Football Manager Blog

October 2014

2010-01-10T14:11:00.002Z

Lewis Montrose returned to the squad for the next match against Forest Green who were struggling towards the bottom of the table. We were in front almost immediately when Michael Noone fed in Ryan Charles who hit a low shot into the corner from about 10 yards. We looked comfortable for the rest of the game, amassing a total of 14 shots, 10 of which were on target, but perhaps somewhat surprisingly we only managed one more goal. It came in the 86th minute when a Netan Sansara free-kick was parried to the feet of Sam Pitman who fired in his first senior league goal to make the final score 2-0.

Shortly before the next game against 4th placed Stevenage, our parent club Aston Villa signalled their intent on sending a youngster on loan to us for the rest of the season. The player in question was 19-year-old attacking midfielder Ray Smith, and the deal was finalised in time for Smith to make the bench for the Stevenage game. We now had six very strong centre midfielders, with Smith adding to a list that already included Lewis Montrose, Callum Harrison, Mitchell McPike, David Fox and Michael Noone. With no goals coming in the first half, I decided to throw on a couple more attacking options in the 67th minute by bringing on Smith for his debut, as well as Joe Benjamin up front. It didn't take the latter long to change the game; less than five minutes after being introduced, Benjamin was played in by Mitchell McPike, took one touch of the ball then powered a curling shot into the far corner of the goal to make it 1-0. Sam Pitman was brought off injured shortly after, but we managed to hold on and went away with the 3 points.

We made it four wins on the trot in the next game against Salisbury, despite going behind early on from the penalty spot and Michael Noone missing our own potential-leveller from 12 yards 30 minutes later. Mitchell McPike headed in shortly after the break to eventually equalise, and then substitute Ryan Charles' 7th goal of the season sealed the victory for us with 15 minutes left on the clock.

Our winning run unfortunately came to an end the following Saturday when we travelled to Aldershot, who were sitting in 3rd. An own goal from Ryan Charles in first half stoppage time gave the home side the lead, and their advantage was doubled from the penalty spot with just over 10 minutes of normal time left. An 89th minute tap-in from Paul Green, his first goal for the club, proved not enough and we went back to Shropshire empty-handed.

Fleetwood Town, who were tentatively floating around the relegation zone, then made the trip to New Bucks Head. We won the game 2-1 with goals from Ryan Charles and Richard Offiong, despite them having only 3 shots to our 16. Nevertheless, a win is a win.

The final game of October was an FA Cup tie against Stafford Rangers of the Blue Square North. Stafford were performing well in the league, sitting in 2nd place, but had lost two in a row going into our game. A rare start was handed to Lewis Alessandra which proved worthwhile as the striker got on the end of Lewis Montrose's pass for his 3rd goal of the season. Richard Offiong made sure of our victory in the 51st minute and we comfortably progressed to the 1st Round of the competition, with a tie at home to Guiseley to look forward to.

12 points from a possible 15 in the league meant we ended October at the top of the tree in 1st place, a point ahead of our nearest rivals Cambridge, who we play next month. The rest of November's fixtures are against bottom-half sides, sandwiching the FA Cup 1st Round tie.

September 2014

2010-01-09T17:19:00.002Z

Jordan Watson was called up to the Northern Ireland U21 squad and therefore missed the first game of the month against Kidderminster Harriers, who at the point of playing us, sat at the top of the league. We found ourselves 2-0 down within 60 minutes, which left us a bit of a mountain to climb in order to salvage something from the fixture. Richard Offiong and Callum Harrison were brought on for Max Wragg and the injured Lewis Montrose and the formation was changed to an attacking 3-4-3. An 83rd minute Netan Sansara free-kick from the edge of the box brought us back into the game at 2-1, and then in the 2nd minute of stoppage time, Sansara was once again involved when his cross was met by Tom Parkes at the back post, who headed past the Kidderminster 'keeper to level things up and ensure we didn't go home empty-handed.

We went into our next match against Ebbsfleet without Jordan Watson who was still on international duty, and Lewis Montrose who was injured in the previous game. David Fox replaced the captain with Chris Robertson taking the armband, whilst Richard Offiong replaced Lewis Alessandra up front. A spectacular 35-yard effort from Ryan Charles put us in front after 12 minutes, with Tom Parkes' 2nd goal in as many games doubling our lead before the break. The decision to include Richard Offiong in the starting line-up proved to be a good one, as the striker grabbed a second half brace, either side of a consolation reply from Ebbsfleet's Jamie Forshaw. Offiong was named Man of the Match; an award that could've gone to any of the 14 players involved on the day.

A disappointing goalless draw away to York City was followed by another win; this time against last season's runners-up, Wrexham. Ryan Charles converted a penalty after 12 minutes, only for the Welsh side to grab one back on 35 minutes. However, in first half stoppage time, Richard Offiong put us back in front with a neat finish after he found himself one-on-one with the Wrexham 'keeper. The game finished 2-1 after a rather uneventful second half.

Our unbeaten run, which spanned seven games, came to an abrupt end when we travelled to Histon, as they beat us 3-1. Having come on as a substitute in the previous game for his first appearance for the club, Sam Pitman made his first start, replacing Max Wragg at right-back. Despite having 18 shots (double their efforts), including four clear cut chances, two shots that hit the woodwork and four blocked shots, we just couldn't find the finishing touch, and a Lewis Alessandra goal with not long left on the clock was merely a consolation.

We hosted AFC Wimbledon at New Bucks Head, hoping that we could get back to winning ways. Michael Noone partnered Mitchell McPike in the centre of midfield, as David Fox was taken off injured in the previous match, and unfortunately would be out for 3-4 months with a damaged Achilles tendon. The visitors scored first; centre back Leon Johnson rose at the back post to head in from a free-kick after 19 minutes. A scramble in the box just before half-time though, saw the ball fall to Jordan Watson's feet, who passed it into an empty net for his first goal for the club and to level things up, and this was the way things finished, at 1-1.

The final game of the month was an away fixture at Burton Albion, who found themselves second to bottom in the league, making it on paper an easy victory for us. It was far from that though. Two Michael Noone goals gave us a good start; the first a 25 yard shot into the top corner, and the second a penalty; but in the second half Burton responded with two goals of their own to draw themselves level. In an effort to find a winner, Lewis Alessandra was brought on to add some extra firepower, and the formation was changed to 3-4-3. It worked; on 75 minutes, Darius Charles was sent off for bringing down his namesake Ryan in the box and we were awarded yet another penalty. There was only one man who was going to take it; Michael Noone. He didn't disappoint, and cooly converted it to give us the lead and seal his hat-trick. Richard Offiong rounded things off with a low shot just minutes later, leaving the final score 4-2 to us.

We finished September in 2nd place behind Cambridge who were just a single point ahead of us. It was yet another good month, so all I can say is: more of the same next month... please.

August 2014

2010-01-05T11:29:00.002Z

The first game of the 2014/15 season brought us up against Barnet at their ground. They had finished in the bottom half the previous year, and we'd won all four previous meetings over the past two seasons so it's safe to say we were the favourites for the match. Jordan Watson was the only new face in the starting line-up, beginning the game on the left of midfield. Mitchell McPike and Joe Benjamin made the bench, with the other new arrival, Sam Pitman, unavailable through injury. We had a good start though; Netan Sansara floated in a free-kick from the right hand side which was pushed into the net, rather strangely, by Barnet 'keeper Ross Rehman. Things got better for us when Denis Behan scored from another free-kick, and we went into the break 2-0 up. The Barnet manager must've said something spectacular in the dressing room though; as within 8 minutes of the restart, they were level. We piled on the pressure, with Benjamin, McPike and Lewis Alessandra all coming on as substitutes; one of them in place of David Fox who had to be brought off through injury after 62 minutes. It looked as though we were fighting a lost cause until in the third minute of a possible four minutes of stoppage time, Jordan Watson floated the ball into the Barnet box, and Mitchell McPike rose above the defence to head in from 10 yards. Not a bad way to introduce yourself really.

An injury in the previous game to David Fox meant McPike was given his first start for the club in the next game against newly-relegated Darlington. Jake Simpson also missed the game with a twisted knee, meaning Ryan Charles moved to right midfield and Lewis Alessandra started up front. After a goalless first half, we were awarded a penalty on 60 minutes when Denis Behan was brought down in the box. Behan himself stepped up and converted it to give us the lead. Darlington gave little response, and we should've added to our lead many times. It wasn't until the 92nd minute that we did eventually double our tally, with captain Lewis Montrose turning sharply in the box and hitting a low shot in the bottom corner to seal the victory.

Joe Benjamin started his first game for the club in the next match away at Gateshead, replacing the injured Denis Behan. Gateshead were definitely our bogey team; we'd lost all four of our previous meetings, despite them finishing 13th in the last two seasons. By the end of the game, that figure had increased to five wins from five for Gateshead, after a 3-1 victory ensured they went home with all three points. They scored first, but Lewis Alessandra cancelled their early goal out just after half-time. However, two more goals gave them the win, and I just don't understand why we can't beat them.

We were back to winning ways in the next match though, with a convincing 4-0 victory over Droylsden. A goal after just 19 seconds from Ryan Charles, the quickest in the club's history, gave us a very early lead, with Michael Noone doubling our advantage after 13 minutes. Joe Benjamin added a third on 85 minutes with a powerful effort, his first goal for the club, and Lewis Montrose rounded off the win with a 20-yard shot, taking his tally for the season to two, doubling his career goals and tripling his total for the club.

We travelled to Northwich for the next game, and once again went away with three points with a Denis Behan penalty on 27 minutes, followed by a Ryan Charles goal, giving us a 2-0 victory. The final game of the season was at home to 4th placed Macclesfield. Charles' third goal in three games gave us the lead, and although for the rest of the game they had the better chances, they failed to find a goal and we once again went home with 3 points.

This month was certainly one of the best in my managerial career in terms of results, and it was a perfect start to the league campaign. We were in 2nd place, behind Kidderminster, who were incidentally our first opponents in September. The success this month has come despite several injuries to notable first-teamers, including Jake Simpson, David Fox and Denis Behan, which shows the level of squad depth we currently have. I'm hoping for more of the same next month, so we shall see!

June/July 2014

2010-01-04T16:29:00.003Z

This pre-season turned out to be the toughest in terms of signing players. There seemed to be a distinct lack of talent available or willing to come to the club, and therefore only four players were brought in before the start of the season. The first to join was 22-year-old central midfielder Mitchell McPike, who had been released from the Glenn Hoddle Academy at the end of the previous season. It was a good signing, but we now had a clear abundance of central midfielders, with Lewis Montrose, David Fox and Michael Noone all vying for places in the starting line-up. However, that can only be a good thing I suppose.

My scouts were working overtime; collecting reports on literally hundreds of players, the majority of whom were either not good enough, or not interested in a move to AFC Telford. The England Trial Day wasn't a success either; after scouting every player who had been involved in the two games, nobody was signed. I decided to turn my attention to the loan market, and managed to bring in a trio of youngsters on season-long loans; Hereford's 21-year-old left winger Jordan Watson, Northampton's 23-year-old striker Joe Benjamin and West Brom's 18-year-old full back Sam Pitman. Watson, a Northern Ireland youth international, would provide Netan Sansara with some competition, whilst Benjamin would add pace and stamina to our ever-ageing forward line, as both Denis Behan and Richard Offiong were now 30.

In terms of outgoing transfers, the club was quite busy. Some notable players who followed Graham Coughlan out of the club were Matthew Duffy and Adrian Nevins, who signed for Hednesford and Morecambe respectively. Jon Adams, Andy McPherson, Matt Henry, Paul Gower and Robert Slater had also reached the end of their contract and were released on free transfers.

We had six scheduled friendly matches, the first of which was against, as usual, Glenn Hoddle's Academy. We won 3-1, with goals from Lewis Alessandra, Denis Behan and Michael Noone. This was followed by a 3-1 defeat at home to Stockport, then a battling 1-0 win against Leyton Orient, in which respectively, Lewis Alessandra and Michael Noone scored. A predictable heavy loss against our parent club Aston Villa was next (6-0) but that was followed by our own heavy win; a 5-0 victory against our feeder club Canvey Island, in which Behan (2), Alessandra, Jake Simpson and Mitchell McPike scored. The final friendly brought us up against Bristol City Reserves, and we won 2-1 with goals from McPike and Ryan Charles.

We were predicted to finish mid-table and given odds of 33-1 to win the league. However, I told the board that promotion would be the season's aim. August will see the league fixtures begin, and everyone at the club is raring to go and up for another impressive season, but hopefully this time we'll have something to show for our efforts.

May 2014

2010-01-03T13:39:00.003Z

Finishing in 7th place in the Blue Square Premier is a good achievement, but part of me classes it as a disappointment. We had been in the play-off places for quite some time, but a poor couple of months around Christmas meant we were cut off from the rest of the pack, and this proved to be costly when it came to the end of the season. Next year, I believe we can go up, but we'll need to strengthen our side before that can happen.

In terms of the current squad's performance throughout the 2013/14 season, there were several stand-out performers. Denis Behan once again topped the goal-scoring charts, grabbing 20 goals in 47 appearances altogether, whilst Ryan Charles and Richard Offiong both got into double figures for the season. Lewis Montrose once again had a brilliant season; finishing with an average rating of 7.17 in 46 games, 13 assists and a pass completion ratio of 83%; the best in the league. Being made captain hadn't made his performances drop whatsoever it seems. At the back, Tom Parkes and Chris Robertson had solid first seasons with the club, and will look to build on their good performances next year. Max Wragg impressed after coming back from a lengthy spell on the sidelines, whilst Tommy Lee will be hoping he can continue as the club's number 1 next season after conceding 47 in 44 league games with 15 clean sheets.

In order to strengthen the squad, players will need to be sold. 39-year-old centre back and former captain Graham Coughlan, who scored the goal that sealed our promotion to the Blue Square Premier, had his contract mutually terminated. He plans to retire at the end of next season, but there could be a possibility of bringing him back to the club as a coach. Adrian Nevins, Carl Tremarco and Matthew Duffy look set to leave the club, whilst Lewis Alessandra could be one of the bigger names on his way out.

April 2014

2010-01-03T11:07:00.002Z

Promotion-contenders Kidderminster brought an end to our run of consecutive wins with a 2-0 victory in the first game of the final month of the season. We arguably had the better chances but it was the visitors who converted the chances into goals, and we went home with nothing to show for our efforts. However we were back to winning ways in the next game against Grays Athletic, as we ran out 2-1 winners, thanks to goals from Sean Hines and Denis Behan, with the latter coming on with 20 minutes to go and scoring the winner from the penalty spot. Michael Noone twisted his ankle in the game, leaving him out for the rest of the season, which was a big blow considering David Fox had already been ruled out as well.

