The Long (Eaton) and winding road to...success or failure.

Game : Football Manager 2013 (PC)

Version : Official SI 13.1.3

Database size : Large

Leagues loaded :

• England (Regional and County Primary Leagues (Level 9) and above)
  
• Northern Ireland (IFA Division 2 and above)
  
• Ireland (League of Ireland First Division and above)
  
• Scotland (Third Division and above)
  
• Wales (Corbett Sports Welsh Prem only)
  

Previous experience : Sunday morning footballer

Following on from my FM12 save “From the terraces to the top…hopefully!”, FM13 will once again see me attempting to start from the bottom and trying to work my way up the leagues. Yes, I also have my An America’s Adventure save, but once I realized that I was able to take control of my local club, an immediate desire to play as them took hold of me. I will be dipping in and out of my America’s save but this will be my main save for now.

Thanks to the excellent work of erimus 1876 and his English Leagues down to Level 9 add-on, I’ll be attempting to rise through the leagues with Long Eaton United. Why? Because I live in Long Eaton and am literally 5 minutes away from the club . While I want to stay at Long Eaton and attempt to take them as far as possible, if I do receive a job offer which is too good to turn down, I may decide to take it.

I hope you enjoy my journey. Comments are welcome

Long Eaton United : A background

Founded in 1956, Long Eaton United are an amateur English Football Club currently playing in the Northern Counties East Premier Division. The club play their home games at Grange Park and possess fairly basic training facilities and very basic youth facilities. The club also has basic junior coaching and a limited youth recruitment network. The club is affectionately known as the Blues.

Although they have never won a competition, the club enjoyed probably their best spell of success during the 2000’s. Long Eaton United finished runners-up in the English 9th tier for the only time in 2009.

Grange Park

League expectation

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Northern Counties East Premier Division : Board expectation - Learn from the experience : Media expectation - 17th (out of 22)

Cup expectations

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FA Vase : 1st round

Northern League Challenge Cup : 2nd round

Transfer budget : £0k

Wage budget : £0 p/w

Current wage bill : £0 p/w

Season tickets sold : 25

My views for the season ahead… : I’m not quite sure as I have no idea where we stand in terms of quality but with the board wanting us to learn from the experience and the media suggesting we’ll finish 17th, I can only aim for a mid-table finish. Anything other than this will be a bonus considering our pre-season predictions.

Long Eaton United

21.07.12 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Heather St. John’s : 0-0 : We kicked our pre-season off against fellow amateurs Heather St. John’s which gave me a chance to see what I had inherited. It was a drab affair which saw both us and Heather St. John’s rarely threaten the goal so it was no real surprise that the game ended 0-0.

25.07.12 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Shepshed Dynamo : 2-0 : Our second friendly saw us welcome another amateur side in the form of Shepshed Dynamo to Grange Park. We started the game well with new signing Ryan Ford putting us 1-0 up 6 minutes before half time and then Dean Morris, another new signing sealed the win on 58 minutes as we won the game 2-0.

28.07.12 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Rocester : 1-1: Things started well for us as inside 2 minutes we were 1-0 up thanks to greyed out player Kwasi Wynter. After scoring that goal though we seemed to sit back and took our foot off the gas which invited Rocester on to us. As the game went on, they started to dominate and on 90 minutes got a much deserved equalizing goal.

Long Eaton United

01.08.12 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Leek Town : 0-0 : Our final pre-season game saw us take on Semi-Professional Northern Premier League 1st Division South side Leek Town. We started the game warily given the fact that Leek are a division higher than us and although they had the majority of possession throughout the game, we were more than a match for them and more than deserved the draw by full time.

11.08.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Pickering Town : 1-1 : My first competitive game saw us welcome Pickering Town to Grange Park with 84 spectators witnessing my first game in charge. We started the game well and had a few early chances which whizzed past the visiting keepers posts but it was the visitors who took the lead on 32 minutes through Paul Grainger. We responded well though as less than 60 seconds later we were back on level terms thanks to former Chesterfield man Josh Wright. This is how the game remained but I have to be pleased with our overall performance, resilience and a point in the end.

14.08.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Brighouse Town v Long Eaton United : 1-4 : A tricky away fixture at Brighouse proved to be less trickier than I initially thought as we went in 1-0 up at half time thanks to Dean Morris after dominating much of the first 45 minutes. 3 minutes after the restart saw us double our lead through Josh Wright’s 2nd of the season but we were pegged back 5 minutes later as Karl Howells got himself onto a Brighouse corner to make it 2-1. Josh Wright claimed his 2nd of the game and 3rd of the season on 73 minutes and his strike partner Ryan Limb got his name on the score sheet on 90 minutes with his 1st of the season to complete the 4-1 rout.

18.08.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Liversedge AFC : 1-0 : 4 days after our superb win against Brighouse Town and we were back in action against Liversedge AFC. The first half saw both us and Liversedge fighting for domination but as half time approached the score remained 0-0. We came out in the 2nd half with much more vigour and with a sense of urgency and with 59 minutes on the clock we got our rewards as Ryan Ford made it 1-0. Having got the goal lead, I was happy to sit back and protect that lead which is what we did for the remaining half an hour. The only dampener on the game was the injury that Luke Thurlbourne picked up which will leave him sidelined for up to 6 weeks.

26.08.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Worksop Parramore v Long Eaton United : 1-2 : Our final game in August saw us travel to Sandy Lane where we took on Worksop Parramore. As has been common for us so far this season, the first half saw a stalemate in which neither side gave much away. The second half though saw the game begin to open up and on 54 minutes lady luck was on our side as Charlie Beckford put the ball into his own net to put us 1-0 up. Ryan Limb claimed his 2nd goal of the season on 81 minutes to make it 2-0 before Lee Thompson grabbed an injury time goal for the home side but it proved to be in vain as we took all 3 points back to Grange Park.

August League Table : A steady start for us sees us sitting 4th in the league after 4 games, winning 3 and drawing 1 while scoring 8 and conceding 3 in the process. I’ve got to be pleased with how we’ve started the season considering we’re expected to finish mid-table.

Transfer deadline day was a quiet one for us as we made all of our signings during the summer. Unbelievably we had one player at the club when I arrived (he was cack) so off he went and in came 28 players all on free transfers. A massive amount of players I know but with no players or even youth players at the club, we needed bodies in. I’m particularly excited about former Chesterfield man Josh Wright who clearly has the ability to rip this division apart and also Julian Joachim who brings a wealth of experience to the squad. Whether they can all gel though is another matter and with no expectations for the season or players on contracts (they’re all on amateur contracts), there’s no real pressure on the players.

