I'd like to accentuate the positive, as the old song goes:
On 9th February last season, with 17 matches to play, we were 13th in the league but ended up 7th and a trip to Wembley in the play-off final. Today, 9th February, we are once again 13th in the league with 17 league matches to play. I don't expect history to repeat itself given our current form but don't write us off yet.

The conference south and similar is one hell of a standard to hold your own in at 17-19 years old.

Swindons captain a few weeks ago was Danny Rose who went from Man Utd reserves to Oxford but his career started with us in the conference south.

If your good enough like Rose, Bignott, Foley. Warren. Reid, Collins and Henry were then you will make it back to the football league.

The youngsters are better playing mens football at a good standard than on the bench or not even in the match day squad. If it's good enough to go from Man Utd then start again in the conference south, it's good enough for our young prospects to progress and develop in.

DT1892 wrote:

neilcork68 wrote:I am not saying the current crop are good enough but rather than pay 'journeymen players' from other clubs to come to us and sit on the bench ( Gorman , Poleon, Waters ) wouldnt it be better ?

They're here as squad players. If we get a couple of injuries then they're in the team. Jeffries, instead of sitting on the bench and not playing, is now getting his first proper taste of senior football at Salisbury because of it.

Fair enough what is Collins doing though watching the front 3 performing way below what is required?

Seriously though lets hope nobody gets injured then.

Frank Nouble 3 wrote:

DT1892 wrote:

neilcork68 wrote:I am not saying the current crop are good enough but rather than pay 'journeymen players' from other clubs to come to us and sit on the bench ( Gorman , Poleon, Waters ) wouldnt it be better ?

They're here as squad players. If we get a couple of injuries then they're in the team. Jeffries, instead of sitting on the bench and not playing, is now getting his first proper taste of senior football at Salisbury because of it.

Fair enough what is Collins doing though watching the front 3 performing way below what is required?

Seriously though lets hope nobody gets injured then.

Would quite like to see him go out to test himself for a couple of months.

Don't think that the loans we have are as bad as you make out. They're all Football League standard.

Frank - why would Norman be frustrated with what happened to Keiron?

CasuallyCounty wrote:Frank - why would Norman be frustrated with what happened to Keiron?

Because at the time in the press it was stated that Keiron was a highly rated prospect and was being loaned out to further improve.
As we know never to return despite playing 7 promising games for the first team before the loan to I believe Salisbury.
Is this Deja Vou?.

DT1892 wrote:

Frank Nouble 3 wrote:

DT1892 wrote:

neilcork68 wrote:I am not saying the current crop are good enough but rather than pay 'journeymen players' from other clubs to come to us and sit on the bench ( Gorman , Poleon, Waters ) wouldnt it be better ?

They're here as squad players. If we get a couple of injuries then they're in the team. Jeffries, instead of sitting on the bench and not playing, is now getting his first proper taste of senior football at Salisbury because of it.

Fair enough what is Collins doing though watching the front 3 performing way below what is required?

Seriously though lets hope nobody gets injured then.

Would quite like to see him go out to test himself for a couple of months.

Don't think that the loans we have are as bad as you make out. They're all Football League standard.

Funny thing in that the signings are worse than the loans maybe, mind you Maloney had one very good game
and total dross every other for us apart from Cheltenham.
What is football league standard?
TOE played 52 games for us!
But he is not league standard.
Jackson, Jeffers. Mary and so on all played regular league football.

DT1892...
The signings made by MF probably are better than the youngsters and are of League 2 standard but it's no good if he won't give them any game time as he , as a few have said and believe have brought them in as ' squad players'.
What I am getting at is that if he won't use them , why sign them ?
Waters .IMO is a better player than Abraham's but MF keeps giving Abraham's game time whilst Waters gets more splinters in his arse sitting on the bench
Khan is a better option than Willmott as an attacking threat on the left but MF has to squeeze Willmott in his side somewhere. If he insists on playing him , play him in his correct , and only position . A right winger. Sorry he is not a centre midfielder , not a wingback or an attacker on the left...So why play him there ? He brought Green in because Willmott wasn't doing the business in his only position and was injured..Now he has regained fitness he will fit him in somewhere..

He keeps saying he has a bigger better squad to work with and more quality..Let's see if he changes much for Tuesday or will he , as I expect , stick with his main core of players and just drop Matt for Amond or Abraham's , maybe Green for Khan.
If Sheehan is injured what's the bets he plays Willmott in central midfield instead of him ?

