cosford

Thanks guys, much appreciated

1.1.05
Into the new year, and the first day is spent getting Peter Weatherson to the right place. He’s a mountainous 24 year old forward we’ve signed for a bargain £8k from Greenock Morton. He’s a good player, brilliant in the air and no mug on the ground, Peter is built for this league, and he’s even the right age.
Now the transfer window has re-opened, I have work to do. If I get my signings right in this period, we can really push for the play offs. Get them wrong, and we could slip away.

He’s straight into the side for todays game away at Mansfield. No messing about.

Half time, and we’re 2-0 down again. Two long range strikes have done for us. This is ridiculous.

We don’t do it. Todd pulls a goal back from a corner, but we miss a host of chances, Weatherson in particular guilty, but we go down to a side with only 13 points 2-1. I desperately need Bolt back, there is just no impetus, but its silly goals. We can’t let two goals a match in and expect to win. I thought I had it cracked, there are 11 talented players out there, but its not working. Why? I should know, I’m the manager, but I can’t do a lot about the striker who can’t score from around the penalty spot given 3 tries. We’ve also lost Jamie Tolley to injury now, I’m running out of players, and if we don’t pick up soon, you can forget automatic promotion, we’ll be lucky to get in the play-offs.

cosford

thanks people :thup:

3.1.05
An almost instant game, and therefore an instant chance to put it right. Its Cambridge at home, and if we lose, we’re going to be way out of the play-off picture.
Edwards is injured, so Kevin Street comes in. Bolt is nearly back, and is pushed onto the bench.

Half time, and its 0-0. We’ve had all the play, but we’re not playing with much pace, and we’re not making a significant dent into Cambridge.

In the second half, although being slightly outplayed, our attacking play improves, and peaks with big Simon Parke flicking on for Fitzgerald to streak clear. Finally, he does what I pay him for, and scores a lovely low finish. They continue their bombardment, but we hold out well, and score again late on. Ingeldow squares the ball, and O’Brien hits a lovely left footed shot low into the corner from the edge of the area. It’s a good solid win, and with Bolt back next game, we can maybe start pushing back up the table.

8.1.05
Lincoln away, a tough game we could quite easily lose. Finally though, Danny Bolt is back! Yay! It’s the F.A Cup, and winning this is important, both for the money today and for the chance to make even more in the next round.

Half time, and while we’ve dominated the first half, we’re on ten men. We had our 6th sending off of the year, Chris O’Brien for two stupid trips on the same player. What was he thinking? Now, although we should have scored so many times, its level, but we’ve got 1 less man and Bolt fast running out of energy. Weatherson and Fotheringham are combining wonderfully, but neither can put the damn thing in the net.

We never do score, but neither do they. In the end, we defend like heck, and come away with a slightly lucky replay.
God we miss some chances, Bolt’s completely knackered, but still gets named man of the match. He also gets booked, which means that he’ll miss a game for 5 bookings! How many matches do I lose players for through suspension? This applies to Danny Smith too, so next match I’ll be without 3 of my best players!

That next game is tonight, and also, funnily enough, its away to Lincoln. Marshall replaces Smith, Challis in for Bolt and Edwards in for O’Brien.

Half time, and we’re 2-1 down. They took the lead with a tap in when we for some reason allowed Yeo to get to a ball first. We equalize, Fotheringham crosses from the right and Kevin Street glances the ball home. Justice.
It lasts all of 30 seconds, they come forward and Yeo is given all the room he wants to hit a unstoppable 25 yarder into our net.
This isn’t on, I know this may have been said before, but we’ve had to many chances. Both of our strikers have had one on ones, why can’t they finish? Its pathetic, we should be winning this on quality of chances alone, but we don’t put them away and then conceded just enough goals to lose. I’m not happy.

