national league fixtures 1 january 2018

[Seventyseven]

We didn’t lose!

 

[Chief Rocka]

Classy Gateshead fans singing about us going bust then moaning about no atmosphere for a ‘derby game’

Memo to self: don’t take shite off no mark tinpot trash seriously

Memo to the heed: stop doing a Carlisle and create a rivalry that doesn’t exist and never will. Apparently we helped you out when you were in the shit (although I don’t remember as you were insignificant at the time). Not sure you’ll be for long with a FT team and gates of 800. What goes around comes around.

We helped them out when their athletics stadium was under 2 foot of water and their pitch resembled a quagmire, they got no assistance from their lovely big neighbours Newcastle or Sunlan like, think they played about 7-8 games at The Vic, mind most of the mouthy little scrotes there yesterday will of been about 8 year old at the time and still wearing their Newcy Brown Ale Mag shirts.

As for the game itself it was just Pools in a nutshell, take the lead, we sit back, invite them onto us and concede, Cassidy finally looked like the big man he should be, won all sorts yesterday and knocked their defence all over the place but had very little support, the nearest man to him was always 30 yards away. Franks is looking like the Franks in his first spell at Pools, head down run forward, Hawkins and Woods were both god awful and Deverdics is being singled out every game and punished because he isn't a defender.

I think we're in serious danger of going down, the January fire sale is about to begin, rumours flying around yesterday about Harrison/Donnelly/Featherstone/Oates all on their way out, someone in the Corner Flag before the match was adamant Harrison was off to Luton, believe it when I see it and signings this month have already been vetoed by the board, several players leaving, none coming in, we could be having derbies with Spennymoor and Darlo next year

 

[The_Boss]

Ok Boss, I have a couple of genuine questions for you- weren't you on the verge of liquidation 2 years ago? What happened, who wrote the cheques to clear your debts?

You average 200 less than us on your home gates, our gate receipts only cover 2/3s of our team budget- the "Vardy money" is making up the shortfall, and going full time isn't even a remote possibility: how can you afford to be full time? Who's putting the money in to top up the budget?
P.S if you don't know the answers to the last question, you really ought to be finding out.

Someone screen shot this! B2TF engaging with a tin potter!

We were very close yes, hours away by all accounts. At the time our owner (Amar Alkadhi) was on the brink of selling the club to a consortium of local businessmen, but ones that had already or were currently serving on the board. The owner pulled the plug on this at the last minute and it is understood that he then put in the necessary funds to pay the most immediate and urgent debts. From here on he employed a new Chief Exec (Mark Blower, who doesn't take a wage from the club) to manage things on a daily basis. This resulted in a lot of discussions to whom we owed money and having to rebuild trust and relationships as we worked to pay them off. This has taken a number of years. Our playing budget has always taken a hit because of this, plus any earnings from player sales and cup runs went out of the club as well.

The club is now pretty much self sustainable. There was a period last season where we didn't have any home games for a number of weeks so the owner put some cash in to keep on top of payments, following c.£150k worth of player sales last January he took that money straight back out again. What he doesn't do is put a bulk amount of money in to top up playing budgets. In previous interviews (which are rarer than rocking horse shit) he's said he'd invest if we were either looking like serious promotion contenders, or at strong threat of relegation. This is the first season we're in one of those brackets so it will be interesting to see if he's good to his word.

A couple of months ago it was revealed that the owner has transferred any historical loans to the club (going back to when he took over c.10 years ago) into shares so taking away another huge amount of debt he could have called in at any point.

As mentioned we don't have a big playing budget. But then we don't have a big squad either, just 18 first team players and just 3 on the coaching staff. We have no academy to fund. We have an U21 side ( most are 16/17/18 years old as far as I know) but they are barely connected to the club - only enough for us to hold registrations to play them in county cups etc. I was very surprised some of them weren't picked for the FA Trophy game last week to rest as many of the first team squad as possible.

Something Askey has always done is try to keep the squad as local as possible so the players have as lower travelling expenses as possible. This season has changed a little with like of Wilson and Marsh coming from down south, but those two house shared in rented accommodation. As I said in a previous post some of the players do have a 2nd income - I think Fitzpatrick and Hancox both do some office work, Durrell I think still does some coaching work like he did when at Chester. Andy Halls last year had his own personal training business which I believe was one of the factors for him to go part time at Chester. But yes there are others who will be on better money, Whitaker and Pilkington, but then they have played most of their careers at much bigger clubs and on much higher wages than at Macc so most likely have something in reserve. Whitaker again is the most local living player in the squad, always lived in and around Macc no matter which club he's been at.

