Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2017 2:48 pm
Posts: 4813
Location: In the Armchair.
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THE CAZBAR BIG GAME PREVIEW – BARNSLEYJust two fixtures left then which will determine which division we will be in, and who we will be playing next season, and currently it’s hard to imagine any other scenario than its going to go to the last day against Burton Albion, so if that is to be the case, I would encourage as many people as possible to get tickets for that game and try and drag this team kicking and screaming to a place of survival, although I would think there are a few waiting to see what the final day scenario is looking like before committing.
Of course, it’s never over until it’s over, and that person who does the singing at the end is not yet even on the stage, but our position is precarious to say the least, but currently our fate and destiny is still very much in our own hands, and I’m sure most of those in and around us would happily swap our scenario for theirs, although I will add, if we don’t win on Saturday, the boot could well be on the other foot.
Opinion is currently very much split with a poll running showing its around 56%/44% that we will survive, although on another forum it swings the other way and suggests relegation.
One thing we have to concede though is we are not helping ourselves, not putting Pompey away when they were down to 10 men, conceding late against Cheltenham, and the two gutless performances against Charlton and Fleetwood have done nothing to help our survival, and the only thing that has kept us out of the bottom four is that the other protagonists in this relegation scrap are equally as poor, although that took a turn for the worse on Tuesday with both Oxford and Accrington winning, so again on Saturday we are doubtless all going to be watching our phones anxiously how they are getting on in their own games.
Saying all that, there is little point speculating at this point, there are far too many possible outcomes to even start trying to make sense of it all, and not forgetting that Burton Albion host Cambridge United next Wednesday and that could change everything again, so the picture will only become clear at 10pm on Wednesday night.
Taking the briefest of look backs to the last two results I don’t think anyone could have got the feeling we were fighting for our lives, in fact probably just the opposite and there have been on or two concerning factors that have come out of those games.
Our lack of goals all season is a contributing factor to our current position with just 16 goals at home, and only Forest Green have a worse record in the whole of the EFL. Creativity or opportunities have been thin on the ground and when we do get the chance we have on too many occasions been shot shy.
Some will point at the recruitment in the summer and January and say it was too little in the summer, and too late and still not enough in January, but now is not the time to debate that one, we have bigger fish to fry, we can chew over that one in the final analysis.
We have already touched on providing chances and neither Manning or Jackson have managed to get anything much out of those tasked to create, and the days of O’Riley, Parrott and Twine are long gone, and we have been left with pale imitations, too young, past it, inexperienced, not good enough…..the choice is yours.
In addition, corners, as they have been generally taken by midfielders, all season we haven’t been that effective, but just recently they have become even worse, if that was at all possible with all 12 corners against Charlton failing to beat the first defensive player, that is inexcusable and hard to fathom how a professional player cannot get at least 50% in the target area.
In defence injuries certainly haven’t helped, and again you could argue that those tasked to make such decisions never acted quickly enough to find replacements, or even sign one, although we did sign Stewart who immediately got injured, and even when he did make his debut, he hardly set the world alight.
Taking a close look at our rear-guard, it has taken Tucker about three quarters of the season to fulfil his promise, but thankfully he is now somewhere near what we hoped for, he’s not a Harry Darling, but where he is now is a mile better than he was.
Another factor is the Jules and Lewie situation. Jules has obviously been told to get forward and provide those surging runs but unfortunately it has been at the expense of his defensive duties and it has brutally exposed the weaknesses of Lewie and left him vulnerable to players running at him and passing him with ease. It’s a juggling act I know, and you have to agree that the loss of Harvie has been massive for us. Lewie returning strengthened us, but it just shows you what Harvie did to protect that area as in the last two games Lewie has looked well below his standards.
Moving on then as I’ve actually looked at the whole scenario deeper than I wanted to, as I’ve said there is plenty of time to mull over the bigger picture later.
Barnsley then at SMK, a big ask indeed, but even the unlikeliest of results could cast a different light on the whole situation.
Below is the current league positions of both teams, plus the home form of the Dons and the away form of Barnsley.MK Dons (20th) – P 44, W 11, D 10, L 23, GF 40, GA 62, Pts 43.
Barnsley (4th) – P 44, W 26, D 7, L 11, GF 76, GA 41, Pts 85.
