The run in fixtures

ErikthViking

UTC Legend
Surely, Norwich and Watford won't throw away the two automatic places.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/championship/table

All being well (from our point of view), the top six positions should be contested by seven teams.

With goal differences as they are, Cardiff, Millwall, Middlesbrough and Stoke all have to win three matches more than ourselves or Reading. With only six matches remaining for this gang of four, that is looking like a tall order. Watch out for Millwall, though. They are on a roll and we have to go there in a couple of weeks time.

The important thing is that a play off spot is in our hands. We do not have to rely on other teams losing or drawing as long as we don't slack off.

There are some intriguing 'six pointers' in the remaining fixtures and Watford could do us a lot of good. Grouped by match day, these are those up and coming matches for the teams currently in positions one to seven:

06/04 Brentford Birmingham
06/04 Norwich Huddersfield

09/04 Watford Reading

10/04 Millwall Swansea
10/04 Barnsley Middlesbrough
10/04 AFCB Coventry
10/04 Derby Norwich
10/04 Preston Brentford

13/04 Huddersfield AFCB
13/04 Sheff Wed Swansea

16/04 Reading Cardiff

17/04 Brentford Millwall
17/04 Luton Watford
17/04 Swansea Wycombe
17/04 Norwich AFCB

18/04 Coventry Barnsley

20/04 Brentford Cardiff
20/04 Norwich Watford
20/04 Swansea QPR

21/04 Millwall AFCB
21/04 Huddersfield Barnsley
21/04 Luton Reading

24/04 AFCB Brentford
24/04 Barnsley Rotherham
24/04 QPR Norwich
24/04 Watford Millwall

25/04 Reading Swansea

27/04 Brentford Rotherham

01/05 Brentford Watford
01/05 Norwich Reading

01/05 Preston Barnsley
01/05 Swansea Derby
01/05 Wycombe AFCB

08/05 Barnsley Norwich
08/05 AFCB Stoke
08/05 Bristol City Brentford
08/05 Reading Huddersfield
08/05 Watford Swansea

E & O E
 
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Millwall are flying and will be the main danger behind us, given we have to go there. That run of Norwich/Millwall/Brentford will be very tough.

Above us, I'm definitely targeting Swansea on the slide. Would be nice to finish above Reading.

I'm a paid up member of the Watford fan club by this point.
 
Millwall are flying and will be the main danger behind us, given we have to go there. That run of Norwich/Millwall/Brentford will be very tough.

Above us, I'm definitely targeting Swansea on the slide. Would be nice to finish above Reading.

I'm a paid up member of the Watford fan club by this point.

Millwall have got Swansea (H) and Brentford (A) before we go there. Hopefully they'll be out of play-off contention by then, two draws would be useful as it means Swansea and Brentford would also have dropped points.
 
When will Norwich get the beach towels out and start coasting.................................Not before they play us unfortunately.
 
It’s this type of situation and run of fixtures that makes the Championship more fun than the Prem for teams like us.

Just gutting we can’t be there to witness any of it. How much fun would Wycombe away have been assuming all is still up for grabs?

We would have filled that stand.
 
Think this weekend needs to be the pivotal weekend with reading at Watford and then Swansea and Barnsley having tough games. Need us to beat relegation strugglers of course - never guaranteed sadly!
 
Think Barnsley’s fixtures look decent but have three Yorkshire derbies so hopefully that might be a leveller?!
 
I have to say I feel so much more positive about the fight for the playoffs in the Championship than struggling to think where we might scrape point or so somewhere to stay in the Premier league.
 
As the number of games left to play runs down, as long as we can remain in contention for the playoffs, I think it makes it easier for our players to focus and give everything for the cause. For whatever reason they seemed to struggle with this at certain points throughout the season but being in with a shout of promotion after the next 7-9 games should give them every reason to focus their minds and attitudes.

We are fortunate to still be masters of our own destiny, we just need to keep winning games. I'm fairly confident that we will make the playoffs now. There seems to be a harmony and a common sense of purpose throughout the squad once more. If we can avoid any further meltdown between now and the end of the season, I think we should have enough to reach the playoffs.
That will have made it a decent season after all of the upheaval.
After that we just need a bit of luck and might even get promotion in spite of our best efforts not to !

If Norwich and Watford get automatic promotions ( almost certain now ) and in their current positions, if we then go up through the playoffs, the three relegated teams would go straight back up but not only that, but in reverse order to how they were relegated. What amazing symmetry that would be !
Surely it's written in the stars that it will happen this way ?
;)

:utc::utc::utc:
 
As the number of games left to play runs down, as long as we can remain in contention for the playoffs, I think it makes it easier for our players to focus and give everything for the cause. For whatever reason they seemed to struggle with this at certain points throughout the season but being in with a shout of promotion after the next 7-9 games should give them every reason to focus their minds and attitudes.

We are fortunate to still be masters of our own destiny, we just need to keep winning games. I'm fairly confident that we will make the playoffs now. There seems to be a harmony and a common sense of purpose throughout the squad once more. If we can avoid any further meltdown between now and the end of the season, I think we should have enough to reach the playoffs.
That will have made it a decent season after all of the upheaval.
After that we just need a bit of luck and might even get promotion in spite of our best efforts not to !

If Norwich and Watford get automatic promotions ( almost certain now ) and in their current positions, if we then go up through the playoffs, the three relegated teams would go straight back up but not only that, but in reverse order to how they were relegated. What amazing symmetry that would be !
Surely it's written in the stars that it will happen this way ?
;)

:utc::utc::utc:

If each of Norwich, Bournemouth and Watford were to win promotion back to the top flight, it would be the first time in Premier League history that such an event has occurred, and that proves how difficult it is to adapt to the Championship and experience instant success. There have been a few occasions where two of the relegated teams have been promoted straight back, but never all three.
 
If Norwich and Watford get automatic promotions ( almost certain now ) and in their current positions, if we then go up through the playoffs, the three relegated teams would go straight back up but not only that, but in reverse order to how they were relegated. What amazing symmetry that would be !
Surely it's written in the stars that it will happen this way ?
Not only that, but we also all came up in 2015 (in the same order we went down in 2020).
Would love for this to happen (I think?), but it's still a very long shot.
We could still totally squander a playoff spot.
 
If each of Norwich, Bournemouth and Watford were to win promotion back to the top flight, it would be the first time in Premier League history that such an event has occurred, and that proves how difficult it is to adapt to the Championship and experience instant success. There have been a few occasions where two of the relegated teams have been promoted straight back, but never all three.
I wonder, should this actually happen, how long it would take for the "experts" and pundits to come out with the "PL money has now made it impossible for Championship teams without parachute payments to compete for promotion to the PL" argument.

I'm guessing all of about three minutes !!!
;)
 
I wonder, should this actually happen, how long it would take for the "experts" and pundits to come out with the "PL money has now made it impossible for Championship teams without parachute payments to compete for promotion to the PL" argument.

I'm guessing all of about three minutes !!!
;)

Well if we don't go up this season, I will certainly be using that excuse next season!!

:utc:
 

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