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Thanks Terk-- a bit better than I expected to be honest...

***

27.9.05
Leicester (0) Plymouth (0)
Leicester- None
Plymouth- None
MOM- Hasney Aljofree, Plymouth

Our scoreless draught continued as Borut Mavric made a couple superb saves in the first half and then we just didn't execute well enough to get good chances in the second half. It was a match we dominated the possession in- but couldn't get the finishing we needed. Our backline played well and Yohan Hartock had a pretty easy clean sheet for his efforts. We need to get working better as a team, because our lack of flow offensively was what short-circuited our efforts in the second half.

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1.10.05
Leicester (2) Brighton (0)
Leicester- Gareth Williams 71 David Clarkson 76
Brighton- None
MOM- Cedric Berthelin, Leicester

We were fortunate to come out of this match with a win- thanks to Cederic Berthelin- because we didn't play all that well. The first half was mostly watching each side waste scoring opportunities with idiotic passing for both. They had the best scoring chances, but Berthelin stopped Leon Knight and Alexandre Frutos cold when we needed the big save. It was a relief when we finally broke through to score our first goal in three matches as Gareth Williams boomed a free kick past Florent Chaigneau. Minutes later David Clarkson fired in a sharp angled shot after a dazzling move with the ball and that helped take the spirit out of the visitors as we closed out the win.

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15.10.05
Southampton (3) Leicester (1)
Southampton- Ricardo Fuller 3 Nigel Quashie 47 Quincy OWusu Abeyie 48
Leicester- Marc Kalenga 78-P
MOM- Quincy OWusu Abeyie, Southampton

The unfortunate part is that we didn't play that badly in this 3-1 road loss. We made some mistakes and Rab Douglas- just coming back from injury- wasn't as sharp as usual and that all contributed. Gary Kenneth got beat cleanly by Ricardo Fuller in the opening moments as they were off on a flyer. I thought we might rally to start the second half, but instead they scored two goals in a minute and that was about all for us. I was happy the players didn't quit and we finally got a goal back when Marc Kalenga converted a penalty after Darren Powell tripped Derek Carcary in the area- but that was as close as we would come.

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19.10.05
Leicester (4) Wolves (1)
Leicester- James Graham 42 Gareth Williams 65 Iain Hume 78 Daryl Duffy 83-P
Wolves- Kenny Miller 61
MOM- Rab Douglas, Leicester

Despite the scoreline, if Rab Douglas doesn't play a superb match- we could well have lost this one. He played a sensational first half and kept them from scoring despite four excellent chances. Our backline had problems again today and were a bit disappointing. We took the lead to halftime as James Graham made his 1st goal for us a thing of beauty as he took a long pass and motored down the left side before smashing a shot past Ronald Postma. Kenny Miller evened things when a quick counterattack- started when Steven Hammell lost the ball- found Hammell and Scott Boyd completely out of position and Miller made us pay. The introduction of Gareth Williams for Liam Fox turned out to be the deciding factor- especially when Williams ghosted into the area and put a shot away past Postma. Douglas came up with a brilliant save on Miller to keep them from pegging us right back. We gained full control of the match when Williams slipped a pass to Iain Hume and he rifled a shot inside the left post. After Joleon Lescott tripped Graham in the area, Daryl Duffy converted the penalty kick for his 5th goal of the season as we capped the 4-1 win.

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22.10.05
Watford (3) Leicester (0)
Watford- Darius Henderson 5,12 Malky Mackay 74
Leicester- None
MOM- Darius Henderson, Watford

We weren't able to build on our win over the Wolves as last place Watford handed us a humbling 3-0 loss. Our young backline was shredded again today as Darius Henderson put the sword to us in scoring a brace in the first 12 minutes of play. We never got on track in the first half, but stormed out of halftime and pressured the home side. Ben Foster made a series of brilliant saves as we had the chances, but could not score. Another mishandled ball by the backline allowed Malky Mackay to finish us off as they completed their 3-0 rout.

