retired_ajbrittney

To be fair I p[layed the wrong tactics, I used the same tactics that I use against teams who go all out 4-3-3 or 4-2-4. Portsmouth just laughed at me, they could have scored double their final tally. Fortunately Yakubu was very poor game.

retired_ajbrittney

FA Trophy Third Round
Sutton Utd 1)1 -2 (1 Hornchurch

An unfamiliar team faced Sutton. Wray and Barnes were on the wing, Tolley was my Guinea Pig in just behind Beckford in attack. I was trying out a 4-5-1 for this match.
It took me about 20 minutes to give up on the 4-5-1. Tolley was just not getting involved, a shame because in theory a 4-5-1 is a favourite of mine. Back to the drawing board. I kept my players in an offensive frame of mind, we played with a lot more width in this match.
That first period was very entertaining. Both teams had chances to take the lead, Sutton forced a scrambled save from Allaway, whilst Wray went on a mazy run that tested the keeper.
When I moved Tolley to a normal strikers role things began to improve. Beckford fed him a nice ball on 22 minutes. Tolley controlled it and chipped the keeper to put us in the lead stylishly.
Sadly my new offensive styling left us full of holes. Sutton threatened and they deserved their 37th minute equalizer. Gary Sweets shot was parried by Allaway. Vansittart was in the right place to knock in the rebound.
I went back to my normal style for the second half. I also gave the underperforming Lynott a kick up the arse.
We were far more secure in the second half, so by default the game turned boring. Neither team had any real chance to take the lead. Bringing on Tom Kemp seemed to have some impact, it wasn’t long before he had forced a save out of Haystead.
Tom Kemp continued to threaten for us but Sutton had a few tricks off their own. Peter Fear rocked our bar and a brave tackle from Grant stopped Sweet in his tracks when he had the goal at his mercy!
We finally won the game in the 78th minute. Skelton and Beckford played some wonderful football. Skelton allowed Barnes to join the party and it was his shot that won the game.
Sutton threatened us in the final quarter of the game but their best was not good enough. We advance but it is a fortunate win.

Hornchurch 1) 2-0 (0 Northwich Victoria

This game almost got postponed. The ole’ orange ball came out. Rekindled memories for me of the dull Luton v Liverpool FA Cup match in the late 80’s
Buckley returned to the team. I also rested Woods and Brand. Heathcote and Marshall replaced them..
Our first half performance finally put paid to my more attacking formation. True we had a Tolley goal disallowed and Salt put the ball into the net from a corner, however I was not happy with the performance. Northwich are struggling, yet they managed to string together a fair few chances.
For the second half I reverted to my usual formation. Northwich were unable to touch us and the game was finished off by Tom Kemp, his first for the club. A close range tap-in from a Beckford cross.
It wasn’t all fun and games though. Salt sustained another injury and Burwood was sent off. His second yellow was dubious and I would appeal if the option was there.

We are now on top of the league. The gap is narrow though, only a point between us and Aldershot!

Barnet 0)0 -2 (1 Hornchurch

Barnet caused us a lot of trouble in our fixture earlier on this season. Since that day their star has fallen, they are 13th in the league and well behind the race.
Salt was unfit so I replaced him with Skelton. Scott Woods and Brand returned to the side. Culshaw replaced the suspended Burwood.
It was a dull first half. Barnet had the better chances,, we had the better converters. Tolley scored the only goal of the first half, a splendid long range shot provided by Kemp.
The second half was a dour affair. We defended very effectively, restricting Barnet to tame speculative efforts. The game was finished in the 81st minute when Townley was brought down in the area. Culshaw converted from the spot and we just strolled through the final ten minutes.

We maintain our lead at the top. Aldershot and Rochdale are hot on our heels though.

retired_ajbrittney

Hornchurch 0-0 Gravesend

Ben Woods was welcomed back to the team for this match, he didn’t get much of a chance to shine though. Lowly Gravesend had no intention of playing football today, they stuffed their defence with players .
Tolley had our only decent chance, which was early in the first half. However he had a narrow angle and blasted the ball wide.
An eminently forgettable game. That draw pushed us into second place, Aldershot were victorious and now enjoy a point advantage.

Two Division 2 sides sack their managers and ask me to take over in their place. I leave both Darlington and Wycombe Wanderers out in the cold.