Ten minutes after half time, and only minutes after, leaning back, Weatherson had put a golden chance into orbit they score another goal. Peter Gain simply steps up and demolishes the back of our net. How does a keeper get beaten from outside of his box twice in one match? I’ve properly had enough now, and, stood on the touchline, tell the players I want a result from this. Seeing that they might have to walk back if they don’t recover, they do produce a effort. Edwards gets Fotheringham away up the right, and he crosses in. Doing what our strikers fail to do regularly, Lee Briscoe slides his first Shrewsbury goal home to give us a chance. Briscoe has had a good game wide on the left, and that carries on. He goes to the byline and sees his cross defected behind. Fotheringham steps up and floats it in, big Chris Todd heads it unstoppably into the net.

Like at Scunthorpe several weeks ago, we masked a poor performance by coming back to get a result, but we can’t give teams a 3 goal head start! At the back, believe it or not, we weren’t too bad. Had we had both a full defense and midfield, I think we would have won today, but its noticeable that all our scorers came from midfield or defense. Neither centre forward looked like scoring all night.

15.1.04
Swansea at home, and we sure do need a win today. Bolt, Smith and O’Brien are all back.

Half time, and we’re 2-0 down again. Firstly there’s a right cock up allows their player to tap home, then Todd, trying to be a footballer, gifts the ball to Trundle, who shoots straight at Howie. Instead of catching it, he clips it up, over his head and into the net. Half way through the first half, and the home manager has gone to 3-4-3.

It doesn’t work, we miss chance after chance after chance. Then, with 5 minutes to go, Chris O’Brien is sent off yet again, two bookables, both of them dissent. I’ll deal with him later.
While we only have ten men, they score again. We’re out of the play-offs.

In the dressing room, I ignore O’Brien, and commend the rest of the team for their efforts.

I keep O’Brien back when the rest go home, and myself and Gerry Reddy confront him in my office. Its not on we tell him, that’s his 3rd sending off, most of those for dissent. Instead of submitting, he attacks us, questioning everything we’ve done. That’s enough. I tell him he can have a month away from the club, and that he’s transfer listed. I brought him in from non-league, and I’ll bloody well put him back there. As far as I’m concerned, he won’t play for us again. He is simply not good enough to be this much of a liability.

cosford

19.1.05
A new player. Stylish Danish forward Mads Timm has joined us on loan from Manchester United for 3 months. He�s a classy player, capable of playing up front or in midfield.

Tonight is the F.A Cup replay, win, and we get the pleasure of taking on Swindon away. Oh goody. O�Brien, of course, is out, so Kevin Street comes in. Timm is on the bench.

Half time, and for a change, the score is 2-0. To us! Wayhay! We�ve played really well this half, as if refreshed by the dropping of our captain. It was his replacement, Chris Todd, who headed us into the lead from Fotheringham�s 8th minute corner. Bolt then got the second, dribbling in from the left following Weatherson�s wonderful through ball, he opted not to pull it back, and instead shot a lovely goal just inside the far post. He has made runs and pulled it back twice, and each time, Fotheringham has volleyed wide. Its becoming a problem, twice a game at least, Fotheringham gets these chances on the edge of the 6 yard box, and every time drags it wide. This is good though, and we need to keep it up.

We add one more goal, and it could have been 4, to win 3-0. Danny Bolt scores a almost identical goal, using tip toe skill and a burst of pace to drive into the area and slam a powerful drive into the net.
Mads Timm does well in his half an hour.

Great result, and hopefully a catalyst to turn the second half of the season around. Its brought us in a right packet, as will the game at Swindon, which its not beyond us to win.

22.1.05
Transfer news today. Chris O�Brien has gone. We�ve sold him to Hucknell Town of the Conference South for �10k. He was a excellent player, definetly one of my best signings, but a complete nutcase who couldn�t keep himself under control, and then reacted badly to being managed.
I�ve moved to replace him instantly, signing 22 year old AMC Rickie Lambert on loan from Stockport. He�s a wonderful player, better than O�Brien, with a lovely right foot capable of hitting great passes or scoring goals. Maybe he doesn�t have an attitude problem as well.

It�s the big F.A Cup tie, away at Swindon. They�re a class outfit obviously, but we can win here if we�re professional and, most importantly take the chances I�m sure we�ll get. Dolan (surprise, surprise) is suspended for 5 bookings, so Bassinder comes in. Lambert also replaces Street in midfield.

