retired_ajbrittney

So the season is at an end and I begin the process of building for the following season. Despite our high position this year, changes are required. With our low budget it won’t be easy though.

One player I will certainly be keeping is Ricardo Beckford. He was superb last year and is our most dangerous player. The fans certainly love him, he was their player of the year.

If I had my way, the squad would have been cut by half, however a lot of deadweight has a lot of time left on their contract, so I am only able to cut some of it adrift.

All in all seven players leave GGL, their futures are uncertain. I doubt that John Scarborough or Craig Howard will succeed in finding another club, they didn’t even feature in games I didn’t care about! Leon Poole, Stuart Gray and Craig Watkins should find their way to another club, especially Watkins who is quite talented. I also released Joff Vansittart. At one stage he was a Sutton United hero but his time was long gone. I was saddened to hear that he failed to find a club and retired from the game. The last player to go was Matt Gray, maybe John Rains decision to convert him to a wingback was the wrong one.


With those names gone, I had a requirement to bring in quality players. I felt I was especially weak in central defence and on the Right wing. I also needed quality strikers to fill in for the aging Haylock. I began my search.

One player that Jarrett found for me in Finland was a striker called Jussi Kemmo. He was a reasonable finisher, his main ability however was beating defenders. He was excellent on the ball, sadly his attitude during negotiations was appalling. He had no interest in coming to England at all, in fact he described it as a ‘Depressing Slagheap’ I didn’t want such a player in my side and the talks broke down.

Another striker I was impressed by was Juan Ugarte. He had managed 18 goals for relegated Dorchester the previous season, so I knew he could do the business. Sadly he had no interest in coming to Gander Green Lane at all. If he wanted to rot in Park Football so be it.

My search wasn’t entirely fruitless however. Plenty of players were released by Premiership sides and I swooped for some of them. I succeeded in strengthening all the vulnerable areas except for Defensive Midfield.

Tommy Forecast
A young goalkeeper who was released by Tottenham. Much better in the air than either Allaway or Hodges. Needs to work on his reflexes a little though.

Craig Baxter
Left Newcastle for a touch of Southern sunshine. Not as good a tackler as Warner or Murphy but much more rounded in his skills.

Sean St Ledger
Can anyone blame him for leaving dingy Peterborough? Very similar to Baxter, just slightly better. Made a few first team appearances for ‘The Posh’ so should fit in well.

Ryan Wilkie
I am glad I got this guy. As fast as Coburn and is much more of a work ethic. His only downfall is a vested interest in playing for himself.

Mark James
Excellent young player. Brave, reasonable in the air and is pretty good on the ball. I think he’ll bring in a lot of money, he sees Sutton as a shop window to parade his wares! Promising striker.

Andrew Fowler
Another youngster I brought in from Everton. Really works well for the team and is a good all round striker. His only weak points are a lack of strength and stamina. That can be improved however.

These new young stars would have some tough tests to endure. I arranged 8 friendlies to start off the season. Five of them were against Championship opposition. All were at home so would make me quite a lot of money.

v Nottingham Forest 0-1
v West Brom 0-2
v Charlton 0-1
vTottenham Reserves 1-1
v Preston Northend 1-2
v Bolton 0-1
v Easington Colliery 4-0
v Street 5-1

My young team didn’t do badly against higher opposition, despite losing every game. We deserved a draw against Preston, the other teams outclassed us. However we made £175.000 from the friendlies, so our coffers were in good shape. They had to be, I was overspending on wages by almost a £1000 a month!

My new signings didn’t really begin to impress until the easier ties against Easington and Street. Baxter surprised me by grabbing two against the miners. Mark James grabbed one against Street.

All in all my team are in good condition for the new season, the only problem is that I still hadn’t found a tactic to suit them.

retired_ajbrittney

So the season was about to begin! I had high hopes for my team, my only worry was fabricating a tactical system that would suit their talents. Last season I had always gone with a modified Diamond formation. It steadied the ship but it showed its frailties as the season went on. I’ll never forget the humiliating defeats against such sides as Grays and Hornchurch. We would have to be a whole lot more secure this time around.

