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01-08-2004, 02:28 AM
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#1 | ||
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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CM03/04: Hereford We Go Again
I am once again tackling the challenge of the Hereford United Bulls. We start in the English Conference, 5-2 odds for promotion to the Nationwide League. Chester and Morecambe are 6-4 joint favorites for promotion, while Dag & Red (7-4), Scarborough (7-4) and Exeter (6-1) are the other main contenders.
Club expectations are subdued, only expecting a respectable league position with the conference. The supporters share the same expectations, and are waiting to see what effect my management has on the club. I have a transfer kitty of £9k to work with, and a bank balance of £110k, but the team is carrying a £1.3M bank loan through to 2007. It’s manageable at £24k/month (in CM4 it was £110k/month) so I don’t expect to fall victim to the dreaded receivership trap. Our sponsorship deal, which runs to 2008, doesn’t even cover one monthly loan payment at £22.5k per season. The club’s wage budget is set at £7,250/week and I start £900 over that. Look for that amount to skyrocket as I scour the lower leagues looking for talent. |
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01-08-2004, 03:03 AM
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#2 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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By the time preseason finishes, I have brought in 11 new players, and seeing as exactly 0 left the club, I am now at £14k/week in total budget, double my allowance. Obviously that is a problem that will have to be sorted.
Meet the 2003/04 Hereford United Bulls: Goalkeepers Code:
Phillips is a free signing and the former Hibernian youngster will get the nod as the number one. That places fan favorite Matthew Baker on the bench, and he might find his way out if we get a respectable offer for him (in other words any amount of money). Until then he is more than capable as a backup should Phillips not succeed. Scott is dreadfully short of talent considering he is the highest paid player on the team. He is transfer listed in hopes that somebody will take his £775 wage off our hands before the season ends. Defenders Code:
Captain Tony James is arguably the best player on the team. He’ll be a fixture at centre-back for a majority of the campaign. Joining him will be free signing Eddie Turkington, making perhaps the best defensive pairing in the conference. On the wings will be free singings David Woodison and Carl Laurie. Both are young and full of potential, but have the talent to be very successful in the conference. Welsh international Ryan Green and young Michael Rose will provide solid backups to the main four, while Andy Tretton and Richard Teesdale will not see much playing time, and will likely leave the club soon. |
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01-08-2004, 03:25 AM
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#3 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Midfield
Code:
Billy Gibson will be the transition from the defenders to the attackers at midfield. He’ll be a huge part of our drive for success. Backing him up at DMC will be Jeff King with Robert Sawyers filling in for injuries. On the wings George Fotheringham, Paul Parry, Scott Huckerby, and Danny Williams will battle it out for the two spots, with Fotheringham and Huckerby getting the early nod. Parry, a fan favorite, doesn’t seem interesting in extending his contract, but we are fairly secure along the wings. Robert Purdey is a young talent who will hopefully improve and get a couple of games in this season, but won’t be relied on too heavily unless injuries hamper us. Ben Smith, Dean Craven, and Jamie Pitman are not in the teams plans at all. |
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01-08-2004, 03:41 AM
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#4 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Fowards
Code:
We will be playing with 2 strikers and a withdrawn forward and Neil Somerville, Ryan Thompson, and Ronnie Green will be the first choice forwards through the campaign. The one thing we have to burn is speed, as all three have high pace and acceleration, which is usually a good thing. Green and Somerville are top poachers, while Thompson might have some problems finding the net. Mark Rasmussen is practically a carbon copy of Ryan Thompson, and the youngster Daniel Carey-Bertram shows lots of promise, and both will provide adequate cover. David Brown and Steve Guinan sorely lack any type of speed, so we’ll try to get what we can for them. |
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01-08-2004, 05:51 AM
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#5 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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By the start of the season my huge wage budget has burnt through my £110k bank balance before we even play a game. It’s all or nothing as we are probably going to need promotion to settle the debts I accumulate this season.
Accrington vs Hereford 3 mins into the match and a nightmare start as Accrington converts a 20 yard freekick to go one up. We settle down after the start and control through most of the 1st half. In the 48th, Ryan Thompson finds Ronnie Green unmarked in the area for the equalizer. At the top of the hour, with Accrington pressuring, Neil Somerville’s pace catches Accrington too far forward on a freekick, and he runs the length of the field and buries it in top corner for the 2-1 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 48, Somerville 62) Subs (Ryan Green on for Laurie, Rasmussen on for Ronnie Green 64, Williams on for Gibson 78) 1st Division club Norwich make a £16k bid for Tony James, which I negotiate up to £24k. Wimbledon is the first club to feel the financial burden, and the receivers are called in to right the ship. I take a quick look at their squad and make a £5k bid for a young 20 year old defender, who I hope will replace James if he leaves. Instead, Gavin Bassinder joins from Hitchin in a £6k move, a transfer I had arranged before the season started, but had difficulty getting Bassinder to agree to a contract. The 23 year old will easily replace James at center-back, and I give him my blessings to leave the club. Bassinder comes in at £300k/week cheaper as well. 4 goals in 4 shots by Manchester United is more than enough to capture the Community Shield over Arsenal as the English Premiership gets underway. The Norwich bid for James starts a biding war, with Bristol City and Plymouth both making bids as well. The Bristol City is an exchange deal and is flat out rejected, while Plymouth offers £20k up front (only £14k up front in the Norwich deal) so they have permission to talk with James as well. Exeter vs Hereford James is still with us for the time being, so Bassinder gets a seat on the substitute bench. Despite only 4 days rest we show no ill effects, as 1 min into the match, Somerville’s pace gets behind the defenders and he rounds the GK for the quick lead. It’s all Hereford early, and in the 18th a long Carl Laurie pass is misplayed by the defender, freeing Ryan Thompson for his first from the edge of the area for a 2-0 lead. Somerville gets his 2nd after a great cross from Thompson in the 30th, and Somerville adds the hattrick in the 49th min, after a great run by Scott Huckerby. Huckerby adds a powerful header off a Somerville cross in injury time to make it a 5-0 destruction. Goals (Somerville 2, 31, 50, Thompson 19, Huckerby 90) Subs (Parry on for Fotheringham 45, Rasmussen on for Ronnie Green, Bassinder on for Turkington 65) The win elicits delight from the Bull’s chairman, Graham Turner and as we head home for our home opener we find ourselves on top of the Conference. |
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01-08-2004, 05:52 AM
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#6 |
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College Starter
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Sweden
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Wo-hoo! I've missed having an active CM dynasty on the board...
__________________
San Diego Chargers (HFL) - Lappland Reindeers (WOOF) - Gothenburg Giants (IHOF) Indiana: A TCY VC - year 2044 - the longest running dynasty ever on FOFC! |
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01-08-2004, 06:36 AM
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#7 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Wimbledon comes back with a £16k price tag for Leon Crooks, the young 20 year old defender I was after, and that ends that transfer. Instead, Crooks joins conference rivals Telford on a 3 month loan deal. Tony James wastes little time agreeing to a contract with Norwich. We pocket £14k up front and £10k over the next 12 months in the move, and 23 year old Gavin Bassinder moves into the starting spot at center-back and assumes the captaincy of the club as well.
