Hand on Heart , How Do You Think You'll Do?

[Murphy]

I think Akinde will do ok in L2. Not top scorer but top 5 wouldn't surprise me.

I'll do a fiver with you that he doesn't make the top 5 league top scorers.

 

[chairboyexile]

Honestly.....

CRAP

 

[Hartlepool Loyal]

Definitely better than last season...I can see us finishing somewhere between 10th to 15th..

 

[Ghost#8]

Pompey are my 2nd team, as I lived a couple of months in the city back in the day. They'll definitely improve on last season's abysmal 16th place. The play-offs should be a must but I'm not sure if top 3 and automatic promotion is within reach just yet. It takes time to build a team even if you're Paul Cook.

 

[The East Terrace]

Don't see us making play offs again but difficult with a new untried and tested manager to know how we'll get on. Top half of the table finish I reckon.

 

[chairboyexile]

Teams promoted as confrence champions traditionly do well in league 2

 

[northstandexile]

Teams promoted as confrence champions traditionly do well in league 2

Yeah, average position 11th

 

[Judge Dredd]

Not sure how well you can average it out though considering Crawley and Fleetwood were able to spend megabucks on their squad when they came up (albeit Fleetwood lost Vardy in the summer, Crawley held on to Tubbs until January). Worth noting that Barnet won it with the lowest points total since Burton in 2009, despite what appears to be a steadily declining standard in the Conference in recent seasons IMHO.

 

[Aber gas]

Not sure how well you can average it out though considering Crawley and Fleetwood were able to spend megabucks on their squad when they came up (albeit Fleetwood lost Vardy in the summer, Crawley held on to Tubbs until January). Worth noting that Barnet won it with the lowest points total since Burton in 2009, despite what appears to be a steadily declining standard in the Conference in recent seasons IMHO.

I've got nothing to compare it to but I was surprised by how tough the conference was last season . I've seen it posted numerous times that the standard has dropped but for me the league was incredibly competitive with very few gimmes . I think both us and barnet will be absolutely fine this season .

 

[ComeOnIrene]

Like Aber I have nothing to compare it with, but I am confident that the top sides in last season's Conference would more than hold their own in League Two, without the need of any major transfer business. Having seen Rovers ply their trade in League Two for a number of years, I saw no real difference in standard between most of L2 and the top 6/7 Conference clubs.

Obviously the teams at the bottom are really poor and lightyears away from being League standard, but there isn't as much of a difference as League Two supporters like to claim there is. Luton were stranded down there for years and their supporters may well have seen a change in quality during that time, but the fact they struggled to adapt in the first couple of years may have made other teams look better/stronger than they actually were.

I'm sticking with the 'I have no real expectation' line for this season, although I am quietly optimistic because DC has built a good team with a fantastic spirit and that can take you a long way at this level.

 

[BigDaveCUFC]

I personally think Barnet and Bristol Rovers will both end up in top 7 this season, I think this season is ripe for the promoted sides to do well.

The league last season had really only 5 decent sides in it, the rest were a clump of average to bad. 4 of them 5 sides went up, the only one which didn't (Wycombe) you sort've feel won't do as well again when you listen to their fans.

4 sides coming down do not really highlight challengers....2 have off field crap, 1 has an unknown manager who has never seen this level (and like Tranmere/Carlisle seem in an endless decline they need out of) and the other club has a decent manager but seems to always be trimming down in size (or impression you get)

Add in some of the favourites have brought lots in this seasona nd need to gel together, afew havenew managers and no one from the midtable showed a mass of improvement towards end of last season it sort've suggests it could be a great season for a club who has come into this summer full of strong morale, team spirit and momentum with stability also...............can see both doing well.


probably cursed both now but its why I'd back both.

 

[Judge Dredd]

Luton were stranded down there for years and their supporters may well have seen a change in quality during that time, but the fact they struggled to adapt in the first couple of years may have made other teams look better/stronger than they actually were.

Bit of a myth this.

In our first season down there we got 88 points from 44 games, which is actually a better points:games ratio than you had last season. We also had a better goal difference (+44 vs +39) and won more games (26 vs 25). Our second season was a bit worse, but we still finished on 84 points with a goal difference of +48. In both seasons we likely could have finished with a higher points total had the title race gone down to the wire rather than being over with weeks to spare.

We were unfortunate in that we encountered some incredibly strong competition. In our first season down, Stevenage finished on 99 points from 44 games. They actually should have had 105 from 46, as they had already beaten Chester twice before their results were expunged. The second season, Crawley did achieve 105 points from 46 games - which is to this date still the record ever points tally at that level.