Half time, and we�re 2-0 down. We were doing great for 20 minutes until Briscoe gave a stupid pen away. End of story, with our resistance down, Parkin scored both pen and a lovely chip in quick succession to send us down. Maybe if Weatherson and Fitzgerald had scored the two great chances they gave each other it would be a different story.

The final score is 0-3. Parkin completes his hattrick down to some sloppy defending. We did ok, and could have scored a few goals, but we never did enough. Had we not given them that pen, it could have been a different story, as we would have held out longer and maybe created enough chances to nick it, but we didn�t. Fair enough.

cosford

27.1.05
When I arrived I set up a youth scouting system, headed by Spencer Field. Its borne fruit already, with us signing 7 youngsters instantly, all of them Irish. They all arrived on the same flight, and now I take them through expectations and things at Shrewsbury Town. These lads are the future, and here they are: Mick Carter, 16, DC. Matt Flack, 16, DC. John Clegg, 15, DC. Alan O’Shea, 16, SC. Paul Martin, 16, DR. John Jackson, 15, AMR. Gary O’Sullivan, 15, GK. They all have the potential to be terrific players, and one or two of them are especially promising. They’ll be joined by more soon.

A big step for them, coming over as a group to play for this small team they won’t have heard of. It’s a big step, but they’re going to be footballers with us.

28.1.05
I’m seated in my office pen pushing when the door is almost blasted off its hinges and the chairman flies through it. Unaccustomed to having my office assaulted, much less by my boss, I stand and demand a explanation. His eyes gleam back with an almost psychopathic delight. Spluttering something about Christmas he points at a letter in his hand.
Its from the director of Liverpool FC’s sporting academy. They were tracking Mick Carter, but when he signed for us he caught them by surprised. They’re determined to have their man, and have offered us the huge sum of £975,000 for the 16 year old. Its money we can’t turn down, that sort of fee could make this club for the next decade. I ring down and get a bight eyed Mick in my office, a young footballer full of the new world, and tell him the news. He’s overwhelmed, but I explain my position, I have to have this deal. I tell him that all that will happen is that he’ll have a higher chance of turning into a footballer, and that if it didn’t work out, we’d be happy to see him again! It’ll mean starting again for the second time in a week, but I tell him to forget Shrewsbury ever happened. He rings his parents. The deal will go through, I’m sure of it.

Also today, I have other business to attend to. Ross Clarke is a 18 year old AMR/C with terrific abilities and the potential to get much better. He’s been signed on a free transfer and will go straight into the first team squad. He has a terrific right foot, good pace, nice technique and a ability to score goals excellently. He’ll be a good addition.

Also today, ironically, we’ve signed Mark Smyth on loan from Liverpool. A very one dimensional FLC, he has good skill, ok finishing, and good pace. He’s a head down and run player, but that may be ok. He was a last resort, no one else seemed to want to sign, especially to cover that left wing position.

cosford

29.1.04
Away at Rochdale, a tough game we really need to win. They�re in the position above us. If we win, it�s a huge jump up into the play-offs, if we lose, it�s a marathon to climb back. No changes.

Half time, and we�re 1-0 down. We�d defended ok, and broke well. Weatherson 3 times one on one, we can�t continue to miss these. Then, they come forward, and instead of going with his man, Dolan pushes out, gets it played in behind him, and they score. A stupid mistake costs us again. We have to score goals!

2 minutes after the restart we do. The ball bounces stupidly around in the middle of the area, and Weatherson manages to hook it around the keeper and into the net. Fair enough, but the chances big Peter then manages to miss are beyond a joke. He must have had, and I�m not joking, 5 total or very close to one on one chances with their keeper. He misses the lot. Then, with half an hour left, someone gets the ball to the edge of their area, and Patrick McCourt, the one quality Rochdale player, volleys it into the net. My heart collapses.
We pummel them, creating twice as many chances as they do. Mads Timm hits the post, we do everything except score. Then, in the 92nd minute of injury time, Bolt swings in a corner, and Chris Todd heads home his 10th goal of the season. That was our 62nd league goal, but we�ve let in more than 40. Not good.

