Scary reliance on Buderus last year couple with a few players ending up not contributing this year for various reasons (injuries and sacking) and, I think, Mullen missing a few weeks at the start of the season also hurt. Don't wanna get off to a bad start in this comp.
Some of Bennett (or whoever does recruitment) recruitment decisions aren't great either. I liked some of the older player signings (Smith when he's fit is great, ditto Scott, Mason has been good value) because he needed to get a decent attitude change in the club, they've been pathetic in that regard for years. But it's kind of backfired on him now, stuck with some older players and not much in the way of youth in the forwards of any real substance.
I would've liked to have seen what happened when they had Smith as coach tbh, thought he did a good job cleaning them out and them going in the right direction before general instability when they didn't offer him a longer term deal set in.
