retired_karamelkel

On April 7, for the second year in a row, John Browne was the lone AXFC player selected to the All-Conference team.

The day of the Hereford match was a clear and cool afternoon. Munster would start the last three games at CMC for us as he joined the rest of the regulars on the pitch for the game. Just over 1550 were in attendance.

It wasn’t much of a first half for either team. Hereford controlled possession and in doing so, bottled the ball up in midfield. We were only able to attack twice and failed to do much with the chances. Hereford only took one shot, but they made it count as on 37 Hunter capped a patient Hereford team move by scoring to give the home side the 1-0 lead. We couldn’t equalize and so went into intermission still behind. During the second half, Hereford continued to dominate possession and to keep the ball at midfield. Both teams did get a few more chances, but were unable to do much. I sent in Bradley for Speight at the hour mark, but the move failed to energize our offense. Hereford ran out the clock and got the 1-0 win. Rochdale won their match with Northwich to take a one point lead in the Conference. In two weeks we would face them at Yankee Stadium in the next to last match of the season in a game that would be for all the marbles.

The latest round of games had also clarified the relegation picture. Aldershot and Hastings Town were going back down to real non-league obscurity while the last spot was likely to be one of four teams: Accrington, Chester, Farnborough, and Halesowen. The Vans Trophy was won by Bradford on penalties after a 1-1 draw with Cambridge United.

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The big game with Rochdale arrived with much fanfare in the local press. London was wet and cool on that Saturday afternoon for the last home game of the year. Fleming was injured so Chandler took his place in the lineup. None of the players needed any reminders of how important this game was and they were all fired up. 3, 250 fans showed up for the vital match. I would have hoped for a sellout, but you take what you can get.

Rochdale clearly wanted to avoid a loss, so they played cautiously and refused to take any chances. They had three chances, but failed to capitalize on them. Their main objective was to shut AZXFC down and this they succeeded in, limiting us to one off-target shot. We tried to break their defense, but it remained staunch throughout the half. As a result, the halftime score was 0-0. At the half, I merely told the lads to get off their asses and to play attacking football. We needed a win here, nothing else would really suffice. Our destiny was in our control right now. Anything but a win meant that we would be letting other teams control our chances of winning the Conference. Both teams picked up the pace in the second half as chances began to develop. We were still not playing all that well, so I made my first sub ten minutes in as I sent in Fennelly for Asser. Fifteen minutes later, which no change in our favor, I sent in Moran and Fanning for Mills and Law respectively. A minute later, I stared in disbelief as Conner beat Browne to a rebound to give the visitors the 1-0 lead. Fuming, I stomped the sideline, but I needn’t have worried. Eleven minutes later, much maligned forward Colin Fanning became a hero to the AXFC fans when he stuffed a rebound back into the net to make the game a 1-1 draw.

Rochdale stayed one point ahead of us going into the final match day. We had an away against Canvey Island and Rochdale had a home contest against Halesowen. Halesowen would be fighting for their Conference lives and were a reasonable bet to get a draw out of the game. Rochdale had no choice but to beat Halesowen to ensure their league title. If we won against Canvey or drew with them and Rochdale lost, we would be the champs. If we drew and Rochdale lost, we would go through on goal difference. If we won and Rochdale drew, we would get through. If both teams won, drew or lost, Rochdale would go through. So, the pressure was on. On the morning of May 1rst, the last match day of the year, Kingsway Olympic, an Aussie side, made a bid for Fanning, which was accepted forthwith.


Saturday afternoon on Canvey Island was beautiful. It was breezy and in the mid-70’s. A few surprises were in store for the lineup. Fleming returned from injury, but Lynch and Law were dropped for poor performance of late. Instead, Moran and Fanning got the nod alongside the rest of the regulars. We would start this game attacking as we had no other choice, and try to run up the score. Canvey had nothing at stake so I wasn’t sure how fired up they would be. 1717 filled the park for the game.

Despite our attacking, Caney held us off. We were keeping them at bay, with our defense doing an excellent job of stopping them, but they were doing the same to us. Both sides got chances on counters, but were unable to convert. The ball remained in midfield for most of the game and so we went into the half at 0-0. Thankfully, Rochdale and Halesowen were tied at 1-1, so we still had a chance. The second half however, saw the end of our season as Aldridge scored on 50. At that point, I sent in Lynch for Moran and Bradley for Fanning, but to no avail. Junior added a goal on 60 and we were finished. Lynch scored a goal late, but it wasn’t much consolation. Rochdale beat Halesowen 2-1 to solidify their Conference title. Accrington were relegated on the last day too.