The bookies seemed to think we were in with a shout. They considered us a good bet to achieve promotion. The fans and board were a little more modest with their expectations, they’d be happy with a top half finish. As for myself, I’m not sure I can stand another year in the Conference South. It may be more difficult this time around though. Along with such teams as Cambridge City and Newport County, we’ll also have to face teams relegated from the Conference in the shape of Forest Green and Canvey Island.

Going into the game against Basingstoke there were a few issues. Salt and Quinton still hadn’t forgiven me for fining them following their sendings off. Buckley, Beckford and Gibbens were unhappy with their role in the team. Also there was the fact that a lot of deadweight was still on my books and the wage bill was very high.

I decided to use the formation that had battered Street into submission. It was a standard 4-4-2 but tweaked to be very attacking. My players would be instructed to attack on the break a lot. I’d implement the Offside trap and tight man marking to cover the defensive frailties.

The side looked a little different to last season. Baxter replaced Murphy in central defence. Wilkie came in on the right wing and Fowler replaced Haylock in attack. Paul Honey had impressed during the friendlies, so I started him in central midfield alongside Salt.

Basingstoke Town v Sutton Utd

Early on we made all the running. Beckford broke free of the defence early on but was denied by their keeper. Basingstoke had a torrid time dealing with our speedy attackers and soon paid the price. On 8 minutes Marshall played a ball into the box. Fowler got behind the defence and finished well. His first goal for us and on his league debut.
Basingstoke managed to survive until half time. They appeared to learn lessons from their errors and were a lot tighter. Fowler had a golden opportunity to put us further ahead just before the break, he made the mistake of looking for a pass though!

Andrew Martin had suffered a knock, so I brought on Mark James. James was eager to impress because just after the restart he received the ball from a corner, swiveled on it and blasted it into the net. Both my new strikers have now opened their accounts on their debut!
This second goal seemed to galvanize Basingstoke. They had a few chances but just before the 60th minute mark they equalized, thanks to excellent wing work from roach and an assured finish from Levis.
I was now worried, Basingstoke had a lifeline and would go all out to make it level. Fortunately Mark James restored the deficit soon after. He didn’t know much about it though! Beckford’s cross hit him in the head and the ball bounced into the net.
Virtually from the restart Fowler put the game beyond doubt. He managed to get behind the defence once again, he needed two attempts to put the all in though.
Basingstoke moped around for the rest of the game. A 4-1 defeat at home was humiliation enough for them, they didn’t want to increase the deficit.
The game ended without further goals. What an excellent start to the campaign.

Basingstoke Town 0) 1-4 (1 Sutton Utd

A great team performance from the chaps. Allaway was superb in goal, Salt controlled the Midfield and the two new strikers played very well, scoring two each.

Next up was another away trip, this time to Hayes. The team was unchanged from that that routed Basingstoke.

Hayes v Sutton Utd

The frailties of the 4-4-2 were shown in this game, Hayes had no problem defeating the offside trap and only a total change of playing style saved our bacon.
The first ten minutes of this game were frantic. No less than 3 goals were scored in that time period. Molesley put our hosts ahead, thanks to a rebound. Beckford leveled son after, he received a superb long ball from Schon and powered into the box before slotting past their keeper. My joy was short lived, Hayes soon had the advantage again. Clement James finishing well.
The game couldn’t keep up that hectic pace and it didn’t. We exerted more pressure on our opponents and received our reward on the half-hour mark. Beckford providing for his counterpart Wilkie, who didn’t bat an eyelid when he put away his close range chance.
We had a number of chances just before the interval but Hayes keeper was in inspired form. The same cannot be said of Shaun Allaway, he was superb in the last game but has looked a little uncertain in this one!

The first half had been superb entertainment for the neutral, I was less pleased however. My defence had proved to be porous. I expected better in the second half.
Salt missed a long-range effort virtually from the kickoff but after that it was all Hayes. Clement James once again proved to be their integral player. He defeated the defence and finished well. Now we were in trouble!
Fortunately we have a dangerous James of our own. Mark James came on for the tired Fowler in the 60th minute and his contribution proved vital. On the 73rd minute he used his pace to get behind he defence and trickled the ball past their keeper. We were back on level terms.
The rest of the game was a seesaw affair. It finished 3-3. The giddy heights of Basingstoke look a long way away. With a poor defensive performance like this, we will not achieve anything.

