Our Playoffs Opponents

thehockleyhustler

thehockleyhustler

Stuart Pearce
With the Playoffs looking almost like a certainty for us in May, does anyone have preference on who we would like to play and avoid in the Semi's?

For me the Playoffs is a lottery and therefore don't really have any preference over who we play as long as we have our home game for the 2nd leg. I remember being delighted when we were matched up against Yeovil a few years back and we all know what happened then!

There is almost always one team that comes from no-where and sneaks into that 6th place in the final few weeks of the season. Looking at the current table I think that team may well just be Reading. If they win their game in hand hey go joint 7th and just 4 points off 6th.

Still a long way to go though and i'm delighted we are at least guaranteed a Playoff place (i know not mathematically but come on!)
 
Cliche bingo...

thehockleyhustler said:
With the Playoffs looking almost like a certainty for us in May, does anyone have preference on who we would like to play and avoid in the Semi's?

For me the Playoffs is a lottery and therefore don't really have any preference over who we play as long as we have our home game for the 2nd leg. I remember being delighted when we were matched up against Yeovil a few years back and we all know what happened then!

There is almost always one team that comes from no-where and sneaks into that 6th place in the final few weeks of the season. Looking at the current table I think that team may well just be Reading. If they win their game in hand hey go joint 7th and just 4 points off 6th.

Still a long way to go though and i'm delighted we are at least guaranteed a Playoff place (i know not mathematically but come on!)
Click to expand...

LINE!

Sorry, in all seriousness, I'd like to avoid any team that makes a late push because they'd have excellent momentum.

I can see Swansea finishing sixth, with Cardiff dropping out and one of the teams just outside thundering through to finish fifth.

I'd be happy playing Swansea I reckon. I also believe that finishing 3rd or 4th guarantees a home tie in the second leg.
 
I reckon we'll get Cardiff in the Semi's & we'll get a Draw at Wales and we'll win at the City Ground.
 
We will only be watching the playoffs because we are going up in 2nd. Lots of points to play for still (21 infact) and Newcastle & Westbrom are going to be dropping points in the next 7 games and the 1st three dropped by Newcastle will be Monday night, and Westbrom will fall to Reading on Saturday.
 
Is there a clever soul who could tell us over the past 5 or 6 seasons who has finished where in the playoff positions and gone onto get promoted and lets see if there is any trend.

I would say with Billy he has been there and done it through the playoffs where as the Swansea, lesta and whoever the other team manager will be has not. (i think)

So that must give some what of a upper hand.
 
oscar said:
We will only be watching the playoffs because we are going up in 2nd. Lots of points to play for still (21 infact) and Newcastle & Westbrom are going to be dropping points in the next 7 games and the 1st three dropped by Newcastle will be Monday night, and Westbrom will fall to Reading on Saturday.
Click to expand...

Do you honestly believe that or are you just trying to wind me up?

Are you as certain that we will get second this year as much as you were certain we were going to get relegated last season after Barnsley away?
 
thehockleyhustler said:
Do you honestly believe that or are you just trying to wind me up?

Are you as certain that we will get second this year as much as you were certain we were going to get relegated last season after Barnsley away?
Click to expand...


I honestly do believe we can still make 2nd, and like you said Im not going to stop until it is not mathamatically possible....like you said look what happened last year...
 
The run in for those there or thereabouts is as follows (current play-off/automatic sides in bold and hopefuls in italics):

27th March
Reading v West Brom
Derby v Leicester
Swansea v Ipswich
Crystal Palace v Cardiff
Plymouth v Blackpool

28th March
Sheff Utd v S****horpe

29th March
Newcastle v Forest

30th March
Cardiff v Leicester

2nd April
S****horpe v Blackpool
West Brom v Leicester

3rd April
Bristol v Forest
Cardiff v Swansea
Ipswich v Reading
Peterborough v Newcastle
Sheff Utd v Barnsley

5th April
Blackpool v Doncaster
Leicester v QPR
Newcastle v Sheff Utd
Forest v Cardiff
Reading v Coventry
Swansea v S****horpe
Watford v West Brom

10th April
Bristol v Swansea
Cardiff v Reading
Doncaster v West Brom
Newcastle v Blackpool
Forest v Ipswich
Peterborough v Leicester
Sheff Utd v Coventry

13th April
Reading v Newcastle

17th April
Blackpool v Forest
Leicester v Watford
QPR v Cardiff
Reading v Peterborough
Swansea v Barnsley
West Brom v Middlesborough

18th April
Sheff Wed v Sheff Utd

19th April
Plymouth v Newcastle

20th April
S****horpe v Reading

24th April
Cardiff v Sheff Wed
Newcastle v Ipswich
Forest v Plymouth
Peterborough v Blackpool
Preston v Leicester
Sheff Utd v Swansea
Watford v Reading

26th April
Crystal Palace v West Brom

2nd May
Blackpool v Bristol City
Derby v Cardiff
Ipswich v Sheff Utd
Leicester v Middlesbrough
QPR v Newcastle
Reading v Preston
S****horpe v Forest
Swansea v Doncaster
West Brom v Barnsley

I reckon Swansea have the hardest run-in and West Brom's is by no means easy. Leicester's is pretty tough other than two games as well, but I think they'll pull through.