retired_karamelkel

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * American Exiles Football Club - Saturday 1st May 2004********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2003/4 Senior Club Stats============================================= ================================================== =No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Adamson, Carl 5 (4) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.56 - Allan, Kevin 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.20 - Asser, James 37 (1) 6 0 0 4 1 0 1 7.11 - Bradley, Lee 17 (16) 10 0 0 1 1 0 2 7.12 - Browne, John 41 0 32 0 0 0 0 2 7.17 - Campbell, Gary - - - - - - - - ---- - Campbell, Thomas - - - - - - - - ---- - Chandler, Jeremy 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.71 - Chapman, Gary - - - - - - - - ---- - Collins, Chris - - - - - - - - ---- - Cooper, Craig - - - - - - - - ---- - Cooper, Gordon - - - - - - - - ---- - Davies, Allan 7 (2) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.22 - Donnelly, Darren - - - - - - - - ---- - Doyle, John 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Evans, Kevin - - - - - - - - ---- - Fanning, Colin 11 (10) 3 0 0 1 0 0 1 6.81 - Fennelly, Clark 11 (11) 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 6.77 - Fleming, Derek 34 0 0 0 8 2 0 1 7.35 - French, Scott - - - - - - - - ---- - Fuff, Glen 43 4 0 1 (1) 2 4 0 1 6.88 - Gallagher, John - - - - - - - - ---- - Goodwin, Gerry 9 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.89 - Hough, Dave - - - - - - - - ---- - JP Mills 36 5 0 0 11 5 0 2 7.14 - Jones, Steven - - - - - - - - ---- - Kavanagh, Gary 35 1 0 0 13 0 0 1 7.49 - Law, Gareth 35 (1) 9 0 0 7 1 0 1 6.94 - Lynch, Gary 29 (8) 26 0 0 1 0 0 4 7.19 - Mason, Kevin - - - - - - - - ---- - McColl, James - - - - - - - - ---- - McMahon, Jack - - - - - - - - ---- - Moncrieffe, Prince 5 (3) 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 6.75 - Moran, Sean 20 (18) 11 0 2 (2) 0 0 0 1 6.71 - Munster, David 16 (12) 2 0 0 2 1 0 1 6.75 - Naylor, Phil - - - - - - - - ---- - O'Connor, Liam - - - - - - - - ---- - Powell, Neil - - - - - - - - ---- - Robson, Russell - - - - - - - - ---- - Sadler, Adam 6 0 8 0 0 0 0 0 6.67 - Smith, Fraser 6 (2) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.63 - Smith, Mark 37 3 0 0 2 0 1 2 6.68 - Speight, Richard 31 (1) 13 0 0 3 2 0 7 7.38 - Stannard, Wayne - - - - - - - - ---- - Teasdale, Michael 12 (3) 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 6.67 - Truman, Danny - - - - - - - - ---- - Turner, Harry - - - - - - - - ---- - Vowden, Colin 40 2 0 0 3 1 0 0 7.00 - Watson, Paul - - - - - - - - ---- - Wilkins, Robert 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 7.33 ************************************************** ********************************************** English Conference - Saturday 1st May 2004********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2003/4 Table============================================= ================================================== =Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st C Rochdale 42 17 0 4 39 19 13 4 4 37 20 94 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2nd AXFC 42 16 4 1 48 19 11 5 5 39 14 90 3rd Halifax 42 12 7 2 38 21 11 5 5 38 25 81 4th Stevenage 42 12 7 2 46 21 9 6 6 42 28 76 5th Barnet 42 17 0 4 46 22 7 4 10 26 37 76 6th Dag & Red 42 14 4 3 36 16 6 6 9 28 31 70 7th Canvey Island 42 11 3 7 34 25 10 2 9 30 33 68 8th Tamworth 42 12 4 5 36 23 7 3 11 25 31 64 9th Scarborough 42 10 4 7 26 19 8 5 8 27 28 63 10th Morecambe 42 11 4 6 25 16 7 4 10 23 23 62 11th Northwich Vics 42 9 7 5 28 22 7 7 7 27 28 62 12th Shrewsbury 42 10 3 8 34 31 8 4 9 28 32 61 13th Telford 42 11 4 6 26 17 4 6 11 16 30 55 14th Hereford 42 11 2 8 30 26 4 4 13 19 33 51 15th Exeter 42 9 3 9 31 27 4 5 12 23 48 47 16th Nuneaton Borough 42 9 6 6 34 35 2 8 11 17 44 47 17th Chester 42 6 9 6 43 42 4 2 15 28 45 41 18th Farnborough 42 7 3 11 35 40 4 3 14 23 41 39 19th Halesowen 42 3 10 8 30 39 5 4 12 28 36 38 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------20th R Accrington 42 9 6 6 23 23 1 2 18 11 38 38 21st R Aldershot 42 5 6 10 18 30 1 7 13 14 36 31 22nd R Hastings Town 42 4 6 11 17 35 2 6 13 19 42 30 </pre>

retired_karamelkel

To say I was stunned would be an understatement. I had fully expected us to make the League the following season and so I did not quite comprehend another season in the financially-strapped apex of non-League soccer. I’ll be honest; I looked at taking another manager’s job. We were awarded 110 thousand for finishing second, but the money was barely noticed for the first couple of days. We were in shock and it wasn’t until a week or so later that the check was deposited into the bank. It was also at that time that I began pure paring the roster for next season. In the initial purge, Sadler, Chandler, Davies, Allan and Fennelly were released. This was a clearing of the deck for two Bosmans to join the first team along with a couple of great reservists. We also weeded out the reserves to create more roster space. At least three players from the reserves would be on the first team next season. The first big move of the off-season was that Fanning moved to Australia for 20,000 pounds. Then I met with the scouts and sent them off on their summer assignments. After that, I had a meeting with the board to discuss expanding the stadium and practice facilities. Both requests were ignored as the board felt there was little point to expanding anything at this juncture. They told me that they would rather see me spend the 1 million ponds they had allotted for transfers. I agreed and set out to fulfill three key needs. A big-time forward, a big-time attacking midfielder, a backup goalkeeper and a backup midfielder. To accomplish these goals, began with several phone calls to see who was interested. The interest was disappointing, but I made do. We put in bids for a couple of players to fill the forward and AMC spots, which were our most pressing needs. We quickly agreed to terms with our targeted forward, Ian Little of Caley Thistle. He would join us on June 1 for 110,000 pounds. A few hours later, we made our second signing, acquiring AMC Dean Martin from Rotherham for 65 grand. He would join us on June 1 as well. Wrapping up the first two weeks of May was the FA Trophy final, which was won 2-0 by Telford as they defeated Tamworth. The other final on Saturday May 15 was the FA Cup final which Chelsea won 2-1 over Everton.

