August 7 2006

The Football League

The Saint's epic guide to the 2006-7 Championship season.

Crystal Palace

Last Season: 6th (Play-off Semi-finalists)

In: Leon Cort (Hull City - £1.25 million), Mark Kennedy (Wolves – free), Scott Flinders (Barnsley – undisc), James Scowcroft (Coventry City - £500,000), Carl Fletcher (West Ham - £400,000),

Out: Glenn Wilson (Woking – free), Aki Riihilahti (1FC Kaiserslautern - free), Wayne Andrews (Coventry - free), Andrew Johnson (Everton - £8.6 Million), Fitz Hall (Wigan – undisc), Mikele Leigertwood (Sheff Utd - £600,000), Sam Togwell (Barnsley – undisc), Emmerson Boyce (Wigan Athletic - £1.2 million)

Manager: Peter Taylor

One to watch: Clinton Morrison

My Prediction: 4th

It was a case of clear the decks at Selhurst after our limp season back in the Championship. Simon Jordan is not a man to be trifled with and with the failure of Iain Dowie to get automatic promotion, despite being backed to the tune of £5 million and keeping the talent that is Andy Johnson, was bad enough but our tame exit from the playoffs (20 mad minutes according to Dowie – well what about the other 160?) was quite another.

Before we knew it, Dowie had decided to call it a day after 2.5 seasons in charge which saw the highs of that run to the Premiership, and the lows that were relegation with 9 minutes to go and the Watford debacle.

SJ cleared the way for him to move back North with his family and it was down to him and Bob Dowie to find the new man.

No-one expected the following twist which saw ID end up at Charlton, SJ issuing a writ to him at his arrival press conference live on TV (hilarious – Carry On Managing at its best), Richard Murray calling our Chairman “sad and pathetic” and the general malaise being thrown our way by all Clowntown fans who are desperate for us to care about them enough so they can call us rivals. Rivals they’re not, relegation candidates is what they will become.

So with the summer in full silly swing – us Palace fans still had the appearance of Tony Popovic in the World Cup to savour. But back here it was a case of so long and thanks for all the goals as first AJ, then Aki, followed even more swiftly by Wayne Andrews, Mikele Leigertwood and Fitz Hall as all the Dowie favourites moved on, or those with big contracts as this is the last season of parachute payments.

Popovic was also released, along with Glenn Wilson and Sam Togwell. Most recently of all, Emmerson Boyce moved to Wigan, joining Fitz Hall.

With so many players leaving, the first job that SJ and Bob Dowie had to do was get the new manager installed. After much speculation ranging from Klaus Toppmoller to Greame Souness – Peter Taylor was unveiled as the man tasked with dragging this bunch of underachievers back to the Premiership.

He didn’t mess about either – bringing in Leon Cort to replace Fitz Hall, Mark Kennedy on a free, Scott Flinders, the highly rated England Under 20 goalkeeper from Barnsley and added James Scowcroft and most recently, Welsh International midfielder Carl Fletcher from West Ham. What we were lacking last season was a left sided midfielder and a central midfielder – so Taylor could see the shortcomings as much as we could.

Getting Danny Granville and Sandor Torghelle back is like having 2 new players in the squad as neither featured at all in our league programme last season.

With no AJ up front, people might be forgiven for thinking that this will be a long and difficult season. Don’t be confused Palace fans but keep the faith. Losing AJ is one thing, but we will be more dangerous this season due to our constant reliance on him last season and Dowies’ singular attacking move that went by the name of “hoof it long to AJ”. We should win more penalties, but that is a side issue.

Now, we will not hoof it long and hope that by keeping it on the floor and getting it wide to Reich, Kennedy or McAnuff (if he stays), they the ammunition can be provided from which any of our forwards can profit from. Morrison could and should hit 20 goals this season.

The arrival of Kennedy and Fletcher beefs up a midfield that looked sorely woeful last season. Soares was stuck on the left; Watson went from bossing the midfield to looking like little boy lost.

Hughes and McAnuff ran the show with Reich making a cameo and giving us all a timely shot in the arm, last October. Fingers crossed that he will play more this season.

At the back and a defence of Butterfield, Ward, Cort and Granville is no bad thing.

I doubt that Gabor Kiraly will last the season either – but the Hungarian is playing for a move now so he should be turning in the kind of performances that so nearly kept us in the Premiership.

Doom and gloom – I won’t hear of it. This side may not have the same kind of quality that underachieved last season – but it does have hungry players eager to prove a point.

Cort looks an imposing figure at the back and the general boredom that was the last 3 months of last season looks to be a distant memory now.

It won’t happen overnight, but I can see us doing better this season than last. We expected to go straight back up and the fact we didn’t was a shock.

Those that didn’t give 100% have gone, the long term injuries have returned to fight for their first team places and there is renewed optimism around the club.

Taylor has given everyone a clean slate and the competition for places is strong. No one is guaranteed a start and there will be no favourites, the wind of change has blown indeed.

I predict a playoff place again. Not being too downbeat – but Birmingham and Southampton have just got more in their locker this time around. 3rd/4th is still an improvement on last season and with some of the other playoff teams from last year faltering, we might just go back to Cardiff one more time.

Leeds United

Last Season: 5th

In: Seb Carole (Brighton – free), David Livermore (Millwall – undisc), Kevin Nicholls (Luton Town - £700,000),

Out: Danny Pugh (Preston NE - £250,000), Jermaine Wright (Southampton – free), Simon Walton (Charlton – undisc), Rob Hulse (Sheffield United - £2.125 million), Ben Parker (Bradford City – loan), David Livermore (Hull City – undisc), Joel Griffiths (Newcastle Jets – free)

Manager: Kevin Blackwell

One to watch: David Healy

My Prediction: 5th

How will we do? – 2/6

Leeds fell at the final hurdle last season in the Playoff final and with Blackwell under pressure this season to deliver; Leeds might find the going just as tough.

