Let them keep whining as long as we keep winning.

[ted1965]

It seems we are becoming more and more paranoid as the season rolls on, yes we have all been guilty of getting ourselves in a knot over some comments made by this pundit or that manager. It’s time to basically stick two fingers up at them and say we’ll keep winning and you keep whining, we wont conform to your idea of what is acceptable in a promotion side just because you don’t like how we play.

We are called ugly, bully boys, one trick ponies in how we play and on and on the list goes. We are not a thing of beauty, well that really depends on your point of view. I agree for a lot of the time we’re not a free flowing side who will make the neutrals sit up and beg, though is that what we need right now. I am a purist and yes I would love to see us knocking the ball about like Arsenal but reality has to come into the game somewhere, we simply don’t have those type of players throughout the side to play that way exclusively. It’s true we don’t play like Brazil, well we shall see which style prevails after 46 games, they have had plenty of advantages two years of parachute payments, lets see what happens next year if they fail to live up to all the hype and suddenly find themselves living off their own resources next season.

Though we are mixing things up a little more now, sure we still rely on set pieces for many of our more threatening moments but I was not aware that had been outlawed as part of football tactics. I think the majority of teams rely on quality set pieces to create goals, so why are we getting the backlash, simply because we’re not fashionable. I want to see us playing a free flowing brand of football somewhere down the line but we do play more football than many give us credit for, it’s not all long ball anymore, we have players with ability in the side now, as time goes on and the occasion allows I am sure we will play more carpet football. That may not be the case over the rest of this season but for me it’s irrelevant right now, we’ve been out of the top flight to long now, it’s important we win games ugly or pretty winning is everything.

We are constantly referred to as a big side who bully their opponents, well again we are physical and there’s no law against that either, if you want a non contact sport then go and watch bowls or curling. This is supposed to be a man’s game, compared to 30 years ago so much of the physical nature has been weeded out of the game. That to me is pathetic, nothing like a thundering 50-50 challenge, brings the whole ground to it’s feet. So we’re physical but we are hardly dirty, there are very few games where people can point the finger and say we resorted to crossing the line physically to win.

Now I am not suggesting we are some kind of angels, if we were we’d be sitting near the bottom of the league, you need to compete and we do it within the rules whatever some pundits, managers or media people suggest. I say we need to keep winning, if this means many people continue whining because we don’t conform to their idea of what is required to gain promotion, then tough.

I am convinced as we progress we will evolve and become a more pleasing product, you need money to bring the players in who can carry out that kind of football and for that we need to reach the Premiership, that’s where the evolution will begin and who knows in 2 or 3 years time people maybe purring over us the way they do over Brazil now, though I hope we will remember where we came from and not let the attention make us as pretentious as those from Rio De Smethwick have become.

Football is a results business, how you get them has become irrelevant as long as you do it within the laws of the game and to my knowledge we do that with plenty to spare.

[stokecityscott]

Great post ted

[powchirper]

another fine post from the Bard of the board.

[y_oh_y_delilah]

Hey Ted, has anybody ever told you that you'd make a great politician (you aren't are you???) or mother-in-law!!

......... another fine post though!

[Linx]

Much of this criticism is based on myth and hearsay. How many of these critics have actually seen us play regularly?

How many times have Manure played badly or just plain ugly on the way to some of their championships? And then some pundit says that sometimes you have to grind out results or rely on luck if you want to win things? And here we are barely ever winning 1-0! It seems a different excuse is pulled out to suit the misconception.

Every game I've seen this season, with the exception of Wolves in August, has been exciting and with mostly good football being played. As for the thuggishness? Nearly every side we've played in the last ten games has earned more yellow cards than us.

[nonameface]

People are still thinking that we are the the team of years ago under TP. We have moved on and its great that they still think that we are that team, it makes it soo much easier to suprise and beat them.
We aren't binary, we are far from it. We are physical but we don't push the boundaries. Pulis should be very proud of the team he has created- I'm proud to watch us now!