Later in May, Newcastle beat Blackburn on penalties in an all-English UEFA Cup final. About a week later, Man U stomped Liverpool 4-0 in the Champion’s League final. This was probably the first time in history that the two major European club finals had been all-English. This was a telling commentary on the strength of the English leagues at the moment. A day later, one of my scouts recommended that we sign a Hull midfielder by the name of Andy Dawson. After reviewing the report and the videotape, I agreed that Dawson would be a good CMC and we made Hull an offer. It only took a couple of days for Dawson to accept our contract offer and we eagerly awaited his arrival on June 1.

On June 1, Bunce, Dawson Little and Martin all arrived at the AXFC grounds. The board remained delighted with my performance as manager and our finances were still very good. We also signed 20 yr old goalkeeper prospect Gareth Fuller from Braintree for 22K. We filled our LMC backup first team spot by signing 32 yr old Andy Roddie for 5K from Peterhead. On the 5th the European Championships started, though there were no unexpected results during the first few matches. On the 6th, we rounded out our goalkeeping corps for the upcoming season by signing veteran Northern Irish keeper Richard Robinson on a free transfer. On June 7, we allowed Gary Lynch to become a free agent, because he had had one great season, and we didn’t think he could repeat his success. Finally a surprising result emerged from the Euro championships when in the second set of group matches, Russia beat Holland 1-0 to clinch qualification to the second round. The final go-round of group matches saw Russia and Portugal qualifying from group 1 with Turkey and Holland heading home. Group 2 was Denmark and Italy with the Czechs and Finns ousted. Interspersed with the competition was the fact that Fanning left for Australia and Law and coach Nick Cusack left as free agents. Group 3 saw England and Germany qualify over Norway and Ireland. Lastly, Group 4 was Spain and Greece ahead of France and Bulgaria. While this was going on, the new 04/05 season for everyone in Europe. That meant the ten newest members of the EU joined the football portion of that structure. The first EC quarterfinal saw Portugal beat Denmark 1-0 in extra time. In more domestic news, AXFC fans named Richard Speight the 03/04 season. The next quarter-final saw England beat Greece on penalties after a 0-0 draw.

The preseason of the 04/05 Conference season began with us getting 100K for TV rights. The board was expecting us to finish in the top 5 in Conference play. The four new members of the Conference this season were Hays, Kettering and Stalybridge from the lower leagues and Macclesfield the resident refugee from League football. In international play, Germany beat Spain on penalties after a 1-1 draw. The last European Championship saw Italy beat Russia 1-0. While that was happing, we received news that should bring a grin to many CMS regulars: Paul Gascoigne was signed by Halesowen. Paul Mortimer joined us on a Bosman late in June, which completed the first team squad for the beginning of the season. That completed the first team with ten days to go before the beginning of training camp opened. We were getting close now. In containing European Championship action, Germany beat Italy 1-0 in the first semi-final. In the other semifinal, England beat Portugal 1-0. In the final, England pulled off the nice feat of beating Germany 2-0. So England won both Euro club championships and the continental version. Not a bad summer for St. George fans.

retired_karamelkel

On June 29, Speight was allowed to become a free agent, since he refused to sign a new contract. On that day too, we opened training camp. We would start with two weeks of conditioning drills. Then we would have two weeks of technical drills and wrap up with two weeks of regular-season practice. We had six roster spots left, so the scouts were beating the bushes for youth prospects. July brought with it a glowing review from the board. Not much else happened in July as we spent the month in training camp getting ready for our opening match, which would take place on August 14, at Tamworth. However, on the 19th, Teasdale came to my office after practice and informed me that he was retiring from professional football. I shook his hand, thanked him for his contributions to the club, wished him the best and immediately went looking for a utility defender. Just a few days later, we had found Teasdale’s replacement for 9,000 pounds as defender Phillip Holmes joined us from Welsh side Connah’s Quay. Then, on the 25, came a nasty curveball. Wayne Standard’s agent told the media that his client would soon make a move to Oxford. I had no idea what he was talking about, so I chose to ignore the speculation. As August started, we switched to our regular season practice schedule. The board was happy with my performance, and I was eager to get the new season underway. On the fourth, we got some bad news. David Hough, a promising forward in our reserves landed wrong on a diving header and fractured his skull. He would be out for seven months, or essentially the season. What a lousy break for the kid. Fortunately, no one was predicting long-term damage from the devastating injury. A couple of days after the brouhaha died down over the injury, I got a call from new Swindon doss Alan Shearer. After commiserating about Hough, he informed me that he wanted to buy reserve midfielder Harry Turner and named a price. I told him to up the fee substantially and I would sell. He rang off without comment. Later in the week, Shearer called to say that he was no longer interested in Turner. That news was fine by me. Shortly before the season began, I made the decision to find another forward for the first team. With Hough out for the year, Chapman would be able to get more playing time in the reserves again and the lad was only 19. I decided to pursue Bari Morgan, a forward for Aberstewyth Town, offering 35K for him. The morning of Opening Day saw the AZFC lineup listed in the paper the regulars listed on first at each position.

