The standard of football between the two divisions has improved vastly over the last several seasons and this season sees the quality of the Championship as good as it ever has been. In defence of these players, there is of course a higher standard of football despite the dip in margin. For example, strikers are up against better teams and while they might have got 10 chances per game in the Football League, they may only get the odd few in the Prem.

So what unfortunate ten make my top ten list of players who are Championship rather than Premier League quality? Find out below…

Click on Routledge below to see the Top TEN

Our first move in the transfer market was the signing of young forward Connor Jennings from Stalybridge Celtic on an undisclosed fee. Jennings made just over 100 appearances for the Blue Square North side, netting a huge 44 times during his two and a half years there. He made his debut for the Iron off the bench in our recent draw at Colchester United. When a new forward is brought into the side, it was always likely for one to move the other way, and consequently Chris Dagnall left for Barnsley just a couple of days later. Dagnall had a particularly frustrating 18 months at the club, scoring only 9 times despite making 60 appearances.

Welsh international full back Christian Ribeiro was Knill’s next capture from Bristol City. Ribeiro has been brought into the side to try and solidify the defence after an unsettled start to the season.  Knill then successfully brought in Josh Walker as a replacement for Oliver Norwood, who returned to Manchester United after his loan spell finished at Glanford Park. Walker was originally brought on a permanent transfer but due to FIFA regulations, he is now only at the club on a one month loan from Watford but this will be extended on a month to month basis.

With the 11pm transfer deadline looming large, Alan Knill acted swiftly and brought in three players to reinforce and add depth to the side. I’m sure Scunny fans will remember the hard tackling and aerial strength of David Mirfin. Mirfin left last summer when his contract expired to Championship club Watford. However Mirfin has struggled to hold down a place in the starting eleven in Sean Dyche’s team and he will have jumped at the chance for a loan return to the Iron.

Undoubtedly the surprise of the window for the Iron was the capture of well-known striker Jon Parkin with Scunthorpe becoming his eighth club on deadline day. Supporters will be hoping that he can add some much-needed strength, power and crucially goals to the Iron attack. Free agent Robbie Gibbons was the third player to join on deadline day after he was released by the Cyrprus club Ermis Aradippou and left-back Jamie Reckord came in on loan to wrap up the business for the club in a very busy transfer window.

After only a year at the club defender Michael Nelson had left by mutual consent earlier in January, and has since joined SPL side Kilmarnock. Youngster Ashley Palmer has gone out on loan and youth trainees Jordan Thewlis and Jake Turner both departed.

Twelve players came and went in the busiest transfer window I’ve seen at the club for quite a few years. Let’s hope that the new arrivals can add exactly what we need to the team. The first major test will come when we play fellow strugglers Walsall on Saturday with three points critically needed to help move the club away from our precarious position at the bottom.

By Tony Bickley

To sum up the horrors I have seen, even David Beckham would struggle for sex appeal in these…oh who are we kidding? The guy would easily pull off Tiger stripes.

Click on Stade de Francais to see the worst 20 kits of our time

There was a West Country feel to the relegated teams in League One last season with Bristol Rovers, Plymouth Argyle and Swindon Town joining Dagenham & Redbridge in succumbing to the drop.

Terry Skiverton’s Yeovil could continue this theme into the new season and are favourites to be relegated after losing a number of key men in the close season in Dean Bowditch, Adam Virgo and Andy Welsh. The club has been busy trying to replace these and have brought in Steve MacLean who should guarantee goals while N’Gala and Agard are both highly regarded youngsters. However they are favourites to go down for a reason and will probably need a big season from MacLean in order to survive.

Graham Wesley’s Stevenage did brilliantly to win promotion through the play-offs last year but they could be in for hard time in only their second season in the Football League. Wesley is certainly the man for the job and he will instil his mental toughness onto his players. Whether they have enough to survive is questionable but I am sure their fans will enjoy the ride.

Over at Walsall, Dean Smith has brought in eight new players to the Bescott Stadium but they could struggle again after last season’s heroic late survival. Some positives to take are the impact that Smith made on the team after his arrival and if he can continue this they should have enough to stay up but it will be close again.

Tranmere Rovers under Les Parry could struggle again and after a summer of transition at Prenton Park it is clear to see why Parry is front runner to be the first man sacked in League One. Youngster Dale Jennings may have moved to Bayern Munich for big money but there is no evidence of the cash being spent to strengthen the side despite the obvious need for new recruits.

Hartlepool United are another team that can be regarded as relegation contenders as as appears to be the case every season but they still manage to defy the critics and stay up. I think they should be able to survive again with the experience of Nolberto Soloano benefiting the relatively young side and I believe Wadsworth is the man for the job.