Hereford vs Stevenage Coming home to Edgar Street sees 2008 fans show up for the match. New team captain appoints himself the penalty taker just 4 mins into the match, and puts it in off the post for the 1-0 lead. Carl Laurie puts us up by 2 when he heads a Fotheringham freekick into the net in the 23rd. We continue to pressure throughout the match, but are not rewarded again (and in fact robbed on a couple of shots). However, our defense is air-tight (Stevenage’s starting forwards finish with a 2 and 3 rating) and we easily win 2-0. Goals (Bassinder 4, Laurie 23) Subs (Rasmussen on for Thompson 64, Ryan Green on for Turkington, Williams on for Gibson 75) Neil Somerville gets obvious praise from his manager, even though he failed to score in the last match  . With ratings of 10-10-7 and 4 goals in his first 3 starts, it’s really a no-brainer. The supporters, now impressed with the good start I've made at the club, agree. |
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01-08-2004, 04:30 PM
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#8 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Hereford vs Gravesend
Carey-Bertram gets the start in place of Ronnie Green, the only change to the lineup. Carey-Bertram breaks the deadlock in the 46th min off a corner for his first ever goal. Ryan Thompson adds another goal in the 59th when a deflection off Somerville magically falls at Thompson’s feet just outside the box for the easy 2-0 win. Goals (Carey-Bertram 47, Thompson 59) Subs (Parry on for Huckerby, Rasmussen on for Thompson 60, Ryan Green on for Bassinder 77) Bookings (Huckerby Yellow) AC Milan cruise to the 1-0 win over Porto in the European Super Cup, with a well placed strike by Shevchenko the difference. Woking vs Hereford We close out the month away to 3rd place Woking. Somerville gets a rest as Rasmussen gets his first start of the season. Woking strike first in the 3rd min after some poor clearing by Turkington sets up the goal. We press for the equalizer the rest of the half, but Woking hold us to poor chances. Carl Laurie is lucky to not be red carded when he gets booked for an elbow in the 45th min. Tactical changes can’t penetrate Woking’s defense, and we suffer our first loss of the year 0-1. Subs (Parry on for Carey-Bertram, Ronnie Green on for Thompson 63, Williams on for Fotheringham 80) Bookings (Laurie, Huckerby Yellow) The loss drops us out of first, 1 point behind new leaders Woking. Neil Somerville earns the Conference player of the month award for August. His first goal against Exeter gets 2nd place in the goal of the month award as well. Hereford vs Northwich Vics Somerville is back in the lineup as we come off only 3 days rest and Thompson gets the night off. Carey-Bertram opens the scoring in the 37th collecting a Fotheringham rebound for the easy score. A 25 yard freekick by Ronnie Green makes 2-0 just moments later. Northwich never threaten, and we’re back on track with a 2-0 win. Goals (Carey-Bertram 37, Ronnie Green 41) Subs (Parry on for Huckerby, Rasmussen on for Carey-Bertram 60, Turkington on for Ryan Green 85) Bookings (Rasmussen Yellow) The win coupled with a Woking loss puts us back in first, 2 points up on Aldershot, Dag & Red and Woking. |
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01-08-2004, 06:57 PM
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#9 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Billy Gibson suffers a groin strain during training and is lost for 3 weeks. That could be a problem. For now, Danny Williams will fill in at DMC.
England struggle to score against FYR of Macedonia in the European Championship Qualifiers, ending up with a disappointing 0-0 draw. They respond 4 nights later though with a 5-0 win over Liechtenstein to move to the top of their group and a showdown with Turkey in October. Barnet vs Hereford Without Gibson our defense is shaky at best, and we concede an early goal only 12 mins in. Bassinder has a chance to equalize from the penalty spot, but he shoots it right at the Barnet GK. We never threaten after that, and Barnet add two more going away for the 3-0 defeat. Subs (Turkington for Ryan Green 41, King for Williams 60, Parry for Fotheringham 77) Ryan Thompson comes down with a groin strain as well, and is lost for 2 weeks after the match. The loss puts us in 3rd, 1 point behind 1st place Aldershot. Hereford vs Farnborough Farnborough sit 13thin the conference with only 1 win so far this season. Rasmussen starts in place of the injured Ryan Thompson. Neither team shows much in the way of offence, and the game settles in a disappointing 0-0 draw. Subs (Carey-Bertram on for Ronnie Green, Ryan Green on for Turkington 61, Parry on for Woodison 70) Bookings (Huckerby, Laurie Yellow) Hereford vs Leigh RMI Off 4 days rest we look to break the slight offensive slump we find ourselves in. A nightmare start as 1 min into the match, Somerville and Huckerby have been booked, and Leigh score off a corner for the 0-1 lead. Captain Gavin Bassinder equalizes in the 7th when he collects a rebound off a corner, and then Scott Huckerby scores a wondergoal as he burns 3 Leigh defenders and then finds the far corner in the 9th for the 2-1 lead. Ronnie Green is unlucky as his 35 yard freekick hits the post moments later, but Eddie Turkington gets his first of the season when he lobs a 60 yard pass for Somerville that the Leigh GK misplays and it finds its way into the net for the 3-1 lead. Woodison adds another in the 2nd half with a 30 yard strike to settle the game 4-1. Goals (Bassinder 7, Huckerby 10, Turkington 29, Woodison 73) Subs (Parry on for Fotheringham, Ryan Green on for Laurie 66, Rasmussen on for Somerville 87) Bookings (Somerville, Huckerby, Turkington Yellow) Huckerby drops to a groin strain in training the day of the next match. He’s gone for a week. I guess the next groin strain will be ½ a week? Shrewsbury vs Hereford Shrewsbury sit 7th, 5 points back of Hereford who sit 3rd, 3 points behind leaders Aldershot. Parry fills in for the injured Huckerby. A back and forth first half settles in a scoreless draw at the break, but Ronnie Green strikes first in the 2nd half capitalizing on a Carey-Bertram rebound for the 1-0 lead in the 49th. He adds another in the 63rd min off a great Somerville cross and then he sets up Somerville only mins later for the 3-0 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 49, 63, Somerville 66) Subs (Purdey on for Fotheringham 60, Rasmussen on for Carey-Bertram 63, Williams on for King 73) The win keeps us in pace with the leaders Aldershot, who have won 8 in a row and produces squeals of delight from Chairman Turner. Paul Parry damages his foot in the game and will be out for a week. |
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01-08-2004, 07:02 PM
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#10 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Conference Table September 27, 2003
Code:
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01-08-2004, 07:41 PM
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#11 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Exeter manager Eamonn Dolan is the first conference manager to lose his job this season. Exeter who were expected to challenge for promotion find themselves fighting relegation after a slow start to the season.
A quick check of the finances shows that the board has raised my wage budget to £10k. Now I’m only £4k over Our bank balance shows us £140k in debt at the start of October, but we should be able to recoup most of that amount in a decent cup run. Tragically, we are shut out of the September awards.Gibson, Thompson and Huckerby all return from injuries and all three return to the starting 11. Scarborough vs Hereford Ronnie Green gets his 5th of the season after collecting a nice Huckerby flick on and finding the top corner in the 11th min and a goalpost prevent Scarborough from equalizing mins later after a defensive lapse. Ronnie Green nabs his 2nd of the night in the 2nd half after collecting a Somerville rebound for the 2-0 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 11, 53) Subs (Williams on for Gibson 63, Carey-Bertram on for Thompson 66, Purdey on for Fotheringham 76) Bookings (Bassinder Yellow) Aldershot finally lose, and we jump to 2nd place, 1 point behind new leaders Dag & Red. Following Hereford’s 2-0 win over Scarborough, Hereford’s chairman Graham Turner declared himself extremely pleased with the result. The Bulls have certainly started the season in spectacular form but few believe they will be able to last the pace. Pundits have been commenting that Manager Klayman’s men should enjoy the spotlight while they can. What spotlight? This is the English Conference for crying out loud. Nonetheless, Ronnie Green gets special recognition for his recent contributions and the manager (me) once again has his finger on the pulse of the supporters, as they agree with every word. |
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01-08-2004, 11:11 PM
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#12 |
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Coordinator
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Scottsdale, Arizona
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...great to finally see another CM dynasty...best of luck man!
__________________
Underachievement The tallest blade of grass is the first to be cut by the lawnmower. Despair It's always darkest just before it goes pitch black. Demotivation Sometimes the best solution to morale problems is just to fire all of the unhappy people. http://www.despair.com/viewall.html |
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01-09-2004, 09:38 AM
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#13 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Turkey and England end in a 1-1 draw, which allows England to win their Group at the European Championship Qualifiers. France, Romania, Czech Republic, Sweden, Germany, Greece, Bulgaria, Wales, and Ireland are the other group winners, while Croatia, Denmark, Russia, Hungary, Turkey, Italy, Spain, Holland, Scotland, and Slovenia will play in the playoffs.