GK:
John Browne (32 Irish)
Robert Robinson (29 Northern Irish)

LB:
Derek Fleming (30 Scots)
Wayne Standard (17 English)

RB:
Gary Kavanagh (19 Irish)
Kevin Mason (21 English)

DC:
Che Bunce (28 New Zealand 16 caps)
Gavin Fuff (29 English)
Colin Vowden (32 English)
Gerry Goodwin (27 Irish)
Utility- Phillip Holmes (31 Welsh)

LMC
James Asser (20 English)
Andy Roddie (32 Scottish)

CMC:
Andy Dawson (25 English)
Paul Mortimer (24 Scottish)

RMC:
JP Mills (22 English)
Carl Adamson (21 English)

AMC:
Dean Martin (31 English)
Sean Moran (22 Irish)

Utility- Fraser Smith (21 Scottish)

Forwards:
Ian Little (30 Scottish)
Lee Bradley (22 English)
David Munster (25 Northern Irish)
Prince Moncrief (27 English)

Opening afternoon in Tamworth was dry and balmy in the mid 70’s. With three seasons of Conference play behind us, we had a reasonable amount of games played against most of the teams. With regard to Tamworth, the two teams were even in the series, with each having 8 points off of identical 2-2-2 records. All our regulars got the opening day start with the exception of Asser, who was nursing a bruised jaw from practice earlier in the week. Therefore, Roddie got the nod at LMC. Nearly 3400 turned out for the game.

Tamworth came out playing cautiously, controlling possession with ease. They were good with the few chances they took, but Browne kept the nets clean. We were also playing patiently, putting the shots we got on-target as well, but ailing to do anything of note. With such play as the mindset of both teams, it came as no surprise that the half was a midfield battle most of the time. Neither team wilted, so the game remained scoreless going into the half. AXFC managed to control the ball much better in the second half, but we were unable to do anything worthwhile with it. Both teams opened the throttle a bit and the game flowed a bit better than it had in the first half. Both team continued to shoot well, but both goalies were on-form already and prevented either side from notching a victory. Hoping to kick-start the offense, I made a triple substitution on 77, sending in Munster, Moran and Adamson for Little, Martin and Roddie. The subs made no difference however and the game ended in a scoreless draw. Our home opener was next on the schedule for Tuesday night.

retired_karamelkel

Saturday evening, Aberystwyth Town accepted our offer for Morgan and we offered a contract. A day later, Thompson of Sheffield Wednesday was the first manger sacked in the new season. On Monday, Morgan came to terms with us and joined us in time for the Tues night game. He would be a regular at forward, taking the spot from Bradley, who would continue to be a backup on the first team.

Tuesday evening in London was dry and comfortable. Over the past three seasons, Dag and Red had had our number, winning three, drawing two and losing only once to give them an edge on points, 11 to our 5. Surprisingly, all the regulars except for Asser were fit for the home opener, even new acquisition Bari Morgan. Roddie continued to hold down the LMC fort. Only 2150 showed up for the match, a bit of a disappointment.

The small crowd was rewarded however. We came out clicking on offense. On 11, Morgan, a 23 yr old Welshman, washed no time in making an impact for AXFC. On 11, he sent the Yankee Stadium fans into cheers of delight when he nailed a diving header off a Mills cross to give the home side the 1-0 lead. We continued to pepper the Dag and Red goal with shots throughout the half. Our defense was stifling, refusing to allow the visitors even a shot even though both teams handled the ball an equal amount of time. In short, we beat Dag and Red like a drum. We poured much pressure on Dag and Red in the second half, spending most of the time in their third of the pitch. However, they struck just after the hour when Bruce nailed a free-kick to level the scores. We seemed unable to get past their keeper and with ten minutes left, I pulled Dawson and Martin for Adamson and Moran. Three minutes later, Moran snapped up a loose ball off a Morgan free-kick and drove it past the visiting keeper to give AXFC the 2-1 home opener wins. We would play Hereford next on Saturday afternoon on the 21 of August at their place.

Saturday afternoon in Hereford was a breezy and warm day. We had thoroughly dominated Hereford in our previous six matches against them, winning four, drawing one and losing one to take 13 points to Hereford’s four. All the regulars except for an unfit Kavanagh got the start as Asser had recovered from his bruised jaw. Kevin Mason made his AXFC first-team debut at right back in front of 2200 opposition fans.