01.09.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Retford United : 2-2 : September saw us looking to build on our fantastic start to the season which had seen us pick up 10 points out of a possible 12. We started the month off with Retford United making the visit to us who themselves had had a good start like us. Things didn’t start well though as Craig Stoddart put the visitors 1-0 up on 36 minutes. Once again though, we showed great determination and responded 6 minutes later through journeyman Julian Joachim who made it 1-1. Joachim once again struck on 58 minutes to put us into the lead but we couldn’t hang on and on 63 minutes Retford pulled a goal back to leave us sharing the spoils with them by full time.

05.09.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Glasshoughton Welfare v Long Eaton United : 1-2 : Things started badly for us in this game as just before the half hour mark, Glasshoughton went into a deserved lead after we failed to show up. Half time saw me “say a few words” and just after the hour mark, those words seemed to have hit home with the players as we grabbed the equalizer through Jake Sedgemore. We continued to dominate the last 3rd of the game and 10 minutes from time Josh Wright struck his 4th of the season to grab the points for us.

08.09.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Heanor Town : 3-1 : We went into this game looking to extend our unbeaten run to 7 games against rivals Heanor Town and it looked as if we would on 38 minutes as Josh Wright claimed his 5th goal of the season with a rasping half volley into the top corner. We switched off just before half time though as Heanor grabbed an equalizer through Neil Grayson to send us in at half time on level terms. The match looked as if it would remain a draw as both sides struggled to create any more chances until Ryan Limb pounced on a rebound to grab his 3rd goal of the season. As Heanor pushed on to try and score an equalizer we caught them on the break as veteran Julian Joachim showed that he still has some pace left in him even at the ripe old age of 38 as he scored his 3rd goal of the season and our 3rd of the game to claim all 3 points for us.

15.09.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Scarborough Athletic : 1-1 : A tricky home tie saw us up against a side with a similar record to ours so far this season and it was the away side that took the lead early on through Danny Hawkins. Things weren’t helped with the injury of Sandy Moller on 26 minutes but we continued to probe and found an equalizer just after the break through Josh Wright’s 6th goal of the season to leave us sharing the spoils with Scarborough.

26.09.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Lincoln Moorlands Railway v Long Eaton United : 0-1 : We found ourselves favourites for this game against a struggling Lincoln Moorlands side but they certainly showed that they were no pushovers as they made things difficult for us by packing out the midfield. We finally broke the deadlock though on 66 minutes thanks to our in form striker Josh Wright who scored his 7th goal of the season which claimed the points for us.

29.09.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Armthorpe Welfare v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : Again we found ourselves up against a struggling side in the form of Armthorpe Welfare who made things difficult for us. Our in form man though, Josh Wright continued his rich vain of form as he struck from 25 yards to put us 1-0 up just after the half hour mark although he picked up a knock in first half injury time which means he’ll be out for around 2 weeks. Liam Hubbuck completed the scoring for us 3 minutes before full time to secure all 3 points for us leaving us sitting 2nd in the table at the end of September.

September League Table : We’ve managed to build on our great start to the season by picking up 14 points out of a possible 18 during this month. We’re scoring well and managing to keep them out at the other end while us and Arnold Town are still the only teams left who haven’t lost yet (famous last words!).

06.10.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Arnold Town : 1-1 : October saw us kicking things off with the visit of Arnold Town and within 8 minutes we were behind through former Nottingham Forest youth player Rob Gill. The players responded well though and increased the pressure on the away side to grab an equalizer 3 minutes before the break through Ryan Limb’s 4th goal of the season. The second half saw us continuing to pressurize the opposition but ultimately we couldn’t find that winning goal and the game ended in a draw.

13.10.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Barton Town Old Boys v Long Eaton United : 1-0 : We made the trip to Marsh Lane still without our top scorer Josh Wright and it showed as we produced very little in front of goal, not even registering a shot on target throughout the entire game. Barton weren’t much better but they got the deciding goal on 55 minutes to win the game 1-0 and inflict the first defeat of the season on us.

17.10.12 - Northern League Challenge Cup 2nd round - Long Eaton United v FC United of Manchester : 4-1 : We went into this game as massive underdogs against Northern Premier League side FC United of Manchester who are 2 divisions higher than us so it was no real surprise when they took the lead on 9 minutes through Matty Wolfenden. What was surprising though was the manner in which we responded as Josh Wright, back in the squad after a 2 week lay off, notched a hat-trick in just 26 minutes either side of Ryan Limb’s 5th goal of the season to send our fans into raptures and us into the 3rd round! A fantastic result for us!

20.10.12 - FA Vase 1st round - Long Eaton United v Shrivenham : 1-1 : Another cup game for us but this time in the FA Vase as Shrivenham made the visit to us. Things started very brightly for us as Josh Wright pounced to claim his 12th goal of the season but as the game went on, complacency set in and on 70 minutes Shrivenham found an equalizer to force the game to a replay in 3 days time.

23.10.12 - FA Vase 1st round replay - Shrivenham v Long Eaton United : 1-3 : The replay between ourselves and Shrivenham started as it did 3 days ago with us taking the lead on 2 minutes although this time it was Ryan Limb who struck as he claimed his 6th goal of the season. Shrivenham replied 15 minutes later as Tate Hulbert scored a scorcher to put the home side on level terms but Ryan Limb once again scored as he hit his 7th goal of the season to make it 2-1. Josh Wright struck his 13th goal of the season just before the hour mark to make it 3-1 which was enough to put us in the hat for the next round of the FA Vase.

27.10.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Nostell Miners Welfare : 2-0 : Fresh from our 3 consecutive cup games we were back in league action against Nostell Miners Welfare and both Ryan Limb and Josh Wright continued where they left off as both struck in the first half to claim all 3 points for us.

31.10.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Parkgate v Long Eaton United : 1-4 : We ended the month of October away at Parkgate and within 17 minutes we were 1-0 up thanks to a Josh Wright strike. 2 minutes later and he was hauled down in the penalty box; he got up, dusted himself down and converted the penalty to make it 2-0. Ryan Limb made it 3-0 on 27 minutes with his 9th goal of the season and then Josh Wright completed his 2nd hat-trick of the season with, remarkably his 17th goal in just 15 games to put us 4-0 up all before half time. Parkgate pulled a goal back on 63 minutes but it was in vain as the damage had been done in the first half as we walked away as 4-1 winners leaving us top of the table at the end of October.

October League Table : 2 league wins, a draw and loss have been enough to put us top of the table as we hit the end of October with both Josh Wright and Ryan Limb having no trouble in finding the back of the net with 26 goals between them. Cup games have been excellent for us too as a win in the FA Vase has put us into the 2nd round and a superb victory against semi pro’s FC United of Manchester has put us into the next round of the Northern League Challenge Cup.

07.11.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Hall Road Rangers : 3-0 : November saw us start things off by hosting Hall Road Rangers and we started well as just before half time we took the lead through Jake Sedgemore. Just after the break saw us extend our lead as Josh Wright buried his 18th goal of the season into the bottom corner of the net and then Ryan Limb hit double figures for the season as he completed the 3-0 win for us to take all 3 points.

