FoxHole

Fellow foxes have had a few days to reflect upon our new life in League 1. And it seems many of us would prefer our chances without Ollie . Even Ollie himself says he has job fears. This begs the question of who would take over? The Runes are not good…

No stability: We had something like seven managers during 2007 if you include caretakers Gerry Taggart and Frank Burrows!

Must get on with the boss: Martin Allen clashed once and was out.

Third Tier football: Even less glamour, smaller crowds, much less money, poorer quality football.

No Guaranteed Return: Others show that it could take a few seasons to escape (e.g. Forest!)

So can we attract a dynamic, highly regarded manager? It’s not going to be easy; and Mandaric may yet surprise us by announcing that Ollie is staying. Is anyone taking bets?

Stoke City 0 Leicester City 0, Sunday 4 April 2008

There were tears in my eyes when the game ended and I really didn’t feel like talking to anyone. It was as if something had been taken away from me that would never be given back. A genuine sense of shock.

Four hours later and it is starting to sink in. We will be playing local derbies against Northampton and Peterborough, and we could enjoy some long weekends in Yeovil or Cheltenham. Yet I keep thinking if only…

If only Southampton hadn’t scored a third goal. If only the Stoke keeper hadn’t tipped over Stearman’s header, if only the post hadn’t stopped what looked like a certain Leicester goal. If only Holloway had changed tactics about 20 minutes earlier.

If only we hadn’t played so badly in so many games earlier in this season. If only the players had cared.

This match was as nerve wrecking as they come; and when we did finally take the game to Stoke we showed that with some effort we can create chances. But with Southampton beating Sheffield United it was a case of too little too late. The emotional roller coaster was finally over.

A very sad end to a very sad season.

So here is how it could go on Sunday…

City lose: We are relegated unless Southampton lose

City draw: We stay up if Southampton draw or if Sheffield Wednesday lose

City actually beat Stoke: We stay up, unless Southampton beat Shefield United more than 17- 0

Milan Mandaric is quoted in today’s Leicester Mercury as saying he “still has every faith in Ollie”. Will this be the kiss of death for Ian Holloway?

I can’t say I’m excited about an all English Champions League final. This is mainly because I wanted Barcelona to beat Man Utd. To some people I may seem unpatriotic, but it’s all a matter of credibility. Like many football fans I really don’t like United. So why should I suddenly want them to win just because they are playing a team from another country? It would be hypocritical.

I therefore empathise with all those who found ITV’s glorification of the team in red just a little too much to take on Tuesday night. If I do bother to watch the final I’ll tune in to Sky.

PS…. And I wanted Liverpool to beat Chelsea.

WBA 1 Southampton 1, Monday 28 April

That was a close. The impact even closer…

I’m supposed to be working but I can’t get the league table out of my head.

In something like two hours we will know whether Southampton have lost or not. Never before have I been so desperate for a baggies win. Yet just down the road, and at my parent’s house in Hampshire, it’s a different story.

You see my brother, dad, uncle and cousin are Saints supporters. It usually makes for interesting banter. But as a family we have carefully avoided all talk of football during the last few weeks.

Either I will be sighing with relief tonight, or they will. And then we have to wait until Sunday….

Leicester City 1 Sheffield Wednesday 3, Saturday 26 April 2008

I apologise for neglecting this blog in recent weeks. Our fortunes on the football field haven’t exactly infused me with the urge to write. But after our display against Sheffield Wednesday, and with relegation staring us in the face, I need to get whatever misery is left out of my system.

To say our second half performance on Saturday afternoon was poor is an understatement. It was more like total surrender.

During a reasonable display for much of the first half, it seemed as if we might actually take three points. Surely, I told myself, the players realise the significance of this match. Clearly, I reasoned at half time, they wont let an equaliser stop them from battering Wednesday in the second half. After all, one win and we stay up!

But the 30,000 who had turned up expecting a victory were made to witness a second half of clueless dreadful, football. It was a shocking demonstration by a team that just didn’t seem bothered. Whereas Wednesday worked hard, fought for every ball, and supported each other; Leicester City were slow, sloppy and spiritless. Quite frankly we didn’t deserve to win and the players should hold their heads in shame. They were an absolute disgrace. As for Ollie, I find myself questioning his tactics. What is the point of long balls up the pitch towards Howard? He doesn’t move and he can’t head the ball. We could all see it wasn’t working Ollie so why didn’t you?

We’re now almost doomed. We wont beat Stoke City on Sunday, so only Southampton can save us. If they play rubbish then we will stay up by default. If not then it’s third tier football for a third rate team. I guess the players wont be that bothered. They’ll find a new club. But us Leicester fans will still be there however futile the cause.

Leicester City 1 Scunthorpe United 0, Saturday 29 March 2008

Relief was in the air at the final whistle. They even played music from The Great Escape over the public address as we left the stadium. But three points isn’t enough to secure safety yet. We need to win our remaining two home matches against Colchester and Sheffield Wednesday, and hopefully take something from the trips to Barnsley, Sheffield United and Stoke City.

The match was hardly an advert for the beautiful game. But then I didn’t expect to see flowing passes and great ball skills. I was, after all, at the Walkers Stadium. It was cold, damp, and the howling wind was blowing rubbish all over the pitch. Most of the game was as expected: Crap. But there were some moments, and Lee Hendrie showed again that he is in a different class. We also managed to get the ball wide and put some crosses in to the forwards. This proved far more effective than the usual long ball as their keeper was forced to make a couple of excellent saves.

But as Leicester fans know you need nerves of steel to last 90 minutes. As Scunthorpe became more desperate, so they looked more threatening. On cue our defence started to panic; and if I wasn’t so cold I’d have chewed off my nails. The ref didn’t help when he added five minutes of injury time. But suddenly the relief we needed finally arrived and I left the stadium in a much better mood than I did last weekend.

On the way back I heard that Derby were officially relegated -in March - ha ha ha.

I really don’t know what to think about this afternoon’s match. Clearly it is vital that we win, but is that very likely? On last week’s performance against Hull City the answer is clearly no.

Believe everything you have read or heard about the game last Saturday. We were totally third rate and only worthy of third division football. The players, and it is they who should take most of the blame, simply weren’t bothered. Only Henderson in goal played well (it could have been 0-6 without him); and only Hendrie seemed prepared to put some effort in, and he had a nightmare of a match.

So what of today? Our North Lincolnshire rivals have had some notable players pass through their ranks: Kevin Keegan and Ray Clemence are probably the most well-known. But the current squad is made up of players I’ve not even heard of. Is this a good thing I wonder? Current results suggest that the less we know about the opposition, the worse we play. We will know at about 4.50pm.