No need to panic

[yorkshire stag]

Thinks there hast to be some serious moves in the window before 5pm Thursday.

Flint's injury looked nasty.

Flinty is the only irreplaceable player in our team i feared we could lose to injury, i just hope he’s not out for long

[adamstag]

And as i said earlier, imagine having this run and still being 3rd!

We do seem to have had a run of bad results.The goals we conceded at home to crewe and sutton were directly down to our mistakes - yet we’ve the best defence in the division, things happen, that’s why they’re in the 4th division.

If flints out for a while bad times, at least you’d think brunt will revert to CB.

The fans need to get behind the lads like never before against county

[Billy the fish]

JJ can cover flint if needed … we need bodies in the building this week

[Ralphy]

If a striker comes in this week then that would leave new striker and swan up front and Akins to right back. Losing flint is a big blow but Cargill and brunt is still a solid pairing imo

[gazza1988]

Williams was ill yesterday, and could be back for County. We can still put out a side of Lewis Brunt Cargill McLaughlin. Or even keep Akins at RB and start Swan and DKD.

[Sandy Pate Best Stag]

Trying to put a bit of light at the end of the tunnel, although we are struggling for players, Hewitt and Gale are both due back anytime soon. MacDonald isn’t too far behind and Williams should be available more or less immediately.

Brunt can do the job at centre half if Flint is out for a few weeks and we also have Cooper as backup.

Obviously they will all need time to get back into the groove but should be enough to make us a competitive outfit. Add a new striker to the list and maybe things aren’t as dark as we first feared.

[vicar_jeremiah]

Williams was ill yesterday, and could be back for County. We can still put out a side of Lewis Brunt Cargill McLaughlin. Or even keep Akins at RB and start Swan and DKD.

Why persist in playing forwards at full back? That’s really worked out well recently

[Cleveland_Stag]

We need someone at right back who can run and keep up with Jodi Jones. Lewis doesn’t have the legs to do that. I’m not sure who does though with Bowery being suspended!

[oldweststander]

If a striker comes in this week then that would leave new striker and swan up front and Akins to right back. Losing flint is a big blow but Cargill and brunt is still a solid pairing imo

A solid suggestion that, but we still need a good finisher in and Akins has slotted in at right back before and we have Williams too.

[Roger_Sausage]

As others have said, it's easy to overreact in the heat of the moment, and I was as downbeat as anyone in the direct aftermath of yesterday. Injuries, sending offs, poor performances, refs that seem to always have it in for us, no new players, it all felt so very familiar...20 years on from Cardiff and we're still bottling under pressure etc etc. Flinty's injury was a proper punch to the gut too.

But! And a big but...there are a lot of positives to take from yesterday. Swanny scored for a start, and I'm made up for the lad, I hope it's the kick start to his season he needs, to push on and score more from now until the end of the year. Plus despite being with 10 men (and playing against 12 with that ref), we held our own and very almost took all 3 points against all the odds. Every single one of them put in a proper shift and worked hard. Quinny's sending off and Garner getting involved with their fans is daft on the face of it, but don't you love that passion too!? Same with the late bookings for DKD and Boateng. If the lads didn't care, that passion, frustration and reaction wouldn't exist...and after being there yesterday, I defy anyone to have kept their cool at that point. I was stood directly behind the centre of the goal, and have never seen such a blatant penalty in all my life!! Maybe he could've stayed on his feet and slotted it away anyway, but we'll never know. We were definitely robbed though, and it almost feels corrupt that we didn't get that decision in our favour.

My point to all this is, let's not turn against the lads or the manager. We're a good side, we're a good club, with great owners and still every chance of looking back on this season as a great one. Let's use the frustration and disappointment to galvanise us all as one, get behind the boys on the pitch (and in the dugout), and push on towards promotion.

Saturday's match-up with County is a massive game of course, let's make plenty of noise and show that we're not just going to roll over and let success slip through our fingers again!

Maybe MTFC is a small club in the grand scheme of things, but together we're MASSIVE!!