10.11.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Maltby Main v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : We dominated much of the first half in this game and finally got our reward a minute into first half injury time as Ryan Limb claimed his 11th goal of the season to put us 1-0 up. The second half continued in pretty much more of the same manner as we controlled the game for long periods before Troy Farden secured the points for us with a strike on 80 minutes.

14.11.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Staveley Miners Welfare : 3-0 : With games coming thick and fast now I decided to rest both Josh Wright and Ryan Limb who had been scoring goals for fun so far this season and play Liam Hubbuck and Tim Hopkinson in their place. It proved to be a good decision as Liam Hubbuck struck twice in 7 first half minutes to claim his 2nd and 3rd goals of the season to put us 2-0 up at half time. New signing and former Aston Villa youth player Stephen Cooke completed the scoring for us on 69 minutes to make it 3-0 and with that putting us firmly at the top of the table.

17.11.12 - Northern League Challenge Cup 3rd round - Long Eaton United v Alsager Town : 1-2 : After disposing of FC United of Manchester in the previous round of this cup, Alsager Town should’ve been a comparatively easy game but it wasn’t to be as things just didn’t go our way. We got off to a bad start as within 15 minutes we were 1-0 down but 4 minutes later we responded well by grabbing an equalizer through Ryan Limb’s 12th goal of the season leaving us to go in a half time on level terms. Things didn’t go much better though for us in the second half as Jason Mok put the ball into our own net to put the visitors 2-1 up and then Craig Armstrong, our assistant manager/captain was stretchered off with an injury. Josh Wright completed a woeful day for us as he missed his spot kick leaving Alsager to take the win and with that, a place in the next round of the cup. Out of the cup we go!

21.11.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Thackley v Long Eaton United : 3-1 : After our disappointing cup exit against Alsager, I was looking for a response from the players and it looked as if I got one as Josh Wright snatched his 19th goal of the season to give us the lead at half time. 4 disastrous second half minutes followed though as on 53 minutes Thackley equalized, Luke Thurlbourne scored an own goal on 55 minutes and Thackley grabbed another goal on 57 minutes leaving us dazed and wondering just what had happened.

24.11.12 - FA Vase 2nd round - Long Eaton United v Lymington Town : 2-0 : With 2 defeats in a row it was important that we stopped our poor run before it became a problem which could possibly spiral out of control. Josh Wright looked to do this as he hit 20 goals for the season in first half injury time and then Ryan Limb grabbed his 13th goal of the season to put us in the hat for the next round of the FA Vase and more importantly, stop our run of defeats.

28.11.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Winterton Ragers v Long Eaton United : 3-2 : With us picking up a win last game against Lymington Town I was confident that our 2 game losing streak was just a blip but after Winterton took the lead on 6 minutes, I did wonder if our early season form had halted. Josh Wright struck two quick goals to put us 2-1 up and restore my faith but Winterton once again struck twice more to put them 3-2 up and this is how it stayed which inflicted our 2nd league defeat on us and our 3rd defeat in 4 games.

Novemeber League Table : 3 league wins and 2 losses in the month of November were still enough to keep us sitting surprisingly at the top of the table. However, our cup performances haven’t been great as we were dumped out of the Northern Challenge League Cup at the 3rd round stage by Alsager Town but have made it to the 3rd round of the FA Vase after defeating Lymington Town in the 2nd round.

Hope you can stay top.

Hope you can stay top.

I've actually already played the season and I can tell you it's an interesting one!

01.12.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Bridlington Town : 1-1 : We ended last month in poor form so it was important that we started this month in winning ways or we could soon be facing a slide down the table. After just 10 minutes though Bridlington took the lead and looked as if they would be condemning us to our 3rd league defeat of the season (4th defeat in 5 games) until that is Troy Farden notched his 2nd goal of the season to take a share of the points for us.

12.12.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Pickering Town v Long Eaton United : 4-2 : Having not picked up a league win in nearly a month, we had a tough trip to Pickering Town to contend with. We didn’t start well and after 10 minutes we found ourselves 1-0 down. 13 minutes later and we were 2-0 down and looking like a shadow of ourselves from earlier in the season. Half time arrived and I ripped into the players; they responded well but couldn’t break a stubborn Pickering defence until 77 minutes as Ryan Limb clawed a goal back with his 14th of the season. As we pushed for the equalizer though, Pickering caught us on the counter attack and made it 3-1 with just 4 minutes remaining. Tim Hopkinson pulled another goal back for us with his 1st of the season but Pickering sealed the win with a 4th goal on 90 minutes.

15.12.12 - FA Vase 3rd round - Newport Pagnell Town v Long Eaton United : 0-1 : We had a chance to put our poor league form to the back of our minds as we met Newport Pagnell Town in the 3rd round of the FA Vase. It was a tight affair with not a lot of real incidents other than a few long shots but it was us who snatched the win 14 minutes from time through Tim Hopkinson who netted his 2nd goal in as many games to put us through to the next round.

19.12.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Brighouse Town : 5-2 : We desperately needed a win here as our last league win came over a month ago and we ran the risk of letting our season fizzle out. So I was delighted when we were 3-0 up after just 26 minutes thanks to Sandy Moller and 2 superb strikes from Josh Wright. Brighouse grabbed a goal back just before the half hour mark but Troy Farden restored our 3 goal cushion with a lovely placed shot into the roof of the net. We could’ve done without Brighouse’s 2nd goal as it came just before half time and made things a little nervy for us in the second half but Ryan Limb once again restored our 3 goal cushion with his 15th goal of the season to secure a much needed win for us.

22.12.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Liversedge AFC v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : With us finally getting a league win under our belts I was keen to notch a second win to try and build some momentum again for us and after 35 minutes, Tim Hopkinson put us 1-0 up with his 3rd of the season. Julian Joachim secured the win for us as he came off the bench to net his 4th of the season and show that he can still do a job for us.

26.12.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Tadcaster Albion v Long Eaton United : 1-1 : We got off to the best possible start in this game as Ryan Limb struck his 16th goal of the season to put us into an early lead. As we’ve done before this season though, we took our foot off the gas and allowed the opposition to get back into the match…and they did as they claimed an equalizer on 65 minutes to take a share of the points at the full time whistle.

29.12.12 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Retford United v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : We ended the year travelling to Cannon Park as we looked to continue our mini revival. Things started well for us as Josh Wright, incredibly bagged his 25th goal of the season on 2 minutes before setting up Stephen Cooke just after half time for his 2nd goal of the season to help claim all 3 points for us and leave us sitting top of the table as we head into the new year.

December League Table : We started the month off slowly as we failed to pick up a league win until the 19th December. After that though, we picked up 2 more league wins and a draw to add to our point earlier in the month which leaves us still sitting top of the league as the season now reaches its halfway mark. It’s been an incredible season so far for us and one which has included Ryan Limb scoring 16 goals in all competitions and Josh Wright notching an incredible 25 goals in just 26 appearances, not to mention we’re still in the FA Vase.

The second half of the season will test if we really are the real deal though as injuries and suspensions will start to come into play. Given the prediction at the start of the season of where we’ll finish, I think I can safely say that it’s been a very pleasing season so far! .

05.01.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Worksop Parramore : 4-0 : We started 2013 in the best possible way as we ran riot in front of goal. Troy Farden bagged his 4th goal of the season just before half time, Ryan Limb doubled the lead just after half time with his 17th of the season, Ben Jackson claimed his 1st of the season on 56 minutes and our assistant manager/captain scored his 1st of the season leaving us to claim the points and a nice healthy boost to our goal difference.

09.01.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Glasshoughton Welfare : 2-0 : We welcomed Glasshoughton Welfare to Grange Park knowing that a win would keep the pressure on the chasing pack and within 21 minutes we were 1-0 up thanks to Ryan Limb. 9 minutes later and Limb had made it 2-0 with his 2nd of the game and 19th of the season, securing the win for us and stretching our lead at the top of the table.

16.01.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Heanor Town v Long Eaton United : 2-0 : We made the trip to our rivals knowing that we had beaten them already this season and had the bragging rights so I knew they would be out for revenge. And it seemed that my feelings were right as we fell behind on 36 minutes through a Stefan Laird strike, sending the home fans into ecstasy. I tried to regain our focus at half time explaining to the players how important this fixture is to the fans but as we pressed to get the equalizing goal in the second half, Heanor broke and grabbed a second goal, sealing both the win and the bragging rights for them.

19.01.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Lincoln Moorlands Railway : 0-0 : 3 days after our defeat to rivals Heanor, I was looking for us to make an immediate reply by picking up 3 points and what better team to play than the one who’s struggling at the foot of the table. It was my fault if anything though that we failed to win here as I foolishly expected the players to go out and win the game easily. But, credit to Lincoln Moorlands, they put up a fight and proved to be more than a match for us as the game ended 0-0 and we shared the points at full time.

26.01.13 - FA Vase 4th round - Long Eaton United v Stockport Sports : 2-0 : It was time to focus our attention back on the cup as we faced Stockport Sports in the 4th round. Having been expected to reach just the 1st round in this cup, there was no real pressure on us in this competition now so when we went 2-0 up through Josh Wright’s 26th and 27th goal of the season after just 31 minutes, our fans were delighted. Stockport Sports failed to produce any moments of real intent on our goal and we ran out comfortable winners by full time to remarkably put us into the 5th round.

30.01.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Armthorpe Welfare : 1-0 : The end of the month saw us host Armthorpe Welfare without our leading scorer Josh Wright as he picked up a training injury which leaves him out for 2 weeks. So in his place came Tim Hopkinson who immediately made a stake for a starting place as he netted on 20 minutes to make it 1-0. As the game progressed, we became more compact and difficult to break down and that was proven right as Armthorpe failed to threaten our goal as we comfortably hung on to take the 3 points.

January League Table : 3 league wins, a draw and a loss extends our lead at the top of the table to 7 points having played a game less than some of the chasing teams. Josh Wright and Ryan Limb continue to score goals for fun for us and we’re into the 5th round of the FA Vase so all in all an excellent month for us.

Very good start with Long Eaton Utd.

Very good start with Long Eaton Utd.

Thanks B.W.G

02.02.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Arnold Town v Long Eaton United : 1-0 : The previous meeting between ourselves and Arnold Town saw us share the points and I’d of been happy to share the points again this time around. But with no Josh Wright or Ryan Limb we struggled to threaten the Arnold goal and didn’t even manage a shot on target as the home side grabbed the all important winning goal to subject us to our 6th defeat of the season.

06.02.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Scarborough Athletic v Long Eaton United : 2-2 : We started sloppily as we gifted Scarborough the opening goal through a mix up in our defence but with Josh Wright back in our starting eleven we were always capable of finding the net and we did just that on 35 minutes as he struck low and hard to put us back on level terms. Another goal just before half time through Jake Sedgemore’s 3rd of the season put us into the lead but a David McTiernan strike put Arnold Town back level and that’s how it stayed leaving both us and Scarborough to share the points.

09.02.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Barton Town Old Boys : 2-2 : A top of the table clash saw us meet Barton Town Old Boys at Grange Park who had beaten us earlier in the season. Things were looking rosy for us as we scored either side of half time through Sandy Moller and Dean Morris to put us 2-0 up. But Barton replied with 2 goals of their own as they pulled back on level terms to take a share of the spoils.

16.02.13 - FA Vase 5th round - Shepshed Dynamo v Long Eaton United : 0-3 : The FA Vase 5th round saw us meet Shepshed Dynamo and within 12 minutes Josh Wright had struck his 29th goal of the season to put us into the lead. Shepshed upped their game and quite frankly dominated the first half from there but we rode our luck and snuck a 2nd goal just before half time through Dean Morris’ 2nd goal in 2 games which put us 2-0 up at the interval. Shepshed continued to dominate as we struggled to find our form but once again we rode our luck and got another goal against the run of play through Jake Sedgemore which sealed the win for us and put us into the next round.

February League Table : February saw us fail to win a single league game as 2 draws and a defeat cuts our lead at the top to just 4 points. On a positive note though, we’re through to the FA Vase Quarter Final after defeating Shepshed Dynamo in the 5th round.

02.03.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Nostell Miners Welfare v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : March arrived with us visiting Nostell Miners Welfare in a game which saw us dominate from first to last with Josh Wright hitting his 30th goal of the season and Tim Hopkinson sealing the win with his 5th of the season.

06.03.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Parkgate : 3-1 : We completely controlled this game in every department which showed as Josh Wright and Tim Hopkinson put us 2-0 up as we reached half time. The second half saw us continue to dominate aside from the unfortunate own goal from Craig Armstrong and 4 minutes from full time, Josh Wright completed the misery for Parkgate as he hit his 32nd goal of the season.

12.03.13 - FA Vase Quarter Final - Long Eaton United v Blackstones : 4-1 : The FA Vase saw us continuing to defy the odds as we met Blackstones in the last 8. Again, the draw had favoured us as we were drawn at home to a weakish side in the form of Blackstones. Our superiority was evident as Ryan Limb struck his 20th goal of the season just before the half hour mark and then Josh Wright struck his 33rd and 34th goal of the season minutes later which put us in a strong position for the remainder of the game. Blackstones replied 2 minutes after our 3rd goal but we showed great strength and desire to go on and claim the win which put us in the draw for the Semi Final!

