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This is what mid table looks like.

Competitive in games, prone to careless defeat but always capable of picking up points against most opponents.

Another frustrating defeat, which was basically settled from the bench with Bristol’s options transforming their previously underwhelming attack in to one which created panic along Town’s back line, and the inability of the hosts to convert their superiority in the first half in to a more comfortable lead.

A disjointed and tired second half contrasted with the more vibrant first but, even then, the team didn’t carry enough threat against a City side which dug in and only lost the lead from a single lapse which released Mbenza to put in a fantastic ball for Koroma, emerging (slowly) as something of a Grant replacement, to smash in to the roof of the net.

Dean Holden’s substitutions will have left him an extremely happy man on the journey back to the West Country. Semenyo was excellent and single handedly changed the whole dynamic of a game which had begun to trundle along as the home side ran out of ideas and their fluency deserted them. Old boy Jamie Paterson widened his manager’s smile with the winner from the bench as Town’s rearguard, so reliable at Millwall, melted away despite having enough numbers and more to snuff out danger. 

There was a hint of hand ball in the lead up to the equaliser but with calm having left the building, the visitors’ momentum had already been established as they took control of a game they had not looked like winning from the moment they missed a convertible chance from a corner, which followed Wells hitting the bar from an unchallenged position early on. Nahki rather disappeared from the contest thereafter.

As witnessed in previous games, Town’s intensity can drop alarmingly; likely a natural propensity born of adjusting to a style which is yet to be fully absorbed. It was one thing coping with Millwall’s crude and agricultural switch around but another thing altogether dealing with the injection of dynamism from the Robins’ bench.

A late flurry failed to deliver an equaliser as the team faltered while trying to change gear and sloppy passing, particularly but not solely, by O’Brien, reduced the Terriers’ potential threat, which had been too light in any case.

The first half saw a reasonable performance topped with a very good goal, but the second was a painful reminder that Corberán still has an enormous amount of work to do with a squad which can deliver, but let’s itself down in games with spells where the style collapses alarmingly.

Luton, a different proposition from last season, up next. A win would get Town back on track but we may be witnessing a team running on fumes towards the useful sanctuary of the international break.

With a symmetrical record over the first 9 games, achieved along an eminently predictable bumpy path as a new coach attempts to impose a new and very different style of play, Town are looking like the epitome of a mid table side. Hurrah!

The big fat zero in the goal difference column also feels rather comforting.

The question now is not whether to look up or down, but how far forward? With the prospect of a stable season played out in highly unusual circumstances, and one which promises entertainment rather than sterility, there should be the luxury of time available to both Corberán and the Town hierarchy to build the foundations for a bright future.

A dynamic, defensively superb and ultimately dominant win over in form Millwall provided a huge boost after the disappointment of the previous two games where Town were unable to overcome the ultra pragmatism of Preston and the dismal functionality of Birmingham City. They got what they deserved in the former but left St Andrews rueing the naïveté of admirably chasing a winner after seemingly securing a point.

It was a major and eye brow raising surprise to see Corberán naming Diakhaby in the team to meet the Lions considering his deeply inept display on Wednesday night, though perhaps it was felt he had conserved enough energy not to be rotated.

Less surprising was Bacuna’s relegation to the bench, from whence many believe he will contribute far more effectively, as Corberán searches for a midfield blend which can apply his philosophies with greater consistency.

A torrid first 10 minutes saw Town pinned back and facing a series of corners. A free kick delivered from deep could have seen not one but two penalties awarded against the visitors with Schindler grappling dangerously with Cooper and, less convincingly, the ball striking Toffolo’s arm in the mêlée. 

Once they settled, however, Town looked far more composed on the ball than Millwall and gradually imposed a control they regularly but too intermittently maintain in games.

The control started to bring threat, too. Koroma, lively throughout, had one decent effort routinely saved and then was unfortunate to see a goal bound effort brilliantly blocked after excellent build up play.

Town, and Koroma, were not to be denied for long, though. Starting with Hamer, who had another excellent outing, Town kept the ball for over a minute with every player involved in a 27 pass move which finally arrived at Diakhaby’s head on the edge of the box. Perhaps meant for Mbenza, the much maligned winger’s knock back fell for Koroma who didn’t strike it perfectly but well enough to tuck the ball in to the bottom corner.

The expected response from the home side eventually arrived for the final 10 minutes of the half, but other than a decent save from Hamer low down to his left just before half time, Millwall’s ascendancy never seemed particularly threatening. In between, Hogg and O’Brien, still rusty at times but getting there, controlled the middle third and Pritchard provided the spark which kept the Lions on the back foot.

A mostly solid first half ended on a sour note with an ankle injury to Pritchard, who had put in perhaps his best performance for Town for a long time and possibly ever. He was replaced by Bacuna at the break.

The return of Sarr from suspension proved to be significant. The ex-Charlton giant had a solid first half and nullified Millwall’s aerial threat while contributing to the possession which established control. He was to be even better in the second half.

For their part, the home side, under instruction from the isolated Rowett watching on iFollow, sent on Town’s old nemesis Matt Smith, so often a scourge of Terriers’ defenders since his days at Leeds.