 

[George Reilly's Hairpiece]

Comparing leagues across different seasons is like comparing apples with oranges. Teams change, players change, and therefore the league changes. That's before you start then comparing the relative merits of promoted sides into one division one year compared to another.

 

[Vanni]

I'm with the Judge on this. We spent 9 years down there, and I admit we were literally played off the park when we came up against some of the stronger sides. Now, we didn't have bad sides at all, disregarding a couple of seasons, so if we weren't able to challenge those sides, then what did the part-timers do? Another example is when we won at Wembley. Now we had an excellent 4 months between August and December, but then had a pretty awful 2nd half to the season and yet we still went up. Also, it seems to me that a club needs less money nowadays to assemble a squad capable of mounting a serious promotion push.

But on the other hand, if the connie is weaker, then how come Grimsby are still there? Perhaps Hurst hasn't found a striker yet? If that's the case, they could always crowd-fund.

 

[BelizeHatter]

Really gets on my titties that the fat cats up top in the Prem gobble all the money and spunk it off on ridiculous transfers and wages, while at the lower level relegation is decided by off field matters. Need a revolution. Wont happen due to all the dickheads in our Towns and Cities that follow the Prem Clubs

 

[chairboyexile]

Really gets on my titties that the fat cats up top in the Prem gobble all the money and spunk it off on ridiculous transfers and wages, while at the lower level relegation is decided by off field matters. Need a revolution. Wont happen due to all the dickheads in our Towns and Cities that follow the Prem Clubs

Hate to agree with a Luton fan but it's true how many more clubs will go bust before change happens

 

[Urban]

Not sure how well you can average it out though considering Crawley and Fleetwood were able to spend megabucks on their squad when they came up (albeit Fleetwood lost Vardy in the summer, Crawley held on to Tubbs until January). Worth noting that Barnet won it with the lowest points total since Burton in 2009, despite what appears to be a steadily declining standard in the Conference in recent seasons IMHO.

Would never have expected any kind of praise towards Barnet from a Luton fan, but that is complete crap. You may not have realised, being the mighty Luton Town and all that, but the conference is a bloody difficult division to win and it rankles to see our achievements being constantly written off, as examples by you above, while clubs like Rovers get so much praise. 'Lowest points total' so what - we won it! It's also a pretty moot point in essence, as look at where Burton are now...

 

[Aber gas]

Would never have expected any kind of praise towards Barnet from a Luton fan, but that is complete crap. You may not have realised, being the mighty Luton Town and all that, but the conference is a bloody difficult division to win and it rankles to see our achievements being constantly written off, as examples by you above, while clubs like Rovers get so much praise. 'Lowest points total' so what - we won it! It's also a pretty moot point in essence, as look at where Burton are now...

Don't know your getting " rovers get so much praise" from . Barnet were deserved champions in a tough league . It was a huge battle but you were the better side overall . Don't worry about being belittled you won the thing .

 

[Judge Dredd]

Would never have expected any kind of praise towards Barnet from a Luton fan, but that is complete crap. You may not have realised, being the mighty Luton Town and all that,

Did you get abused by a Luton fan when you were little or something? You come across as incredibly bitter towards us for some reason. It's really quite delicious.

but the conference is a bloody difficult division to win

Pretty sure that us Luton fans know that better than most...

and it rankles to see our achievements being constantly written off, as examples by you above, while clubs like Rovers get so much praise. 'Lowest points total' so what - we won it!

I'm not writing you off at all. I don't think you (or Brizzle) will struggle. I do think you are weaker than the teams that have won it in recent times though, hence my skepticism at forecasting your position based on the average placement of Conference winners in recent years. That's not intended as an insult to you - in the five seasons prior to last, only Mansfield achieved less than 100 points in the Conference, Crawley & Stevenage both set divisional records for points:games ratios, whilst Crawley and Fleetwood were financially equipped to strengthen massively after promotion. I'm really not sure what you find upsetting about that opinion.

It's also a pretty moot point in essence, as look at where Burton are now...

Well yeah, it's perfectly plausible that you'll piss the league in five or six years time. IIRC Burton finished 19th in their first season up though so the point stands (although I fully expect both you and Rovers to finish higher than that, for the record).

 

[Ghost#8]

Burton finished higher up the league than 19th in the first season. More like 13th or 14th. In the second they flirted with the relegation zone yes after Peschisolido's tactics (or lack of) were being found out.

 

[Judge Dredd]

Burton finished higher up the league than 19th in the first season. More like 13th or 14th. In the second they flirted with the relegation zone yes after Peschisolido's tactics (or lack of) were being found out.

