Tippy tappy rubbish.

West Brom fans may point to the fact that they’ve played “proper” football, but where has that got them exactly? More to the point, how can one style of football be called “proper”. Football is a sport, and as such, the aim is to win. Any style of play that is within the rules and spirit of the game should therefore be judged not only on it’s aesthetic value, but more importantly, on it’s ability to bring results.

West Brom came up with the intention to stick to their “footballing principles”, but trying to out-pass the established premier league sides is an exercise in futility. I would even go as far as to argue passing backwards and square, backwards and square, does not represent the aesthetically pleasing football the Brazilians from Rio De Smethwick would have us believe.

Any promoted team trying to survive in the premiership, a league which is still inherently dominated by power and pace, needs firstly to find a way to compete and bridge the gap in talent. Stoke have bridged the gap with sweat, blood and a team spirit the like of which I haven’t seen at my team in all my years watching them. How have albion tried to compete? By attempting to play better teams at their own game. Without significant amounts of money to invest in talent, this approach for promoted teams will never pay off, and I’m afraid if you persist with it, you will never be more than a yoyo club. Stoke now have a second season of premiership money to bolster our squad, and can slowly add more skill and ability to the ranks.

As for the claim above
“I’d perfer to go down playing like we do than watch a team stop up playing like Stoke.”
As a Stoke fan I’ve had the most enjoyable season in my 15 or so years of being a Stoke fan. And we’ll still be here next season. I don’t care how we play, I simply want us to win.

So goodbye West Brom, we’ll miss you (and our annual six points) next season. Hurry back.

The declaration by Mowbray that passing, beautiful football is all may be admirable, but this season has seen him stick to principles that have left out any realism or pragmatism when faced with what a killer league the Premiership is. Its strengths and force, its total, utterly steamrolling character had been either misjudged or totally ignored by Mowbray, who has spent most of this season flinging on ineffective players onto the field who have faced other teams – whether great or modest – with all the courage of startled deer. You don’t even have had to look far to notice how badly this has turned out.

Switch on MOTD and see Albion in the last two minutes of the programme making Hansen and Lawrenson’s job easy. Read newspaper reports and see the last paragraph where the journalist has to mention us to signify that we actually turned up.

10 or 20 minutes of a match where West Brom tapped it around midfield whilst getting soundly beaten does not make a Premiership team. This season, Mowbray, when facing games featuring the top four Premiership clubs, virtually admitted that they were write-offs and, instead, concentrated on supposedly ‘winnable’ matches after that. Before a ball was kicked. Most managers would’ve seen those games as a watermark of how far their teams had come and would’ve relished them as tests, no matter the outcome. Not Mowbray, who just buried his head in the sand, and waited until it was all over, even coming out with ‘positives’ when it was plain that there were none to be seen. Only idiots would presume we gave of our best.

We’ve improved over the last few games but that’s when it’s been too late. Strangely, people have seen these handful of games and determined that’s how good we are, ignoring the great many others where we’ve been complete rubbish, easily played against, easily beaten. Three months without a win is the sign of an ‘entertaining’ team apparently. We’re down at the bottom of the Premiership and relegated for a reason – our manager’s cowardly approach, poor buys and decisions and our club’s timid attitude, not even willing to pay an extra non-club-sinking million to buy a player who would have improved our chances.

But I disagree with the comment that our football can be classed as arrogant. You need a strength of character to be that. Neither the team or manager of West Bromwich Albion has had this quality for nearly all this campaign.

WBA fans are living in a dreamland if they think that just playing nice football will get them anywhere.

Perhaps you should take your heads out of the sand, fingers off the keyboard, and actually watch some football.

“Pretentious”? “Arrogant”?

Obviously very emotive words loaded with loathing for a Club representing artistry over pragmatism.

Will the Premiership miss such attempts at authenticity? I doubt it, because just like you it’s only interested in one thing and that’s the filthy lucre.

The reason West Brom went down is because they lack a Sugar Daddy willing to gamble the future of the Club on the back of their own private fortune.

Pay peanuts and you know what you get? As usual, the team with the lowest wage bill, exits stage left. How surprising?

Stoke for your information invested what West Brom’s whole defence earns in one week, in the wages of one of the players that you claim improved (don’t make me laugh!) their cynical approach to the gaining of a foothold in the Premiership.

Will the Premiership benefit from the inclusion of such snarling cynicals like Pulis at Clubs like Stoke? Or Bolton? Or Wimbledon for that matter?

I’m glad you think so. I’m also glad that you appear to be in the company of a deluded minority for while you’re revelling in such delusion, why don’t you read a real article on the game in today’s Telegraph.

An article that laments the passing of such a noble Club with marvellous supporters and genuinely communicates what a poorer place the Premiership will be next year without them.