A fortnight has passed since the end of the season and chris_rabz has taken a look back, detailing the thoughts of the fans as the season progressed.--------------------------------------------------
I'm going to do a bit of delving into the forum archives for this one and while I give my take on the season I'll try to include some quotes from posters on here at that time, what people thought for the future, and where we would end up.
PRE-SEASONBack at this time last year we had survived a long time before the end of the season, but as a result of early survival then ended the season without a win in our final seven games. A lot of people then said the squad needed a complete revamp, and wondered whether Megson could take the club any further than the 13th place finish we achieved then. So fast forward a few months to the start of the season and here is what a few on here said they reckoned for 09/10:
MANNY: Similar to last year. I don't think we'll be in relegation trouble, but we won't break into the top half. If we can avoid conceding late goals and turn a few of these 1 goal defeats into draws, we should be pushing for mid-table againJAMSTER26: I agree with Manny,I think we will improve on our position last season, I will say we will finish 11th and predict that Blackburn will take the long fall down to the Championship (well one can only hope)ARCHIEBOLD STANLEY III: For me there are no teams that are stand out better than us, obviously barring the sky 4. There may be better managers and tactics for all you doom merchants,(Tash) but team for team on our day we can beat anyone and also be beaten by anyone. So yes i cannot see any reason why we can't finish 7th.CHRIS_RABZ: Ourselves, West Ham, Blackburn, Wigan maybe, Sunderland, any of those could finish 8th with a bit of luck. Personally I don't quite think we'll make it that high but 10th is more than achievable - IF we get that striker. The bottom will be Burnley, Hull and any one from Brum, Wolves, Stoke or Pompey. I'm gonna stick my neck out and say 11th.NATASHA WHITTAM:
As things stand today, with only one and a half strikers and no midfield creativity I can only see us in the bottom 3 come May 2010. How some of you dreamers think a team that hardly scored a goal after Christmas is going to finish 7th having not improved its strikeforce is wishful thinking.SLUFFY:
Are we going to get relegated - hope not with Burnley, Hull and Birmingham with a team of old men - Kevin Phillips, Lee Carsley, Maik Taylor. Lee Bowyer, Marcus Bent, Franck Queudrue, Barry Ferguson, etc. Chuck in Portsmouth who are in financial meltdown at the moment, and Wigan who have sold their best players and have a new manager untested at Premiership level (Paul Ince this time last year) and I think even playing like we did since Boxing Day last year we should just about be ok.
So whom have we left - Stoke, Fulham, Sunderland, Wolves, Blackburn - and that's the sort of group we will end up in the middle of. So I make that about that about 13th again. Thing is though we finished 13th on 41 points last season - and although I think with the players we have at this moment - we will get about 41 or 42 points this season - I think our league position will be that much lower - so I'll go for 15th or 16th place finish.So off we went into 2009/10 most believing we wouldn't quite be bad enough to go down, yet not strong enough to pierce the top ten.
AUGUSTBolton 0-1 Sunderland
Hull 1-0 Bolton
Tranmere 0-1 Bolton (CC2)
Bolton 2-3 LiverpoolMany had said going into the season that while Megson still wasn't their ideal choice to manage the side, they would see how the season started. By the end of August the Megson Out cries were starting up once again. A poor, limp couple of defeats against winnable opposition in Sunderland and Hull was tempered slightly with a 1-0 cup win over old rivals Tranmere Rovers. The team made a decent start against Liverpool but when 2-1 ahead lost Sean Davis to an ill-deserved red card - and the quality then told as we went on to lose 2-3. A bit of hope for September but still 0 points from 9, and sat 18th.
CHRIS_RABZ:
But now for me Gary Megson is ON the plank and walking it. We won't get anything from Liverpool, if we do it'll be a shock on the "1-0 win over Utd" proportions, and if he pulls its out amazing, well done, I'll happily be wrong. But I don't see it, and if the game goes the way nature feels it will we will lose by a good two or three goals, we will be left with 0 points from 9. Pathetic. With games against Sunderland and Hull in our opening fixtures that is DISGRACEFUL.SEPTEMBERPortsmouth 2-3 Bolton
Bolton 1-1 Stoke
Bolton 3-1 West Ham (AET) (CC3)
Birmingham 1-2 BoltonA much improved month for the Whites saw us claim our first victories of the season, reach the last 16 of the Carling Cup and complete an unbeaten month courtesy of three late goals in the league - a stoppage time winner at Fratton Park, a last-gasp penalty at home to Stoke, and a clever Lee Chong-Yung strike to take the points from Birmingham. Up to 13th and Megson looking like he might finally have it right after all.
OCTOBERBolton 2-2 Tottenham
Man Utd 2-1 Bolton
Bolton 3-2 Everton
Chelsea 4-0 Bolton (CC4)
Bolton 0-4 ChelseaA mixed bag in October really. We expected to lose at Old Trafford and at home to Chelsea, but hoped we could beat one or both of Spurs and Everton. We got 4 points from those and while we crashed out of the cup at Chelsea all in all it wasn't that bad a month. My main worry at the end of the month though was that while we did very well to beat Everton we had to keep the squad the same for the cup tie at Chelsea, even if we lost it would have kept continuity rather than changing the squad around - as we did - and losing that form.
At the end of October following a second 4-0 hammering from Chelsea in a week we sat 14th looking forward to a daunting trip to Villa Park...
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And here endeth part one of the 2009/10 season review, I hope you found it interesting so far. If not... well write something better yourself, show me how it's done
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Burnden Aces would like to thank chris_rabz for taking the time to write this article. Part two will follow later in the week.
