This wonderful forum has a wide ranging mix of fans, and when the team is on a bad run (including end of last season) people tend to go to their more extreme selves. As such, doing my first match thread is somewhat tricky, how to tick everyone's box? The answer I've come up with is a series of mini threads. I hope you can find your personal preference - enjoy. THE 'DOOM & GLOOMERS' Watford entertain West Ham this Saturday in what must now be a 6 pointer, with all but certain relegation to be confirmed by 5.00pm. Six defeats in a row tells it's own story and the owners, manager and players all need a long hard look at themselves. Brighton was THE WORST performance I've seen from a Watford team in my 35 years of supporting them! Our defence has somehow gone from mid table Championship level to bottom half League Two with the introduction of Dawson and the utterly ridiculous contract extensions handed out like confetti at a wedding has clearly been a joke of the highest order. Our budget defence, costing a total of £3.50 will have zero chance of stopping the highly paid Hammers attack. If we keep it to single figures I'll be amazed. Foster is now past it and our once impressive midfield have been reduced to a bunch of cloggers by a formation sussed out months ago by every other club that play us. Javi is the least flexible manager ever and will stick to his favourites, captained as always by Deeney, who can't run, can't score and can't compete against any defenders taller than him (most of them). Welbeck will remain on the bench again and be chucked on with 15 minutes to go when we find ourselves 5-0 down and Sarr - who is clearly fit and ready - won't even be in the match day squad. We'll pass the ball around the back 4 going no-where, then lump it up to Deeney, lose it, and then have one calamity piece of defending after another as the goals fly in. Game over. Season over. See you in the Championship. THE 'HAPPY CLAPPERS' Watford go into this match with West Ham following 2 results that don't reflect the games themselves or this current team. Brighton may have been a below par performance, but we still had as many shots on target as them and for a 50/50 VAR call could have been awarded a penalty that would probably have swung the match. We matched big spending Everton away from home, and it's clear that this team is a game away from turning in a top performance with goals and points to match it. Javi Gracia (arguably the 2nd most successful manager in our history) knows how to get the best out of the squad at his disposal, as last seasons 11th place finish and FA cup final show. A squad that has been kept together, including highly sort after stars like Deulofeu, Doucoure and Pererya, and then supplemented with a solid defender with Premier league experience, an England international goal scorer and a highly rated young gun for a club record transfer fee, are clearly going to brush many teams aside, and West Ham look prime candidates for us to get the ball rolling. If Javi keeps the formation and players, it's because he knows it works and it'll come good this Saturday. Hard to see beyond a Watford win here, with goals coming from an array of our top 6 standard team. Come on you Orns!! THE 'LADS LADS LADS' Who gives a **** about the game and the score, you all need to start realising that is just an aside to what Saturday's are all about. Get in the pub early doors, few pints and a laugh with the lads. If the game goes well sing loud and proud and if it doesn't then it gives you an excuse to be back in the boozer by 4.30 latest. Don't be fooled by our 'family club' persona, when things get tasty we have a hardcore of boys that can match any firm. West Ham - led by top boy Frodo Baggins - are normally game for a bit of a tear up, so feck the match, Saturday is going to be pwoper naughty! THE CONSPIRACY THEORISTS Saturday brings along another opportunity for Watford to be screwed over by anyone associated with the game. VAR has so far cost us 6 points with 2 stone wall penalties going against us. Compare these decisions to what happened the last time we played West Ham. Six foot something muscle bulging Antonio was, in the eyes of the referee that day, savagely assaulted when Holebas placed his 1 tonne hand on his shoulder making him crumble to the floor. Of course I joke, but then what else can you do as the inept (insert any ref here) sent him off. Some of you may feel that the FA overturning this was in our favour so Holebas could play in the cup final. But statistics will show that Holebas has a horrible record when playing against the top 6 and the FA knew this. He played and we went on to lose, coincidence? They just couldn't bear to see little old Watford win the Cup Final and ruin the story of the day - Man City's glorious treble. Clearly we will be playing against 13 this weekend (West Ham, the ref and the VAR ref), we will most likely have to play with 10 men at some point and face a penalty, which after being missed will be re-taken as Fosters toe will be deemed to have been 1mm off his goal line. Don't worry if you can't make the game, turn onto BBC1 at around midnight when our 37 seconds highlights will be shown and then watch the overpaid 'pundits' make their one liners about us with something like "not looking good for Watford is it" with the reply being "they just need to get their main men Deeney and Ighalo firing again and they'll be alright". Luckily I'll be missing it all as I'm off to area 51. Enjoy. THE FORUM IN JOKERS Saturday brings along the chance to wave flags and vegetables as the team march out to Yellow by yawnmongers. Living in Spain I have inside knowledge that Hogg could return from his loan spell, but whether he plays on Saturday depends on him finishing his extended holiday in Senegal following his participation in the Cup of African Nations Cup. Sarr will never play for us as he's gon 2 Villa m8. 6-5 to the Spammers (Welbz 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, Deeney OG 85, Deeney OG 86, Deeney OG 87, Deeney OG 88, Deeney OG 89, Moralee OG 90) Tough afternoon for the Hornets. THE MORE TRADITIONAL Watford take on West Ham in the 3rd game of the season, following 2 disappointing defeats. West Ham are also looking for early season form off the back to an all to familiar 5-0 defeat to Man City and a 1-1 draw with the much improved Brighton. After finishing 1 place above us last season the Hammers have spent around £80m to bolster their chances of moving up rather than down. A team that on paper looks strong, you'd expect them to be competing in those mid table positions come the end of the season. Our last game with the Hammers ended in a 4-1 defeat. Historically West Ham have the upper hand on us, winning 43 times and only losing 21 (13 draws). Since our recent promotion it reads 4 wins to 3 in West Hams favour, although we have won 2 of the last 3. The likely formation for us is 4-2-2-2, although many of us would like to see this changed to a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1. West Ham hope to have a number of key players back for this one, with both Anderson and Haller missing their last game. Watford have been lucky (touch wood) with injuries recently and Javi should have a large and capable squad to pick from. Will be interesting to see if Welbeck and Sarr feature and if there is a change to formation and tactics. Safe journey to everyone going. THE THEME OF THE WEEKERS For those who prefer to talk about anything but football on a football forum, I'll chuck fish out there as the jellied eel eating cockneys come our way. But please Cod, don't over do it. Hope you found the thread for you in there!
