Cheltenham Town (h): What 3 Things Did We Learn? | Vital Football

Cheltenham Town (h): What 3 Things Did We Learn?

1. The January signings have made a big difference. City have looked almost unbeatable (and have been) since the addition of O'Hara and Gilks in particular, and Rowe has played an important role when fit. Since O'Hara and Gilks made their full debuts at Morecambe, City have taken twenty-two points from ten games and conceded just five goals. Compared with the run-ins our rivals have experienced, that is a fine achievement. City also lost four of their first twenty-three games, but none since Boxing Day. Did Danny get his recruitment right yet again? Tick that box.

2. As odd as it sounds for the champions-elect, our home form continues to be less than convincing. We have won just three of our nine home games in 2019 and have struggled badly against the poorer teams in the division all season. We have failed to beat six of the bottom ten teams at Sincil Bank and even provided relegation-threatened Crawley with a rare away win. We have actually won three points fewer at home this season than last - had our away form not been outstanding, we would have been looking at another play-off campaign. Assuming that League One teams will come to SB next season also trying to avoid defeat - and are likely to be better at doing so - DC/NC need to establish why it keeps happening and find a solution.

3. Nevertheless, the journey continues in eye-opening fashion. From the bottom half of the National League to League One via a cup win at Wembley in three seasons would not be believable in a film script. Clive and Roger have emphasised how much tougher League One will be in terms of the demands on resources and that we should enjoy the ride. Danny Cowley is about to become the most successful Lincoln City manager in the club's 135-year history, and that is remarkable in three years. We will be talking about this for decades, so we should count ourselves lucky that we were there to witness it.
 
re: 2 above. the positive counter point is that if we had won a few of those drawn home games, combined with our away form... we would have been off the charts at the top. we were in a position to win v mansfield, port vale, stevenage. in fact, in most of the 15 draws we have been nearer to winning than losing. exeter being the notable exception.
i thought the reason for the draws was clear... sitting back on a tight lead. especially in the last 10-15 minutes.
 
nlondonimp said:
re: 2 above. the positive counter point is that if we had won a few of those drawn home games, combined with our away form... we would have been off the charts at the top. we were in a position to win v mansfield, port vale, stevenage. in fact, in most of the 15 draws we have been nearer to winning than losing. exeter being the notable exception.
i thought the reason for the draws was clear... sitting back on a tight lead. especially in the last 10-15 minutes.
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Some ill timed sendings off hasn't helped at times either.
 
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