The Grays game was followed by two away 1-1 draws, firstly against Salisbury and then against Droylsden. In both games, we scored first and in both games, our opponents equalised within the last 20 minutes, which was very annoying to say the least. Ryan Charles hit his 50th league goal for the club in the Droylsden game, whilst Denis Behan grabbed his 20th in all competitions against Salisbury. The two draws also meant that we couldn't make the play-offs, with 6th place being the best we could achieve. It was disappointing, but 6th place would obviously be an improvement on last year.

However with two games left, we were determined to end the season on a high. The penultimate game of the season came against Woking, who were 21st in the league and looking almost certain relegation candidates. 17-year-old Paul Gower started alongside Lewis Montrose in the centre of the park for his first start for the club. It was the away side who scored first; Chris Pavlou slotting the ball neatly past Tommy Lee after 21 minutes. Their lead only last 9 minutes though, as a scramble in the box left the ball at Jake Simpson's feet, who calmy finished into an open goal. On the stroke of half-time, Richard Offiong broke through the Woking defence to score his 14th of the season, with his 15th coming after a Ryan Charles penalty. The game finished 4-1 in the end, with Offiong receiving the Man of the Match award.

The final game of the season brought us up against Rushden & Diamonds, who had occupied the top spot for over half of the season, and for the other half had been in 2nd behind Wrexham. Going into the game, they had already been crowned champions and had sealed promotion to League Two, so it was a bit of a nothing game for them. We however, could still make 6th place, as we were 3 points behind AFC Wimbledon. Rushden were 2-0 up by the 21st minute though, and it looked as if we didn't have enough to come back, until a goal-mouth scramble allowed Tom Parkes to score his 2nd of the season on 53 minutes, and then just 4 minutes later, William Mellors-Blair was played in by Richard Offiong for his 1st goal of the season in what could be his final appearance for the club due to his loan period ending after the game. After this, we had the momentum but failed to make our chances into goals, as the game finished 2-2. It was a good performance in the end, and one that we could've won on another day.

So that was it; the end of the 2013/14 season. We finished 7th, two places better than the previous year, which was something to build on for next year. The next installment of the blog will be a summary of the season, so look out for it!

March 2014

2009-12-30T16:27:00.002Z

Shrewsbury Town were the first visitors of the month to New Bucks Head, a team who we hadn't beaten in the three previous games against them, and who were putting forward a strong case for a play-off place. Paul Green replaced Max Wragg at right-back in the only change to the starting line-up, and it was us who drew first blood. Jake Simpson linked well with Lewis Alessandra on the right hand side to bend a cross into the box where Netan Sansara was lurking. Sansara met the ball with his head for his 3rd goal of the season. However Shrewsbury were back level just 3 minutes later, and then, thanks to a Tom Parkes own goal, were ahead after 31 minutes. A powerful effort from David Fox just over 5 minutes before the break gave us an equaliser, but the visitors grabbed what proved to be the winning goal on 73 minutes when Alex Stavrinou scored, to make the final score 3-2 to them.

This game was followed by another defeat, this time at the hands of lowly Chester City, who were dwindling away towards the bottom half of the season. Two goals in the first half proved too much, and we didn't manage a comeback, meaning we went home with nothing. This called for some major changes in the next match at home to 3rd placed Cambridge; Max Wragg returned and Sean Hines started in left midfield, meaning Netan Sansara switched to left back. Tom Parkes partnered Chris Robertson at centre half, with Callum Harrison dropping to the bench, and Ryan Charles came in for Lewis Alessandra, who had taken a knock in the previous game. Jake Simpson's 2nd goal of the season put us ahead after 12 minutes, only for Cambridge to cancel it out 7 minutes later. Simpson unfortunately had to be brought off on 34 minutes after twisting his knee but a Denis Behan double in the space of 3 minutes shortly before half-time, one a header from a Sansara cross, and the other a penalty, gave us a massive advantage. Ryan Charles added a 4th on 62 minutes and David Fox completed the rout with 25 minutes left to make the final score 5-1.

The Cambridge game was followed by two 1-0 wins; first against Barnet when substitute Richard Offiong scored in the 85th minute, and then against Forest Green with Sean Hines providing the only goal of the game; his first for the club. We then travelled to bottom-of-the-table Altrincham for our final game of the month. Michael Noone replaced the injured David Fox for the second consecutive game, whilst William Mellors-Blair played right midfield in place of Jake Simpson who was still out with a twisted knee. Goals from Ryan Charles and Denis Behan meant we went into half-time 2-0 up, and despite a second half goal from the home side, we managed to hold on for a win; our fourth in a row.

A successful March left us in 7th place going into April, and meant we were still in the race for the play-offs. Next month will see the climax of the league, but hopefully it won't be the end of our season.

February 2014

2009-12-27T13:16:00.002Z

An away trip to Ebbsfleet was first up in February, a game in which we recorded a somewhat overdue win. It was goalless for 89 minutes, with neither side really dominating the game. Substitute Richard Offiong, on at half-time, received the ball from Ryan Charles on the edge of the penalty box and hit a powerful shot into the top corner to seal a late victory, and the three points.

The next game, at home to Southport, was without doubt the most frustrating game I'd been part of in my career. The stats showed we dominated, but the game finished 1-0 to them thanks to a very flukey goal; they got a free kick on the right hand side and Luke Chapman stepped up to take it left footed. He hit the ball, it went over everyone and ended up nestled in the far corner of the goal. At the time, I thought we'd be fine and get back into the game, but it wasn't to be it seems. Our next game against Macclesfield was arguably equally as frustrating as the previous one. They got an early goal after just 8 minutes, and we couldn't equalise nevermind take all 3 points, and for the second game in a row, we lost 1-0. It wasn't as if we were playing poorly; far from it in fact; we'd dominated both games in terms of shots and possession, and had several clear cut chances in each, but we just failed to find the back of the net.

The next game against Worcester called for a reshuffle of our striking partnership. Ryan Charles and Richard Offiong were replaced by Lewis Alessandra and Denis Behan, and the rest of the team was kept the same; after all, we we'd created lots of chances, it was just the finishing we couldn't do. However despite the change in attack, it was one of our defenders who opened the scoring for us. Tom Parkes received the ball from a Jake Simpson throw-in on the left hand side, took two touches to bring the ball inside and hit a right footed shot from 30-yards that whistled past several defenders and ultimately past the stranded Worcester 'keeper James Dormand, for his first goal for the club. Just 3 minutes later Lewis Alessandra doubled our lead with a low shot from Lewis Montrose's through ball. Then on 71 minutes, Jake Simpson, who incidentally was brilliant all match, crossed for Denis Behan who headed in at the far post. The change in strike partnership certainly worked as both strikers found their names on the scoresheet. We held on despite a late consolation from Worcester, to win 3-1.

The win meant we climbed up to 10th in the table, still only 4 points from Macclesfield in 5th place; it was still very tight, with only 10 points separating 5th and 17th place.

January 2014

2009-12-23T17:11:00.005Z

Our first fixture of 2014 was an away fixture at Histon, who it's fair to say, were struggling in the league. Nevertheless, we were 2-0 down at half-time, once again conceding early goals; something we'd annoyingly done all season. So now we were stuck with the task of scoring three second half goals. After changing the team's mentality to attacking, we grabbed a goal back through a 25-yard strike from Ryan Charles. With Histon not offering much in terms of attack in the second half, we were allowed to press for an equaliser. Richard Offiong replaced Max Wragg with the formation altering to 3-4-3, and within 4 minutes of his introduction, Offiong had got on the end of a Lewis Montrose through ball to level things up for us. We definitely had the momentum, and with 7 minutes left on the clock, Montrose was again the provider, this time for Charles, who shot from the right hand side across the 'keeper for his second goal and the eventual winner. There literally is nothing better in football than a come back.

We were on a high, but our next opponents Stevenage were also on form and doing well in the league in 5th place. For 70 minutes, things were level, with us having arguably the best of the chances. However it was our visitors who opened the scoring with some slick passing that cut open our defence. After the goal, Richard Offiong was once again brought on, with the hope of recreating his super-sub performance in the previous game, along with Michael Noone who replaced David Fox in centre midfield. With less than 5 minutes to go, Offiong received the ball on the right hand touchline and played it back to Lewis Montrose in the centre of the park. Montrose then played the ball across to Michael Noone who hit it first time from 30-yards into the back of the net. It was a brilliant goal, and one that earned us a thoroughly deserved point.

We had to cast our thoughts onto the FA Trophy for the next game, as we faced Macclesfield in the 2nd Round of the competition. Once again though, we were 2-0 down at half-time, again adding to the leaky-defence-in-the-first-half stereotype we seemed to have. Michael Noone was brought on after the break and on 62 minutes, for the second consecutive game, produced a moment of sheer brilliance. Picking up the ball from Ryan Charles in almost the exact same position as he scored from against Stevenage, he hit a first time curling shot into the top corner that even Roberto Carlos would've been proud of. Richard Offiong was brought on shortly after we scored and less than 10 minutes after his introduction, he had drawn us level when Jake Simpson's cross was clumsily spilled by the Macclesfield 'keeper to the feet of Offiong, who had the goal at his mercy and simply tapped the ball into an empty net. It finished 2-2, setting up a replay at their place within the next few days.

The replay was an overall disappointing affair, to say the least. After we'd shown we were no pushovers in the previous match, the game at The Moss Rose in Macclesfield brought us right back down to earth. We lost the game 3-1, with Richard Offiong getting our goal. It meant we were now out of both the FA Cup and the FA Trophy, leaving us with no choice but to concentrate on the league for the rest of the season; starting with an away fixture at AFC Wimbledon. We were put on the back foot when the home side opened the scoring after 21 minutes, but Ryan Charles' 9th goal of the season ensured we travelled back to Telford with a point.

17th placed Gateshead were the next visitors to New Bucks Head, and we were out for revenge after their 3-0 drubbing of us earlier in the season. However it was not to be, and we lost the game 2-0. Burton Albion were our final opponents of the month; another team who were pushing for a place in the play-offs. Lewis Montrose missed out through injury, meaning Callum Harrison moved to centre midfield from centre back, with Tom Parkes filling his empty space at the back. There was also a new face in the starting line up; 17-year-old Sean Hines, a pacey left winger signed on loan from Crewe until the end of the season. Hines' inclusion meant Netan Sansara dropped back to left full back. Burton scored first after 22 minutes, but more or less straight away in the second half, Michael Noone pulled us level with another brilliant strike from 25-yards. It was his 4th of the season, and all the goals he'd got were from 25 to 30-yards; and this most recent goal was voted the Goal of the Month, with Ryan Charles' goal against Histon coming 3rd. Charles then put us ahead with his 10th of the season, and it looked as though we'd done enough to finish the month with 3 points, but unfortunately that wasn't the case; a goal-mouth scramble saw the ball roll to Charles Reece on the edge of the box and he managed to squeeze a shot through the mass of bodies and past Tommy Lee in our goal, to end the game at 2-2.

The results in January left us in 13th place in the league, although we were still only 4 points away from York in 5th; so all is not lost. I wouldn't mind a few wins in February though, just to get our morale going again!

December 2013

2009-12-21T12:27:00.003Z

December proved to be an overall tough month for us in terms of fixtures, as we were up against both Rushden and Wrexham, both of whom were flying high in the league, and were becoming increasingly distant from the rest of the pack. A home game against Rushden, who at the point of playing us hadn't lost a game in the league, was first up. We conceded an early goal which put us on the back foot, but on the brink of half time, Lewis Montrose fed in Denis Behan who levelled things up with a low finish in the bottom corner. Then, on 60 minutes, Dale Hannah's cross was nodden down by Behan to the feet of Lewis Alessandra who hit a first time shot from the edge of the box for his 5th goal of the season, and to put us ahead. We were dealt a blow with 15 minutes left though, when David Fox was brought off with a pulled hamstring. It looked as though Rushden's unbeaten league form had come to an end, until in the 85th, some slack marking at the back post left Adam Griffin unmarked to head in. It was disappointing, but we would've took a draw at the start, so it wasn't the end of the world.

The 1st Round of the FA Trophy was next; with a game away at Gainsborough Trinity. Michael Noone stepped in for the injured David Fox in an otherwise unchanged side. It was Dale Hannah's last game for the club before he returned to Derby after his loan, and so everyone was hoping he could finish his spell with a win. A first half Denis Behan double put us in good stead, with substitute Richard Offiong adding a third in the second half. Gainsborough grabbed a late consolation, but we were on our way into the next round in a competition which, realistically we could win.

12th placed York City were the next visitors to New Bucks Head, and although they were in mid-table, they were on a good run of form. It showed as well; within 12 minutes we were 3-0 down, and performing badly; Michael Noone and Chris Robertson being the stand-out underachievers. However for the rest of the game, York seemed to take their foot off the gas, and neither side managed to hit the net after that. We even managed to have 12 shots throughout the game; 3 more than them.

Shortly before the next game, there was a slight change within the backroom staff. Ian Cox's contract was expiring at the end of the season and his new contract meant he would be my new assistant manager, replacing Larry Chambers whose contract was altered to become a coach.

Wrexham, who had overtaken Rushden as the league leaders, provided us with our final test of 2013, and arguably one of the toughest. Both sides had chances to score, whilst Lewis Alessandra had a goal disallowed in the second half, but it ended goalless; a good performance against a team who had been brilliant all season.

By the end of the month, we had slipped a couple of places to 9th place, but I was happy considering we'd got two draws against the top two sides. I'll leave you with a couple of screen shots.

This is the league table (baring in mind I took the shot the day before our game in hand, which is why we're in 13th - everyone else played on the 31st), and this is the squad. Here's to a successful 2014...

November 2013

2009-12-18T22:20:00.003Z

Bottom-of-the-table Altrincham were the first visitors to New Bucks Head in November, and they were easily brushed aside in a convincing 5-0 victory, an identical scoreline to the previous game against Willenhall. Tommy Lee was injured in training between the two games, meaning Alex Cisak started between the sticks for his first appearance of the season. Tom Parkes and Dale Hannah returned to the starting line-up whilst Lewis Alessandra partnered Richard Offiong up front. It was Alessandra who got the first goal for us with a header from a David Fox corner. 5 minutes later, Alessandra's powerful shot was parried to the feet of Jake Simpson who cooly finished for his first goal of the season. Richard Offiong bagged two goals before the break and Dale Hannah's first goal for the club completed the scoring in the second half.

Grays Athletic, another team fighting for survival in the league, were our next opponents. Offiong's 58th minute goal, and 6th in 4 games, gave us the lead, but Grays equalised and managed to hold on for the draw. It was an overall even game, but one in which, in hindsight, we should've won.

