We're up

[boatshed bill]

We haven't got 80 points yet.

[RVclaret]

There’s some teams below us on very good runs. We’ve got some tricky games coming up. January window means others can strengthen, Watford’s injury crisis is improving and they are still winning. Still got them and West Brom to play yet. Long way to go.

[ElectroClaret]

We'll p1ss it. Stop fretting.

[HiThere]

There’s some teams below us on very good runs. We’ve got some tricky games coming up. January window means others can strengthen, Watford’s injury crisis is improving and they are still winning. Still got them and West Brom to play yet. Long way to go.

Can somebody go into RVclaret's house and hide the scissors and knives? This is after we've just won.

[RVclaret]

Can somebody go into RVclaret's house and hide the scissors and knives? This is after we've just won.

Tell our manager that too then..

[boatshed bill]

Can somebody go into RVclaret's house and hide the scissors and knives? This is after we've just won.

It's been pretty clear that the last few games have been tough for us, we have managed to win them but every team will give us a hard game from now on.
Of course we should make it, but let's not celebrate until we are there.

[HiThere]

It's been pretty clear that the last few games have been tough for us, we have managed to win them but every team will give us a hard game from now on.
Of course we should make it, but let's not celebrate until we are there.

Nobody is celebrating. As you say, we've managed to win them. We're still winning.

[tiger76]

There’s some teams below us on very good runs. We’ve got some tricky games coming up. January window means others can strengthen, Watford’s injury crisis is improving and they are still winning. Still got them and West Brom to play yet. Long way to go.

Some sides below us on decent runs, however despite that we are maintaining our healthy advantage, indeed if anything we're increasing the gap to those in pursuit, and their winning runs can't continue for ever, ours probably can't either but we have a fair amount of leeway to play with.

Key for me is most of our tougher fixtures are at TM, and no-one will relish a visit there anytime soon given our impressive home form.

Also worth pointing out those sides trying to catch us will have to play each other and therefore will drop points along the way.

Yes we still have work to do but they'd all kill to be in our position right now.

[CombatClaret]

'Not The Top 20' podcast pointed out a while ago that we've been overperforming our XG for a while so could see fewer goals in future as we revert to the mean.
They also made the point we've scored so many excessive goals that scoring fewer would still see us winning games.

Today seemed like an illustration of that.

[Lowbankclaret]

We could go 19 points clear on Friday

That is ridiculous

Went to West Brom away, they really bullied us and should really have got more out of the game.
Whilst I think their goal was fortunate , they should have got more from that game.

Both teams have improved, but we are without Cork now.

Be a very difficult game I think.

[Spiral]

Why not celebrate and enjoy it? Not often you get to experience a five month promotion party. Some fans go their entire lives following a team without knowing what it feels like to have a season where you dominate. If they're lucky, some know what it is to be two pump chumps who get the job done on the final day of a season or something, but we're stallions...we go all night!!!

[Pickles]

Friday against West Brom is the toughest game of the season, or at least since Sheffield United away. A good side, Corberan has improved them hugely.

[RVclaret]

Friday against West Brom is the toughest game of the season, or at least since Sheffield United away. A good side, Corberan has improved them hugely.

Yeah agree. They’ve got some real quality for this level. Maatsen really struggled against Wallace last time out. Dike is back now too and far better than Grant up top.

[Rouwens_Weapon]

Barnes has to start for me to be a bit of presence up front.

[HiThere]

Friday against West Brom is the toughest game of the season

I wondered how long it would be before that came out.
So far, we've had 27 'toughest games of the season so far'.
We're not doing too badly.

[HiThere]

Why not celebrate and enjoy it?

Agreed.

[Pickles]

I wondered how long it would be before that came out.
So far, we've had 27 'toughest games of the season so far'.
We're not doing too badly.

You've seemed to have interpreted what I wrote as something overly negative. I'm one of the most enthusiastic about this season, going right back to the summer. West Brom on Friday though is a tough game, I hope we come through it as dominant and as assured as we have the vast majority of games.

[Nori1958]

Went to West Brom away, they really bullied us and should really have got more out of the game.
Whilst I think their goal was fortunate , they should have got more from that game.

Both teams have improved, but we are without Cork now.

Be a very difficult game I think.

And we should have been 3.0 up before they scored

[Lowbankclaret]

And we should have been 3.0 up before they scored

True, but we can say that about a few games.

[ElectroClaret]

Be a very difficult game I think.

Be a very difficult game for them, too.

[HiThere]

True, but we can say that about a few games.

Earlier this season I remember thinking we should have had at least 12 points more on the table than we had. We should have been way clear very early on. The Blackpool game was just one of them but there were others. We should have been almost out of sight. So I'm not really understanding why some people are almost suggesting we shouldn't be where we are? I just don't get it.

[HiThere]

Be a very difficult game for them, too.

*nods head*

[Spiral]

Six games left which look on paper to be tough:

WBA (h)
Norwich (a)
Watford (h)
Rovers (derbies are always weird) (a)
Boro (a)
Sheffield (h)

And of those I'd say only WBA, Boro and Sheffield look properly nails.

We could lose five of those and draw one (we haven't produced anything even close to such a points return, even when we were throwing points away in the early part of the season), and Watford would still need to win all six on those corresponding matchdays to overtake us. Watford, who recently lost 4-0 to Swansea and before that, 2-0 to Millwall, and who still have to play Boro and Sheffield away.

And when you go down the table and look at every single team below the previous, who might overtake that team in front of them — with every point they are behind the last they recede further and further away from us, and their task becomes bigger than the team they overtake. "Ooh, WBA are looking good, as are Boro"...yeah, true, they're good teams in good form, but for every team who might catch Watford, for them to catch us they'd need to be as perfect as Watford +1 point, then below that team, +2 points, then below them, +3...so if it looks near impossible for Watford to knock us out of autos, it stands to reason that no one will, because any other team's task is point-by-point even bigger than the one Watford have to achieve. We're realistically unassailable, which is to say, we're up.

