retired_milla0225

Love the story Axeman. Nicely paced. I shall watch and learn.

retired_aurie

June 2006
June was a rather uneventful month for the team. All the players were on holiday and I started to try signing new players, to bolster our squad. I also started selling off players that I found to be lacking in skill for this level of football. And for a laugh I applied for the manager's job at Palermo, but it got rejected. I can't say that I'm surprised, as I only just finished my first season as a manager in the rather poor Welsh Premiership.

The players I've signed already are:
Cris Tom
Marc Porter

The ones out since last season are:
Eoin McHale
Lee Quilty

I also found out that we qualified for Europe from being the Welsh Cup winners, so it will be quite interesting to see how the team will fare against the team we drew in the first pre-qualifying round. Our first opponents in that competition are FK Pobeda Prilep from FYR of Macedonia. It will probably be a rather stern test, which I don't expect my lads to pass. At least they'll get a sniff of European football, which should be beneficial in the long run.

I've been pampering Tonya like mad for the past month and she sort of likes it. I don't think she' quite reading into what my intentions are yet, but I better not wait much longer, because she'll use her feminine intuition and outguess me on that. Her father knows about my plan, to ask her to marry me at halftime in the World Cup Final. She's definitely going to blow her top over that, so I'm praying for time to pass a bit faster.

I've already asked Troy to be my best man, which he's happily accepted. All the team will be invited to the wedding, which is going to be a rather small scale thing, if I get my way. I have a hunch that Brian will throw a spanner in the works for me and blow it up into something bigger than that. It remains to be seen though and I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

retired_aurie

Thanks for the nice comment chesterfan.

I've hit a bit of a problem now. It seems like it's mandatory for the team to have 2 homegrown players in the registered squad for the EURO Cup. Unfortunately I only have one such player in all of the squad, so I can't submit the team. Bloody annoying, so I'll have to go on holiday for 2 days, to see if it can be forced that way. If that doesn't work, I'll have to start a new game and a new story. Flippin' annoying

retired_aurie

A 24 hour holiday sorted me out, but this rule in the Welsh football is really annoying. My team doesn't have a youth academy, so I can't promote any players up through the system. Hopefully it will get sorted for next season, but this really gets my feckles up

retired_aurie

In the evening of June 30th I received a phonecall from someone that claimed to be a single female, hailing from Liberia. She spun some yard about her parents having been killed in the civil war in her country and now she was willing to marry a good christian man, who was willing to give her some money so she could move her family's wealth over to my country for corporate investment.

Now I know a 419 scam when I see it, so in a moment of anger I told her off with a very descriptive message of expletives and name calling and slammed the phone down on the receiver.

Tonya asked me what was going on and I told her. I've never seen her laugh so long and hard in my life. "So you actually have an explosive temper, mister cool??", she asked and winked. Then she collapsed in a heap of laughing mess, until I spanked her into submission.

--------------------------

Author's note:
I actually got that message via YahooIM and used language that would get completely rejected by the forum filters. I just had to add this to the story, if only to add a bit of amusement to the story.

retired_aurie

July 2006
On the first day of the new transfer window, I signed 3 players. Nick Benton (free from Newtown), Lee Vick (free from Dinas Powys) and [/b]Lee Phillips[/b] (free from [/b]Llanelli). I had made offers for quite a few other players, but faced quite a stern competition for their signatures.

A few more players have been added to the roster. Tom Matthews, Liam Cattermole and John Routledge all signed on free transfer.

The strangest World Cup Final ever, was played out. England vs Ireland!!!! Ireland deposed of Italy in the Semis and England defeated Norway.

I must admit that the world seems to have gone totally bonkers in this game.

Needless to say, most of our team was rooting for Ireland, if only to **** off the English contingent of the team. But no matter how the game would end, everybody would be going together on the pish afterwards.

Italy whooped Norway in the 3rd place game, 4-0. Totti and Cassano getting 2 goals each and Norway had Kristoffer Hæstad sent off in the 55th minute. I don't understand how the Norwegian team got this far, but fair play to them. But getting that demolition wasn't the ideal way to finish the competition.

England finally managed to repeat their feat of '66 and beat Ireland on penalties in the World Cup Final. Stephen Elliot scored both of the goals for Ireland, while Jermaine Defoe and Kevin Nolan got the goals for England. Ian Harte was the only Irishman to score from a peno, with Alan Quinn and Andy Reid missing; England had Kevin Nolan, Gareth Barry, Jamie Carragher and Stephen Warnock scoring from their spot kicks. Those players on our team who are non-English will never hear the end of it now.