I may have been on about this quite a few times, but all the chances cannot continue to be missed. We�re scoring goals, but not enough! We don�t let many goals in, but we�re always going to concede one or two. When our strikers have chances, they don�t score them, and its crippling us. Our centre half has 10 goals, how many times has that ability from corners saved us? How many time has a midfielder or defender had to get forward to nick a goal? Our top striker has 15 goals, not bad you might think, but on a chance/goal ratio, its not that good.

1.2.05
Danny Bolt is player of the month!

A new signing, with left sided midfielder Steve Jennings coming in from Tranmere for 3 months loan. He�s there as back up to Bolt. He�s a useful 20 year old.

2.2.05
Today is the day for him to play like it. We�re away at Layton Orient, another match against a team just above us fighting for a play-off place. A win is needed, but we simply must, must, not lose.

Half time, and we�re 2-0 down. They wove past us on 8 minutes to score their first, then Howie got no where near a corner, giving the same player a easy header. We�ve attacked a bit, but we�re not causing them any problems really, we�re never going to get back into this. Remedy? Weatherson and Fitzgerald off, Parke and Timm on. All out attack for 45 minutes. Might as well lose 3-0.

We do. We attack relentlessly, and get hit when a corner is headed back to a completely unmarked player on the edge of the area. We hit the bar, we miss chances galore, but I hardly care. I�ve had enough of this lot, if they can�t be professional (and while I accept that we were beaten by the better team I can�t stomach a striker missing the chances ours do), then I can�t be bothered. I�ve run out of energy for this team. They don�t play with any sense of confidence or drive. Its all half hearted stuff, we don�t dominate at all, we don�t tackle, we don�t look clinical in any way. We�re 10th, and we�re now 9 points away from automatic promotion. Not good enough, this has to be the lowest point, if it turns out not to be, we�re finished big time.
I have to spend some of that money on new players, and now.

cosford

5.2.05
Wycombe Wanderers away today, and yet another play-off team. If we lose here today, I think that�s it. We�re never going to gain enough ground back to launch a serious claim. Basically, we need to win. If we do, that�ll be a huge help, if we don�t�.
I make 3 changes, being ruthless, I drop Fitzgerald, and replace him with Smyth, Fotheringham, and replace him with Clarke, and Edwards, replacing him with Ingledow. That could all go wrong, but I have to try.

For a while, it worked, but then, late on, just as we could have got to half time, it went awry. Clarke lost the ball weakly on the right, it bounced off Todd, off Dolan, and finally fell to their midfield player who scored. A childish goal, like a bunch of 5 year olds chasing after the ball. This is so frustrating. What to do now?

The final score is 1-1. Not a defeat, but not brilliant either. Mark Smyth scores a fabulous goal, turning off two men and driving home, but its not enough to get us all 3 points.
In the second half there�s only one team in it. We destroy them, Todd twice hits the bar with free headers, Weatherson is through no less than 3 times, but misses them all. We have a goal disallowed for a none-existent offside, and there�s a terrible moment when a cross rolls all the way along their completely deserted goal line with no one to tap it in. In the final minute, Bolt was completely free, driving into the box, 4 players shouting at him to pull it back. Selfishly, he shot, and it went for a throw on the far side.
I�m getting so tired of saying it, but its missed chances again that are costing us. We had more than enough opportunities from a multitude of sources to score, and spurned the lot. That is what is going to cost us. Patches of silly defending and then a inability to take a multitude of chances are going to cost us promotion.

12.2.05
Home to Northampton, a midtable team. This has, has, to be 3 points, anything else isn�t acceptable. Fotheringham comes back in for Clarke on the right. Briscoe has a knock so Challis comes in.

Half time, and we�re 1-0 up, Smyth rolling in the rebound from Weatherson�s shot. We�ve done ok, we�re out playing them, but we must score at least one more.