A more direct route to goal was clearly signalled, perhaps recognising that their play maker Wallace had been pushed further and further back in the midfield battle, and Sarr and Schindler proved up to the task. Smith was not helped by a reluctance of his colleagues to anticipate any duels he did win, while service to him from the flanks was perfunctory at best. 

Town soaked up Millwall’s threat with some ease and, once on the ball, probed and tested the home defence and should have wrapped up the game far earlier than they did.

Diakhaby nearly capped a much improved performance with a shot which went just wide, Koroma couldn’t exert enough power to convert after excellent work on the right by Mbenza whose shot was well saved but picked up by Duhaney to feed Koroma’s attempt.

The visitors looked far the more likely to score, had the greater composure in possession and defence and, crucially, were maintaining their superiority for longer than in recent games.

Pipa, who had played every minute of every other fixture, replaced Diakhaby to join Toffolo on the left in a successful attempt to quell Romeo and prevent balls in to the box from the hosts’ right flank. Jazzie B’s son never really threatened to bring Millwall back to life, but his pace was occasionally troubling.

The Spaniard, released by Bacuna who had created space with some excellent skill, burst forward in the final minutes and hit a hard shot at Bialkowski in the Millwall goal. Parrying the ball upwards, the Pole was unable to clear the bar and while to the naked eye it didn’t appear to cross the line as it looked behind him, the referee’s watch buzzed to signal that it had. 

With the game all but over, a slightly over hit pass by Schindler saw Hogg stretch to propel it forward towards the half way line. Substitute Campbell nicked the ball just before it reached Cooper to set Bacuna driving towards Millwall’s depleted rear guard. With Koroma and O’Brien as company, Bacuna laid the ball to his right for the latter to slot past Bialkowski to put a gloss on a fine away performance.

Thoroughly deserved and featuring some fine individual displays, the 3 points dispelled the gloom of a week featuring 2 weeks and a video of some buildings on Leeds Road. With two tricky but winnable home games on the horizon, Town have the opportunity to cement their newly found mid table status before the next international break; time which Corberán will undoubtedly utilise to drive improvement in to a team with plenty of room to grow.

Preston North End’s impressive away form, which includes points gained at Norwich and Brentford, continued at the John Smith’s Stadium and ended an encouraging unbeaten few weeks for Town.

Robust, well organised and cynical, the visitors were everything they were expected to be and despite being outplayed for the first quarter of the game, their tried and tested methods eventually overcame the emerging Corberán style, which was too often exposed and particularly in the middle of the park where O’Brien’s rustiness and lack of game time combined with Bacuna’s carelessness rather handed the initiative to the Lancastrians.

Despite the defeat, which was fully deserved, and the rather obvious conclusion that the quality in the squad remains far too thin, if the lessons from the game are learned the trajectory continues to be positive and to be still in contention for a point with 10 men deep in to injury time was commendable.

The 24 hour advantage Town had over their opponents following the midweek round of matches looked decisive in an opening 10 minutes of total dominance, and the lead taken was just reward.

Mbenza won an aerial duel with 2 Preston players and as the ball fell kindly to O’Brien, the returning midfielder played in Campbell with an instinctive and perfectly weighted pass.

Holding off a challenge with good strength, the striker followed up his £5,000 donation to Stephen Chicken’s appeal with a strike past the otherwise impressive Rudd and Town appeared to be in a very good place.
Minutes later, Campbell should perhaps have doubled his tally when he connected with a Toffolo cross but his overly deft attempt to steer the ball in to the far corner let the visitors off the hook. It was a lifeline they were to take for most of the rest of the half as they imposed their physicality and began to dominate.

Town’s midfield diminished alarmingly with only Hogg holding things together as O’Brien’s long lay off began to show and Bacuna’s inability to add discipline to his undoubted talent came once again to the fore.

Preston’s best chance fell to Sinclair who took advantage of Stearman’s failure to heed the age old advice not to let the ball bounce, but the veteran fired wide when he should really have levelled the scores.

Sarr made an excellent block when the visitors looked certain to score and the home side we’re looking increasingly ragged in the face of the controlled aggression overwhelming attempts to inject flow in to their game.

A decent effort from the impressive Pipa was all that Town had to show as their performance deteriorated, but the visitors were grateful for an inexperienced referee’s failure to dismiss Potts for a high challenge on Campbell. Though subsequent replays cast some doubt on the level of punishment appropriate for the lunge, the naked eye, upon which the referee had to rely, more than suggested that dismissal was justified.

The referee compounded his error in the second half with unpunished challenges leading to both goals in Preston’s devastating start to the second half. However, it would be mealy mouthed to blame the visitors for his failings; unlike Hogg, who stopped with his hand in the air claiming offside rather than attempting to block a cross, they played to the whistle and got their rewards.

The equaliser was very well taken by Browne who took advantage of defensive hesitancy to curl a shot which gave Hamer no chance.

The keeper, despite a good performance, needs to take his share of the blame with Sarr for Browne’s second just a minute later. A far post cross didn’t look particularly threatening until they collided and rendered Hamer’s punch weak, falling very nicely for Browne who, nevertheless, had to adjust to finish.

The Lilywhites’ ascendancy of the first half translated in to a lead which they rarely looked like relinquishing and, indeed, continued to be the more dangerous, though the final stages saw something of a renaissance by the home side reduced to ten men when Sarr capped an uncertain afternoon grappling the impressive Riis Jakobsen to the ground with nothing behind him other than another Preston player.

