retired_teju

This new year begins with the same hopes and expectations as the last. This time though, I am convinced it will be different. We have the players, we have the squad, and we're not even thinking playoffs.

1st January Notts County vs Walsall
It's my chance for revenge on jammy Walsall and their mouthy boozer boss Paul Merson. Yet we have the ever-present injury bug. D'Laryea comes in for Richardson, and Rezek makes his debut for Tandy.
We are well in control of this one, but little happens, especially in front of goal. It's a bore draw, over in a flash, and my last chance for revenge on them goes by. I am comforted by the fact that we're miles ahead of them in the league.

Notts County 0-0 Walsall ATT: 6037

I tell Merson I fancy us to get promoted all right, but he doesn't take the bait. It isn't as if he has much to shout about in 9th place, although that doesn't usually stop him. A journalist pipes up about Rezek's uninspiring debut. I back the lad to the hilt, even though he was rubbish. It's ridiculous to snap judge a player like that.

3rd January If there was one guy who never really seemed to grasp what we were trying to do with the squad system, it was Juan Ugarte. Right from the minute he was on the bench instead of starting, he was mumbling and grumbling from the sidelines. I like him as a player and he got his share of appearances, if not starts, but now I am fed up with it. We're entering a crucial phase, where we are looking to make our power move, and I don't want any malcontents dragging us down. I peddle him to MK Dons for 100K, which is 100K more than I paid for him.

6th January Crewe vs Notts County FA CUP 3rd Round
Tandy is back for Rezek and Jamie O'Hara comes into midfield for the injured Richard Jones. Ebanks puts us ahead (3) with a fine cross-shot finish, and we are dominant-ish. They equalise in 1st half injury time, and the game carries on in the same pattern. We should have won, but we'll take a replay from a monetary point of view. More significantly, we bossed a team in the top half of the Championship on their own turf.

Crewe 1-1 Notts County ATT: 4134

10th January Cambridge vs Notts County
Richardson is back at DR and Palmer is forced to play DL, after training ground ricks to both our left backs. It's an evenish start, then Ebanks heads in (32) prior to Johansson making it 2 on the hour with another fine header. 7 minutes later and Ebanks is at it again. They pull one back on 72, but Ramon Calliste underlines our dominance with a customary cool finish 12 minutes from time. A superb team effort. I tell the lads, "that was sensational!"

Cambridge 1-4 Notts County ATT: 5003

13th January Notts County vs Southend
They aren't expected to test us, and this looks like the case when Morais gives us a 13th minute lead. We batter them, but it takes till the 81st before "The Big E" Ebanks seals the deal. Proper reward for a performance that saw us outshoot them 15-3.

Notts County 2-0 Southend ATT: 5975

We're moving slickly through the gears now, and have rolled back into 1st place. If we keep playing like this, no-one will stop us.

17th January Notts County vs Crewe FA Replay
A trip to Spurs will be the winners reward, but I have to be practical. Several players are knackered after recent games, and the league is far and away my central priority. Rezek and Calliste will play up front with Jones back in midfield, Johansson moving to MR to give Morais a rest.
We dominate them again, but they score with their first kick (24). Calliste levels with an angled shot (40), then a dazzling free kick from Rezek just past the hour gives us the lead. The visitors equalise in injury time of course, and just as I am gritting my teeth, Gary Harkins strolls through their defence and places the winner expertly into the net for a deserved win. Here we come Yiddos!

Notts County 3-2 Crewe ATT: 7500

20th January Chesterfield vs Notts County
Home manager Perry Suckling is cocky with me before the game. I just smile, especially with a rested Ebanks and Morais back in our side.
Give them credit, the home side play us tough, but our team is no doubt better. Then The Big E latches on to a great pass from Jones (71) and we hang on for the three points.

Chesterfield 0-1 Notts County ATT: 3398

My policy of making other managers pay for disrespecting us in the press is a rigid one. Suckling gets told that I outclassed him. I'm not so cocky when the news comes through that Ebanks is out 2 weeks, and Darren Ward out for up to a month. I am still confident of extending our run of 3 straight wins.

27th January Prior to our next fixture, I beat off competition from Bolton to sign Israeli AMRLC Shai Buruk on an end of season Bosman. He looks quality. I also tie-up the Bosman transfer of Hungarian international GK Martin Fulop from Spurs. Another quality signing, with League One very much in mind.