The 1st Round proper of the FA Cup came next, as we were drawn at home to League Two's Northampton, 9th in the league at the time. A balanced first half with no goals kept us in with a shout, but the visitors grabbed a goal in the 65th minute to take the lead. It looked as though we we'd spent all our energy, but in the 87th minute, Dale Hannah was brought down in the box and Denis Behan converted the penalty to earn us a replay at their place. The only dampener on the result was the fact that Ryan Charles suffered yet another injury, this time a pulled hamstring, meaning he'd be out for upto a month. We drew 1-1 for the third game in a row in our next game against 5th placed Salisbury, with Richard Offiong grabbing our only goal.

The winner of the FA Cup 1st Round replay would go onto play AFC Bournemouth in the 2nd Round, and from the off, Northampton looked the better of the two sides. They scored after just 3 minutes, but we equalised through David Fox half an hour later. However, within 10 minutes of the restart, Northampton had scored twice, and added a fourth in second half injury time, meaning we were out of the competition.

A trip to Kidderminster Harriers, 4th in the league, was next in the fixture schedule. We hadn't won in 5 games, and needed a win to keep up with the other teams around the play-off places. However, we didn't start well; Kidderminster scored after just 10 minutes. But, with just over 5 minutes left of the first half, we were awarded a free-kick right on the edge of their box. Netan Sansara stepped up and curled the ball left footed round the wall and into the corner of the net for an equaliser. Our chances of winning the game were given a blow when Lewis Montrose received his second yellow card just a minute after we'd pulled level. Things were even between the two sides, until the 72nd minute when Kidderminster once again pulled ahead. We pushed on though, and were awarded an 83rd minute penalty when William Mellors-Blair was brought down, and Denis Behan converted for his 10th league goal of the season. Our ten men had fought back, but it wasn't enough. A 90th minute Kidderminster goal proved to be the winner, and we headed back to Shropshire with nothing to show for our efforts.

Netan Sansara got his 2nd in as many games as we finally got our long-awaited win, against Droylsden a week later. A goalless draw against Woking was the final game of the month, and left us in 5th place. We were only two points away from 3rd and 4th place, both of whom were on 37 points. Leaders Rushden and Diamonds were on 52 points and hadn't lost all season; they were our next opponents.

October 2013

2009-12-18T11:05:00.003Z

Captain Lewis Montrose and Richard Offiong returned to the squad after injury for out first game of the month against Chester City. It was a game which we should've won, and one in which we had plenty of chances to do so; 12 shots to be specific, to their 5. Once again our defence impressed, but our attack just couldn't quite find the finishing touch to some good moves. Their keeper got Man of the Match, which shows how much he had to do, as the game ended goalless.

Ryan Charles was back from injury for the next game against Cambridge, but the striker lasted just 50 minutes before being taken off with concussion. Just 3 minutes after, substitute Callum Harrison fouled a Cambridge player in the box and they were awarded a penalty, which they subsequently converted. This was the way the game finished.

Max Wragg made the bench for the next match after missing 9 months through injury. The right back was voted our Fans Player of the Year last season, despite missing nearly 4 months of it with damanged cruciate ligaments. It was good to see him back in contention though. Dale Hannah missed the Cambridge game as he was on international duty with Scotland U21s, and he was still away for the Barnet game. Lewis Alessandra opened the scoring with his 3rd goal of the season after 7 minutes, and two goals from Denis Behan shortly after half time, both of which were provided by Lewis Montrose, sealed the win for us, despite a Barnet consolation with 20 minutes left to play. It was a comfortable victory in the end, and one that took us upto 6th place in the league.

Forest Green were our final league opponents of the month. Dale Hannah returned and took his place on the left wing, meaning Netan Sansara moved back to play left full back. In over 60 games for the club, Sansara had played left midfield for all of them, even though he's a natural left back. Hopefully he won't have forgotten how to play there. After squandering numerous chances, it looked as though we were heading towards yet another 0-0 draw. However, Richard Offiong was brought on for Lewis Alessandra in the 62nd minute, and less than 10 minutes later scored the goal which proved to be the winner, with a powerful finish in the corner from a Lewis Montrose through ball.

We ended the month with an FA Cup fixture. It was the 4th Round Qualifying and we were drawn against Willenhall Town away from home. They were a small semi-professional club from the West Midlands and one of the only teams left in the competition from below the Blue Square North or South. Max Wragg started his first game after injury, with Paul Green moving to left back. Dale Hannah and William Mellors-Blair missed out because of the terms of their loan, Michael Noone and Graham Coughlan started their first games of the season, with the latter partnering Callum Harrison in defence. We had a good start; Lewis Alessandra fed in Richard Offiong after just 5 minutes to open the scoring. This was followed 15 minutes later with a bizarre goal which was credited to Michael Noone. Offiong hit a shot from the edge of the box which was deflected by a Willenhall defender onto Noone, who I don't think knew much about it, and into the back of the net. Offiong did get his second of the game, and our third, in the 26th minute; Lewis Alessandra once again the provider. David Fox was brought on in the second half and scored his first goal for the club with a thunderous 25-yard strike into the top corner. Substitute Ryan Charles, back from injury, completed the scoring with 2 minutes of normal time left, with a back post header off a Michael Noone cross. We sailed comfortably into the second round.

Forgetting the Cambridge result, it was an overall good month for us, and we finished in 6th place, just one point away from Cambridge in 5th. Next month's fixtures are pretty varied; we play two teams from the top 5, two teams from the relegation zone and two from mid-table.

September 2013

2009-12-17T13:22:00.002Z

After the disappointing performance against Gateshead that ended the previous month, we were determined to start September with a win against Burton Albion. On the bench for us was a familiar face; William Mellors-Blair, the right winger who made 12 appearances for us at the end of last season, had once again joined on loan, this time for the full season, to provide cover and competition for Jake Simpson. Callum Harrison replaced Tom Parkes at centre back in the only change to the starting line-up, and we were given the perfect start after only 50 seconds when Lewis Montrose played in Denis Behan who hit a curling shot into the top right hand corner from the edge of the box. Ryan Charles then doubled our lead with a neat finish; Montrose once again the provider. Despite an instant reply from Burton, and a second half injury to Charles, meaning he'd be out for six weeks, we were able to hold on for the 3 points.

A goalless draw away at struggling Southport followed, with an injury to captain Lewis Montrose adding to the disappointment. He twisted his knee and would be out for 3-4 weeks. On the plus side, our defence played well; Chris Robertson was beginning to show what a good player he is, and why he was signed in the first place, winning almost 80% of headers. Winning ways were restored in the next match against Ebbsfleet as we won 1-0 thanks to a Denis Behan header off a Tommy Lee free-kick, taken from just outside of our penalty area. Lee's assist, and a string of top saves earnt him the Man of the Match award. Richard Offiong damaged his elbow in the game, causing him to miss up to 3 weeks.

Mid-table Macclesfield Town were our next opponents. Lewis Alessandra partnered Denis Behan up front for only his second start of the season, whilst Callum Harrison started in centre midfield for the second game in a row in place of Lewis Montrose. The injuries to Offiong and Charles meant the substitutes bench included 16-year-old striker John Bailey, a product of our youth set-up. The game ended goalless, despite the introduction of Bailey with 20 minutes to go. The same starting line-up was selected for a home fixture against bottom of the table Worcester City, a game in which we proved far too strong for our visitors. It was amazing how we didn't win by more than 3 goals; we had 18 shots overall, whereas they only had one. Denis Behan's 7th of the season, Lewis Alessandra's 1st of the season and Chris Robertson's 1st for the club brought us the goals, in what was a convincing victory.

We finished the month with an away fixture against play-off contenders Shrewsbury Town. Earlier in the week, I had signed a very exciting 19-year-old left winger called Dale Hannah on loan from Derby County for 3 months on the advice of my scouts. Hannah went straight into the side to face Shrewsbury, replacing Netan Sansara. However the result was a bad one; we lost the game 2-1, despite drawing level in the second half through Lewis Alessandra.

An altogether impressive month left us in 7th place at the end of September, just one point away from the play-off places. Our defence, arguably the weak link in the team before the start of the season, is looking assured and solid, whereas the attacking side of the team still could do with kick-starting their season. But, I'm not complaining, and there's hopefully more of the same to come in October.

August 2013

2009-12-14T15:39:00.002Z

We won our final pre-season fixture against Stourport 1-0, with Denis Behan getting the only goal of the game. It meant that we'd kept four clean sheets in the six friendlies, conceding only against Glenn Hoddle's Academy (once) and against Aston Villa (six times). Things were looking promising for our defence which, at the end of last season, I said was the main priority to sort out.

Before the first game of the season against Histon, 27-year-old goalkeeper Tommy Lee was signed, and went straight into the starting line-up for the match. Also included in the starting line-up was new central defensive partnership Tom Parkes and Callum Harrison, and David Fox started in centre midfield. We dominated the game, but unfortunately didn't manage to hit the back of the net as the game ended 0-0.

Only one change was made for the next game against York; as Denis Behan replaced Richard Offiong up front. Ryan Charles opened the scoring for us after just 3 minutes, and Behan's involvement proved worthy when the striker doubled our tally just 3 minutes later. Charles scored his second on 13 minutes, before York grabbed one back. However, Behan restored our three-goal advantage in first half stoppage time with a neat back post volley. He completed his hat-trick on 55 minutes with a header from a Jake Simpson cross, to make the score 5-1. This was the way it finished; a very assured performance from us.

Our first away fixture of the season saw us travel to Wales to face Wrexham. 27-year-old centre back Chris Robertson, who had been on trial, signed permanently before the game, and went straight into the starting line-up to partner Callum Harrison in defence. Tom Parkes moved to left back to replace Matthew Duffy, in what was the only other change. We went ahead twice, only for the home side to draw level both times. Ryan Charles' brace was cancelled out on each occasion, the second of which came in the 60th minute, meaning we were heading for what was a well-earned draw. However, Wrexham's Heidi Taboubi had other things on his mind, and grabbed the winner for his side with 6 minutes to go. There wasn't enough time for us to draw level, and the game ended 3-2 to them.

Right back Lee Vaughan, who had made a record 217 appearances for AFC Telford, was sold to Rushden shortly before the next game at Stevenage. Vaughan had found his first team opportunities limited ever since Max Wragg was signed, and in recent times had found himself behind Paul Green in the pecking order. He had become increasingly unsettled, and a move seemed the best option for both parties. The Stevenage game ended goalless.

We were back to winning ways the following Saturday, when Denis Behan's goal gave us a 1-0 victory against newly-promoted AFC Wimbledon. However we didn't manage to end the month on a high, as we lost 3-0 away to Gateshead. It was a poor team performance, with hardly anyone performing to their full capability.

Overall, August was a very mixed month for AFC Telford. Two wins, two draws and two defeats meant we ended the month in 12th place. Very average indeed. Hopefully next month the squad will have gelled together a bit more, and we can then push for the top half, which is where we belong really.

June/July 2013

2009-12-12T18:20:00.002Z

The 1st week of July saw plenty of changes at New Bucks Head, with no less than seven players leaving. Ryan Young, Paul Dixon, Adam Vasey and Danny Carey-Bertram were all released from the club as their deal expired, along with three others. The only incoming player was 29-year-old former Colchester midfielder David Fox, who would provide Michael Noone with some stiff competition in the attacking central midfielder role.

June was fairly quiet as a whole. We were given about £30k to spend; more than enough for a Blue Square Premier side, so I spent the majority of the month scouring endless lists of players in an attempt to find someone who would make a significant difference to the team. Both my scouts were sent out to look for players in and around the UK, but there definitely was a distinct lack of talent on show. Maybe we were looking in the wrong places.

Our first friendly of the campaign brought us up against Glenn Hoddle's Academy. David Fox started the game in midfield, alongside 21-year-old Leicester defender Tom Parkes. Parkes had been bought on that very day for a hefty £16k, a club record but a fee in which I was fairly reluctant to hand over. Parkes had signed after making 19 appearances for the League One side last season, and would be the long-term replacement for the ageing Graham Coughlan. We won the game 3-1, thanks to goals from Ryan Charles, Lewis Montrose and Michael Noone.

We then had two friendlies in the space of a week, and we won both of them. The first was against Canvey Island, which finished 1-0 through a Jake Simpson goal, and the second was against Horsham, which we won 5-0 thanks to goals from Jon Adams, Denis Behan and a superb hat-trick from Richard Offiong.

22-year-old Callum Harrison was signed for £3k just before the next friendly at home to Aston Villa, our parent club. Harrison came from Sheffield Wednesday, managing 12 appearances for the League One side last season, and could operate in defence and, more capably, in midfield. I was hoping to convert Harrison into a centre back, as he had all the necessary attributes; height, strength and tackling. We ended up losing the Villa game 6-0, but we put up a spirited performance against a side who finished 3rd in the Premier League in the previous season.

A 2-0 win against Birmingham Reserves, with goals from David Fox and Lewis Alessandra, completed the month. There was still one scheduled pre-season fixture left, away at Stourport, and then it would be the beginning of our league campaign. We were due to play Histon (H) in the first game, followed by York (H) and Wrexham (A).

May 2013

2009-12-05T15:20:00.005Z

Finishing 9th in our first season in the Blue Square Premier was regarded as an extremely good achievement by both the board and the fans. The board stated that they were "delighted with the leadership qualities" that I had demonstrated throughout the season, and hoped it would continue as well.

The final standings at the end of the 2012/13 season (click to enlarge)

Our league position graph at the end of the season (click to enlarge)

Jake Simpson was selected in the Blue Square Premier's team of the year, and he thoroughly deserved the accolade. In 39 appearances, the right midfielder scored 7 goals and provided 13 assists, at an average rating of 6.97. Ryan Charles also stood out, as he once again managed to reach the 20-goal landmark; becoming the club's all-time leading goalscorer in the process. Denis Behan and Richard Offiong had very successful first seasons with AFC Telford, as they managed 20 and 18 goals respectively. The undoubted unsung hero though was central midfielder Lewis Montrose. The 24-year-old had developed into an accomplished passer of the ball: he finished with a pass rate of 86% and contributed to 20 assists in 47 appearances. Right back Max Wragg performed well in his 33 games, coming out with an average rating of 7.15, despite having his season cut short through injury.

In pre-season, my main priority will be to strengthen the defence, as we definitely conceded too many for a top half side. There will also be a few players leaving; Simon Davis' loan deal finished and he returned to Crewe, Mark Arber retired and Paul Dixon's contract wasn't renewed.

