By Neil Ravenscroft
November 11 2002

Perhaps no one expected the Lads to come away from Leicester with anything (except I had them on the coupon for a draw), but the points situation is becoming serious. I didn't make the game on Saturday, but, by all reports, we were outplayed by a team which looks like it's on it's way back to the Premiership. However, the disappointment is that we have the same number of points from the same number of games as last season.

I have, on several occaisions this season, complained that we suffer from the size of the squad in trying to cope with the absences of Martin O'Connor. Saturday's match proved, however, that we have more problems than that.

We have reasonable cover in central defence, with Hay, Roper and Carbon fighting for two places. Ward is as reasonable a back up for Walker as you are likly to find at this level. We have three first choice strikers in Junior, Zdrillic and Leitao, with reasonable back up from Birch.

Wide, we have Wrack, Corica, Matias, Herivelto and Wright and, in central midfield, O'Connor, Sonner, Simpson and Martinez (although O'Connor is vital to the way we play and we need to find a way of coping without him).

However, our biggest problem is at full back and Saturday was the proof of that. In the absence of Bazeley and Aranalde, we have very little choice, other than to play Wrack, Wright or Simpson out of position.

If the resources can be found (and the departure of Gadsby might herald that Colin Lee is working along those lines), the club priorities must be cover for O'Connor, Bazeley and Aranalde.

At the moment, we have only the same number of points as we had at this stage last season and we are well behind the points haul from the equivalent games last season. We are fortunate that there seems to be three candidates for relegation already, in Brighton (despite their draw at the Custard Bowl tonight), Sheffield Wednesday, Stoke and (probably) Grimsby and that Gillingham and Bradford are sinking fast. The news of the possible move of Ashley Ward to Ipswich today might be the final nail in Bradford's coffin.

We have to start picking up some wins quickly!