sponsors? Lease extension finalised? Or Rupp has actually bought it?
(the last one's a joke BTW)

 

We'll soon find out if he has his tinkering hat on when he names the starting 11 for the Reading game, we have no midweek game so there really is no need to rotate, our home form is exceptional but we can't always rely on that being the case going forward.

 

I don't think most of that is unreasonable with regards Tuesday nights game against Rotherham, especially from a Town fans who obviously believes Town are a far superior team to us .

 

Almost certainly the season ticket campaign,it usually starts in March.

 

Crazy as it sounds, taken literally it can only really mean that V.P belongs to The club again. Can’t see it though.

 

Agree but wouldn't it be nice.

 

Interested to know what plans are with ST prices.

They've increased them significantly under Rupp, despite those initial claims (albeit from Rahic) that ST's in the Prem could cost £1.

I would like to know what the exact plans are because if we're in the Championship, it doesn't really matter what we pay, we won't be competitive in terms of budget - so if they DO increase it, I want some sort of guarantee we'll continue within budget and just take relegation on the chin if it comes.

If we're in League One, they could argue we need a better calibre of player, sure, but to what extent...? The division isn't very good and our current squad has the ability to compete at the top, as we've seen. Even if we drop a bit and finish around 10th, we still had the ability to put in a good campaign.

So I dunno. I kinda hope they freeze prices, but can see them increasing by £50, but if they do, I wanna know what it's for and what the long term plan is? Again, season ticket prices will NOT make us competitive in the Championship by a long, long, long shot, so it's just wasted money.

 

Back to the topic of home straight, we have 6 home games and 6 away.
Home games are Orient, Mansfield, Plymouth,Northampton,Stevenage and Bolton. We surely can’t keep winning nearly every home game and I think we will get 12 to 13 points from those games which take us to 71. Then we look at our Achilles heal ,our away games. Port Vale, Wigan, Burton, Wycombe, Barnsley and Exeter. We are currently terrible away from home but will probably need 6 or 7 points from these games taking us to 77 and a play off place. It looks attainable but we only need a lapse in home form and it puts pressure on us needing more points away. Going to be an interesting last few weeks.

 

Interesting.. but looking at those clubs who could hope to at least achieve 6th place, Reading, Stevenage, Wycombe and Luton, they all have tough games as well and we have a decent points advantage over them atm, I think we'll be OK.

If you look at the form, outside the top 3, we're all much of a muchness including Reading, who, quite frankly look nothing much to write home about without Marriot. There's no team coming up on the inside lane with any intensity, I don't expect a lot of change unless we capitulate and lose more than we win or draw.

 

Just using AI to search the data on tables over the last 10 complete seasons, it's showing that excluding 2019–20 unfinished season, the average points needed to finish 6th in L1 is 74.8 points, showing that in a normal 46‑game season, mid‑70s is typically required.

It to me doesn't look like we are going to have a finish that's massively outside of the norm. So, to hit the recent history average, we would need 17 more points from 12 games, which should be about the norm for a play off teams form i'd have said anyways? I think we'll be OK, but i would like us to find some form in that spell again. As well as finding goals again, think it's only Northampton who have scored less than us in the last 10 games, we have netted 9 in that time.

 

Just a bit of fun post but I've just asked Copilot to predict the final L1 table, it uses form, strength of schedule, injuries all that jazz and it has given the below....

Predicted Final League One Table (2025–26)
Top 6 – Promotion & Playoffs

1. Cardiff City – Champions
2. Lincoln City – Automatic promotion
3. Bolton Wanderers – Playoffs
4. Bradford City – Playoffs
5. Stockport County – Playoffs
6. Wycombe Wanderers – Playoffs

7–12 – Upper Mid‑table
7. Reading
8. Stevenage
9. Huddersfield Town
10. Luton Town
11. Peterborough United
12. Plymouth Argyle

Why this projection looks this way
Promotion race

• Cardiff & Lincoln are far ahead on points and goal difference, both with strong home records.
• Bolton have the best underlying numbers outside the top two (high xG, low losses), making them the strongest playoff contender.

Playoff pack

• Bradford & Stockport are consistent but less explosive than Bolton.
• Wycombe have the best goal difference of the chasing pack and a favourable run‑in.

Mid‑table

• Reading & Stevenage are solid but inconsistent away.
• Huddersfield have a strong attack but concede too many to push higher.
  

Always like AI

It also chucked up a fixture difficulty rating, Bolton and Huddersfield with the toughest remainders of the top teams according to the data it can find. Boltons last 6 are Plymouth (A), Stockport (H), Cardiff (A), Huddersfield (H), Bradford (A) & Luton (H)...... Huddersfield still have to play Cardiff, Lincoln, Plymouth, Reading, Wycombe & Bolton with Mansfield (H) and Wimbledon (A) as their last two games, but their run up until then could be a nightmare.

 

For 90 mins on Saturday, we showed that we can get some away points as long as GA doesn't try to emulate Mark Hughes.

 

New video on social media, I would be very surprised if it was anything other than season tickets on sale.
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1QL61Qo76R/

If we were buying the stadium we would just announce it without a teaser video

 

Seems like an ST sale is the common thought on the videos and from the supporters trust notes, a price increase is once again in line for next seasons tickets.

 

I'm going for a season tickets release with some new sponsorship of ground and shirts ....oh and will VP have "new owners" with plans for new floodlights, greater electrical advertising and plans for new seating in say the Midland Road.....

 

and the new Mbanq Bantam credit card with 1% of all purchases going into the transfer pot

 

Another thing to remember if we do end up in the CH next season..... international breaks are changing and are a bit of a joke in length,



No football between Sep 19 and Oct 10 because of the extended international breaks. Also no Easter football for PL and CH next season.

 

For the Premier League is doesn't matter as much as they just treat it as a normal weekend. What it should be is a huge opportunity for the rest of football to cash in on no Premier League or Championship.
The international breaks in the first half of the will be better as it will mean 2 stoppage rather than 3, there's not perfect solution for it and if that is the price to pay for Championship football I'll take it.

 

With shite like that going on I'm actually happy being in League One