2018-19 National League South

[Pink Panther]

The outrage from some Dulwich fans because they couldn't get a beer or stand next to the pitch at our ground is what would make the reaction interesting.

I don't see what relevance the dismal attitude towards away supporters at Woking has to the possibility of away fans turning up at Dulwich wearing surgical masks. Given that Millwall supporters were doing that at The Den 40 years ago I suspect anyone doing similar at a non-league match a couple of miles down the road is more likely to be laughed at than to provoke outrage.

For what it's worth I do think it's an outrage that Woking stewards demand to sniff the contents of water bottles on entry to the ground. That is undoubtedly the most pathetic "security" measure I've ever come across in non-league football, no one else finds it necessary to do that. If I'm paying to watch the match I expect to be treated with more respect than that, and some Woking fans seem surprised that we've taken a dislike to their club.

 

[Urban]

I don't see what relevance the dismal attitude towards away supporters at Woking has to the possibility of away fans turning up at Dulwich wearing surgical masks. Given that Millwall supporters were doing that at The Den 40 years ago I suspect anyone doing similar at a non-league match a couple of miles down the road is more likely to be laughed at than to provoke outrage.

For what it's worth I do think it's an outrage that Woking stewards demand to sniff the contents of water bottles on entry to the ground. That is undoubtedly the most pathetic "security" measure I've ever come across in non-league football, no one else finds it necessary to do that. If I'm paying to watch the match I expect to be treated with more respect than that, and some Woking fans seem surprised that we've taken a dislike to their club.

Wait, what?

 

[Railway Blue]

Only had to wait 92 years since our last title!

The turnaround under Johnson has been remarkable, when Owers was sacked after nine games we were in 14th and had only scored in 3 of those games. We've now scored 88 goals in the 30 league games since Johnson took over with the second best defensive record.

Remarkably he has done it with very few changes, he's only brought in 5 players and only 3 of those have been first team regulars.

The biggest change has simply been in attitude, Owers was just so negative in his every action and utterance whereas Johnson has said from the off that we should be winning this league and entertaining along the way and anything less would be seen as a failure. The fans bought into him from the word go and our average attendance is double what it was under Owers.

After six years of abject failure which has seen many long standing fans walk away it feels like last seasons relegation might actually have turned out to be a good thing, another season of NL mediocrity would have seen more fans lose interest but this year has brought the club back to life.

Roll on next season and if we can keep hold of Johnson I'm confident we could challenge for the playoffs.

Well done the Gulls. I missed my trip to Torquay this season and the way we are shaping it will be a long time until we meet again. Bern and Jonno are out of their depth. We've had 2 of the biggest thrashings in our history under them. Sorry days ahead I'm afraid.

 

[Jerry]

For what it's worth I do think it's an outrage that Woking stewards demand to sniff the contents of water bottles on entry to the ground. That is undoubtedly the most pathetic "security" measure I've ever come across in non-league football, no one else finds it necessary to do that. If I'm paying to watch the match I expect to be treated with more respect than that, and some Woking fans seem surprised that we've taken a dislike to their club.

Certainly seems a tad over the top . Especially as there weren't any searches at all for the 1400 Torquay fans the other week.

 

[DontBringBertie]

I don't see what relevance the dismal attitude towards away supporters at Woking has to the possibility of away fans turning up at Dulwich wearing surgical masks. Given that Millwall supporters were doing that at The Den 40 years ago I suspect anyone doing similar at a non-league match a couple of miles down the road is more likely to be laughed at than to provoke outrage.

For what it's worth I do think it's an outrage that Woking stewards demand to sniff the contents of water bottles on entry to the ground. That is undoubtedly the most pathetic "security" measure I've ever come across in non-league football, no one else finds it necessary to do that. If I'm paying to watch the match I expect to be treated with more respect than that, and some Woking fans seem surprised that we've taken a dislike to their club.

Hahahahaha. Our fans regularly get searched at segregated away matches. We even did at Chelmsford last weekend despite it not being segregated. But we didn’t write a whole article about it and cry about there being a running track so you couldn’t stand next to the pitch. One of your fans was even squealing about us not serving any veggie burgers.

As Dulwich invented non league football you seem to know surprisingly little about it.

I assume our fans won’t be searched on Easter Monday then?