Hayes 2) 3-3 (2 Sutton Utd

A mixed bag of a game. Beckford and James were influential, Allaway seemed to be afraid of handling the ball. We cannot afford such frailties in our next game. We are home to Canvey Island.

The week progressed very quickly, before I knew it the Canvey Island coach had pulled up in Gander Green lane.

Andrew Martin and Paul Honey were unfit, so I brought in Quinton and James. I had every faith in James that he wouldn’t let me down, as for Quinton, Pah.

Sutton Utd v Canvey Island

A very frustrating game. We had loads of goal scoring chances but Canvey came out on top. I obviously need to train my attackers hard.

Canvey got off to a dream start thanks to Boylan. He would prove to be their vital player today.
Their domination proved to be too much for our 4-4-2 so I changed to a centrally orientated 4-3-3. It proved to be much more effective in coping with our talented opponents. We received chance after chance, sadly their keeper was in superb form and our attack was having an off day.
Our equalizer came just before half time and it was thanks to a reliable old hand. Phil Salt has a knack of scoring from midfield and he converted a Fowler cross very well.

I was happy going into the second half. In retrospect I would have settled for a point. Despite all our chances and domination it was Canvey who came away with a win. Boylan scoring his second soon after the break.
We tried to break them down but it just wasn’t happening. A frustrating game and our first defeat of the season and at a much earlier stage than the previous year!

Sutton Utd 1) 1-2 (1 Canvey Island

Allaway had his second poor game in a row. Three strikes and he’s out. Wilkie was subdued by the superb Canvey right back. None of our players exactly covered themselves in glory.

Three games, one win, one draw and one defeat. Such form will not get us promoted, I hope for better things to come.

retired_ajbrittney

After the disappointing defeat against Canvey my side needed a morale booster. All that Bishop Stortford wanted to give us was a high strength tranquilizer. They came to GGL with the sole intention of putting the crowd and opposing players to sleep.

I made no changes to the side that lost the last match, I did teak the tactics a little though. Quinton and Salt would continue in Central midfield but I would give them runs to make. I wanted Quinton to help out the defence, I expected Salt to make his customary forays into the opponents box!

Sutton Utd v Bishop’s Stortford

I foresaw a dull day’s football and I wasn’t proved wrong. Stortford were lacking in imagination but their strong work ethic stilted my more creative players. Our Hertfordshire visitors had more attempts on goal but our few attempts were clearer cut. Our best chance was a brave Beckford diving header at the post which was misdirected into the side netting.

Sutton Utd 0-0 Bishop’s Stortford

An unimpressive match. Beckford was good as usual on the wing but Fowler had a real off day. The best I can say about my other players is that they were workmanlike.

I was more confident for our next game at Maidenhead. I decided to change our tactics entirely. When we changed to a 4-3-3 in previous games we seemed to have no difficulty obtaining goal scoring opportunities. The trick was to change back to a more defensively stable formation before the inevitable backlash.

Of course with a more attacking formation I’d have to change some personnel. Quinton was dropped from the midfield, I brought in Larvin for his first game of the season. Beckford and Wilkie were brought into central midfield with runs out wide.

Maidenhead United v Sutton United

Maidenhead seemed to enjoy the space my new formation gave them. They squandered a number of goal scoring opportunities in the opening half hour and I was forced to change things around at half time. the formation was basically a 4-2-3-1 with Peter Fear brought onto the pitch to fill the defensive midfield position.

The new formation paid dividends. Beckford enjoyed the extra space provided and roamed over the pitch. He was especially effective at breaking the offside trap and on 51 minutes his contribution put us ahead. He ran past the stranded home defence and was clear on goal. He unselfishly passed to Fowler, who tapped in.

After that goal the game was plain sailing. On 69 minutes Beckford got clear yet again and provided a good cross for Wilkie, who finished well. The final goal was scored by James, a recent substitute for Martin. Beckford once again provided the important pass, though Wilkie’s hard work on the wing was instrumental in setting up the goal!

Maidenhead Utd 0) 0-3 (0 Sutton Utd

An excellent team performance that washes away the disappointment of previous weeks. Beckford was once again superb. The way we whittled down the opposition with injuries also helped.

It was a good thing that our confidence had been boosted with the win against Maidenhead, next up would be Newport County, a team that always provided a stern test.