Leigh RMI 0)0 -4 (1 Hornchurch

I made no changes to my side to face lowly Leigh. I was confidant that we would prevail against them.
Leigh made the better running in the first half, fortunately they suffered from poor finishing, a pronlem they share with many other conference teams. We were lucky to have more clinical finishers. Tolley converted our only chance of that period, the Leigh keeper fumbled and he potted the ball home.
The second half was a much more entertaining affair, we went up a notch and Ben Woods rediscovered his scoring boots. His first goal of the game involved superb interplay with Adam Buckley. They strung umpteen passes together before he burst into the box and finished well. On 60 minutes he grabbed his second, Tolley set him up with a splendid long ball.
Scott Cross did his Leigh prospects no good in the 70th minute when he was dismissed for a second bookable offence. It was his first start as well. Now Leigh were very limited in attacking options.
Soon after the dismissal I took the chance to change my attacking pairing. I took Tolley off and replaced him with Kemp. Now Leigh have to deal with 2 strikers who like to run with the ball!
Kemp scored his second of the season in the death. He was released by Townley and dribbled into the box. He managed to squeeze the ball past the keeper and completed the rout.
A superb performance from the team. Despite our win we stay in second, Aldershot won at Canvey Island, so things are unchanged.

January passes over into February. Ed Brand was unlucky awards wise, he finished second in both The Player of the Month category and the Young Players. Tom Kemp was awarded a goal of teh month for his effort against Leigh.

FA Trophy 4th Round
Canvey Island 1) 1-0 (0 Hornchurch

Canvey made the better start to the game and tested us early on. However it was when I thought that the game was beginning to settle that they struck. Boylan powered in a header from a cross and gave them a lead that they deserved.
We made little headway in the first half, our only effort was a Coburn shot that was easily saved by their keeper.
We played better in the 2nd half but still lacked clear cut chances. The introduction of Tom Kemp seemed to help but it wasn’t enough. We were out of the FA Trophy at an early stage.

Nuneaton Borough 1) 2-0 (0 Hornchurch

I fear that our bad spell is finally upon us, our second defeat in a row, this time at seventh placed Nuneaton.
Gareth Law returned to the team but he made little impact. It was a dull game, the best chances were the goals. The first was a Whittaker cross that went awry, fooling Allaway. The second was a cross spilled by Allaway and converted by Thorne.
I have some work to do.

Hornchurch 1) 1-0 (0 Tamworth

The first few minutes of this game were quickfire. Tamworth hit the bar with a header then we counterattacked. Woods ran for miles with the ball then set up Law. Law rounded teh keeper then slotted in.
Tamworth were another one of those teams who came to Upminster with the sole intention of muscling us out of teh game. By halftime I’d lost both Ben Woods and Law, both players who had been vulnerable in the past.
We just about dominated the half but failed to make more headway.
The second half was a highly entertaining affair full of attacking football. The Tamworth keeper was in splendid form, Ricardo Beckford was in wasteful form, he was clear through on four occasions and missed the lot.
We staggered to victory, the goalkeepers kept the scoring down!

Gareth Law is out for another three weeks, this time with a fractured cheekbone. More time for Tolley to shine.

retired_ajbrittney

Woking 1) 2-4 (1 Hornchurch

Despite the fact they lost a defender through dissent within the first few minutes of the game, we made hard work of Woking. They showed amazing tenacity and it was only during the final ten minutes of the game that we managed to break them down.
Steve Boardman was dismissed on 4 minutes, despite our advantage we were unable to muster a single intentional attempt on goal during the first half. Our goal came courtesy of a bewildered Tolley, he wasn’t aware of the ball striking him on the temple, he was certainly aware that the ball hit the back of the net though!
Woking were dangerous in front of goal. It was their superiority at set pieces that enabled them to equalize, Bruce heading the ball in from a corner.
We played with a lot more width in the second half. The chances didn’t exactly flow but we were more effective. Tolley put us ahead through a Buckley cross on 63 but it wasn’t long before Woking equalized through another corner, Lawrence being the killer of our dreams this time.
The introduction of Ricardo Beckford changed the game for us. His pace destroyed a weary Woking defence. He added two goals in the last ten minutes to give us a very fortunate, let alone flattering victory. This game shouldn’t have troubled us.

Hornchurch 0-0 Halifax

Many of my regulars were rested for this match. most of team were tired and I wanted my elite to be fit for the trip to Carlisle. We dominated the game but clear chances were few and far between. Not our best of performances.