At halftime in the game, I got down on my kneecaps in front of Tonya and asked her to marry me. She's never been so red faced in her entire life. She couldn't say a word for about 5 minutes and finally she uttered: “You bastard, YESSSSSSSSSS!!!” Next thing I knew, I was on my back on the floor with her lying on top of me, trying to knock the living crap out of me. The entire team, with the back room staff also present, stood over us, giving us a round of applause. Brian was smiling from ear to ear and winked her daughter, which made her yell out: “and you were in on this?” “Indeed I was, pumpkin”, he replied and started laughing. I had to hold her down to avoid her running to him, knocking him on his backside too.

The next day I noticed that both the Dutch and Portuguese national team managers had been sacked. I didn't hesitate, so I decided to apply for both jobs. I know that there's about the same chance of a snowball surviving a cruise through hell, as in me getting either job. But it has to be done, if only to show that I'm willing to try something bigger and better.

Most of the freebies I've been trying to sign have been snapped up by other teams. I know that Wales isn't the biggest attraction scene in the world, but I'd have thought that some of those players would be interested in getting a chance to play in a European competition, if only to get some exposure and a chance at something bigger and better. I guess I better stop wondering about things like that, since I can't afford to blow my brains on things like that.

FK Pobeda Prilep v. Cefn Druids EURO CUP Qualifying Round 1, Leg 1.
I had the worst start in European football that I could have dreamed of. 3 goals down after only 27 minutes, thanks to a brace from Marjan Petreski and an own goal from Alex Davies. Troy Hayder managed to get one back near the end of the first half and then Marcus Taylor added another just before the final whistle of the half. The second half was a subdued affair, until the home team scored, after yet another defensive howler, in the 82nd minute. And then, to add insult to injury, Mark Hobson got himself sent off for a two footed horror tackle against Dragan Georgiev. I sympathised with the team afterwards and then told Hobson, in private, that I'd have no option but to fine him for his idiotic challenge. I'd limit it to one week's salary and told him that I'd be much tougher if this happened again during the season. He apologised to the team and promised that he'd try to work on this aspect of his game. Leaving his team in an impossible state was inexcusable, but he'd try to make up for it until the end of season. What a professional and what humble attitude. I'd love to see that from some of the game's superstars.

Final Score: 4-2

PreSeason training is going quite well, though we're not focusing too much on tactical play at the moment. Physically, the lads need to improve very much and that's why I got them really cruising now. I'll let them back into the natural training for their positions once there are about 5 days before the first league game of the season.

It was time for the first friendly of the season.

Cefn Druids v. AFC Porth Friendly
What a crap performance. At home against a minor team, even a worse one than ours and we lose 0-2. We had chances, but there's no excuse acceptable on the careless manner in which those chances were wasted. I kept the team in the dressing room for the best part of an hour after the game and read them the riot act. After the game, Troy came to me and apologised on behalf of all the lads. They'd do their best to improve on the next few games.

Cefn Druids v. Cardiff CS Friendly
Another abysmal performance in a friendly game. We went down to a rather spectacular own goal, courtesy of Aneurin Evans, who attempted a backpass from pretty far out and didn't notice that the goalie was too far out in the box. We managed to score two goals in the final 5 minutes of the half, but still player very poorly. I made a wholesale change at halftime, swapping out every single player on the pitch, with the exception of the goalkeeper. I took 3 goalies along and substituted each one after about 30 minutes of playing. I'm trying to get all of them into a decent playing shape. In the 79th minute we conceded another goal, because of some horribly poor defensive work. And then conceded a penalty in the final minute, which Marc Porter saved, thank heavens. Again I kept the lads in the dressing room after the game and yelled at them until my voice broke, about an hour later. I've never seen them so pale in my life. Marcus Taylor decided to back my criticism and pledged to do everything in his power to get the guys into gear. I only hope he can succeed.

Cefn Druids v. FK Pobeda Prilep EURO CUP Qualifying Round 1, Leg 2.
I found out after the game that the TV pundits didn't give us a snowball's chance in hell, in getting anything out of the game. They were about to be silenced completely and surprised by our play.
Troy had obviously listened closely to the criticism I had been dishing out in the friendlies recently and went onto the pitch like a man possessed. He got his due reward in the 27th minute, when he scored a great goal. Greg Evans was the goalkeeper chosen to play in the match and he certainly showed me why I should stick with him. He saved everything thrown at him, until Pobeda got a penalty on 52 minutes, courtesy of Chris Tom, who was deputising for the suspended Mark Hobson. He made a seriously unnecessary challenge on Angelovski and Trajkovski didn't make any mistakes on his spotkick. Immediately I made three changes to the team. Tom came off for Routledge, Broaders came off for Davies and Ramasut made way for Carter. It took 19 minutes for Marcus Taylor to put us one goal up again, a great header from a Stacey cross. And then on 88 minutes, Carter scored a lucky goal from a deflected freekick. We managed to hold on to the end and to my great surprise, we've progressed to the next round of the EURO Cup.
Final Score: 3-1 (5-5 agg)
Man of the Match: Greg Evans

