A reality check (?)

Not wishing to talk down the team’s achievements in any way - I’m more impressed than I can say, specially since we were seen as one of the favourites to be heading for relegation before a ball had been kicked.

However …

With 46 games in the season we are now one-ninth of the way there, and with 13 points gained so far it’s tempting to do a simple bit of multiplication to see where we might be come next May - and the answer is 117 points!!!

This, of course, is all pie in the sky - League One was won last season with 98 points (Wigan), and getting 71 points was good enough for the play-offs. The point I’m trying to make is that our blistering start can not (in all likelihood) last, and we should be prepared for the occasional disappointment.

I guess this is a result of supporting Walsall for so long - the anticipation of it all going pear-shaped is based on past experience (#cough# Merson).

Having said that it’s great to see DK and the lads doing what they’re doing, and I’ll be at the Banks’s’s’ on Tuesday !!

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As long as the players give their all every game (as they have all been doing up to yet),then with the quality of the forwards in particular we should at least finish top half.If we can maintain a top half position then we’ve always got a chance of the play-offs.

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10 more wins needed for survival with still over 40 games left is one way to look at things.

Should be far more comfortable than last season and if the team keep winning who knows?

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Oh yeah, course we won’t finish with 117 points and not many teams go a season unbeaten, we know there’ll be more than a couple of defeats along the way but for me what’s more pleasing than the points we have now is the feel good atmosphere, the togetherness, that bond between players, coaches and fans is back. Also, just the fact every single player is giving absolutely everything in that shirt. I think more than anything that’s why everyone is so happy, no reality check needed, lets enjoy every second of it!

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We have 13 points after 5 games, it took us 10 games to reach that figure last season.

It’s also 1 point more than we achieved in the last 15 games of 17/18 - this is progress!

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I really don’t think anyone will get ahead of themselves with unrealistic expectations.

I reckon most Saddlers fans are realists and after the dross we’ve put up with in recent times it’s simply a case of seeing the togetherness back, players with pride in the shirt and of course, a string of really good performances resulting in a great start.

Long may it continue but when we lose (and of course, we will) then we’ll see what the team is really made of…

UTS

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That’s when we’ll see what the fans are made of too.

I’ve seen every ball kicked this season (thanks to ifollow at Wimbledon) and I kind of agree that it is only a matter of time before the bubble deflates a tad. But from what I’ve seen, if we can keep the first fourteen/fifteen fit and avoid too many disciplinary issues then there are not many reasons to think we can’t spend the whole season in the top half.

A massive key to sustaining ourselves will be to maintain a really strong home record. Since we went double decker at the home end, creating an atmosphere at home has been tough. We need Dean and the players to feel that we, the regulars, but also the town in general are getting behind them. 4,500 home fans for Blackpool would mark steady progress in that regard.

Also as others have said, us lot also need to remain calm when the inevitable defeat and defeats come.

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I’m of a slightly different mindset, I think this division, every few years is just there for the taking. It was 3 years ago, and we missed the boat big-style. With the start we had, and the talent in the team we had a fantastic opportunity to have won this league in my opinion and although its all ifs and buts, ultimately having to chop and change managers so many times that season can only have worked against us and Burton took advantage. Also, there was, and always will be a big question mark over the mentality of that team when it came to big games. Wembley the season before, both legs of the play-offs, the horror shows at Bradford and Sheff U, all “no shows” from first minute to last to be brutally honest.

Fast forward to this season, there are so many clubs that you would normally expect to be challenging that just seem to be circling the plug-hole of mediocrity. Bradford, Charlton, Plymouth, for example. Then you’ve got the typical scenario of the smaller clubs that missed out last season in Shrewsbury and Scunthorpe. And speaking of last season, that was an example of this division not being there for the taking, Wigan and Blackburn dominated and the poor sheep fiddlers, who in another season would have gone-up, couldn’t get over the line.

So to me this could be a perfect storm, ala the first Graydon promotion season. I’ve got no qualms about this team turning up when the pressure’s on, or bouncing back when the defeats come, and by the way we lost a whopping 13 games in the first Graydon promotion season, 3 in the first 6. It was the ability to bounce back that was crucial and Keates will have his techniques ready for those situations, probably copied and pasted from that very dressing-room scrap-book.

As for the other teams that have had very good starts, everyone, quite rightly expects Sunderland and Barnsley to be top two. But i’ve got my doubts about Sunderland. Portsmouth will be up there, but to me there’s real opportunity for some smaller clubs that have got their way of playing and recruitment set up nicely, and we tick those boxes. So too do Peterborough, Fleetwood, and I’ve always had sneaking feeling that Accrington could surprise a few people, although they’ve probably lost a few too many key players.

So personally I think its a wide-open top half. Agree totally we need to have a bit of luck with injuries and suspensions, but I also think we’ve got a bit more quality in reserve than people give credit for. Wilson, Kouhyar, Gordon, and Edwards to come back at some point? And as we’ve seen by the way Morris took advantage of Ismail’s injury Keates definitely has more round pegs for round holes in every position barring centre-half.

I think we’ve got as good a chance as anybody to at the very least finish top-six.

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Excellent post Geordie … and as each game gets ticked off my bet on us finishing top half at 4.2 is looking better and better!!!

Are you still in the habit of taking a couple of days to nip out to the shops for a pint of milk?

UTS :wink: :grin:

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We can’t get ahead of ourselves,if you notice, every team we’ve played and beaten or drew against have all been hammered by other teams,All we can do is keep going,doing our own thing, and see what happens by the time the January transfer window comes.

Nobody expects 117 points. I certainly don’t, Welsh. I will be happy with just the 98 that Wigan got last season. :slightly_smiling_face:

If the team play like they have been doing I for one will still show my appreciation after any defeats. To me it’s the performances as much as the results that have got me excited.

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