Neither team was brilliant on offense in the first half. Both teams received and wasted a number of chances. The only difference was that we at least, got a couple of shots on goal whilst Hereford were unable to put anything near Browne. We opened the scoring ledger on 14 when Fleming sent a free-kick towards goal that Little picked up and buried past the scrambling keeper to give AXFC the 1-0 lead. Hereford continued to hold the lion’s share of possession, but we kept them off the scoreboard. We added to our lead late in the half when Morgan picked up a loose ball and drove it through to make the score 2-0. With a comfortable lead, the second half was spent playing defense and ball control. We continued to threaten the Hereford goal and though we failed to score further, we kept the home side from doing much on offense. At the 75 mark I pulled Martin, who couldn’t seem to get anything going, for Moran as we ran the clock out on our 2-0 win. Our next match was a Wednesday evening game at Yankee Stadium versus Telford in four days.

The next manager to get handed his pink slip was Charlton’s Danny Wilson. That same day, August 21, Sheffield Wed. hired Woking’s Chris Waddle as their new boss. Woking were a feel good story. They had finished second in the Third Division, after winning promotion from the Conference the previous year. Woking was now 10 in the Second Division so far this season. Upon studying the club, I decided to apply for the job, seemed to be worthwhile to at least try. I wasn’t the most ambitious of souls, but at least I could say I was interested in moving on at some point.

Wednesday night in London was calm, dry, and a bit warmer than usual, even for August. Telford had given us trouble over the years, winning four of six from us to take 12 points to our six for the series. All the regulars except Fleming and Dawson got the nod. Standard and Mortimer joining the regulars. Just over 1350 turned out to watch.

Morgan continued to make an impression in his third game with AXFC. On 14 he gave us the 1-0 lead when he gathered up a throw-in from Kavanagh, stopped the ball and went on a quick run that broke down the Telford defense. Morgan finished the short run by blasting the ball into goal. We put a lot of pressure on Telford from then on out, keeping an edge in possession and keeping the ball on their side of the pitch. Telford was forced to play defense most of the time and were only able to attack once with an off-balance shot. When Morgan added a penalty conversion on 34 to give us the 2-0 lead, we went into the half feeling good about ourselves. Telford came out playing much better in the second half. They got a few chances and gave Browne some work to do in protecting the lead. They held the ball better than we did and tried to attack. However, Browne was able to save their opportunities and kept Telford off the board. At 70, I put in Moran for an infuriating Martin and Fraser Smith in for Mills. We held on to our 2-0 lead for the last twenty minutes and got a nice win. Our next game was in three day on Saturday the 28 at Nuneaton Borough. On Saturday morning, Chapman’s career at AXFC came to a screeching halt. He had turned up late for practice and had been unfit during his time on the training field. I gave him a dressing-down afterwards and he complained that I was being harsh. I promptly then released him. I don’t tolerate malcontents on my club and he was such.

Saturday afternoon in Nuneaton was dry and comfortable. We had played three previous matches against Nuneaton and had split those games, wining one, losing one and drawing one to give each side four points. All but three regulars got the nod. Little and Morgan were both a bit unfit and so were replaced by Bradley and Munster. Martin had been ineffective, so he got the day off while Moran started. 2150 turned up at Manor Park.

The first half was a rout and we cleaned the home side’s clock with ruthless scooting, 9-11. We kept control of the ball for about 60% of the time and kept the pressure on Nuneaton in their third of the pitch, making it the home for 45% of the half. Needless to say, Nuneaton were not able to put together any attack or even catch a breather. Mills opened the scoring on 20 when he took a Browne goal-kick and dribbled it in, planting the ball solidly for the AXFC 1-0 lead. Twenty minutes later, Munster passed up a chance and slid the ball left to a cutting Asser, who drilled it low to give us the 2-0 by halftime. Both Mills and Asser had picked up their first goals of the season. Nuneaton was able to get back on the wagon during the second half as they threatened Browne with a couple of chances. Browne coolly handled those chances and kept the shutout intact as we strove to kill clock. Though Nuneaton held the ball for the vast majority of the half they did no damage. We didn’t do any further damage ourselves and twenty minutes to the end, I made a trifecta substitution, sending in Holmes for Fleming, Fraser Smith for Asser and Martin for Moran. The fresh legs helped us preserve the 2-0 win. With approximately an eighth of the season gone, we were in second place behind Stevenage as we prepared to face Morecambe at home in two days on Monday evening. Monday morning saw Woking hired Derek Whyte as manager and Charlton hired Neil Thompson as their new boss.

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Monday evening in London was dry and touches coolers than it had been in the previous week. We had played seven games against Morecambe during my time and had dominated the series winning five, drawing one and losing one against them. That gave us the 16 to 4 advantage. Since we were coming off a weekend game, I decided to rest almost everyone. The only regulars to get the start were Browne, Martin, Morgan and Little. 2340 fans came out for the contest.

It was not an offensive showcase for sure. We had no shots at all and looked confuse when we had the ball. Morecambe weren’t much better. They only had three chances, but the held the edge on possession and they made one of their on-target shots count early. Ten minutes in, Carlton lobbed in a cross that Perkins volleyed past Browne to give the visitors the 1-0 lead. We couldn’t do much in the half after that. We were stunned that the doormats had risen and wrapped us up tight. We managed to produce a bit more offense in the second half, but we weren’t able to cash the opportunities. At 63 I pulled little for Munster, then on 70 put in Smith for Adamson. None of this made any difference. We were flat and Morecambe inspired. They were getting a surfeit of chances, but they were all off-target which kept their lead at one and they preserved that lead to win 1-0. We would face Macclesfield at their field on Saturday September 4.