After the game, I kept the team in the dressing room for about 45 minutes, pointing out where I was happy with their play and where I felt they could improve. I made a point of making this constructive, to make sure the lads caught on. At the end of the overview I told them that they'd performed a minor miracle and that the result was a fantastic achievement. Then told them to shower and get dressed, we're off to the pub for ONE pint

When I came home after the game, Tonya greeted me at the door wearing nothing but shoes. “I saw you on the telly, you looked hot”, she said with a rather lewd grin on her face. I won't go into details, but rest assured that I didn't get much sleep that night. I called up Stephen Kelly the following morning and asked him to take care of the morning training session. I was feeling too sh@gged out for some reason and needed to shake out the cobwebs. He caught my meaning and laughed. Then he remarked that he'd take care of the training and give a word of encouragement from me. When I came to the afternoon training session, I got a rather amused look from the lads, so I reckon Stephen must have told them why I hadn't been around for the morning training. What the heck! I told the lads that since I couldn't get any sleep, due to the extravagant celebrations by my girlfriend that lasted all night. Then we went to work and had a very good workout. Seems like the lads are really fired up after that excellent win last night.

At suppertime we received the news on which opponents we'd be facing in the next round of the EURO Cup. It turns out that we'll have to go to Serbia and Montenegro for the next one, facing FK Zeta Golubovci. We don't have the faintest idea who they are or what they're like. I guess we'll be dumped in at the deep end. I don't expect us to advance any further in the competition, but every game is an excellent chance to increase our experience, which is sadly rather lacking.

Sunday 30th July 2006
I got approached by Icelandic club Leiknir Reykjavik, which is the club where I started my footballing career at the tender age of 9. They wanted me to come and be their manager, so they could be saved from relegation. I have to admit that being a part of a team that's surprising everybody is more appealing, so I turned them down right away. Despite them offering me 3 times my current salary. It's not all about money, no matter what you may believe. I'm trying to increase my knowledge of the game in a good setting, where people are very happy to give you the chance to prove yourself. I'm not willing to be back on the dole if relegation can't be avoided at Leiknir. I'm pretty sure that if I'd fail in the task, the job will be history. I hope my boss will look at my act of loyalty favourably.

Cefn Druids v. Barry Town Friendly
Another poor performance in a friendly. I'm happy that we're losing friendlies and not important matches. But the defensive problems I've seen are things that need to be corrected. Ramasut conceded a penalty in the 5th minute, from which Barry Town scored. Then he redeemed himself in the 16th minute, by scoring a total fluke at the other end. Finally The opponents scored a goal from a direct free kick, one that was deflected off the wall and left my goalkeeper totally wrong footed. At the end of the game, I told the lads that I was disappointed in their performance, something that was equally disappointing for them as well. Hopefully we can leave the frailties of the friendlies behind when we go back to play in Europe.

retired_aurie

August 2006
I decided to kick off the new season with a full pro contract for Tom Ramasut. He has been a prolific scorer for the team and has also supplied a good amount of crosses for other players to score from. Hence my decision. I called him into my office and told him the news. His eyes lit up in excitement and he told me that he could now walk out of the boring bank job that he holds. Playing fulltime football for a living is much more rewarding anyway.

Marcus Taylor was also rewarded with a new deal and I'm hoping to be able to add even more players to a fulltime professional status before the end of season. It all depends on the wage budget of course and how I can utilise the players at my disposal.

Cefn Druids v. Flint Town Friendly
This game turned into a potential rout on 6 minutes, when Troy scored a great goal. Evans won the ball in his own half and sent a great pass down the line, into the path of Marcus. He charged into the box and sent a pinpoint cross into Troy's path and he stroked the ball into the far corner with relative ease. For me, this is one of the best goals we've scored for a long time.
In the second half we added another, courtesy of Eamonn, who in turn was supplied by Alfie.
Man of the Match: Louis Mackin, for his brilliant reflex saves in the second half, when Flint Town started venturing up the pitch more.

It seems that everybody is putting in more effort, both in training and games, after I added Marcus and Tom to the fulltime pro status. All of them want a piece of that, even Marvin the pub owner.

I added Greg Evans to the Pro status and I also offered Louis Mackin a pro contract. I hope he'll sign it, since his value will go up and he'll be able to improve at a much greater rate than he has before. Marvin the pub owner has signed a professional contract. I won't be messing with his running of the pub, because his wife does a lot of the work there and he usually comes in there on his better rested nights and serves behind the bar. I know he's the sensible sort, so I won't be worrying about him going on a bender the night before a big game.

