13 years in League One - Has it been that bad?

[oafcprozac]

97-98 Manager: Warnock

Highlights - Unbeaten at home until February 7th.

Low Lights - The away form, only two wins away from BP all season. Dropping like a stone after Christmas. Selling Barlow on deadline day for a pittance. Manchester North End.

 

98-99 Manager: Stitch

Highlights: The return of a footballing philosophy. Ok we were :censored:e, but we played at least we were :censored:e at playing football! Beating City yet again at Maine Road and a performance to be proud of v Chelsea. Signing Shez. Staying up with ateam of kids, journeymen, geriatrics and all round bums!

 

Low-lights: An awful season with very few goals, no money and depressingly poor home form. 3-0 in 20 minutes v Wycombe and the must-win pasting at home v Gillingham. Pointon and Henry destroying us on the penultimate Saturday at the Bescot then having to watch them celebrate promotion. It was then I was resigned to a very long stay in the lower reaches. The failure of Sportspark 2000

 

99-00 Manager: Stitch

Highlights: The double over Wigan, Allott's goal v Bury and many good away wins over the season.

Low lights: Not scoring until mid-september and another awful season at home. 3-0 down v Bristol Rovers within 15 minutes took some eclipsing...

 

00-01 Manager: Stitch

Highlights: False dawn at the start of the season (4-1 win v Port Vale) Despatching Hudds at the Gay Farm, Again putting Wigan to the sword and the demolition of Wrexham at BP. Signing Carss and Eyres and Corazzin.

 

Low Lights: The run and performances from the mid-August until the debacle at Millmoor.

 

01-02 Manager: Stich/Wadsworth

Highlights: The opening 6 weeks of the season, the new ownership, the bewilderment as the playing squad was overhuled with genuine quality. Winning at Bloomfield Road.

 

Lowlights: Stitch's premature sacking, the hammering at home to Cardiff and the sad return of Andy Goram. Jim Kirton passing away.

 

02-03 Manager: Dowie

 

Highlights: Derby and West Ham away. 8 straight wins, unbeaten away until March 4th - The form of David Eyres and Pogs

 

Low-lights: Furlong and Chris Moore

 

03-04: Manager: Dowie/Shez/Talbot

 

Highlights: Beginning the season, Shez's return to Hillsborough, Matt O'Halloran, the arrival of TTA, Celebration Sunday - JJ's winner at Swindon, the atmosphere at Meadow Lane

 

Lowlights: Summer of Hell, Admin, Dowie's exit

 

04-05 Manager: Talbot/Moore

 

Highlights: Beating City, Killen and Beckett's goals, the form of Croft and Kilkenny, 7 match winning run and last-gasp survival

Lowlights: Talbots relegation comments, losing 8 on the trot, the performance at Chesterfield, Ugarte destroying us

 

05/06

 

Highlights: Signing genuine quality, top after two games. Hammering Forest 3-0, hammering Bradford. Beckett's goals and the quality of Wellens. Butcher's winner v Colchester.

 

Lowlights: The dog's abuse directed at Butcher, the performance at Chasetown, Eyresy's retirement and the tail off from the end of March meaning a mid-table finish. The harsh sacking of Ronnie Moore.

 

06/07

 

Highlights: The football from September culminating in the NYD massacre. The atmosphere at Scunny and Swansea, last minute win v Tranmere. Porter's goals.

 

Lowlights: The season from February onwards. Shez shooting himself in the foot with "5 or 6 are not good enough for the Championship commets", Blackpool destroying us in the play offs.

 

07-08

 

Highlights: Beating Leeds and Everton away from home, an injury hit team hammering Tranmere, Huddersfield and Crewe and managing a top ten finish.

 

Lowlights: The club being put through the mill over the signing of Lee Hughes, there's been a cloud of negativity that has not shifted since - not all down to Hughes but the dark mood has escalated. Procession of injuries and losing Porter and Wellens pre-season. The ill-fated signing of Michael Ricketts.

 

08-09

 

Highlights: Top of the league early doors, the form of Hughes and Taylor before petering out, the return of Joe, winning at Leeds and Tranmere. Taylor's winner at Millwall and Windass' freak show at Leicester.

 

Lowlights: Joe's return turning into a damp squib, Doggygate, Shez's sacking, TTA and fanbase becoming more and more disaffected with one another, three sided ground, dropping like a stone, Windass slagging the club off at every turn

 

09-10

 

Highlights: Seemingly a club that was again all pulling in the same direction, Pav's early season form, Gregan's form, a very good performance v MK Dons, a defensively minded point at the Valley.

 

Lowlights: My illness, toothless unambitious football, the divide over Failsworth, the dwindling crowds, massive injury problems, Eardley going for peanuts. fractured relationships between fans and owners gradually becoming a yawning chasm, Alan Hardy's illness.

 

 

 

Well that's the last 13 years in a nutshell, from this what is all too clear is that the nagativity has gradually grown since our failure in the play-offs, can the downward spiral be attributed to Shez's ill-timed comments at the Forum in Feb '07? His team was flying, yet the arse fell out of the season immediately after?