Exeter had a stunning season last year coming close to achieving a play-off spot. However this year could be a reality check for the Grecians as although Paul Tisdale looks a fine young manager, his team lacks depth and the loss of Cuerton and McNish could really affect their prospects. It is important that they hang onto the much-prized Tisdale if they are to stand a chance of survival.

Newly promoted Bury relied heavily on loan players to secure promotion last term and now they have all departed. With a very small budget in comparison to some of the bigger team and an undersized squad, the Shakers could have a difficult first season in League One and may return to League One at the first time of asking.

Other teams that could struggle include Notts County who were the lowest goal scorers in the league last year, Oldham who have a thin squad and little money to spend and Rochadale who have had a summer of change after the departure of manager Keith Hill to Barnsley. I think all three clubs should have enough to have another season of mid-table mediocrity and it will be interesting to see if this is the case come May 2012. The new season is finally here, bring on the football!

Follow me on twitter @aidanmccartney for more Football League chat.

Promotion

Huddersfield Town were incredibly unlucky not to achieve automatic promotion last year and only a long unbeaten run by Southampton prevented them before the disappointment of the playoff final defeat. This time round Lee Clarke’s men are rightly favourites as they have all the right attributes to get out of the division however after losing key men in Pilkington, Peltier and Kilbane, it will be interesting to see if they are as consistent this season. I think Preston North End with Phil Brown in charge, who has Premier League experience, have the potential to return to the Championship and I expect them to do the best out of the relegated teams. Their end of season form was much improved despite the inevitable relegation and I believe they have a very capable squad for the division, making them strong contenders.

Playoff Contenders

Charlton are tipped to have a big season but I think they may be a bit overrated with some un-inspiring signings. They will surely be an improved side with all the new arrivals but I am not sure if Chris Powell is the man to take them back to the Championship. However I can see the Addicks challenging for the top six near the end of the season. Havign both Sheffield clubs in the third tier of English football is a rare sight and they will be looking to make the playoffs at least. Wednesday are not going to be the best team to watch under Gary Megson but if the style of football achieves promotion their fans won’t to mind. They should be contenders come the end of the season but need to find a goalscorer first. Over the city at Bramall Lane, Danny Wilson may have faced a lot of stick after taking the job but if he can take them back at the first time of asking the early animosity will be forgotten. They will be looking to use their excellent youth team to help them achieve after getting rid a number of expensive players and a place in the playoffs at the end of the season should be within their grasp.

Outsiders

Fellow relegated side Scunthorpe looked a different outfit under Alan Knill at the end of last season but it wasn’t enough to save them. A summer of departures has followed and a limited budget has meant only a few new signings to replace them. However if they can find a 20 goal a season man and sort their leaky defence, they will have enough quality to challenge for a play-off berth. Brentford look a good shot for playoffs under former Man City striker Uwe Rosler. The signing of League Two top goal scorer Clayton Donaldson is just one of their impressive captures this summer and pre-season results have been encouraging with the Bees looking like a team on the up. MK Dons under Karl Robinson enhanced as the season went on and if they continue this improvement they have the squad to sustain a challenge for the playoffs again despite the loss of key man Peter Leven.

Current League Two Champions, Chesterfield could be this year’s surprise package after playing some fantastic football last year. John Sherdian looks to be a very capable manager and they could well make a challenge for the playoffs although the loss of Craig Davies may affect their charge up the divisions.

Let me know your thoughts on my predictions and what you think of the upcoming League Two season also look out for the teams who will be trying to avoid relegation tomorrow. Follow me on twitter @aidanmccartney for more Football League debate.

Moving from Championship side Scunthorpe he quickly revitalised the pre-season promotion favourites, turning them into a side capable of producing attacking free-flowing football as well as giving the resilience to break down the most defensive of sides.

Losing just once at St Mary’s after he took charge, he led them on the march to automatic promotion which included winning all ten games up until the end of the season. It is now six years since the Saints last graced the top-flight but if Adkins can repeat this sort form while building on the momentum from last season there is no reason why a return could not be on the cards.

After last year’s heroics, the hard work really starts now for Adkins and his young hungry side. The pressure will be on him to repeat his success at Scunthorpe where he helped the Iron achieve Championship survival despite having by far the lowest budget in the league.

It is easy to see why he is regarded as one of the finest up and coming managers around after achieving three promotions in his four years as a manager and it should not be long until the former physio makes the step up to the Premier League. However after agreeing a new contract with the Saints up until 2015, his long term future remains at the St Mary’s.

He has stated that he doesn’t believe he needs to sign a whole new team to compete in the league and instead he wants an evolution with only a few quality players coming into the settled side.

The recruitment of excellent young central midfielder Jack Cork who he had on-loan at Scunny, is a statement of intent of the quality that Adkins is after and the failed bid for highly-rated midfielder Neil Danns, who instead joined cash-rich Leicester City, shows the potential he has in the transfer market.