Cefn Druids v. FK Zeta Golubovci EURO CUP Qualifying Round 2, Leg 1.
When we watched the pre-match commentary in the dressing room before the game, the lads were incensed by the prediction that we'd be trounced by Zeta. We were unlucky to concede a goal in the 33rd minute, as we'd seen some decent chances fall our way. Unfortunately the lads couldn't punish Zeta and in return they went on the counter and scored. I can't fault the lads, they made a good effort against a distinctly superior side and it looks like we'll get thrown out of the competition in this round. I can't say that I'm surprised, as we never expected to even get here in the first place.
Man of the Match: Owain Whittaker.
He put in a superb performance against a superior side and gave a good account of himself in the midfield battle. Were it not for him, we'd have conceded a whole lot more than the one goal.

Tonya didn't come home last night. I hope nothing happened to her and she didn't decide to elope again with some smegpot of a conman. I hope she only suffers from pre-marriage stress, instead of having decided to dump me for good. Brian hadn't seen her though and neither did his wife, so she hasn't run back to her parents. Argh, women!!

Some of the players have started to complain about a high workload in training. Especially the goalkeepers, who've been given professional contracts. If they come out and complain publicly, I'll tell them the reason for this. Of course you need to train hard to improve, that's only natural. Complaining and whining about things like that is never going to make you improve though.

Finally the league can start off for us. We've been getting quite a bit of exposure by progressing in the EURO Cup, but the league is our bread and butter. Cups of any kind are bonuses, especially those that lead us back into Europe.

Cefn Druids v. Newtown Welsh Premier League
Poor Newtown never got a chance to settle properly into the game. We were all over them from the start and totally dominated the proceedings. It did take us all of 40 minutes to break the ice though and then Troy decided to give them an almighty whooping of his own. Enroute to his hattrick, he scored in the 40th, 44th and 90th minute respectively and took the MOM award and the match ball without a contest. To be honest, we should have score much more than the 3 goals, but Warwick in the Robins' goal made sure that the scoreline didn't reflect the immense superiority too much.
Final Score: 3-0
Goals: Hayder (40,44,90)
MOM: Hayder
Current League Position: 2nd

I kept the lads in the dressing room again, but this time to compliment them on a job well done. Since Aled wasn't playing today, I asked him to film the game on his digital camera and he did a good job as I expected. I told the lads that after they hit the showers, we'd go out for a meal and then meet up at my place and watch our performance in the game. I'd point out to them the positives and the few negatives and we'd work on the necessary things in training on the day after the game. The only downside to the game was the injury to Owain Whittaker. I hope he won't be out too long, as he's one of the key players of the team. Later in the week Alec Stacey got injured in training. It seems like the lads are really putting themselves about in training, but they'll have to ease off the reckless tackles though.

Airbus v. Cefn Druids Welsh Premier League
The Wingmakers didn't pose much of a problem for us until the dying moments of the game, when they threw everything at us but the kitchen sink. In the first half Troy scored his 41st league goal for the club, making himself the club's all time leading scorer in the league. In the second half Alfie scored a goal at the far post ,after a very nice deep cross from Marcus. Airbus scored a consolation goal in the 71st minute, but my lads were up for everything else in the game and in the end we won a deserved victory.
Final Score: 1-2
Goals: Hayder (15), Carter (61)
MOM: Mark Hobson
Current League Position: 1st

I told the lads that I was ecstatic with the win and thanked them for making this weekend a success for the club. I especially thanked Mark for his contribution at the back, because it made sure that the rest of the team was reassured in their playing and didn't have to worry about it if they didn't do everything correctly all the time.

Tonya is still not back home. I hope she hasn't turned to the drink again, as she's too unpredictable when she does. I really hope she can sort out whatever is troubling her, because I really fear for her when things like this happen.

This week I've had to turn down 4 offers for Mark Hobson. I called him into my office, such as it is, and told him that I'd already turned down offers from St Johnstone, Wallsall, Partick Thistle and Tranmere. The offers are so pathetic that I won't even entertain them. I told him that if I receive an offer that represents value for money, then I'd give him the permission to decide what he wants to do. Until then he's an invaluable member of our squad and too great an influence in the dressing room for us to lose him. Only a day later I had to turn down another insulting offer, this time from Bristol City. Then Cheltenham came along with yet another insulting bid for him. I'm getting sick of this, I just wish that I had an outlet for my frustrations, as this is horribly unsettling for everybody at the club.

