As far as I am concerned this game and the Manchester City game are games where we should just defend and protect our superior goal difference which is essentially an extra point. We should rest some of the more injury prone players for these games.
Got to disagree mate, and I hope we really go for it in both matches.
We all know the Sky coverage for those games will be all about Man City and Arsenal with Albion hardly getting a look in, and it would be so nice to defy the odds and cause an upset, especially against the greedy lot at Man City charging Albion fans a fortune with those crazy ticket prices.
Also when you look at some of our results, it's the unexpected points gained against a few of the "big" (yawn) clubs that have ensured we presently have the 5 point cushion
I know it's going to take a monumental effort and the chances are we'll get turned over, but you never know?
As for the TV scheduling, yep this is a total pain in the backside for those who like to follow the club away.
Personally I was never going to the Arsenal match due to another commitment that weekend, but I know a fair few who were looking at getting deals by booking train journeys for the original date, and having a full day down there, early train out and a late train home and while I'm sure they will still go, it's not ideal on the Sunday.
I would have done Man City, as it's on a non working day but there's no way I'm paying their prices.
But as for SKY and BT, what can you do? We're totally snookered and I hate the fixture changes, but this afternoon I'll be putting my feet up and watching the games, and if the Sunderland v Albion match turns out to be a critical fixture (though hopefully we might be safe by then) and were to get televised at late notice, which the TV companies can do if there's no fixture date change, I'd be more than happy to watch on TV as there's no way I can get to that match.
Looking at the TV schedules, while we all want Albion to be as successful as possible, there's no question that if you're club is successful you do end up paying the price in terms of the ongoing fixture changes with Saturday 3pm KO's a real rarity, paying Category "A" prices when you travel and when you throw in the European matches as well, it can't be easy for the longstanding supporters of those clubs (ie: the "real" fans not the new age glory hunting bandwagon jumpers) on average salaries who still want to follow their clubs on a regular basis, and maybe take their kids along. No wonder the demographics of football supporters, especially at the higher profile clubs, has changed so much over the years.
There's always a price to pay one way or another.
