The Sleeping & The Dead Are But in Pictures : Taking the Daggers to the Top

Eldritch7 · 09-23-2003, 10:59 PM

Aeons ago (well, last October), I started a Dagenham & Redbridge story. it crashed, so i started an Orient story. This crashed too, so i vowed never to do another one (at least til I got a new computer). However, having started another Dagenham game & actually got somewhere, I began to think about turning it into a story, jotting down notes here & there and saving the odd bit of data. However, it was only when i noticed that Donners had returned to the Diamonds that i decided to write it up; there was a nice symmetry in that his first Rushden story had inspired me to do the first of my own...

Anyway, with ten seasons and nineteen days of game time behind me, (which gives you an idea of how slow my PC is

), this is the story of the Daggers & there assault on the League...

TECHNICAL BIT

CM01/02 v3.69 without editors etc. I let the game run for a season just so that there'd be a bit of mystery to it, although I left it running too long & actually only got back to it at the end of August 02. At this point the Daggers are 2nd in the Conference with three wins & two draws from their first five games (so it worked out quite well in the end...).

Eldritch7 · 09-23-2003, 11:12 PM

Chingford & Waltham Forest Guardian, Aug 29, 2002

Ex Orient Man is Surprise Choice for Daggers

Dagenham and Redbridge have announced that their long awaited new manager is former Orient youth team coach Rich Wellard. Wellard, 24, becomes the youngest manager in the Conference, after leading the Os youngsters to the double in his first full season in charge. In a press conference yesterday, the new boss outlined his plans for the club.

' I've been speaking to the board & they agree that last season's eighth place was a major disappointment. We decided that the club needed to bring in some new blood in order to realise its dream of league football, so you can expect a lot of comings and goings over the next few weeks. I feel this club can really achieve something with a bit of effort. I've actually got a ten year plan in mind, at the end of which the Daggers are in the Premiership. The chairman found this quite funny for some reason...'

Many observers have queried the appointment of such an inexperienced manager, but the new man clearly has lofty aspirations. Caretaker manager Mark Stein will become his assistant, although it is likely Wellard will want his own man in the job.

Dagenham Recorder 30/08/02

Hill makes shock return to Victoria Road

New Dagenham manager today surprised everyone by appointing his predecessor Garry Hill as his assistant. Hill, 46, who quit as Daggers boss in June, was apparently asked back due to his long standing association with the club & his close relationship with the players.

Eldritch7 · 09-23-2003, 11:35 PM

Yahoo Mail (dated 31/08/02)

Message: Hill
From : Rich
Re : Players. cf Oh Bugger.

Garry

Watched the lads train today. Here is my honest assessment of the senior squad.

Goalkeepers

Paul Gothard, GK, Age 28

Paul is clearly the best keeper on our books. But seeing as the backup is probably you, that's not saying a lot. To be fair, Paul isn't bad at this level, but he does seem to have a worrying tendency to let in goals in groups (not a lot of 1-0 defeats last year, were there.) A new keeper is a must, probably two, but Paul should stick around as cover for a bit.

Defenders

Billy Jones, DL, 19

I used to have Billy in my Orient youth side. Only occasionally though. I see he's still pretty useless. Transfer list him.

Mark Rooney, DRC, 24

Unfortunately, in terms of footballing ability, Mark is some way away from his young namesake Wayne. Or Mickey, come to think of it. Put him on the list too.

Enso Sylvestre, 20, DC

Riiight. Close the door on your way out, mate. List.

Steven Clegg, DR, 20

Unlike most of our defenders, Steve can pass. Not to our guys though. Transfer list.

Billy Mead, DR, 21

For gods sake, isn't there anyone at this club who can bloody tackle? List!

Kevin Harrison, DRC, 16

Right, we'll hang onto Kevin. Not cause he's any good or anything controversial like that. I just don't have the heart to chuck out a kid of his age. Yet.

Eddie Saunders, DC, 20

Jesus, he's the worst yet! I'm quicker than him & i've got a dodgy knee. It might be an idea for me to come out of retirement if this is an indication of the quality of players we've got. Transfer list. Not that anyone will want him.

Matthew Taylor, DDMC, 28

...and he doesn't even have time on his side. List him.

Kenny Simpson, DL, 19

Oh good, a left back. With no left foot. Or tackling ability. Or pace. Or skill. Hmm. We might have to keep him around for comedy value. Ask him if he can make tea.

Andy Farley, DC, 22

Oh My...this guy's actually not bad! Yes, he can tackle a bit, and head the ball, and run faster than my nan. Make him club captain.

Lee Goodwin, DDMRC, 23

Actually Lee's not bad either. He's a decent attacking full back, which is just what we need. Good to see its not all bad news. Just mostly.

Overall opinion on the defence : We need one.

