Cod Almighty | Diary

Bloody hell Town!

25 October 2023

Trentside Diary writes: It's getting harder to maintain my usual love for going to Town games but I still wouldn't dream of not going. I don't feel the need to flounce about wondering why I bought a season ticket. I'm a Town fan and I can't imagine doing otherwise, there in sickness and in health. When we went down in 2010 I know some fans stopped going but in my view they needed us to stick by them more than ever. The "they" being the club, the players, and our fellow fans probably. It was painful and to be fair we saw a lot worse than we've seen this season.

That said, not everyone is dealing with the situation. There was a bloke next to me in the Upper last night who doesn't normally sit there. He spent the first half swearing and declaring loudly "I'm leaving, I'll not make it to half time". He got up at half time and departed with "I'll not be back for the second half" only to return and spend the second half saying "I'm going in a minute". I very nearly said "Oh you're back" at the start of the second half but didn't want a tirade of abuse and bit my tongue. Don't get me wrong, we were poor and there was a comedy of errors for the goals but how stressful must it be to be thinking like that the whole game.

Given what he's done for us, I think Paul Hurst should be given every chance to sort this. Had Town continued playing in the mode shown at the start of the second half last night we would have done alright. The lack of confidence after a poor run is clear to see but that doesn't mean that we don't have a footballing team in that squad.

There were many comments about "pulling the trigger" as we left the ground. One said it and then there were a lot of repeats as a clever thing to say. We can all have a view but ultimately it's the owners' decision to make and really some fans are just knobheads with their vitriol, particularly online. When all is said and done it's a human being and someone's job they're talking about. It wouldn't be acceptable in other walks of life so why is it here? Yes, moan to your mates but to be shouting all over social media is just naff.

I read Gav Holohan's post after the game and for me he summed it up perfectly. It's not one person's fault but as a group they aren't performing. Despite what those who regard themselves as experts think, Hurst clearly hasn't lost the dressing room and the players have a lot of respect for him. I still believe it will come right. Last season we dropped to 19th place at one point. I know we're 20th at the moment but it's still quite tight. That 19th place was in mid-February and we still managed to pick ourselves up. I haven't given up hope yet.

UTM!