April 2013

2009-11-29T18:44:00.002Z

We made it two wins in a row with our first game of the final month of the season against Newport County, in a 2-0 victory. Denis Behan grabbed both goals; his 16th and 17th of the season, in a match which we dominated. Newport rarely threatened our defence, with no shots troubling Alex Cisak in goal. An away fixture at Rushden and Diamonds followed. Rushden had been in the play-offs for the majority of the season, and were currently occupying 5th spot, so it was going to be a tough game. However, Behan scored his 4th in 3 games to give us the lead after only 15 minutes. Rushden responded with 5 minutes left of the first half, and despite them losing a man on 60 minutes, that was the way it finished; 1-1.

We hosted Kidderminster Harriers next, who had beaten us 4-0 when we played them at their ground. This time it wasn't much better either; they scored an early goal, but Ryan Charles levelled things up for us in the first half. Alex Cisak then put the ball into his own net to give the Harriers the lead, and their victory was completed with a stoppage time goal in the second half. If I was to choose our 'bogey team', it would definitely be them.

Forest Green Rovers were our next opponents in a fixture that had to be rescheduled from last month due to a waterlogged pitch at their ground. It was a comfortable victory for us; Ryan Charles grabbing both goals in a 2-0 win. Two more wins followed this; away at Burton Albion (2-1, with goals from Charles and Richard Offiong) and home to Grays Athletic (2-0, with two goals from Charles). Incidentally, Ryan Charles' second goal in the Grays match was his 20th of the season, and 6th in 4 games. He really does seem to love the end of the season.

Despite a run of three victories, we still found ourselves in 9th place, and with only one game to go, we couldn't make the play-offs this year. This was disappointing but at the same time it was encouraging; if someone had said to me at the start of this season, "you're going to finish 9th", I would've bit their hand off, as the saying goes.

The final game of the season saw us travel to Altrincham. Simon Davis started at centre back, as it was his last game of his loan spell before he returned to Crewe. He left us with a bang though; Lewis Montrose laid the ball off to Davis on the edge of the box from a free kick, and the defender smashed the ball into the back of the net. It was his first goal for us, and unless I decide to bring him back on loan or permanently, it would be his last as well. Denis Behan doubled our lead on 64 minutes with his 20th of the season, and that was the way things stood. Davis received the Man of the Match award for his performance.

We finished the season in 9th place; a commendable and respectable position if I do say so myself. Once the play-offs have finished next month, I will do a season summary with screen shots.

March 2013

2009-11-28T17:58:00.003Z

After the convincing win at Ebbsfleet, we hosted fellow play-off contenders Shrewsbury Town the following weekend. Adrian Nevins was missing due to a thigh injury so Graham Coughlan, an ex-Shrewsbury player himself, returned to the side to partner the in-form Mark Arber at centre back. It was an overall even match, and we should've come away with at least a point. However, Shrewsbury winger Damian Scannell dealt a cruel blow to us in the 93rd minute by rising at the back post and heading past Alex Cisak to win the match for his side. It was practically the last kick of the match. Very annoying, to say the least.

Jake Simpson returned to the starting line up after injury for our next game at struggling Chester City, after coming on off the bench in the previous match. Lewis Montrose grabbed his first goal for the club on 12 minutes with a neat close range finish, but the home side responded with two goals either side of half time. Ryan Charles levelled things up for us on 67 minutes with an effort from the edge of the box, but once again, Chester got their noses in front less than 10 minutes later. They held on, and we were denied even a point in a match which we had 18 shots to their 10, as well as 60% of the possession.

2nd in the table Aldershot were our next opponents. Just what we needed; a tough match after two disappointing, morale-denting losses. Two defeats in a row had turned into three by the end of the game, as we lost 2-1 despite taking the lead in the first half through Michael Noone. Aldershot equalised on 60 minutes, and got the winner on 81 minutes. Lewis Alessandra was also carried off with a twisted ankle towards the end of the match. This saw us drop to 11th in the table; our lowest league position of the season.

Our losing streak came to an end in our next game, though. Our opponents were Barrow, who were 22nd in the league, off-form and looking pretty likely for relegation. On paper, an easy victory. However, it was Barrow who opened the scoring on 18 minutes. Ryan Charles was brought on on 68 minutes, and our formation changed to 4-3-3. Almost immediately, the change had made a difference; Jake Simpson crossed for Netan Sansara who headed in from close range to draw us level. Despite the introduction of another striker, Richard Offiong, we just couldn't manage to grab a winner. Nevertheless, we had a point in the bag, and that was good for morale, if nothing else.

The final game of March was against Fleetwood Town, who found themselves clinging onto their Blue Square Premier life by the skin of their teeth, as they stood in 23rd place, a fair few points from safety. Graham Coughlan and Adrian Nevins started together at centre back for the first time since the 6th of February, William Mellors-Blair (whose loan had just recently been extended for another month) started on the right hand side of midfield, with Jake Simpson dropping to the bench, and Richard Offiong and Denis Behan started up front. It was the latter, Behan, who opened the scoring for us on 32 minutes, only for the away side to reply shortly after half time. Netan Sansara restored our lead with his second goal in as many games, and his 5th of the season, and substitute Ryan Charles made sure we came away with 3 points in the 4th minute of stoppage time, after latching onto Lewis Montrose's flick on. This goal was a milestone for the striker, as it was his 32nd AFC Telford goal; making him the club's all-time leading goalscorer since their foundation in 2004. Montrose came away with the Man of the Match award, after setting up two goals and making some key tackles in midfield.

March started off very badly, but the win against Fleetwood in the final game made sure we didn't go into April with our heads down and our confidence deflated. Next month will see the culmination of the 2012/13 season, and we currently sit in 9th place. Reaching the play-offs is still mathematically possible, but it would be pretty unlikely. I think everyone at the club will be pleased if we managed to finish in 9th, or anywhere above that, considering it is our first season in the league. We'll see what happens anyway.

February 2013

2009-11-24T22:05:00.002Z

After the disappointing month we had in January, February started brightly with a win against 9th placed Barnet. The starting line-up included 20-year-old right winger William Mellors-Blair who had joined the club on loan from Walsall a few days earlier, and whose named sounded like it should be preceded with 'Lord' or 'Duke'. After only 50 seconds of the game, Ryan Charles headed in off a Netan Sansara cross for the opener and his 12th goal of the season. Barnet then levelled things up shortly after half time, but Denis Behan won it for us with 11 minutes of normal time to go.

An away fixture against Woking was next. They were 18th in the league, but were on a relatively good run of form. After two impressive substitute performances, Mark Arber started his first game for us at centre back, alongside Adrian Nevins. It looked as though we had the game under control when Netan Sansara scored after half time. However, the home side cancelled our goal out 20 minutes later, and that was the way it finished. At least we didn't lose anyway.

We did lose our next match at home to Gateshead, who were dwindling around in mid-table, and not really doing much in terms of pushing for promotion, so it was a bit of a disappointing result. We had a fair few shots (13) so on paper it looks as though we should've scored at least one, but I guess that's football for you!

We did manage to find the back of the net in the final game of the month against our old enemies Ebbsfleet, three times in fact. It was our fourth game against them this season, after we played them twice in the FA Trophy last month, and we hadn't managed to get the better of them on any occasion. However, this time was different; Richard Offiong ended his goal drought with a 25-yard finish on 11 minutes, and William Mellors-Blair got his first goal for the club just before half-time with a tap in at the back post. Denis Behan converted a penalty in the final few minutes to make the final score 3-0 to us.

We finished February in 8th place, 9 points off Shrewsbury who were occupying 5th place, the last play-off spot. I think the play-offs are still achievable, especially since we'll be graced with Jake Simpson's presence in March, after his return from injury. Hopefully we'll get a few wins together and put pressure on the teams above us, but we'll see.

January 2013

2009-11-24T15:00:00.003Z

The new year began with a 2-0 defeat, away to our one-time Blue Square North compatriots Southport, who it's fair to say, hadn't had as good a season as us so far. We conceded an early goal after just 7 minutes, when Southport striker Scott Vernon scored with a powerful effort, and then conceded another with 20 minutes left, which left us with too much to do.

After the disappointment against Southport, we hosted top-of-the-table York City the following Saturday. Adrian Nevins and Richard Offiong were still missing, meaning Simon Davis filled in at centre back, with Lewis Alessandra and Denis Behan leading the attack. Ryan Charles had returned from injury, and made it onto the substitutes bench. It was Alessandra who opened the scoring, after 6 minutes, with a low shot following Lewis Montrose's through ball. Behan then doubled our lead on 38 minutes with a spectacular 30 yard effort. York pulled one back shortly after the break, but Behan doubled his tally and put the game beyond doubt on 64 minutes; getting onto the end of Jake Simpson's cross, which was Simpson's 12th assist of the season; a new record.

Ebbsfleet United were our opponents in the 2nd round of the FA Trophy. They'd had a similar season to ours; finding themselves in 9th place in the Blue Square Premier after occupying the play-off spots for the majority of the season. We went behind after 9 minutes, but Jake Simpson levelled things up for us 20 minutes later with a rebounded effort after Lewis Alessandra's initial shot. However, Simpson's game was ended prematurely when he fell awkwardly in the second half, spraining his ankle and as a result, ruling him out for 2 months. It was a massive blow for us; Simpson had been brilliant all season, and was certainly one of our unsung heroes. The Ebbsfleet game finished 1-1, meaning we had to replay the match four days later at their place. Jon Adams replaced the injured Jake Simpson, and Adrian Nevins returned and took his place at centre back. Ebbsfleet's Magno Vieira was once again our downfall, as it was the Brazilian's two goals that took the game away from us, and despite a consolation from Ryan Charles, it was them who progressed to the next round.

We only had the league to concentrate on after the defeat at Ebbsfleet, but at least there were no other distractions. Surely a clash against bottom-side Chelmsford City would provide us with a morale-boosting win? No, unfortunately not. We just couldn't hit the back of the net; but saying that, we only had five shots throughout the whole game though, whilst they had nine. It was a terrible performance in hindsight, and one the whole team would like to forget.

We went from playing the team at the bottom of the league one week, to playing the team at the top the next, as we faced Accrington Stanley (who had took over from York City as leaders of the pack). Some good news prior to kick off was that Richard Offiong had returned from injury, and would start up front alongside Lewis Alessandra. We were dealt a massive blow in the first half of the game; Max Wragg was stretchered off after 25 minutes, and scans later revealed that he had damaged his cruciate ligaments; an injury which could see him out for anywhere up to a year. Things went from bad to worse for us, when Accrington opened the scoring after 33 minutes. However, a Lewis Alessandra goal, his 5th of the season, brought us back on level terms on the stroke of half time. Things looked pretty equal for the rest of the match, but once again we were on the receiving end of some bad luck when Accrington scored with 3 minutes left of normal time; not long enough for us to come back. Very annoying, and we were beginning to be brought back down to earth pretty heavily after a fairly 'dream-like' start to our life in the Blue Square Premier.

To cope with Max Wragg's injury, two new players were brought in, with less than a week until the end of the transfer window. Ex-Lincoln City full back Paul Green and South African centre back Mark Arber were both released by their clubs at the end of last season, and were therefore signed on free transfers. Green slotted straight in at right back for the game against 16th placed Histon, whilst Arber was on the bench. The home side went ahead after 18 minutes, but two horrific pieces of defending in the second half meant Ryan Charles put us 2-1 in front. Both goals came from short back passes to Histon 'keeper Joe Welch; the first from left back Nathaniel Knight-Percival, and the second from their captain, Matt Langston. On both occasions, Welch was given hardly any time to control or clear the ball before Charles had tackled him, and passed it into an empty net. Maybe our luck hadn't run out after all. Actually, it had; after being on the field for a matter of minutes, Carl Tremarco fouled a Histon player in the box and the referee award them a penalty with 8 minutes left on the clock. They scored it, and things were level, and once again we couldn't come up with a winner, meaning the two sides shared the points.

We finished January in 8th place, which is good considering we'd been playing pretty poor of late. The month as a whole was disappointing, with the injury to Max Wragg a cruel blow to our ambitions. I can only hope that February will be much, much brighter.

December 2012

2009-11-23T13:19:00.013Z

December didn't start too well, with a 2-0 defeat away to Grays Athletic. We had a few chances to find the back of the net, but somehow didn't manage it. Grays' Norwegian striker, the almost unpronounceable Petar Rnkovic, bagged a brace and the Man of the Match award. The following game against struggling Altrincham brought us back to winning ways, with Jake Simpson grabbing the only goal in a 1-0 win; his fifth goal of the season. We moved one place up to 7th after the victory.

We had an FA Trophy 1st round tie the next week, against Blue Square North side Nuneaton Town. Realistically, we were in with a chance of winning the competition; far stranger things have happened in football. I fielded a less-than-full-strength side, including rare starts for Alex Cairns in goal, Lee Vaughan at right back, Simon Davis at centre half and Jon Adams in centre midfield. The game also saw the return of Lewis Montrose after injury. We were 2-0 up after half an hour, thanks to goals from Richard Offiong and Denis Behan, and went into the break ahead. Despite a goal from the visitors in the second half, we held onto our lead and booked our place in the next round, in which we later learned we'd be facing Ebbsfleet.

Stevenage Borough were our next league opponents, in what turned out to be a bit of a goal-fest. Richard Offiong opened the scoring for us after 7 minutes with a close range effort. Veteran striker Paul Benson then equalised for the home side, but Offiong quickly restored our lead 5 minutes later. Two goals in 10 minutes for Stevenage then put them ahead; the first after a goalmouth scramble, and the second after a mistake by Simon Davis. However just 2 minutes later, and with 2 minutes left of normal time, Offiong completed his hat-trick and grabbed the equaliser with a curling shot from the edge of the box. The game finished, and Offiong went away with the match ball and was rightly given the Man of the Match award, after his second hat-trick of the season.

We finished 2012 with a game against mid-table Wrexham, who had won three matches in a row going into our fixture. It was the Welsh side who broke the deadlock; Lewis Codling scoring after 19 minutes. Then, on 56 minutes, Max Wragg picked up the ball on our penalty spot after a poor Wrexham corner, and lofted the ball 50 yards to where Lewis Alessandra was running. Midfielder Edward Moss missed the interception, and Alessandra was allowed to run through, cooly slotting the ball past the Wrexham 'keeper. Just 4 minutes later, we went into the lead when Jake Simpson's passed the ball into the net at the back from a Matthew Duffy cross. Our lead only lasted 8 minutes though, as Codling equalised with his second of the game. However, with 4 minutes to go, Max Wragg crossed for Netan Sansara who volleyed in for his 2nd of the season, and to seal our win.

We finished December, and the year, in 6th place; a point behind Shrewsbury in 5th. We're now into the second half of the season, and I think I'm speaking on behalf of everyone at AFC Telford when I say how impressed I am with our current league position. The transfer window re-opens next month, and there could possibly be a few new faces at New Bucks Head over the next few weeks.