The next manager to get the sack was Paul Groves of West Ham. In the end of month awards Gary Kavanagh won the Young Player of the Month. On September 1, the board met. They were happy with my job performance, but the club was starting to hemorrhage money again. We had lost 135, 00 pounds so far in the season. We were back down to just over 3 million pounds. We were safely in the black, but I don’t like losing money.

Saturday afternoon in Macclesfield was warm and wet. The pitch was damp and the dugouts soaked, though it wasn’t raining at game time. We had never played this team, so our scouting report was somewhat vague. All the regulars got the nod for this game. We broke out our red uniforms for this game for the first time this season. Close to 1850 fans came out to the park.

Neither team was brilliant on offense. Both teams only got a couple of chances each. The only action in the half went to the home side, which controlled the ball for most of the half. It was us, however, who took our chance and made it count. On 27, Morgan continued to goal-scoring binge when he nailed a diving header off a Mills pass from the right to give AXFC the 1-0 lead. Both teams continued to produce mediocre offense the rest of the half. Five minutes from the break, Asser went on a run, the kind we hadn’t seen from him in a couple of seasons, and capped it by booming the ball into the net to give us the 2-0 lead. We switched to defense and even so, managed to get 15 shots and 9 on target for the game. I pulled Dawson at the hour mark, putting Mortimer in his place. Then, 15 minutes to the end, I pulled little for Bradley. Neither moved made much of a difference as we coasted to the easy win. We next had to go too the Deva Stadium on Tuesday evening to face Chester.

Tuesday evening in Chester was cool and dry. Autumn was fast approaching as the temperatures continued to drop. We had played six times against Chester in the past and the series was relatively even. We had won three, lost two and drawn one against this opponent, giving us ten points to Chester’s seven. All but three of the regulars made the starting lineup. Many weren’t completely fit, but the made the start anyway. The three who did not start were Fleming, Martin and Morgan, who were replaced by Standard, Moran and Bradley respectively. For the first time in AXFC history, we wore our red uniforms in back to back games. For once, Chester had no trouble pulling in the fans for this one as 1375 were on hand.

We opened the scoring in less than ten minutes. Bradley buried a top-corner shot off a little pass to give AXFC the 1-0 lead with just mine minutes gone. Chester didn’t panic and came storming right back on 13 to tie the game. Brodie drilled a shot off an excellent Miles feed. After this initial spate of goals, both teams settled down. We continued to get a few chances, and put them on-target. Chester focused on defense, and ball-control, which they succeed in doing. On 31, our patience paid off when little got and knock down pass from Asser, found himself open and neatly put the ball away to give us the 2-1 lead. At the half it looked like Bradley had a possible injury of some sort, so Munster replaced him for the second half Five minutes into the second half, we were awarded a corner. Mills took it and sent the ball towards Asser, who nodded the ball into the net past Steve Wilson to give AXFC the 3-1 lead. A few minutes later, I sent in Mortimer for Dawson. We were still pounding away at the Chester goal despite playing defensively. Chester, by this point, weren’t really in the game and was just trying to save their dignity. Munster tagged a superfluous goal on 82 when he put back a rebound for his first goal of the season to make the final 4-1. Our net competitive game was against Farnborough at Yankee Stadium on Saturday September 11.

During the week several players were promoted from out youth academy, but only one had the talent to stick with the reserves. The rest were promptly released. As a general principle, about one player from the academy sticks with the reserve team each year. The rest of the reserve spots go to youth players that my scouts uncover. This year, however, there seemed to be a paucity of youth talent in Britain as by youth scouts weren’t turning up much.

retired_karamelkel

September 11 in London was a scorcher. The temperature was easily in the 90’s and the pitch at Yankee Stadium was about as soft as a brick. We had played six earlier games against Farnborough and we held the decisive edge in the series. We had won four, lost one and drawn one to give us, AXFC, the points margin, 13 to 4. All the regulars were fit and raring to go for this game. 1950 loyal fans came out to watch us endure another gritty half.

Io be honest, we put the kibosh on Farnborough from the opening whistle. We held onto the ball more than 60 percent of the time and kept the opposition from even attempting a shot all half. Furthermore, we kept up a steady stream of pressure against their keeper, making him work on every shot we took. Nevertheless, despite all these advantages, AXFC could only net one goal, which came near the half hour when we were awarded a corner. Mills sent in the ball, which Bunce rose up and nodded into goal to give the home side the 1-0 lead. We kept the lead for the rest of the half as Farnborough struggled to get their attack up and running. The second half began with us on cruise control. We were just trying to get the win and go home. Things went awry on 57 when Bunce made a bone-crunching tackle that earned him a red and instant ejection from the game. I pulled Martin and sent in Munster to shore up the backline. Farnborough, sensing opportunity here, began to pour pressure on us. In thirty minutes of action, they controlled the game, sending number of chances Browne’s way. Browne prevented any of them from getting past him. We managed to survive the late on-slaught and escaped with the 1-0 win. We would finally get a week’s worth of brethren as we did not have to play under the next weekend against Exeter at home.

