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West Brom and Stoke - any chance of staying in the Premier League?

They’ll be dancing in the streets of Hanley and Newcastle-under-Lyme after Stoke City bagged themselves the second automatic promotion spot on Sunday. The Potters have done magnificently this season, coming from behind on several occasions to land wins or draws against Championship opponents and it’s hard to argue that they don’t deserve their place in the Premier League next season.

Quite whether they’ll stay there for longer than a season is another matter. Many have commented that this season’s Championship has been bereft of quality, with West Brom winning the league with the lowest points total for over two decades. Not that the Baggies or Stoke care at this particular moment in time, with the BBC reporting Tony Pulis, the manager of the latter, in a bullish mood.

“I have to say a special ‘thank you’ to the chairman. Peter showed a lot of character to buy this club and spent a lot of money on it.

“This is a great day for this club and an opportunity for us to build and push on for next year.”

However, the fun starts next week when Pulis and Coates have to start planning for next season. With just eleven points on the board this season, Derby County have demonstrated how promotion to the top flight can go terribly wrong and while the Rams will be much richer for their season in the big time, it’s obvious that the promoted three will be desperate not to disgrace themselves in such a manner.

The new boys will take heart from Sunderland’s efforts this season, a team who were floundering in mid-table of the Championship when Roy Keane took over and have now completed a successful season of consolidation in the Premier League. Birmingham too have shown that the gulf between the teams at the bottom of the top flight and the top of the second division isn’t that great, while the Baggies and Potters will also be confident of finishing above at least one other team - the one who is promoted through the play-offs and has less time to prepare for the new campaign.

Watch West Ham live online

Watch Birmingham live online

Can Robins Premiership Dream Still Fly?

Everyones favourite little overachievers Bristol City are in danger of running out of steam before the finishing line. The previous Championship toppers have finally fallen into the play-off spots. With 2 games to go, 4 points between them and automatic promotion and their horendous playoff record, the Robins look set to miss out on the big time and spend another year in Championship. West Brom and Stoke are leading the way and Hull are sitting in 3rd blocking City’s path. All three are looking like they have come into form just at the right time, just as the Robins fall on hard times.

However, although they have only won once in the last nine games, it is not all doom and gloom at Ashton Gate. Last year they were in the League One, trapped in a division they should have escaped on several occasions over a 7 year period. Will fans be dissapointed if City fail to reach the ‘promised land’ or will they simply reflect on the outstanding achievement of a newly-promoted team, seemingly lacking in goalscorers? (City have a goal difference of -1)

I personally think Gary Johnson has done amazingly well to get City out of League One, let alone challenge for promotion to the Premiership. I think next season will be more of a reality check for Robins fans. Yet, not everyone agrees with me. Defender Bradley Orr seems to think promotion is still possible.

I’m not going to say ‘we can’t', we’ll go right to the end and see what happens. We’ve just got to go and do the job that we can do, affect the games we can and hope other people do us favours. We’ll go right to the end and see where it takes us.

The last two games are going to be exciting and we’ve got to get over this disappointment [Losing to rivals Stoke] and go again.

Thoughts?

Robins Premiership Dream Flying Away?

Surprise promotion contenders Bristol City are starting to feel the pressure of the promotion chase accoring to manager Gary Johnson.

Without a win in five and without back-to-back defeats, the newly-promoted side are still somehow 2nd in the Championship with Watford and West Brom snapping at their heels.

And the man who looks like a roly-poly comedian more than a manager knows this:

We are feeling the pressure, but then so are West Brom, Watford and Stoke. It is something I have to deal with. It comes down to characters and personalities and which of them can get their game going under this amount of pressure.

Some of them will and some of them won’t. It is up to me to find the ones who will. We need to get the selection right between now and the end of the season and go with those lads who can actually handle the pressure. I think we have enough lads who can do that.

We are an honest bunch and we always hold our hands up when we have not turned up.

City have defied all expectations, being on a promotion hunt as opposed to fighting relegation, but is football so fickle that Johnson is pleading for his job should the Robins not make the promised land?

What was the biggest FA Cup shock of the day?