Jordan King, who was impressive in his fill in for Billy Gibson, extends his contract for 2 years at the same salary. We draw 3rd Division Swansea for the LDV Vans Trophy South 1st Round at Edgar Street later this month, and lower league Whitley Bay in the FA Cup 4th Round Qualifiers, also at Edgar Street. Hereford vs Forest Green Ronnie Green continues his assault on opposition goalkeepers and puts home his own rebound in the 12th min for the quick 1-0 lead. A strange play in the 57th results in a Forest Green own goal, and we win comfortably 2-0. Goals (Ronnie Green 11) Subs (Parry on for Thompson 54, Ryan Green on for Turkington 61, Williams on for Fotheringham 75) Bookings (Fotheringham Yellow) Chester vs Hereford Off 4 days rest Ronnie Green is not fit enough to play, so Carey-Bertram gets the start. Carey-Bertram draws a penalty and the youngster converts in the 4th min for the quick 1-0 lead. Gibson picks up an early knock, and has to be substituted during the break. That changes little, though as we continue to dominate and Carey-Bertram adds another in the 47th for the 2-0 lead. Chester add a goal on their first shot of the game in the 89th min, which sparks their club, but Phillips stands tall the rest of the way for the 2-1 win. Goals (Carey-Bertram 4, 48) Subs (Williams for Gibson 45, Parry for Fotheringham 57, Rasmussen for Thompson 68) Bookings (Laurie, Gibson Yellow) Hereford vs Swansea LDV Vans Trophy South 1st Round We’re 3-1 underdogs for the match. The only lineup change sees Ronnie Green back in the starting 11. Swansea might be a league ahead of us, but they lack the pace to contain Green and Somerville, who give them fits early on. Unfortunately we concede off a corner in the 21st min to go down by one. Carey-Bertram gets that back with his 5th of the year, after some great work by Green and Somerville to set up the goal. We press for the equalizer, but a second yellow card by Turkington spoils any chance of an upset. That is until sub Ryan Thompson draws the defenders and finds Billy Gibson unmarked just outside the area, and Gibson’s long range effort is good for the 2-1 upset. Goals (Carey-Bertram 41, Gibson 87) Subs (Williams on for Fotheringham 45, Thompson on for Ronnie Green 58, Ryan Green on for Carey-Bertram 63) Bookings (Bassinder, Turkington, Turkington Yellow) Turkington earns a one match suspension for his two yellows. He’ll miss the next game. We draw fellow Conference side Dag & Red at home in Edgar Street for the 2nd round of the LDV Vans Trophy. Hereford vs Whitley Bay FA Cup 4th Round Qualifying Ryan Green replaces Turkington, and Paul Parry starts in place of George Fotheringham who is unfit to play. We’re 1-6 favorites to win, and Huckerby wastes no time getting the first goal just 8 mins in. Somerville picks up a Parry rebound 2 mins later and it is 2-0 early. Laurie adds a 30 yard screamer in the 38th, and the rout is on. Ronnie Green adds a hattrick, Carey-Bertram gets a brace, and Huckerby adds another for his 2nd of the night for a commanding 9-0 win. Goals (Huckerby 9, 54, Somerville 12, Laurie 38, Carey-Bertram 41, 90, Ronnie Green 43, 45, 59) Subs (Williams on for Huckerby, Thompson on for Somerville 54, King on for Gibson 65) Bookings (Ryan Green, Woodison Yellow) The 3858 is the highest attendance for Edgar Street this year and we take in £55k from the gate receipts plus £10k advancing to the first round to close out the month on a high note. |
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01-09-2004, 10:23 AM
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#14 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Several teams swoop in for backup Michael Rose. He eventually ends up at 3rd Division Oxford United for £5k.
We’re unlucky in the FA Cup 1st round draw, getting 2nd Division Bristol City away. I was hoping to get to the third round and hopefully pick up a Premiership opponent, but that seems unlikely now. After 111 days at the club, I take home my first award, grabbing Conference manager of the month for October. Hereford vs Burton Albion We get a much needed weeks rest before the match. Ryan Green continues to start in place of Turkington who moves to the bench. Injuries are the name of the game, as Fotheringham and Somerville go down with knocks. That plays with our cohesion, and although we control the possession we never really get into a grove, and settle for the 0-0 draw. Subs (Williams on for Fotheringham 45, Thompson on for Somerville 59, Parry on for Ronnie Green 69) Bookings (Laurie Yellow) We miss a great opportunity to take the lead as Dag & Red lose at home, instead the draw brings us even but behind on goal difference. None of the injuries suffered in the match are serious for some good news however. Hereford vs Dag & Red Showdown between 1st and 2nd. Ryan Green, Ronnie Green and Scott Huckerby are out for fitness, Turkington, Ryan Thompson and Paul Parry take their spots. The wet conditions play havoc with our pacey forwards, but Thompson and Somerville still manage a pretty one-two to go up by 1 in the 19th. Our defense is solid until Woodison goes down with an injury, and I’m forced to use midfielder Danny Williams as my right full back. Everything looks ok, until Dag & Red wake up in the 79th min, where they finally get their first shot on net, and a couple of mins later it is Williams who gets beat as Dag & Red equalize late for the 1-1 draw. Goals (Thompson 19) Subs (Williams on for Woodison 57, Ryan Green on for Turkington 64, Rasmussen on for Somerville 75) Bookings (Laurie Yellow) From the match, Turkington is out for a week with a damaged neck, while Laurie is suspended for the next match after 5 yellow cards. Not really what we needed with our next match against Bristol City. |
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01-09-2004, 07:58 PM
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#15 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Bristol City vs Hereford FA Cup 1st Round
We’re 10-1 underdogs for this match as Andy Tretton gets promoted from the reserves with 2 defenders out. He gets burnt early as well, but Phillips does extremely well to keep the game even. Somerville and Green’s pace are causing all sorts of problems for the Bristol City back 4, and in the 39th Somerville draws a penalty which Carey-Bertram converts for the 1-0 lead. Tretton is again beat late in the first half, but Phillips rescues him once again and we take the lead into the break. Into the 66th, and we are controlling the possession when Carey-Bertram gets a break off a lucky bounce, and beats the GK from 20 yards out for the improbable 2-0 lead. Bristol City come forward, but don’t create any good chances and we advance with the 2-0 win. Goals (Carey-Bertram 40, 67) Subs (Thompson on for Ronnie Green 65, King on for Somerville 67, Williams on for Fotheringham 90) Bookings (Bassinder Yellow) We get a nice £84k from shared gate receipts plus £12k for the FA Cup win, which cuts into the bank balance deficit nicely. We draw Conference side Morecambe away for the 2nd Round. I guess the manager just needs to have a little faith. |
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01-09-2004, 08:57 PM
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#16 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Hereford vs Dag & Red LDV Vans Trophy South 2nd Round
A rematch of the league match a couple days ago, sees Laurie back at right full back and Ryan Green at centre-back for the injured Turkington. Once again the wet conditions nullify our pace, and only a last second tackle by Ryan Green in the dying mins of the 1st half keeps the score even at the break. We dominate the 2nd half as Dag & Red only muster 1 shot in the 80th min but can’t catch any breaks as the game heads to extra time. In the 99th min, Gavin Bassinder heads home a Huckerby corner, and we hang on for the 1-0 win on the Silver goal rule. Goals (Bassinder 99) Subs (Parry on for Fortheringham, Thompson on for Ronnie Green 59, Williams on for Somerville 75) Bookings (Woodison, Gibson Yellow) After the match, Neil Somerville goes down with a torn groin muscle, and will be lost to the club for 2 months. It is a huge blow for the club. With their contracts expiring and teams showing interest, both Paul Parry and Mathew Baker are offered to interested clubs. Both get upset, claiming they will quit the club cause of my lack of support. Both refused to sign respectable contract extensions so I could care less. We draw 3rd Division Bristol Rovers for the LDV Vans Trophy Southern Quarter Final by some weird act of fate. I’m sure Bristol fans would not want to see both the Rovers and City lose at home to us. In European Championship Qualifying Playoff action, Croatia advances over Denmark, Spain over Holland, Russia over Hungary, Italy over Turkey, and Scotland over Slovenia to set the stage for the tournament this summer. Morecambe vs Hereford Thompson replaces the injured Somerville while Rasmussen joins the subs on the bench in our preview to the FA Cup 2nd round match in 2 weeks. Ronnie Green makes an excellent start getting his own rebound and the score just 3 mins into the match. Ryan Green adds another off a corner in the 19th for a quick 2-0 lead. Ronnie Green adds his second a couple of mins later and we go into the break up by 3. Carey-Bertram adds a penalty in the 2nd half and we walk away with the easy 4-0 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 3, 24, Ryan Green 19, Carey-Bertram 60) Subs (Rasmussen on for Ronnie Green, Turkington on for Bassinder 72) The win coupled with a Dag & Red loss at home to Woking shoots us into 1st place. Hereford chairman Graham Turner could not hide his delight following his team’s(ed note: his team? It is MY TEAM!) 4-0 win over Morecambe. The Bulls were reckoned to have little chance of breaking into the top six before the season began, yet Klayman’s men now find themselves described as potential title challengers by some sections of the media. With so many games still to go it remains to be seen whether they can do it but the fans are increasingly optimistic after this excellent recent form. |
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01-09-2004, 10:17 PM
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#17 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Neither Baker nor Parry gets enough interest from clubs to strike a deal, and I’m resigned to losing them for free in the summer. That’s a tough blow to lose the £40k valued Parry for nothing, but such is life sometimes.
