Do they still exist or have they been done away with? Were they always just a figment of our imagination anyway? I can't remember anything like one at all since 2 Jan. Since then we've played nine away fixtures including eight under Javi (that including one cup-tie). It's a pathetic record. Do we have any confidence at all that we might kick off next season on a positive note, and playing the sort of football that we kicked off this one with, given that quite appalling record?
Didn't we kick off last season with a manager who had an appalling away record with Hull? Just goes to show new season anything can happen
Interesting.. and disturbing.. stats about our away goals in season 17/18.. -We scored 2 goals in each of our first six away games.. culminating with scoring 3 in our seventh away game at Newcastle. -We then scored 2 goals in our remaining 12 away fixtures. Strike rate for the first 7 away games = 2.14 goals per game. Strike rate for our last 12 away games = 0.16 goals per game.
Yet some will tell you it’s just ‘one of those freak records’ you get in football rather than a real issue.
Of course you have to look at the bigger picture and note that those early away games were at places we might expect to pick up points.. and score goals. Whereas our late away games were generally the ones we wasnt expecting much from. Even so 2 goals from 12 away games is a shocker and makes me wonder why i bothered to watch our away games after the New Year. Hope springs eternal i suppose.
What is the longest spell we've gone without an away goal - this must run it close! Also might have been one of our lowest away goal tallies ever?
Wouldn't have a clue about the longest spell, but, in terms of away goals tallies, it was a fair way off 1971/72's offering of nine goals. The longest spell without scoring in that season was four.
Before now, our longest run without an away goal was 9 matches. This was achieved over two seasons, the end of 71-72 and the start of 72-73. Our longest run within a single season was 8 games, in 1923-24. We have currently equalled that run, having failed to score in the last eight league matches. If you factor in the cup tie too, it’s actually 9 without a goal, which becomes our worst ever run in a single season and joint worst of all time. Silva was actually in charge for the first match in the sequence, while Gracia has had the other eight. Of course as has already been debated and proven by those wiser than the likes of me and Burnsy, no blame can be attributed to our new Head Coach for us failing to score in over 720 minutes under him on the road. It’s all mere coincidence and bad luck.
If I remember correctly, Fulham could never win away yet managed to stay up for years. I've just googled it actually. They won 32/221 away games. 14.5% over 13 consecutive seasons. That's atrocious. But... ... It can be done...
That’s a very astute point. Equally strangely Silva had a terrific home record in his career up until his final few matches at Hull. I don’t think he lost a home match in three years or something strange. And then he comes to us and takes ages to get one. I’m not Gracia’s biggest fan but I do appreciate you get strange runs and quirks of fate in sport and it’s totally possible he may start next season with a flurry of good away results.
I feel for our travelling support. I don't do many. Only four this year. Chelski, Palarse, Brighton and Wembley. Three goals for us. Isn't it a reasonable expectation that if you put the time, effort and money in to travel to support our team then you might also have a reasonable expectation of seeing and celebrating a goal on our behalf? Whatever Javi is he ain't a magician. Meanwhile there's a potential one swimming about in the tidal reach of the Thames. One we landed once before but then chucked back in again. Depending on events on the 26th of this month I reckon we should maybe sling our hook back in again.
On the flip side our home record under Gracia is very decent but no goals in 8 games is abysmal no matter how well we played.