Spurs vs Notts County FA Cup 4th Round
Our slightly weakened side gets stuffed 3-0 but not totally outclassed. The bank manager is doing cartwheels, when the news comes through that we made 500K out of it. Who gives a f**k about the result?! We were never going to win anyway.

Spurs 3-0 Notts County ATT: 28924

I reckon we're having far too many injuries this term. I might be a bit slow on the uptake here, but now I move to beef up our medical staff, signing unemployed (though not unemployable) physio Andrew Schofield.

31st January Notts County vs Darlington
This is a real spine tingler for us. The visitors are in 2nd place, and a win for either side would be massive. Ebanks has made a miraculous recovery, and plays, though only 80% fit. The visitors boss Dave Hodgson slabbers to the media that they'll win. I roll my eyes and ask "will these people never learn?".
Ramon Calliste scores from a flick on (28), then barrels his way through on the hour, finishing with a terrific cross shot. They reply 3 minutes later, and I go defensive. This is too important to let slip. We hang on easily, and even threaten their goal more often on the break. A great result, and a merited 3 points.

Notts County 2-1 Darlington ATT: 6263

I take great delight in giving Hodgson both barrels after the game. I let him know that we've long since replaced his team as the number one contenders for promotion. Our players seem to really like that one.

A very satisfying month, capped by 4 straight wins, a profit of 753K that raises our balance to 1.93 million pounds, and a manager of the month gong for yours truly. We've made our move all right, now it's time to grind the opposition into the dust.

retired_teju

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> | Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Notts Co | | 30 | 18 | 7 | 5 | 57 | 32 | +25 | 61 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Darlington | | 30 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 44 | 27 | +17 | 55 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Peterborough | | 30 | 16 | 7 | 7 | 48 | 34 | +14 | 55 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Bristol Rovers | | 30 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 53 | 35 | +18 | 52 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Rushden | | 30 | 13 | 12 | 5 | 48 | 33 | +15 | 51 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Tranmere | | 30 | 14 | 8 | 8 | 48 | 34 | +14 | 50 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Cheltenham | | 30 | 12 | 13 | 5 | 59 | 46 | +13 | 49 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Walsall | | 30 | 12 | 12 | 6 | 32 | 25 | +7 | 48 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Cambridge | | 30 | 13 | 9 | 8 | 41 | 36 | +5 | 48 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Oxford | | 30 | 10 | 16 | 4 | 37 | 29 | +8 | 46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Rochdale | | 30 | 12 | 7 | 11 | 41 | 34 | +7 | 43 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Torquay | | 30 | 11 | 7 | 12 | 40 | 36 | +4 | 40 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Stockport | | 30 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 31 | 36 | -5 | 40 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Leyton Orient | | 30 | 10 | 8 | 12 | 40 | 46 | -6 | 38 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Bury | | 30 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 42 | 54 | -12 | 37 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Southend | | 30 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 45 | 49 | -4 | 35 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | Barnet | | 30 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 41 | 46 | -5 | 34 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | | Carlisle | | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 30 | 40 | -10 | 33 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | | Macclesfield | | 30 | 7 | 11 | 12 | 36 | 43 | -7 | 32 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | | Chester | | 30 | 4 | 15 | 11 | 27 | 38 | -11 | 27 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 21st | | Shrewsbury | | 30 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 25 | 48 | -23 | 27 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 22nd | | Chesterfield | | 30 | 5 | 9 | 16 | 30 | 49 | -19 | 24 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 23rd | | Halifax | | 30 | 4 | 9 | 17 | 34 | 54 | -20 | 21 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 24th | | Wrexham | | 30 | 3 | 11 | 16 | 29 | 54 | -25 | 20 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_teju

February begins curiously, with Chris Cottrill joining Guiseley for 6K plus 25% sell-on, appearing to circumvent the transfer deadline. Perhaps it doesn't apply to non-league clubs, I don't know. Anyway, it's back to the final phase of our plan, grind the opposition into the dust. A perfect opportunity to do that, with the visit of another promotion contender.

*NOTE* Forgot to mention somewhere that Kenny Cooper has been away at some Mickey Mouse tournament with the American national team for a few weeks. Will be back soon.

3rd February Notts County vs Peterborough
I field an unchanged line-up. Posh concede an own goal after 30 seconds, but equalise with their first kick (24). We're having none of it though. Calliste fores in just before half time. Then a Scott Morrison cross causes havoc in the visitors defence. Ebanks misses the header, but the goalie is completely fooled, and it sails in. Another contender comes, sees, and is conquered.