I will leave you with a couple of screenshots of my profile, and history. Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

December 2012: Manager Profile

December 2012: Manager History

November 2012

2009-11-22T12:29:00.002Z

A 2-1 home win against lowly Barrow began November, taking us up to 4th in the table. Goals from Michael Noone and Ryan Charles won it for us, after an early goal from the visitors. We then travelled to Fleetwood Town, who were also struggling and found themselves in the relegation zone. It was a game which we were expected to win, obviously, and an early goal from Richard Offiong, his 10th of the season, gave us the advantage going into half time. We had the lead until the 65th minute when Fleetwood equalised through former Faroe Islands international Claus Jorgensen, and then gave it all away 10 minutes later when they scored again. Although the stats showed we had wasted several chances, we just didn't really have enough fight towards the end to overcome our visitors.

Our next game gave us a chance to forget about the league, at least for a week or so, as we hosted Hartlepool in the 1st round of the FA Cup. They were obviously favourites for the game, but weren't doing anything special in League One, so we knew we were in with a chance. And it was us who drew first blood; Lewis Montrose played the ball to Ryan Charles' feet, who turned and shot from the edge of the box, and into the top corner. A perfect goal. However, we were brought right back down to earth in the first attacking move from Hartlepool's kick off, just 2 minutes later, when James Brown (Jeff Stelling would be making some sort of joke at this point) found the net to level things up. Things looked destined for a replay back up north when, with a minute to go our hearts were shattered when Ritchie Jones hit a first time volley from 25 yards after Adrian Nevins' failed clearance, and the ball whistled past a hapless Alex Cisak. With hardly any time left on the clock, a late surge was out of the question, and the final whistle went to signal our exit from the competition. However, it wasn't the end of the world; at least that was one less thing to concentrate on.

As if we weren't drained enough after the loss against Hartlepool, we found ourselves up against top-of-the-table Rushden at New Bucks Head. Things started badly; Lewis Montrose picked up a yellow card early on, meaning he'd miss our next game, but was then carried off injured with a twisted knee, leaving him out for upto five weeks. Rusden midfielder Ryan Brobbel then opened the scoring 2 minutes later. However Jake Simpson equalised on 26 minutes after his first shot was saved by Dale Roberts. We had a massive chance to take the lead on 51 minutes when Curtis Osano brought down Netan Sansara in the box, and we were awarded a penalty. Denis Behan stepped up, only to have his spot-kick saved by Roberts. Neither side had any real chances for the rest of the game; Michael Noone and Jake Simpson had the best ones for us, although they were from some distance and never really troubled the Rushden 'keeper.

An away trip to 4th placed Kidderminster followed, and it was an overal disappointing game, in which we were totally outplayed. Lewis Montrose missed his first match of the season through suspension (although he was injured so wouldn't have played anyway) so Adrian Nevins stepped up from centre back to replace him in midfield. We ended up losing the game 4-0, the biggest defeat I'd endured whilst manager of AFC Telford.

Lewis Alessandra returned to the squad, and the starting line up, for our final match of the month against Burton Albion. It was the 100th game of my managerial career, so that added a little more incentive to come away with three points. We had a good start; Ryan Charles netted after only 5 minutes but the visitors drew level shortly after. Charles was then taken off injured and replaced by Richard Offiong, leaving him out for upto 6 weeks. However, Offiong proved to be a more-than-capable replacement for him, as it was his two goals in the space of 3 minutes that sealed the win for us.

The victory left us in 7th place at the end of November, a standing which has been greatly helped by our superb home record, the best in the league; we'd played 11 at home and were unbeaten, winning eight and drawing three, whilst scoring 26 goals, and conceding just the nine. Next month brings my tenure at AFC Telford to its year anniversary, so everyone will be hoping to continue our good set of results.

October 2012

2009-11-21T12:46:00.004Z

The start of October saw a new face, and an old friend, added to the coaching staff. Ian Cox, captain of my Harrogate team, was brought in as a coach and Steve Wynn's contract was terminated.

I was able to choose from a full strength squad for the first match of the month against Chester, who were sitting in the relegation zone in 22nd place. However it was the visitors who got the first goal; former Everton striker Nick Chadwick scored on 42 minutes to give his side the lead going into half-time. Shortly after the restart, Chester went down to 10-men, and then less than 10 minutes later we made the extra man count, with Jake Simpson firing in from the edge of the area to level things up. Lewis Alessandra, back from injury, replaced Richard Offiong after 65 minutes, and the striker took only 7 minutes to get himself on the scoresheet for what was his first goal of the season. Considering he was so clinical last season, it was pretty hard to grasp that he'd only just scored in what was his 13th game of the campaign, although the majority of those appearances were made as a substitute. Michael Noone then fed in Ryan Charles 4 minutes later to make it 3-1 to us, and the rout was completed with 2 minutes to go; Alessandra getting his second of the game.

Play-off contenders Aldershot were out next opponents, and to be fair, we didn't have the best of outings. After a goalless first half, the home side opened the scoring shortly into the second, and although we got a goal back on 71 minutes through an own goal, they managed to grab a winner with 15 minutes left, and we just didn't have enough fight to draw level. To add insult to injury, Lewis Alessandra twisted his ankle, an injury which would leave him out for up to 7 weeks.

The squad were determined to bounce straight back after the disappointing result against Aldershot, with Forest Green Rovers providing us with our next test. They were on form; they'd won their last three games, leaving them mid-table. An own goal broke the deadlock in the first having and gave us the lead, and Denis Behan's 10th goal of the season in the second half sealed the victory. We won by the exact same scoreline the following game, against struggling Newport County, with Jake Simpson and Richard Offiong getting on the scoresheet.

We were given a break from the league in the next game, as we faced Stafford in the FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round. Stafford were in 5th place in the Blue Square Premier, but despite this, we were 2-0 up after only 13 minutes, thanks to two goals from Richard Offiong. Stafford managed a goal back on 40 minutes, but our two goal lead was restored in the first minute of first half stoppage-time through Netan Sansara; his first goal of the season. Offiong completed his hat-trick, and indeed the victory for us, in the 74th minute with a spectacular curling effort from 25 yards. Predictably, he went away with the Man of the Match award, although it was a brilliant team performance, and we were given a home tie against League One's Hartlepool in the 1st round proper next month.

Right back Max Wragg was given the Player of the Month award, showing that it wasn't just our attacking players drawing all the plaudits. Wragg had had a solid month, with some very good consistent performances, and thoroughly deserved his award. We finished October in 6th place, with next month possibly providing us with much sterner tests; we played top-of-the-table Rushden, and also Kidderminster, who lie in 4th. This is as well as the FA Cup game against Hartlepool. I'm sure you'll admit though, AFC Telford are certainly showing they're no pushovers in this league.

September 2012

2009-11-20T13:50:00.002Z

After an unbeaten August, September started with a defeat away to Accrington Stanley. Denis Behan's goal was not enough for us, as we lost 2-1 and slipped to 6th in the league. Our winning ways were restored a week later though, in a 3-1 victory at home to Histon. The visitors broke the deadlock after 5 minutes but Jake Simpson levelled things up shortly after with a header at the back post off a Carl Tremarco cross. Tremarco was making his first start of the season, in place of Matthew Duffy, and impressed throughout the game, narrowly missing out on the Man of the Match. Two goals from Denis Behan in the second half, his 5th and 6th of the season, ensured that we went home with 3 points in the bag.

A midweek game at Barnet followed, in wet and windy conditions. A neat finish from Richard Offiong and a close range effort, yet again, from Denis Behan, gave us the victory, either side of a solitary Barnet goal. Promotion contenders Ebbsfleet were our next opponents, and it looked as though we had the game under wraps after goals from Behan and Offiong gave us a 2-0 lead after 48 minutes. However, Ebbsfleet's Brazilian striker, Magno Vieira, grabbed a 4 minute brace to level things up, and leave us with just one point, in a game which we felt we should've won.

A very frustrating game against Woking followed. They were 18th in the league, and should've been a team we were able to beat, but after they opened the scoring from a free-kick in the first half, we seemed to be always on the back foot. Despite an equaliser from Denis Behan, his 6th in 5 games and 9th of the season, we just couldn't find the back of the net again and squandered several good chances. We finished the game with four strikers on the field; Lewis Alessandra and Ryan Charles, returning from injury, were brought on, but it still wasn't enough to get the win.

A trip up north to Gateshead was the penultimate game of September; and yet again it was a game that we should've won. After going 2-1 up thanks to goals from Ryan Charles and Michael Noone, we took our foot off the gas, so to speak, and let Gateshead come at us, and subsequently take the game to us. They scored two second half goals to give them the 3-2 victory, and the full set of points, much to my displeasure.

We hadn't won in three games, and to make matters worse; we were up against top-of-the-table Shewsbury, who up until playing us, had won 8 games out of 11, and lost just the once. Things didn't start off well for us; Shrewsbury's James Spray scored on 17 minutes, and then just after the break, got another one to double his team's tally. On 69 minutes, Richard Offiong and Lewis Alessandra were brought on for Denis Behan and Carl Tremarco, and I changed the formation to 3-4-3, in a bid to get two goals back. Literally two minutes after coming on, Alessandra combined with Lewis Montrose and Ryan Charles, who fed in Richard Offiong for his 4th goal of the season. This gave us some sort of hope. With 5 minutes of normal time to go, I told the team to go full throttle and go for an equaliser. It worked; in the 4th and final minute of stoppage time, Ryan Charles picked up the ball in the centre circle and once again played it through to Offiong who, in an almost identical finish, scored his 5th of the season, and the leveller for us. We came away with a point, although it did feel like a win, against a very good Shrewsbury team.

The draw meant we finished a fixture-congested September in 7th place, but next month's games are, on paper, easier than what we've just played. But then again, as everyone says, football is not played on paper, and as I know from experience, anything can happen.

August 2012

2009-11-16T15:13:00.002Z

The big day had finally arrived; Saturday the 11th August 2012 saw us play our first game in the Blue Square Premier against Southport, who had won the Blue Square North the previous year. Our starting eleven included four of the six new signings, with Richard Offiong and Denis Behan on the bench. We opened the scoring after only four minutes; Ryan Charles continuing his good form from last season by scoring from close range. We looked comfortable throughout the game, and Southport rarely threatened Alex Cisak in our goal. With 15 minutes to play, we were awarded a penalty which Charles duly converted to double his own, and our tally. Offiong and Behan were brought on in place of Charles and Alessandra, and in the first minute of stoppage time, Behan headed in off a Jake Simpson cross for a debut goal and to make it 3-0 at full-time. Simpson had played well; he was the one fouled in the box for the penalty, and he contributed to two assists as well. A good all-round performance from the team which left us in 2nd place.

Our next game was against Stevenage; a side who this year were battling some major financial problems. Michael Noone opened his Telford account on 14 minutes after a scramble in the box, and Denis Behan got his second in as many games, in his first start for the club, shortly before half-time. More or less straight after the restart, Jake Simpson played in Ryan Charles who easily slotted the ball past the Stevenage 'keeper. Despite getting a man sent off with five minutes left, Stevenage managed to grab a consolation goal in the 89th minute, to make the final score 3-1 to us. Another convincing victory which took us up to the top of the table.

Wrexham were our next opponents, in what would be a much tougher match than the first two. They had narrowly missed out on the play-offs for the past three seasons, and were a side who could potentially cause us an upset. Things were level for 77 minutes of the game, until Alex Cisak fumbled the bal into his own net to give Wrexham the lead. This came shortly after Ryan Charles had been taken off with a pulled hamstring, meaning he'd be out of action for upto a month. Lewis Alessandra and Richard Offiong were both brought on, and an attacking 3-4-3 formation was put in place. Almost immediately after his introduction, Alessandra received the ball on the right wing, took it to the byline and crossed for Michael Noone who was stood unmarked in the Wrexham box. Noone calmly placed the ball into the net to seal the draw for us.

A 1-1 away draw at York City followed, with Denis Behan equalising for us from the penalty spot in the 70th minute. We had slipped to 5th in the table, but a home game with Chelmsford City gave us another 3 points and meant we finished August in 3rd place. Richard Offiong grabbed his first goal for the club in a 2-0 win, with captain Graham Coughlan getting the other.

I'm sure you'll agree; we've had a very good first month in the Blue Square Premier. 3 wins, 2 draws and no losses so far; hopefully we can continue the good form. The transfer window closes in the first week of September, and I'm hoping to bring in a centre back before that. 18-year-old Simon Davis was signed on a season-long loan from Crewe Alexandra as cover for Coughlan and Adrian Nevins, but ideally I would like a bit more experience.

June/July 2012

2009-11-13T20:10:00.003Z

When the players returned from their break on the 25th of June, two new faces had already been brought in. Two strikers; 28-year-old journeyman Richard Offiong and 28-year-old former Ireland youth international Denis Behan both joined the club on free transfers. They were brought in to act as more-than-capable competition for Ryan Charles and Lewis Alessandra, who were both so good last year. The fixture list for the coming season had also been revealed; we started with two home games, the first against fellow ex-Blue Square North outfit Southport, and the second against cash-strapped Stevenage. This was followed by an away trip to Wales to play Wrexham.

Our first friendly came in the second week of July against League Two side Morecambe. The two new boys started on the bench, but came on at half time; Richard Offiong scoring the third in a 3-0 victory.

Steve Jagielka, Aidan Sherlock, Jack Watkins, Daniel Cable and Craig Gott were released on free transfers on the 1st of July, after their contracts had expired. Two more transfers were made after the Morecambe game; Right Back Max Wragg and Defensive Midfielder Lewis Montrose were both signed on frees, the latter coming in after an impressive trial, shortly before the next fixture at home to West Brom, our parent club. We ended up losing 9-0 on the day, although my excuse is I fielded a weakened side, which I did. Anyway, it was only a friendly. Lewis Alessandra strained his groin after coming on as a substitute, an injury which would see him miss the rest of the pre-season.

Australian Goalkeeper Alex Cisak and Michael Noone, a former Glenn Hoddle Academy player, were signed on free transfers and went straight into the side to face Stourport, our feeder club. We won the game 4-0, with goals from Ryan Charles, Denis Behan, Danny Carey-Bertram and Barry Madden (own goal).

We were on the receiving end of the same scoreline just three days later, against League One side Oxford United, but got back to winning ways against Taunton, where we won 2-0 thanks to goals from Richard Offiong and Denis Behan. The scoreline flattered our opposition though really; we had a total of 20 shots to their 4, so they were lucky to have only conceded two.

