Well, the season is almost here, your thoughts...

[Jonty]

I am very impressed with how the team is shaping up. I know they are only friendlies but from what I've seen pre season we have added quality and look a decent team. Maybe one or two to come in yet. The workrate in these friendies has been top notch, new players linking in well and all bodes well for the new season. We should be quietly optimistic that we are good enough to compete with the top teams next season. Talk about early benchmarking but with some tough opening games, August is going to be a big indicator of how well equipped this squad is going to be In challenging the top end of the table. Top 5 has to be a realistic aim. Can't wait for it all to start.

Your thoughts on the squad, season ahead?

[Wintergreen]

Without doubt this promises to be our best non league season ever, I think we will do well and be among the contenders. Paul Casson coming along when he did has been the best thing that happened to Barrow AFC this century. I like his laid back attitude and demeanour and just maybe he will take us back into the football league before he is done at Holker St.

Whether the town has the culture to independently sustain a football league club after the Casson era has finished I doubt unless we can revolutionise our commercial side. However, it’s all to play for and success breeds success; a winning start and we will be averaging 2000 every home game. Come on you Blues!!

[spirit of 1990]

I was just talking to a lad at work about this yesterday.

Even when in this league in the past I can honestly say I never even thought about promotion, at the back of my mind was the hope that we would do survive, even do well and perhaps a decent cup/trophy run. This time it's definitely different, I genuinely feel like there could be a play-off spot available for us.....winning the play-off's is a different matter but actually reaching them has to be a possibility.

[ssgtfoster]

Over the weekend Barrow were 20/1 to win the league with Coral...........I have placed a juicy £50 bet on them............

The odds are dropping week by week as I think that the rest of the league, and pundits, are waking up to what Casson, Cox and co are quietly doing..........

Like another post mentioned, I usually settle for mid-table safety in this league, but today I have the same feeling I had two seasons ago when we won the Conference North.

Best £50 investment ever!!! Bring it on!!

[Moribund]

Over the weekend Barrow were 20/1 to win the league with Coral...........I have placed a juicy £50 bet on them............

The odds are dropping week by week as I think that the rest of the league, and pundits, are waking up to what Casson, Cox and co are quietly doing..........

Like another post mentioned, I usually settle for mid-table safety in this league, but today I have the same feeling I had two seasons ago when we won the Conference North.

Best £50 investment ever!!! Bring it on!!

Hardly the best £50 investment ever - it's £50 down the drain.
Forest Green and Tranmere should, and I think will be out in front, and there's up to a dozen or so teams in with a shout of play-offs. Obviously some will turn out to be useless, but there could be some big surprises (like Dover and Braintree last season).
Fifth is a huge ask, but that's obviously what we're all hoping for and expecting now - even to myself, missing out would almost feel like a bit of a disappointment.

Cox has said over the summer that his sides never start the season well and take a little time to get playing as he'd like, but when they click, they really click. It was kind of like that when he came in - a bunch of 0-0 draws and scraping a few by one goal, people on here even suggesting it was better under Edmo! But once they got used to the style, our form was a match for the top teams. I hope that's the case if we have a few poor results early on, and that the crowd doesn't start turning on them, because that never helps anyone.

I think 5th or 6th for us.

[Ste Story]

Would be happy with consistently top 10 personally, delighted with any flirt with the playoffs. Don't see us competing with the likes of Tranmere/FGR over the full season.

[Middleton Nick]

I have watched the last two friendlies and I have been impressed with the new signings.Even players from last season seem to be playing with a bit more confidence.It will take a while for everyone to gell but I am looking forward to this season.
If we make a play-off spot I would count that as a successful season.A decent cup run wouldn't go amiss.

[Bingo]

I think it will be a decent finish, flirting with the play offs but just missing out with a 7th place finish. I would be happy with that and the club continuing to grow on and off the pitch. Maybe a cup run and possibly do well in the trophy.

I think if we were to see league football at the club again we would do ok in terms of support. When Morecambe and Accrington were playing the same league as us they were averaging crowds of 500.

Success boasts the support, what the club needs to do is build an infrastructure that can cope with that.

[Cli83]

I think we should be able to take a top ten placing and maintain it

[walney rock]

Id take a top 8 finish and a run in the fa cup 4th round + would be nice

[John Very Little]

Is this a prediction thread as to where we'll finish?
I'll go 7th as like Ste I can't see us competing with the likes of Tranmere, Forest Green & Eastleigh either.
Also think too many draws may cost us and will we be able to hold onto Cox if he's successful?

[Zak]

The more I look at the tissue top 5 100/30, the more I like it. This a team assembled to get promoted. Not seen many games since Cox took charge, but from afar it seems that this side is a replica of almost every successful Conference side I've seen.

[barrowfan_chris]

Successful season for me is a cup run in trophy or Fac and being in contention for the play offs.

Hopefully people remain calm if we dont start well cox has consistantly said his teams start slow.

Winning at Tranmere though would be a decent.

[PRR]

There are some good teams on paper but they also have to maintain consistency throughout a long season. We could be the (relative) surprise package this season like Braintree and possibly Dover were last season. I've seen enough to make me believe we could make the playoffs and our form from the back end of last season is good (all be it with a vastly different and probably inferior team). Good positive signs but reluctant to cream my under crackers just yet. Anything more than four points from the first two and I'll really believe, anything less and it could be another meh season.

[Shaun]

This.

Id take a top 8 finish and a run in the fa cup 4th round + would be nice