At Southampton he already has the nucleus of a fine championship squad with five of the team achieving a place in last season’s PFA League One team of the year. Goalkeeper Kelvin Davis, left-back Dan Harding, Portuguese centre-half Jose Fonte, England U21 international Adam Lallana and £12m rated man Alex Chamberlain were all recognised as some of the best players in the division. Add to that striker Rickie Lambert who has scored 51 goals in only two seasons and Lee Barnard who netted 15 times last season and they certainly have a team capable of doing well this season.

It is possible that 17-year-old wonder-kid Alex Chamberlain will get his big-money transfer this summer and if they can reach the £12m asking price I think they will be able to use that money to further strengthen the side and mount a challenge for promotion.

However this year’s Championship could be the toughest for a long time with the relegated teams having a much stronger base than Portsmouth and Hull had last season with both West Ham and Birmingham looking to bounce straight back to the Premier League.

Add to that big-spending Leicester City, Nottingham Forest under McClaren, relegated Blackpool and then the usual suspects of teams that will be expecting to challenge for playoffs, it is easy to see why people think it could be difficult for them to do much more than just establish themselves as a Championship side.

A season of consolidation would certainly be acceptable for most Saints fans who will just be hoping to avoid a relegation battle and Adkins will no doubt keep his players grounded on what they can achieve this season. His first aim will be to secure safety but once this has been achieved then no doubt talk will turn to promotion.

I believe the Saints have the quality to mount a serious promotion push this season and under the brilliant man-management of Adkins they have the man to take them to the promise land, whether it is this year or the next. Whatever happens it is clear to see that Southampton under Adkins are a team on the up; the question is just how far can they go?

But to get us all in the mood I have picked five classics out from the archives complete with video footage to re-live them in all their glory. So give these a watch over the weekend and you will be well and truly ready, let’s just hope the 2011 final isn’t a letdown.

Leicester City 3 Swindon Town 4 (1993)

Here is a game that after a quiet start really burst into life. Swindon went into half-time leading 1-0 thanks to a strike from their player-manager, Glenn Hoddle. Early into the second half it looked as though Swindon were making the game safe thanks to further goals from Craig Maskell and Shaun Taylor. But Leicester weren’t about to give up without a fight and they came back from 3-0 down to level the game with goals from Julian Joachim, Steve Walsh and Steve Thompson. But a Paul Bodin penalty won the match for Swindon, just six minutes from time.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

Bolton 4 Reading 3 (1995)

Reading got off to a fantastic start in this game and found themselves 2-0 up after just 12 minutes – with goals coming from Lee Nogan and Adrian Williams – but Stuart Lovell missed a penalty in the 34^th minute and that turned the match on its head; Reading never really recovered from that disappointment and Bolton  went  from strength to strength. They left it late but Bolton levelled the game up with goals from Owen Coyle and Fabian de Freitas forcing a period of extra time. Further goals from Mixu Paatelainen and a second from de Freitas made the game safe. But there was still time for a late Reading goal from Jimmy Quinn – but it didn’t impact the result.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

Charlton 4 Sunderland 4 (1998)

When most people think about First Division/Championship play-off finals this is the one that tends to get remembered. But words can’t really do it justice so please check the video out below. The game really did have everything, 3-3 after normal time – and then a period of extra time that included two further goals. But eventually Charlton won 7-6 on penalties.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

Barnsley 2 Ipswich 4 (2000)

This was a game I saw live and as a Norwich City fan I was really hoping for a Barnsley win and couldn’t face the thought of the old enemy in the Premier League. Things started well for Barnsley after only six minutes with a Richard Wright own goal gifting them the lead. However, Ipswich bounced back from their early disappointment to lead the game 3-1 with goals coming from Tony Mowbray, Richard Naylor and Marcus Stewart. But Barnsley still looked to make a game of it and got a goal back through Craig Hignett; any hopes of a Barnsley equaliser were dashed when Martijn Reuser put the game safe for Ipswich.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

Blackpool 3 Cardiff 2 (2010)

Most people would agree that last year’s final was a bit of a classic and when a match has 5 goals you can’t really complain. The first half proved to be fairly even with Cardiff taking the lead through Michael Chopra but Blackpool hit back with the equaliser from Charlie Adam.  Then Joe Ledley for Cardiff and Taylor-Fletcher for Blackpool meant it was 2-2 at half time. The winner came for Blackpool early in the second half from Brett Ormerod.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

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Prices are going up all the time in all areas of life, whether it be the price of petrol, alcohol or food and it would seem that football tickets are just another one to add to the list. There was a wide expectancy from supporters of Premier League and Championship clubs that there was going to be an increase in ticket prices for next season, but it’s not until it’s announced that it really hits home with the fans. This is an area where football clubs have complete power over fans, for if they want to watch their team, most fans will still hand the money over. At the end of the day a football club is a business and it needs to make a profit to survive, so increasing ticket prices is just one of the ways to do it.