Our penultimate friendly came against the Glenn Hoddle Academy, in which we won 5-1, in a very convincing victory. Danny Carey-Bertram continued his impressive pre-season form by bagging two goals and the Man of the Match award. Netan Sansara and Denis Behan's brace completed the scoring.

Sheffield Wednesday were our final opponents before the competitive games began. We were holding them to a goalless draw until 15 minutes before the final whistle when they broke the deadlock, and then with two minutes to go, scored another to seal the win. An encouraging, if not disappointing game.

A bit of a mix-and-match pre-season in terms of results, as I'm sure you'll agree. I'm happy with the players I've brought in, although we could maybe do with a centre back to act as cover for Graham Coughlan (incidentally, the new club captain) and Adrian Nevins. I was surprised to see that we were tipped as promotion contenders at 14-1. Well, the bookies are rarely wrong, are they? Bring on the Blue Square Premier!

May 2012

2009-11-12T20:44:00.014Z

This month was potentially the toughest of my short managerial career. In the five months I'd been in charge of AFC Telford, I had won 19 out of 26 games, losing just twice, escalating them from 18th in the table, to the play-offs. For another manger, these achievements might've been enough, and the play-offs might be regarded as an 'added bonus', with most people expecting to fall at the first hurdle. Not for me. I believed we could go all the way. Why not? We'd beaten most of the teams above us all season, so what's different now? The fact that we're in the play-offs is the difference.

A record 4,956 fans packed into the New Bucks Head for the home leg of our Play-off Semi Final. Expectations were high, as were nerves. Ryan Charles had recently spoken to the media about how he was getting on top of the media hype surrounding him, which was good. The only absentee from the starting line-up was Netan Sansara, who was replaced by Carl Tremarco. It was Droylsden who got first blood in the tie, with former Hibernian and Coventry midfielder Guillaume Beuzelin netting after 34 minutes, and we went into the break behind. Things got worse for us when Lewis Alessandra was taken off injured with a gashed leg, shortly after the restart. However, just 3 minutes later, Ryan Charles levelled things up with his 20th goal of the season. We were unusually ill-disciplined in the match, with six of our players receiving cautions. Ryan Charles went from hero to villan in the 79th minute, when a late challenge saw him pick up a second yellow card, an offence which would later warrant a two-match ban. The game finished 1-1, but Droylsden had the upper hand with the away goal, and the fact they still had a home leg to play.

Things looked grim heading into the second leg. Charles and Alessandra's absences left us with only one recognised striker in Danny Carey-Bertram, leading to a change of formation; 4-1-4-1; the formation I used at Harrogate. How on earth were we going to cope without the firepower that had produced 36 goals in 26 games? Things really did seem like they were going against us. This was until the game started however. Jon Adams grabbed an early goal on 9 minutes after a scramble in the box, and Carl Tremarco headed in Carey-Bertram's cross for his first Telford goal on 25 minutes. A Droylsden penalty shortly after meant we went into half-time 2-1 to the good, and 3-2 on aggregate. It also meant that Droylsden had to score at win today to progress, as we now had two away goals. The game was all but finished 10 minutes into the second half when Carl Tremarco scored an almost identical goal to double his tally, and increase our lead. For the rest of the game, we basically just sat back and made sure we didn't make any silly mistakes. Droylsden did have to score three times to win after all. The final whistle went and our place in the Play-off Final was confirmed. The win just proves that three players (Charles, Sansara & Alessandra), even though they are very talented, don't make a team. Tremarco received the Man of the Match award; and to think, he wouldn't have played if Sansara would've been fit.

Our opponents in the final were Worcester City. They had beat Hinckley in the other Semi-Final in what was somewhat of an unexpected result, considering Hinckley had held the top spot for the majority of the season. Netan Sansara and Lewis Alessandra both returned for the Final, although the latter only made the bench as he had only just come back. Sansara's return meant Carl Tremarco had to move to left back in the same 4-1-4-1 formation, with Matthew Duffy dropping to the bench. Baring in mind it was a Final, with the winner sealing a place in the Blue Square Premier, it was a pretty dull match. Worcester had a goal (correctly) ruled offside, and Danny Carey-Bertram squandered numerous chances to win it for us, and the match ended goalless after 90 minutes. This lead to extra time and then if we were still level, the dreaded penalties. It looked as though this was the way things were going to go, until we got a corner in the 114th minute. Jake Simpson stepped up and floated the ball into the box, and who was there at the back post, unmarked, to head in? 37-year-old captain-for-the-day Graham Coughlan. The crowd went wild; it was the stuff dreams were made of. It really was like something out of Roy of the Rovers. Unbelievable. The final whistle went and we had done it; we'd achieved promotion to the Blue Square Premier.

I came runner-up in the Manager of the Season awards, and Ryan Charles' end of season flood of goals saw him grab the Golden Boot for the league with 20 goals. He, along with Alessandra, Simpson, Sansara and Coughlan all earned new contracts as well, the latter signalling his intention to see out the rest of his career with Telford. Despite bringing the team from 18th place to winning promotion, the board are still only 'satisfied' with my management. Bit annoying really; a little bit of praise wouldn't go a miss! And correct me if I'm wrong but there isn't really that much I could do better? Ah well, a good season overall. A very good one in fact. The players are off on holiday now, until the end of June. I might go away somewhere as well. Lincoln seems nice. Or perhaps Hull...

The final standings in the Blue Square North at the end of the 2011/12 season (click to enlarge).

AFC Telford's league positions throughout the season. I was in charge from the 17th game (basically where they started going up!).

April 2012

2009-11-12T18:35:00.002Z

A 0-0 draw with Braintree Town kicked off April; in what was the final month of scheduled fixtures. Considering our form going into the game, we really should've beaten them, especially since they were just below half way in the league, with nothing much to play for except their own pride. It really was a boring game, with only seven shots between the two sides. A very uncharacteristic performance by us.

We were back to winning ways two days later against Vauxhall however, with an assured 3-1 victory. Ryan Charles was the star performer on the day; grabbing his second hat-trick of the season, and consequently the Man of the Match award.

We achieved the exact same scoreline the following week against a poor Stalybridge side. Cheung Ka Ho, the opposition's 'keeper, put the ball into his own net after 9 minutes, and we were in full control from then on. Despite Stalybridge's equaliser, two neat finishes from Lewis Alessandra and Ryan Charles gave us the 3 points, with Charles once again receiving the Man of the Match award.

Two 3-0 victories against Tamworth and Eastwood left us in 3rd place going into the final game against Hinckley. Ryan Charles grabbed two goals in both games, and the Man of the Match award, to make it four in as many games, with eight goals coming in that time. He was on form, there was no doubt about that. However, the expectancy to perform well did seem to be getting to him. He was starting to feel the pressure from the fans and the media, who all predicted him to carry on scoring goals. Hopefully it won't be too much of a burden to his form though.

Despite lying 3rd in the table, our place in the play-offs wasn't cemented. 6th placed Nuneaton could still make them if results went their way, and if results went against us, we could drop out of the top 5 altogether. We basically needed at least a point from the Hinckley game, and a point was what we got. As with most 'big' games, it failed to live up to the expected heights and ended with a very poor goalless draw. Nevertheless, we had made the play-offs, although we had dropped a place to finish the season in 4th place.

We were drawn against Droylsden in the semi-finals, a team who have in recent years gotten the better of AFC Telford in the majority of the encounters. We are on form though, and I believe we can win. If only I was offered the job earlier in the season; we might've well been promoted automatically. Then again, things could have been so much different. I love the play-offs, but not when you're involved in them yourself. Wish us luck...

March 2012

2009-11-12T15:51:00.002Z

After a 100% record in February, I was hoping for more of the same in March. Unfortunately, things didn't get off to the best start. An away game at Droylsden provided me with only my second defeat as manager of AFC Telford. Two first half goals finished us off, and the own goal in the second half was merely a consolation in a 2-1 loss.

Lewis Alessandra was missing through injury for the Droylsden game, and was absent once again for our next fixture against bottom-of-the-table Hednesford. It's fair to say that we didn't miss our top goalscorer that much though, as Ryan Charles stepped up to the mark. It was his first half hat-trick that sealed a comfortable 3-0 win against a very poor Hednesford side (who incidentally had confirmed their relegation by the end of the month).

Fellow promotion contenders Ilkeston were our next opponents. Lewis Alessandra was back in the team for the game at New Bucks Head, and carried on where he left off by bagging a couple of goals. Ryan Charles, continuing his own good form, also scored twice in a 4-0 victory, with his second of the game marking his 10th goal of the season.

We moved up to 4th in the league after the win against Ilkeston; Telford's highest position of the season. 5th placed Nuneaton Town made the relatively short journey over to Shropshire a week later, in what was another tough encounter for us. Ryan Charles opened the scoring from 25 yards just after the half hour mark, for his 6th goal in 3 games. Lewis Alessandra then doubled our lead shortly after, and we managed to hold on despite a second half goal from Nuneaton, which was the first goal Alex Cairns, who reclaimed the number one spot against Hednesford, had conceded in over 350 minutes of football.

As if we hadn't already had a pretty tough month in terms of fixtures, our next game brought us up against league-leaders Southport. We were leading 2-0 thanks to goals from Alessandra and Netan Sansara, until the a 70th minute penalty brought Southport back into the game. They then equalised 10 minutes later and that was the way things finished. A good result, but it was slightly disappointing that we couldn't hold onto our lead.

The final fixture in March was against Redditch, a game which we comfortably 2-0 through two Jake Simpson goals. We finished the month in 4th place, three points off 3rd placed Stafford, nine points off 2nd placed Southport and 11 points off the leaders Hinckley. Next month will see the climax of the Blue Square North season, and realistically, I think we should make the play-offs. With six games left, the gap is probably too big to win the league and claim the only automatic spot. I was 3rd in the Manager of the Month awards this month, but Ryan Charles was awarded with Player of the Month. All of the teams we have left to play are currently in the bottom half of the table, with the exception of Hinckley, who we play on the final day of the season. That could definitely be interesting.

February 2012

2009-11-08T15:55:00.003Z

We had won three on the bounce going into our first match of the month against Corby, who were sitting comfortably in 12th place, two places below us. Goalkeeper Alex Cairnes was injured towards the end of the previous game against King's Lynn, so Ryan Young stepped in to replace him, in what was the only change. Ryan Charles played in Lewis Alessandra on 12 minutes for the striker's 8th goal of the season, and then in the second half, Charles himself got on the scoresheet to double our lead, and seal the victory.

A hard-fought 1-0 victory against Blyth Spartans followed, with Alessandra once again grabbing a goal; this time an 87th minute near post header off Netan Sansara's cross. Stafford Rangers provided us with a much tougher test in our next game. They were 3rd in the league, although they were in a bit of a poor patch of form. Nevertheless, we weren't going to be too complacent, despite our brilliant form. Stafford opened the scoring on 5 minutes, but a Matthew Duffy free-kick levelled things up mid-way through the first half. Two Ryan Charles goals either side of half-time completed the comeback and the win. The second was Charles' 5th goal of the season, and he was rightly given the Man of the Match.

A week later, we hosted Gainsborough, who were struggling in the league, and luckily for us, had a few key players missing, including striker Luke Beckett. Ryan Young's record of conceding only one goal in three appearances meant he started his fourth game in a row, even though Alex Cairnes was back to full fitness. Lewis Alessandra scored his 10th of the season, and in fact, the only goal of the game, in a 1-0 victory. We had now won seven on the trot, four of which were 1-0 victories.

Needless to say, I once again won the Manager of the Month award. We're now 6th in the league, 12 places above where we were when I started, and level on points with Redditch in 5th. Since I took over, we've played 14 games, won 11, drew twice and lost just the once. Quite a good record if I do say so myself. Let's just hope it continues.

January 2012

2009-11-07T15:30:00.002Z

A home game against top-of-the-league Hinckley provided us with our first test of the new year. I went with an unchanged line up, and it was Lewis Alessandra's close range effort from Jake Simpson's cross on 30 minutes that broke the deadlock. Hinckley then equalised shortly before the break after a scramble in the box and some pretty lack-lustre defending. Alessandra managed to double his tally 10 minutes after the break, to put us in the lead. Shortly after, he completed his hat-trick following Netan Sansara's flick on. He had deserved the match ball. Ryan Charles completed what was now a rout, in stoppage time, with his first goal for the club. A fantastic team performance.

Five days later, we hosted Alfreton, and it was the away side that took the lead in the first half. However, just before half time, Lewis Alessadra, continuing his good form, grabbed a goal to draw us level. He then turned provider with 20 minutes left on the clock, when his cross was met by Ryan Charles' head to complete the come back, and indeed the win.

The next game was quite strange. We travelled to a Workington side who were 19th in the league, and not in good form, yet we managed to lose the game 4-0. We just didn't turn up, and were totally outplayed for the whole game. Luckily, it was just an anomoly in terms of our good form, as we beat Solihull Moors 2-1 the following week, thanks to goals from Jon Adams and Netan Sansara.

Worcester City were our penultimate opponents of the month, and for the most part of the game it was pretty equal. Both sides missed opportunities to win the game; they failed to capitalise on the fact they had an extra man after Sansara was dismissed, and Ryan Charles missed a penalty for us after 68 minutes. I brought Danny Carey-Bertram on in place of the uncharacteristally-poor Charles after 75 minutes, and it was the subsitute's goal 10 minutes later that sealed the win for us.

The final game of the month brought us up against King's Lynn at New Bucks Head. A solitary Lewis Alessandra goal on 23 minutes was enough to see us through to victory, and subsequently move us up to 11th in the table.

I was presented with the Blue Square North Manager of the Month award; the icing on the cake in a very successful month. AFC Telford United are going from strength to strength, and I hope we can simply keep on doing right whatever we're doing right, basically! The team is gelling very well, and everybody is playing as though they want to progress, which is good, and perhaps something that the players at Harrogate lacked. Here's to another good month...?

December 2011

2009-11-06T18:56:00.005Z

Telford were in 18th place when I took over, after 16 games, with 2 wins, 8 draws and 6 losses. Surprisingly, they'd won the previous match against Braintree 2-1, but I believe they had a caretaker manager in place at the time. I didn't have a match for ten days, which gave me a bit of time to look at the squad I had been given, and potentially bring in some new faces.

Wolverhampton Wanderers were our parent club, but the link between the two purely consisted of an annual pre-season friendly. To get a bit more money, and perhaps some loanees, I asked the board to look for a new parent club, and they came up with West Brom. Unfortunately, they didn't send any players on loan though.

My first signing as Telford manager was Alex Cairns, an 18-year-old goalkeeper who quickly established himself as the number one ahead of Ryan Young. Several failed loan attempts for various players followed, and it wasn't until the day of our match against Vauxhall Motors that two signings were completed. 21-year-old right midfielder Jake Simpson was brought in for £4,000 from Shrewsbury, and 22-year-old pacey attacker Lewis Alessandra was signed for a club record £10,00 from Oldham Athletic. Both went straight into the starting line up for the game, despite having only officially been at the club for a matter of hours.