Carlisle Utd 1) 1-0 (0 Hornchurch

We are showing signs of cracking again. Buckley and Coburn were dreadful in this game, Coburn also got himself sent off for dissent. He was joined by Beckford in the second half, effectively scuppering our already slim chance of recovery.
We were totally outplayed by Carlisle, in no way did we deserve sp much as a point out of this game. A very disappointing performance.
Our last three games have been disappointing A lucky win against the second from bottom team, we failed to defeat the bottom side at home and rarely looked like scoring, then a comprehensive defeat at the hands of one of our nearest rivals!

I think the Conference has wised up to us. I think the rest of the season is going to be very tough.

retired_ajbrittney

Our sequence of games against high flying opponents continues. Our next matches are away to Bury then home to Rochdale.

On Friday evening I was tuned in to Radio Essex. Usually a station I try to avoid, since it rehashes the same ‘Top 10’ crap over and over. However they do have a remit to inform their loyal Neanderthals about local sport, Hornchurch have recently come to their attention.
I was shocked to hear Graham Barrow on the radio. Barrow is the manager of Bury, a town which is situated in the North of England. I was angry at being ignored by the local radio station in favour of an alien, my anger would only multiply infinitely when I heard the drivel coming out of Barrow’s mouth.

“Hornchurch are lucky to be here!”

“ Dantering is an unproven manager, I’m unsure that he can maintain his teams good fortune!”

“Bury are the more accomplished team!”

“A good chance for us to wind down after a tough month playing against decent opposition!”

His tough opposition included the likes of Leigh RMI and Northwich. I had a statement prepared in response to Barrows nonsense, Essex FM decided not to air it though. Only people interested in the Upminster Gazzette would read my reply. I was quite scathing and the stage was set.

Bury 1) 1-3 (0 Hornchurch

My squad wasn’t in the best of states for this game. Four of my regulars were out. Law and Grant through injury, Coburn through suspension and Buckley because he had been useless in the last game. I would have dropped Coburn as well, the suspension saved him. As it is, both he and Buckley will enjoy a spell in the reserves.
My replacements were Culshaw in defence. Wray and Barnes on the wings. Tolley continued in attack, he recently scored his 20th league goal and is making a splendid claim to a permanent place in the starting 11. Wray as a second chance at life, earlier I was committed to letting him rot i the reserves, circumstances have dictated otherwise though.
Bury came out onto the field with a very positive attitude. They combined their intent to play good football with a desire to kick our players out of the game. Within the first fifteen minutes I was forced to take off both Wray and Barnes due to bad challenges. Lee Marshall and Phil Townley took their place.
Bury’s tactics worked a treat in the first half. Their tough style subdued my players and they weren’t shabby in the attack either. Chris Porter had numerous chances but it was Hector Sam who provided the breakthrough, his close range effort took a deflection of Culshaw and went in.
I knew I’d have to have a much more positive attitude in the second half. I pushed Marshall and Townley up slightly on the wings. This seemed to do the trick. Both players were instrumental in our much improved performance.
Tolley made it level just 4 minutes into the half. He took advantage of a suicidal header in the Bury 6 yard box and finished with his usual aplomb!
Ten minutes later Bury put paid to a third player, Phil Salt was this time on the end of their tender treatment. I replaced him with Skelton.
Whilst Salt was on the touchline receiving treatment, we went into the lead. Tolley again was our scorer, this time being on the end of a Marshall through ball.
Ben Woods finished them off for me. He took down a splendid Townley long ball and placed the ball in the corner.
Bury desperately tried to claw back the goals but they were impotent. They consoled themselves by kicking a fourth player of the field, Ed Brand.
An excellent second half performance from the guys. I was satisfied to stuff Barrows words down his throat. I said as much in the post match interview. I made no secret of my contempt for Barrow and his arrogant attitude. I also took the chance to lambast Essex FM for ignoring Hornchurch and for having a crap playlist. Furthermore they are now banned from the stadium and will get no interviews with me or the team.

Thanks to Bury I now have a big injury list. Brand and Barnes are out for a few days. Wray is inactive for a fortnight. Not ideal for a tough game against Rochdale!

retired_ajbrittney

How on Earth do Aldershot afford almost 500k to purchase Jamie McMaster. The Midfielder comes in from Wolves. They are making no bones about their intent to win promotion!

