League 2 General Chat Thread

[Richard Cranium]

Still feel for Wrexham after that season when they finished 2nd on 98 points and didn’t even make the Play off final. Fleetwood were a level above everyone that season mind. That year and the following season are 2 of my favourite years following us.

 

[GTFCfish]

You can get fucked. ;-) We’d already lost two Conference play off finals before you felt like joining us.

When we were trying to get promoted first time round, it was Exeter, Torquay, Burton and Stevenage who we were competing with.

In our 9 seasons down there, we finished in the play offs 3 times (2nd each time), we flirted with relegated twice and finished mid table (and out of money) four times.

The two fights with relegation were the low points - I remember getting stuffed twice on the trot 5-0 in about February/March and being several points from safety and having played more games than those around us. It genuinely looked like regional football was on the cards.

i think there is only g4e (aka you) belizehatter codaplenty and me still around?
wonder what happened to lutonphil barrybutlin neilybabe thekiddykid trannie... to name but a few??

Renember the year went up, they went from having 2 regular posters at the start of the season, then by March all the glory hangers on turned up and there was about 15 proclaiming their love for Mansfield but who never bothered posting when they were shit!

 

[Conker]

At the top end it did but outside the Top 5-7 or so it was generally a poor division overall.

There's no Mansfield/Kiddy, Fleetwood/Wrexham, Barnet/Bristol Rovers, Lincoln/Tranmere down there this season and it's looking like a low league win points total.

It got progressively worse after we went up as champions (obviously)

The season before I think we got 93 points and finished third!

 

[Laker]

Renember the year went up, they went from having 2 regular posters at the start of the season, then by March all the glory hangers on turned up and there was about 15 proclaiming their love for Mansfield but who never bothered posting when they were shit!

There was one poster who did my head in when we both came up from the Conference. I forget his name now but all he posted about was Richard Money. It was hilarious.

 

[Baratheon]

Renember the year went up, they went from having 2 regular posters at the start of the season, then by March all the glory hangers on turned up and there was about 15 proclaiming their love for Mansfield but who never bothered posting when they were shit!

Jesus wept! There must have been extremely long periods with no Mansfield posters.

 

[Stanleyfan]

The season we came up (2005/6) one of our challengers was Grays Athletic who had a great team. Most of their players e.g. Michael Kightley ended up in the football league. Our game down there was live on SKY which we won - another good team that season was Canvey Island. Looks like both clubs are a long way down the pyramid now.
I also remember our first season in the Conference we played Margate away on a Tuesday night - apparently we took 8 fans (one of my mates went but mainly for a piss up in Belgium)
Some great times in the Unibond and Conference but would love to see us make League 1

 

[Laker]

The season we came up (2005/6) one of our challengers was Grays Athletic who had a great team. Most of their players e.g. Michael Kightley ended up in the football league. Our game down there was live on SKY which we won - another good team that season was Canvey Island. Looks like both clubs are a long way down the pyramid now.
I also remember our first season in the Conference we played Margate away on a Tuesday night - apparently we took 8 fans (one of my mates went but mainly for a piss up in Belgium)
Some great times in the Unibond and Conference but would love to see us make League 1

Yes I remember Grays. In either our first or second season down there (our first was your promotion year), Grays reached the play offs I believe and beat us 5-3 at theirs. We were 4-1 down at half time and conceded early in the second half before laying siege to their goal for the second half. We could have won 10-5, we had that many chances.

Grays’ ground was overlooked by flats and whenever they scored a fat bloke would come out of one of them and ring this bloody bell. Most infuriating when you’ve conceded five!

Ah the memories.

 

[Stanleyfan]

Speaking of fat blokes I remember speaking to a guy at Canvey Island about our promotion chances and I didn't realise it was their manager/owner! The way he was mingling with the fans and the way he dressed I'd no idea he was a football manager but they had a very good team at the time.