 

[#Beebot]

Glad Concord got the result they deserved, should never have had to replay the whole thing.

Hopefully thats knocked the stuffing out of Truro and we come away with 3 points there Saturday.

Meanwhile it's worth looking at Eastbourne's run in - Dartford H, Slough A, Concord H. Their form is terrible at the moment and that is arguably the hardest set of fixtures of all the teams down there.

I'm absolutely convinced Eastbourne are going down. It's the McGhee effect, the guy is so jaded and full of bitterness about the steady decline in his managerial career since the mid 90s and it rubs off onto the players. He reeked of negativity, low expectations and meek acceptance of terrible performances while he was here. I read a very recent interview with him where he was still whining about being sacked by Wolves in 1998. He needs to move on and leave football completely but it looks like it's too late for Eastbourne - another club he's crashed.

 

[Seventyseven]

With the title sealed last week and only three 'celebration' matches to fit in before the end of the season I would like to say goodbye to NLS and all the posters in this section.

Our time down in NLS has been an enjoyable one (of course it has!). The grounds we have visited have been, on the whole, most welcoming of the Yellow Army. I'm sure even the Woking fans (amongst others) could not have expected such fervent support from 'that sh*t ex-League club who think they're something special'.

Being full-time has almost certainly been our strength throughout this season and having Gary Johnson at the helm has certainly turned around our fortunes (on the pitch at least). After the first half a dozen or so games we were languishing below mid-table with Gary Owers unable to motivate the players. Step up GJ... the rest is history.

As I have visited most of the grounds in the NLS before, I knew what to expect at the likes of East Thurrock, Canvey Island et al. What I didn't expect was the level of some of the football played, Bath City quite rightly took us to task, Welling showed us how a defence can win you football matches.

However, non league football is about the fans first and foremost and it has been a pleasure meeting some really decent people along the way. Special mention to the chap (can't remember his name) who was chatting to me at our first away game in NLS at Chelmsford. He gave me full chapter and verse on his life history, his love of bell ringing and even introduce me to Charlie who he sang in the choir with - you'd never get that at Stamford Bridge! .... best quote from this season 'Bloody hell, I've never seen so many beards in a football ground'.... yep, you guessed it, we were playing Dulwich.

It's been fun. It's been worth the drop just to see United start winning again. Next season will be a different kettle of fish. We'll be back to being the small fish in the big pond. Best wishes to all the teams still vying for the play-offs and those battling relegation.

Wherever you end up next season. Bloody enjoy it!

 

[Luke Imp]

I did think that Torquay's promotion and title win kinda crept up on me because last time I'd checked, they were neck and neck with Woking.

Now I've looked at the table it makes sense because Woking have had a mare over the last few games. What's that down to? Injuries/suspensions or a blip?

 

[Railway Blue]

With the title sealed last week and only three 'celebration' matches to fit in before the end of the season I would like to say goodbye to NLS and all the posters in this section.

Our time down in NLS has been an enjoyable one (of course it has!). The grounds we have visited have been, on the whole, most welcoming of the Yellow Army. I'm sure even the Woking fans (amongst others) could not have expected such fervent support from 'that sh*t ex-League club who think they're something special'.

Being full-time has almost certainly been our strength throughout this season and having Gary Johnson at the helm has certainly turned around our fortunes (on the pitch at least). After the first half a dozen or so games we were languishing below mid-table with Gary Owers unable to motivate the players. Step up GJ... the rest is history.

As I have visited most of the grounds in the NLS before, I knew what to expect at the likes of East Thurrock, Canvey Island et al. What I didn't expect was the level of some of the football played, Bath City quite rightly took us to task, Welling showed us how a defence can win you football matches.

However, non league football is about the fans first and foremost and it has been a pleasure meeting some really decent people along the way. Special mention to the chap (can't remember his name) who was chatting to me at our first away game in NLS at Chelmsford. He gave me full chapter and verse on his life history, his love of bell ringing and even introduce me to Charlie who he sang in the choir with - you'd never get that at Stamford Bridge! .... best quote from this season 'Bloody hell, I've never seen so many beards in a football ground'.... yep, you guessed it, we were playing Dulwich.

