Arlow

[OldTowner]

Arlow 2 Suds 2

Arlow 5 - 3 pens

 

Town must be one of top three favorites for next term.

[The Invisible Man]

Well done Harlow.

 

What a farce play-offs are. A whole season decided on a penalty shoot out: the 5th placed side could have been promoted at the expense of the side finishing 2nd!

[The Slayer]

sounds like a case of sour grapes to me.

 

 

[Gazza]

Nah this part of Nth London loses with grace unlike some other poorly supported teams with more rent a stewards than fans!

[The Invisible Man]

Originally Posted By: The Slayer

sounds like a case of sour grapes to me.

How so? We finished third! I have offered my congratulations to Harlow on finishing as runners-up, and also on winning promotion through the play-offs. I said I am pleased they have gone up as they deserve it, having finished second. It would have been unjust, in my view, if the fifth placed team had gone up. And yes, also if the third placed team had been promoted.

If you were a regular on these fora you might recall that I have been opposed to play-offs since they were introduced in the eighties.

[Out_Of_Towner]

Originally Posted By: Gazza

Nah this part of Nth London loses with grace unlike some other poorly supported teams with more rent a stewards than fans!

Good shout Gazza ,I suspected that its him as well ,At least we wont have to go there for at least another year and be welcomed by rentathugs ltd.

[London Hawk]

Thanks for your congratulations, but we dont have rent-a-thug just ask Sudbury fans/team/manager. Both sets of fans sung there hearts out with plenty of freindly banter and the PKs both sets of fans mixed together and wished each other all the best for next season.

Saturday was a great spectacle and the result was right as we finished 2nd and deservrd to go up.

But Penalty kicks to settle who goes up is a nightmare and not good for you. Lets try and get 3up 3down with no playoffs.

Have a great Summer and we may see you again soon.

[Badger]

The 'rent-a-thug' comment wasn't aimed at Harlow, I suspect.

[Hawkeye Pierce]

Harlow is a great new ground that deserves a higher league. I wasn't as impressed with the team but when all is said and done they won when it mattered and we didn't.

 

I agree deciding a promotion place on penalties is a ******* joke! I don't rate playoffs either! 42 league games and then that. The men in league official suits should all resign but they are probably proud!

 

Sour grapes - we weren't good enough again this season to go up pure and simple. Has JC got what it takes - He hasn't delivered anything of note in 2 years so we have a right to ask the question? A playoff place which was then thrown away at the first opportunity. Not a cup match win this season either.

[neutral fan]

Didnt one of Towns players,almost join Harlow??,bet he is gutted now

[Sponsor of Beer]

Surely a place off place two years running is 'something of note'. I imagine the 17 teams in the league that didn't achieve that this season, or the 16 last, would have taken it. I doubt whether any of them have much in their trophy cabinets worth a mention over the period, either.

[andyetfc]

Originally Posted By: neutral fan

Didnt one of Towns players,almost join Harlow??,bet he is gutted now

Some of our ex players also left the club for other clubs who were subsequently relegated!

[Gazza]

Originally Posted By: Sponsor of Beer

Surely a place off place two years running is 'something of note'.......

Dont think an extra game at the end of a 42 game season is that great an achievement, especially when we have played as poorly as we did this season.

[Sponsor of Beer]

Ok, put another way.

 

Surely a top three finish [after 42 games]is 'something of note', and something that the significant majority of clubs in the division didn't achieve and would have taken?

[Hawkeye Pierce]

Originally Posted By: Sponsor of Beer

Ok, put another way.

Surely a top three finish [after 42 games]is 'something of note', and something that the significant majority of clubs in the division didn't achieve and would have taken?

Does the league give a trophy for 3rd? No so the league don't note it!

Which league are we playing in next season ands which are Harlow playing in?

[Sponsor of Beer]

Sorry, that's nonsense. If the league don't note anything other than who wins a championship or runners up trophy, how would they know who to relegate!

 

Your original post said 'He hasn't delivered anything of note in 2 years', which (in my humble opinion) is not true. It seems to me that third this season behind two team with their own grounds (and the income derived therefrom) and in front of everybody else is noteworthy. There's a big difference between that, and meeting individual's own expectations/desires, which are no doubt less objectively measured.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lovely stuff]

Coming third in the league two seasons running and as a result getting into the play-offs IS an achievment and it is something to rightly feel proud of.It also maintains our tradition as a top five side (whichever league we are in).

 

My concern is that all that work in those 80 or so games,went to waste in 2 home play-off games.On both occassions we were easily beaten by teams who finished well below us in the league.I think we should concentrate on why that happens in big home games.Until we address why that is and how to change it,coming third in the league will never see us promoted.

[Hawkeye Pierce]

Originally Posted By: Sponsor of Beer

Sorry, that's nonsense. If the league don't note anything other than who wins a championship or runners up trophy, how would they know who to relegate!

Your original post said 'He hasn't delivered anything of note in 2 years', which (in my humble opinion) is not true. It seems to me that third this season behind two team with their own grounds (and the income derived therefrom) and in front of everybody else is noteworthy. There's a big difference between that, and meeting individual's own expectations/desires, which are no doubt less objectively measured.

Coming bottom of the league is noted with relegation.

The first team management decided to use its limited resources to go all out for a playoff place. Now I chose to interpret that as promotion and not winning a single cup match tended to confirm that deliberate focus. To put all your eggs in one SoB basket and fail is in my book still a failure. Imagine having lost in that penalty shoot out @ Harlow?

Now if promotion was never the intention from achieving the playoff place then the objective of the Board might have been achieved and yes I would need to apologise for misunderstanding the intentions of the club. I had hoped we were sincere in our desire for promotion.

[Sponsor of Beer]

Clearly the difference between extreme disappointment at not achieving promotion and branding just about everybody involved a failure is a subjective one, and we are different ends of that scale. But, on the basis that the vast majority of clubs playing competitive football would love to be having this debate suggests to me that we aren't in 'failure' terrority here.

[andyetfc]

We succeeded in getting into the play offs yet failed to gain promotion.

 

Let's see if we can go two steps further next season or gain promotion directly by winning the league.