Sam Parkin, the manager of Rochdale stated that whoever lost this game would probably fall behind in the Championship race. I took the time to agree with his comments. At least he was far less arrogant than Barrow.

Hornchurch 0)1-1(0 Rochdale.

Tom Kemp made a start as a striker whilst I shifted Ben Woods to the Right Wing. Beckford started on the left.
It was an exciting first half, all it lacked was a goal. Plenty of chances but the accuracy was terrible, neither keeper was tested. Kemp was our best player, having two reasonable chances. Rochdale had the best chance of the half, Keith Townson blasting a good chance wide. Overall Hornchurch had the lions share of the chances though.
The second half wasn’t anywhere near as exciting as the first. Goals did come though. Rochdale took the lead thanks to a superb Bertos long range effort. Predictably once they went ahead, they began to play defensively.
It took us till five minutes from time to level the match. Woods set off Kemp who had found space on the wing. His cross to Tolley was perfect. Tolley continued his excellent goal scoring form.
The rest of the match drizzled out. A very average display from my team. Allaway and Culshaw were especially off colour. Both have able replacements waiting in the wings.

Hornchurch 1) 1-0 (0 Scarborough

I rested Scott Woods for this game and replaced him with Heathcote. Wayne Barnes returned to the Left Wing.
I went out with an attacking mentality for this game, consequently we spent the majority of the half on the backfoot against struggling Scarborough. The away team may have had the bulk of the chances, ours were of better quality though. Phil Salt had the goal at his mercy twice, he managed to convert one of them after just 7 minutes. Splendid work on the wing by Barnes opened the way.
The second half was rather dull. The only incident of note was a superb run from the halfway line by Beckford. He forced a good save out of their keeper. The meandered to a narrow victory for us.
A very workmanlike performance from the team. No-one really impressed.

Aldershot 1) 2-0 (0 Hornchurch

We barely troubled Aldershot in this game, our inability to dominate games is really beginning to trouble me. Aldershot were all over us in this game and stretched their lead at the top to six points. I don’t think we’ll catch them now.

Hornchurch 0) 1-0 (0 Margate

Gareth Law made his first team return after a few games in the reserves. Burwood was out through injury, so Culshaw returned to the team.
This was a fairly easy game for us against relegation battlers. Margate had very little to offer, we should have made lighter work of them.
The first half was a boring spectacle. Our only two shots on goal were wayward efforts. Once again my entertaining efforts provided little to enjoy.
We were much improved in the second half. Woods and Barnes were passing from deeper positions on the pitch and it seemed to work a treat. The introduction of Ricardo Beckford also changed things, he ran the Margate defence ragged.
Phil Salt scored the only goal of teh game, running in late onto a Beckford cross. It was enough to win us the game!
Woods and Barnes had superb games on the wings.

Adam Buckley goes AWOL from training. That combined with his recent poor performances compels me to fine him 2 weeks wages. I also place him on the transfer list. Shrewsbury come in soo after with a bid for 20k.

Adam Buckley leaves for Shrewsbury. I’m glad to be rid of him.

Crawley Town 0) 0-5 (5 Hornchurch

Scott Woods returned to the team for this game. What a game for him to return to. We were absolutely superb in the first half, Salt and Law were instrumental.
Law proved that he has returned to form with a hat trick. Salt scored from a freekick and Tolley completed the rout with a rebound from a parried Law shot.
Crawley were much improved in the second half, we were unable to add to our total. I’m not going to complain about a 5-0 win away from home though. This defeat slips Crawley into relegation trouble.

retired_ajbrittney

Morecambe 1) 1-3 (1 Hornchurch

Away to mid-table Morecambe, who had fought really well at our place. I’m hoping for better luck this time around.
The game started of in an exciting fashion, Jamie Heard was lucky to stay on the pitch following a reckless challenge on Tolley. He did give away a penalty though, Lynott stepped up and finished with ease. His first of the season.
The first half was a drab affair, it was livened up by Morecambe’s equalizer. Excellent work by Carlton on the wing, his cross found the unmarked Hunter who had no difficulty finishing from close range.
The second half started dangerously for us, Morecambe threatened at corners. It took the introduction of Ricardo Beckford to change things. His pace and ball control were the keys to unlocking a tight home defense. He put us ahead thanks to a superb Salt through ball, Morecambe’s defenders were unable to keep up with him. He returned the favour when his shot was deflected out to Salt, who finished easily from close on in.