16.03.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Hall Road Rangers v Long Eaton United : 1-0 : This was a strange game as we were a shadow of ourselves in recent weeks and just didn’t look interested. I’m not sure if it was the effect of our FA Vase Quarter Final win or the fact that the amount of games we’re playing are simply catching up with us. What I am sure of though is that Hall Road Rangers took all 3 points after a hopeful punt from them up field hit our bar, bounced down and hit our keeper on the back to go in and prove to be the winning goal.

27.03.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Maltby Main : 7-1 : After our disappointing defeat last time out against Hall Road Rangers, I was looking for a response…and boy did I get one! An early own goal in our favour plus a brace from Ryan Limb and a 17 minute hat-trick from Josh Wright saw us go in at half time 6-0…yes, 6-0 up! We got another goal just after half time through Troy Farden’s 5th goal of the season but with the game obviously won by this time, we sat back and took it easy. The only black mark on the game being the fact that we gave up a chance to get a clean sheet but I can’t be too disappointed considering our overall performance!

30.03.13 - FA Vase Semi Final 1st Leg - Long Eaton United v Larkhall Athletic : 3-1 : We’d defied the odds to appear in our first ever FA Vase Semi Final and we couldn’t of asked for a better start as our assistant manager/captain put us 1-0 up after just 5 minutes with his 2nd goal of the season. Josh Wright continued his incredible scoring rate as he hit his 38th and 39th goal of the season to put us 3-0 up and give us a healthy lead going into the second half. Larkhall got a goal back just after half time but the game finished 3-1 and gives us a great chance in the 2nd leg in a weeks time.

March League Table : A much better month for us saw us pick up 9 points out of a possible 12 plus score 12 goals in the process but Barton Town Old Boys continued their rich vein of form to close the gap on us to just a point. Ryan Limb and Josh Wright both scored for fun again this month while we had 2 good wins in the FA Vase which puts us on the brink of our first ever FA Vase Final appearance! With only 5 games of the season remaining though, it’s starting to get to “squeaky bum time” as SAF says and one thing’s for sure…it’s going to be an exciting finish to the season.

Great season so far! Squeaky bum time now though...

Great season so far! Squeaky bum time now though...

Thanks! It most definitely is squeaky bum time as we've thrown away our lead at the top!

03.04.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Staveley Miners Welfare v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : April started with the league looking tight at the top as we’d thrown away what was at one stage a 7 point lead to now only hold a 1 point advantage over Barton Town Old Boys with just 5 games remaining. We kicked the month off with a trip to Staveley Miners Welfare and within 12 minutes our title challenge was looking good thanks to Josh Wright’s 40th goal of the season. We continued to control the game for large periods but it wasn’t until 12 minutes from time that we could relax as Tim Hopkinson grabbed his 7th of the season to ease the nerves for us as we won 2-0.

06.04.13 - FA Vase Semi Final 2nd Leg - Larkhall Athletic v Long Eaton United : 0-1 : 7 days earlier saw us win 3-1 in the 1st leg and gave us a great chance in the 2nd leg of progressing to the final. The 2nd leg itself saw us continue to dominate much like the 1st leg and although we didn’t produce much in front of goal, when the opportunity did arrive, Troy Farden was there to capitalize to make it 1-0 to us, (4-1 on aggregate) and put us into a historical first FA Vase Final!

13.04.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Thackley : 0-1 : With just 4 games remaining and with Barton Town Old Boys continuing to keep the pressure on us, a win here was a must. So, when we seemed switched off and uninterested it was no surprise that Thackley grabbed a winner to take all 3 points. Whether it was the fact of the cup game before hand as it was after our Quarter Final win and players looking switched off I don’t know, but if we genuinely want promotion this season, we must be winning games like this!

20.04.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Bridlington Town v Long Eaton United : 1-0 : We could’ve done without this fixture so close to the end of the season as Bridlington had title aspirations of their own as they sat just a few points behind us. As the game got underway, we struggled to find our feet and at times got lucky in avoiding conceding a goal. Our cause wasn’t helped when both Luke Thurlbourne and Michael Lawson were stretchered off in the second half but we hung on well…until injury time that is when Norrie Harper grabbed a dramatic late winner for Bridlington to condemn us to defeat. Our only consolation was that Barton Town lost to Retford meaning we stayed top of the table with just 2 games remaining.

27.04.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Winterton Rangers : 2-2 : Our penultimate league game saw us host another side who were looking to win promotion this season but on 41 minutes it looked as if we would scupper any hopes that they had as Craig Henderson notched his 1st goal of the season to put us 1-0 up at half time. Winterton came out strong after half time obviously buoyed by their managers half time team talk and grabbed an equalizer on 65 minutes through Ray Ford but we retook the lead thanks to Josh Wright’s 41st goal of the season with just 6 minutes remaining to send our fans wild as chants of “we are going up” rang around the stadium! However, the referee stunned our fans as he gave a 90th minute penalty which Gareth Hope coolly slotted away leaving us to share the points and drop down to 2nd in the league with just one game remaining. Barton Town Old Boys had won their game meaning we’re 2 points behind them with a game to go and I also got a warning from the FA for complaining about the ludicrous decision to award Winterton a last minute penalty. We’ve got it all to do now!

April League Table : April was a disastrous month for us as 4 league games saw us pick up just 1 win, a draw and 2 losses. What was a 7 point lead we had at one stage is now a 2 point deficit with just a game to go. It’s completely out of our hands now as we have to hope Barton Town lose to Glasshoughton Welfare while we need a win a Tadcaster Albion. The only positive of the month we can take is our FA Vase Semi Final 2nd leg win which puts us into our first ever FA Vase Final.

So close at the top, lets hope results go your way on the final day so you can win promotion!

So close at the top, lets hope results go your way on the final day so you can win promotion!

I hoped so too but...

01.05.13 - FA Vase Final - Long Eaton United v Loughborough University : 2-0 : A historical day for the club and fans as we made the trip to Villa Park accompanied by 400 dedicated fans to watch ourselves play Loughborough University in the FA Vase Final. It was a fantastic day for us (even if Saturday’s draw with Winterton was still fresh in our minds) as Ryan Limb opened the scoring on 24 minutes to send our fans into raptures. The day got better for us as Ben Jackson doubled our lead just after the break to complete a truly momentous day for everyone connected with the club as Craig Armstrong lifted the FA Vase for us for the first time in the club’s history!

