So, I guess that’s it for the season now…
It’s funny to think this Sunday morning that we’ve just got ninety minutes (plus injury time) left of 2023/24.
I’m not sure if it’s a good sign or not that it only seemed like yesterday that I looked at the wallplanner next to me at SW19 Towers, saw we were in the middle of February, and wondered where we’d be come Tranmere away.
Now I know.
It probably isn’t a bad thing that the season hasn’t dragged like it sometimes does. The Great Escape seasons (plural) were dramatic but at times felt like medieval torture.
At the same time though, I’m not going to be massively upset when the final whistle blows against Walsall next week, because as our trip to Prenton Park showed – we’re fizzling out.
Which is understandable. We gave it a push and when it was clearly not going to happen for us we lost our intensity.
We saw that last week at Swindon, where if we were legitimate playoff contenders we would have won that.
But then, if we were then we would have beaten Harrogate, or Newport. Or Morecambe. Or Bradford.
Or not lost to Crawley or Sutton at PL. Or…
As you can gather, I didn’t go up to deepest, darkest Birkenhead yesterday. It sounded poor in parts, and Ryan McLean apparently twisting his knee is (almost literally) a bad break for him.
That and JJO’T getting sent off really didn’t help things. I wonder if we’ll see him again in an AFCW shirt?
Still, the highlight of yesterday is undoubtedly Josh Kelly’s first and second goals for us.
Some are already writing him off as a failure, so it’s good that he can at least say he’s finally found the net this campaign.
It’s undeniably been difficult for him coming to us, being a step up and – if we’re being honest – not really playing to his strengths.
From the few times I’ve seen him this season, he always looked capable of scoring but for various reasons never did.
For the older heads amongst us, perhaps he’ll be the Paul Miller de nos jours? And I don’t mean getting injured the first game of next season.
Apart from that, I’m not really too sure what else to say now. It’s that odd time of the season where it really doesn’t matter any more beyond professional pride.
After the last few seasons, I don’t actually mind that, and indeed I’ve now started to relax by looking at who might be coming up from the National League next season.
Personally, I’d like Barnet as it’s a) nearer to go to, b) nicer to go to, and c) we get to make up for that April Fool’s Day game in 2013.
If not, I’m kind-of torn between Halifax (traditional League club who have fallen on hard times, and a venue I’ve never been to), and Altrincham, who I think were the other non-league side in 1977 who faced an election vote.
Obviously I think every single one of us wants Bromley to fail, and fail miserably. That really would be a shit place to visit as an EFL club – hell, it was bad enough in the backwaters of non league.
I note that they’re getting crowds of over 3000 at Hayes Lane, and one hopes it’s better stewarded these days from the time we turned up there.
That said – if the rumours are true and they’re attracting those banned from EFL grounds, they’ll make Franchise look well supported if they go up…