‘I dream of mid-table dullness for City’

Football was once, famously, described as a funny old game. These past few weeks, months even, have seen that old adage proved to be as correct as it ever was. We will, by the looks of it, have a new team crowned Premiership champions, and it could be Leicester City of all people.

England went from from being no-hopers to world beaters to being just OK again in the space of a week. Bristol Rovers won six games on the trot to give themselves a real chance of promotion and us, well, we hit Bolton for six.

It was a slightly odd game. To me it had the feeling of a friendly match, or perhaps an end of season dead rubber. City went two goals up within ten minutes and from then on Bolton pretty much gave up. The rest of the first half saw some resistance but after half-time they basically capitulated.

City played well, don’t get me wrong, but the opposition were so weak I was left feeling slightly sorry for their fans who had made the four hundred plus mile round trip.

Putting our stupendous victory to one side for a while, there is something that has become apparent to me in recent weeks watching my beloved team, and football in general.

Not all teams go through the rigmarole of relegation and promotion year in year out, many teams stay in the same division year upon year. Aston Villa look set to leave the top table of the football league for the first time in twenty seven years this season.

How boring, I have often thought in the past. One league, same old boring teams every year, same old stadiums to visit etc ect. I always liked the idea of being a so called Yo-Yo club.

Someone like West Brom or Crystal Palace maybe who until recent years seemed to flirt between heroic but ultimately unsuccessful Premiership campaigns and promotion chasing seasons in the Championship.

Once again Bristol’s two clubs find themselves embroiled in nail-biting fixtures where the future of the club, and indeed the quality of football us patrons have to enjoy/endure the following season, is on the line.

So, despite the excitement that can be obtained from such seasons I have a plea to make to my team. Can we possibly just chill out for a bit please? By this I mean a year or two of mid-table mediocrity perhaps, finish in a sensible league position, eleventh perhaps? Beat one or two of the big boys at home, lose unexpectedly to a team battling relegation. Perhaps a cup run?

In a time where the impossible seems probable and the mighty seem to able to be toppled, can we, Bristol City, just give the fans something ‘alright’ or ‘OK’ for a while? Recent seasons seem to have been either feast or famine and I am calling for somewhere in between.

This weekend sees us pitted against a quality Hull City side who look destined, in my mind, for promotion this year. That makes this game something of a free hit. If we get anything, great, if not no worries.

The two following quick fire home fixtures against Rotherham and Sheffield Wednesday hold more significance for me. If we can win both of these then we will be a bog stride closer to that mid-table dullness that I dream of. Fingers, as ever, will be crossed.