MK Dons (H) (23rd) - P 22, W 4, D 6, L 12, GF 16, GA 29, Pts 18.
Barnsley (A) (4th) – P 22, W 10, D 6, L 6, GF 31, GA 19, Pts 36.
Crunching the numbers, the 10 away wins have come against Cambridge United, Sheffield Wednesday, Fleetwood Town, Shrewsbury Town, Peterborough Utd, Cheltenham Town, Port Vale, Oxford Utd, Wycombe Wanderers, and Forest Green. The 6 draws against Ipswich Town, Bolton Wanderers, Accrington Stanley, Portsmouth, Bristol Rovers, and Lincoln City. Completing the stats their 6 defeats have been at the hands of Plymouth Argyle, Derby County, Morecambe, Charlton Athletic, Exeter City, and Burton Albion.
Waiting to put a nail in the Dons coffin are two former Dons players, top scorer with 16 goals Devante Cole, and former Cowshed favourite Max Watters. Max is on loan from Cardiff and has only found the net on a couple of occasions since his move in early January, mainly down to his limited game time, a suspension, and the occasional injury.
Also waiting in the wings to make an impact is James Norwood who has been a thorn in the Dons side on more than one occasion, expect to see the Trotters ringing the changes around the 70 minute mark bringing on an equally potent attack with fresh legs.
Providers are plentiful in the Barnsley line-up with Adam Phillips, Jordan Williams, and Luca Connell all on 8 assists this season, and we shouldn’t forget Herbie Kane on 6 assists, you may recall he made his professional debut against us when we played Liverpool in the EFL Cup in 2019 and later that season he joined Barnsley for a reported £1.25m.
The gaffer at Barnsley is someone we have been associated with on one or two occasions when in the hunt for a new boss, 45 year old Michael Duff. As a centre half Duff cut his teeth at Darlington and Carterton Town from the Hellenic League before signing papers at Cheltenham. He also had spells at Cirencester Town on loan, and a move to Burnley where he finished his career. He earned 24 full caps as well with Northern Ireland to add to his domestic tally of 720 games and 23 goals.
His first job in the hot seat was at Cheltenham Town where he stayed for 4 years and helped them to a first ever automatic promotion in the EFL and was also awarded the League 2 Manager of the Season award. At the end of the 2021/22 season, he informed the Robins Directors he wished to depart for new opportunities, two days later he was appointed Head Coach at newly relegated Barnsley on a three year deal.
Barnsley come to us after suffering a 3-0 defeat at home to title chasing Ipswich Town on Tuesday night and that defeat ends their minor aspirations of going up automatically, they will now seek the playoff route, potentially against Derby County or Bolton Wanderers.
Whilst his numbers at Cheltenham were good showing a 40% Win Ratio, they are currently almost 60% with Barnsley, and his tally stands at P 53, W 31, D 7, L 15. His career figures are P 256, W 113, D 67, L 77, leaving him with a career total of almost 45%.Betting – It won’t come as a shock to hear that Barnsley are the favourites, although there is a bit of meat on the bone if you fancy an away win.MK Dons 19/10, Draw 5/2, Barnsley 17/11.
Team News – The long and the short of it is I don’t have any, but I would expect/predict an unchanged side from the Fleetwood game, that is if O’Hora came out of the game with no issues. Checkout the Jacko presser on Thursday/Friday to see if there is any news on the missing Stewart. Relegation Watch – Another afternoon spent watching the phone for updates, the games to keep an eye on are listed below. Accrington Stanley v Cambridge United
Forest Green Rovers v Oxford United
Morecambe v Lincoln CityPrediction – Well in the words of Bonnie Tyler “I need a hero” and further on in the lyrics she suggests: “And it’s gotta be soon”, and I don’t think I could have put it any better, we really do need a hero, a whole team of them would be even better.
I’m though not going to make a prediction this week as I’m currently only praying for divine intervention, I haven’t got time for predictions, other that I cannot see us winning, but don’t get me wrong, I will take anything we can get out of this happily, but what we cannot afford to do is lose and lose heavily.
Our goal difference could be a trump card at the end of the season, so we certainly have to try and protect that.
See you behind the sofa !!  WD
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Read the MELTDOWN after every game, no bullshit, just giving it straight
Last edited by WellDon on Fri Apr 28, 2023 8:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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