By this point, Corberán had abandoned 3 at the back with Schindler withdrawn along with O’Brien for Diakhaby and Eiting. The changes added some urgency to the home side’s play but not enough threat.

Counter intuitively, Sarr’s dismissal heralded the best patch of play since the opening 15 minutes, though Preston were, by this time, comfortable with their lead, comfortable out of possession and dangerous on the break.

Bacuna came in to the game late and was incensed to be dragged back by Bauer when he had broken through Preston’s lines. The German was roundly congratulated for his cynicism; in fairness, Schindler was also booked for a similar transgression, though his team mates didn’t share the joy.

A late Pipa effort following an excellent move which finally carved open the visitors hit the outside of the post and those Championship fine margins reared their head yet again. The impressive Spaniard, who could be one of the finds of the season, had also brought a decent save out of Rudd earlier and the keeper finger tipped a Koroma effort round the post to deny the substitute a second in 2 games.

Preston could easily have added to their lead but for some last ditch defending and one or two decent saves by Hamer and the last action of an entertaining game saw Jakobsen hit the bar after bamboozling Town’s exhausted defenders.

This defeat could easily have happened in games we have drawn or won. Had Forest not been thwarted by that Hamer save, had Swansea not been so profligate, or Rotherham not succumb to something of a fluke, our position would be substantially worse. Which is to say, most Championship games are close, attritional affairs and being on the right side of moments essential.

Yesterday, Preston’s established style, professionalism and strength overcame a still developing Huddersfield Town and they deserved their 3 points. Time will tell if they can translate their status as perennial dark horses in to a promotion which would complete the list of former League winners experiencing the dubious delights of the Premier League.

For their part, Town showed that Corberán’s project has a long way to go but it will be far more interesting and entertaining than grinding out draws to keep our heads above the relegation waters. Frustrating as it is that the squad is too thin to meet all the demands of 3 games in a week, and oh! how we could do with a centre forward presence like Riis Jakobsen, a mid table finish is well within reach.

On to Brum. 

Following Town’s win in South Wales on Saturday, Paul Merson, survivor of Sky Soccer Saturday’s dinosaur purge several years ago (or, in old time, September) opined that the play offs could be on.

The last time Paul connected his brain to his mouth over Huddersfield Town, he ended up dressed as a muppet so he will forgive us our skepticism about drawing conclusions from a welcome yet streaky win.

Neither should we get carried away by another victory over a gloriously inept Derby County side whose inability to deliver a set piece must have had the isolating Rooney tearing his manufactured hair out. Mel Morris, creative accountant extraordinaire, can only look on in horror at all the money spent to restore Premier League football coming to this.

A scruffy game, though not without entertaining moments, will be remembered for a cracking team goal finished by Bacuna but encapsulating the sheer promise of Corberán and his football philosophies, as well as the undoubtedly exciting prospect of just how much improvement, with these players and additions, he can achieve.

Not that much of the first half provided salivation. 2 brief, interesting spells, culminating in a couple of decent Pipa efforts were overshadowed by a largely jaded display with some alarmingly sloppy passing which an even slightly better team than Derby would have punished.

As it was, Hamer had one routine save to make while the plethora of free kicks, which were awarded rather too easily at times, and corner kicks created little if any threat for the visitors.

The Rams, however, had much the better of the first half and largely controlled possession and territory. Their undoing was a total absence of completion in the final third; Town’s rare attacks looked significantly more threatening.

As they had on Saturday, Town improved in the second half and after taking the lead with a goal which started with Hamer and involved an excellent contribution from Campbell on the halfway line to link with Bacuna who fed the marauding Toffolo. The full back, excellent all night, laid the ball perfectly in to the path of Bacuna, who had sprinted hard to follow up his incisive ball.

Earlier, another Toffolo surge nearly set up Campbell and the hosts were looking a different proposition to the team seemingly puzzled by the opposition’s set up in the first.

The goal allowed Town to stifle Derby with relative ease, though not without a couple of scares. Duane Holmes added a little urgency, and something a little different, when he came on and had a good effort which was neatly turned around the post down low. This thwarted any thought of Holmes under the Hamer puns*.

Late on, a snap header by Clarke clipped the post to deny the visitors a flattering point while Town wasted some good opportunities to punish Derby on the break; O’Brien with a few games under his belt would not have let them off the hook with poor execution when a team mate was free.

It was a very good time to play Derby, particularly without Rooney who would have relished so many set piece opportunities, and, brief flurries aside, a none too convincing performance but back to back wins will give the squad great belief to take in to the tough schedule before the next break. 

They now have to consolidate with progress and results; there is a long, long way to go before we can even consider them anything other than a bottom half team with realistic relegation troubles, but the excitement will be them proving to us that this is a ridiculous assessment.

However, there is a spirit and resilience about the team combined with a decent amount of genuine talent which holds great promise.

* copyright @PopPopChris on Twitter who came up with this to produce the tweet of the night (possibly the season)

Sweeping aside the crushing disappointment of failing to secure David Nugent’s signature, with all the promise of goals which that held, or adding to the list of loans on Rolando Aarons’ CV, Town secured 3 points in South Wales against a very good, if under par, Swansea side with resilience, no small amount of bravery and a swathe of good fortune.