Aldershot vs Hereford 3rd vs 1st and our only lineup change is Fotheringham getting the day off for fitness, with Danny Williams taking his place on the right wing. A 20 yard freekick by Ronnie Green starts us off in the 10th min. Aldershot pressure in the second half as our offence falls asleep but Phillips is solid in net and keeps them off the scoresheet. Substitute Paul Parry puts the game out of reach in the 80th when a gift ball deflects to his feet for the easy score. Bassinder adds insult in the 87th when he collects his own rebound off a penalty and finds the net for the 3-0 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 11, Paul Parry 81, Bassinder 87) Subs (Rasmussen on for Thompson 60, Parry on for Huckerby, King on for Carey-Bertram 71) Bookings (Ryan Green Yellow) Hereford vs Tamworth Fotheringham is back in the starting 11th as we tackle 5th place Tamworth. Even at 5th they are 10-1 underdogs going in. The first shot of the game is Carey-Bertram 25 yard strike that catches the Tamworth goalie in LaLa land, and it’s quickly 1-0. It’s all we really need as Tamworth never seriously threaten, and Carey-Bertram adds a penalty in the 2nd half for the 2-0 win. Goals (Carey-Bertram 8, 58) Subs (Turkington on for Ryan Green, Rasmussen on for Thompson 68, Parry on for Fotheringham 77) Bookings (Woodison Yellow) Carey-Bertram’s 25 yard strike against Tamworth is the Conference Goal of the Month for November, but despite going undefeated and outscoring conference opponents 10-1 in November, we’re shut out in the rest of the awards. |
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01-09-2004, 10:18 PM
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#18 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Conference Table December 1st, 2003
Code:
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01-09-2004, 11:25 PM
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#19 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Morecambe vs Hereford FA Cup 2nd Round
No lineup changes as we had a weeks rest before the match. Thompson opens the scoring as his pace wins him the ball and the keeper can’t handle the powerful strike from just inside the area for a quick 1-0 lead. Carey-Bertram adds a cheeky little curve into the top corner only mins later, and the outcome is no longer in doubt. Phillips shuts the door the rest of the way for the 2-0 win. Goals (Thompson 11, Carey-Bertram 15) Subs (Parry on for Huckerby, Rasmussen on for Thompson 59, Williams on for Gibson 74) We only get £15k in shared gate receipts, but £16k prize money for advancing to the 3rd round. A draw against a top Premiership club would land as a windfall. Paul Parry joins lower league club Bradford PA for £5k. The transfer will go through January 1st. It is way under his value, but the transfer will save us about £13k in wages which we would have had to eat until Parry’s contract ran out. We don’t hit the jackpot in the FA Cup draw, drawing 3rd Division Boston Utd at Edgar Street, but we do have a strong chance of beating them, especially in our own stadium and moving on to the 4th round. Bristol Rovers vs Hereford LDV Vans Trophy Southern Quarter Final No lineup changes from our victorious FA Cup squad. We’re only 4-1 underdogs which is considerably lower odds than we had against Bristol City. The Rovers control most of the possession, but it is Scott Huckerby who scores first with an absolutely stunning goal in the 24th min for his 5th of the year. He picked up the ball deep in his own half, ran the length of the field down the left flank, cut towards the net at the byline, sidestepped two defenders, and found the net on the short side. Huckerby is not done as he adds another sensational goal in the 36 to put us up by 2. Rovers come out flying after the restart, but Phillips and a goalpost keep them off the score sheet, and Ryan Thompson puts the game away in the 73rd with a goal off a corner for the nice 3-0 win. Goals (Huckerby 24, 37, Thompson 73) Subs (Williams on for Fotheringham 61, Turkington on for Ryan Green 69, Rasmussen on for Carey-Bertram 78) Bookings (Woodison Yellow) We nab £18.5k in shared gate receipts which must be considered grand larceny by most people in Bristol, and we advance to the Southern Semi-finals. We are definitely firing on all cylinders at the moment, with 7 straight wins, 7 straight clean sheets, and undefeated in 17 matches. |
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01-10-2004, 12:29 AM
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#20 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Mathew Baker rejects the lure of higher divisions and joins conference rivals Stevenage Borough for £8k. That could come back to haunt us as Stevenage sit 7th in the league and are still in the LDV Vans trophy. Speaking of which, the draw is held, and low and behold we draw Stevenage away for the Southern Semi Final. I’m sure Baker will be looking for revenge. Meanwhile I’m short a GK, so Ben Scott returns from the reserves to sit on the bench, but I’ll actively look for a loan replacement on the chance that Phillips can’t play.
Hereford vs Telford Woodison and Gibson both get a rest for this match, so King gets the start at DMC and Turkington gets a start at centre-back as Ryan Green moves over to full back. We create loads of chances but are unlucky not to make good of them. Telford drop down to 9 men after two players get ejected, but it barely makes a difference in the game until substitute Mark Rasmussen breaks free of the defenders in the 72nd min and finds the net from 20 yards out for his 1st of the year, breaking the deadlock. We hold the rest of the way for the 1-0 win. Goals (Rasmussen 73) Subs (Rasmussen on for Ronnie Green 52, Parry on for Huckerby 64, Tretton on for Turkington 77) Bookings (Turkington Yellow) Halifax vs Hereford It’s a tired squad as we travel to face Halifax. Gibson and Woodison are back in the lineup, but Fotheringham is replaced with Williams, and Turkington and Ryan Green are on the bench for Andy Tretton. 20 seconds in and Thompson draws a penalty in the area, which Carey-Bertram converts for the quick 1-0 lead. Ronnie Green loses his head in the 18th min, kicking on the Halifax defenders and gets a red card for his trouble. A couple of mins later Halifax equalize. Despite being down to 10 men we manage to create chances, and Phillips stands tall when our defense breaks down but the game ends in a 1-1 draw. Goals (Carey-Bertram 1) Subs (Fotheringham on for Huckerby, Ryan Green on for Bassinder 60, Rasmussen on for Thompson 78) Bookings (Huckerby, Woodison Yellow, Ronnie Green Red) Ronnie Green accepts his warning for violent behaviour, and I don’t appeal against the ban from the red card. Woodison and Huckerby both reach their 5 yellow card limit and will miss the next game along with Ronnie Green. Shwan Jalal from Premiership club Tottenham joins us on a season long loan to replace the departed Mathew Baker. His contract expires in the summer, and he might make a good addition as a back up to Phillips for next season. |
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01-10-2004, 02:18 AM
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#21 |
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College Starter
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Sweden
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Can you post the stat leaders for the team? I'd be nice to see as your're about half-way through the season soon.
__________________
San Diego Chargers (HFL) - Lappland Reindeers (WOOF) - Gothenburg Giants (IHOF) Indiana: A TCY VC - year 2044 - the longest running dynasty ever on FOFC! |
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01-10-2004, 02:46 AM
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#22 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Quote:
You bet. They will be up after the next update. |
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01-10-2004, 02:50 AM
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#23 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Young full back Peter Kelly joins Hereford from lower league team Grays Athletic in a £12k deal. Grays get £1k up front, and £500/month for 2 years. That should take some of the pressure off young David Woodison who is starting to show signs of tiring.