Notts County 3-1 Peterborough ATT: 6977

4th February Tranmere fire Trevor Francis. So sad to see when managers can't live up to their big boasts!! What was that you were saying about Notts County Trev?

8th February Physio Gill Holt joins to round out our medical team.

10th February Chester vs Notts County
Cooper returns to the bench after his international sojourn. In a surprisingly even game, Calliste scores with a great header (34), but they equalise on 66 to salvage a point. I tell the lads they weren't good enough, which is a touch harsh, but we've been setting high standards lately.

Chester 1-1 Notts County ATT: 3064

11th February It's always a good move to spend your transfer budget for the season, especially if you're winning. You can get away with it; a freebie spend if you will. I still have 70K kicking around from the Ugarte deal, which I proceed to splurge on relatively exciting Norwegian U-21 AMRC Vidar Nisja. The exact figure is 65K plus 25% sell-on. It looks like a can't lose. These Norwegian lads always make for solid professional footballers, without being world beaters. He joins on 1st July.

13th February Halifax vs Notts County
Another tougher than expected match from a relegation threatened side. After a rebound, Johansson tucks one in (23), but we look uncomfortable. A half-time bollocking from me improves matters. Ebanks scores a cracker, running half the length of the pitch and rounding the keeper (82). And a great cross from Rezek sees our lads queueing up to score, with Johansson first in the queue (92). We got there in the end ok.

Halifax 0-3 Notts County ATT: 1626

Scott Morrison has done a hamstring, and will be gone 2-4 weeks.

17th February Notts County vs Macclesfield
Lloyd deputises for Morrison. A workmanlike performance. The Big E gets his usual goal (28), then Rezek finishes it with a great run and powerful shot from the left.

Notts County 2-0 Macclesfield ATT: 6330

The media start writing articles to the effect that we look unbeatable at the minute. We do actually, but I keep my big mouth shut.

24th February Tranmere vs Notts County
It's just as well I did, because the unchanged side is a shadow of last week. A poor 1st half is not improved by a bollocking from me, and the home team score in the 52nd minute. We only manage 1 shot in the game, and I tell the lads that was an embarrassment. It doesn't hurt us that much though. It's our first loss in ten games.

Tranmere 1-0 Notts County ATT: 8202

25th February Adrian Pettigrew sounds off in the press about needing a better contract. I am far from happy that he mouthed off, and summon him and his agent to my office for a meeting with myself and Mike Rigg. I tell them I agree, but why the hell didn't he come and ask me first instead of broadcasting it? He apologises, and I ask how much he wants. His agent says a grand a week, and Riggy shakes his head. I say, "we'll give you 800 a week till 2012", and his agent says yes. It's a fair deal. He's delighted, and so are me and Riggy.

The club turns a 6K profit for the month, which looks piddling compared to last month, but it's still a profit. Morais picks up the young player of the month award. Our juggernaut is still rolling inexorably towards promotion.

retired_teju

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> | Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Notts Co | | 35 | 21 | 8 | 6 | 66 | 35 | +31 | 71 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Darlington | | 35 | 18 | 12 | 5 | 58 | 37 | +21 | 66 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Bristol Rovers | | 35 | 17 | 11 | 7 | 62 | 38 | +24 | 62 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Peterborough | | 35 | 18 | 8 | 9 | 52 | 40 | +12 | 62 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Rushden | | 35 | 15 | 13 | 7 | 56 | 40 | +16 | 58 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Cheltenham | | 35 | 14 | 15 | 6 | 66 | 53 | +13 | 57 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Tranmere | | 35 | 16 | 8 | 11 | 53 | 41 | +12 | 56 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Cambridge | | 35 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 45 | 41 | +4 | 55 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Rochdale | | 35 | 15 | 8 | 12 | 46 | 38 | +8 | 53 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Oxford | | 35 | 12 | 16 | 7 | 46 | 40 | +6 | 52 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Walsall | | 35 | 13 | 13 | 9 | 38 | 33 | +5 | 52 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Torquay | | 35 | 13 | 8 | 14 | 48 | 46 | +2 | 47 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Bury | | 35 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 50 | 57 | -7 | 46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Barnet | | 35 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 47 | 49 | -2 | 45 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Stockport | | 35 | 11 | 10 | 14 | 32 | 41 | -9 | 43 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Southend | | 35 | 12 | 6 | 17 | 50 | 53 | -3 | 42 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | Macclesfield | | 35 | 10 | 11 | 14 | 41 | 49 | -8 | 41 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | | Leyton Orient | | 35 | 11 | 8 | 16 | 47 | 57 | -10 | 41 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | | Chester | | 35 | 7 | 17 | 11 | 38 | 45 | -7 | 38 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | | Carlisle | | 35 | 10 | 6 | 19 | 36 | 53 | -17 | 36 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 21st | | Chesterfield | | 35 | 7 | 10 | 18 | 41 | 57 | -16 | 31 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 22nd | | Shrewsbury | | 35 | 7 | 10 | 18 | 31 | 56 | -25 | 31 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 23rd | | Halifax | | 35 | 6 | 10 | 19 | 41 | 62 | -21 | 28 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 24th | | Wrexham | | 35 | 3 | 12 | 20 | 38 | 67 | -29 | 21 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_teju