Biting satire aside, the fact that our left back opened the scoring and could quite easily have scored a hat trick should not be lost. Scoring goals is a team effort and rather relies upon players being in a position to do so. For all Grant’s achievements with Town, and scoring at the rate he did in teams seemingly constructed not to was admirable, it is surely better to increase the possibilities for multiple contributors rather than be heavily dependent on one.

As Corberán’s philosophies emerge, and they are appearing as quickly as Wagner’s did, there should be genuine excitement for the future. In the absence of anything resembling effective communication from a hierarchy grappling with admittedly huge external issues, let us turn our gaze upon the transformation a young coach is implementing on the pitch.

When Josh Koroma struck the winner, there were 7 Town players in and around the box. At the home of one of the best sides in the division. Let that, as the tiresome saying goes, sink in.

That winner seemed inconceivable after a torrid opening 20 minutes when the visitors looked sure to succumb to the Swans’ unrelenting pressure. Within a minute, Hamer was having to make a save, all be it routine, and the home side exerted stifling control of the game with an aggressive and highly effective press which pinned Town in to their own half with little, if any, respite.

Hamer’s performance, which included 2 excellent saves, was blighted by some quite awful distribution which not only gifted possession but also momentum as eager Welsh midfielders fielded his miserable punts facing forwards and in acres of space.

With 3 central defenders in a formation we should get used to when facing twin strikers, Sarr struggled to adapt and was caught out of position too often and nearly presented a goal with a careless touch intended for Hamer. He improved immeasurably once he settled and played his part in repelling the increasingly desperate opposition towards the end.

A succession of excellently delivered corners threatened to overwhelm the besieged visitors but the hosts were guilty of over aggression at too many of them while the returning Schindler seemed to relish the aerial challenges.

When Town finally escaped Swansea’s stranglehold, Koroma was freed to run at the home defence to force a corner. It may have been complacency born of their superiority which allowed Bacuna to stroll in to the area unchallenged following the short corner and hit a not particularly threatening shot, but Toffolo’s instinctive flick turned it in to a lead as undeserved as it was surprising.

Rueing their failure to convert possession and pressure in to goals, Swansea were never quite the same force though they were handed an equaliser by a baffling penalty decision just after the half hour. Hamer, who had already kept his side in the game with a one on one save from Lowe, came to meet Smith whose attempt to convert was already sailing over as they came together.

The harsh award gave Swansea a reward they fully deserved and Ayew stepped up, via a dubious run up and with encroachment clearly occurring behind him, and scored his inevitable goal against the Terriers.

Equally inevitable was Swansea’s resumption of control, though the threat they carried seemed to lack the potency of the opening 20 minutes; Sarr’s restored discipline of position and tighter defending contributed to soothing the nerves of onlookers of blue and white persuasion, and the sanctity of half time was reached without what would have proven to be fatal concession.

Whatever Corberán said during the break saw the visitors transform from a team seemingly reliant on the failure of their opponents to translate superiority in to goals to one which finally achieved cohesion.

Moving the ball more quickly and confidently between players finding space and time and with the conviction that they could trouble the Welshmen, Town produced their best 15 minutes of the season. Eiting’s promise began to shine, while the excellent Pipa and Toffolo added their support to the hard working Mbenza and Koroma and Swansea’s previous dominance evaporated.

Chances were created with an excellent effort by Mbenza agonisingly evading Toffolo – again, note that our highest placed forward was our left back – as it crashed off the far post. Toffolo then missed two very presentable chances.

Swansea responded eventually and Ayew should have buried a close range header following a superb free kick delivery. Town’s relief at surviving that chance was followed by a terrible ball from Koroma which set Lowe free. As the ex-Wigan man bore down on goal, Hamer positioned himself well to parry his powerful shot. The rebound was sliced well wide by the same player, who seemed affected by his collision with a post in the first half after a very lively start to the game.

Town’s emergence as a team to be reckoned with created a very entertaining second half as the procession of home superiority became a more equal contest, and following the scares, Koroma made up with for his error with an excellent strike following incisive build up play down the Terriers’ right.

Having missed a few chances in previous games, the confidence his goal will bring should not be under estimated. Picking up the ball at the left edge of the area, the youngster found space among the panicking defence and swept the ball past Woodman in to the far corner with a strike for which Grant would have been rightly hailed.

Inevitably, Town faced a frantic last quarter yet Swansea’s potency and thrust seemed marginally less threatening as the minutes ticked by.

Stearman, Schindler and Sarr held firm and largely subdued the increasingly desperate Swans until a succession of corners late on and some flapping by Hamer threatened to undo the hard work. Kasey Palmer, who came on and injected some energy in to the home side, missed a very presentable chance at the far post as injury time loomed which let his former colleagues off the hook and ready to celebrate a win which entailed a fair amount of luck but, equally, a lot of promise.

Few will leave South Wales with maximum points, particularly when important players return and they resolve their issues with converting superiority in to goals, but it is the excitement of potential which should be taken from the afternoon’s efforts.

The potential of expanding periods of excellence beyond the 15 minutes on show here, the development of Eiting’s excellence, creating more and more opportunities as an attacking unit which may engulf teams far inferior to Swansea and the possibilities of a coach who has taken an unpromising and diminished group and imposed an expansive system which is emerging game by game.