I decided to use the same formation that had worked so well against Maidenhead. Salt and Quinton would occupy the defensive midfield positions, Fowler would fit into the central attacking midfield position with Beckford and Wilkie on either side, making runs onto their respective wings. Martin would be my sole striker, his aerial presence should be most imposing.

Sutton Utd v Newport County

An entertaining seesaw of a game that saw some excellent football and many goals.

I was well pleased by an incident in the 3rd minute that saw Newport concede a penalty. Aherne-Adams needlessly handled the ball when under pressure from Wilkie. Martin’s penalty wasn’t the best I have seen but it found its way into the net. Advantage Sutton!
I have to credit Newport with resilience. They bounced back right from the kickoff. Charles drew in virtually the entire defence towards him, then crossed for Sullivan who artfully beat Allaway to score.
Both teams had minor chances following that, Allaway made a good save from a free kick, tipping the ball onto the bar. The next break through occurred just before half time, Quinton intercepted the ball and played a splendid through ball to Wilkie, who used his excellent pace to score.
I was sure we’d go into the break with the advantage, it was not to be, once again O’Sullivan was unmarked at the right post and he beat Allaway to the ball.
Level pegging at half time our formation was creating the chances, it wasn’t keeping our defence watertight though! Still I’d watch further to see how it did!

The second half started as entertainingly as the first, Allaway was forced into a string of good saves. We were the side that grabbed the advantage though and it was Wilkie who found the gap and exploited it. He powered his way through the opposing defence and scored with a thumping drive.

The rest of the game was equally sided. Salt and Quinton were effective at stifling the Newport attacks and laid the foundations for all our attacks. Wilkie was very dangerous in attack. We held out for a splendid victory.

Sutton Utd 2) 3-2 (2 Newport County

Quinton and Salt were key pillars in our victory, Wilkie was the man who got noticed though with his rapier strikes.
My good mood was improved with the draw for the 1st qualifying round of the FA Cup. We were home to lonely Witton Albion. Maybe this year we would embark on a money spinning run.

retired_ajbrittney

So far this season the league has taken on an unusual shape. Kingstonian are at the top and are unbeaten. Lewes are a surprising 2nd place. We are in 3rd and face Lewes in our next match. It’ll be a tough trip.

A slightly changed team took the pitch. Martin was injured so I brought in Larvin. Corbett replaced the unfit Quinton and both St Ledger and Baxter were unfit so Murphy returned to the Central Defence.

Lewes v Sutton Utd

Everyone once in a while you get one of those games where you are denied by the brilliance of a single opposing player. Lewes keeper Ademola Bankole was that player. We had over 20 shots on goal and only scored once. Bankole had the best keeping performance I have seen so far this season.
The game started well enough, Fowler had a shot from the edge of the box which bobbled in front of Bankole and went in. That was to prove to be his final mistake, he didn’t put a foot wrong after that.
It took half an hour for Lewes to equalize. Barrington Belgrave proved a pacy threat, he started a fantastic run from the half way line and passed to Cornwall, whose finish was sublime.

The pattern for the rest of the game was that one of my attackers would be clear on goal, he’d either put it over or be denied by Bankole, they were never able to beat him.
I was just about to settle for a point when disaster struck. Belgrave once again proved too pacy for the defence, he set up Newton, who proved to be a lot better in front of goal than any of our strikers had. Only two minutes left to salvage the game.
The game proved unsalvageable, Lewes and Kingstonian pull further ahead of us. Oh sugar!

Lewes 1) 2-1 (1 Sutton Utd

Despite our chances a very unimpressive performance. Bankole won them the match!

I’d of hoped that my spirits would be lifted with a win against Witton Albion in the FA Cup. I decided to play some fringe players. Such players as Gibbens, Haylock, Gonsalves, Hodges and Honey were on the team sheet. Witton are far below us in the pyramid so I wasn’t expecting any trouble. I should have made a better note of our previous history. Sutton Utd may have a history as giant killers, they also have a knack of losing against weaker teams in Cup competitions.

Sutton Utd v Witton Albion

Most of the stadium was deserted when the tie kicked off. Of those that had bothered to turn up, plenty had left the stands within the first half-hour. The 4-2-3-1 works well with quality players but with the crap inhabiting the fringes of my squad, it was a dismal failure. We were 3-0 down by half time, Witton just had a bigger appetite than we did!