Upsets left right and centre in today’s FA Cup action. But what was the biggest shock?Coventry somehow managed to obliterate Blackburn 4-1, whilst League One Huddersfield beat Birmingham 2-1. Special mention should also go to Sheffield United who booted out Bolton with a 1-0 win lowly and injury ravaged Oldham, who beat Everton 1-0 at Goodison Park.

So what was your upset of the day?

Here are today’s 3rd round results in full:

Barnsley 2-1 Blackpool
Blackburn 1-4 Coventry
Bolton 0-1 Sheff Utd
Brighton 1-2 Mansfield
Bristol City 1-2 Middlesbrough
Charlton 1-1 West Brom
Chasetown 1-3 Cardiff
Chelsea 1-0 QPR
Colchester 1-3 Peterborough
Everton 0-1 Oldham
Huddersfield 2-1 Birmingham
Ipswich 0-1 Portsmouth
Norwich 1-1 Bury
Plymouth 3-2 Hull
Preston 1-0 Scunthorpe
Southampton 2-0 Leicester
Southend 5-2 Dag & Red
Sunderland 0-3 Wigan
Swansea 1-1 Havant and W
Swindon 1-1 Barnet
Tottenham 2-2 Reading
Tranmere 2-2 Hereford
Walsall 0-0 Millwall
Watford 2-0 Crystal Palace
West Ham 0-0 Man City
Wolverhampton 2-1 Cambridge Utd
Manchester United LATE KICK OFF Aston Villa

Watch Blackburn live online

Watch Aston Villa live online

From Barnsley to West Brom, via Hull City: BBC to broacast Football League matches

It’s not been a great year for Auntie, what with losing a load of funding, being found out to be dirty rotten cheats ripping of quiz contestants and Gary Lineker still smirking at the camera. So it with a smile on our face that we bring you better news from White City, the Beeb will be broadcasting Football League matches from 2009. Well, it worked for ITV Digital.

So, what are the details?

The BBC will show Football League and Carling Cup matches from the 2009 to 2012 seasons after winning the contract in a joint bid with Sky.

Oh yeah, the Carling Cup too, we forgot that.

It means Championship matches will be screened live on the BBC for the first time, with 10 first-choice games per season exclusively live on the BBC.

And what’s more…

The Carling Cup final will be simulcast live with Sky, and two semi-final legs shown exclusively live on the BBC.

No, we don’t know what that means either. So, is this a step forward for the Championship or just another sign that BBC sport ain’t what it used to be?

Who is the best player outside the Premiership?

For a while it was Kevin Phillips, for ages it was Jason Koumas, there was even some rubbish talked about Robert Earnshaw at some point. But who is currently the best player outside the Premiership? Well, here are some options, but feel free to pick your own?

Kevin Phillips (West Brom) - Is he past it? Probably, but a bit of expeience never hurt anyone.

Darius Henderson (Watford) - Scores a shed load of goal, but is he just a flash in the pan?

Zolton Gera (West Brom) - Top class midfielder, who really should be playing in Premiership soon.

Robbie Fowler (Cardiff) - Stop laughing at the back, he used to be the next Jimmy Greaves, that’s got to be worth something.

Jimbo Beattie (Sheff United) - The only good thing about Bryan Robson’s reign?

Peter Halmosi (Plymouth) - An outsider for the title, this Hungarian winger is leading Ollie’s Argyle revolution.

Any better suggestions?

Bristol City and Plymouth would bring a much needed change to the Premiership

For the last ten years the Premiership cash machine has been paying out to clubs across the country, but in one region is still waiting for it’s first payment: A strange place is called the Westcountry.

While people can’t stop swooning at the feet of footballing ‘hotbeds’ like the North-East or North-West, the most interesting thing about the Westcountry football in recent years has been Ian Holloway’s accent. But is it all about to change? Bristol City sit second in the Championship while Holloway’s Plymouth Argyle moved into the play-off positions with victory over the much larger spending Coventry at the weekend.

Neither has the money of other Championship clubs - or the fans, despite being reletively large cities - but both have good managers with an ability to make the best of what they have. And wouldn’t they be much more fun in the Premiership than the usual suspects for relegation?