I think the second half is probably one of the strangest I�ve seen. We go down to ten men after only ten minutes of it, Todd getting sent off for two bookable offences. Not good, but to be fair to Chris, he immediately apologizes. Then, something incredible happens, and it happens to Peter Weatherson. Bassinder, on as a Todd replacement, gets up and heads the ball forward, towards their edge of their area. Big Peter picks it up, turns off his man, and unleashes a unstoppable right footed drive which hurtles over the keeper and takes the back off the net. The ground explodes, and Weatherson, both hands outstretched runs 50 yards and leaps on top of me on the touchline. I stuck by him, and this seems to be part of a reward. The other half arrives soon after. Playing at the back for a split second, Smyth simply hacks the ball away. It falls to Weatherson on the edge of their area, completely alone. He holds it up, spins, goes to the byline, cuts back, shoulders past his man and thumps it low into the corner from the angle. I never thought I�d see him do that, even though he does have the capability.

It�s a great 3-0 win, which while it doesn�t take us anywhere, restores optimism and makes the 8 points between us and second place look much smaller than it did a week ago.
There was good spirit about them today, and if Weatherson can put a burst in and take some chances between now and the end of the season, then we have a real chance.

cosford

15.2.04
Bury at home, and again, we must have 3 points, nothing else will be good enough from a game such as this. Gavin Bassinder replaces the suspended Todd.

Half time, and its 0-0. We’ve had all the play, and a Bassinder header disallowed, but we just can’t get a goal. We must, these are 3rd to bottom, and it has to be 3 points today.
Mads Timm on for Lambert at half time.
In the end, it is, by a comfortable margin. Only 2 minutes after half time, Fotheringham gets away up the right and puts in a perfect cross to the far post where Weatherson does as all good poachers should and gets up to crash a perfect strikers header into the opposite corner for 1-0.
Then Mads Timm demonstrates why signing him was a good idea. He nips onto Fotheringham’s chipped ball, runs to the edge of the area on the right side and slams a swerving shot at terrific pace over the keeper and into the far corner. It’s a great goal, and a huge sigh of relief goes up around the ground, not least from me.
As if repaying him for not getting his first, Gavin Bassinder scores. Bolt whips a corner in, and big Gav rises to nod his 5th goal beyond the keeper.
They get one back with their only shot of the match when we’re all over the place at the back and we do about 50 things wrong, allowing Mike Flynn the chance, but fortunately, we’re already 3 goals up!

A good professional performance today, and 3 points secured which takes us back into the play-off zone. We have to keep this run going, we can’t allow ourselves to take anymore knock backs.

19.2.05
Grimsby away, and while these are a good team, we have to go out and ruthlessly claim 3 points. Todd is back, but only makes the bench, as Bassinder did fine last match.

Its been a incredible first half. They take a early lead, our ex forward Colin Cramb bending in a fine free kick, but we get back on level terms when Mark Smyth scores a fabulous goal. Picking up the ball in his own half he breezes forward, beats at least 3 men before finishing sweetly with his left foot. It doesn’t last. The defense crumbles, and Cramb is in again to finish low.
Again, we come back, a Weatherson header is tipped over, and Bassinder scores from the resultant corner with a simply unstoppable header. Finally, can we hold this? No, because they score yet another direct free kick to go back into a 3-2 lead! Whats going on here? Again, to make it 3-3 at half time, we retaliate, and score a equalizer. Weatherson holds the ball up, and flips it through a gap in the defense. Smyth has it taken by the defender, who lets it bounce, giving Smyth another chance to get the ball and hook it left footed into the net.
3 goals away from home and still only getting a point! For gods sake! We can win this, all it will take is a slight tightening up at the back and a continuation of good attacking play for us to get 3 points. Or, of course, it could go the other way.

It finishes 3-3. Scott Howie saves a penalty and they have two goals disallowed, one of which would have been literally the last kick, in the 95th minute.
It’s a hectic game, which, despite all of that, we could have won. It was not the amount of chances we created, but the quality of them, with Peter Weatherson missing an almost completely open goal with a volley.
Although it takes us out of the play-offs again, I suppose I have to be happy with a point. Still though, we could and should have won today, only our again suspect defense letting us down.

cosford

26.2.05
Notts County at home, and with some of the upcoming fixtures we have, today is a absolute must win. One change, Dolan is out, and Todd is in at the back with Bassinder in an attempt to sort out defensive problems. Gay Meadow has a rather restless air to it, no one is sure what is going to happen. Are we going to turn up and wallop these, or just shade it, or fail miserably. Its days like this that make me wish I’d bought 11 hard working monoliths to kick teams like this off the park. Instead, we must try and beat them by playing football.