The second half wasn’t as dismal as the first, I had brought on some first team regulars. St Ledger scored a penalty in the death but that was no consolation. We lost a game we should not have lost.

Sutton Utd 0) 1-3 (3 Witton Albion

An abysmal performance. Fear, Murphy and James were by far the worst performers. Fear and Murphy didn’t really bother me with their ineptness, they would probably be gone by the start of next season anyone. I cannot be too harsh on James, he is a youngster and will suffer the odd blip!

My disappointment would be helped some if we performed well against archrivals Carshalton. My team returned to full strength. I decided to drop Martin and find out how well James would do in his place. I preferred Honey to Quinton in the midfield role. He was one of the few to come out with any credit against Witton.

Sutton Utd v Carshalton Athletic

Not the greatest performance but we won comfortably none the less. Fowler put us ahead within the first 15 minutes with a penalty. James put us further ahead with a shot just outside the area, that squeezed through the keepers hands. Larvin finished the match 3 minutes before the end with a well-taken header into the right corner of the net.
It was a very dull game, Carshalton were entirely unthreatening and look to be favourites for relegation this year. What made the victory extra sweet was that Billy Smith had goaded me before the game, saying we had no chance to succeed in our promotion hopes. Whatever happens I am sure of one thing, we’ll do better than him!

Sutton Utd 2) 3-0 (0 Carshalton Athletic

Not the greatest of performances, not that it mattered, we were very comfortable!

Our next match is away to surprise table toppers Kingstonian. I really cannot understand their success, they have one of the worst squads in the league, yet they are unbeaten after 8 matches, with seven wins and one defeat. Bizarre!

retired_ajbrittney

Scott Steele, the Kingstonian supremo, decided to engage in a war of words with me. Apparently my team had no chance of promotion. I really wanted to shove those words down his throat!

I used a 4-2-3-1 for this game. Despite Kingstonian’s appearance of weakness I knew that they had earnt their top spot. I wasn’t going to dismiss them. Fowler would be my sole attacker. Corbett and Quinton returned to the side in Defensive Midfield

Kingstonian v Sutton Utd

Kingstonian showed me what their dangerous qualities are. They have a very pacy aggressive midfield and attack. Their drawbacks are a lack of creativity, my defence saw all their attacks coming and were generally stalwart. Our chances were of a higher quality. Fowler hit the post and in the second half Beckford put the ball over from close range.
A good effort and a point away to a team who have only dropped two points before meeting us. We should have won the match though!

Kingstonian 0-0 Sutton Utd

A workmanlike performance from the team, Allaway was solid in goal.

I was confident of a win at home to fellow high fliers Weymouth. Drawing against Kingstonian had boosted my hopes of a good result. I decided to give the 4-1-3-2 another chance to shine. Martin was out injured and I didn’t want to overexpose Larvin or James. So Haylock received a start. I preferred Corbett to Quinton in the Defensive midfield hole, I think he is more reliable.

Sutton Utd v Weymouth

I wouldn’t say that the formation worked out for me. It didn’t really create many chances for me and Weymouth had fun outpacing my defenders. Lee Phillips was especially dangerous and he put Weymouth ahead, taking advantage of the advanced position of my central defenders. Weymouth held onto their lead and was in a good position at half time.

I returned to the attacking midfield formation that had been reasonably fruitful in the past. We made more chances but were also leakier at the back. However we did manage to equalize.
Wilkie and Beckford combined superbly. Eventually Wilkie found himself out wide and his cross to Beckford was excellent. Beckford’s header was unerringly accurate. 1-1.
Sadly chances after that were few and far between. Weymouth had a match winner in the shape of Lee Phillips. Once again he lost the 2 central defenders and his finish was excellent.
Weymouth succeeded in blocking our attacks and the game ended in a disappointing defeat.

Sutton Utd 0) 1-2 (1 Weymouth

A poor team performance, Weymouth had the edge in combativeness and sadly skill. Lee Phillips was their matchmaker. Allaway and Baxter both had poor games.

Our cup form had got off to a dreadful start with the home defeat against Witton. Next was a FA Trophy tie home to Hednesford, who are struggling in our Northern Counterpart league.
We had a league game the following Tuesday, so I decided to rest most of my first team. The side that took the part looked very different than normal.