As expected, Bunce was banned for three matches. It would at least allow our backup defenders to get more playing time. On Saturday morning, one of my youth scouts called me. Voice shaking with excitement, he recounted a pub league match he had gone to the night before. An AMC named Adam Johnson had played and my scout was salivating at the 19 yr old was the complete package. The scout also recommended a goalkeeper from the same match. We made offers to both players that very day.

The afternoon was perfectly normal in London as we prepared to take on Exeter. The weather had returned to balminess and the pitch was dry and lush. In seven prior contests against this team, we had won six and lost one for a pretty lopsided series. All the regulars got the nod, though their were rumors of team changes after the match. 2480 crowded into the park for this one.

The game was effectively over after just fifteen minutes of action. On 3, Morgan stuffed back a rebound to give AXFC the 1-0 lead. Little followed up on 12 when, off a Mills corner kick, he hit a bullet header past the keeper to give us the 2-0 lead. Exeter never recovered for the rest of the half. They looked sloppy on offense as we continued to pound away accurately at their goal. E also controlled the ball exceptionally well, avoiding any untimely turnovers. At the break, Morgan looked more fatigued than I would have liked, so out he went for Munster. We played defensively in the second half, but that did not stop us from scoring more goals. Five minutes in, Marin scored his first goal for AXFC on a simple rebound finish to make the score 3-0 and Munster iced the game three minutes after the hour when he took an Asser pass, dribbled in a bit and nailed the shot to make the game and final 4-0. Exeter gave up after that and both sides ran out the clock. The win put us in first place in the Conference, with a quarter of the season played. We would play at home against Canvey Island on the following Tuesday evening. It seemed like this was the most Tuesday night games we had ever played.

The rumors of impending team changes were just that, an unfulfilled rumor. The men on the bubble, Martin and Little were finally pulling their games together and getting used to the system. In far more danger were men like Adamson or Moncrief, neither of whom had played well this season. Tuesday evening in London was balmy and dry, ideal soccer conditions. Most of the regulars were fit to play against Canvey, though few were a 100%. The only regulars held out of the lineup were Fleming, replace by Standard, Dawson, replaced by Mortimer, Martin, replaced by Moran and Little, replaced by Munster. In four games against Canvey, we had won two, drawn one and lost one, giving us a 7-4 lead on points. 2960 fans came out to Yankee Stadium, but in all fairness, they didn’t miss much.

The first half provided little excitement. Both teams were patiently probing the other and as a result, neither side took more than two chances apiece. The game got even duller twenty minutes in when Mills made a hacking tackle on Tony Lynch and was summarily ejected. Down a man, AXFC could only try to play more defenses and get a draw out of the contest. Canvey Island obliged by refusing to attack our weakness and the half ended in a scoreless tie. The second half was just as uninteresting as the previous one. We added three off-target shots to our totals and generally looked like we were out of it. On 60, I sent in Martin for Moran and on 75 sent in Bradley for Morgan, but neither move made the slightest bit of difference. The game ended in a scoreless draw as CI proved equally unwilling to take any chances the second half. We next played Halifax at their place on Saturday the 25.

The news was a bit grim. Mills was banned for three matches, which meant Adamson would get more playing time. Worse news was that a youth prospect from Ireland had rejected our offer in favor of one from Shelburne, the first time that had ever happened to us. On the 23, both Rowland and Johnson came to terms with us and we added them to our reserve team.

The rain was pouring down on Saturday afternoon as we prepared to face Halifax and the temperature was cool. In seven previous matchup against this team we had beaten them five times and drawn twice. This gave AXFC a 17 to 2 point difference against Halifax. All the regulars except for Bunce, who started his suspension with this game, got the nod. Goodwin took Bunce's place in the side. Around 1700 came to watch.

We struck quickly just three minutes into the contest. Asser picked up a loose ball in the area and drove it home to give us the 1-0 lead. Booth goalkeepers settled in after that and prevented any scoring in the remainder of the half. Both teams did get good chances, but neither was able to convert. The ball moved fluidly up and down the pitch as the two teams entertained the fans with consistent attacking. So, it was not a dull half and the fans were appreciative as the teams went into halftime. We really turned on the spigots in the second half, relentlessly pounding the Halifax goal with pressure and shots. We spent 40% of the half in their third of the pitch and dominated possession 60% of the half. The wonder was that we didn’t add more than on goal to our lead. Morgan, however, was having a pedestrian game and I lifted him for Munster on 68. A few minutes later, Mills laid the BAL of to Munster and the Northern Irish lad fired it into goal to give us the 2-0 wins. We ran the clock out after that last goal. We got a week off before having to face Scarborough the next Saturday, October 2, in London.

Adam Johnson made his reserve debut on Wednesday at Scarborough, scoring all four of our goals himself. This prompted some speculation that the kid was ready to contribute to the first-team right now, but ignored it. If he continued to light the reserves up like that, he would get called up pretty soon, but we needed more than a one-game sample to be able to tell how good he really was. But, if I were Dean Martin, I would be worried, very worried indeed. The end of September brought with it the monthly awards. I won Manager of the Month and Kavanagh won his second straight Young Player award. The board was delighted with my job performance, but the club was continuing to lose money at a fast clip.