 

[The Terminator]

Yes I remember Grays. In either our first or second season down there (our first was your promotion year), Grays reached the play offs I believe and beat us 5-3 at theirs. We were 4-1 down at half time and conceded early in the second half before laying siege to their goal for the second half. We could have won 10-5, we had that many chances.

Grays’ ground was overlooked by flats and whenever they scored a fat bloke would come out of one of them and ring this bloody bell. Most infuriating when you’ve conceded five!

Ah the memories.

That ground is now long since gone, now a housing estate. While Grays have had various ground shares over the years and have long since left the town and haven't played there for over ten years, they now lie 3 leagues below the National League. To think they were once bankrolled!

 

[Agombar stool]

Providing I don't get food poisoning for the second saturday in a row I'll be at the County Ground this weekend at home to Port Vale.

We have a decent home record against Vale and our recent home form is improving. Vale seem to be struggling a bit but we have a few injuries and have had some tough matches in the recent Sat-Tue-Sat-Tue shoot out. Also late goals conceded at Lincoln and Wycombe mean we are 3 points down on where we could/should be.

Hopefully we aren't too tired and can put pressure on Vale from the start. Get an early goal and press home the advantage.

For any Vale fans travelling, the Merlin on Drove Road is probably the closest bar and has a good mix of home and away fans. For real ale aficionados, glue pot is your pub of choice. Safe journeys to all that travel.

 

[valefan16]

Providing I don't get food poisoning for the second saturday in a row I'll be at the County Ground this weekend at home to Port Vale.

We have a decent home record against Vale and our recent home form is improving. Vale seem to be struggling a bit but we have a few injuries and have had some tough matches in the recent Sat-Tue-Sat-Tue shoot out. Also late goals conceded at Lincoln and Wycombe mean we are 3 points down on where we could/should be.

Hopefully we aren't too tired and can put pressure on Vale from the start. Get an early goal and press home the advantage.

For any Vale fans travelling, the Merlin on Drove Road is probably the closest bar and has a good mix of home and away fans. For real ale aficionados, glue pot is your pub of choice. Safe journeys to all that travel.

You'll fist us 5-0 as usual at your place. We are cowards at the moment.

 

[Conker]

That ground is now long since gone, now a housing estate. While Grays have had various ground shares over the years and have long since left the town and haven't played there for over ten years, they now lie 3 leagues below the National League. To think they were once bankrolled!

It was in the middle of a housing estate was it not? I recall going to Grays, think we were in a decent sized open terrace behind the goal.

 

[gijsbert_bos]

More news of Lincoln's massiveness - our fans' forum attracted 400 people last night, with all tickets 'sold' (we didn't charge people to come).

Disappointingly our Chairman didn't attack any of the fans or local media.

 

[GEORGE]

The season we came up (2005/6) one of our challengers was Grays Athletic who had a great team. Most of their players e.g. Michael Kightley ended up in the football league. Our game down there was live on SKY which we won - another good team that season was Canvey Island. Looks like both clubs are a long way down the pyramid now.
I also remember our first season in the Conference we played Margate away on a Tuesday night - apparently we took 8 fans (one of my mates went but mainly for a piss up in Belgium)
Some great times in the Unibond and Conference but would love to see us make League 1

You will

 

[Baratheon]

More news of Lincoln's massiveness - our fans' forum attracted 400 people last night, with all tickets 'sold' (we didn't charge people to come).

Disappointingly our Chairman didn't attack any of the fans or local media.

Fascinating!

 

[AdamStag]

Fascinating!

It'll be a marginal improvement on other activities round those parts I suspect.

We should all bow

 

[dedwardp]

another good team that season was Canvey Island. Looks like both clubs are a long way down the pyramid now.

Canvey Island have since been well overtaken by island neighbours Concord Rangers, whose rise was led by the one and only, World's Greatest Danny Cowley. They were slumming it in the Essex Senior League when Canvey were living it large in the Conference under Jeff King and his relatively many pounds. Concord are now two levels above Canvey and three above the Senior League.

 

[valefan16]

Canvey Island... memories (not good) of 2000... 4-2 up in injury time they pegged us to 4-4 and did us over in extra time in the reply 2-1!