04.05.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Tadcaster Albion : 1-2 : The day of reckoning arrived as we welcomed Tadcaster Albion to Grange Park knowing that we needed a win and hoping that Barton Town lost if we stood any chance of winning the league and gaining promotion. Things didn’t start well for us though as 10 minutes in we found ourselves a goal down as James Thomas silenced our home support. We needed something special, something to bring our players to life but there was a nervous atmosphere around the stadium and you could almost cut the atmosphere with a knife. Half time went with us a goal down and to make matters worse, Barton Town were winning 1-0 against Glasshoughton Welfare. We started the 2nd half better and on 57 minutes Josh Wright secured parity as he hit his 42nd goal of the year to cap an excellent personal season for him. As the game went on we continued to push for the winning goal but news filtered through that Barton Town had made it 2-0 meaning that even if we won, Barton Town would still win the league. With us pushing for that winning goal, Tadcaster broke on the counter attack and hit a shot which deflected off our own player, Ben Sedgemore to nestle into the net and claim the win for Tadcaster, breaking the hearts of our fans!

May League Table : So, Barton Town Old Boys claimed the title by 5 points and with that, promotion after we threw away a fairly comfortable lead over the course of the season. Despite the obvious disappointment though I have to be pleased with our overall season as no-one gave us a chance other than mid-table obscurity at the start of the season. Both Ryan Limb and Josh Wright had remarkable seasons grabbing 65 goals between them and we won the FA Vase for the first time in the clubs history so there’s been plenty of positives in my first season in charge.

Northern Counties East Premier Division/Northern Counties East Premier Division progress : We started the season with no real expectations so to come so close to the title was very pleasing despite our obvious disappointment at losing the chance of promotion right at the end.

FA Vase : We had no expectation in this cup other than to reach the 1st round so for us to go on and actually win the competition was more than a surprise.

Northern League Challenge Cup : Another cup with no expectation on us other than to reach the 2nd round so I was pleased that we bettered that as we managed to reach the 3rd round.

Transfers : A massive amount of transfer activity for us as the club only had one player on the books when I arrived and he soon left the club. So in came 33 players over the course of the season, the highlight of the them being our front two Josh Wright and Ryan Limb.

Squad : The squad gelled well and very quickly to prove that they were more than capable of holding their own in this division. Josh Wright and Ryan Limb particularly impressed as they notched 65 goals between them while Troy Farden and Jake Sedgemore reached double figures with assists. It may be difficult next season however to keep this squad together as our stand out players have been attracting the attention of some bigger clubs and with non of them on contracts other than amateur ones, we won’t be able to reject any offer that comes our way.

Finances : We made a profit of £42k over the season, not a lot but for our level it makes a big difference.

My views of the season… : A superb season for us despite narrowly missing out on promotion topped off by winning a piece of silverware.

My aims for next season… : If we’re to build on this season and go one step better next season, we need to strengthen the squad but this may prove to be difficult as we’re still an amateur club and bigger clubs are noticing the performances of our stand out players. We need promotion next season if we really want to look at progressing as a club so we can turn semi-professional and offer some contracts to stop other clubs poaching our star players.

Career Summary

Season   Team               League          		              Position   Achievements
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2012/13  Long Eaton United  Northern Counties East Premier Division     2nd      FA Vase winners

League expectation

-------------------------

Northern Counties East Premier Division : Board expectation - Respectable league position : Media expectation - 5th (out of 22)

Cup expectations

---------------------

FA Vase : 3rd round

Northern League Challenge Cup : 2nd round

Transfer budget : £0k

Wage budget : £0 p/w

Current wage bill : £0 p/w

Season tickets sold : 25

My views for the season ahead… : We have to look at building on last years progress and if we’re to progress as a club, we must turn semi-professional so my personal expectation will be to challenge for the title and promotion. However, the board just want a respectable league finish and the media are predicting us to finish 5th so we have some leeway at least if we don’t achieve promotion.

Shame you couldnt take the league on the last day but the cup is a good success, finances are doing well too.

Aah Long Eaton, the home of many rail workers!!

Best of luck with your save.

Oh, so close!

Shame you just missed out on promotion but the best of luck for this season.

I could hear your bums squeaking all the way down here on the South Coast!

Still, an excellent début season nonetheless.

It sucks to miss out on promotion so narrowly, great job to win the FA Vase though.

Shame you couldnt take the league on the last day but the cup is a good success, finances are doing well too.

Yeah, a bit gutting but overall I have to be pleased considering our expectations at the start of the season. Finances aren't bad for a team of our stature

Aah Long Eaton, the home of many rail workers!!

Best of luck with your save.

Thanks. The station is just around the corner from me!

Oh, so close!

Yet no cigar . Disappointing but I have to take the positives.

Shame you just missed out on promotion but the best of luck for this season.

Thanks B.W.G

I could hear your bums squeaking all the way down here on the South Coast!

Still, an excellent début season nonetheless.

Bums? I only have one! Cheers, gotta be pleased overall I suppose.

It sucks to miss out on promotion so narrowly, great job to win the FA Vase though.

Thanks Rikulec. Yeah, a little disappointed but a season with silverware has to be looked upon as successful

20.07.13 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Northwich Victoria : 2-1 : We kicked our pre-season off against Northwich Victoria who are a division higher than us and their quality showed as they took the lead on 25 minutes through Alan Wilkes. With almost all of our squad from last season now having left the club, the new players who came in took some time to settle but they eventually did as former Stoke City youth player Marcel Barrington equalized just before half time. The second half saw Northwich continue to dominate the possession but chances were few and far between. We held our nerve well and a minute from full time, former Blackburn Rovers youth player Ryan Humphreys came off the bench to bag the winner. The only bad news from the game saw last season’s top goalscorer Josh Wright out for 4 weeks after picking up an injury.

24.07.13 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Congleton Town : 2-0 : Our second pre-season friendly saw Congleton Town make the trip to Grange Park but after 36 minutes they probably wish they hadn’t as Marcel Barrington got his 2nd goal in 2 games to put us 1-0 up. Ryan Humphreys once again came of the bench in the 2nd half to seal the win for us as he struck his 2nd goal in 2 games as well to give us the win at full time.

30.07.13 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Bedworth United : 1-0 : Our final match in July had us hosting Bedworth United who are 2 divisions higher than us. It didn’t show though as we completely controlled the game even if the final 1-0 score line didn’t reflect this. We had a couple of injuries during the game but nothing too serious for both Humphreys or Jones.

03.08.13 - Friendly - Long Eaton United v Solihull Moors : 0-2 : Our last pre-season game came against Solihull Moors who were relegated from the Blue Square North last season. Things didn’t start well for us as with just 2 minutes gone Lloyd Jones put the ball into his own net to put the visitors 1-0 up. Solihull doubled their lead 18 minutes later as Warren Morgan struck from 6 yards out. After a slow start we managed to sort ourselves and although we didn’t score any goals and went onto lose the game 2-0 I was still happy with our performances and how many chances we created considering how strong the opposition was.