October signaled the beginning of colder weather in London on Saturday afternoon as the temperature was in the low 50’s, but at least the pitch was dry. In six previous games against Scarborough, we had beaten them three times drawn twice and lost one, giving us an 11 to 5 edge in points. All the regulars got the nod for the game as Goodwin continued to fill in for Bunce. 2300 turned out for the first game at Yankee Stadium for the month of October.

We came out flat-footed and uncharacteristically disorganized. We kept turning the ball over and lacked much control. We failed to put together more than two attacks and were just bad. Meanwhile, Scarborough seemed to feed off our confusion and gained in confidence as the half wore on. Their defense proved to be tight; they controlled possession and kept the ball bottled up in midfield for most of the half. They made their second counter-attack near the end of the half pay off when Karl Rose took a Pounder pass and dribbled straight through our defense, then hit a scorching grounder past Browne to give Scarborough the 1-0 lead. We came roaring back just two minutes into the second half when Morgan passed to Little, who broke free from his man and hammered the ball into the goal to tie the game at 1 apiece. Our attacking was instantly revived and we began to play like we were capable. We poured in shot after shot at Scarborough and took control of the possession game. On 78, little took a Fleming cross and blasted it in to give us the 2-1 advantage. At the kick-off, I subbed in Moran for Martin. We shut down Scarborough for the last ten minutes. They seemed shocked and deflated and they did not give us much of a fight as the game ended. We got the win but remained second to Stevenage, who had yet to lose a game. We got the next week off, not having a game until the weekend when we would go to Underhill in London to face Barnet.

retired_steffani

Continues to be a good read Mr Hick :thup:

retired_karamelkel

Cheers Barman I still find it amusing that a LLMa would enjoy this story.


On Sunday, the qualifying round of the FA Cup was drawn. We would travel to Harrow to face the Borough team there in about two weeks. On Monday morning, Division Two side Luton, called and made a bid for Turner. I told them to up the bid.

Saturday afternoon arrived without further noteworthy events occurring. London that day was dry and cool as we headed across town to play Barnet. They were our rivals and the rivalry was a pretty even one. We each had won two, lost two and drawn two for an equal eight points apiece. A competitive rivalry is always the best kind. All but two of the regulars got the nod. Goodwin continued to fill in for Bunce, who was serving the last game of his suspension. Adamson filled in for Mills, whose three game suspensions was just starting. 2635 filled Underwood for the contest.

Both teams were a bit scatter-shot during the half as both got a few chances and failed to seize opportunities. We struck quickly five minutes in. Kavanagh delivered a cross to the post that little leaped and nodded in to give AXFC the early 1-0 lead. After that, Barnet took control of the half, holding onto the ball and bottling the game at midfield. We got a couple of chances on quick sneak attacks, but they went for naught. A half-hour in, Fleming limped off the field and I replaced him with Holmes. The second half displayed more excitement than either team would have liked. Five minutes after the restart, Coppinger drove a free-kick over out wall and past Browne to tie the game 1-1. A few minutes after that, Goodwin got his revenge on the Barnet forward, sliding viciously into Coppinger with both feet. For this ugly tackle, Goodwin was ejected from the game. I sent in Moran for Morgan and did some formation shuffling to minimize the advantage Barnet possessed. We need not have worried as 15 minutes later, Martin headed a ball that found the feet of Little, who carried it into the penalty area, then hit a skimmer that skipped past Harding in goal to give AXFC the 2-1 lead. Now it was Coppinger’s turn to snap as on 72, for no apparent reason, he head-butted Adamson, earning himself a red card and an early dismissal. The evened up sides spent the last twenty minutes of the game at midfield. This time it was us who were controlling the ball and tempo at midfield, neatly preserving our win. We had nice momentum going in the next game, the away match at Harrow.

The win came at the cost of losing Goodwin for three matches, but Fleming was likely to only miss the Harrow game. In other news, England demolished Slovakia 6-0 in WC qualifying, which was a modern record. On Friday, there was an article in the paper about our good form and the supporter goodwill we were generating. Maybe now ticket sales would go up. We could use any extra revenue that could be gotten by positive press.

Saturday afternoon at the Earlsnead in Harrow was cool and rainy. The drizzle could be felt and the pitch was damp. This was the first ever meeting between AXFC and Harrow. All the regulars got the nod except for the suspended Mills, replaced by Adamson and Fleming, who was replaced by Standard. Nearly 3030 fans crammed the Harrow Park, with meant the home side would get good money out of this as a consolation if they lost.

Harrow lost their chance to play level with AXFC just four minutes into the match. Winstone made a dangerous tackle that put Dawson on the ground writhing. The offender was promptly sent packing. We dominated the half after that, pouring shots and pressure on the Harrow team, spending nearly 40 percent of first half in their third of the pitch. It was almost inevitable that they would crack, and they did so on 22 when little volleyed in a Kavanagh pass to open the AXFC account 1-0. Five minutes later, little scored again, this time off an Adamson lob to make the score 2-0. At this point Harrow conceded defeat and began to go through the motions. We killed clock the entire second half and Harrow barely tried to stop it. On 67, just before a corner was taken, I subbed in Roddie for Dawson. A minute later, Kavanagh swung in the corner the ball found the feet of little, who let fly and bagged his hat-trick, making the game 3-0. Ten minutes later, I pulled little for Munster and that was all she wrote. We returned to Conference action on the following Saturday with a home game against Shrewsbury.