[Lord Beamish]

Some Clarets fans still think Derby could catch us.

[Ampth7]

Can somebody go into RVclaret's house and hide the scissors and knives? This is after we've just won.

No, I think RV is spot on with his/her assessment. I’m sure you are just joking, but let’s not tempt fate by making bold claims when we still have a shed load of games still to play! We got away with one today in my opinion as Coventry could, maybe should have been clear by the hour mark. Fair play to our boys for hanging on in there but let’s not kid ourselves, we were second best for an hour IMO.

[HiThere]

No, I think RV is spot on with his/her assessment. I’m sure you are just joking, but let’s not tempt fate by making bold claims when we still have a shed load of games still to play! We got away with one today in my opinion as Coventry could, maybe should have been clear by the hour mark. Fair play to our boys for hanging on in there but let’s not kid ourselves, we were second best for an hour IMO.

I'm all for not tempting fate. But there's a difference. There's a difference between enjoying the moment of a win and celebrating that we've gone even further forward than we were, and basically ignoring all of that and instead concentrating on how difficult the next game is going to be.

[claret2018]

Nailed on now more or less.

Nothing can possibly go wrong.

[Spiral]

No, I think RV is spot on with his/her assessment. I’m sure you are just joking, but let’s not tempt fate by making bold claims when we still have a shed load of games still to play! We got away with one today in my opinion as Coventry could, maybe should have been clear by the hour mark. Fair play to our boys for hanging on in there but let’s not kid ourselves, we were second best for an hour IMO.

Aye, second best team, in terrible conditions, with Cork yellow-carded early on, with our centre-back pairing changed, against one of the only teams to actually properly go for it at the Turf this season...and still we won, and still we kept a clean sheet.

Forget being lucky to be in the game at the hour mark. That's a description of champions. We've conceded just two league goals since Sheffield battered us back in early November. You only do that if you reliably and consistently stand up to tests.

[tally]

Its difficult at the moment to see us not finishingin the top two no matter how you try to analizethe remainder of this season.

[Bin Ont Turf]

Some Clarets fans still think Derby could catch us.

I'm still concerned about Scarborough making a late charge.

https://www.footballsite.co.uk/Statisti ... 991-92.htm

[Spijed]

There's only one issue left this season.

Will we finish 1st or 2nd.

That's it.

[ElectroClaret]

Now dont bloody argue...WE'RE UP!!!!

[Newcastleclaret93]

Now dont bloody argue...WE'RE UP!!!!

We could be officially promoted in March

[Pickles]

Promoted at Ewood? Yes please.

[bfcmik]

As I see it, some team has to go on a Burnley like run of form and we would have to suddenly become like Wigan for us to miss out on promotion now. Just not going to happen, even dropping as low as 1.0 points per game has us on 80 and that is an incredible loss of form for a team currently gaining 2.14 ppg

[Roosterbooster]

Promoted at Ewood? Yes please.

Need to be 25 pts ahead of 3rd after our next 9 games
Currently 19 ahead, but could be 16 after tomorrow
Although lots of teams still have to play each other so points will be lost

[Pickles]

Need to be 25 pts ahead of 3rd after our next 9 games
Currently 19 ahead, but could be 16 after tomorrow
Although lots of teams still have to play each other so points will be lost

That sounds doable the way things are going. Please, please. There'd be more Clarets at Ewood than Rovers fans.

[Spiral]

I'm gonna be so pi$$ed off if we miss out on the opportunity to win promotion at Ewood because we've already done it in the game before against Hull.

[jurek]

Although we've still got some tough games to come
the teams below also have some tough ones coming up
and most of them have still to play each other.
I do think 80 (or just above) points might be enough but am hoping
we can go no and win it outright.

Truly amazing season so far and the team, VK and staff
have brought smiles all round.
And from what I've seen and heard have to say the fans have also been superb.
Finally a big thank you to Mr. Pace fro bringing in VK and backing him.

[Bin Ont Turf]

Yeh but what if an asteroid hits the Earth?

[Ampth7]

Not promoted……..yet!!!

[bfcjg]

We've a toenail in the Premier league,no more.

[Spijed]

A gap as big as we've got has never been closed with less than half a season left.

[Spijed]

And just to add, you know you are In a strong position when one of the form teams in WBA no longer has any chance of automatic promotion.

[Commy]

Sheff Utd are our rivals. Good that we are pushing each other but we are winning hard matches. They, at the minute, are playing the lower league teams and still have the top ones to play. I have watched their last two games and to be honest, they don't look brilliant. Were lucky tonight that Hull couldn't do anything up top. If we get through the next few matches on top I think we will win by miles.

[ElectroClaret]

We've a toenail in the I Premier league,no more.

Oh stop whingeing.
Of course we're up.

[Colburn_Claret]

Yeh but what if an asteroid hits the Earth?

Ben Mee would have headed it clear

[Grimsdale]

Amazing stat:
Watford in third place are closer points-wise to bottom-placed Wigan than they are to Burnley.

We are so going up.

[blatherwickstattoos]

Amazing stat:
Watford in third place are closer points-wise to bottom-placed Wigan than they are to Burnley.

We are so going up.

Wow what a crazy stat. I
Still can’t believe barstweards have had 28 games and no draws . Pish poor league this tbh

[Quicknick]

In level seven in 1994/95, Bradford [Park Avenue] were 20 points behind leaders Clitheroe with 13 matches remaining, then won the lot, taking the title by four points.
Up the Avenue