10.08.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Tadcaster Albion : 1-0 : The opening day of the season saw us welcome Tadcaster Albion to Grange Park with us wanting to set the record straight after they defeated us on the last day of last season. We didn’t get off to the best of starts though as Marcel Barrington was stretchered off leaving him out for 3 weeks. As the game reached 33 minutes, we managed to break the deadlock through Bradley Mason as he struck from 20 yards out to put us 1-0 up. Not a lot else happened during the rest of the game as the referee stamped his authority on the game, issuing no less than 8 yellow cards, ruining the game really leaving Bradley Mason’s goal to be the winner.

13.08.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Ossett Albion v Long Eaton United : 1-2 : Our second game of the season was a tricky trip to recently relegated Ossett Albion but it proved to be less trickier than I initially thought as despite going a goal down on 22 minutes we equalized 7 minutes later through Anthony Jeffrey and then took the lead on 57 minutes through Keiran Wallace to leave us walking away from Queen’s Terrace with all 3 points.

17.08.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Brighouse Town : 4-1 : We ran riot in the first half against Brighouse Town as Tom Brown, Ryan Humphreys, Chris Long and Kenji Gorre all hit the back of the net for their 1st goals of the season to put us in a very comfortable position. Brighouse pulled a goal back just before half time but the 2nd half saw us dictate the play and control it for virtually the full 45 minutes sealing the win for us and putting us top of the table after just 3 games.

24.08.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Glasshoughton v Long Eaton United : 1-1 : We looked as if we were still settling down as a squad in this game as we misplaced many passes and didn’t really look threatening. To make matters worse, Josh Wright was making his return after 4 weeks out and picked an injury up after 40 minutes, nothing too serious though. His replacement, Chris Long wasted no time in making a mark as he scored after being on the field for just 2 minutes to send us in 1-0 up at the break. We grew sloppy again in the 2nd half though and Glasshoughton got their reward 19 minutes from time to take a share of the points at full time.

31.08.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Parkgate : 0-2 : A terrible result for us which included an awful performance from us. We didn’t show up at all from the word go so when Parkgate took the lead on 19 minutes it was no real surprise. The dismissal of Jack Maloney on 38 minutes didn’t help our cause and Parkgate capitalized on this to grab a 2nd goal just after the break leaving them to walk away with all 3 points. A truly bad day at the office for us.

August League Table : A steady start for us in the league especially after losing almost all of the players we had at the club last season. The new players have come in and done well so far though as 3 wins, a draw and a loss leaves us sitting 3rd in the table at the end of August.

Transfer deadline day was another quiet one for us as again the majority of our transfers were made in the summer. With 22 players leaving the club altogether we had to get bodies in so we raided the free market again (as we have no transfer budget) as we brought in a lot of young players who had been released by bigger clubs. While I’m obviously disappointed with the players we’ve lost we have brought in some real quality with the likes of Manchester United youth product Kenji Gorre and Republic of Ireland Under 21 and Newcastle United youth product Lee Desmond joining the club. As was the same last season, it may take some time for the players to gel but I’m confident they will.

04.09.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Winterton Rangers v Long Eaton United : 0-5 : I was expecting a close game before kick off but that didn’t prove to be the case as we racked up the goals through a Michael Barrington hat-trick (his first for the club), a Lee Desmond goal and a 2nd goal of the season for Ryan Humphreys as we ran out 5-0 winners.

07.09.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Retford United : 0-0 : We must’ve used all of our goals up in the last game against Winterton Rangers as this was a dire affair with neither team looking capable of scoring as the game finished a bore draw.

14.09.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Maltby Main v Long Eaton United : 0-1 : This game saw us meeting bottom of the table Maltby Main who were yet to register a win this season so I was expecting a comfortable win. We dominated from the 1st minute and although we were creating chances, we just couldn’t find a way past Dave Bramley until the 76th when Marcel Barrington latched onto a long ball to grab his 4th goal of the season.

25.09.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Bridlington Town : 0-1 : Bridlington Town made the visit to Grange Park on the back of some good recent results which had put them 2nd in the league so we knew we were in for a tough game. Our cause wasn’t helped when Josh Wright limped off after just 12 minutes and then Bridlington took the lead 9 minutes later through Ged Dalton. We tried to push on and grab an equalizer but Bridlington proved to be too strong for us as they went on to win the game 1-0 and inflict our 2nd defeat of the season on us.

28.09.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Lincoln Moorlands Railway v Long Eaton United : 2-2 : Our last game of September saw us travelling to struggling Lincoln Moorlands Railway with us needing a win if we didn’t want to fall further behind Thackley and Bridlington Town. Things started well for us as Marcel Barrington put us into the lead thanks to his 5th goal of the season but Lincoln Moorlands grabbed an equalizer just before the break leaving us on level terms as we entered half time. The 2nd half saw us pushing for a 2nd goal and we got it 13 minutes from time as Lee Desmond struck his 2nd goal of the season but we couldn’t hold on as the home side nicked a late equalizer 3 minutes into injury time to leave us sitting 6th in the table at the end of the month, 9 points behind leaders Thackley.

September League Table : A fairly decent month for us which leaves us sitting 6th in the league, 6 points worse off than we were this time last year and trailing the league leaders by 9 points, a hefty points difference at this stage of the season. Marcel Barrington is our man in form at the minute as he’s racked up 5 goals in 6 games while last seasons record goal scorer Josh Wright is still yet to score.

Not a bad start but top spot is startint to look quite far off!

Not a bad start but top spot is startint to look quite far off!

Thanks . Although Bridlington and Thackley are racing away, I'm hoping that they slip up soon! October has been a better month for us so hopefully we can keep up with the early pace setters.

05.10.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Nostell Miners Welfare : 1-0 : The start of October saw us host Nostell Miners Welfare with us needing a better month than last month if we’re to catch the break away teams at the top of the league. So when former Manchester United youth player, Kenji Gorre got the only goal of the game just before the half hour mark it was a relief to win the game and claim all 3 points.

09.10.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Worksop Parramore v Long Eaton United : 2-4 : We made the trip to Sandy Lane looking to build on our previous good result against Nostell Miners Welfare but 5 minutes before the break it didn’t look as if we would as Tom Garrick put Worksop 1-0 up. We responded quickly though as just 2 minutes later Michael Barrington grabbed an equalizer with his 6th goal of the season to send us in at the break on level terms. We came out with a lot more impetuous after half time and that showed as 5 minutes after the restart Josh Wright finally ended his goal drought as he netted his 1st goal of the season. 12 minutes later Worksop put the ball into their own net to put us 3-1 up and Tom Brown sealed the win for us 13 minutes before the end with his 2nd of the season. Worksop pulled one more goal back on 84 minutes but it was nothing more than a consolation as we won all 3 points.