Hereford vs Margate We kick off a 4 game home stand, with 3 players out with suspensions. Kelly fills in a left full back for Woodison, while Rasmussen fills Ronnie Green’s big shoes up front. Paul Parry gets the start in place of the suspended Huckerby, and Jalal is on the bench in place of Scott, who is back down in the reserves. Fotheringham and Ryan Green find themselves back in the starting 11 as well. Rasmussen breaks a scoreless deadlock when he collects his own rebound in the 51st min. Bassinder adds his 5th of the season off a corner to settle the game with a 2-0 win. Goals (Rasmussen 51, Bassinder 82) Subs (King on for Thompson, Williams on for Fotheringham 61, Turkington on for Ryan Green 75) Ronnie Green adds two more games to his suspension from the red card in the Halifax game. He’ll miss the important FA Cup clash against Boston United after the New Year. Hereford vs Exeter Huckerby is out with a damaged shoulder, and Kelly keeps Woodison on the bench, so no lineup changes for our holiday boxing day match. We plastered Exeter 5-0 away earlier in the season and don’t really expect a challenge here. Bassinder makes it 1-0 in the 13th converting off a corner. It’s all we really need as Exeter never pressure and in fact don’t register a shot, and Thompson adds some insurance before the hour, and Fotheringham nails the coffin with a 25 yard freekick for the 3-0 win. Goals (Bassinder 13, Thompson 59, Fotheringham 71) Subs (Williams on for Rasmussen, King on for Gibson 67, Woodison on for Ryan Green 77) Bookings (Parry, Gibson Yellow) That was Paul Parry’s last game a Hereford Bull, as he joins Bradford PA in the New Year, ending 7 years of service to the club. A Dag & Red draw against Farnborough gives us a 5 point cushion on top of the Conference heading into 2004. |
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01-10-2004, 03:00 AM
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#24 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Code:
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01-10-2004, 03:31 AM
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#25 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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End of the year means it awards time…Here are the major award winners:
World Player of the Year – Juan Sebastian Veron (Chelsea) World Footballer of the Year – Hernan Crespo (Chelsea) European Footballer of the Year – Jan Koller (Dortmund) South American Footballer of the Year – Gaston Angel Casas (Racing) European GK of the Year – Pablo Oscar Cavallero (Celta) European Defender of the Year – Akyel Fatih (Fenerbahce) European Midfielder of the Year – Tomas Rosicky (Dortmund) European Striker of the Year – Roy Makaay (Bayern Munchen) I grab the conference manager of the month, my second award, but no other awards are handed out in December (maybe a bug). A quick look around the other leagues: Premiership Holders Manchester United head into the New Year undefeated in league play and hold a 5 point lead over rivals Arsenal after 19 games. Big spending Chelsea follow 1 point behind Arsenal, while Newcastle and Tottenham round out the top five, 8 and 13 points back of Chelsea respectively. On the bottom end, Portsmouth finish boxing day on the bottom (no Premiership club has ever survived relegation when bottom on Christmas) with 12 points in 19 games. Fighting relegation with them is Fulham (13 points), Blackburn (17), Leicester (18), Charlton (19), Man City (20), and Wolverhampton (20). Santos repeat as Brazilian First Division winners, with Cruzeiro and Sao Paulo runners up. Cruzeiro defeated Flamengo for the Brazilian Cup. In the French First League, Marseille hold an 8 point lead over Rennes at the winter break, with Montpellier and Paris-SG 1 point behind 2nd place. No surprise in the Bundesliga, as holders FC Bayern sit at top the league with a 2 point lead over Dortmund at the winter break. Bayern is out of the German Cup however, with the semi-finalists being HSV, Dortmund, Hertha BSC and Cottbus. At the winter break in Serie A Inter and Juventus are deadlocked after 14 games, but Milan, only 2 points back, have a game in hand on the leaders. In Scotland, Celtic hold a 6 point lead over the Rangers. Both teams match up against each other in the League Cup semi final later in February. Hibernian hold 3rd, 10 points back of the Rangers. In the Spanish Primera Liga, Valencia and Deportivo share top spot, with title holders Real Madrid 3 points back in 3rd place. Barcelona continues to underachieve, stuck in 5th, 9 points behind the leaders. |
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01-11-2004, 01:53 AM
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#26 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Hereford vs Boston Utd FA Cup 3rd Round
We’re 13-8 underdogs, but we’ve faced tougher odds on the road this year. Huckerby is back in the starting lineup, and the team is boosted by the news the Neil Somerville will resume training this week, although he is still out for this match. Woodison is back in the starting 11, while Robert Purdey takes Paul Parry’s spot on the subs bench. We are all over Boston United in the first half, but it’s not until the 43rd min when Rasmussen gets a gift Thompson rebound for the easy tap in that we go up by 1. Carey-Bertram adds another just after the restart, but it’s rightfully called back on the offside. Boston doesn’t even try to come forward during the second half, and they manage a grand total of zero shots on goal as we advance to round 4 with a 1-0 win. Goals (Rasmussen 43) Subs (Williams for Gibson 72, Purdey for Rasmussen, Turkington for Ryan Green 86) £50k in prize money goes along with the £57k in shared gate receipts to give us a nice little bonus. Some Bulls History: The first time Hereford advanced to the 4th Round of the FA Cup, was in the 1971-72 season. A non-league club at the time, Hereford advanced to the 3rd round to meet 1st Division Newcastle United (at that time, 1st was the top league). A 2-2 draw at St. James Park saw the replay return to Edgar Street where a late Newcastle goal seemed to doom Hereford out of the FA Cup. However a 30 yard strike by Ronnie Radford forced the game into extra time where Hereford scored for the inconceivable 2-1 win and advanced to the 4th round. That following summer, Hereford was elected into the football league (what is now Division 3). Now we didn’t beat any giants like Newcastle, but advancing to the 4th round is a good omen for this club to get promoted back into league football, I hope. Young and unused centre-back Richard Teesdale joins non-league club Worcester City for £5k. We miss out again on a Premiership club tie in the 4th Round of the FA Cup, instead drawing 1st Division side Bradford City away. Valley Parade holds 25,000 fans, however, so with a nice crowd we should get a good payday out of it. Maybe even a win? With a ballooning transfer kitty of £18k, I search for a backup goalkeeper within our grasp. The scouts recommend Simon Arthur of Newport IW, a lower league club, and I press with a £4k bid for the 20 year old. Hereford vs Accrington We close out our 4 game home stand with a match against 20th place Accrington. With only 3 days rest, Kelly takes Woodison’s place, Turkington starts in place of Ryan Green, and Ronnie Green comes back after suspension in place of Rasmussen. Carey-Bertram gets his 15th of the year, just 9 mins in off a Gibson rebound for the quick lead. With Bassinder injured on the touchline, Thompson lets fly a 30 yard strike in the 69th min that the Accrington GK can handle, giving us the 2-0 win. Another solid effort by the club, out-shooting Accrington 25-3. Goals (Carey-Bertram 9, Thompson 69) Subs (Purdey on for Fotheringham 59, Ryan Green on for Bassinder 69, Woodison on for Turkington 81) Hereford United beat Accrington Stanley 2-0 to maintain their unbeaten run in the league, which now stretches to an incredible sixteen games. Hereford United are exceeding expectations by being in [the] pole position with much of the season gone, thanks to some excellent recent performances. This defies early season predictions which had many media pundits suggesting that the club were little more than top-half makeweights. This news item means 2 things. Media pundits don’t have a clue, and we’ll lose our next league game. |
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01-11-2004, 02:00 AM
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#27 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Telford vs Hereford FA Trophy 3rd Round
Somerville is back in full training, and is on the substitute bench for this match. 16 mins in and Ronnie Green floats home a perfect 30 yard freekick for the 1-0 lead. 10 mins later, Carey-Bertram heads a corner into the net to jump to a 2-0 lead. Ronnie Green puts the game out of reach in the 36th, after a perfect Thompson pass for his 15th of the season, and Carey-Bertram adds another before the break from the penalty spot for the 4-0 lead. The second half mirrors the first, minus the goals and we cruise to the easy 4-0 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 16, 36, Carey-Bertram 28, 45) Subs (Somerville on for Thompson 59, Purdey on for Fotheringham 75, Williams on for Ronnie Green 82) Bookings (Huckerby Yellow) We get £4k in prize money for the win. I didn’t think we got prize money for the FA Trophy. Right now we are £2.6k over our wage budget and in the summer we will lose £3.2k in expiring contracts, so that is good news as we fight receivership (actually we nowhere close to receivership at the moment, only £150k in the hole). We draw non-league club Folkestone home at Edgar Street for the FA Trophy 4th round. Simon Arthur joins the club in a £4k move. Newport get £2k up front, and £2k over the next year. Robert Purdey also agrees to a 2 year contract extension at his current wage. Gravesend vs Hereford 4th vs 1st as Somerville makes a return to the starting 11, at the expensive of in-form Ryan Thompson however. Both sides get chances, but we get more, and in first half injury time, Somerville’s nifty pass to Ronnie Green in the area makes it 1-0 when Green buries it in the top corner, and that’s all we need for the win. Goals (Ronnie Green 45) Subs (Turkington on for Ryan Green 60, Thompson on for Ronnie Green 78) Stevenage vs Hereford LDV Vans Southern Semi Final Baker is in net for Stevenage, and we’re dead tired off 4 days rest. Somerville and Woodison are both out, with Thompson and Kelly taking their places. Neither team gets any real good chances, but both Phillips and Baker are strong in net to keep the game scoreless. It looks like it will head into extra time when Peter Kelly misplays a header out for a corner in the 89th min, and Stevenage convert from the corner for the 0-1 defeat. Subs (Williams on for Huckerby 45, Rasmussen on for Thompson 59, Turkington on for Green 86) Bookings (Laurie, Kelly, Williams Yellow) We get £10k for losing in the semi-final. Truth be told, I’m glad the Vans Trophy is off our schedule so we can concentrate more on the league. The loss ends our 25 game unbeaten streak however. |
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01-11-2004, 02:01 AM
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#28 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Bradford City vs Hereford FA Cup 4th Round
We are 10-1 underdogs for the match. A bit of lineup juggling as we are way too tired after just 3 days rest. Laurie moves up to left midfield in place of Huckerby who is not match fit. Woodison takes Laurie’s spot at right full back. Somerville is back in the lineup, moving Thompson to the bench. And a dream start as Gibson finds Ronnie Green behind the defenders, and just 17 seconds in, it is 1-0 Hereford!!! Laurie finds Green behind the defenders again in the 10th min. Green’s shot is stopped, but Somerville gets clear of his defender and taps the rebound home for a 2-0 lead. Bradford City change to a defensive style after that, but the damage has been done. Phillips keeps them off the scoresheet in the 2nd half, and Carey-Bertram adds a goal in injury time for the great 3-0 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 1, Somerville 11, Carey-Bertram 90) Subs (Thompson on for Ronnie Green 63, Turkington on for Ryan Green 63, Williams on for Gibson 84) So the “Giant-Killers” live on, yet it was Dag & Red with the biggest upset in the 4th round, defeating Manchester City 1-0 at the City of Manchester Stadium!!! We grab £75k for the win plus £97k in shared gate receipts (despite under 10,000 in attendance), which clears our debts and puts our bank balance at £648. Plus another shot in the FA Cup. It’s a dream cup run. With the win, my managing reputation has moved from unknown to ok. Hereford manager Klayman is proving to be a hard taskmaster, having decided to criticize Ryan Green’s recent performances even though his in-form team are flying high in the league. Green, who I slated originally as a sub, played well enough to wrestle the starting position away from Turkington, but his performances of late have been down right horrible. He’ll get one more game to prove me wrong before I go back to Turkington full time. The fans are behind me 100%. Jamie Pitman gets a contract offer from Bath City, as his contract expires during the summer. He would be wise to accept it or any other that comes his way, because his won’t be renewed here, but he snubs them instead. Lower league team Guiseley make a loan offer for Robert Sawyers for 3 months, which I accept. They’re willing to pay %40 of his wages, which amounts to less than £2k, but it’s better than nothing. Our 5th round FA Cup draw (first time Hereford have been to the 5th round in their history) turns out to be against Newcastle at St. James Park. Can the Ghosts of 1972 haunt Newcastle again? |
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01-11-2004, 02:03 AM
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#29 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Hereford vs Barnet
Off 3 days rest we make only 1 lineup change, as Huckerby replaces Laurie at left midfield, and Laurie gets the night off, only his 2nd all year. We don’t want to lose focus on our Conference title hopes, but right now we are 4 points up on 2nd place Aldershot, but have 3 games in hand, 7 points up on 3rd place Dag & Red with 2 games in hand on them. So we can afford to take one or two games off here or there. Barnet sit 5th in the last playoff spot so they have something to play for. Of course, Barnet beat us 3-0 back in October… An own goal by Barnet gets us started, and Ronnie Green makes it 2-0 a couple of mins later. The ball is in play in our half only 9% of the first half…that’s 4 whole mins! Carey-Bertram adds another in 2nd half for the easy 3-0 win. Goals (Ronnie Green 26, Carey-Bertram 72) Subs (Thompson for Somerville 72, Turkington for Ryan Green 72) Sawyers joins Workington instead of Guiseley. Either way, %40 of his wages are paid for 3 months. Ben Smith signs a bosman deal with semi-pro club Hendon. He’ll leave June 1st. Carey-Bertram is in need of a rest, according to the physios. The 18 year old has been stellar so far, and I’ve been hard pressed to leave him out of any matches, but he’ll start splitting time with Robert Purdey. Hereford vs Folkestone FA Trophy 4th Round We close out the month with the FA Trophy match. Ronnie Green, Fotheringham, Gibson, and Carey-Bertram are not in for the match, while Tretton, King, and Purdey get starts. Folkestone operate defensively, and with our 2 most potent scorers not playing today, we fail to generate any solid chances, and settle for the disappointing draw and unfortunately a replay that we don’t really want. Subs (Rasmussen for Thompson, Woodison for Williams 62) Bookings (Huckerby, Somerville Yellow) I get my third manager of the month award, this one for January, while Scott Huckerby gets Conference player of the month. Ryan Thompson’s 30 yard screamer against Accrington gets 2nd place in the goal of the month awards. |
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01-11-2004, 02:22 AM
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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01-11-2004, 02:26 AM
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Location: Edmonton
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01-11-2004, 03:46 AM
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#32 |
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College Starter
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Sweden
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That's a nice table you've got there! That will be a welcome addition to the dynasties... so much easier to read, and the colors are way cool.
__________________
San Diego Chargers (HFL) - Lappland Reindeers (WOOF) - Gothenburg Giants (IHOF) Indiana: A TCY VC - year 2044 - the longest running dynasty ever on FOFC! |
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01-11-2004, 03:59 AM
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#33 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Folkestone vs Hereford FA Trophy 4th Round Replay
We go with our 1st choice starting 11 in this one (expect Ryan Green is out replaced by Turkington). Huckerby sets up Fotheringham for a great goal in the 20th min, and Somerville follows with a great goal of his own only 1 min later for the quick 2-0 lead. In the 2nd half, Huckerby dives in the area, but gets the penalty call anyway, and Carey-Bertram gets his 20th of the season before Huckerby adds another on a great solo effort for the 4-0 lead. Gibson gives away a penalty in the dying mins, which Folkestone convert, but the damage has been done, and it’s a 4-1 win for Hereford. Goals (Fotheringham 21, Somerville 22, Carey-Bertram 51, Huckerby 81) Subs (Thompson for Somerville 64, Purdey for Carey-Bertram 64) We get £5k for the win and will face lower league Crawley Town in the 5th round later this month. Hereford vs Shrewsbury We’re playing every Saturday and Wednesday now, probably until close to the end of the season. Therefore Gibson, Huckerby, Fotheringham, Ronnie Green, Laurie, and Carey-Bertram are all out of this match. King sets up Thompson for the easy tap in only 20 mins in for the first goal of the game. Rasmussen adds another in the 80th to seal the deal, before Somerville adds one more for good measure and the 3-0 win Goals ( Thompson 20, Rasmussen 80, Somerville 81) Subs (Ryan Green for Tretton 69) Bookings (King, Somerville, Ryan Green Yellow) We remain 7 points and 2 games up on 2nd place Dag & Red. Stevenage vs Hereford We go with the same lineup as last game, resting the same players again for one more match. Despite not having our 1st choice starting 11 on the field, we pressure Stevenage from the start, and Somerville beats Baker in the12th min after a great feed from Thompson for the 1-0 lead. Rasmussen adds one in the 74th min to put the game out of reach to extract some revenge on Stevenage with a 2-0 win. Goals (Somerville 13, Rasmussen 74) Subs (Ryan Green for Turkington 57, Laurie for King 69, Huckerby for Williams 69) Turkington is lost for 2 weeks with a groin strain from the match, which gives Ryan Green his starting job back. Next up is Newcastle. |
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01-11-2004, 04:01 AM
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#34 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Quote:
Thanks. And it's way easy to do with CM's export to web page function. Way better than the old ones. |
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01-11-2004, 04:28 AM
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#35 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Newcastle vs Hereford FA Cup 5th Round
We’re just here to collect a big payday. Newcastle sit 4th in the Premiership, I don’t think we’ll come out of this very good at all, but a draw here and we could conceivably win back home, just like 1972. 1st choice starting 11 for this one. Shola Ameobi puts us down by 1 in the 9th min after a Gary Speed blast ricochets off the goal post right to his feet for the easy tap in. Somerville gets a glorious opportunity only mins later when he strips Speed of the ball and goes one on one with Shay Given, but Given is up to the task, and even stops Somerville’s rebound to preserve the lead. In the 20th, Darren Ambrose beats Phillips with a header, and it’s all over but the crying. Lucio and Lee Bowyer add goals before the end of the 1st half. In the 2nd we close down Newcastle a lot better, and Somerville gives us at least some respectability when he beats Given to the ball and puts it in the empty net in the 82nd min. But it changes nothing, and we are defeated 4-1. Goals (Somerville 82) Subs (Kelly for Ryan Green 56, Purdey for Carey-Bertram 68, Williams for Fotheringham 87) Bookings (Laurie, Woodison Yellow) Dag & Red continue their improbable FA Cup run, as they defeat 1st Division club Sunderland 2-0 to advance to the 6th round. Our defeat, while disappointing, nabs us £708k in shared gate receipts. So I guess you could say it was profitable. |
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01-11-2004, 07:34 AM
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#36 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: The State of Insanity
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niiiiiiiice
__________________
Check out Foz's New Video Game Site, An 8-bit Mind in an 8GB world! http://an8bitmind.com |
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01-11-2004, 05:47 PM
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#37 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Quote:
My thoughts exactly |
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01-11-2004, 06:01 PM
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#38 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Hereford vs Woking
Somerville sets up Ronnie Green for his 19th of the year in the 15th min. Robert Purdey gets his 1st of the season just before the half, as we quite simply dominate Woking and it’s all we need for the 2-0 win. The win puts us 10 points up on Dag & Red with 1 game still in hand, however we do lose Scott Huckerby for 2 weeks with a twisted knee from the match. Hereford vs Crawley Town FA Trophy 5th Round Laurie moves up to fill in for Huckerby, which means both Woodison and Kelly will play as the full backs. 10 mins and we lose Bassinder for the match with an injury. Carey-Bertram puts home a penalty in the 34th (I don’t think he’s missed one all year) for the 1-0 lead. Carey-Bertram adds another in 60th, and just too be sure Carl Laurie finds the net in the 67th as we go on to win 3-0 without allowing a single shot against. We get £6k for the victory and advance to the 6th round where we will face Farnborough away, but the good news is that the injury to Bassinder isn’t serious and he shouldn’t miss any games. Farnborough vs Hereford Farnborough sit 6th and are looking for that last playoff spot, so they will be gunning hard here. Both teams are unable to generate any offense tonight, and we settle for a very boring 0-0 draw, which doesn’t really help either club. After getting all caught up with Dag & Red in games played now, we hold an 11 point advantage with 13 games left to play in the season. Stevenage, who had fallen behind in the 1st leg of the LDV Vans Trophy Southern Final at home against Queens Park Rangers, do the unthinkable and score 3 times away in the 2nd leg to advance the LDV Vans Trophy final against Blackpool. |
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01-11-2004, 06:32 PM
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#39 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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With our financial future secure, thanks to 40,000+ Newcastle fans, I begin to look for some help down the stretch and hopefully into Division 3 next year. The first player I make a move for is Brighton’s 28 year old AMC Geoff Pitcher for £2k. He should relieve some of the stress piling on 18 year old Daniel Carey-Bertram at the moment. The other player is Ryan Moran, a 21 year old defender from lower league Boreham Wood that I’ve been chasing from the start of the season, but he doesn’t seem interested in signing with Hereford.
Hereford vs Scarborough Scarborough is staring relegation in the face in last place and 9 points out of safety. If they want to stay in the conference, this is where they will have to start to make a move. In the 20th Thompson and Somerville combine for the latter’s 11th goal of the year on a nice one-two pass, and it is quickly 1-0. Scarborough switch to a 4-5-1 which stifles our offence, but isn’t going to get them any goals against the best defense in the league. We lose Laurie, Fotheringham, and Thompson to injuries in the 2nd half, which doesn’t help things any, but we get the 1-0 win with little effort. Fotheringham is out a week with a damaged foot, while Laurie’s and Thompson’s injuries are not serious. Manchester United completes the first step in a domestic treble, defeating Fulham 3-0 to win the League Cup. On top of the Premier league by 9 points and still in the FA Cup, I’d say they have a good chance of pulling it off. We are completely shut out of the February awards. Travesty! Last edited by klayman : 01-11-2004 at 10:10 PM. |
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01-11-2004, 07:21 PM
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#40 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Moran does indeed decide he would like the chance to play league football next year, and the £16k deal is completed (£6k up front, £10k over 1 year). Pitcher agrees to terms a day later, and we have rounded out our squad for the final push into Division 3.
Leigh RMI vs Hereford Both Moran and Pitcher get starts against 8th place Leigh. Moran gets turned in the 19th min leading the Leigh’s 1st goal of the game. We spend most of the afternoon in a rare position; playing without the lead. We start to come forward at the hour with still no luck, and Moran gets burnt a second time in the game, and Leigh capitalize for the 0-2 defeat. It is our first league defeat in 23 games. Hereford vs Chester Scott Huckerby is back after missing the last 4 games from injury. Moran is not in game shape, so Turkington is back as starting centre-back. Huckerby wastes no time running rampant on the Chester back four and he finds the short side in the 6th min for a quick lead. And that’s about it. Chester never threaten and we can’t seem to pull the trigger on the offence after that, and it finishes 1-0 Hereford. Manchester United fail to see the threat imposed by conference side Dag & Red and are embarrassed 1-0 at Old Trafford in the FA Cup 6th round!!! That’s just a little too much, I think. |
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01-12-2004, 12:58 AM
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#41 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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And a game crash throws us all the way back to the Chester game. I'll delete the posts tomorrow and start again when I get home from school
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01-12-2004, 10:20 AM
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#42 |
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Coordinator
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Scottsdale, Arizona
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that blows...flat out...but what can ya do?
__________________
Underachievement The tallest blade of grass is the first to be cut by the lawnmower. Despair It's always darkest just before it goes pitch black. Demotivation Sometimes the best solution to morale problems is just to fire all of the unhappy people. http://www.despair.com/viewall.html |
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01-12-2004, 08:09 PM
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#43 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Quote:
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01-12-2004, 08:52 PM
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#44 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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I make some changes that the previously crashed games offer up as insight, mainly protecting more on corners since that is where we gave up most of the goals scored against us. After Dag & Red had crashed out of the championship in the last couple of matches before the crash, I’m going to be pretty upset if they catch us this time. I also give everybody a rest in training, hoping to avoid the jadedness that set it before the game crashed (and probably contributed to our poor form).
Northwich Vics vs Hereford Gibson is out for a week with a groin strain and King takes his place as Northwich try to move up the ladder from a last place showing. The changes are positive as Carey-Bertram converts off a corner in the 24th, and Somerville gets a gift goal off a deflection that leaves the GK stranded for the 2-0 lead at the break. Interesting fact, we have a perfect record when scoring 2 or more goals (29 straight wins). The second half doesn’t offer up much in the way of excitement, other than a Ronnie Green goalpost from 20 yards in the dying mins, and we grab the 2-0 win. A 2-0 win by Dag & Red keeps them on pace with us, as we sit 11 points up but with a game in hand. The win also provides at least a playoff spot finish at the end of the season, but as I said before at this point we would be extremely disappointed with a playoff spot. Farnborough vs Hereford FA Trophy 6th round Gibson is still out, so King gets another start. Somerville’s pace wins him the ball early in the 10th min, and a great cross is capped off by Ryan Thompson’s goal seconds later for the quick lead. We kind of fall asleep after that, but Tom Phillips bails us out a couple of times to maintain the lead. Farnborough finally equalize in the 60th min off a corner (of course!). Our offence continues to sleep through the 2nd as we looked destined to head into extra time (something this tired team does not need), until substitute Ronnie Green shows some fancy footwork, dribbling past 3 defenders and blasting the ball in the top corner in the 86th min for the 2-1 win. A spectacular 20th goal of the season for Green. We get £7k for the win and advance to the semi-final where we meet either Scarborough or Dover Athletic. I thought for sure I’d get Dag & Red again. |
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01-14-2004, 12:19 AM
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#45 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Gillingham make a bid for Carl Laurie, arguably our best player this season. The 1st Division club’s £75k falls short of the £100k inflated asking price I have artificially set on him, and as such I renegotiate their bid up to £200k which effectively scares them off.
Scarborough defeat Dover in the FA Trophy 6th round replay, so they will be our opponents in the semi-finals. Dag & Red take on Stevenage in the other semi final. Forest Green vs Hereford Gibson is back, but sits out this game so he’ll be 100% for the showdown against Dag & Red in a couple of days. Not a great start, as 2 mins in Forest score off a corner (what else!). Ronnie Green gets that goal back in the 17th off a Somerville rebound and Somerville adds his own on a beautiful solo effort in the 40th for the 2-1 lead at the break. There’s no stopping Neil Somerville today, as Peter Kelly picks him out from 30 yards, and a rocket off Somerville’s foot finds the top far corner from just inside the area in the 2nd half for the 3-1 win. Stevenage beat Dag & Red 3-1 as well, giving us a 14 point lead with 8 games left to go (although Dag & Red have a match in hand). If we can beat them next game, it would end any slim aspirations they have on the conference title. Dag & Red vs Hereford Carey-Bertram and Gibson make their returns to the starting 11 for this important battle between first and second place. The Daggers come out firing, and in the 13th min, they collect on a rebound to go up by one. After the initial onslaught, we settle down and start generating some counter attacks. That leads to a break by Ronnie Green in the 34th, and he feeds Neil Somerville to equalize. With Hereford fans still singing “There’s only one Neil Somerville”, the in form striker gets victimized by the Daggers defense and has to come out due to injury. Carey-Bertram strikes back at the Daggers where it hurts them the most, by placing an excellent Fotheringham cross into the back of the net just before the half for the 2-1 lead. The Daggers come forward after the break, but cannot generate the same offense they did in the opening mins, and only a goalpost prevents them by falling behind by another goal in the 69th min. But not for long, as a precision strike by Scott Huckerby from 18 yards makes it 3-1 only a minute later, and Dag & Red’s title shot goes up in smoke. The win puts us 17 points ahead of the Daggers with only 7 games left (they have 8). Now any combination of 3 wins for us or losses for the Daggers will result in the conference title. Only a complete self-implosion by our team would not see that happen. After the match the physio’s declare Bassinder, Carey-Bertram, and Scott Huckerby are in need of a rest. |
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01-14-2004, 12:46 AM
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#46 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Burton Albion vs Hereford
This is the 5th game of a 6 game road stand, which we’ve been fairly successful on. Laurie moves up to left midfield to give Huckerby a rest, and Moran and Ryan Green are the central defenders so Bassinder can have a game off. Carey-Bertram continues his game rotation with Geoff Pitcher. Burton Albion sit 16th, and are relatively safe from relegation, whereas we don’t really have any fire left after the battle against Dag & Red. We don’t generate any offence, and in the 70th Burton Albion are able to break the defense for the 1-0 lead. Only 5 mins later, though Somerville breaks free and feeds an unmarked Ryan Thompson for the late equalizer and the 1-1 draw. We get almost 2 weeks off after the match. Dag & Red defeat Leigh RMI 2-0 to stay in the race, although still 15 points back. On their make up game, the Daggers are downed by 4th place Gravesend 2-0, putting our magic number a 1.5. I pick up the Conference Manager of the Month award for March, the only award given to our team. Somerville got jobbed out Player of the month I think. |
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01-14-2004, 12:50 AM
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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01-14-2004, 12:52 AM
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Location: Edmonton
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01-14-2004, 02:04 AM
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#49 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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Scarborough vs Hereford FA Trophy Semi Final Leg 1
We go with our first choice starting 11, except for Carl Laurie who gets a rest for this match. We’re 5-4 favorites, and have beaten Scarborough away previously 2-0 this season. Scarborough look more interested in preventing us from scoring, then looking for goals themselves, and as such the 1st half is a fairly tame affair. A 0-0 draw works to our favor here in the away leg, but Neil Somerville takes things into his own hands, turning a defender and his cross is deflected in by a Scarborough defender for the game’s first goal. Scarborough respond instantly however, to equalize at 1. 5 mins later, Ronnie Green’s pace wins him the ball, and he finds Neil Somerville in the area, who rounds the keeper for the easy goal and a 2-1 lead. Carey-Bertram puts the game out reach in the 71st, after Woodison feeds him with a perfect 25 yard pass, and the young forward powers the shot through the GK for the 3-1 win. Mighty Dag & Red are finally beaten in the FA Cup Semi-Final, losing 2-1 away to Bolton. There is no reason for them to hang their heads however, with a great FA Cup run. I would sure like to see their financial statements for this year. Stevenage, who made it the LDV Vans trophy, lose to 2nd Division club Blackpool 2-0, ending another conference team’s great run in a cup. Hereford vs Morecambe It’s been a month since we’ve played at Edgar Street. It’s nice to be home. Ronnie Green shows Morecambe fans why we’re on top and they are battling relegation, as he storms through 2 defenders and then sets up Neil Somerville for an early strike in the 5th min. Huckerby adds his 10th of the year with a cheeky little chip in the 2nd half for the 2-0 win. Arsenal, Dinamo Kiev, Manchester United and AC Milan are the teams that advance out of the European Champions Cup Quarter Finals. From the match, we lose Gavin Bassinder for 3 days with a damaged shoulder. He’ll miss the 2nd leg against Scarborough in the FA Trophy. In the other semi final, Stevenage grab a 2-1 lead over Dag & Red, but the Daggers have the all important away goal heading into the 2nd leg. Hereford vs Scarborough FA Trophy Semi-Final Leg 2 With 3 away goals and a 3-1 lead aggregate heading into the match, we give Neil Somerville a rest, first game he’s had off in about 3 months I think. Thompson takes his place, and Rasmussen is on the bench as a sub. Ryan Green fills in for the injured Gavin Bassinder. In order to win, Scarborough has to score 3 goals. We’ve conceded 3 goals at home all season (2 in the league, 1 in the cups). I don’t like their chances. Our accuracy is woeful today, and although we generate some good chances, almost none are on target. It’s irrelevant however, since Scarborough only manage 1 shot on net, and we advance to the final with a 0-0 draw and a 3-1 aggregate win. We get £16k for the win, but don’t know yet who we will face in the final. Dag & Red clinch a playoff spot with a 4-0 demolishing of Morecambe. It’s enough to keep their almost non-existent title chance alive, but only a win or draw in the final five games will give us the title. |
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01-14-2004, 02:39 AM
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#50 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Edmonton
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With our fixture congestion out of the way, players start reporting back to training, much to their disgust I’m sure. In midweek, the Daggers overcome Stevenage 4-0 to advance to the FA Trophy Final with a 5-2 aggregate win. We’ll face off against our rivals for the FA Trophy at the end of the season at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
Tamworth vs Hereford Somerville picks up a bruised thigh in training and will sit out his 2nd straight game. Huckerby and Fotheringham both get the night off as well, with Laurie and Williams replacing them respectively. Ronnie Green opens the scoring, after Tamworth pressure in the opening mins, when he collects a Thompson rebound and taps it in for the 1-0 lead in the 21st min. Green adds another in the 58th after a pretty pass by Gibson tees it up for him. In the 84th min, Danny Williams connects from the penalty spot for his first of the year, sealing the win and our conference championship! The win seals the Conference Title with 4 games left in the season, and we get automatic promotion into Division 3 next year. In the UEFA Cup Quarter Finals, Lazio, Benfica, Parma, and Sporting all advance. Hereford United’s promising midfielder Billy Gibson is definitely out of his team’s important Conference match against title rivals Aldershot on April 17th. Gibson has been told that he will be out for at least 2 weeks after suffering a pulled hamstring. Hereford fans have flooded the club’s website wishing the 22 year old a speedy recovery whilst hoping that the team can still pick up vital points without him. Cool, a message I’ve never seen before. A couple of points though. We’ve won the title, so Aldershot are definitely not title rivals, and we have a website?  |
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