bigfatjoe1

Royle-ball! That would be nice, but can't see it. Still, you never know.

I don't disagree about the individual defenders, but we didn't defend well as a team. The midfield was often over run, leaving the defence exposed. One thing's for sure, it was rarely boring. Now...it feels a bit like Christmas, with the media team doing a brilliant job with the wrapping.

I really enjoyed the lockdown season. Kewell-Ball was very entertaining at times. Great forward line of Maceleny, Rowe and Dearnley. Also, possibly the worst defence I've ever seen. I mean, they were shocking. We scored more and conceded more than anyone else.

Ward played off the right for Gateshead. Ward or Green, with Dickenson or Tollitt on the right. Five strikers will keep them all on their toes, which is great. Hope and Rooney to leave. Two more signings (rb and cm) and we'll be flying even higher.

We used to have six, back in Joe's golden years. Healthy competition, as well as important cover. Yes, we need more strength out wide, in cm and, of course, rb, but I'd also be happy with another striker.

I honestly agree with Joe's old adage - you can't have enough strikers.

He's got a bit of pedigree, is only 21 and still has no club. Spent 6 years at City and then a season at Port Vale, so he's familiar with the area. Even if it's a guess, it's a good one. I'm off to Twitter...

You could actually hear the sound of boot leather on the bastard's face. He didn't try anything after that.

You'd hope they'd also looked at the pitch before making the decision. The ground might be safe, but that pitch is a mess. Maybe they're patching it up in time for Saturday?

He's also said a couple of season long loans are a possibility. Mixed messages.

The pictures are not great, are they. There's no way of playing on that. It's worse than my back garden. What a mess. Braintree is a bit of an extra trek, involving extra money to get there. It holds over 4k, with 500 seats. Would it need to be all-ticket? If we switch, fans who've booked the train will miss out. Local hotels are going to miss out. Poor by the NL. Still, if we do switch, I can go, which is great...

Gateshead compilation shows him playing mainly wide right, cutting in onto his left foot. Slightly reminds me of another Ward (Mark), who was a fantastic player for us. Still need another quality wide play, quality CM and, of course, a RB. We've got a solid squad, we just need to up the quality in those areas. Three really good signings should push us up another level. Would like to see more of Willoughby. Please use him or Reid playing off one of the two big lumps - don't play both lumps. Rhino's told us 3 will be incoming, so fingers crossed. Don't forget, there is no window closing at the end of August. Also, a lot of clubs loan out their youngsters fairly late on.

Sorry. I admit to having had a drink. It was meant to be tongue in cheek. I remember the old Boy's Brigade. Very wholesome activities for young people.

No, definitely no. St. Pats and the Boys Brigade. Nooooo. Perhaps you were joking.

I'd get rid of the uncertainty and just switch it. That way I can go!

You mean BBBB Bastrad Baird. The dirty shit. Spitting at young Flynn. Still, got his own back.

Not an ex player, and it's been mentioned on another thread, but it's really sad to hear about the death of Paul Hince. I loved his coverage of the Oldham games. He was entertaining, funny and always very biased. Went on to cover his lifelong favourite team, Shitty, but he can be forgiven. He wasn't afraid to rub people up the wrong way, famously Dalglish and Fergusson. RIP Paul.

I'm pretty much the same. The knock-out stages of the CL were brilliant. Their coverage of the NL is good. I like McLean. The play-offs alone, though, were worth the subscription. They were bat-shit crazy.

I'd forgotten about him. He was really crap.

There were a few, but, then again, too few to mention. I just hope we swap Nuttall for Ogle...

At least we're now only debating team/footballing issues and not the sort of crap we've endured for years. I think that's a big positive. He's still crap, based on last season's performances....

I'm basing my argument on last season. Basing anything on pre-season is ridiculous. I just don't get what anyone sees in him, but I am genuinely happy to be proven wrong in the coming season. I hope he does impress.

If I'm being honest, no. I think Reid and Willoughby are fine. Fondop is a good impact player, but I really believe that we should replace Nuttall with a substantial upgrade. Everyone has their own opinion. I think he's ponderous, has a poor first touch, has no pace, doesn't chase defenders down and doesn't even attempt to track back when he loses the ball. Hopefully, he'll prove me wrong.

Before our golden years under Joe, we weren't exactly knocking on the door of Division One or having great cup runs. It wasn't always a struggle in the old Division Two, but it was often 'challenging.' That said, we did spend over 20 years in the top two divisions, so, yes, what came next was totally shit. I'd love to even remember being under 40...apart from the football. I'll never forget that...