FK Zeta Golubovci v. Cefn Druids EURO CUP Qualifying Round 2, Leg 2.
I'm sad to announce that our European dream has ended. Before the tie, nobody gave us a chance and we were absolutely determined that we'd try to ride this one as far as it would take us. Sadly this is as far as we can go.
As expected, Zeta went on the offensive from the moment the ref blew the starting whistle. Only some excellent defensive work kept us in the game. Then out of next to nothing, Marcus scored an exceptional goal with a ferocious header from about 8 yards out. The cross by Cattermole was pinpoint and we were elated with the way Marcus finished this one off. Our lead only lasted for 6 minutes, when Davidovics scored a goal that was a dead certain offside, but unfortunately the assistant referee missed it. From that point, Zeta poured forward, trying to finish us off completely, but we held firm and could have stolen the game at the end. Sadly it wasn't to be and we can now concentrate on the domestic competitions.
Final Score: 1-1 (2-1 agg)
Goal: Marcus Taylor (27)

After the match, I told the lads that they'd given a good account of themselves. They never rolled over, as somebody might have expected, and they kept on fighting until the final whistle. I praised them all for keeping on trying, despite all of the odds being against us. “It's one more game into our experience book and let's try to add another chapter to it next year, after we've won the league!!” I said, to a thunderous applause from the lads. I just hope I can make the team live up to this extravagant claim.

Tonya was back when we came home from Golubovci. She looked absolutely god awful and was bawling her eyes out. I asked her what had happened and she told me that she'd gone out with a couple of her girlfriends and they'd had a couple of drinks. She hadn't been able to stop once she'd started and she'd been absolutely stone cold pished until she got home the night before. 2 weeks on the drink is going to take a lot out of you and she wasn't really in a state to do too much. I told her that this was her cue to go and seek help. “I can't always be here to help you”, I said and held her hand. “You've got to do something about this and the sooner, the better.” “I know, it's just so hard to admit that I have a problem with drinking”, she replied and cried even harder. Damn it's so hard to find the right words when women are crying on you, but I kept on trying. “Tomorrow I'll call Tony Adams and ask him for help”, I told her in a tone that meant I wasn't going to listen to objections. “He went through a heap of problems with the drink and if anybody can help you, he can”, I added and stroked her hair. “The former captain of Arsenal??”, she said with a funny look on her face. I nodded and told her that he has his own clinic and is helping athletes fight the demon and I didn't know of anyone better qualified to help her. She gave up and just curled into a ball next to me. “Hold me”, was all she could say before she passed out.

The following morning I called Adams and explained the problem I was trying to help sort out. “Sure thing, bring her over as soon as you can. We've got plenty of people that are qualified to help non-athletes, wives and whomever else”, he said and then we said our goodbyes and hung up. She came up to me and was looking very pale. “I don't think I can do this Tomas”, she said. “I don't want to be away from you”. “We don't have a choice Tonya”, I said. “I can't bear it if you vanish like this again. Besides, I'll come and visit you every day. Even if I have to rent a helicopter from my meager salary here.” She nodded and got herself some breakfast. “I'll do this then”, she said. “I want out of this freakish existence and would like to have a normal life again.” I kissed her and held her tight. “You're going to get out of the claws of this problem. It's your destiny and you'll be stronger for it”, I said and stroked her back. She went back into the bedroom and fell asleep. I, on the other hand, went to the training ground to talk to the professional players. I had a few ideas I wanted to run past them and get their input on them.

The injury jinx has struck again. Eamonn Lindsay is suffering badly from a twisted knee and will be out for up to 4 weeks, according to the head physio, Neil Roberts.

Tuesday 29th August 2006
My team doesn't get a moment's rest from parasites. No matter what replies I give to other clubs, they keep on messing with my players. Offering insulting money for their services, when it's obvious that I don't want to sell. The latest are Marvin Arthur (our very own pub owner) and Alfie Carter. I feel so angry now. I just want to try to work in peace but it's not really possible in this business. I told both of the lads about my decisions and neither has shown anything but understanding. They're both paramount to the team's success and nobody will be sold, unless I've decided that the player doesn't have a future here.

A very happy piece of news travelled here today. Greg Evans, one of our fine young goalkeepers, has been selected for the Welsh U-21 team. We're so proud of the lad. This is a just reward for his hard work in training since him signing for us.

Airbus UK v. Cefn Druids Welsh Challenge Cup
What a smeggin' disgrace. The players were never up for the game and got what they deserved from it, ZILCH. The first goal was a silly error by Marvin, who scored an own goal. Then two idiotic defensive lapses cost us two more goals.
After the game I held the lads in the dressing room for 2 hours reading them the riot act. Unfortunately I'll have to pay out of my own pocket for the door I damaged in my rage. This sort of thing seems to be ruining my personal finances, since I can't afford it if I break many more doors this season. Still, the team was a shambles from the back to the front and they'll get a serious working over the next few days.
Final Score: 3-0