Sutton Utd v Hednesford Town

A reasonably entertaining game, that was marred by a card happy referee. It was a pretty close game but we had the edge. Our advantage was confirmed on 35 minutes, Mark James cross found Larvin in the area, Larvin’s drive could not be stopped by a mere human like the Hednesford keeper.
We held out for the rest of the game, Tommy Forecast was stalwart in goal and won the MoM award.

Sutton Utd 1) 1-0 (0 Hednesford Town

My reserves did well for themselves. Honey, Forecast and Mark James were especially impressive.

My regular players were fit and ready for the visit of promoted Bath City to GGL.
Bath lay in 15th place and I fully expect a win.

Sutton Utd v Bath City

We put plenty of early pressure on the visitors but it took almost half an hour to take the lead. Mark James provided the goal. He has a lot to thank Salt for, his ball was superb.
Against the run of play Bath equalized 5 minutes later. Allaway was to blame, he jumped for the ball and missed it entirely. Scott Partidge’s header found the net.
We kept up the pressure though and Ryan Wilkie regained the lead for us just before the break. Fowler provided the pass and Wilkie was clean through. The keeper did well to block his first shot but the rebound fell kindly and Wilkie didn’t miss.

We continued the second half in the same vein as the first. Bath wilted before our onslaught. Wilkie and James both added to their tally. Wilkie with a 25 yard screamer and James with a superbly taken volley.
Who can blame me for being confident? Three goal cushion, the game should be ours! However Bath put their all into the attack and I didn’t expect Allaway to drop more clangers. His positioning was faulty on two occasions and Bath took advantage with 2 goals.
The last 10 minutes were fraught with tension but we held on.

Sutton Utd 2) 4-3 (1 Bath City

Salt had a magnificent game in central midfield, James and Fowler also played well. Allaway was awful and can consider himself dropped. I decided to twist the knife by criticizing him in the press. I’ll give young Forecast a go for a bit!

Fifth in the league. Our form is too inconsistent for my liking. We are the most prolific scorers in the league but our defence is the leakiest in the top 8. If the defence is not shored up I don’t think we’ll even achieve a playoff place.

retired_ajbrittney

IT IS THE END I'M AFRAID TO SAY

I got very slack with my updates, too busy playing the game and working. I went three seasons past the last update, then something happened. First I shall briefly outline how things progressed.

2005/2006

Very good season, only lost three times and finished in first place. Salt and Beckford were once again superb, Fowler and Beckford were very effective in attack without being amazingly prolific. Andrew Martin whinged a lot and I farmed him out on loan to such teams as Bromley and Frickley
Crap in Cup Comps.

2006/2007
Started off very brightyly but had a January collapse. However the infusion of new blood like Swedish attacking Midfielder Mohammadien and DMC Azariah O'Garro infused fresh life into us and we finished 2nd. Handily defeated York and Mansfield to gain promotion to the League.
Crap in cups

2007/2008
Signed a few fresh faces and they helped us to do well early on. However the 2nd half of the season was disappointing, we were very hard to beat but transformed into the leagues draw specialists, our record at the end was

w 18 d 21 l7

Just managed a playoff place.

Crap in cups.
..............................................

It is with the Playoffs that my recap ends. Face off against Kidderminster in the first tie. Beat them 3-0 at home.

At this stage I am very confident. I think " What can I lose, better get ready for the final".

So I rest half of my first team, basically any player below 93% fitness. Still there is a streak of quality running through the also-rans that visit Kidderminster.

I should have realised that my habit of resting players would bite me in the ass, every time I did it against lower league opposition in the cups I struggled. This time struggle wasn't the word. Massacre would be a lot more appropiate.

Kidderminster 5-0 Sutton Utd

Maybe the Home side were infused by the spirit of Raptor, I don't know. All I do know is that my players were dreadful. Sadly I am incapable of physically throttling computer generated players, so I did the next best thing.

I have already proven that I am a criminally short sighted manager, I went on to prove that I am a prat as well (As if you had any doubt)

I opened up my CD drive, removed the disk andFOLDED IT UNTIL IT SNAPPED IN HALF. I then snapped the halvesd into smaller pieces until their scattered fragments glittered prettily onto the sunlight ceiling.

Frustration drove me to desparate measures, I am now on suicide watch, do not follow my example!