Half time, and playing football has worked against their ridiculously optimistic attacking formation. We’re 2-0 up. Bolt has got both of them, first prodding home and cross from the lively and imaginative Smyth, and then skinning his full back before cutting into the area and sliding the ball into the corner. So many times they go wide, and now he’s finally got one! We’re playing well, at about our best I think, and we need to make sure we keep it up, and secure 3 points.

In the end, the score line has a top heavy look to it, even though we completely deserved our 4 goals without reply. We miss loads of chances, most of them by Peter Weatherson, before finally scoring 2 goals in the last 5 minutes of the match. Firstly Smyth is fouled, a penalty which Bassinder smashes in, then, in stoppage time Smyth gets his own goal, rolling in the rebound from Weatherson’s shot.

Another great performance, with the back 4 looking much steadier this time around. Against the lower half, we look a absolute class outfit, but we must now carry this on into the last 15 games or so of the season.

1.3.05
Bolt got player of the month again! He’s attracting quite a cult following, and most of the questions I seem to get asked regard him. He’s something different, and a type of player whom there aren’t many of any more.

5.3.05
A very tough game today, away to Oxford United in their posh new ground. These are in the play-offs, have the division’s leading scorer, and we need to beat them, or at least not lose. We make no changes, and I can’t stress how important it is to get a result, we can’t get beat by our immediate rivals.

Half time, and we’re 2-0 down. We’ve been playing them off the park, and suddenly, they get a wicked deflection, and then score from a corner. Its going to be a long way back.

We never do it. They score another blinding goal, and Mark Smyth gets sent off for two bookings. It’s a shocking result, but they were better than us.


8.3.05
Its local rivals Chester City at home, and this has to be 3 points. They’re not a brilliant side, and we must get one over their loudmouth manager Ian Rush by beating them. All this week he’s been on about the rivalry and how his lads would be more ‘up for it’.
Smyth and Bolt are both suspended, are replaced by Timm and Jennings respectively.

Half time, and, having battered them, we’re not winning! We murdered them, and eventually took the lead when Dolan, on for the injured Bassinder, headed home. In stoppage time, they get a cross in. The header their pathetic winger produced was woeful, until it bounced off Todd and crept through Howie’s hands! How come we never get any bloody lucky goals, they’re always against us!! Just to help, Fotheringham has a knock, and can’t continue, so Street is on.


It finishes 1-1, their 1, yes 1, effort on target securing them a point. We hit the post through Timm, they cleared it off the line so many times I lost count, and I just can’t understand how we didn’t win. I know why we’re never going to be consistent enough to challenge for the top prize, we just can’t score enough goals. It’s a terrible result, against a team 5th from bottom we had to get 3 points. If we had, we’d have been 9 points off the title, but as it is, we’re 11. The players seem to be settling for the play-offs, but that’s not on, we need to win some blinking games! After this we have the team above us away, and 2nd placed at home. We could find ourselves out of the whole picture.

This team is so frustrating, I can’t wait for the season’s end when I can clear half of this lot out and get some class in.

cosford

12.3.05
Boston United, and I need some results now. I need these players to do something out of the ordinary. I need them to turn up and perform, instead of faffing about as they have recently. That begins today. Smyth and Bolt are both back in.

Half time, it’s a re-run of Oxford, and we’re 2-0 down. We had the better of the first 10 minutes, but failed to make it count. They then came forward, scored their first when the ball bounced off Todd, deflected off Smith and fell to their lad to score. The second was when their striker got the sort of chance mine get 5 times a match. Difference? He scored. In the dressing room, I’m disgusted. I tell them that half of them are going to be unemployed at this rate at the end of the season, and that they should think about that when allowing themselves to be bossed by a hardly superior team. Get out. What to do? The triple sub ploy. Weatherson, Smyth and Lambert off. Parke, Timm and Jennings on.

We lose 3-0. Pathetic.

I don’t speak to them on the bus on the way home, I’ve had enough of this bunch. Tomorrow they’ll come in and run and run and run. See if I care.