I don't buy into the "lowest budget" comments from Askey buy we'll definitely be in the bottom third. In the last couple of years the owner of Arighi Bianco has become very "pally" with the chief exec and the club in general, it wouldn't surprise me if he's providing some sort of funding but that's just me putting 2 & 2 together.

 

[Joe.]

Deserved win for Bromley in the end. 15 minutes of madness for us and we conceded three goals. Put up a spirited fight and possibly could have equalised before the deflected fourth, but was always going to be a tall order. Still have no idea why it was chosen for BT mind.

Chester H and Maidstone A coming up. Ideally we need to be looking at 6/6, but I'd take 4.

 

[B2TF]

(Replying to The Boss) Well, if someone's putting money in, the club is not "self sustaining" and if we're nowhere near being able to afford to go full time on gates of 1700, I'd say neither are Macclesfield on gates of 1500. I think there's a lot more money being put in than you suggest.

 

[The_Boss]

(Replying to The Boss) Well, if someone's putting money in, the club is not "self sustaining" and if we're nowhere near being able to afford to go full time on gates of 1700, I'd say neither are Macclesfield on gates of 1500. I think there's a lot more money being put in than you suggest.

As I said we need top ups here and there to get through cash flows problems now and then, which are paid back. It is merely my own hunch that someone may be putting some in, as like you I find it hard to fully believe it's not happening, but never has this been confirmed so we can only take it for what it's worth.

I don't see why you can't go full time, I would have presumed you were already to be honest.

 

[SomeMightShay]

Our ticket prices are higher, plus we don't have a massive stadium to maintain. And we have a squad of 18 compared to your 25.[/QUOTE]
Adult Tickets can be bought for as little as £13 to stand. Adult Away fans can also get a kid to go buy a ticket for them on the day as the tickets aren't labelled up as concession/adult or at least ours weren't

 

[Tranmerewhite]

Nothing short of a terrible result for us yesterday. Several individual errors punished by a clinical Fylde and not really the conditions for us to play football. We seemed lost when the game started in very “non league” conditions with a Fylde side that was very aggressive and in our faces. Dissapointing that the team didn’t have the grit to scrap out a result when those conditions didn’t allow for football.

Got to go on another 5 game winning run, which includes our game in hand and home game to Macclesfield or it’ll be a case of battling for one of the better spots in the playoffs.

 

[Raymondo316]

For anyone interested, Dover's first goal is well worth checking out (3:18 mark).....certainly one of the best finishes I've seen this season.

 

[PoolieTom]

someone in the Corner Flag before the match was adamant Harrison was off to Luton, believe it when I see it

He must have been talking about this Luton team, surely?

http://www.61fcluton.co.uk/

 

[doveranddover]

For anyone interested, Dover's first goal is well worth checking out (3:18 mark).....certainly one of the best finishes I've seen this season.

the 2nd's pretty good too, shame about our defending

 

[simsini]

The league's top goalscorers served up four on Monday night in a game that should have been more comfortable, but it was three points all the same against Train Station near Gravesend FC. BT Sport viewers were definitely entertained. Louis Dennis is hitting form and we have a good run of fixtures coming up. Play-offs are a distinct possibility.

 

[Luke Imp]

What was the Halifax penalty for?!

 

[The_Boss]

What was the Halifax penalty for?!

Sympathy.

 

[Joe.]

The league's top goalscorers served up four on Monday night in a game that should have been more comfortable, but it was three points all the same against Train Station near Gravesend FC. BT Sport viewers were definitely entertained. Louis Dennis is hitting form and we have a good run of fixtures coming up. Play-offs are a distinct possibility.

Prefer Train Stop in Northfleet myself.

Thought it should have been a bit closer but, as I said further up, you deserved it overall.

 

[Etty Abrics]

For anyone interested, Dover's first goal is well worth checking out (3:18 mark).....certainly one of the best finishes I've seen this season.

I was in the toilet

 

[SomeMightShay]

What was the Halifax penalty for?!

Same as the Macclesfield one. Not very much. We'll give you £2000 to take Ben Tomlinson back. Use him as a janitor, whatever. Dead wood.

 

[Semi-skimmed Silk]

Same as the Macclesfield one. Not very much. We'll give you £2000 to take Ben Tomlinson back. Use him as a janitor, whatever. Dead wood.

Hmm, can't see in the replay but someone had Kennedy's shirt nearly pulled over his head before the camera turns to see it. Doubt it affected his getting near the ball mind, was just a stupid foul to commit.

 

[Luke Imp]

Same as the Macclesfield one. Not very much. We'll give you £2000 to take Ben Tomlinson back. Use him as a janitor, whatever. Dead wood.

He's not done anything since he left for Barnet 4(?) years ago.

Couldn't blame him for taking a two year deal in the FL but in hindsight it's not worked in his favour in the slightest.