We are second in the table and have secured a playoff place. Aldershot won at home to Bury, so maintain a 3 point lead. The next games are vital. We have a more difficult run of games, Home against Accrington and York City, both in the top ten. The final game is away to Canvey Island, who have already proved they can defeat us.
Aldershot have easier opposition on paper, they have more away games though. They are away to Scarborough, who are not safe from relegation. Then they have to travel to playoff chasing Rochdale. My hopes rest in that game. Their final game is against relegation contenders Woking, who may have lost their Conference status by then. I await the outcome with baited breath.

Hornchurch 1) 3-0 (0 Accrington Stanley

Accrington packed out the midfield for this game and it certainly dulled our momentum. Chances were few and far between but we did manage to make a breakthrough. Tolley and Law combined well. Tolley’s cross found the head of Law, who nodded the ball in with ease.
Going in at half time was pleased to learn that Aldershot were losing at Scarborough. Excellent news indeed, I just hoped it would last.
Gareth Law effectively put the game out of reach for Accrington. He latched onto Barnes cross and finished from just outside the area. I considered ourselves safe, Accrington hadn’t really offered us anything. It was all up to Scarborough now and according to my sources, they had just gone 2-0 up against Scarborough. My day just got better.
With twenty minutes left I brought on Beckford and Phillip Cousins, who had just returned from a good spell at Hayes in the Conference South.
Beckford once again proved deadly, he was provided by Barnes and scored an easy close range effort. Now we were in the clear.
As our teams retired from the stadium I was brought the news. Aldershot had been defeated at Scarborough. Now the ball was in our court. Our next games would be vital!

retired_ajbrittney

Already I am looking to next season. The positions I want to fill are Right Winger, Goalkeeper and a Defensive Midfielder. Right Wing has always been problematic with me, what with Coburn being very average and Wray’s disciplinary problems. Allaway and Lynott have played well as Goalkeeper and Defensive Midfielder respectively, I think I could do with a little more class in those areas though. My other aim is to attract a fair amount of youth talent. Tom Kemp and Wayne Barnes. have broken through and Phillip Cousins looks promising. I’d love to add to my setup.

A good way to lighten my load is to dispose of aging players who don’t really have a future at Hornchurch. Tolo Mas will sign for Notts County in July, a strange move by the League 2 team. Ovendale requested a transfer and I accepted. Other players like Wray and possibly Coburn may find themselves out if I’m able to recruit decent players!

Arsenal win the Premiership under the noses of Chelsea. Mourinho’s promised domination of English Football fails to appear!

Hornchurch 0)0 -3(2 York City

An absolutely dire performance, Allaway’s hands were made of putty in this game, the rest of the team were not much better either.
York took the lead after 40 seconds and after that they never really looked back. We were poor in front of goal and York made the most of their chances. What made it worse was that Rochdale capitulated at home to Aldershot, losing 5-1. I don’t think we’ll be getting automatic qualification somehow!

After the game I issued warnings to Allaway, Burwood and Scott Woods. It is unacceptable for them to let us down in such an important game. Furthermore I am recalling Ovendale and dropping Allaway to the reserves for the final game at Canvey!

Canvey Island 0-0 Hornchurch

Another unimpressive performance form the team, though not reaching the depths of the York City debacle. Allaway made up for his poor performance against York with a number of good saves. Canvey dominated this game but we had the better chances. This was especially true when Beckford came on, unfortunately his finishing was off key.
Woking put up some brave resistance against Aldershot, sadly they collapsed in the second half going down 3-0 and allowing the Shots to win in style.

The season is now effectively over. The Conference waves goodbye to Margate, Northwich and Woking. We have the fu that is the Playoffs to look forward to!

retired_ajbrittney

Joy of joys we are to face Bury in the Playoff Semi’s. If we lose against them I will be disconsolate! Especially following my media battles with their manager!