Their front three should have a field day with our defence particularly the wingers. Haller looks a class player, but for £45 million he should be.
Liked apart from the redundant apostrophe and failure to use the government-approved term Gloomsters. Can't decide which section I like best, but I may have come to a decision by 5pm on Saturday
Great preview EB Hornet and I liked the different sides to our very diverse and oppionated fanbase. I do agree with the likely tatics of Gracia. Unless he has practiced a new formation or lineup in training, it's going to be 4 2 2 2 (yawn). If we play as we did last week (bar the opening 10 mins) we have a chance at getting something. I'm going to predict the rot ends Saturday, and we get a morale boosting point and a clean sheet. 0 - 0
Something for everyone in the preview. Big game - if we lose the season looks like one of struggle. Win and the season starts afresh.
I don't recognise myself in any of the above, however, if Jon Moss is the match official we may as well not even play the game. But I am optimistic. We will win and put our bad run to and end and climb up the table. On the other hand we might lose and that will place tremendous pressure on Gracia. But who cares......it's just a game and we shouldn't take it all quite so seriously. I have heard from good authority from my villa in Spain that Sarr and Welbeck will be in the squad, which is very good news.....unless of course Welbeck gets injured and we find out that Sarr is actually crap....then it will be bad news. Anyone know of a good chippie?
Must win game if we want to avoid spending the first 3 months of the season in the bottom 3. 1-3 Doucoure (right end).
Great write up Easy win for us, Watford 2-0 West Ham. Gracia to make some changes and all is well in the world. Bet wetters have a dry night.
1-1 We equalise with 5 mins or so to go. That way there is just enough for everyone to still back their opinions on Gracia/Gino/Recruitment/Dawson for another week.
7-1 Sarr scores a hatrick, sets up Welbeck for 2 goals and takes two shots which rebound off Deeney's arse so that we can say he's finally scored from open play. Dawson own goal.
What about the fans too cool to go to the Vic anymore? Like me. Go to my mates for the game and spill a beer within 10 minutes of arriving, wonder how Danny Dichio has gotten a job as a pundit on Canadian TV, stick on Fifa when we're 4-0 down whilst trawling through my 11 bet-slips to see which team has cost me the most money. Happy days.
https://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/s...anagh-appointed-referee-premier-league-clash/ Chris Kavenagh, the same official who incorrectly sent off Holebas and give a penalty for the Antonio diving in that 4-1 defeat against West Ham, returns to the scene of the crime. On VAR is some razor blade from Australia, who has never officiated in this country before. He's here on work experience. lol...…...this is just so amusing.
You said he was a good referee last season. As for the guy on VAR - it’s the referee who was roundly praised for his use of VAR last season. We can’t have it both ways - we say we should draft in better referees but when we try, they’re written off already. This is him.
...….and you said people with a "let me prove you wrong’ attitude is a bizarre one" as recently as yesterday. http://wfcforums.com/index.php?threads/alfie-mawson.56172/
Write up made me chuckle. Third week of the season and it genuinely feels like a must-win game. I just want to see Sarr tbh. 3-0 West Ham, tough afternoon for the Hornets.
I'm going to make a bold prediction. Watford 0-4 West Ham. Deeney will be marked out of the game and Javi will stand on the roof of the G.T. stand as if he were a gargoyle.
You've got to give me some credit. I've averted fights with UEA and Burnsy, who were looking to start something, in the last couple of days. I am trying my best to walk away.
I’m not trying to start anything... It just seems you are incapable of having a conversation with someone without believing it’s an attack on you. So I’ll try again in terms you might find more agreeable - You don’t seem happy about the appointment of Kavanagh as referee or with the idea of the Australian official doing the VAR? Given your thoughts about Kavanagh previously, can you say why you have substantially changed your mind? Surely it should be based on his body of work rather than one game... And given that the current set of officials are doing badly with VAR, is it so bad that we have been appointed a unique opportunity to have an official who has been praised for his use of VAR elsewhere? What’s your thoughts?
