The world of fizzy pop

Fizzy Pop is back, and don’t we just know it!!

No ridiculous on-again-off again-on-again-off again-on-again-off again-on-again-off again transfer sagas, no players demanding £150,000 a week  and threatening to go to Real Madrid/Inter Milan if they don’t get it, no phony badge kissing in friendlies against Real Madrid….just count yourself fortunate you don’t support Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United or even Aston Villa.

BUT if you do support a league 2 team, that’s not to say it hasn’t been an eventful summer;

Aldershot won the Vauxhall conference by some distance last year.  Teams that come up from the conference never get relegated, and often get promoted, if not at the first time of asking then the 2nd.  With the amount of goals they score, Aldershot should be looking at a top half finish.  They could do even better, but it all depends how the sale of key man Joel grant to Crewe affects their performances.

Fellow new boys Exeter have signed Marcus Stewart.  Yes, that Marcus Stewart, top scorer in the Premiership in 2001.  They play some good football and with a catchment area the size of Wales, should fair ok as well.

Bradford are many people’s tip for the title having spent by the barrel load this summer.  However, a lot of that investment is merely replacing the 20 or so players that were sold or not retained the previous summer, so they will still do well to win the league.  They should be hard to beat at home though; not many clubs in any division, let alone this one, can regularly get attendances above 15000.  In the absence of a more likely alternative and with the strong 2nd half of the season they had last year, they are rightly favourites to go up as champions, especially when you consider that their new singing, Michael Boulding, scored 22 goals in this division last season, for a team that was relegated, Mansfield.

Surely, they say at Spotdale, surely this is our year.  The last time Rochdale played in a division other than this one, Nixon was still president.  They finished the season strongly last year and came close to breaking their jinx in the playoffs.  Will the weight of the expectations of (I would say town, but it’s more of an administrative district of greater Manchester) the fans crush them yet again? they should be there or thereabouts, owing to the size of their squad.

Wycombe should go well, with Super Scott Mcgleish still banging in the goals at the ripe old age of 137.  With canny Peter Taylor in charge and mean defence, expect the most boring team in the country to be challenging for an automatic promotion spot come May.

Darlingtonreached the playoffs last year, and should do the same again, and Lincoln reach the playoffs every season and lose, so expect them to be thereabouts as well.

Over the past 5 seasons, in order to not be relegated from this division, you have needed an average of 45 points.  Luton start this season on minus 30, owing to their ‘bad behaviour.’  So, to stay up they may need to get 75 points this season, which is usually what you need just to reach the playoffs.  Can they do it?  Don’t be so silly.

Who will take the other relegation spot? Maccesfield town are usually there or thereabouts, and this season should be no different with their ’streamline’ squad and Dagenham and Redbridge haven’t shown any signs of kicking on following their season of ‘adjustment’ so could struggle to.

Have I missed out your club? That will be because they will finish ‘mid table’ which we all know means 8th-18th in this division.

Agree or disagree? Let us know.