I don't believe this. I come into my office and find that yet another insulting offer has been made for one of my players. Marvin is becoming a hot commodity and for some reason teams try to get him for next to nothing. Really annoying, to say the least. Portadown thought I'd be willing to sacrifice the player on the promise that they'd agree to a friendly!!!!! Are they out of their minds?? I might consider it if it was a team like Liverpool or Arsenal and I was guaranteed at least 20,000 punters at the game. But not a small team like Portadown, that's dead certain.
And then Louis Mackin gets targeted by TNS. Well fat flaming chance of that happening. I told them, in no uncertain terms, where to put their offer. In short, they can put it into a place where the sun never shines, at least when normal people are considered. After slamming down the phone, I called up Louis and told him that I'd rejected yet another BS offer for him and told him that unless I'd see an offer that matched his potential and current ability, then I'd never sell him on. He accepted that and told me that he wasn't overly interested in joining a team where he'd never feature for the first team. He's getting plenty of first team experience here and enjoying every minute of his football.

On the last day of the transfer deadline, Grange Quins approached me with a decent offer for Conor Ryan. I accepted it and told Conor that his appearances here would be very limited and probably only for the reserves, but the Harlequins would be offering first team football, so it would be up to him what he wanted to do. He thanked me for my honesty and decided to take them up on their offer. That's one more player off the salary books and a fresh start for a lad who didn't have much luck at hour club.

Four of our players were chosen in this month's Team of the Month; Troy Hayder, Mark Hobson, Aneurin Evans and Mavin Arthur. That pretty much sums up this month where we did well domestically, for most part, and even better abroad, even if we didn't progress in the EURO Cup.

retired_aurie

September 2006
Aberystwyth v. Cefn Druids Welsh Premier League
A hard fought game that saw one of my most consistent performers play like an utter beginner and cost us two goals on the day. Marvin Arthur has been playing superbly for a long time and I'm pretty sure he'll want to forget this game as soon as possible. He never came to terms with proceedings and in the end had a right stinker. Troy Hayder did score two goals, to save our blushes and Mark Hobson made sure that Marvin's off day didn't cost us too much.
Final Score: 2-2
Goals: Troy Hayder (18, 80)
Current League Position: 3rd

After the match I told the lads that I had nothing but sympathy for them, as they'd done more than enough to win the game. It was just one of the games that sees everything go wrong. I told them that I expected them to pick themselves up from the funk and do themselves proud in the Welsh Challenge Cup, when we play the second leg of our game against Airbus UK.

I went to visit Tonya after the game and she was very happy to see me. It seems like she's made good progress and the cravings for the demon drink aren't as strong as before. I don't hold my hopes up too high though, since I know what kind of a day to day battle this will turn out to be for her. I spent the night there, much to her joy, and found out that her drive for some carnal experimentation hasn't diminished in the least. At least that's one thing to look forward to when her stint there finishes at the end of this month.

Cefn Druids v. Airbus UK Welsh Challenge Cup 1st Round Leg 2 (0-3 agg)
Oh the waste of a beautiful performance. In the first half, we dominated completely and absolutely. Being up 2-0 at halftime was by no means too great a margin. If anything it was too small, considering the chances we got. In the second half, it didn't take long for us to extend the lead to 4 goals. Then on 74 minutes the Wingmakers got a goal back due to a poor decision making by Davies. So the scoreline didn't exactly flatter them, but we were so unlucky because we should have scored at least 7 goals in this game.
Final Score: 4-1 (5-5 agg) which meant that Airbus go through to the next round.
Goals: Aneurin Evans (12), Troy Hayder (37, 52) and Tom Ramasut (54)
MOM: Troy Hayder

It's more practice for the next couple of days, since we'll have to improve on our decision making on the pitch and also improve on the finishing. Fluffing so many good chances is inexcusable at best.

Neil Roberts came to see me after the match and told me that Marcus won't be playing for up to a month, due to a badly twisted ankle. A local reporter asked me if this would prove to be a big blow and I couldn't deny that. Marcus will be sorely missed while he's away. When the story was published, Marcus came to me and told me that he thought that I'd be putting too much emphasis on his absence from the team. I told him that I thought his dressing room presence, as well as his on-pitch presence would be sorely missed. He is our club captain after all. “Ah, I forgot about that bit”, he said slightly relieved. Troy missed one day of training with a slight concussion after the game, but he'll be right as rain for our next league game.

Cefn Druids v. Welshpool Welsh Premier League
This was never going to end in anything but an easy win for us, after Troy had scored his first goal of the game. When we had notched up 4 goals before halftime, Welshpool pretty much gave up and we just coasted to victory. We didn't score in the second half, but that was more due to the heroics of the visitors' goalkeeper than his defence coping with proceedings.
Final Score: 4-0
Goals: Troy Hayder (14, 16, 26, 29)
MOM: Troy Hayder
Current League Position: 2nd

What a performance!! I told the lads as much after the game and told them that tomorrow will be for resting, so no going out on the pish tonight . They laughed at that, but I thought at least a couple of them were a little bit disappointed. “I said don't go out on the pish lads, I'm not banning you from having a pint and to be merry”, I added and winked at the lads. A sigh of relief was heard from just about everybody at that point.