It's been fun. It's been worth the drop just to see United start winning again. Next season will be a different kettle of fish. We'll be back to being the small fish in the big pond. Best wishes to all the teams still vying for the play-offs and those battling relegation.

Wherever you end up next season. Bloody enjoy it!

Genuinely pleased for you guys and also jealous. I think that even if we stormed this league next season we'd struggle to get over 2,000 in the ground. Sad but true.

 

[Seventyseven]

I did think that Torquay's promotion and title win kinda crept up on me because last time I'd checked, they were neck and neck with Woking.

Now I've looked at the table it makes sense because Woking have had a mare over the last few games. What's that down to? Injuries/suspensions or a blip?

Two words: Ben Gerring

 

[DontBringBertie]

I did think that Torquay's promotion and title win kinda crept up on me because last time I'd checked, they were neck and neck with Woking.

Now I've looked at the table it makes sense because Woking have had a mare over the last few games. What's that down to? Injuries/suspensions or a blip?

Going through 40 players in a season never helps. More than just a blip... we’re 2-0 to Concord at HT without even having a shot.

 

[Super_horns]

St Albans left it late to beat East Thurrock with 2 goals in the last 5 minutes to win 2-1!

 

[Pinner Stones]

With the title sealed last week and only three 'celebration' matches to fit in before the end of the season I would like to say goodbye to NLS and all the posters in this section.

Our time down in NLS has been an enjoyable one (of course it has!). The grounds we have visited have been, on the whole, most welcoming of the Yellow Army. I'm sure even the Woking fans (amongst others) could not have expected such fervent support from 'that sh*t ex-League club who think they're something special'.

Being full-time has almost certainly been our strength throughout this season and having Gary Johnson at the helm has certainly turned around our fortunes (on the pitch at least). After the first half a dozen or so games we were languishing below mid-table with Gary Owers unable to motivate the players. Step up GJ... the rest is history.

As I have visited most of the grounds in the NLS before, I knew what to expect at the likes of East Thurrock, Canvey Island et al. What I didn't expect was the level of some of the football played, Bath City quite rightly took us to task, Welling showed us how a defence can win you football matches.

However, non league football is about the fans first and foremost and it has been a pleasure meeting some really decent people along the way. Special mention to the chap (can't remember his name) who was chatting to me at our first away game in NLS at Chelmsford. He gave me full chapter and verse on his life history, his love of bell ringing and even introduce me to Charlie who he sang in the choir with - you'd never get that at Stamford Bridge! .... best quote from this season 'Bloody hell, I've never seen so many beards in a football ground'.... yep, you guessed it, we were playing Dulwich.

It's been fun. It's been worth the drop just to see United start winning again. Next season will be a different kettle of fish. We'll be back to being the small fish in the big pond. Best wishes to all the teams still vying for the play-offs and those battling relegation.

Wherever you end up next season. Bloody enjoy it!

We had a great time when we, Wealdstone, travelled in good decent numbers and fantastic voice to the south coast. Your social media fans let you down greatly but thought you were excellent hosts on the day, from the bar pre match to the stewards that looked after everyone’s bags during the game.

 

[Leewilson]

I'm absolutely convinced Eastbourne are going down. It's the McGhee effect, the guy is so jaded and full of bitterness about the steady decline in his managerial career since the mid 90s and it rubs off onto the players. He reeked of negativity, low expectations and meek acceptance of terrible performances while he was here. I read a very recent interview with him where he was still whining about being sacked by Wolves in 1998. He needs to move on and leave football completely but it looks like it's too late for Eastbourne - another club he's crashed.

Blimey, I’ve just had a look and they’ve not won under him yet.

 

[DontBringBertie]

Blimey, I’ve just had a look and they’ve not won under him yet.

Just spanked Dartford 6-0 though...

 

[Clem Fandango]

Yeah unreal win for Eastbourne.

Big 3 points at Truro for us. Absolute wonder strike yet again from Fabien Robert. Once you get past the 5 minutes of ads, one to watch on the National League highlights!

 

[Meadow]

An end of an era and a sad day. Weston-super-Mare have been an ever present side in the Conference South, the only side to stay in that league since it was formed in 2004(?). Admittedly, they benefitted from the AGM Cup on a couple of occasions. Relegation now confirmed.