Blackwell has lost the services of the promising Simon Walton and the goals of Rob Hulse. How much the loss is felt will depend on the form of Jermaine Beckford, Robbie Blake and the injury plagued Richard Cresswell.

The prolific David Healy is still at Leeds and he should top score, so all eyes will be on the Nothern Irishman if Leeds are to make the Premiership again.

The Leeds team has been boosted by the signings of Kevin Nicholls, who had an outstanding campaign for Luton last season. David Livermore has joined to provide much needed cover at the back.

The backbone of the side; Neil Sullivan, Gary Kelly, Eddie Lewis, Shaun Derry and Paul Butler are experienced and are good enough to see Leeds remain amongst the front runners for most of the season.

I can see no further improvement on last season. Hulse has gone and Blake/Cresswell did not set the division alight last season. Blake did manage 11 but with Healy only getting 12, one of them will need to hit 20, if Leeds are going to go up automatically.

Leeds wont be going up because of defensive problems, it will be a lack of goals and too many draws that will scupper their campaign.

Leeds caused us many problems at home, but we turned in a class performance at Elland Road to take all 3 points. With both Palace and Leeds chasing promotion – 2 draws looks more likely this season than a win either way.

Blackwell may pay the price if Leeds fail again this season but with last seasons playoff final still fresh in his mind, he will know that Leeds have it in them to go all the way. Whether they do or not, will be down to the forwards.

Coventry City

Last Season: 8th

In: Wayne Andrews (Crystal Palace – free), David McNamee (Livingston - £100,000), Mikkel Bischoff (Manchester City – free), Elliot Ward (West Ham - £1 million), Colin Cameron (Wolves – free), Andy Marshall (Millwall – free), Jay Tabb (Brentford – undisc),

Out: Richard Shaw (Millwall – free), Dennis Wise (Swindon – free), Graham Barrett, Adrian Williams, Clayton Ince (Walsall – free), James Scowcroft (Crystal Palace - £500,000)

Manager: Micky Adams

One to watch: Gary McSheffrey

My Prediction: 6th

How will we do? – 3/6

Micky Adams finally got the mixture right and towards the end of the season – Coventry showed the kind of form that would, had they started earlier, have catapulted them into a last day push for the playoffs.

They left it too late but there is no reason at all that Coventry cannot go one better this time around. Their credentials will be severely tested as they face teams like Sunderland, Southampton and Leicester – all sides that I expect to be in the mix for the playoffs or better this season, in August.

Adams has added to his squad slowly but methodically over the summer and this side is a lot stronger now than it was last season.

Adams has so far resisted any move for Gary McSheffrey and the fact that it is August and his 15-goal hit man from last season is still at the Ricoh, is possibly the most important aspect of the close season. He is my man to watch but Coventry is not a one-man side.

Micheal Doyle was an ever present last season, Marcus Hall and Dele Adebola can still turn in the kind of performances that propelled the Sky Blues skywards last season and with the additions that Adams has made, players like Wayne Andrews, Elliot Ward and Mikkel Bischoff will compete hard for places – so there will be no complacency.

Coventry can make the playoffs this time and we will not have it as easy as we did last season winning in both league games and dumping them out of the League Cup in the space of a month.

We can win at home and away I can see only a draw at best, Coventry should be a lot tougher after finding their form at their new stadium. These are exciting times at the Ricoh and Adams might just be the man to end Coventry’s top-flight exile, which has lasted 5 seasons.

Norwich City

Last Season: 9th

In: Lee Croft (Man City - £700,000)

Out: Jason Jarrett (Preston – undisc)

Manager: Nigel Worthington

One to watch: Rob Earnshaw

My Prediction: 7th

How will we do? – 4/6

It has been a very quiet summer in the countryside of Norfolk after last seasons disappointing Championship campaign saw Norwich fail to challenge for promotion last season.

Nursing a Premiership relegation hangover, Dean Ashton moved on and while Worthington did most of his transfers before last season was out, Rob Earnshaw being the big replacement. Earnshaw managed 8 goals in his short spell and this bodes well for his first full season at Carrow Road.

Worthington will have to start the season without Robert Green, who was injured on England duty prior to the World Cup and he will be missed. Paul Gallacher will start between the sticks.

Defensively players like Jason Shackell, Craig Fleming and Adam Drury fill the spots, while in midfield Lee Croft will be given his chance alongside Youssef Safri,Carl Robinson and Dickson Etuhu, while up front Leon McKenzie, who is now back to full fitness, can be a matchwinner on his day. Darren Huckerby will also provide goals so up front they are still a threat.

Norwich will have the positive of a settled squad and players which know the managers system. Worthington found as much as we did last season that you just cannot turn up and win matches because they were in the Premiership the season before.

Inconsistency coupled with a poor start cost them dear last season and I think that while Norwich wont suffer the complacency factor this season, they will improve but it still wont be good enough to see them end the season in the playoff lottery.

The midfield does not look strong enough to cope with a long campaign and the void left by Damian Francis still has not been filled. Safri has the guile and quality but there is precious little else that will trouble any of the teams above them.

One way to see how weak their midfield is, would be to transpose any of their players into any of the teams above, would they walk into the side? Would we want any of them at Palace? The answer is; not really!

Always a great day out – Norwich away should provide us with a draw while there are always goals at home. 5 last season, our best home win last year and while I can see Norwich doing better this season, we will still manage 4 points against them.

Worthington does not seem to unearth that magical quality that took Norwich to the Championship in 2004 and this season will once again end with the Canaries falling short.