Brian was ecstatic when he came to the dressing room. Complimenting everybody and their grandmothers for this great win. He told us that he's looking for investors so we can improve the training facilities, but not to expect too much too soon, as it's an expensive project and it might take a long time to find the right people with the right amount of money.

I decided to take the long drive to visit Tonya afterwards. She was a bit down when I came, but she looked to be relieved when I came in though. “I'm bored senseless here Tomas”, she said. “There's nothing to do here but going to sessions and therapy. It's driving me nuts”. “Relax honey”, I said, “you know that there isn't too long to go now. I believe in you and I know that you can hold it out for the final 13 days.”
I decided to spend the night with her and show her that I cared enough about her getting better. We didn't go down any naughty paths that night though, as we were too busy enjoying each other's warmth and presence.

Monday 18th September 2006
Eamonn Lindsay finally returned from his injury today. I hope he'll be back to full fitness soon so I can give Troy a bit of rest. I wouldn't want to overwork the poor lad, as it's a long season.

Cefn Druids v. TNS Welsh Premier League
We started off great and got our just reward when Troy score an excellent goal in the 5th minute. We managed to contain TNS for the rest of the first half and deservedly lead at the break. Broaders wasted no time in increasing our lead after the break and scored a great goal after Kelly put him through. Finally Troy added to his tally when he stole the ball from the TNS goalkeeper and scored from 30 yards into the empty net. TNS rallied late and managed to get 2 goals but it was too little, too late and we got exactly what we deserved in this game.
Final Score: 3-2
Goals: Troy Hayder (5, 75), Aaron Broaders (47)
MOM: Stephen Kelly
Current League Position: 1st

The last couple of days have seen us have a bit of a spat with opposition managers, TNS and Grange Quins respectively. I love to stir the pot and they seem to be up for some baiting. At least they tend to fall prey to my outbursts. Next we'll have to make sure that we hammer the Harlequins, since we know we've got a better team. Whether it's enough for match day remains to be seen though.

Grange Quins v. Cefn Druids Welsh Premier League
What an utter shyte (note that the misspelling is intentional ) performance. This was a game for the taking, but the lads played like they were still only 5 years old and had to suffer a humiliating loss to a team that's very inferior to them. I kept them in the dressing room after the match and gave them a piece of my mind. Needless to say that I'm not very happy about this and they're bloody well going to work their collective backsides off in training over the next few days. An utter disgrace.
Final Score: 1-0
Current League Position: 2nd

After this abysmal performance, we had a 10 day break from playing in the league, during which I asked Kelly to take care of the training and let the lads work hard. We wouldn't want a repeat of the crap performance against the Harlequins. I spent the time with Tonya at the rehab centre, helping her pass time and make her feel like a human being. Seems like the treatment there is working. I asked her if she'd want a pint on the day of her return and she told me that if I suggested this again, she'd slap me silly. I'm so proud of my girl

Saturday 30th September 2006
We had four players in the Team of the Month again. Aneurin Evans, Mark Hobson, Owain Whittaker and Troy Hayder. It looks like Mark and Troy have become subscribers to a place there, since they've been regulars there lately. I hope they'll make the rest of the division see why they have been chosen into the TOTM in the next few games, as we want a good run of results until the end of season. I'm quietly optimistic about our chances of sneaking to the top of the table before the end of season, but of course that relies on us not going on a long streak where we don't win a match. Come on October.

retired_aurie

October 2006
It just had to happen, didn't it? The draw for the 3rd round of the Welsh Cup was held today and of course we got the most difficult draw possible. We have to travel to The Recreation Ground in Llansantffraid and meet up with league champions TNS. Well, if we survive that encounter, we should have every chance of going all the way. But I'll be focusing on the league this season, because I'd love to help the team win it for the first time ever. We'll give the cup our best shot though, as all silverware is well appreciated by our fans.

In other news, Tonya came home on the 1st and looks much better than she has for quite a while. It took me about 5 hours before I could fall asleep in the night, but that was not due to being overly tired, quite the contrary

Tuesday 3rd October 2006
Owain Whittaker and Greg Evans have been chosen to represent Wales at the U-21 level. We still don't know if they'll feature in their next match, but we're all well chuffed for the lads. They're reaping the benefits of their excellent form this season.