Vauxhall were, when we played them, in 16th place, two above us, and it was them who opened the scoring on 18 minutes through midfielder James Holden. However, we managed to grab an equaliser 10 minutes before half time when centre back Matthew Duffy got on the end of Jon Adams' corner. That was the way it stayed, and apart from an injury to Steve Torpey in second half stoppage time, it was a fairly uneventful second half. However, it was my first game, and we didn't lose, so all's ok.

The next fixture against Stalybridge saw three more new faces in the squad. Ryan Charles (£1,500) and Netan Sansara (£1,000) were signed from Luton and Walsall respectively, and 37-year-old Graham Coughlan joined us from our rivals Shrewsbury for £1,000 to add experience, reliability and perhaps more importantly, a bit of competition to the existing centre back pairing of Matthew Duffy and Adrian Nevins. The game saw all six new players starting in a 4-4-2 formation. We took the lead after 41 minutes; Ryan Charles was brought down in the area and the penalty was converted by Jake Simpson for his first Telford goal, and we went into break in front.

Carl Laurie, the Stalybridge player who gave away the penalty and was booked for the offence, received his marching orders on 78 minutes to send the home team down to 10-men. We made them pay just two minutes later when Graham Coughlan, on his debut, headed in from Jon Adams' corner. It then all got a bit scrappy. At this point there had already been one red card as I mentioned, but as well as this, there'd been no less than eight yellow cards. With five minutes to go, Stalybridge's Paul Ennis caught Jake Simpson with his elbow and was given a straight red to reduce them to 9-men. Then, in the 91st minute, Matthew Duffy got his second yellow for a foul and he too had to leave the field. The game finished with only 19 players on the pitch, after a total of 11 bookings and 3 red cards.

6th in the table Tamworth were the next team to travel to New Bucks Head, and with the exception of Adrian Nevins replacing the suspended Matthew Duffy, I stuck with the same team that beat Stalybridge. Lewis Alessandra grabbed both our goals, as well as man of the match, in a 2-0 victory; his first coming on 11 minutes in a swift counter attack, and the 2nd on 82 minutes from a Jake Simpson cross. 3 points and a pretty convincing victory, if I do say so myself.

Our final game in December, and indeed 2011, was away to Eastwood on New Year's Eve. The game finished 1-1, although judging by the stats, we should've won. Adrian Nevins got the goal for us, and ex-Harrogate striker Danny Maw came back to haunt be by equalising for Eastwood.

The draw left us in 15th place, 3 above where we were when I took over. I couldn't have asked for a better start as Telford manager to be quite honest. Things look promising, but as I know from my time at Harrogate, things can easily change month-to-month, so I'm not predicting anything for January... not yet anyway.

May 2010 - November 2011

2009-11-06T10:59:00.002Z

I wanted to get straight back into football after leaving Harrogate, but I had to wait until the end of the 2009/10 season had finished for the job offers to come in.

Applications were sent initially to Staines, Hyde and Dorchester, who had all sacked their manager at the end of the season. However Boston Utd and Nuneaton Borough, both promoted to the Blue Square North for the 2010/11 season, approached me and asked me to fill their vacant managerial positions. I mulled over it for quite some time, and looked at both their squads. They were pretty weak, and it would be a big job just to keep them in the division. The three teams I applied for earlier did look more appealing, so for that reason I decided to reject the two offers, a decision which I would sincerely regret for over a year after.

It seemed as though my greed had got the better of my when Staines, Hyde and Dorchester all found new managers. Unsuccessful applications were then sent to Tonbridge, Cambridge City and Sutton United, and I even sent a bit of a cheeky application to the Brazilian, Italian, Spanish and Argentinian national sides. I was rejected from all. Things were getting tough; the papers were beginning to talk, "Alex Blackburne's career is over" they said. But it wasn't, and I knew that.

The next realistic position came in November the next year, when Bath City sacked their manager. I applied, only to be rejected again. I was literally on the brink of retirement when AFC Telford came calling. The small club from Shropshire were sitting in 18th in the Blue Square North, and had recently parted company with their manager. They offered me a decent wage, and the squad actually looked pretty decent. I accepted the offer and was unveiled as their new manager on the 7th of December.

April 2010

2009-11-05T22:13:00.003Z

I'm not going into much detail in this chapter of my managerial career. Purely because it's been a very tough month, and I now find myself without a job. Three defeats and two draws left Harrogate in 20th place, and relegated. A 0-0 draw away at Northwich was the tip of the iceberg. The board had no choice but to get rid of me. I understand that. I'm already looking for my next challenge, and I'm open to any offers.

Apologies to all the Harrogate fans, and everyone associated with the club, for what was an extremely disappointing season.

The footballing world has definitely not heard the last of Alex Blackburne.

March 2010

2009-11-05T19:54:00.002Z

An away fixture against Stalybridge was our first test in March. Nic McDonnell, Simon Heslop and Sonny Cobbs were all still missing due to injury, so it was a bit of a make shift team that started the game. Stalybridge were sitting fairly comfortably in mid-table, whilst we were placed fairly uncomfortably in 16th. We didn't play well, and ended up losing the game 2-0, thanks to goals on either side of half time.

We were desperately seeking a win, and our next game brought us up against Fleetwood Town, who we had beaten 3-1 earlier in the season. Fleetwood were currently 2nd in the league, so it was going to be a tough ask to repeat our previous success. We couldn't have asked for a better start though; after six minutes, the returning Simon Heslop hit a first time shot from 30 yards that whistled past the Fleetwood 'keeper and into the back of the net. Apparently, we would be seeing that goal for some time. Brian Dutton doubled our advantage 20 minutes later with a strike from a narrow angle. We looked very comfortable, I must say. Someone who hadn't seen the league standings would've probably placed us in 2nd, and Fleetwood in 16th, not the other way round. This is what I don't understand about Harrogate. We go and do the double over one of the best sides in the league, yet we slip up against Solihull Moors and teams who look destined for relegation. It is really annoying.

A week later, we travelled to Ilkeston, who were 5th in the league and going strong. We were buoyed by our somewhat unexpected victory the week earlier, and we did have a good record against teams in the top six, so the whole team were expecting to get something from this game. Partnering Harry Hogarth at centre back was new recruit Joshua Vermooten, a South-African signed on a free after his Leeds United contract expired. He had a solid debut, but we ended up losing the game 2-0. Brian Dutton was given his marching orders with five minutes left on the clock, in what was a bit of a harsh decision. However, I kept my mouth shut this time though; I'd already been warned twice by the FA for comments made about refereeing decisions.

So that's March. Only three games this month, and only one month left of the season. Ideally, I'd like us to finish above 10th place, but somehow I don't think that will happen. Our run-in until the end of the season is pretty generous though; we still have to play Hyde who are bottom of the league.

February 2010

2009-11-05T17:57:00.003Z

No sooner had we won 3-0 against Corby, we were on the wrong end of the same result against Alfreton, a team who we really should've beaten. Sonny Cobbs was brought off after half an hour after he fractured his ribs, an injury which ruled him out for two months. After going into the break goalless, Alfreton managed three second half goals to earn them the win.

We travelled north to Cheshire three days later, to face play-off contenders Vauxhall Motors. A goal after only two minutes gave them the lead, and despite being a man up for over 85 minutes of the game (Vauxhall's James Holden was sent off after four minutes for a two-footed lunge on Simon Heslop), we failed to make them pay, and disappointingly, lost the game to that solitary goal.

It's fair to say that at this point morale was pretty low. It wasn't the same as earlier in the season when we'd been playing pretty well, but losing; no, we were actually playing quite bad and then getting the results to prove this. However a trip to AFC Telford, who at the time were sitting in 20th place, had the potential to raise our spirits if a victory was achieved. We went into the game without Nic McDonnell, who twisted his ankle against Vauxhall, meaning Luke Dean started up front on his own. The game, as the commentator described it, ended in a goalless "bore draw".

Gainsborough were our next opponents, and more injuries came our way. Luke Dean, once again playing ahead of the ankle-twisted McDonnell, ironically twisted his own ankle, ruling him out for a month, Simon Heslop gashed his leg, and Danny Rowe fractured his arm. Unfortunately I had to send Rowe back to Stockport, as he wasn't able to see a Harrogate specialist due to the fact he was on loan. To add insult to the literal injury, the game once again ended in a feeble 0-0 draw.

As if things weren't going bad enough for us, our next game was against Gloucester City, leaders of the Blue Square Conference North. Brilliant, eh? However, we battled until half time and managed to keep the scores goalless. It looked as though we'd handed the victory to our opponents on 57 minutes, when Leon Scott was adjudged to have held back a Gloucester attacker, and a penalty was awarded. However Neil Mustoe's penalty was saved by Gareth Stewart, and we still had a chance in the game. Ten minutes later, we were given our own penalty when Lawrie Dudfield was brought down. Alex Smith stepped up, and slotted the ball away for his first goal in Harrogate colours. Our celebrations were short-lived though; they equalised five minutes later, and ten minutes after that, grabbed the winner from a free-kick.

Overall, February was a poor month, as we only managed 2 points from a possible 15. It still leaves us in 15th place though, but we're slowly but surely slipping away from a possible top-half finish. I believe we can still do it, it's just whether the players do. It's a bad time to have an injury crisis, I'll tell you that for free.

January 2010

2009-11-04T22:48:00.004Z

A new year may have begun, but everyone at Harrogate Town was hoping that our good form in December would very much continue into 2010. A New Year's Day meeting against Farsley Celtic at Wetherby Road provided us with our first test of the calender year. They stood at the bottom of the table after a ten point deduction at the beginning of the season, but without this, they would probably have been pretty close to where we were. Farsley opened the scoring just after the half hour mark, but this was cancelled out by Nic McDonnell's 9th goal of the season shortly before the break, and despite a late surge from us, this was the way it finished.

Just three days later we were facing Farsley again, this time at their place, in a rearranged fixture from earlier on in the season. Our fixture list has seemed to be a bit dodgy (see November 09). The game was pretty dull, and despite being a man up for the last 40 minutes, we failed to capitalise, and it ended goalless.

A trip to the Midlands was in order next, as we took on Solihull Motors, who were bottom of the league, and this time they were actually bottom. No points deductions, just poor form. However, the way we played, a neutral would've thought we were in their position. We took the lead in the 19th minute thanks to Luke Dean's first goal for the club, but things went downhill from there. Solihull equalised with a very dubious goal 15 minutes later. I was warned by the FA after my comments about the goal, which I thought (and still think) it was a mile offside. Nevertheless, the goal was given and Solihull went on to score a penalty just after the break, and add a third with 10 minutes to go. Very disappointing.

A player I'd been looking at for a while, on the advice of my scouts, was 19-year-old central defender Harry Hogarth. Ian Cox hadn't been playing too well, so I snapped the youngster up on a free transfer, and put him straight into the team to face Stalybridge a few days later. We were losing 1-0 and tried to push for an equaliser in the closing stages, only for our defence to become exposed and leak another goal. However, Hogarth impressed on his debut.

A week later we travelled to Stafford, and it was Hogarth's first goal for the club that sealed a 1-0 victory. He was named Man of the Match in what was a very convincing team performance. The final game in January lined us up against 5th placed Corby, whom we played on the first day of the season, and lost 2-0 to. It was time for revenge, and from the kick off it was clear my players were thinking this as well. After only 30 seconds, David McTiernan received the ball on the right wing and put in a low ball towards Nic McDonnell who was lurking in the area. It was McDonnell's presence that lead to Phil Gulliver putting the ball into his own net. An excellent start. Things got even better just before the interval when McDonnell's low shot hit the left hand post and rebounded into the net off a hapless Mark Osborn in the Corby goal. Nic McDonnell should've had two goals, instead he had two assists to his name. However his efforts were rewarded with two minutes left to go with a powerful finish. McDonnell was deservedly awarded the Man of the Match.

The 3-0 victory was the final game in January, and left us in 14th place. It's tight though; we're only 2 points off 8th place, which is encouraging. We do seem to perform better against the better teams, and at the minute I have no idea why.

December 2009

2009-11-03T12:30:00.007Z

An away draw with Blyth Spartans kicked off December. Simon Sturdy grabbed his first goal for us on 26 minutes from the penalty spot and it looked as though that was enough, but Blyth pulled level in the 81st minute to make it 1-1. To be quite honest, neither team were outstanding, so a draw was probably a fair result.

Eastwood Town were our next opponents. They found themselves in 16th place, just one spot below us, and we really needed to win. Nic McDonnell, who was back in the starting line up after being rested against Blyth, opened the scoring on 15 minutes, and that was the way things finished. McDonnell could've doubled his tally in the second half, but his penalty was well saved by the Eastwood 'keeper. It's fair to say that we were quite lucky to come away with three points though; Eastwood had 14 shots in the game, double what we achieved, and they had a goal ruled out for offside with ten minutes left to play. I wasn't complaining though; three points is three points, no matter how you get them!

Just before the next game against Kidderminster in the FA Trophy, I signed 18-year-old attacking midfielder Luke Dean on a loan for the rest of the season from Bradford City. My scouts had recommended him to me earlier in the season, and his introduction to the squad would provide Brian Dutton and Simon Heslop with some competition. Kidderminster were very much favourites for our 1st round tie, but with no goals for either side at half time, we felt we were in with a chance. However, they opened the scoring on 70 minutes and it looked as though they'd booked their place in the next round. We piled on the pressure in the last ten minutes, and our efforts were rewarded with a penalty in the 90th minute, which Nic McDonnell cooly converted so earn us a replay back at Wetherby Road.

A few days later, the media approached me about the vacant Newport County job, to which I denied any speculation linking me with the job. Needless to say, the Harrogate board were delighted. The FA Trophy 2nd round draw took place, and us or Kidderminster were given a home tie against either Kettering or Rushden. Just the small matter of beating Kidderminster first though, before we could think about that. The replay was postponed due to a flooded pitch and rearranged for a few days later, and it was pretty disappointing. Kidderminster ran out 2-0 victors, and comfortable ones at that. Once again though, at least we can now fully concentrate on the league.

Leauge leaders Gloucester City were our next opponents at Wetherby Road. We managed to hold them to a goalless draw, thanks to stand out performances from Matt Bloomer and Ian Cox at centre back. Both Bloomer and Cox were swiftly awarded new contracts, along with several other players, most notably David McTiernan, Dan Broadbent and Simon Sturdy.