3rd March Notts County vs Rochdale
Cooper steps back in for Calliste.
The visitors score after 8 minutes, but after a period of pressure Ebanks replies 10 minutes before half time. The game drifts a bit, until Ebanks wins it with the last kick (92).

Notts County 2-1 RochdaleATT: 6025

9th March I make an interesting Bosman signing, though this guy won't be arriving till 1st September. Luis Fernando Saritama is an Ecuadorean MC, currently playing in Argentina. His ratings are out of this world, his domestic and international performances outstanding, and I can't wait for him to arrive, to join my midfield cast of thousands.

10th March Cheltenham vs Notts County
Rarely for this campaign, we are unchanged. Johansson wins and converts a 31st minute penalty, and Ebanks adds some comfort with a blistering finish just after half-time. Just over the hour, a great cross from Tandy is brilliantly headed in by Cooper. Johansson finds the net with a simple finish on 65, but then gets injured, putting us down to 10 men. This allows the home side two late goals, however, they didn't get close to us during the game. The scoreline flattered them.

Cheltenham 2-4 Notts County ATT: 6266

Johansson will be down for 2-4 weeks.

17th March Notts County vs Oxford
Scott Morrison returns for Lloyd and Richard Jones for the injured Swede. Cooper gives us the perfect start (4), then is left scandalously unattended in the box to finish easily (30). We have the run of the game, and a pinpoint cross from Tandy is nodded in by The Big E just past the hour. Devastating stuff.

Notts County 3-0 Oxford ATT: 7104

That awesome performance is tempered slightly by the news that Jones has sprained his wrist in some form of wristy over-exertion, and won't return for up to a fortnight. Not much though.

24th March Bristol Rovers vs Notts County
O'Hara comes in to the midfield vacancy. Promotion-chasing Rovers start like a house on fire, but rue their missed chances when Ebanks notches up his 30th of the season against the run of play (23). Holding this undeserved lead till the break, I go defensive, and things settle down, though it's still tough. As they push forward, Rezek catches them on the break with a sweet run and finish (this guy has bags of skill) 5 minutes from time, to complete something of a daylight robbery.

Bristol Rovers 0-2 Notts County ATT: 7862

With results coming in, it emerges that we have secured a playoff place, the least of our ambitions. In other news, Morais is suspended 1 game, and The Big E will be out 1 week with a gashed arm.

31st March Notts County vs Leyton Orient
The O's are safe in League Two this year, but not by a lot, so we're expecting to give them a good pasting. Our injury re-arrangement sees Richardson go to MR, with D'Laryea stepping in to DR.
Cooper volleys in a cracker on the half hour to get us underway, after some determined defending from the visitors. They keep defending determinedly, until Calliste bursts through and finishes with 10 minutes remaining. They unexpectedly score on 85, which appears to make us angry. An unmarked Rezek heads home almost immediately, then a bizzare own goal, with the DC passing it straight through the keeper, gives us a "clear and deserved" 4-1 win.