Despite the failure to recruit before the deadline, and the suspicion that bungling was a factor, it is difficult not to be excited at the prospect of watching Pipa and Toffolo terrorising Championship rivals, the emergence of a genuinely creative midfield and the possibility of Mbenza’s redemption.

It may be wise to keep our eyes on the grass and let the back room shenanigans take care of themselves. 

When the otherwise excellent MacDonald diverted a Pipa effort to gift Town a deserved but strangely unsatisfying point, the task of dissecting 96 minutes of football containing a reasonable amount of promise for the visitors yet embedded with many of the same problems became even more complicated.

Corberán’s overly enthusiastic post match assessment, which inexplicably included the epithet “fantastic”, perhaps reflected his pleasure at seeing the identity he wants to create take a few tentative steps forward in no small part due to the contributions of the new faces he has introduced. Or a linguistic misstep.

There was more than a little truth in the coach’s impression but rather glossed over some familiar issues, not least the inability to turn progressive possession in to goals. It should be recognised that Town were facing a tough opponent whose resilience was well known before the encounter and confirmed until the very last seconds of an interesting clash.

It was MacDonald who prevented Campbell opening the scoring in the 2nd minute with a last gasp block; had that chance been converted, the game would have panned out very differently. For all their physicality and excellent organisation, the Millers were rarely particularly threatening and the comfort of an early lead would have settled the visitors rather than frustrated them.

Quick out of the blocks, the Terriers established control early and moved the ball well at times but failed to create enough problems for the hosts’ resilient defence. One move which flowed from back to front ended with Campbell slipping on the greasy surface at the wrong moment and there was a perceptible gap in quality between the teams on the ball.

Halfway through the half, however, Town lost their grip. Not helped by a fussy referee, the game became fragmented, Town’s previous fluency disappeared and Rotherham exploited the shift with their most, and perhaps only, effective spell culminating in a quite excellent goal.

Sloppy passing and giving away too many niggly free kicks broke Town’s rhythm and when a cleared corner was not followed out quickly enough, Ben Wiles was left in far too much space. The midfielder unhesitatingly stroked an arrow straight, powerful and accurate shot past the helpless Hamer who may have asked a little more from Campbell who simply failed to close it down.

The Millers threatened to take further advantage of their opponents’ dip in performance with Hamer saving well from Ladapo following a swift break after breaking up a promising Town attack.

A second would have buried the visitors and the break came at a good time for them as Rotherham’s momentum after the goal had turned the match on its head.

In the context of the first half implosion and a normally fatal concession, the second half was moderately encouraging, if very frustrating.
The dominance of the ball and the progressiveness was badly let down by final passes and finishing, though the home side’s rearguard should be complimented for their excellent defending. 

Koroma was the main culprit for the profligacy. He failed to control a superb ball from Eiting, and missed an easy chance following more excellent build up down the left, where Toffolo roamed freely and menacingly throughout the half. To be fair to him, Town’s best effort of the half was his curling shot from outside the area which went just wide.

With virtually nothing to worry about at the back as the Millers sat deep and resolute, Hogg, Stearman and Sarrs, who had a quietly impressive debut, were able to stroll forwards at will to begin attacks. Though they had some success moving the hosts around to create space, Rotherham rather abandoned the flanks in favour of relying on their ability to stop crosses; a faith which appeared wholly justified until the injury time calamity.

While Eiting is clearly a high quality player who will prove influential as the season matures, Town’s best performer was the excellent Pipa. Accomplished in possession, always available and a threat down the right, it was fitting that the Spaniard forced the error which gained a point (not that his shot was going anywhere). 

On the left, Toffolo was menacing and delivered one particularly good cross on to substitute Dhiakaby’s head just a couple of minutes before the equaliser, but too many of his deliveries were easily cut out.

It was unfortunate for the home side to concede as they did, and must have been utterly galling for MacDonald who had done so much to thwart the visitors, but a share of the points, as Paul Warne acknowledged, was fair, even if Town had got out of jail not through their own abundance of threat, but as a result of an instinctive opposition error.

Overall, it had been a confusing afternoon. The shape and style of the team for the majority of it was pleasing on the eye at times and the new recruits look to be genuinely promising, but the lack of potency persists.

It is always dangerous to believe that missing players, and O’Brien in particular, may change the dynamic but a driving force alongside Eiting’s quality could be the key. With Grant unwelcome and sidelined by unfulfilled speculation, it seems unlikely that Town will conjure a 20 goal a season striker from somewhere.

Corberán’s conundrum remains the final third; supply is improving, though far from perfect, but conversion remains elusive.

It would also be remiss to overlook Rotherham’s excellent defending, organisation and resolve. Many teams will find them difficult to break down; as their 4 opponents to date already have.

Town haven’t lost in S66 for nearly thirty years, yet it is never an easy venue, even for the best Championship side we’ve ever had.

Hopefully, the international break will see more players becoming available to Corberán before a very difficult trip to South Wales. Sarr’s promising debut was helped by the lack of necessary defensive work; Swansea will be a much greater test.