[georgefostersbeard]

Good post - there were so many positives in yesterday's performances not least the resilience shown. There were some daft moments but hopefully a lot to kick us on for the rest of the season

[cassellswasmagic]

For me there weren’t many positives at all. Zero points, sending offs and a bad injury…the games about winning. Admittedly we fought hard, but that game is a punch to the guts!

[WorthingStag]

Great post. We need positivity right now. Having only missed one away game all season (Harrogate) the huge positive for me is the support away from home, yet again this weekend the noise and passion generated by Stags fans was first class. I travelled back to the coast with a couple of AFC fans who agreed that we should’ve been awarded a penalty and that Will Finnie (that’s a name I won’t forget) officiated appallingly. They were seriously impressed with our support and I strongly believe that we are that 12th man.
BELIEVE

[Roger_Sausage]

For me there weren’t many positives at all. Zero points, sending offs and a bad injury…the games about winning. Admittedly we fought hard, but that game is a punch to the guts!

And what team wins every single game?

[cassellswasmagic]

For me there weren’t many positives at all. Zero points, sending offs and a bad injury…the games about winning. Admittedly we fought hard, but that game is a punch to the guts!

And what team wins every single game?

None. However getting zero points is not a positive, as I said…

[Roger_Sausage]

No, but neither is getting mardy when we lose...

[cassellswasmagic]

No, but neither is getting mardy when we lose...

Who’s getting mardy Just saying there aren’t positives anyone can take out of a game that we were robbed of, had men sent off and our best player could be out injured for a while. Other than the fighting spirit we showed I can’t think of many. I’d rather we were Goddamn awful and drew or won…its the “we were unlucky, but…” mentality that holds us back.

[PEAR CIDER]

No, but neither is getting mardy when we lose...

Who’s getting mardy Just saying there aren’t positives anyone can take out of a game that we were robbed of, had men sent off and our best player could be out injured for a while. Other than the fighting spirit we showed I can’t think of many. I’d rather we were Goddamn awful and drew or won…its the “we were unlucky, but…” mentality that holds us back.

.I disagree. Win by being poor and you get complacent. This saga will absolutely fire the team up. There was clear unification after the match. That could be worth well more than an ugly undeserved 3 points has we snook it

[scotsstag]

No, but neither is getting mardy when we lose...

Who’s getting mardy Just saying there aren’t positives anyone can take out of a game that we were robbed of, had men sent off and our best player could be out injured for a while. Other than the fighting spirit we showed I can’t think of many. I’d rather we were Goddamn awful and drew or won…its the “we were unlucky, but…” mentality that holds us back.

.I disagree. Win by being poor and you get complacent. This saga will absolutely fire the team up. There was clear unification after the match. That could be worth well more than an ugly undeserved 3 points has we snook it

I disagree. I'd sooner win by being poor as that is very often the sign of a good side.
Come the end of the season I'll be glad for as many ugly, undeserved 3 points as possible....

[cassellswasmagic]

I would definitely rather have an ugly 3 points than a brave spirited 0.

[adamstag]

Saturday is a game where both the fans and players need to get a performance in.

From previous years this is the time of year where mansfield consistently fold sadly, we’ve got to do all we can to ensure this doesn’t happen again.

3rd at the turn of february with only 3 losses is a great effort.

[MTFCMusings]

Saturday is a game where both the fans and players need to get a performance in.

From previous years this is the time of year where mansfield consistently fold sadly, we’ve got to do all we can to ensure this doesn’t happen again.

3rd at the turn of february with only 3 losses is a great effort.

We’ve lost 1 of our last 10 matches in February, 19 points out of 30.

[stag324]

february is a huge month for us and will go a long top deciding if go up automatically or face the play offs again.

[HitchcocksShins]

february is a huge month for us and will go a long top deciding if go up automatically or face the play offs again.

Agreed. We'll be playing current placed:
7th
24th
11th
13th
19th

If we have any designs on automatics we need 11 points minimum

[pemill]

MK now only 3 behind

They’re the team I’m most worried about, comfortably. Since Williamson took over, they’ve been really, really good. They’ve got a lot of players who are league 1 quality. I think we can finish 3rd but if I was a betting man I’d put money on MK to finish 3rd from here.

One place behind us in 2nd