Need a lie down. Will communicate rest of squad later.

Rich

Message : Rich
From : Hill
Re : Squad

Now you know why i resigned...

Eldritch7 · 09-24-2003, 02:28 PM

Message : Hill
From : Rich
Re : Squad

OK, i think I can continue now...

MIDFIELDERS

Steve Forbes, DMRC, 26

The first thing Steve said to me when i met him was that he wanted to leave. Never let it be said i stand in the way of players who don't want to play for the club. Especially when they're mediocre. Bye then.

Peter Clarke, DML, 17

Another young left sided player without a left foot. By process of elimination (ie coin ****), Peter can leave...

Kieron Gallacher, AMRC, 23

Kieron looks to be a decent enough player. Not good enough to build a team around but certainly worth keeping. That's four so far then...

Chris Baird, DMC, 21

A defensive midfielder is absolutely vital to the way my teams play the game. Chris is not a defensive midfielder, despite what he says. Transfer list.

Jason Broom, MC, 30

Interesting one this. how does a man with so little discernible footballing talent spend five seasons at a 'professional' football club (using the term in the loosest possible sense, of course). Well, no longer. Get rid of him.

Paul Terry, MC, 23

Such a pity he isn't as good as his younger brother John. Then again, if he was, he'd hardly be stuck at the Daggers, would he? Promising, though; another probable first teamer.

Mark Lennon, DMC, 22

Where have all these bloody jokers come from? Why do we continue to pay them money even though they'd struggle to play in the Jewson Wessex League (or similar)? Transfer list.

Jamie Pitman, MC, 20

Jamie seems to have a little bit of talent. Not enough to stay here, though. See if anyone wants him on loan, if not, list him.

Lee Fowler, DMC, 19

Lee looks like the closest thing we have to a star player. Doubt he'll be here for long, then. A definite starter while he is.

Steve Vaughan, MC, 20

Steve is borderline...not good enough to play, too good to discard (yet). Give him a season in the reserves & see if he shapes up.

Ronnie Green, AMFRC, 20

Ronnie is probably just about good enough to be a back up. That isn't the same thing as being actually good, i'm just clutching at straws here. Keep him until we find someone better.

Phil Gibson, AMFC, 20

He can shoot straight. It's sad that that's enough to make him worth keeping but there you go...

Mark Janney, MR, 23

A winger who can run andcross? I feel honoured...seriously, though, Mark should see a fair bit of action this season, hopefully his pace will frighten some people.

STRIKERS

Mark Stein, SC, 36

The closest thing we have to a proper 'name'. Mark is a long way from his glory days at Chelsea, and his days of leading the line are probably gone. But he still jumps well for a little bloke, and you never forget how to shoot. Unless your name's Adi Akinbiyi of course. Hopefully we'll get one more season out of Steino before he calls it a day.

Junior McDougald, SC, 29

Ah, another of my old Orient mates. Nice to see Junior can still play; in fact, he looks better than ever. He should always get goals at this level, although if we do go up he might begin to struggle.

Paul Piscopides, SC, 22

Paul's arguably the best striker on our books, and he's already got four this season. Unfortunately the big(ger) boys want him. Burnley and Millwall have both put in bids. Offer him a new contract, but if he has to go, squeeze every last penny out of him you can...we need some transfer funds.

Tony Lock, SC, 20

Every so often you watch a player in training and can tell he's going to be special. everything he touches turns to gold, you feel priveleged to work with him. Unfortunately, Tony isn't that player. In fact, he's rubbish. Transfer list.

Mark King, SC, 15

Are we even allowed to employ fifteen year olds? Oh well. He's not a lot of cop but he's got eighteen years to improve so we may as well give him a chance.

Overall, then, we need to strengthen just about everywhere. Two keepers, half a dozen defenders, a couple of left sided midfielders and possibly even a striker or two. Better call up every trialist in Western Europe and invite them in. No, seriously.

Eldritch7 · 09-24-2003, 02:52 PM

Yahoo Sport, 1/9/02

Palace man joins Daggers on loan

Crystal Palace defensive midfielder Steve Thomson has joined Dagenham and Redbridge on a four month loan, as the first signing for new boss Rich Wellard. thomson is likely to go straight into the team for tomorrow's game at Farnborough. Dagenham are currently running the rule over no less than nineteen trialists with a view to permanent contracts. They have also released centre backs Enso Sylvestre and Eddie Saunders; the latter is currently training with Hereford.