Frank I agree.
Jackson ,Myrie Williams , Jeffers etc would be classed as League standard because of how many games they played but we could all see how poor they are and are now probably playing at the Maximum of their ability.
That's the thing with younger players , you have to be patient with them because one week they would do OK then they might have a few poor games..Introduce them slowly because they can't be any worse than some of the dross MF has signed who have failed or he keeps giving game time too , or the so called good players he has praised when signing them then he won't play them

Frank Nouble 3 wrote:

CasuallyCounty wrote:Frank - why would Norman be frustrated with what happened to Keiron?

Because at the time in the press it was stated that Keiron was a highly rated prospect and was being loaned out to further improve.
As we know never to return despite playing 7 promising games for the first team before the loan to I believe Salisbury.
Is this Deja Vou?.

Yes but why would that frustrate Norman in particular?

I'm getting a bit cheesed off with the continual merry-go-round of "sign them- praise them to the hilt- don't give them much game time - ship them out"
...and on and on it'll go!

Frank Nouble 3 wrote:Funny thing in that the signings are worse than the loans maybe, mind you Maloney had one very good game
and total dross every other for us apart from Cheltenham.
What is football league standard?
TOE played 52 games for us!
But he is not league standard.
Jackson, Jeffers. Mary and so on all played regular league football.

Ok, I'll change it to 'Football League experienced'. They're good enough to do a job for us at this level, and are potentially on a lower wage than if we were to have them here permanently.

neilcork68 wrote:DT1892...
The signings made by MF probably are better than the youngsters and are of League 2 standard but it's no good if he won't give them any game time as he , as a few have said and believe have brought them in as ' squad players'.
What I am getting at is that if he won't use them , why sign them ?
Waters .IMO is a better player than Abraham's but MF keeps giving Abraham's game time whilst Waters gets more splinters in his arse sitting on the bench
Khan is a better option than Willmott as an attacking threat on the left but MF has to squeeze Willmott in his side somewhere. If he insists on playing him , play him in his correct , and only position . A right winger. Sorry he is not a centre midfielder , not a wingback or an attacker on the left...So why play him there ? He brought Green in because Willmott wasn't doing the business in his only position and was injured..Now he has regained fitness he will fit him in somewhere..

He keeps saying he has a bigger better squad to work with and more quality..Let's see if he changes much for Tuesday or will he , as I expect , stick with his main core of players and just drop Matt for Amond or Abraham's , maybe Green for Khan.
If Sheehan is injured what's the bets he plays Willmott in central midfield instead of him ?

Because if we were to be hit with a few injuries, we'll be relying on the youth players that aren't ready for this level of football yet.

I've no answer to the rest of the questions because I'm not the manager, but for what it's worth I agree with most.

CasuallyCounty wrote:

Frank Nouble 3 wrote:

CasuallyCounty wrote:Frank - why would Norman be frustrated with what happened to Keiron?

Because at the time in the press it was stated that Keiron was a highly rated prospect and was being loaned out to further improve.
As we know never to return despite playing 7 promising games for the first team before the loan to I believe Salisbury.
Is this Deja Vou?.

Yes but why would that frustrate Norman in particular?

Really any Dad would want the best for his kids.
Not a case of Norman in particular.

Frank Nouble 3 wrote:

CasuallyCounty wrote:

Frank Nouble 3 wrote:

CasuallyCounty wrote:Frank - why would Norman be frustrated with what happened to Keiron?

Because at the time in the press it was stated that Keiron was a highly rated prospect and was being loaned out to further improve.
As we know never to return despite playing 7 promising games for them first team before the loan to I believe Salisbury.
Is this Deja Vou?.

Yes but why would that frustrate Norman in particular?

Really any Dad would want the best for his kids.
Not a case of Norman in particular.

Hahahahahahaha.

Norman is not related to Keiron at all. Keiron is not even a Newport boy.

One point which nobody has mentioned is the fact that somebody new to the club comes on for 15/20 minutes they will try far too hard to impress as they have a very limited time on the pitch.
You see it over and over again.
Mckirdy last year and Waters the other week.
They run around like headless chickens trying too hard to get a touch.
Its just human nature.
I am as guilty as most when a sub comes on for a quick cameo and is slammed.
Daft thing is Collins has done it a couple of times and 5 people voted him as MOM, yet he cannot even get on the bench currently.
Work that one out.