CONFERENCE PLAYOFFS SEMI FINAL FIRST LEG
Hornchurch 3) 3-0 (0 Bury

I kept the same team that drew against Canvey. Bury were going with a 3-5-2, so I decided to give Woods and Barnes free rein.
We made a superb start to the game. After just 4 minutes Law released Tolley, whose finish was precise and powerful. A dream start.
The rest of the half settled down, we were adept at dispossessing Bury in our half then building on that. It was on one such Counter Attack that Law was set up for a long range effort. His shot went wide however. He had much better luck on the half hour mark, Burwood supplied a sublime through ball, Law muscled their defender off the ball and finished well.
Bury had a single chance in that half, a freekick that failed to trouble Allaway. We weren’t that prolific ourselves, however we were very accurate. Just before half time we put the game beyond doubt. Lee Grant pressured Dunfield into heading the ball past his own keeper.
Going into half time we were in a very commanding position. It would take a fightback of epic proportions for Bury to get back into the game. That or a collapse on our part of equally epic proportions!
Bury were much more threatening in the second half, however they only managed a single goal from their domination, Kuqi finding himself unmarked in the box and scoring. Both teams seemed to lack penetration though.
Their best chance also fell to Kuqi, he forced a fantastic double save from Allaway. However we held on to take a two goal advantage to the North of England.

Nuneaton won at Carlisle making them our likely rivals if we reach the final.

I make an offer for Dutch player Dennis Scharrenburg, who plays for Dutch Non League team Kozakken Boys. He is an experienced Defensive Midfielder who’s had a number of spells with FC Utrecht in the Dutch Premier League. His conditions aren’t outlandish and I’m confident of landing him.

CONFERENCE PLAYOFFS SEMI FINAL SECOND LEG
(3)Bury 1) 2 -2 (0 Hornchurch(5)

I expected a much more aggressive posture from Bury for this game. I made two changes to the side. Lynott and Brand were unfit, so I rested them in favour of Rickers and Marshall, hopefully their inclusion wouldn’t upset things too much!
Bury went out with exactly the same formation they used against us in our league encounter at their ground, a 4-3-3. I instructed my players to make use of the width of the pitch.
The first twenty minutes were not without incident. Kuqi fired a speculative shot over, whilst Tolley had a shot well saved by their keeper. We were stretching their defence somewhat, which was promising.
My wingers were getting a lot of space. Barnes received a cross field ball from Woods and really should have made more of the chance that was presented, he blasted the ball way wide.
Bury started to look more dangerous though and on the stroke of half time they took the lead. Dunfield teed up Porter with Bury’s first decent chance of the game. He of course scored. A very tense way to go into half time, Bury couldn’t have chosen a better moment!
Soon after the break Bury came close to levelling the tie on aggregate. Mattis hit the bar with a header and only a desperate lunge from Salt prevented things from getting worse!
Shane Tolley soon made things happy for me. He took control of a Woods freekick and somehow managed to thread the ball through a dense cloud of Bury players. The home team would have to score another 3 goals to go through now.
Bury put some intense pressure on us, going close a few times. They finally got back into the tie thanks to a dubious decision from the referee. Kuqi was fairly challenged by Barnes but the ref though otherwise. He pointed to the spot and Kazim Richards blasted past Allaway.
Bury continued their pressure but it was Hornchurch who scored next, Law was released following a Counterattack and he made no mistake. We were through to the playoff final, off that I was sure.
We are through to the Playoff final, where we will face Carlisle United at the Britannia Stadium. Carlisle will be a tough test for us. We haven’t been able to beat them this season, in fact we haven’t scored so much as a goal against them.

I am buoyed by the news that Dennis Scharrenburg will be wearing a Hornchurch shirt next season. Good news indeed, he may force Lynott out of his role just in front of the defense!.

CONFERENCE PLAYOFF FINAL
Carlisle Utd 0) 2-1 (1 Hornchurch

Carlisle made a very bright start to the game, having numerous chances to score within the opening 10 minutes. Lumsden should have scored just after the kickoff when he had the goal at his mercy, however his shot just went wide.
We were overwhelmed in the first fifteen minutes so I decided to change things. I brought most of my players behind the ball and decided to hit them on the counter. Barnes and Woods would sit much closer in to our defenders.
The new tactic paid dividends. Soon after we took the lead. Barnes took the ball of Hawley in our own half and delivered a ball for Law to chase. Law was first to the ball and finished well
Carlisle had great difficulty breaking my team down and we went into the half with the advantage.
As soon as the half began we fell victim to some dodgy refereeing. Grant brought down Farrell on the edge of the area. However the referee inexplicably gave a penalty, second game in a row we have fallen victim to a bad decision. Livesy stepped up and levelled the match.
Soon after Carlisle almost took the lead, only brave keeping from Allaway kept us in there. However five minutes from time things took a turn for the worst. Lumsden shot from the edge of the area, his attempt went through Allaway and into the net.
I had no choice but to attack in the final period of the game. I had been saving my players for possible extra time, however I was forced to bring on Townley and Cousins. It made no difference, we lost.
We didn’t play badly in the game. We have never been able to match Carlisle offensively in any of our games against them. Though in this match it took a very poor refereeing decision to get them back in the game. Ray Gould will not be welcome in Essex, if he and his family were to lose their lives, I would not be too unhappy, not at all unhappy.

