1 October 2016
We played five league matches in September, winning three, losing one, and drawing one. We need someone to beat Radcliffe Borough; we won't get the opportunity to do it ourselves until 29 November.
Owen Robertson fired in the first goal in our 3-1 victory away to Ossett Town, but he hasn't been back on the pitch since. He strained ligaments in his ankle, and he won't return to training for another week, at least.
Owen's injury revealed a gaping hole at right wing, where we only had one player who was close to being comfortable there. I asked our DoF to suggest some possible loan players, and I settled on a Welshman,
Lewis Jenkins, from Wrexham in the National League.
Lewis's style is a lot like Owen's, but with even more attacking flair. In other words, he's what Owen might be when he's 19, like Lewis is now. We'll have him until December, which should give Owen time to regain his match fitness.
Speaking of loans, our DoF loves sending our young players out on one-month loans! Six of our best teenagers are currently turning out for other clubs all around England. Some of them were on the fringes of the first team, like
Daniel Ross and
Emmanuel Chukwuma. They were always in the eighteen, and Chukwuma was getting a fair few starts.
At first I couldn't figure it out, and I'm still not completely sure why the DoF is clearing out my bench like that. Most of the clubs who take them are paying their wages, but we're not in the same kind of dire financial straits Ashby Ivanhoe were in.
One way to counteract that trend is to bring in a loan player or two myself. I found a good central midfielder called
Matt White, playing for Blackpool's U21 side. Matt is 18, and he is good enough at everything I want a M(C) to do. He'll make perfect cover for
George Willis and
Matt Sayce, and I wouldn't hesitate to give him a start in a crucial match. For now, he's with us for three months, but if he's a good fit, I'll look to extend his loan.
Neither Jenkins nor White were with us in time to help us avoid an 0-1 defeat at the hands of Ramsbottom, a blah match we forced our supporters to endure at Parkside Road on the 6th. Nor were they available when we hosted Hoddesdon Town in the First Qualifying Round of the FA Cup, but we didn't need them; we saw off the Lilywhites, 3-1. A crowd of almost 900, the biggest to watch us play, by far, was on hand at Parkside Road, and I'm glad we gave them a good show.
A goal from
Dave Nichols, now clearly our first choice striker, sewed up a 1-0 victory at home to Burscough in league play. Three nights later, three different Mintcakes--
Andy Howell, Dan Jarvis, and
Craig Nagington--found the net, and we took three points from West Auckland Town.
That match was played at Parkside Road, but on the following Saturday we traveled to West Auckland for a FA Cup tie with Darlington 1883. They are a bigger club, and we put up a tough fight, but went down by a 1-0 score.
We closed out the month by drawing with Droylsden at home, 1-1.
Lewis Jenkins got his first goal with Kendal Town.
It's been a fun ride so far this season. A spot in the playoff places looks like a reasonable goal, and a run at the title doesn't seem too unrealistic, either.