yarddog73

I just took a look at our home form since Mellon came in and it's a sackable in itself, I know he will get the summer and the start of next season and rightly so but we've currently won just three games from sixteen he's managed at 18.75%, take in to account two of those we failed to win were against level 8 opposition who played us off the park and it makes even grimmer reading. P16 W3 D7 L6 F21 A25 We haven't scored more than two in any of his home league games and kept just two clean sheet which is a pitiful return really. He is going to be under huge pressure to get results early next season, he didn't win one of his first five at home and we currently haven't won for six and yet still we aren't completely dead and buried which is just bonkers really, problem is I don't think he will change he will just bat on in the only way he knows hoping his next half a dozen signings make the difference.

This fucking pub team are ahead of us in the table and some see it as progress. Laughable situation really and they should be docked ten points for next season and threatened with being removed from the league if they can't fulfill fixtures. It still could prove to be a crucial game and really should of been yet we may see a situation where 1800+ Latics fans miss out at nothing other than incompetence.

Gardner is trying to put his usual decent half a dozen games in to bluff another contract.

Tonight, tomorrow?

I'm struggling to see how we are better off, after dismissing Unsworth early on his tenure I'd given him the benefit of the doubt this time last year given the post Christmas run, that seemed far more effective than the one we've just had to endure under Mellon. Unsworth only needed 5 or 6 if we are using that logic but he and Mellon have since double and trebled down on players who play the same positions. What's been put in place to avoid this happening again?, what's the actual plan?, it's all guess work at the minute and on the back of that there is probably and expectation from the club that fans will buy in to the mess.

Does everyone remember when I got pelters on here for complaining about our home form and the negative 7-1-2 formations Mellon sent out to try and nick draw, I was shouted down on the basis we were fluking 1-0 wins at Dorking, everyone still happy with the shite we've been served up at BP because I certainly ain't, advice I was given at the time was to look at the bigger picture and the progress we've made, what happens now that we are going backwards?. Four points in our last six home games is pitiful and I know we've played huge teams like Kidderminster and Fylde in that run but still, we shouldn't be making any excuses for Mellon, Gateshead for instance lost their manager and half a dozen players six month ago plus their best player and captain at Christmas Greg Olley yet they've managed to consolidate a place in the playoffs on 69 points with five still to play. That's on a fraction of our budget and one of the smallest squads, this leagues piss poor and we are paying the majority of our players and manager for that matter League 1 or 2 money. This seasons a huge fucking failure, let the post mortem begin but don't tell me Mellon didn't have enough to get this team in the playoffs because that's just bollocks, it's all gone a bit Richie Wellens for me when he managed to get us relegated after he gave up and I'd suggest Mellons done the same because if he hasn't he's incompetent or incapable and needs removing, why give him another 10 games that some are asking for I've seen enough in 30 odd to tell me somethings not right.

Lot of excuses being made for Mellon on here, personally I think he's been piss poor and his inability to even come up with any sort of plan to turn our home form round is a major worry, he's been making excuses up for the squad for weeks and they've hidden behind them and that's despite them going away from home and putting quite a decent run together. Recruitment has been piss poor but Mellons just compounded that and he's brought players in we could have managed without and ignored the wide areas he now claims we are short in, if we have two wide men yesterday instead of Hope and Dallas we probably win that game easily, I reckon Tollitt would have been able to do a job the last few weeks even if it was an option from the bench but Mellons so stuck in his narrow/compact/turgid ways and being too afraid to lose that he won't jeopardise not losing over going for a win and that's cost us. In the couple of games the players have been able to express themselves we've actually played quite well which is infuriating given how close we are likely to fall short. Relegation form at home was always going to come back and bite us on the arse and we still can't muster a win on our home patch when it really counts.

Expecting the retained/released list by 9am Thursday morning after the Halifax defeat to give the disappointing season ticket sales a lift.

This sums it up for me, it is possible to admire him but have reservations about some parts of his game and that's where I'm at. He stands out for me because his weakness kills us but on the flip side he's the strongest runner, fiercest tackler and is as game as they come but in that area of the pitch I'd rather be looking after the football than looking for it. He can play almost any position on the pitch in a defensive role so on that basis you'd keep him but if he's playing centrally in midfield he needs ballers around him who he can do the donkey work for. There's better out there though, we need a Matty Palmer or Alfie McCalmont type who we can play through and that for me has to be the priority as well as wide men to complement Green and I'm talking about players like Kanu and Sinclair at Dale, solid consistent wide men are a must in NL and you probably need 3 or 4 in the squad. Defensive frailties are obvious and you could argue the defence needs a complete overhaul, by my reckoning we probably need eight new players to push on up.

I'm surprised he's not been played at fullback, everyone else has had a go there.

Sheron kills us with his inability to string a pass together, it's worked playing him further up the pitch pressing which has also seen him chip in with some good goals, he's not the problem but part of the problem in games where we can't control the football. Our midfield and particularly wide areas is weak and I honestly think it needs a complete overhaul, Sheron included.

Whatever title you want to put on him he probably could be doing better.

He should be, he's seems pretty astute at wasting others money and with that I'd expect some pressure or at least some assurances it can be put right.

Gardner is playing for a new contract 100% Cannot afford to give him one as 60 minute players in this League with only four outfield subs kill you. If we fell for it and handed him another 12 month I bet we wouldn't get 20 games out of him, agree about Lundstrum - his first thought now is positive and it makes all the difference, hopefully he can carry that through to next season.

It's mind boggling really but is probably a measure of where we are at, I'm hoping we've seen the end of some of these relegation experts.

Nobody will want to play in a team set up like that, it's soul destroying. Great if you get results but awful when you get sussed out as this bunch have been.

Progress they call it.....

Big yawn They can all get in the bin for me, fucking frauds. Blame who you want none of them are good enough and Darren Royle needs to take a long hard look at himself because he's currently overseeing a shitshow he's a big part of creating. Disappointing end to the season going out having our bellies tickled but not surprising.

Last 8 games under Mellon we are on 0.6 points per game or 28 points for the season. Form table lads have disappeared off the face of the earth, Unsworth was sacked for less. 8797 with 1685 Dale

I mentioned it after the Chesterfield game, those officials gave decisions they didn't even see so what is the explanation?. Since that game it's managed to get even worse.

Dallas first touch is a shot.

Hudson and this defence needs to go, pub players. Great start, positive and on the front foot and untouchable Hudson kills us again.

0 in 10 for Dallas, due a goal today.

Here's one for you all going in to today's game. Todays defence have scored 1 goal from 132 combined appearances this season. Todays midfield and forwards bar Norwood have scored 5 from 95 combined appearances this season. That's 6 from 227. Only three scorers in the line up. Average age of the outfield players is just short of 29, what a fucking charity case we are.

We've gone from naming four strikers on the bench to naming none... This fucking club, about a dozen under contract and they've all disappeared.