From what I have read about the situation the three clubs I have mentioned above have genuinely increased their prices to cope with the VAT rise and have tried to be as reasonable as possible. In this extract from the BBC website Keith Jelley, of the Liverpool Supporters Club, said: It’ll be a disappointed reaction from fans but I think it is fair.” The match day tickets at Anfield have only increased by a pound for seats in the Kop and £2 everywhere else, which doesn’t seem a lot, but when added to a season ticket becomes a bigger deal. However, it’s not quite as reasonable at newly promoted QPR, they have increased season tickets at Loftus Road by 40%, a rise which has incensed many Rangers fans who think they are being exploited by their wealthy owners. In this instance I feel QPR are taking advantage of the nationwide ticket increase and are benefiting from their promotion financially at the fan’s expense.

I wouldn’t put the increase in ticket prices solely down to the current financial climate but I do feel it has played a part. Most clubs do value their supporters and try to find a happy medium between prices that are fair for them and the club. It just shows that as much as football supporters wouldn’t be able to live without their beloved teams, the clubs need the fans and their money just as much.

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We now know that QPR and Norwich will be joined by either Reading or Swansea in the Premier League next season. The three teams that go up will all know that the Premier League is a huge challenge and survival is often considered a major success – but how have teams fared in their first season in the top flight.

Well in the Premier League this season the newly promoted sides were Blackpool, West Brom and Newcastle. West Brom and Newcastle have both had their problems and both clubs have had a change of manager, but they have moved well away from the relegation zone and can start planning for another season in the Premier League. Blackpool have had a mixed season but have pleased many people with their attacking brand of football but they are currently in the relegation zone and will certainly need to win their final game to have any chance of survival.

In the 2009/10 season the newly promoted clubs were Wolves, Birmingham and Burnley. It was a season unlike this season and a points tally as low as 31 points would have been enough for Premier League survival. Wolves finished in 15^th place with a tally of only 38 points – which in other seasons would have not been enough for survival. Birmingham was a real standout performer in the Premier League and finished in a very impressive 9^th place. However, Burnley had a very poor season and was relegated in 18^th place with a tally of only 30 points.

Birmingham, Derby and Sunderland were the promoted sides in the 2007/8 season and all three teams struggled. Sunderland eventually managed to scramble clear of relegation and finished with 39 points in 15^th place. However, Birmingham and Derby were both relegated; Birmingham finishing in 19^th place with 35 points and Derby finished rock bottom with a dismal tally of only 11 points. The 17^th place side survived with just 36 points that season.

Reading, Sheffield United and Watford were the promoted teams in the 2006/7 season and it was Reading that performed the best with a very impressive finish of 8^th in the table. However, Sheffield United and Watford didn’t enjoy the best of seasons and were relegated. The team that survived that season in 17^th had 38 points.

The news over the last five years is fairly positive for the newly promoted sides for next season. With the possible exception of this season teams in the previous four years haven’t needed to reach 40 points in order to survive. Despite the fact that the promoted teams are labelled as relegation favourites they don’t all get relegated and as the facts above show one team can perform very well.

If next season follows the same trend one or possibly two of the promoted sides can expect to survive. However, it remains to be seen how long those teams that do survive can remain in the Premier League. They may take some inspiration from Stoke, who have had another solid season in the top flight that this season included an FA Cup final and qualification for Europe. But perhaps the most important statistic is the fact they will be competing in the Premier League for their fourth consecutive season next year.

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The Sun has reported that QPR are to be found guilty of the third-party ownership charges laid against them and will be punished with a significant points’ deduction of up to 15 points.

The hearing that looks into the signing of Argentine midfield Alejandro Faurlin signed two years ago will begin next Tuesday and the verdict will be delivered three days later. A four man panel will make this decision and that will comprise of an independent QC, two from the FA’s disciplinary panel and a football expert who will either be a former player or manager.

Sources close to the FA suggest that QPR are in big trouble and those who have seen the evidence suggest QPR are defending the indefensible. An FA source said “There’s no question QPR have broken the rules. They know it as well. The only debate is what we are going to about it.”

“If they aren’t found guilty you might as well scrap the rules about third party owners” Some people believe that QPR should be hit hard – because they were well aware they were operating outside the regulations; third party ownership was made illegal after the Carlos Tevez affair.

If QPR are found guilty they would have 7 days to appeal – but if QPR or other clubs seek legal advice, the play-offs may not happen until everything is resolved.

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