Perusing Town’s opening fixtures was immediately accompanied by dread and a desperate search for some rational theory why we wouldn’t be stranded in the bottom 3 with Sheffield Wednesday whittling away their point deduction disadvantage.

A slightly unfortunate but wholly unconvincing defeat against Norwich was followed by an exceptionally poor, dispiriting defeat at Brentford’s new home destroying any lingering, preposterous hopes that a new coach and a new way of playing grafted on to the remnants of failed squads from miserable seasons past could defy reality.

And yet. 

Victory over a disappointing and often confused Forest garnered the 3 points which suddenly makes Town’s return from a daunting schedule, well, not too bad. 

Overall, the performance was encouraging, if uneven. The principal takeaway was the collective effort and energy which smothered Forest in the second half and led to multiple players appearing in the box – a phenomenon we have all but forgotten. This included 6 (six) when Frasier Campbell was left alone to strike a beautiful winner, which would have been far less likely had he been alone, as many of his predecessors have been.

All would have been different had Hogg’s reducer on Arter been spotted in the early minutes. Raking the ex-Cherry with a highly aggressive, probably heart felt, studs up challenge, Town’s veteran extracted revenge for the last meeting with the annoying nark. Hogg needs to ensure he doesn’t jeopardise the team’s chances in such a manner again, but many of us couldn’t help feeling a frisson of vengeful delight.

A progressive opening ten minutes saw Town pinning the visitors back without creating any chances and it was the visitors who shaded a scruffy first half and, but for two saves by Hamer, would’ve taken a lead in to the break. 

The first of these was outstanding. Ameobi drifted across Town’s back line, turned Crichlow and hit an excellent curling shot bound for the top corner. Arching his back, Hamer was equal to the effort and tipped the shot over the bar; perhaps he can use that moment to resuscitate his quite dreadful reputation amongst the support (which he acknowledged post match, to his credit)?

His second save was more routine but just as important as Mbe Soh was left alone at a corner to head towards goal. The poor set piece defending was more worrying than the actual effort, which was not powerful enough to beat Hamer but it was the last attempt Forest managed on goal as the tide turned.

A weak Koroma effort which was spilled by Samba nearly presented Frasier with a tap in but he couldn’t quite reach the ball before the keeper dragged it back and took a bang on the head for his efforts.

Town rather missed Hogg who went off injured after picking up a booking with his replacement, debutant Eiting, feeling his way in to the rough and tumble of English football and were the team more appreciative of the half time whistle.

The break allowed Town to regroup and a very acceptable second half performance subdued the visitors. At the back, Stearman and Crichlow became a much tighter unit and the youngster’s elegant display – ruffled just once by Grabban, who replaced the disappointing and ineffective Lyle Taylor – bodes well, even if Sarr’s arrival is likely to limit his chances in the immediate future.

Eiting settled in to his number 6 role and more than hinted at an ability to add some measured class to a midfield which has been sorely lacking quality to date. His impact promises to improve those around him with a far greater range of forward passing than the limited alternatives available to Corberán so far.

324 minutes in to the season came Town’s first goal and it was a tension relieving beauty. Mbenza, who showed some rehabilitating promise at times, found Toffolo, who was breaking in to the area at pace, with an excellently weighted pass and with plenty of home players in the box, the left back was able to pick out the unmarked Campbell, whose balletic volley flew past Samba.

It was reward for an energetic and, crucially, collective, start to the half which caught the visitors on their heels. Eager pressing, discipline and desire changed the dynamic from a relatively flat first half performance and Campbell’s busy front line work was rewarded with a highly attractive winner.

Forest had little in response. Grabban had a decent effort which just cleared the bar and, late on, he troubled Critchlow but couldn’t draw a penalty winning foul from either the youngster or Hamer which was a possibility.

Easily quelling the visitors’ increasingly desperate efforts to equalise, Town broke late on and should have put the game to bed as an Eitling ball released Koroma down the left. Eagerly pursued by 3 team mates in support, but only 2 Forest players, the winger fed substitute Diakhaby whose first touch was too heavy, allowing Samba to position himself well and block the shot. The danger wasn’t over, however and Pipa squared a disguised pass to Koroma who couldn’t quite get the ball past Samba, hitting his trailing leg and out for a corner.

Disappointing as the failure to convert 2 excellent opportunities was, the fact that Town were attacking in numbers so late in a game they had worked so hard to win was testament to their fitness and desire. The paucity of goals and the lack of a striker capable of approaching prolific remain problems, but if the style of play creates numbers in the box like this, there is hope.

If Sarr is the marauding centre half Corberán desires, if Eiting can provide calm quality to deliver better transition and the collective can provide a team greater than the sum of its, to date, limited parts, early season fears may dissipate.

Eiting, in particular, is an intriguing addition. Can he encourage more creativity in Pritchard (who worked hard but still regularly infuriated; his set piece deliveries being particularly woeful), more discipline from Bacuna and release the pace possessed by the squad?

Overall, the performance was far from perfect but the release of tension, the handful of positives and the possibilities provided by new blood shine some beams of light through the gloom.

Town began yet another new plan to fumigate the stench of now long term failure with a predictable and expected defeat against a Norwich side rather more modest than anticipated.