 

[Casey]

The coldest I've ever been at a football match was at Canvey. The temp guage showed a balmy 2° but the memory of the wind blowing up the Thames with needle like rain getting through the layers of clothing still brings the shivers back.
That Gray's side back then had a really good forward line. Aaron McClean, Dennis Oli and Michael Kightly tore defences apart for a season or two before all being sold to league sides.
Moment I can share with Cheltenham fans. Our good Southern league side playing well but losing 1-5 at our old Town Mead ground to Cheltenham. Apart from the goals I would say we just about shaded the match. Footballs a horrible game sometimes.

Casey

 

[Conker]

The coldest I've ever been at a football match was at Canvey. The temp guage showed a balmy 2° but the memory of the wind blowing up the Thames with needle like rain getting through the layers of clothing still brings the shivers back.
That Gray's side back then had a really good forward line. Aaron McClean, Dennis Oli and Michael Kightly tore defences apart for a season or two before all being sold to league sides.
Moment I can share with Cheltenham fans. Our good Southern league side playing well but losing 1-5 at our old Town Mead ground to Cheltenham. Apart from the goals I would say we just about shaded the match. Footballs a horrible game sometimes.

Casey

Those names scream LMA Manager to me.

 

[Vanni]

What about Lewes and The Dripping Pan?

Easily the best away NL ground I've been to, character-wise.

 

[gijsbert_bos]

Those names scream LMA Manager to me.

I remember Sid (our famously fat fan) always saying we should sign Dennis Oli back in the mid-2000s. This must have been on Nathan Jackson's board, or maybe on Rivals. Anyone remember Rivals? This is beginning to sound like a Peter Kay sketch.

 

[Luke Imp]

More news of Lincoln's massiveness - our fans' forum attracted 400 people last night, with all tickets 'sold' (we didn't charge people to come).

Disappointingly our Chairman didn't attack any of the fans or local media.

I watched some of it, but some of the Q's that came up...

Someone asked DC/NC why the players always run over to the Co-op to celebrate a goal ( ) (they quite clearly don't) and someone asked what ST prices are going to be when we move Stadium.

I think we're probably seeing the beginning of the end of fans forums anyway - not just us but generally. I mean, everyone is that easily accessibly now and information is so readily available that they're probably not needed.

 

[gijsbert_bos]

I didn't watch it myself (got much better things to do with 2 hours on a Thursday evening - Married at First Sight, anyone?)

I saw on twitter that someone had asked why we only celebrate in front of the Co-op. Honestly.

 

[Buxton Vale]

With our current gutless performances and our usual ability to roll over at the County Ground, I've already written this one off. I doubt we will even score or manage more than one effort at goal.

4-0 home win with Richards getting an inevitable brace.

 

[Agombar stool]

With our current gutless performances and our usual ability to roll over at the County Ground, I've already written this one off. I doubt we will even score or manage more than one effort at goal.

4-0 home win with Richards getting an inevitable brace.

Richards has been great so far. 10 times the player Luke Norris is.

 

[valefan16]

Richards has been great so far. 10 times the player Luke Norris is.

Was decent enough for us even with a buggered ankle, first player IIRC to score 20+ in 3 consecutive seasons for us. Natural scorer, strong and will score plenty at this level for sure.

 

[GTFCfish]

I saw on twitter that someone had asked why we only celebrate in front of the Co-op. Honestly.

Celebrating a goal, what's one of those then?

 

[Guernica]

Celebrating a goal, what's one of those then?

Our fans forum wasn't merely as exciting as yours. No dodgy PowerPoints, no blaming of the fans for driving away of investment, no endless drivel spouted by an accountant who seemed to hate the fans and no said accountant telling fans to shut up. Shame really oh and no abusing of the panel host by the non chairman. And most importantly not a brown leather jacket in sight. We're doing it wrong

 

[Buxton Vale]

Richards has been great so far. 10 times the player Luke Norris is.

He was decent for us, except if you needed him around Christmas