You're right, my mistake. 13th in the first season up, 19th the season after.

 

[LadyWomble]

Not sure how well you can average it out though considering Crawley and Fleetwood were able to spend megabucks on their squad when they came up (albeit Fleetwood lost Vardy in the summer, Crawley held on to Tubbs until January). Worth noting that Barnet won it with the lowest points total since Burton in 2009, despite what appears to be a steadily declining standard in the Conference in recent seasons IMHO.

I've got nothing to compare it to but I was surprised by how tough the conference was last season . I've seen it posted numerous times that the standard has dropped but for me the league was incredibly competitive with very few gimmes . I think both us and barnet will be absolutely fine this season .

Come on, chaps, it's obvious. Standards in the conference declined once Luton escaped the division

By the way, love the pic in Judge Dredd's avatar.

 

[Judge Dredd]

Come on, chaps, it's obvious. Standards in the conference declined once Luton escaped the division

Standards were dropping before we escaped the division - hence the phrase "steadily declining... in recent seasons". IMHO, the quality level in the Conference peaked during the Crawley/Fleetwood seasons and has been in decline since then.

 

[BelizeHatter]

Judge you're far too friendly to Urban. Just tell him. Hats always sit on top of a Barnet.

 

[Urban]

Did you get abused by a Luton fan when you were little or something? You come across as incredibly bitter towards us for some reason. It's really quite delicious.

Pretty sure that us Luton fans know that better than most...

I'm not writing you off at all. I don't think you (or Brizzle) will struggle. I do think you are weaker than the teams that have won it in recent times though, hence my skepticism at forecasting your position based on the average placement of Conference winners in recent years. That's not intended as an insult to you - in the five seasons prior to last, only Mansfield achieved less than 100 points in the Conference, Crawley & Stevenage both set divisional records for points:games ratios, whilst Crawley and Fleetwood were financially equipped to strengthen massively after promotion. I'm really not sure what you find upsetting about that opinion.

Well yeah, it's perfectly plausible that you'll piss the league in five or six years time. IIRC Burton finished 19th in their first season up though so the point stands (although I fully expect both you and Rovers to finish higher than that, for the record).

I just never see anything other than arrogance from Luton fans on the Internet. Anyone getting promoted from the Conference is automatically belittled as being inferior to your promotion sides points total, it's ridiculous. It's always the same thing over and over - promotion literally means the same thing whether you get 110 or 91 points.

Feel free to big yourselves up compared to Barnet. Just be aware that we've achieved just what you have in recent seasons, so really it's proving nothing.

 

[Judge Dredd]

I just never see anything other than arrogance from Luton fans on the Internet.

Seems to disproportionately piss you off, considering you hunted down a two week old post the other day just to have a go at a Bristol Rovers fan for daring to suggest that we had a good history and fanbase.

Anyone getting promoted from the Conference is automatically belittled as being inferior to your promotion sides points total, it's ridiculous.

What a load of nonsense. There's only been one team winning the Conference since we did for a start. I wasn't comparing you to us specifically, I was comparing you to us, Mansfield, Fleetwood, Crawley, Stevenage, Burton. The comment that so offended you was in reference to average achievements of Conference winners across a number of years. The thrust of my comment was actually in regards to moneybags Crawley and Fleetwood rather than us.

It's always the same thing over and over - promotion literally means the same thing whether you get 110 or 91 points.

The achievement is the same. The strength of the squad achieving it is not always equal from year to year. I'm sorry that you find that so offensive.


Okay, I lied. I'm not sorry. You seem like a right touchy arse and your bitter tears taste delicious.

 

[oakroader]

is this how other fans see the Luton willy waving contingent??

 

[Trapdoor]

We pissed league 2 after we got promoted from the conference.

Just a shame half our team ended up in the championship with other clubs...

 

[BeesKnees]

Plenty of examples of teams coming out of the conference and passing straight through or coming very close to doing so. If anything this has become less common.
I don't think this is because the conference has become weaker, more that there is no longer a small number of teams hoovering up all the decent players. As more full time sides slip into the conference and more moneyed teams get promoted into it this is only likely to continue and my feeling is it is now harder to buy your way out than it was previously.
With only 2 up 2 down this will only get worse, I can see FC United, Ebsfleet and Maidstone joining the party next season, added to who ever gets relegated from league two I reckon this is definitely not a season to slip up.

 

[Trapdoor]

ultimately the clubs who bought their way out like crawley cant sustain league football so ultimately end up dropping back down to their appropriate level.