It is never over at the start of February! | Vital Football

It is never over at the start of February!

Pompeytim

Pompeytim

Vital 1st Team Regular
I have read so many remarks recently that this game or another is a 'must win'. A 'must win' is only ever a reality in the last handful of games of a season, when only a win keeps promotion (or more recently 'not relegation'!) hopes alive.

We went into the Morecambe game 7 points off of the automatic promotion spots with 60 (yes, sixty!) points to play for.

We came out of it 6 points from where we need to be with 57 points left to play for.

Yet apparently it was a 'must win'? I just don't understand.

There is a lot to play for. Loads of matches. Loads of points to play for.

We're playing well & whilst not winning loads of games, we're never far away. We almost beat Morecambe & if we had beaten Oxford or Bournemouth I wouldn't have been shocked.

Pompey fans love their reputation as great supporters, but are we guilty of impatience & being over-dramatic? This is the way of football in 2016. Win 2 games & all is great. Lose 2 games & everything is broken. They used to say this about Real Madrid, but now it applies to Pompey too!

If we are still 6 points behind with 2 or 3 games to play, then we have a 'must win', but not on 2nd February!!

Stay positive Pompey. League 2 has a lot more action before anything is decided.
 
I agree with the sentiment entirely time, at this stage nothing is truly won or lost as such is it.

Yet surely, when your 7pts adrift of a club (we shouldn't rule out Northampton or Plymouth being caught but they look too far ahead now?) who have been pretty consistent you've got to be asking for quite a turnaround all-round for that to be overturned?

We've only lost, what 3 or 4 league games but with 19-matches to go, or whatever it is, we're looking at Oxford needing to lose 2 or 3-matches us matching that but losing a couple less.

I'm NOT giving up by any means, and am retaining hope of this but when you also take into account (we might have gone on unbeaten runs) we've only managed a run of back-to-back wins and we would need, I'd think a run of something like 3 runs of 5-matches won on the spin there's a lot to ask.

Looking at our season, and others' seasons, we're looking at quite a lot of things that need to change - then again at the business end of things that can happen.

I don't think we can now look back though, after Oxford and Morecambe and say 1pt from them is a good return as it's not. I do think Morecambe was 'a must win' BUT perhaps more a must win if we wanted to win the title...I'm not sure Northampton will slip now, and (as I say) the season so far suggests Plymouth aren't going to lose enough pts to be caught so it's Oxford we're targeting and that's do-able but tough.

What is a MUST is a winning run, string together 4 or 5 wins (like I say we've not managed anything like that this season though) on the trot and this time next month things, if others drop points, make things look different but you do have to fear those draws at home might cost us?

Saturday's a must win though :3:
 
pompeyrug - 4/2/2016 14:46

Saturday's a must win though :3:
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Ha ha! I admire the spirit, or at least the consistency!!

I think we need to live by the old football adage of 'each game as it comes' at the moment. Just focus on winning the next one. If we keep doing that we'll suddenly look up & think 'Gosh, we're in with a shout!'

Continually looking at the table puts everyone under pressure when they don't really need to be. Play our game with gay abandon like we did against Bournemouth ('nothing to lose / free hit') & show me a L2 team that can live with us. I doubt you could. Make the game a pressure cooker & you see the Pompey team too scared to do anything.

Just my £0.02!
 
From the Morecambe thread:

Maybe I'm one of those who's come across as a bit frustrated recently but trust me, I'm really enjoying watching Pompey right now too. We're playing some great football, the like of which has not been seen in many years at FP. Championship sides would and have struggled to cope with our passing game this season and I think we're more suited to playing teams from a higher level.

It's just nights like Morecambe which can be difficult to take sometimes. I probably do over react after a game some times and you probably want to wait a couple of days after a match before getting a reasonably sensible opinion from me - if that's even possible!

Cook, his staff and this year's squad have been a breathe of fresh air and we are a club on the up. We just need to get that winning mentality that has been missing within games which we have dominated and should have won. I think 13/14 wins will get us automatic promotion and I really do hope we can do it.

PUP.
 
pompeyrug - 4/2/2016 14:46

I agree with the sentiment entirely time, at this stage nothing is truly won or lost as such is it.

Yet surely, when your 7pts adrift of a club (we shouldn't rule out Northampton or Plymouth being caught but they look too far ahead now?) who have been pretty consistent you've got to be asking for quite a turnaround all-round for that to be overturned?

We've only lost, what 3 or 4 league games but with 19-matches to go, or whatever it is, we're looking at Oxford needing to lose 2 or 3-matches us matching that but losing a couple less.

I'm NOT giving up by any means, and am retaining hope of this but when you also take into account (we might have gone on unbeaten runs) we've only managed a run of back-to-back wins and we would need, I'd think a run of something like 3 runs of 5-matches won on the spin there's a lot to ask.

Looking at our season, and others' seasons, we're looking at quite a lot of things that need to change - then again at the business end of things that can happen.

I don't think we can now look back though, after Oxford and Morecambe and say 1pt from them is a good return as it's not. I do think Morecambe was 'a must win' BUT perhaps more a must win if we wanted to win the title...I'm not sure Northampton will slip now, and (as I say) the season so far suggests Plymouth aren't going to lose enough pts to be caught so it's Oxford we're targeting and that's do-able but tough.

What is a MUST is a winning run, string together 4 or 5 wins (like I say we've not managed anything like that this season though) on the trot and this time next month things, if others drop points, make things look different but you do have to fear those draws at home might cost us?

Saturday's a must win though :3:
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Agree entirely.... especially that last part... ;)
 
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