Final standings and those in the play-offs, for me, will be:

Newcastle
West Brom
---------------
Forest
Leicester
Blackpool
Swansea
---------------
Sheff Utd
Cardiff
Reading
 
nottmdude said:
Is there a clever soul who could tell us over the past 5 or 6 seasons who has finished where in the playoff positions and gone onto get promoted and lets see if there is any trend.

I would say with Billy he has been there and done it through the playoffs where as the Swansea, lesta and whoever the other team manager will be has not. (i think)

So that must give some what of a upper hand.
Click to expand...

I dont have this info but found this from 2006:

Is the current form important for a play-off campaign? Well, I've had a look at the last six League games for each of the four clubs in the previous 16 seasons of play-offs in this division and found the following frequencies of winning the play-off final:
Club with best form - 5 times
Club with second best form - 4 times
Club with third best form - 4 times
Club with worst form - 3 times
Also, I looked at the average number of points scored over the last six games, compared with play-off progress:
Winners - 11.4 points
Losing finalists - 10 points
Semi-finalists - 10.2 points
I think that this shows a slight advantage for the team in form, but it is certainly not a major factor.
On only one occasion has a side gone into the play-offs having won all their last six League games and that side did go on to win the final (Notts County in 1991/92). On 12 occasions a side has gone into the play-offs having taken less than eight points in their last six games - only three of those reached the final and only one went on to win. And you really don't want to know who it was.
 
anyone but swansea we have done the double over them already and its one of them weird things in football that teams rarely get beaten more than twice in one season by the same team, (i.e when they meet in league and cups ect)
 
From the Year 2000 these are the Playoff final winners.

1999/2000 - Ipswich (3rd)
2000/2001 - Bolton (3rd)
2001/2002 - Birmingham (5th)
2002/2003 - Wolves (5th)
2003/2004 - Crystal Palace (6th)
2004/2005 - West Ham (6th)
2005/2006 - Watford (3rd)
2006/2007 - Derby (3rd)
2007/2008 - Hull (3rd)
2008/2009 - Burnley (5th)

Total:
3rd - 5 times
4th - 0 times
5th - 3 times
6th - 2 times
 
I see us playing cardiff in the semis with us winning narrowly. We will then narrowly and undeservedly lose to Leicester in the final and I will have to go into hiding in Loughborough.

I am also pleased to say that i am by nature a glass half empty type and that I've yet to be correct on a single prediction.
For anything.
Ever.
 
Marshall. said:
From the Year 2000 these are the Playoff final winners.

1999/2000 - Ipswich (3rd)
2000/2001 - Bolton (3rd)
2001/2002 - Birmingham (5th)
2002/2003 - Wolves (5th)
2003/2004 - Crystal Palace (6th)
2004/2005 - West Ham (6th)
2005/2006 - Watford (3rd)
2006/2007 - Derby (3rd)
2007/2008 - Hull (3rd)
2008/2009 - Burnley (5th)

Total:
3rd - 5 times
4th - 0 times
5th - 3 times
6th - 2 times
Click to expand...

So the third placed team is the most likely to get promoted. :)
 
Loughborough_red said:
I see us playing cardiff in the semis with us winning narrowly. We will then narrowly and undeservedly lose to Leicester in the final and I will have to go into hiding in Loughborough.

I am also pleased to say that i am by nature a glass half empty type and that I've yet to be correct on a single prediction.
For anything.
Ever.
Click to expand...

I'll be running a safe house for trickys in Loughborough if that occurs. Hopefully smuggling some of us over the border to Notts to avoid the horror of smug fox botherers.


I want no part of the play offs. If history has taught us anything it's that Forest will implode in new and wonderful ways during the "easy" second leg.
 
Still have a concern that our nemessisses from up the m1 in bluntland will make it into 6th,and reading are coming up on the rails too,.....our game v cardiff will make or break them i reckon, i think they are the most vulnerable to drop out
 
Anyone know what the latest is re potential administration for Cardiff - which could let in Blackpool/Boro/Sheff Utd. When are they next in court?
 
RICH1977 said:
anyone but swansea we have done the double over them already and its one of them weird things in football that teams rarely get beaten more than twice in one season by the same team, (i.e when they meet in league and cups ect)
Click to expand...

Conversely they will fear us more than we will fear them. Plus with Earnie being an ex cardiff man, he will hopefully get the winner as this kind of thing happens in football quite a lot.

Just to add a bit more confidance that this thing does happen, Southampton have beaten MK Dons 4 times this season. Double in the league and both home and away in the Johnstones Paint Trophy!
 
We'll finish 3rd and play Cardiff in 6th whilst Swansea play Blackpool who fire through to 5th with Leicester dropping out. We take a comfortable 1-1 draw back to the city ground and win 2-0 in the 2nd leg. We play Swansea in the final and raddy fires a shot from 30 yards out in the top corner in the last minute and we win 1-0 :)
 
Forest will beat Leicester 2-1 at Wembley.

we are the 3rd best team in the Championship even without McKenna and Shorey,and we are going back to where we belong.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom