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Greyfriars Bobby · 11-23-2018, 07:05 PM

30 January 2018

As we appear to be firmly established in the middle of the table, our place in the standings is the third piece of data I'm looking at. First, I check to see how safe we are from relegation. We're ten points clear now, and we've gained three points since last month. That's looking good. Next, I let myself dream a little, and I look at how far we are away from a playoff position. Just like last month, we are six points shy of the top five. That puts us eleventh in a very tightly packed table. If the season ends with us right where we are now, I would be delighted.

We played seven league fixtures in January, which put our depth to the test. On the whole, I'm pleased with how things turned out.

I've been trying to find ways to get young forward Josias Bedwell onto the pitch, because he's a very promising player and I'd hate to lose him. He's big and strong, and his almost complete lack of pace doesn't seem to hurt his game too much. He got one of the goals in our impressive victory over Gateshead. We got a scare when Lloyd Unsworth picked up a knock that was serious enough for him to have to come off, but we were lucky this time. Lloyd didn't even miss a day of training.

In fact, he was Man of the Match four days later, for his imperious defensive play against Bishop's Stortford. Lloyd wins more key headers than any center back in the league, and he added 10 interceptions as we kept the Blues from putting a shot on target.

We have an affiliation with Gillingham, who are enjoying a successful season in League Two. I keep an eye on their roster, just in case they have anyone they'd like to loan out who might help us. One such player, defender Ben Roberts, had just returned from a five-month loan at Dover Athletic. I decided to bring Ben in for three months. Gillingham was willing to pay his wages, which made it a no-brainer.

Ben, age 21, can play left or center back, and while he lacks the technical ability I like to see in a defender, he ticks all the other boxes. He is a heady player with good pace, and he plays with a bit of an edge. He's good enough to play regularly for us, and he will.

I wondered how we could play so well against strong sides like Gateshead and play a team like Bishop's Stortford off the park--and then lose to AFC Fylde, who are bottom of the league! That's exactly what we did. Our highlight came when new man Roberts headed in a corner.

Then I think I found the answer.

By any objective measure, Paul Douglas isn't good enough to play for us any more. Most of my back room staff say Paul "is far from good enough for the Wantage Town squad," and they're unanimous in their belief that he'd be no more than a "decent" player back in the Conference South.

However, Paul's presence makes us a completely different team. He seems to come up with a perfect pass every time he sets foot on the pitch, and his partnership with Mick Hart is delightful to watch. Paul set up two goals in our victory against Macclesfield Town, and one of the five we put in away at hapless Barnet. He scored one and played in Hart for another as we lost a cracking good match to Dartford. Douglas has 12 assists on the year, two behind the league leader, who has played many more minutes than Paul.

Simply put, Douglas is possibly our most important player, our captain and a club icon. I didn't hesitate to offer him a contract for next season, and his willingness to accept a Backup squad status is evidence of his class. Suffice it to say he'll play a lot more than that, unless his game completely fades.

That can certainly happen, and our central midfielders are proof of that. Dominic Hutchinson hasn't been bad, but he hasn't been able to assert his will over games, either. That's why I brought veteran Sonny Holdsworth in on loan this month.

Sonny, age 29, is contracted to Tranmere Rovers, and he's failed to establish himself there. Perhaps a change of scenery is all he needs. Sonny lacks some of Hutchinson's defensive presence, but he's far from a slacker, and his technical skills are first-rate for our league. At worst, he'll rotate with Hutchinson and Ryan Bellamy in our engine room.

Tomorrow is Deadline Day, and I'll be back with a post covering our activities as the transfer window closes. We did a bit of business, saying goodbye to a loyal club servant and bringing in a couple of new faces.

11-23-2018, 07:05 PM	#46
Greyfriars Bobby College Prospect Join Date: Sep 2013	30 January 2018 As we appear to be firmly established in the middle of the table, our place in the standings is the third piece of data I'm looking at. First, I check to see how safe we are from relegation. We're ten points clear now, and we've gained three points since last month. That's looking good. Next, I let myself dream a little, and I look at how far we are away from a playoff position. Just like last month, we are six points shy of the top five. That puts us eleventh in a very tightly packed table. If the season ends with us right where we are now, I would be delighted. We played seven league fixtures in January, which put our depth to the test. On the whole, I'm pleased with how things turned out. I've been trying to find ways to get young forward Josias Bedwell onto the pitch, because he's a very promising player and I'd hate to lose him. He's big and strong, and his almost complete lack of pace doesn't seem to hurt his game too much. He got one of the goals in our impressive victory over Gateshead. We got a scare when Lloyd Unsworth picked up a knock that was serious enough for him to have to come off, but we were lucky this time. Lloyd didn't even miss a day of training. In fact, he was Man of the Match four days later, for his imperious defensive play against Bishop's Stortford. Lloyd wins more key headers than any center back in the league, and he added 10 interceptions as we kept the Blues from putting a shot on target. We have an affiliation with Gillingham, who are enjoying a successful season in League Two. I keep an eye on their roster, just in case they have anyone they'd like to loan out who might help us. One such player, defender Ben Roberts, had just returned from a five-month loan at Dover Athletic. I decided to bring Ben in for three months. Gillingham was willing to pay his wages, which made it a no-brainer. Ben, age 21, can play left or center back, and while he lacks the technical ability I like to see in a defender, he ticks all the other boxes. He is a heady player with good pace, and he plays with a bit of an edge. He's good enough to play regularly for us, and he will. I wondered how we could play so well against strong sides like Gateshead and play a team like Bishop's Stortford off the park--and then lose to AFC Fylde, who are bottom of the league! That's exactly what we did. Our highlight came when new man Roberts headed in a corner. Then I think I found the answer. By any objective measure, Paul Douglas isn't good enough to play for us any more. Most of my back room staff say Paul "is far from good enough for the Wantage Town squad," and they're unanimous in their belief that he'd be no more than a "decent" player back in the Conference South. However, Paul's presence makes us a completely different team. He seems to come up with a perfect pass every time he sets foot on the pitch, and his partnership with Mick Hart is delightful to watch. Paul set up two goals in our victory against Macclesfield Town, and one of the five we put in away at hapless Barnet. He scored one and played in Hart for another as we lost a cracking good match to Dartford. Douglas has 12 assists on the year, two behind the league leader, who has played many more minutes than Paul. Simply put, Douglas is possibly our most important player, our captain and a club icon. I didn't hesitate to offer him a contract for next season, and his willingness to accept a Backup squad status is evidence of his class. Suffice it to say he'll play a lot more than that, unless his game completely fades. That can certainly happen, and our central midfielders are proof of that. Dominic Hutchinson hasn't been bad, but he hasn't been able to assert his will over games, either. That's why I brought veteran Sonny Holdsworth in on loan this month. Sonny, age 29, is contracted to Tranmere Rovers, and he's failed to establish himself there. Perhaps a change of scenery is all he needs. Sonny lacks some of Hutchinson's defensive presence, but he's far from a slacker, and his technical skills are first-rate for our league. At worst, he'll rotate with Hutchinson and Ryan Bellamy in our engine room. Tomorrow is Deadline Day, and I'll be back with a post covering our activities as the transfer window closes. We did a bit of business, saying goodbye to a loyal club servant and bringing in a couple of new faces.