Whether the visitors, rightly installed in pre season as favourites, were largely functional rather than exhilarating through rustiness or lack of familiarity or were subdued by Town’s hard work and organisation was just one of a string of unanswered, possibly unanswerable, questions in a game that largely plodded.

Corberán’s ideas and philosophies were evident in a worthy yet unsatisfying performance and the patience of supporters, now stretched gossamer thin where it isn’t already snapped, is being called upon again while the Spaniard recruits players to fully instil his values.

Encouragingly, debutant Pipa slotted in immediately with an eye catching introduction to a dysfunctional unit and added quality on the right of defence which has long been a massive problem. Composed and technically proficient, the youngster looked comfortable from the start and combined well with his new team mates at the back and going forward.

This barely translated in to goal scoring opportunities, though one exchange with Bacuna should perhaps have done. 

With Grant at home, presumably trusting in the process which will release him from West Yorkshire, the funds which become available , hopefully, from his departure need to be invested in players able to fit just as effortlessly in to Corberán’s system. The fear is that the huge sums being offered by West Brom for an individual whose open play goals dried up along with his commitment after lockdown will evaporate if protracted negotiations end without movement.

With expectations extraordinarily low, people were expecting a battering; and their dark foreboding only heightened as the team was revealed even though the line up was arguably the strongest Corberán could name, give or take the odd wide man. That it didn’t transpire was barely a source of comfort but the effort and apparent collective spirit of a team perceived as hopelessly weak was mildly encouraging. Town continue to confuse and exasperate and with no effort being made to explain their plan, it is no wonder that the support is left befuddled.

A very early effort from far too far out by Diakhaby sailed way over the bar and, the Pipa/Bacuna interchange aside, constituted the greatest threat in a first half long on endeavour but short on real thrust. Norwich occasionally flattered to deceive but were mostly held in check and, to their credit, Town snuffed out a couple of dangerous looking breakaways with one in particular featuring some excellent defensive work by Diakhaby who tracked Pukki all the way back to nullify his presence.

A good first half from the universally maligned young Frenchman included a great tackle on the edge of Town’s box to thwart the Canaries and, overall, his touch was decent, he made himself available and played with responsibility. Now that the minimum bar has been set, let’s see if he can develop beyond the old joke about a dog walking on two legs.

At the back, Stearman was solid alongside Schindler while Toffolo shadowed man girl Cantwell to stifling effect. There were a few excellent cross field balls by the home side to release the lively Koroma but the midfield largely lacked creativity and failed to drive the team forward anywhere near enough. O’Brien should add that dimension when back from injury.

With Hamer having little to do as both sides struggled to penetrate, the best opportunity was hit straight at him by the otherwise impressive Hernandez while a free kick in a good position was woefully wasted by Pritchard, who disappointed yet again throughout. Late in the game, a darkly comic mix up between him and Bacuna wasted a corner opportunity; neither came out of the contest very well.

A stalemate became increasingly likely in a poor second half. Norwich were nearly gifted the opener when he failed to hold on to a less than challenging effort and was saved by Stearman clearing for a corner, while Koroma made space for himself with a decent piece of skill before firing wide. Little else occurred of note until late in the half when Stearman was clattered by Cantwell with his elbow.

The challenge was worthy of a red and left the veteran defender groggy. The referee, poor throughout and who had denied the visitors two good penalty shouts and missed a dangerous Hogg tackle which should also have seen red, waved a yellow to the Canary while Stearman received treatment off the pitch.

The Town coaching and medical staff will rue allowing him to return. Bacuna, lackadaisical for far too much of the game, played him in to a little trouble facing his own goal and a horribly under hit pass was seized upon by Pukki who evaded Schindler’s attempted block to feed Idah. Stearman had sprinted all the way back to try and prevent the goal but failed by a couple of feet.
It was cruel on the team and the distraught Stearman but when you are incapable of scoring, mistakes haunt you. 

An expected defeat produced few answers to the plethora of questions swirling around the club, yet there were some signs of hope. Unfortunately, few, if any, of these are going to be much use without a goal threat.

We can only wait and see what solutions to the deep and ingrained problems will be applied by the club in the next few weeks. Until then, this team doesn’t look capable of winning games even against the most mundane of opposition, simply because of a lack of goals and opportunities.

Despite the pedigree of yesterday’s opponents, and the reasonable effort against them, yet another relegation battle seems inevitable and the few positives that can be taken from the game seem a little irrelevant right now. It was probably a good time to play Norwich, who will not be as one dimensional as the season matures, and what would’ve been a useful point disappeared.

The evaporation of optimism arrived early in 2020 with a regulation League Cup defeat to lower division opposition preceding the start of the season rather than providing an alarming exclamation point to fears and worries on the second Tuesday under lights in front of the most committed faithful.

As often as commentators rue the lack of an audience as desperately sad, the depressing familiarity was best viewed through a laptop lacking the visceral battering inflicted in attendance.

Rochdale arrived with a relatively simple and ultimately effective plan carried out with diligence and admirable intensity made easier by facing an opponent with a vague style of play notion applied to a game seen as an additional, experimental, friendly. This is not to excuse the defeat but rather to damn the apparent shambles of a club now seemingly in permanent transition.

The difficulties being faced are complex and important with the necessity to adapt to financial realities both self imposed and mandated by circumstances external, but communication is desperately poor and creating that most dangerous of atmospheres; apathy.

