Hey all, remember me? I’ve shurked my writing responsibilities over the last couple of weeks in favour of a holiday in the rain and a little bit of family time but never fear, I have returned!
Now, when I last wrote for this site we were flirting dangerously with the prospect of a drama free season and even had a brief fling with the playoff positions. Sure some brain-dead moron may have swung a half-arsed fist at Greasy but that bit of controversy was dying down and the focus was back on the squad and our remaining few games.
So, where were we? Oh…
Well the playoffs are a distant fantasy, our season has been thrown into turmoil and Paul Mitchell has become somewhat of a cult hero in some circles. Only the Blues…
Let’s be honest, we all knew the wheels would fall off eventually and the dark cloud of FFP regulation has been looming over us all season. As for Mr. Mitchell; well his actions were always going to appeal to a certain fringe fandom and I almost guarantee that the video of that ‘punch’ will be a well mined internet meme in a few years time. Mark my words, we’re all outraged now but in the near future the footage will be held in the same vain as the Millwall punch footage or the Savage headbutt is today.
If reports are to be believed; the wonderfully run and perfectly moral EFL wanted to dock us a full 12 points and launch a decent sized fine at us. However our representatives bartered them down to just a 9 point deduction and a stern telling off. The EFL aren’t angry at us, they’re just disappointed.
A great writer once wrote “the EFL don’t want to bury us“. And I stand by that.
They have sent us spiralling down the table towards the relegation zone and killed any tiny glimmer of playoff hope that may have still remained. However, they’ve left us enough breathing room to fight our way out of our predicament. God bless the EFL, they ARE good to us.
With Bolton frantically searching Greater Manchester for a pot to piss in and Ipswich cultivating a pitiful points yield (that’s a farming joke) it looks like the final relegation position is the only one left up for grabs.
Blues now find themselves in a race to the bottom with Millwall, Rotherham, Wigan, Reading and QPR. Personally I’d favour Rotherham for the drop, especially after the Rams ran riot over them at the weekend.
We may have spectacularly thrown away a lead at the Hawthorns last Friday, but the fact that we even went in front against the former Premier League squad is cause for a mini celebration. We may have a tough few games on the horizon with Leeds and Sheffield United due to visit St Andrews in the coming weeks, but it’s worth remembering that we turned Leeds over on their own turf and held the Blades to a draw at Bramall Lane.
Leeds and United may seem like a thankless task whilst we’re sitting in 18th position but would we be as worried if we were still hovering around the mid table? Methinks not.
This points deduction has been hanging over our heads all year and although the lads are consummate professionals, I have no doubts that the uncertainty will have hung heavy around their necks. As the saying goes, “it’s the not-knowing that kills you”, well now we know our punishment we can stop worrying about it.
Actually, that may be a Stereophonics lyric rather than a well-known saying… but you get the point!
There’s no more reason to speculate and no more time to waste on worrying. Monk & Co have a new goal ahead of them and it’s one they’re more than capable of achieving.
Our first half performance against West Brom was phenomenal; Barca-esq even. The Baggies had no idea how to deal with us and it looked as though our fortunes were set to turn. However, one goal was never going to be enough and Blues being Blues we decided to have a bit of second half banter and throw the game away. Tut, Blues. What’re you like eh? You little scamps.
If we can emulate that first half against the lesser teams in this division then we’ll be laughing all the way into next season. The likes of Ipswich, Rotherham, Wigan and Reading (our relegation rivals) don’t stand a chance. Those four games in particular could be a relatively easy 12 point scalp that would see us ease our way to safety.
However if we repeat the SECOND half against the Albion, it could be a very different story…
I, for one, am choosing to keep the faith. A 9 point deduction is a good result for us – relatively speaking – and provides us with the final day drama that we all know and love whilst holding the door to safety wide open for us. Our destiny is in our own hands right now and I know Monk and the boys will do everything in their power to grasp it!
KRO all, let’s do this!!