***

23.10.05
It is clear that I have to sort out our young backline. They started out well, but have been very inconsistent of late. With Willie Kinniburgh still out- the backline will have to be Steven Hammell- Gary Kenneth- Andrew Considine- David Keough until we find out if they work together.

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29.10.05
Leicester (2) Norwich (0)
Leicester- Daryl Duffy 8,59
Norwich- None
MOM- Daryl Duffy, Leicester

A terrific match for us as Daryl Duffy put the sword to the Norwich backline. Duffy scored an early goal after a good pass from Gareth Williams and that allowed us to relax and put pressure on the visitors. They managed several quick counter-attacks and Cederic Berthelin was very sharp to keep the scoresheet tidy. Duffy scored early in the second half when a through ball from Gary Kenneth put him in free. Duffy had a golden chance at a hat-trick when Gary Doherty tripped him in the area to earn a redcard and a penalty. Robert Green made a diving parry on Duffy's penalty kick to rob him of the chance as we settled for a 2-0 win.

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1.11.05
QPR (1) Leicester (1)
QPR- Stefan Moore 7
Leicester- None
MOM- Ian Evatt, QPR

QPR made an early goal stand up despite our pressure throughout the match. Rab Douglas could only parry a shot from Richard Langley and Gary Kenneth failed to clear the rebound before Stefan Moore knocked home the rebound for the only goal of the match. We started playing well after the goal, but we could not find a way to score on Simon Royce. The QPR backline, led by MOM Ian Evatt, had a lot to do with that as their coverage in the area was good and they managed to clear two balls off the goal line. It was a disappointing result in a match that we gave a good effort in.

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5.11.05
Sheffield United (0) Leicester (2)
Sheffield Utd- None
Leicester- Matthieu Bucher 37 James Graham 49
MOM- Steven Hammell, Leicester

Top placed Sheffield United found us a difficult club to beat. They dominated large swaths of the match, but we took better advantage of our limited chances. James Graham made a pretty cross and Matthieu Bucher was able to outleap two defenders and flick the ball over Paddy Kenny. We struck again early in the second half as David Keough's cross picked out Graham and he was able to put away a half-volley past Kenny. With the two goal lead we concentrated on helping Rab Douglas finish off another clean sheet- which he did in fine fashion with excellent saves against Paul Ifill and Steven Kabba.

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19.11.05
Leicester (1) Coventry (1)
Leicester- David Clarkson 54
Coventry- Gary McSheffrey 18
MOM- Gary McSheffrey, Coventry

Another missed opportunity for us as we yielded an early goal on a rebound that wasn't cleared and we had to fight back to earn a 1-1 draw. Gary McSheffrey was parked on the far post and slammed home the rebound after Rab Douglas parried away the initial blast from Stephen Hughes. We stormed to the attack, but really weren't playing that well as we squandered many chances in the first half. We finally found a way to solve Stephen Bywater when David Clarkson ripped a hard, low shot inside the far right post after a good move past Matt Heath. We tried to gain the match winner, but our execution was lacking after we equalized and we had to settle for the draw.

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26.11.05

Leicester (1) Crewe (0)
Leicester- Matthieu Bucher 84
Crew- None
MOM- Pavel Suhoj, Crewe

In a match where neither side played that well, it was one play to decide the match and we were the side that made it work. Our passing was again lacking, but our defensive play was fine and Cederic Berthelin made several solid saves to keep the visitors off the board. We continued to struggle in the second half, but with the match winding down James Graham got free down the left and crossed to the far post. Matthieu Bucher made a terrific header from a sharp angle that slipped past Ben Williams for the dramatic match winner.

***

1.12.05
A couple unhappy players brought matters to the point where I felt they had to be addressed. Despite the fact I like both Liam Fox and Shaun Fagan as solid midfielders- they both are upset. Both missed practice this week as well, and I felt it was time to begin finding them new homes- so both ended up on the transfer list as well. We have depth in the midfield and though I would like to keep Fox, his grousing has been poison in the clubhouse as he grumbles that we have too many options in the center midfield.