Latics and England

Whilst I don't think the atmosphere was that bad, you do raise a fair point about the Athleticos and their choice of songs. There were games last season when they spent more time singing about each other than getting behind the team. I have no idea whether the prolonged Ollie Banks chants today were supposed to be ironic or if they were in response to stick he was getting from sections of the away end. Either way, it did nothing to enhance the atmosphere. I am a big fan of the atmosphere improvements the Athleticos have brought and am genuinely amazed that we are attracting these kids to games despite the dross they have watched us play their whole lives. Keep getting behind the team, though lads. You should be improving the atmosphere, not trying to dominate it and make it about you.

B*****d Rovers and Wigan to go up automatically. Both Dale and Bury to push for the play-off but Peterborough to be the surprise package and go up. Blackpool, Gillingham, Shrewsbury and Wimbledon to go down. Latics to finish 15th with Duffus as top scorer and Fane as player of the season. Whilst I still despise everything the Checkatrade stands for, and will be boycotting it again, I think that the available odds of 66/1 for us to win it are ridiculous. Any team that opts to take it seriously could easily win it.

Do people really expect a big crowd on Tuesday? I would be amazed if there are more than 3k there (and not surprised if it was only half that). I have no interest at all in this game and know plenty others who do most friendlies who feel the same. You will get a few reds along but unless they announce that at least one 'name' is playing, it will not attract that many. The fact that United aren't even promoting the game says it all. I also expect us to have a pretty weak side out. I can't think of a precedent for having a mid-week game in the few days before the season starts. Shez won't want to risk his starting 11.

The things that stood out for me on the perimeter boards were: The one for the new orange kit genuinely made the place seem warmer. The power of the brain is amazing!! If we have them on constantly in the winter that might help. We appear to have hardly sold any adverts. There was loads for the club, the upcoming game against Scumbags kids etc. and a large number for SportsDirect and it's associated companies but I presume this gives us no additional revenue as it will all be part of the ongoing deal. As far as income generators there was one for Oldham Vending and another for Eden Creative (though Eden almost certainly have done all the graphics for the adverts so potentially get their own advertising free).

Ian Marshall must be in. Only question is whether he is up front or in defence.

Andoh looked dreadful. He ran about quite a bit(in a headless chicken kind of a way) and his control was shocking. I don't think we will be seeing him again.

If we are looking for a 2nd choice keeper, I was massively impressed with Aleks Gogic who played 1st half for Macc against Derby on Saturday. He is there on trial after being released by Fleetwood. He looked like a real prospect. Commanding, great shot-stopper. He didn't make a first team appearance for Fleetwood which obviously suggests he has weaknesses but I think he would be well worth looking at.

Although the name rings a bell, I genuinely have no recollection at all of him playing for us. Wiki tells me he played 3 games in 2014. It also tells me that he has only played 6 games since (all in Scotland). Hardly a glowing endorsement for a 22 year old.

Convicted rapist when we tried to sign him. Definitely illegal

When I wake up on the morning of the Oxford game, one of these potential signings means that I jump out of bed, I sing in the shower, I re-download Human League (I think I deleted it, it made me feel down), i struggle to concentrate on anything else, I get in trouble from the missus about singing whilst having lunch, I go to the pub a bit earlier and chat uncontrollably with great excitement. The other is an ok signing.

This sounds like a rumour after Shez was overheard repeatedly using the word "Hunt". I'm pretty sure it was "Hunt" anyway. I think he might be buying Hunt for his kids for their Christmas present.

Fixed it for you

Very hard to believe that those groups have been randomly drawn. You are right, other than us, they are completely regionalised. Interesting that all the U21 teams now play all their games away. I thought that one of the things they sold as benefitting us poor lower league fans was that we would get to visit a big (empty) ground every 3 years. It's almost like this isn't a proper competition at all!!

It means he is in the boardroom, staring at his phone but it hasn't yet begun to ring. Whether he is actually muttering "ring you f***er" under his breath is yet to be confirmed. Whether the phone rings will determine his place in history, he will either be "the one that got away who would have really made the difference" or "not good enough, we need to be targeting better players than that".

I suspect Neil Joy left precisely because he didn't want to accept bids like that.

Decent turn-out tonight. Hoping this is an indication of the improving perception of the Trust. Excellent open and honest discussion too. Many thanks to those who are giving up their time to work as Trust directors. Your efforts are appreciated.

Undisclosed but we can assume it was £250k

Is this confirmed somewhere that he is signing or is he just with us for a trial?

Fixed that for you

With what we saw of Ripley last year, the decision to spend £3m on Westwood is ridiculous. Pushing him further away from the 1st team makes no sense to me. They will end up losing someone who could be their number one for years to come.

On a personal note, I am disappointed that my only new ground (Rotherham) has fallen when I am out of the country. Overall, I think the grouping of away derbies is a blow. The four games we would have taken a big following to all falling in February and March will undoubtedly reduce our numbers. As BB points out, the early home derbies will definitely help our finances

Season tickets are now £420 aren't they? There is no way more than a handful of people are going to cough that up. I can only imagine this is a prelude to an announcement that the early bird offer prices are about to be reintroduced for a short period. I don't think we have announced POTD prices yet. Have I missed them?

Whilst uncomfortable about the role of the DUP in this government going forward I really do not see an alternative. The simple fact is that there is no other party with enough MPs who would be willing to offer support to the Tories and for Labour to gain enough support to govern, they too would need the DUP on side. It is a ridiculous situation whereby the DUP would under normal circumstances vote the same way as the Tories on most occasions but if May (or successor) refused to come to an agreement with them upfront now they would almost certainly vote against just to spite them. You couldn't have a situation whereby the government could never win a vote so either way, the DUP become the kingmakers.

Despite what the polls might say, I can only see an increased majority. I simply cannot see why someone who voted Tory last time would switch away this time. Whatever your views on the main issues, there is little change in circumstances since 2015. The only people I can see moving away from the Tories would be those who voted remain but there is no credible alternative and I suspect that even most 'remainers' believe that May will obtain a better outcome from Brexit than Corbyn.

I actually enjoyed the leaders special on QT last night. Yes, it was full of sound bites but at least you got to hear the leaders answering the questions without constantly shouting over each other. They also seemed to put much more effort into talking about their own policies than their opponent's. I have been critical of May for avoiding the debates but actually, I could see her point after watching that. As with all other debates this campaign I don't think either side excelled but certainly neither of them disgraced themselves. What we are voting on came through loud and clear. I thought constantly returning to Trident was OTT but suggesting that the audience was advocating nuclear war is ridiculous. China, Russia, N Korea and the US will never disarm (I suspect France will one day and the capability of Israel, Pakistan and India is questionable) and so we have a choice as to whether we trust those countries enough to remove our deterrent. For me, it's a No but I respect the contra view. I have a lot more faith in May's Brexit approach as I do fear that going in with a stated intention that a bad deal is better than no deal guarantees a bad deal. The EU will be anxious to agree a deal as for them, any deal would be better than no deal. You won't hear them say it though.