I’m already looking at people for next year, and half of these who played are going to find themselves unemployed anyway.

13.3.05
Enjoying those laps lads?

19.3.05
Cheltenham at home, and if we don’t win, we could be completely out of the picture. Fotheringham and Smith are rested, with Street and Marshall replacing them.

Half time, and *yawn*, its 0-0, with us dominating and not…….you’ve heard it before…

The second half is a improvement, and although for once they hit both post and bar, we score twice, and win 2-0!
Lambert puts us ahead, drilling into the corner even as he fell backwards from inside the area. He nearly missed, but it went off the post and in. The second goal was a gem, a real classic from Mark Smyth. Picking up the ball in his own half he tore forward, ripping the heart out of Cheltenham before finishing coolly from the edge of the area. Ahh… the sweet taste of victory.

Win all the remaining games, and the title is on you know lads!

cosford

2.4.05
Before we pop that Champaign, we have Bristol Rovers to contend with at the memorial ground. Fotheringham is back on the right of midfield, no other changes.

Half time, and after falling behind, we’ve responded with a very powerful performance, and we’re currently 3-1 up!
We equalized almost immediately, Fotheringham getting hacked down and Bassinder scoring the penalty, then Bassinder put us in front with a powerful header. Right before half time, a lucky bounce put Weatherson clean through, and while his curling shot came back off the post, Smyth (misser of several good chances) recovered to prod it in! We need to hold this, and ensure we get all 3 points.

The second half is ridiculous. We go into a 4-1 lead through Peter Weatherson’s low finish after a magical run from Bolt, but they then score a dodgy header and a seemly savable free kick to bring it back to 4-3. Somehow, we hold out, and claim a wonderful away win.

How did that happen? We’re cruising and suddenly they’re back in it. We continued to play wonderfully, created some good chances and generally looked like a good outfit, but I’d say we’re a class defender short of a side at the moment.
We’re 9 points away from automatic promotion, which, with 6 games left, is looking a big ask. 4 of them are at home though…



9.4.05
Maccelesfield at home. They’re 3rd to bottom of the league, and we have to go out there and smash them. No mistakes, no cock ups, I want a win! No changes, even though no less than 6 of our players are a booking away from a suspension.

Half time, and we’re 2-0 up. After about 20 minutes it only became a matter of time until we scored, and we did. Bolt swung in a corner and Bassinder crashed a header in. Only 4 minutes later we scored again. Fotheringham headed a Bolt cross back to the edge of the area. Ingledow moved it into the area, and Lambert smashed it home.
We’re doing ok, we just need to make sure we seal it now.

The second half is anything other than normal. They pull a goal back with a long shot Howie should surely have saved. Question marks are beginning to appear over my goalkeeper. No problem though, because we quickly score two more goals. Bassinder thunders in another header from yet another corner, and Lambert does as all good attacking midfielders should to get into the box and score a diving header off Danny Bolt’s superb run and cross.
Once again, they get yet another goal, but in stoppage time, we knock in a 5th. Mads Timm turns nicely on the right edge of the penalty area and lays the ball across to Ingledow, who blasts it into the corner.

Great performance I suppose, although letting two goals in is slightly worrying.

16.4.05
Yoevil away, and while this is a tough game, we must win it if we’re to have any chance to automatic promotion. After this, there is only 1 away game left, and that’s to Rushden, so winning today is important. No changes.

Half time, and we’re 1-0 up. A quick break got Fotheringham away up the right, and he crossed to the far post where Danny Bolt appeared to slot home. We’ve done ok, but another goal would be nice, and a continuation of this comparative solidarity.

We score again just after half time, Ingeldow rolls of his man and curls lovely little shot into the bottom corner. Game safe eh lads. Nope, because they score two goals through substitute Kevin Gall. My head just falls into my hands. I’ve seen all this before.
Somehow, we score again. Fotheringham gets the ball to Timm, who begins to storm forward. He nutmegs one defender, turns another, and then slams the ball under the keeper, securing 3 points!

Great result, if we can keep this winning run up, we do have a chance of automatic promotion.