Extracted from 'A Dagger to the Heart; The Autobiography' by Rich Wellard (published September 2010)

There's something about your first game in charge of a side. It doesn't matter what level you play at, and who the opposition is. It gives you a buzz quite unlike any other to see your lads running out on the hallowed turf to do your bidding, knowing that you and they hold the destiny of the club and its thousands of supporters in your hands. This buzz is only slightly dimmed by the inevitable realisation that you've sent out a bunch of no hopers at a decrepit ground in front of nineteen people. The trick is to ensure that your no hopers are marginally less clueless than the other guys. And that the crappy ground is someone elses. First rule of football management; always suck less in every respect than the opposition. When you get to the big leagues, then you can worry about competence.

Dagenham Recorder, 3/2/02

Confident Daggers ease past Borough

Farnborough Town 0 Dagenham & Redbridge 2
New Daggers boss Rich Wellard saw his charges get off to the perfect start with a comfortable away win over Farnborough. Two goals in a man of the match performance from young striker Paul Piscopides proved sufficient to earn the away side the points. After the game Wellard acknowledged the result but admitted that the performance was a little disappointing. 'I felt we always had this one in the bag, but i was a bit worried that Paul looked to be our only threat up front. it's looking increasingly likely that he'll be gone before the next game, so we need to find some goals elsewhere. Still, i was quite pleased with the side as a whole, especially considering the number of new players i'm planning to introduce; any points with the current personnel is something of an achievement!'

Recorder Ratings : (4-1-2-1-2) Gothard 9; Clegg 7, Farley 8, Thomson(c) 7, Goodwin 8; Fowler 9; Lock 6, Janney 7; Gallagher 7; Stein 7, Piscopides 9. Subs Terry 7, Green 7, Rooney 6.

Goals Piscopides 11, 58

Eldritch7 · 09-24-2003, 03:30 PM

Chingford & Waltham Forest Guardian, 5/9/02

Wellard shows intent with transfer flurry

The Victoria Road revolution kicked off in earnest this week, with confirmation of no less than eleven transfers released by the club office. Eight of these are new arrivals to a squad new boss Rich Wellard is reportedly less than impressed with. They are goalkeeper Greg Bass, defenders David Heath & Keith Martin, and forwards Kevin Richardson, Alan Kinsella, Tommy Douglas, David Henderson and Yannick Kamanan. All have arrived on free transfers, and are largely second year yts trainees, although Kinsella and Kamanan are former Academy players at Leeds and Tottenham respectively. The outgoing players have all been for fees, giving Wellard a small transfer kitty for the future. foremost amongst them was striker Paul Piscopides, who has completed his oft rumoured move to First Division Burnley for 110k. Also off is midfielder Steve Forbes, the recipient of an unexpected 70k bid from Coventry, as well as fellow midfielders Mark Lennon & Peter Clarke. Lennon leaves for Margate for a nominal fee, while Clarke makes a 3k move to Serie D side Locri.

www.daggersonline.net

Player portraits

It's been tricky to keep track of the comings and goings at Victoria Road this week. Few Daggers fans are happy at the loss of Paul Piscopides, but the money should come in handy so we wont complain too much. However, we, like everyone else, know very little about the new arrivals, so we sent our roving reporter to talk to Rich Wellard about his new signings.

Greg Bass, GK, 15

Ok, so Greg's a bit young for professional football, but we need a backup keeper immediately and he's definitely got talent. Keep an eye on him, i reckon he could go far.

Kevin Richardson, FR, 17

Kevin's an old fashioned centre forward, big, strong and good in the air. i'm not convinced he'll amount to anything but he shows enough promise to be worth a punt.

David Heath, DRLC, 19

Dave's biggest asset is his versatility; he's two footed and happy anywhere along the back line. It's doubtful he'll be much more than a useful sub but you never know...

Alan kinsella, SC, 17

As a former Leeds trainee, Alan's made a big step downwards, both in footballing and geographical terms. His great strength is his pace; he's one of the quickest at the club. he needs to work on his shooting but he's got a lot of potential for a 17 year old.

Tommy Douglas, SC, 20

i've brought Tommy in to add squad depth; its doubtful he'll displace Mark Stein or Junior, but he's a solid back up who looks a decent goal poacher.

David Henderson, AMRC, 18

i've got a really good feeling about David, he looks to have the makings of a quality player. He had a few first team appearances with Scarborough last season but I reckon in a season or two you could be seeing him regularly here.

Keith Martin, DLC, 16

Left footed left backs are such a rare commodity i tend to pick them up if they've got a modicum of talent. Keith looks a decent player, he could even get some first team action this year.

Yannick Kamanan, SC, 21

I'm not sure what to make of Yannick. He's got bags of ability but he's one of the laziest players i've ever seen (typical Frenchman

). If he applies himself he could be very useful. If he doesn't he'll be on his way back across the channel faster than you can say 'sacre bleu'. Or something.

Wellard also made it clear that this was just the beginning. 'Look on me as Harry Redknapp's younger, more profligate brother', he remarked. 'I want a big squad at the club, but i'm still going to get rid of at least half the players we had when i arrived. don't be surprised if you see another dozen new faces by the end of next month.' DO hopes there's a few more obvious first teamers than have turned up so far...