Cefn Druids v. Llanwern
What can I say. We're 2-0 up after a relatively short time in the game and then the guys just lose their collective heads and mess up the game. To say I'm mad at them is an understatement and I made them fully aware of what I thought of their performance in this game. If they keep on playing like that, we'll be fighting relegation instead of for honours this season.
Final Score: 2-2
Goals: Alfie Carter (16), Troy Hayder (24)
MOM: Troy Hayder
League Position: 2nd

Friday 6th October 2006
I just got the message from Kelly. Routledge was absent from training and didn't bother reporting that he needed to take any time off. I gave him an official warning over his conduct and hope that he'll learn from this. He accepted the warning without a comment, but one of the players told me that he feels like he should be a first team regular. He better show something in training then, instead of this whining cr@p. I'm not going to take any primadonna BS from anybody, let alone a wet behind the ears youth.

On the same day, Owain Whittaker got capped for the first time in his career. He came on as a substitute for the Welsh U-21 team in their 3-0 loss to Italy. He did well in the match, but I'm told that the game was already lost when he came on.

Another 10 day break is coming to a close. Those damn international breaks are a drag. It's impossible to hold onto any momentum, though I needed those days off to sort out the players and my relationship with Tonya. She's coming to terms with having to be a teatotaler but I'm always afraid of a lapse. She can't afford to sneak a zip, as we know exactly where that will lead her.

Port Talbot v. Cefn Druids Welsh Premier League
This turned into a distinctly one sided affair. The home team never really got going and got punished early on, when Owain Whittaker spotted Tom Ramasut's run in the box and sent a pinpoint freekick to him for the opening goal of the game. Troy Hayder then added the second goal on 38 minutes and Alfie Carter finished the scoring with his nice goal on 90 minutes.
Final Score: 0-3
Goals: Tom Ramasut (5), Troy Hayder (38) and Alfie Carter (90)
MOM: Owain Whittaker
Current League Position: 1st

Cefn Druids v. Caernarfon Welsh Premier League
A boring draw with no goals and my players wasting what little opportunities they were handed. I told them that this was an embarrassment for the club. They couldn't agree more, but couldn't change anything about it after the event. The only player that came away with any credit in the game was Mark Hobson, and I'm going to reward him with a fulltime pro contract, if he wants it. The downside of the game is that Mark is injured, after being on the receiving end of a late tackle in the game. He now suffers from a dead leg and I hope he recovers soon. We need a player of his quality on the pitch at all times.
Final Score: 0-0
MOM: Mark Hobson
Current League Position: 1st

Tonya has disappeared again I fear that she's fallen prey to the demon drink again and will somehow come to harm. Brian hasn't heard a thing from her since the morning of the game against Caernarfon and nobody can remember having seen her since then. I fear the worst now.

Monday 23rd October 2006
Fylkir in the Icelandic Premier Division came to me and offered me a deal as their new manager. I was supposed to save them from relegation, but to be brutally honest, I have no intention of going there. There's only one Icelandic team I'd ever consider joining and that's my old favourite club Valur. The rest of them can go and suck on an exhaust pipe. I have to admit that Fylkir offered a good salary for the job, but money isn't everything and I'm not going to move there at this point. I'm heading for the title fight with my current team and wouldn't want to hear of moving away until the end of season at the earliest anyway.

The injury jinx has hit again. Player/coach Aled Rowlands has been the victim of a rather robust challenge in training and has a severely bruised shin. This will leave him out for up to 2 weeks, but since he's mainly used as a backup player now, it's not as bad a blow as it would have been at other times.

In the last couple of weeks I've applied for the vacant manager position at both Blackburn and Parma. I don't really expect to get either job, but at least they'll know I'm there and willing to do a job. I just hope that my boss doesn't find out prematurely, as that would be quite upsetting for both him, his daughter and the players.

Rhyl v. Cefn Druids Welsh Premier League
What the hell is wrong with my players and their concentration these days?? 2-1 up with a relatively short time to go and they score a bloody own goal to give the other team a point. I feel like kicking each and every one of them squarely across the dressing room after such display of incompetence. After the game I was interviewed by a local radio journo and criticised Aneurin Evans for his lethargic performances lately and also used the chance to praise Troy Hayder's performances. I'm seriously thinking about dropping Evans from the starting lineup, but I guess he'll get a couple of chances to redeem himself before I pull the plug on him.
Final Score: 2-2
Goals: Troy Hayder (16, 68)
MOM: Troy Hayder
Current League Position: 3rd

There's still no news on Tonya and I'm seriously afraid for her. Winter is about to hit us and she could be anywhere really. We've checked every pub in the next few towns and villages and nobody has seen her for a while. The next thing is to call the police and start an almighty search for the girl. This is proving to be quite a strain on me and I'm having serious troubles focusing on my job.

retired_aurie

I forgot to mention that three of our players were featured in this months Team of the Month. Mark Hobson, Owain Whittaker and Troy Hayder were selected yet again and I hope that more players will use their selection as a motivational platform and improve their own performances.

Troy was selected as the Player of the Month and Owain came third in that category.