Notts County 4-1 Leyton Orient ATT: 6567

I was so clear with the players not to get ahead of ourselves, that I hadn't realised some of the permutataions myself.
As we celebrated the win on the pitch, the fans started going bananas. Suddenly the Chairman appeared out of nowhere and jumped on my back, shouting "we've done it, by God!!", and I realised what had happened. Results had gone our way, and we'd been promoted! With six games left too!
While the squad and fans are out carousing that night, I stay at home with a carry-out and spend some time with the family. Like when I got promotion at Forest, I am eager to see the newspapers when I get out of bed the next...afternoon.
"Fans and critics alike are unanimous that the person responsible for this success was the manager" says one, while another quotes the supporters club as saying, "with him at the helm, anything is possible". I'm enjoying this!
County legend Gary McSwegan weighs in (come on this is Notts County we're talking about not Man United).
"He's a high calibre coach," the ex-hitman says sagely.
At the training ground on Monday, one of a pack of journalists asks me if we're good enough for League One. "No doubt about it," I reply.
I pop in to see the Chairman, who looks like he's having a permanent orgasm, whilst simultaneously being hung over. We made a profit of 76K last month, he tells me, also announcing that I won manager of the month, Harkins player of the month, and Ebanks young player of the month. A clean sweep. He also informs me that the Scots midfield maestro has signed the new 5 year deal at 825 p/w that we recently offered him. Life is good.
Ever the man for an eye with the main chance, Stevie (as I have come to know my boss, suggets that with all these press men hanging around, it's about time we had a press conference. Good publicity, we have to capitalise on the moment, and all that. Highlights from the press conference follow below, right after the league table from the end of March.

retired_teju

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> | Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | P | Notts Co | | 40 | 26 | 8 | 6 | 82 | 40 | +42 | 86 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Darlington | | 40 | 20 | 13 | 7 | 69 | 49 | +20 | 73 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Bristol Rovers | | 40 | 18 | 13 | 9 | 69 | 47 | +22 | 67 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Peterborough | | 40 | 19 | 9 | 12 | 56 | 48 | +8 | 66 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Cheltenham | | 40 | 16 | 17 | 7 | 74 | 60 | +14 | 65 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Rushden | | 40 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 62 | 51 | +11 | 62 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Tranmere | | 40 | 18 | 8 | 14 | 57 | 51 | +6 | 62 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Cambridge | | 40 | 17 | 11 | 12 | 53 | 49 | +4 | 62 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Oxford | | 40 | 14 | 17 | 9 | 54 | 46 | +8 | 59 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Walsall | | 40 | 15 | 14 | 11 | 46 | 40 | +6 | 59 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Torquay | | 40 | 16 | 9 | 15 | 56 | 50 | +6 | 57 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Rochdale | | 40 | 15 | 10 | 15 | 55 | 51 | +4 | 55 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Southend | | 40 | 16 | 6 | 18 | 59 | 57 | +2 | 54 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Bury | | 40 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 59 | 66 | -7 | 52 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Barnet | | 40 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 55 | 59 | -4 | 49 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Macclesfield | | 40 | 12 | 11 | 17 | 48 | 57 | -9 | 47 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | Chester | | 40 | 9 | 19 | 12 | 47 | 51 | -4 | 46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | | Leyton Orient | | 40 | 12 | 10 | 18 | 54 | 67 | -13 | 46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | | Stockport | | 40 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 36 | 49 | -13 | 46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | | Carlisle | | 40 | 13 | 7 | 20 | 43 | 57 | -14 | 46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 21st | | Chesterfield | | 40 | 9 | 12 | 19 | 50 | 63 | -13 | 39 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 22nd | | Shrewsbury | | 40 | 9 | 11 | 20 | 37 | 62 | -25 | 38 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 23rd | | Halifax | | 40 | 7 | 12 | 21 | 45 | 70 | -25 | 33 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 24th | | Wrexham | | 40 | 5 | 14 | 21 | 46 | 72 | -26 | 29 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_teju

So here's what I said at the press conference, which apparently went out live on Sky Sports, proving how crummy their Monday afternoon schedule is.

On promotion:
"It's a great achievement for the players. They deserve all the credit. All I do is create the environment for them to perform, they're the ones who do the business. They can be proud of how they played this year. They won big, and they entertained. What more can you ask for? They are an exciting young side."

On the future:
"With all due respect to the other teams, we pulverised League Two this season. It feels like the end of the season, because we got promoted, but there's still a month left. That's a hell of an achievement...These lads can be as good as they want to be. I've managed to quietly accrue some of the best young players in this country, and they can carry us all the way to the Premiership if they develop at this rate. There's no limit to what some of these young guys can achieve. It's exciting, exciting to watch, and exciting to be the manager of."

On my future:
"Now all this crap about my Forest connections can finally stop. I'm committed to this club, not just contractually, but emotionally, and I want to see the job through. I can honestly say that if I was offered the Forest job tomorrow, I'd say, "thanks, but no thanks."
I've heard this rumour or that rumour, but I'm not going anywhere. I've got two years left here, and unless Real Madrid or that type of club that you can't say 'no' to comes calling, I'll be seeing out that contract...I have a great relationship with everyone here, from the chairman, to the players, to the supporters, to Riggy and my wonderful coaching staff. It's a great team, and I want to be at the head of that team for some time to come."

retired_teju

7th April Stockport vs Notts County
We're unchanged again. Ebanks blasts one into the top corner (7), then runs through unchallenged on the hour to double our lead. The home side offer absolutely nothing. A point is all we require now to be confirmed as champions, but my target is to try and get 100 points.

