The Relegation Parade

It’s all aboard the relegation bus, then.

The main topic of gallows humour amongst our fan base is how best to “celebrate” the club’s impending decline into what we used to call division 4.

Some of our most hardy fans took it upon themselves to organise the first open top bus parade of the season around Bristol. In an act symbolic of our season, The Compton Old Boys can be seen here proudly parading a whole lot of  “nothing whatsoever” to the admiring locals.

On that note why don’t teams get something for having an atrocious season? Perhaps one of Coventry and Chesterfield can be given a giant wooden spoon for finishing last? Fans are now taking bets on which game we are actually confirmed as being down, I’m hoping for a Blackadder style “underpants on head” away parade at Bolton.

On the pitch it’s been a feeling of hope, desperation and bewilderment for the Spireites this week. The 3-3 game against Peterborough was actually entertaining, we appeared to have settled on a formation which looked as though it could hold it’s own, however shakily, against a mid-table side. Ebanks-Blake, for me, was back to his best just a pity we’ve seen so little of it this year, for one reason or another. Over 2 seasons our highest ever paid player hasn’t been worth it, but there’s nothing like the end of your contract to motivate players to get one last payday.

Ok the Posh could easily have won it, if they hadn’t hit the bar and post when it looked easier to score but the Spireites looked good value in the second half and it seemed as if we had a formation which could carry us into the tricky away clash at Bristol Rovers.

15 minutes before kick off at The Bristol Rugby stadium, supporters were expressing disbelief at our formation, suggesting perhaps the side were lined up to scrum down in a game of egg ball chasing.

How can you have a settled side if the back line changes every week? With right back McGinn, Anderson and midfielder Dion Donohue in a back 3; then playing centre back Sam Hird in midfield, the line up could best be described as “experimental.” Conor Dimaio was rewarded for a good performance against Peterborough and an Ireland under 21 call up, by being made substitute.

Still, it took Rovers a whole minute to score their first goal, by the ingenious tactic of running straight through the middle of the pitch, with our side working out who was doing what.

We play Rochdale next, whose manager, Keith Hill will demonstrate how to get a team on a small budget playing effective football.