It is absurd to suggest that the Lancastrians’ challenges are somehow lesser than Town’s; they hadn’t played a competitive fixture in 6 months, their playing staff has been trimmed and overhauled and they even had to forfeit home advantage to add to their disadvantage.

Leaving out 2 players about to depart from the club for an estimated £20M starkly illustrates the real gap between a Championship struggler and a League 1 struggler. That gap was easily bridged by Dale and the exposé of the Terriers’ systemic muddles was alarming yet so, so familiar.

A moderately entertaining first half saw Town mainly on the front foot but too often blunted by Rochdale’s disciplined and resilient defending. With just two clear cut chances created – Toffolo made a good run on to a corner delivery but couldn’t keep his header down and Bacuna skied a very presentable chance late in the half – the hosts were unable to capitalise on errors occasionally forced by a decent pressing game and looked vulnerable to the visitors’ breaks.

Hesitancy and confusion when balls were delivered in to the box culminated in a disallowed goal for Dale which may not have survived a VAR check and the lack of defensive assurance, particularly centrally with the inexperience of Critchlow and the rustiness (and possible decline) of Schindler hardly aiding the cause, gave Town an air of fragility they couldn’t shake off.

There were glimpses of Corberán’s assumed philosophy, particularly a rigorous press in the first half hour, but fluency was at a premium and never approached the levels achieved in the two friendlies, all be it these were against modest opposition. 

Unfamiliarity may have played a part, but with 7 days to go before the league season starts, supporters’ patience, already stretched thin by poor communication, impenetrable financial arrangements and the dread which can only accompany the real possibility that Hamer will be the last line of defence, has widely snapped.

A decent second half showing may have soothed the worry and discontent, but a dozy opening 5 minutes, with possession conceded without a whimper encouraged Dale forward. A free kick on the right was delivered in to an area which could easily be described as goalkeeper territory was forsaken by the hapless Hamer, Schindler lost his man far too easily and O’Connell powered in the winner.

The reaction was largely pathetic and the failure to remotely test Bazunu until Mbenza nearly caught him out with a good effort with one minute left was both a testament to the good organisation of the visitors and damning of a side showing all the flaws we have become accustomed to for over 2 years. 

Rochdale wasted several break aways as Town committed men forward, to little effect, but they remained composed and professional to see out a win rather more comfortable than a single goal suggests.

A late chance for Toffolo was headed clear and Town’s hopes of an undeserved penalty shootout out disappeared.

Perhaps the only positive to be taken from a rotten afternoon was the performance of Mbenza, who was given 20 minutes on the right. Direct and powerful, he only lacked the movement of colleagues to make a more meaningful impact. On the other side, his partner in waste, Dhiakaby, did nothing to suggest any sort of revival is in the offing.

Everything now rests on Town’s market activity, in and out. Bar O’Brien, the squad put out yesterday is fundamentally what we have to tackle an extremely tough looking opening month. The departures of Grant, Mounié, Hadergjonaj and Sobhi, possibly joined by Bacuna, should create the space to bring in strengthening options but little time for integration ahead of the opener.

The silence of the hierarchy may be defended on the grounds of sensitivity in an unusually difficult transfer market place, but the acceptance of the rumours and suspicions multiplying in the vacuum created seems an odd calculation to make when the support has grown weary and increasingly uninterested.

Happy new season, everyone!

Unnoticed and unloved amid compelling drama elsewhere, Town completed their miserable season with a heavy loss at the New Den with a second half collapse which barely aroused a whimper of ire amongst their exhausted, grudgingly relieved and unconvinced support.

With several players rested, a late dental emergency and an entirely unsuccessful injection of youth, the Terriers, after a reasonable first half, were swept away by the nearly men of South London as defensive errors buried any ambition to finish with a flourish.

The only solace to be taken from a deader than dead rubber was that there were few conclusions to be drawn about the future which can only become clearer once the sacking of the Cowleys is explained beyond the bullshit bingo about different visions.

A game of funereal insignificance neither demands nor deserves much attention.

Millwall started strongly, exploited early weaknesses down Town’s right and in central defence and eased in to an early lead with a well taken but virtually unopposed stroll through the visitors’ rearguard.

To their credit, Town overcame their obvious structural problems to take the game to Millwall for the last 30 minutes of the half and equalised with a well constructed goal by Grant following a good through ball by the otherwise hugely unimpressive Pritchard (if his last act as a Town player was to blast a far post corner high and long to nobody, it will be a fitting epitaph).

Unfortunately, and rather than building on the momentum of the equaliser, Town yet again succumbed to a set piece goal shortly after the break. Coleman, who had a particularly poor evening on probably his final appearance, failed to connect with a decent corner delivery by some distance and Stearman was easily beaten in the air at the back post.

Town’s attempts to recover for a second time were sunk when a Stearman slip, perhaps distracted by Chalobah, who was head and shoulders above any player in the coral, was seized upon and despatched. 

The Lions’ fourth goal was….Oh, God! What is the point? A game nobody cared about, ending a season everyone has hated with the architects of survival, however grim the methods, gone and with conspiracies, rumours and uncertainty swirling around a club in massive transition, what else is there to do but await events?

Thanks for reading this season. The next one can’t be any worse, can it?