Stockport 0-2 Notts County ATT: 2906

9th April Shrewsbury vs Notts County
22nd placed Shrews should be straightforward enough, so I rest Harkins, Johansson and Tandy, bringing in Jones, O'Hara and Rezek.
The Big E gets his customary goal, outpacing the defence to slot in (17), then heads in a near post corner (25). Cooper tallies his 20th of the season (28), and it's downhill all the way, as we see out the rest of the match in cruise control.

Shrewsbury 0-3 Notts County ATT:4486

The title is ours, but the jubilation came last week with promotion. With the position we were in, it would be a miracle if anyone pipped us to the title.
A journalist tells me someone once said "you can't win anything with kids." I'm not a fan of Alan Hansen so my reply is short and to the point.
Fans and media praise me for the title win, and Gary McSwegan is dusted off again. Yeah...thanks Gary.

14th April Notts County vs Bury
Harkins, Johansson and Tandy are back in. Cooper stakes us the lead (19). The Shakers hit back on 39, then lead on 56. A rare sh**e performance from us, and we lose. Prior to that we had 7 straight wins, so it would be churlish to bollock the players.

Notts County 1-2 Bury ATT: 6342

21st April Wrexham vs Notts County
An unchanged side. I had planned to give fringe players playing time, but I want 100 points. It's a quiet 1st half, though we are better, then Rezek makes an amazing run, crossing for Ebanks to score (56). Johansson shoots in from a corner 6 minutes later, and we amble to an easy win.

Wrexham 0-2 Notts County ATT: 2832

This result relegates Wrexham, which is sad, because they've never done me any harm, or had their manager mouthing off about how great they are.

28th April Notts County vs Barnet
We're unchanged again. Ebanks outpaces the defence to tally (18) (so no change there either). The visitors get a man sent off (29), but still manage to score (40), prior to Cooper restoring our lead (56). Then Harkins gets sent off, but we stand up to be counted, and apparently deserve the win. Another win next week will give us the coveted 100 points.

Notts County 2-1 Barnet ATT: 5552

April finishes with a profit of 40K, and another manager of the month gong for me. Cooper sccops the goal of the month award.

retired_teju

With the just one game left in the season, I will reproduce the final league table then.

5th May Carlisle vs Notts County
O'Hara comes in for Harkins. The home side open the scoring (18), but Cooper responds with a nice finish (33). After the break, Calliste heads in from a corner (59). A great free kick from Morais (75) stretches the lead, and a late missed penalty by us doesn't affect the outcome.

Carlisle 1-3 Notts County ATT: 4558

Well, we get our 100 points, which is satisfying.
News reaches me that Forest get promoted...bah!! I was looking forward to some high-octane derbies against them next year. Their promotion puts the kybosh on all that.

12th May Reading make a 350K bid for Richard Jones. I'm not interested. On the other side of the coin, I engineer a 12K exit for Alex Varney to Carlisle. He never really hit it off here.

20th May Another unwelcome bid, this time for Morais. Hartlepool actually think I am going to sell him for 100K. No thank you.

22nd May I make a splash of sorts, tying up the Bosman signing of Finnish U-21 starlet ST Jarmo Parikka from HJK Helsinki. His finishing is excellent, which is all I'm really interested in with strikers. He doesn't arrive until the 16th November, but I am quietly confident that I have the new Mikkael Forssel on my hands (no that doesn't mean he breaks his leg every 3 months).

26th March It's very enjoyable to win one of those things they call in the newspapers a "tug of war". Highly rated Irish U-21 AMRC ST Mark Yeats joins us from Spurs, snubbing Forest, and a host of others.

More gongs are handed out at the end of the month. I win manager of the year, which I rather arrogantly expected. Seven of our players appear in the League Two Select Side. Pettigrew, Edwards, Morais, Johansson, Harkins, Ebanks, Cooper (sub). The Big E is top goalscorer, not surprisingly. Now, as promised, the end of season tables.

retired_missyamy

Great story, I'm toying about with starting a story, but I need to sit down and make a day or two of it before I begin.