 

[chipmunx]

Yeah unreal win for Eastbourne.

Big 3 points at Truro for us. Absolute wonder strike yet again from Fabien Robert. Once you get past the 5 minutes of ads, one to watch on the National League highlights!

Are you coming back to the northern division next season now it looks nearly sure you'll stay up?

 

[Pinner Stones]

Rumours circulating that Aldershot are after Wealdstone’s Bobby Wilkinson, a man who has had the largest and second largest budget in our history and managed to finish 11th! He struggles with the “pressure” at Wealdstone, not sure how he’d handle Aldershot.

 

[#Beebot]

Rumours circulating that Aldershot are after Wealdstone’s Bobby Wilkinson, a man who has had the largest and second largest budget in our history and managed to finish 11th! He struggles with the “pressure” at Wealdstone, not sure how he’d handle Aldershot.

Is the highest budget in your history one of the top 7 budgets in the NL South though?

I went to your game yesterday and was a little surprised at how non-existent your forward line was. If you had much money I'd have thought you could afford at least one centre forward?

 

[Pinner Stones]

Is the highest budget in your history one of the top 7 budgets in the NL South though?

I went to your game yesterday and was a little surprised at how non-existent your forward line was. If you had much money I'd have thought you could afford at least one centre forward?

It most certainly is in the top seven.

Our forward line is non existent and hasn’t really helped our cause. CF, our No 9 David Pratt, is on £800 per week.

The manager wanted Pratt, but if the club had done due diligence on say 20 strikers that you could pay that sort of wage to and get someone who would score 30 goals a season, he wouldn’t be in that list.

 

[Lew]

Rumours circulating that Aldershot are after Wealdstone’s Bobby Wilkinson, a man who has had the largest and second largest budget in our history and managed to finish 11th! He struggles with the “pressure” at Wealdstone, not sure how he’d handle Aldershot.

What rumours? A few fans this end saying they would go for him?

 

[Aberstone]

That's got to be fake news, I'm 110% sure of that.

I wasn't at the game yesterday but I've been given the synopsis and it sounds like a carbon copy of the Hampton game last week whereby as soon as we concede, we collapse.

Oh well, mid-table mediocrity yet again for us.

 

[Pinner Stones]

Not sure it is fake news; heard it from reliable sources. Our budget is going to be hugely reduced next season.

Last season he went for the Hampton job but turned it down when he saw how low their budget was. We also had the dalliance with Billericay too. I’d be surprised if he’s with us next season. He always seems just one game away from the crowd turning on him.

 

[Lew]

If Waddock were to leave (a complete unknown atm, there's still been no statement about relegation and that was over a week ago), he wouldn't be anywhere near my shortlist that's for sure.

 

[DontBringBertie]

If Waddock were to leave (a complete unknown atm, there's still been no statement about relegation and that was over a week ago), he wouldn't be anywhere near my shortlist that's for sure.

Dowson and Garry Hill on the shortlist?

 

[Jerry]

If Waddock were to leave (a complete unknown atm, there's still been no statement about relegation and that was over a week ago), he wouldn't be anywhere near my shortlist that's for sure.

I think a lot depends on whether you are staying full time or not. If not then you could probably have your pick of any manager you wanted at this level. If you are full time then many of them wouldn't have any experience of dealing with a full time squad, it's a very different scenario with different players and different training regimes required for each .

You are better positioned than we were to be successful as a part time side as your location means you could better attract the top part timers from the London/South East area who wouldn't countenance the journey to Devon.

It's a big decision and one that we had a lot of debate about within our fanbase last summer, the best part timers are almost certainly better than the worst full timers (which is all you will get without paying big money) but as a team full time players will be fitter and have more time on the training field to gel. Also if you are planning on only a one season stay then you wouldn't want to be in a situation the season after next with a part time structure back in the National League.

 

[Super_horns]

St Albans lost at Concord which means they've got to better Billericay's result on Saturday to sneak into the play-offs.

They are both at home to Torquay and Bath respectivley.

 

[Camborne Gills]

Truro gone after a last minute winner from Hungerford

 

[Clem Fandango]

They are pretty much down but Truro aren't officially relegated yet. They need to win by 3 against Slough and hope Hungerford lose to Thurrock (both very doubtful).