Three Things You Learned From The Weekend’s Championship Matches?

It was back to the rat-race for Championship players at the weekend and they looked more than happy about it; turning in some great performances.

Sheffield Wednesday continued to get their season back on track with a impressive win at Stoke while Watford continued to steamroll their way to the Premiership as Marlon King grabbed another goal against Hull. Meanwhile, Neil Warnock almost got off to a winning start before Palace returned to their usual form and Man Utd’s Lee Martin proved to be a wise loan signing for Plymouth with a man of the match performance.

But here’s your chance to tell everyone what you learned from the weekend’s Championship results, and to see what others thought as well. Sort of a lower-league love-in, only not quit as disgusting.

Barnsley 1-1 Burnley

Blackpool 1-1 Palace

Colchester 3-2 West Brom

Norwich 1-3 Bristol City

Plymouth 1-0 Coventry

Queens Park Rangers 1-1 Ipswich

Scunthorpe 0-0 Leicester

Sheffield United 1-1 Preston North End

Stoke 2-4 Sheffield Wednesday

Watford 1-0 Hull

Wolves 2-0 Charlton

Championship Prediction Mania

Like the first day back at school after half-term, domestic football returns tomorrow and it doesn’t look too appealing. But wait, don’t run off to MFI to buy that decking for garden just yet, their are some appealing fixtures in the Championship. How about Neil warnock’s first game in charge of Crystal Palace? Then, of course, there is the battle of the B-ley teams at Oakwell (ok, we’re stretching it here). What will happen is anyone’s guess, but why not show your guess is better than ours by challenging our predictions, below:

Cut and paste into the comments with your own predictions, or just put down a few thoughts:

Barnsley v Burnley - away win

Blackpool v Crystal Palace - draw

Colchester v West Brom - home win

Norwich v Bristol City - home win

Plymouth v Coventry - draw

QPR v Ipswich - home win

Scunthorpe v Leicester - away win

Sheff Utd v Preston - draw

Stoke v Sheff Wed - home win

Watford v Hull - home win

Wolves v Charlton - draw

Southampton v Cardiff - away win

Championship Rumours and Gossip: Bristol City, Cardiff, Leicester, Norwich and Sheff Wed

Warning: none of the following rumours/facts are that interesting in themselves. But put them all together and they create something beautiful, a picture of the Championship on October 5th 2007. So…

High-flying-Bristol City (TM) have confirmed 34-year-old midfielder Alex Russell will be spending a second month on loan at Northampton. Quel surprise.

Cardiff’s trip to Blackpool has been delayed and will now played on December 11, so you will have wait an extra month to get your hands on a Kiss me Quick hat and a loose woman on a hen night, Bluebirds.

Danny Haynes will be staying at Ipswich until 2010 if his new contract is to be believed. Which it probably isn’t, he’s a footballer after all.

Norwich captain Jason Shackell has signed till 2010 too, it’s what all the cool kids are doing these days.

Leiceister’s Eric Odhiambo will be spending another month at Southend, who just can’t get enough of the striker who has scored 0 goals in 5 games.

AND…

Gray-head Kavenagh (arf) enjoys fighting against relegation so much that he wants to stay at Sheffield Wednesday forever, or at least till 2010.

Midweek Championship Predictions: Charlton, Southampton, Hull, Cardiff Cit and more

With a full programme of Championship games this week, it is time for punters to show that they know their stuff outside the Premiership by beating Caughtoffside at our predictions game. Simply go for a home win, away win or draw.

Here are the fixtures, check out our picks and cut and paste into the comments to show your own:

Barnsley v Bristol City - draw

Burnley v Ipswich - home win

Coventry v Blackpool - home win

Hull v Charlton - draw

Leicester v Wolves - away win

Norwich v Scunthorpe - home win

Plymouth v Crystal Palace - draw

Preston v Southampton - away win

Sheff Utd v Cardiff - draw

Watford v Sheff Wed - home win

The winner will get a pat on the back and a firm handshake. And maybe some crisps… but probably not.