A 1-0 home win against Workington saw the month, and indeed the year out for Harrogate. Brian Dutton's header off Alex Smith's corner won the game for us. It was a man of the match performance from the midfielder and also his first goal for the club.

December was a good month for us, and perhaps the best since I took over. 8 points out of a possible 12 in the league, including a draw to the side who were top of the table, is very positive. The fact we're out of the FA Trophy isn't so good, but we did put up a good fight against a tough Kidderminster side. The end of 2009 sees Harrogate placed 14th in the league, with New Year's Day bringing bottom of the table Farsley to Wetherby Park. Without sounding too over-confident, I'm quite up for a belated Christmas present. See you all next year!

November 2009

2009-11-02T16:57:00.003Z

Hinckley were our first opponents in November, in what would turn out to be the first of three matches against the Knitters in just over two weeks. They stood in 6th place, nine spots above us, so we knew it was going to be tough to bounce back with a win after the defeat the Redditch the week before.

I went with a 4-1-4-1 formation, with Simon Harrison replacing the injured Matt Bloomer at right back for his first start of the season, and Matthew Wood coming in for Ian Cox, who dropped to the bench. In the 11th minute, Simon Heslop played the ball into Nic McDonnell's feet, who then turned and scored from 20 yards. McDonnell doubled his tally 20 minutes later, with a dubious goal that could've easily been given offside. I wasn't complaining though, and neither were the fans. McDonnell had now scored five in four games. And that's the way it finished; we held on for the rest of the game, and quite comfortably if I do say so myself!

Four days later, 3rd placed Droylsden travelled to Wetherby Road, in what was another tough game for us. Droylsden had the best of the chances, but they insisted on wasting possession by going for long range shots, none of which troubled Gareth Stewart that much. Eventually, we managed to hold them to a goalless draw.

We then travelled to Gainsborough, 7th in the league at the time, hoping we could salvage something from yet again, a difficult game. Things looked as though they were going our way in the 27th minute, when Gainsborough defender Ryan Toulson brought down Nic McDonnell in the box, and we were awarded a penalty. McDonnell stepped up himself, only for his shot to be saved by the 'keeper. Then, in the second minute of first half stoppage time, Matthew Wood brought down Gainsborough's Luke Beckett in the area, and the home side were given their own penalty. Beckett made no mistake, and slotted the ball past Stewart. This was the way the match finished, in what was a very scrappy 90 minutes.

The next match gave us a chance to take our mind off the league for the time being, and focus on the FA Trophy. We were drawn against Hinckley in the 3rd Qualifying Round, after only playing them two weeks before. A 0-0 draw at their place meant a replay, and a third meeting of the month with Hinckley was in order. We ended up winning 1-0, thanks to McDonnell's header off a cross by David McTiernan, setting up a 1st round tie away to Kidderminster.

Ilkeston Town were our final opponents of the month. We played them at the wrong time though; they were unbeaten in their last seven games in all competitions, winning six of them. We had most of the possession throughout the game, but a David Graham goal after 78 minutes was enough to see Ilkeston over the line. Lawrie Dudfield almost made an instant impact when I introduced him on 80 minutes; he hit the woodwork from 20 yards, literally 15 seconds after coming on, and straight from the kick off.

So, that's November over and done with. A win, a draw and two defeats in the league leaves us in 16th place going into December. However, all four of our league opponents were on form, or pretty high in the table, so I'm not worrying too much. Next month does get a bit easier for us, but then again we do have to face Blue Square Conference side Kidderminster in the FA Trophy. I know I've said something along the lines to this every month so far, but things things will pick up! Watch this space.

October 2009

2009-10-31T17:10:00.003Z

At the start of October, we stood in 20th place after a string of bad results. The board thought I should be performing slightly better, and the fans were getting restless after we hadn't hit the back of the net in five games. And what better way to put smiles on people's faces than a win against fellow strugglers Northwich Victoria. Unfortunately this didn't happen and we lost the game 3-0, with Guy Lopez seeing red in the second half.

Now things were getting quite desperate. With the board quickly losing patience, and the pressure increasing on both myself and the team to get results, the next game saw us entertain Alfreton Town. I stuck with the same formation I'd gone with for the past few games (4-1-3-2) but this time made our passing more direct, with a deep defensive line (partly to give the ageing Ian Cox a bit of a head start on Alfreton's pacey attackers). Miraculously, my tactics seemed to work. In the 13th minute, an Alex Smith corner was met at the back post by Simon Heslop, and the midfielder powered a header into the net for his first goal in Harrogate colours. A good start. Things got even better in the 17th minute when Lawrie Dudfield was brought down in the box, and we were given a penalty. Nic McDonnell, who at this point had gone over 500 minutes without a goal, calmly slotted the ball away, to ease the pressure off both his and my shoulders. Despite a goal in the second half, we hung on for a well-earned and somewhat overdue victory that pleased both the board and the fans.

After the win, the players' morale was good, but the next game saw us travel to Fleetwood Town, who at this point were 3rd in the league. A very, very tough match. I used the same tactics as the previous game, and made only one chance by bringing Guy Lopez back in at Anchor Man after his suspension. Things looked grim early on, with Fleetwood getting a goal in only the 4th minute. But a Lawrie Dudfield brace in the space of 15 minutes, his first goals for the club, followed by a Nic McDonnell penalty earned us a 3-1 win. Dudfield had gone over 10 hours without a goal, and expressed his 'relief and happiness' after the game at breaking his Harrogate duck.

Two wins in a row had left us in 10th place, with our next fixture away to Redditch. However, we seemed to get ahead of ourselves and three first half goals from the home side left us hoping for a miracle. It didn't come. A Nic McDonnell goal in the 77th minute was merely a consolation, and incidentally his 3rd is as many games.

Overall, October was a bit of a mixed bag. Two wins, two losses, but plenty of positives to take from it, most importantly the fact that Dudfield and McDonnell seem to have belatedly found their shooting boots. Three of our next four games bring us up against teams in the top seven of the league. Wish us luck...

September 2009

2009-10-31T12:44:00.003Z

September didn't begin well. Come to think of it, it didn't end well either. Defeats away at AFC Telford (1-2) and Droylsden (0-1) left us struggling in 17th place. The players' morale was low, my morale was lower, and I needed to change things, and fast.

Next up were two home games against Redditch and Stafford; ideal chances to win the fans and the board round with wins. However, this didn't happen and both games ended in goalless draws. We should've won both games though, as the stats show. We had nine shots to their single effort, with three on target, we had 60% of the possession, hit the woodwork twice, and had two blocked shots. The game against Stafford was exactly the same; 11 shots, 51% possession, woodwork once, and no less than five blocked shots. It was clear that Lawrie Dudfield (yet to score for us) and Nic McDonnell weren't firing on all cylinders. My prediction of McDonnell 'shining in September' was clearly unfounded.

The next game brought Farsley Celtic to Wetherby Road in the FA Cup 2nd Qualifying Round. It was a chance for us to put our poor league form behind us. Judging by our recent results, you can probably guess the score of this game. Yes, 0-0. We had a replay on our hands which would take place only four days later. A goal after only two minutes for Farsley proved to be enough to see us off, but yet again the stats show that we should've won, or at least had something to show for our effort. As it was, we failed to score for the fifth consecutive game.

A very, very disappointing month as a whole, as I'm sure you'll admit. The positives that I can take though, is the fact that we're not conceding an endless amount of goals. No, our defence is actually quite good. Gareth Stewart even kept a clean sheet for about 280 mins of football. We just need our strikers to hit the back of the net a bit more often. I'm not going to predict anything this time. Instead, we'll see what happens.

August 2009

2009-10-30T20:14:00.010Z

August the 1st saw us make the short trip down the road to our bitter rivals, and feeder club, Harrogate Railway, in what was our final pre-season fixture. It was a chance for the remaining trialists I had to show what they could do. However it was two youngsters, Ollie Ryan and Luke Durham, who grabbed the goals for us in a tense 2-2 draw.

My search for an assistant manager was not going well. The advert I placed attracted several names, but they all demanded a lot of money, and money was one thing that Harrogate doesn't have a lot of. In the end, I somewhat reluctantly drafted in Nathan Salmon to be Kevin Sharp's replacement. His stats weren't great, but I needed someone in the seat, pretty desperately.

After the Harrogate Railway game, I decided Lawrie Dudfield and Alex Smith had done enough to deserve permanent contracts. As well as this, 29-year-old former Bournemouth 'keeper Gareth Stewart was brought in, and quickly established himself as number one, ahead of Martin Pearson. Just before the start of the season, Daniel Broadbent damaged his cruciate ligaments which has sidelined him for anywhere up to year.

As difficult first games of the season go, ours was up there with the hardest. Away to Corby Town, the bookies' favourites for the league title. I went with 4-4-2, with high aggression and lots of pressure. It didn't work. They got a goal on the half hour mark which seemed to deflate my side, and after an own goal from Martin Pearson (Stewart hadn't arrived yet), it was all over for us. Very disappointing. Things had to change.

Unfortunately, they didn't. Our first home game of the season saw us play Vauxhall, whose goal just before half time was enough to see us off. However things did pick up at the next fixture. I put in 4-5-1 formation, with Michael Wood acting as the Anchor Man and Lawrie Dudfield as the lone striker. But it was the 38-year-old former Trinidad & Tobago international, and newly-appointed captain, Ian Cox that won the game for us. Cox's two goals, the second of which came on 87mins to seal the victory (and incidentally was a scorcher from 20 yards). A man of the match performance from the big centre half.

Things continued improving in the next game as well, away to Workington. After conceding two early goals, things looked grim. However an own goal gave us a lifeline shortly before half time. Changes were made during the interval, with Nic McDonnell, signed on a free just days before, coming on for Lawrie Dudfield. It was a quick-fire brace from McDonnell, on his debut, that won the game for us. Not a bad way to introduce yourself really.

McDonnell's performance had earned him a starting place for the next game at home to Sollihull Moors. Guy Lopez, a 30-year-old Frenchman I brought in on a free, also took to the field in the Anchor Man position. Danny Rowe, a talented left winger, was on the bench following his loan move from Rochdale. The closely fought game ended in a 1-1 draw. This was followed by a 2-1 defeat at Southport (in which Ian Cox grabbed his 3rd goal of the season), and a 0-0 draw at home to Hyde.

We're in 13th place at the end of August, and very much living up to the media's expectations. However, once the new signings have played together for a while, I reckon we'll see improvements, so watch this space! And here's a bit of a punt; Nic McDonnell to shine in September!

July 2009

2009-10-30T17:46:00.004Z

I was officially unveiled as manager of Harrogate Town on the 7th July. Both the board and the media expect a safe mid-table finish for us, with the media predicting 10th place. The squad looked OK, but with definite room for improvement. The stand-out players on first glance were Brian Dutton, a tireless midfielder, Matt Bloomer, who I mentioned in the introductary blog, and a young striker named Daniel Broadbent. Unfortunately, even though they do actually play for the Sulpurites in 'real life', both Trevor Benjamin and Curtis Woodhouse aren't contracted to the club on FM2010. Oh well, we'll get past that slight obstacle.

No transfer funds, and quite a hefty debt meant I had to look at the free transfer market for new recruits. I looked for some familiar names, with international experience at first. Nathan Blake and Ian Cox were brought in on trial, along with seven other players, including former Hull City striker, Lawrie Dudfield.

My first friendly was against Stevenage, at home. I fielded a side which included Blake, and fellow trialist Bobby Ford. After 20 minutes, 37-year-old Blake, a former Wales international, rolled back the years and slotted the ball past the helpless Stevenage keeper for a goal on his debut. It looked as thought my reign at Wetherby Road had got off to a good start, but Blake had to come off injured with 20 minutes left on the clock. To add insult to injury, Stevenage grabbed a late equaliser in the first minute of stoppage time. After the game, I learnt that Nathan Blake had damaged his knee, meaning he'd be out for two or three months. I reluctantly terminated his trial.

My next move was to sack my assistant manager, Kevin Sharp, and begin a search for a new one. Then in came former Southampton winger Andy Williams on a free transfer, and Martin Pearson's and Sonny Cobbs' trials were made into permanent moves. The next game was a 1-0 defeat against Kettering, followed by a 3-2 victory over Airbus UK (which included a late winner from Lawrie Dudfield).

In a bid to increase the club's status, I made a link with Doncaster Rovers, which would mean they could choose to send players to Harrogate on loan, and we would receive some kind of financial benefit in the process. A good move, since our finances were (and still are) dire reading.

Barnsley midfielder Simon Heslop came in on a free transfer, in what was billed by the media as a 'coup' for the club, and 18-year-old midfielder, and hot prospect for the future, Nic Ignatiou was also signed on the advice from the backroom staff.

The final three friendlies this month included a 1-0 win against Glenn Hoddle's Academy, a 1-0 loss against Dover Athletic and a 2-1 win at home to Carshalton.

The main priority for next month is to find an Assistant Manager, and perhaps a couple of loan signings. But, although the media predicted us to be a safe, mid-table side, things are looking bright for the Sulphurites!

The Challenge

2009-10-27T17:45:00.002Z

With the highly anticipated release of Football Manager 2010 a mere three days away, myself and my friend Phil have decided to undertake a challenge which, if it were to be completed, would make one of us a household name in the footballing world (at least within the game itself anyway). The challenge is to take control of a Blue Square Conference North or South side and guide them into the unknown, and ideally, all the way to the hallowed turf of the English Premier League. After much deliberation, we both agreed on a humble team from North Yorkshire who go by the name of Harrogate Town. For those who don't know much about 'The Sulphurites', their Wikipedia page can be found here.

There was a number of reasons why we chose Harrogate. Firstly, we recognised quite a few of their current players, namely Trevor Benjamin (ex-Leicester City striker and one-time Jamaican international), Curtis Woodhouse (ex-Hull City midfielder whom, after "falling out of love" with football in 2006, briefly turned his hand to boxing, at which he was rather successful) and Matt Bloomer (another ex-Hull City player, although he did only play a handful of games for them).

Secondly, they probably are the closest geographically to Hull, so we felt like we wouldn't be betraying our Northern roots (plus, Harrogate is a commutable distance away from Hull, meaning we could both still live at home...).

The third and final reason for our decision was purely the fact that we both thought that seeing Harrogate Town play the likes of AC Milan and Barcelona in a competitive fixture would be a) hilarious (no disrespect to Harrogate, of course) and b) very, very appetising. It's this hunger that makes us both believe we are the right man for the job.

I will be blogging my progress monthly (in game terms), and I believe Phil is also going to blog about his escapades as well, so I'll post his link next time, if and when he actually does one. So, here's to a long and hopefully successful managerial career in charge of the soon-to-be world beaters, Harrogate Town.

Edit: Phil has set up a blog, which can be found here.