Eldritch7 · 09-24-2003, 03:47 PM

Dagenham Recorder, 10/09/02

Daggers blow two goal lead to remain second

Dagenham missed out on a chance to go top of the conference yesterday, as they drew 2-2 at Victoria road against struggling Runcorn. Early goals from Lee Goodwin & Kieron Gallagher had the home side on cruise control for much of the game, but defensive lapses in the second period allowed rookie striker Roger Benn to grab two goals for a Runcorn side who rarely threatened. Daggers boss Rich Wellard was disappointed in the performance, although he insisted it was still early days. 'we're still unbeaten, and this was almost the same side that we played last week, so i'm not downhearted. There's clearly work to do at the back but we'll get that sorted sooner rather than later'.
Young striker Yannick Kamanan failed to impress on his full debut, although loan signing Steve Thomson looks a shrewd acquisition. None of the other new boys played, although Wellard insists that first teamers are his main priority.

Recorder Ratings (4-1-2-1-2) Gothard 6; Clegg 6, Farley 6, Thomson(c) 7, Goodwin 7; Fowler 8; Broom 7, Terry 7; Gallacher 8; Stein 7, Kamanan 6. Subs Rooney 6, Janney 7, Green 7.

MOM Benn (Runcorn)

Goals : Goodwin 4, Gallacher 19, Benn 68, 84

www.daggersonline.net

Daggers boss Rich Wellard has announced the arrival of two more free transfers following yesterday's match. They are;

Leon Hese, DC, 23

Leon was released last year by his hometown club, PSV Eindhoven. He's skilful for a centre back, if a little lightweight, but he should feature.

Juan Antonio Garai, DMC, 15

I'm delighted to have picked up Juan, there were some bigger clubs interested in him. He looks to be a real find, especially at his age. despite his youth i'd have no hesitation at playing him in the first team this season, and i reckon he's a star of the future.

Lionel_Perez · 09-24-2003, 03:55 PM

Nice start. Good luck with taking the mockneys into the league

Skorne · 09-24-2003, 05:53 PM

Nice =)

I dont really read any of these stories, but as i have currently gotten The Daggers into the premiership and just survived my 1st season - i thought this would be interesting.

*I do think you have too much spare time on your hands though*

Eldritch7 · 09-25-2003, 01:47 PM

LP - Cheers, feedback appreciated as always, especially from a lower league legend like yourself

Skorne - always good to hear from fellow Daggers bosses - you'll have to wait a while to see if i've achieved the Ten Year Premiership plan, though.

Let me know how things are going every so often...

Dagenham Recorder, 11/9/03

Daggers scrape win to go top

Nuneaton Borough 1 Dagenham & Redbridge 2

Daggers continued their unbeaten start to the season with a cagey win that takes them top of the Conference after eight games. Nuneaton striker Lee Cook opened the scoring for the home side, but the Reds were soon on terms thanks to a close range effort from Mark Stein. The second half was a very even affair, with both sides hitting the woodwork, but Daggers snatched the points thanks to a last gasp debut goal from forward Colin McMennamin. Just eighteen hours after signing a contract with the club, the former Newcastle youngster popped up with a close range header to win the game. His manager Rich Wellard praised his latest acquisition after the game;
'I've got big plans for Colin, he's quick and skilful and his final delivery is excellent. Until Junior (Mc Dougald) iis fit, he'll play up front, but after that i might give him a run out in the hole behind the two front men. I was pleased with his contribution today but there's definitely more to come.'

Recorder Ratings (4-1-2-1-2) Gothard 6; Clegg 7, Heath 7, Farley(c) 8, Goodwin 7; Fowler 8; pitman 6, Terry 7; Gallagher 7; Stein 7, McMennamin 8. Subs Richardson 6, Green 6, Kamanan 7.

MOM Cook (Nuneaton)

Goals :
Cook 31, Stein 42, McMennamin 89.

www.daggersonline.net. 13/9/03

Yet more movement at Victoria Road, as new boss Rich Wellard attempts to build a Conference winning squad. No less than four players left the club yesterday; defenders Billy Jones & Mark Rooney on free transfers (Jones has already signed for Hampton & Richmond), midfielder Jason Broom has joined Lincoln, also for free, and long serving Matthew Taylor has moved west to Cheltenham for 12k. In contrast, only one player has moved to the Road (not including last week's debut hero Colin McMennamin), namely 17 year old midfielder Chris Jackson. Here at DO we're pleased to see the new boss building for the future, but a little concerned that we're yet to see a proven league player arrive. Still, plenty of time for that, and in the meantime our league form is very solid (Top of the League!).