How very disappointing. I hope for better things next season! The squad building starts soon!

retired_ajbrittney

The Board don’t have great ambitions for Hornchurch, Calder will be happy with a Mid-table finish. After last seasons heroics I expect promotion!

The exodus begins. Paul Rickers, Shaun Wray and John Blake have been released. Rickers provided good cover for Lynott, however he is getting a little long in the tooth now and in Scharrenburg I have a much better replacement. Wray scuppered his Hornchurch career with his poor disciplinary record and Blake was a player promoted through the youth setup who never really figured in my plans.

Mark Ovendale requests a transfer and I let him go. A host of clubs come in for him and it is finally Macclesfield that win his loyalties.

Gavin Skelton also moves away. He has been a useful utility player but he is falling behind talented players such as Phillip Cousins. The best thing is to allow him to pursue a career elsewhere. Leyton Orient pay 10k for him, yet another player who has advanced to league football.

Reservist Gary O’Brien is released on a freebie. He never really figured in my plans.!

I scout the latest talent to emerge from the academies, for the first time I also buy players from overseas. Five players sign on, two of them will be automatic first team starters.

Karl Holmes

A very young goalkeeper who has the potential to become my number one, eventually. Pretty decent all-round stats and a good talker. My only concern is that he is a little lightweight and not so good in the air. He has plenty of time to develop though.

Gary Burt

A left winger with the instincts of a striker. A very determined player, I intend to convert him to a strikers role. At 16 a definite talent.

James Singh

Only 15 years old, this Right Winger could be a future star. Only his pace and ball skills are developed, I’m sure he can become something special though.

Dennis Scharrenburg

A Defensive Midfielder who had plied his trade in the Netherlands. Not as good a passer as Lynott he is fast and more assured in the challenge. A rival for that slot in front of the defence!

Keith Kelly

A right winger who I expect to slot straight into the team. An international who has six caps for Jamaica. Has splendid technique and should terrorize the defence. All I await is the work permit.

The friendlies commenced and my players would have a chance to impress me. I would basically play an A-Team and a B-Team, switching every half.

Hornchurch 1) 1-1 (1 Darlington

A familiar face in the shape of Ian Duerden returned to Hornchurch in this game. He didn’t make much of an impact in a pretty dull 1-1 draw.
Karl Holmes had a good second half, being awarded the man of the man of the match. Gareth Law scored our only goal of the match, a fine individual effort.

We have trouble getting a work permit for Keith Kelly. I’ll persevere though, I think he’ll make a real difference to the side.

Hornchurch 0) 0-1 (0 Man Utd Reserves

A respectable performance against a Utd team that included Anelka, Kleberson, Cavenaghi and Rincon. We matched them for most of the game and only the brilliance of Kleberson won the match for them.

Hornchurch 0-0 Shrewsbury

I experimented with a 5-4-1 for this game and it had a mixed effect. We kept the ball well but were not very effective in front of goal. Definate potential though.

My appeal against the refusal to grant Keith Kelly a work permit is rejected. I’ll have to look elsewhere for a right winger!

Carmaethen 1) 1-0 (0 Hornchurch

A frustrating game, we had a number of good chances to score but were denied by poor finishing and a goalie at the top of his form. The new formation is looking promising though.

Holmes, Burt and Singh will spend the first 3 months of the season on loan at Conference South outfits. Singh joins Harvey at Redbridge whilst Burt goes to Bishops Stortford. Holmes also looks likely to go to Redbridge.

Hornchurch 1) 1-0 (0 Wolves Reserves

Our best performance of the Pre-season, Gareth Law put us ahead after just two minutes and we never looked back. My experimental 4-5-1 worked really well, we should have scored a lot more goals!

Wealdstone 0) 1-2 (2 Hornchurch

Not a convincing performance from the team but we managed to win, thanks to a long range shot from Tolley and a deflected Barnes free-kick.

We are now ready for our second season in the conference, haven’t been able to recruit as many players as I would like and one promising deal has already fallen through, however I’m confidant that we can prosper this season.