12.10.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Arnold Town v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : We went into this game looking to make it 3 wins on the bounce and Josh Wright made that look possible right on half time with as he notched his 2nd goal in as many games to put us 1-0 up. The 2nd half saw us continuing to dominate the play and we sealed the win 2 minutes into injury time as Tom Brown netted his 2nd goal of the season.

16.10.13 - Northern League Challenge Cup 2nd round - Studley AFC v Long Eaton United : 1-3 : We kicked our Northern League Challenge Cup campaign off with a visit to Studley AFC and within 25 minutes we were 2-0 up thanks to 2 quick goals from Michael Barrington as he scored his 7th and 8th goals of the season. Josh Wright, who had struggled to find the target at the start of the season grabbed his and our 3rd goal to virtually put us into the next round. Studley grabbed a late goal back but it was too late and we were in the hat for the next round.

19.10.13 - FA Vase 1st round - Long Eaton United v Penrith : 2-0 : We started the defence of our FA Vase in a bad way as 2 days earlier, our record goal scorer Josh Wright left the club in favour of signing for Ilkeston Town. We had no choice but to get on with it so in came Chris Long and within 12 minutes he had put us in front with a low drive from 12 yards to claim his 3rd goal of the season. 6 minutes before half time saw us double our lead through Kenji Gorre’s 3rd of the season and that’s how it stayed to put us into the next round.

26.10.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Liversedge AFC : 1-0 : We dominated this fixture for virtually the full 90 minutes as we restricted Liversedge to just 1 shot all game so it was no real surprise that we took all 3 points. What was more surprising was the fact that we only won 1-0 and our centre half Joey Jones scored the winner!

October League Table : A very pleasing month for us which saw us pick up 12 points out of 12 to close the gap on the league leaders to 5 points. While it’s been a much more improved month, the one negative is the departure of Josh Wright as he elected to join Ilkeston Town. While it’s understandable that he wanted to leave due to being offered a contract and an actual weekly wage, it’s a big blow for us considering how many goals he chips in for us. To help try and fill that void though that Wright leaves, we have brought in 2 excellent midfield signings in the form of George Saunders on a season long loan from Northampton Town and Nicky Travis also on a season long loan from Notts County.

02.11.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Pickering Town : 2-0 : The start of November had us hosting Pickering Town and within 5 minutes Marcel Barrington had put us into the lead with his 9th goal of the season. 9 minutes into the 2nd half and we were 2-0 up as Marcel Barrington doubled his tally with his 10th goal of the season to leave us with all 3 points.

06.11.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Thackley v Long Eaton United : 1-5 : We made the trip to high flying Thackley with no real expectations so it was a surprise to win let alone win by such a margin. 2 goals from Marcel Barrington, a 4th of the season for Chris Long and 2 goals from Nicky Travis, his 1st and 2nd for the club since arriving from Notts County were enough to hand all 3 points to us and put us just 2 points off the top.

13.11.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Hall Road Rangers : 1-0 : It wasn’t our best game I’ve seen us play as we were very sloppy at times with not a lot of creativity either. We did however manage to grab the winning goal through Ryan Humphreys’ 3rd goal of the season keep up the pressure on league leaders Bridlington Town.

16.11.13 - Northern League Challenge Cup 3rd round - Long Eaton United v AFC Liverpool : 1-0 : After defeating Studley AFC in the previous round, we met AFC Liverpool in the 3rd round in a match which saw us completely dominate, racking up an incredible 22 shots on goal. While we only hit the back of the net once through Ryan Humphreys’ 4th of the season, it was enough to put us into the next round and extend our consecutive wins on the bounce run to 10 in all competitions, a first for the club.

23.11.13 - FA Vase 2nd round - Long Eaton United v Hertford Town : 1-1 : How we didn’t win this game is a mystery to me as we peppered their goal with shots. However, Ryan Humphreys’ 5th goal of the season was the only one which made the net ripple as Hertford grabbed an equalizer on 73 minutes to send the tie to a reply.

26.11.13 - FA Vase 2nd round replay - Hertford Town v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : 3 days earlier saw us play out a 1-1 draw with Hertford so I was looking for us to get the win and progress here. Again, we created a lot of chances and this time we did capitalize on them as Marcel Barrington hit his 13th and 14th goal of the season to set us up with a tie with Bitton FC in the 3rd round.

30.11.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Scarborough Athletic : 2-0 : A massive promotion battle saw us take on Scarborough Athletic who before us had gone 22 games unbeaten! We however, put a stop to that fine run as Marcel Barrington hit his 15th goal of the season before a David McTiernan own goal sealed the points for us.

November League Table : Another fantastic month for us sees us narrow the lead at the top to just 2 points with a game in hand as we sit 2nd in the table. This time last year saw us sitting top of the table with 2 less points than we have this season so we’re definitely back on course for a promotion push at the minute after an indifferent start to the season. Much of that is down to Marcel Barrington who’s hit 15 goals in 18 games to somewhat replace the void that Josh Wright left.

It’s looking good in the cups for us too as we’re through to the 4th round of the Northern League Challenge Cup and we still have a chance to defend our FA Vase crown as we’ve made it to the 3rd round.

04.12.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Armthorpe Welfare v Long Eaton United : 1-4 : We started December as we left November with a fine win to extend our unbeaten run in all competitions to 15 games thanks to goals from Lloyd Jones, a 16th and 17th goal of the season from Marcel Barrington and a 5th goal of the season from Chris Long to put us 1 point clear at the top with a game in hand .

07.12.13 - Northern League Challenge Cup 4th round - Long Eaton United v Whitley Bay : 0-0 : A boring game with few chances for either side so it was no real surprise that the game ended in a goal less draw meaning we have to replay the game in 3 days time.

10.12.13 - Northern League Challenge Cup 4th round replay - Whitley Bay v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : The replay saw us progress easily as goals from Jack Maloney and Ryan O’Reilly proved to be enough to set us up with a 5th round tie against Curzon Ashton who are a division higher than us.

14.12.13 - FA Vase 3rd round - Long Eaton United v Bitton : 2-0 : The defence of our FA Vase saw us welcome Bitton FC to Grange Park in the 3rd round and within 9 minutes we were on our way to the 4th round as Chris Long hit the back of the net from a 20 yard strike. Lloyd Jones doubled our lead a minute before half time to secure a meeting with fellow Northern Counties East Premier Division side Worksop Parramore in the 4th round .

18.12.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Ossett Albion : 1-1 : We didn’t get off to the best of starts as Ossett Albion took the lead on 6 minutes through an Adam Jones bullet header at the far post. We stepped up a gear after that and despite numerous attempts on goal, including a dubious goal which was disallowed, we just couldn’t find the net…until Bradley Mason popped up a minute from full time to grab an equalizer for us and preserve our 19 game unbeaten run in all competitions, 11 unbeaten in the league.

21.12.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Long Eaton United v Glasshoughton Welfare : 1-0 : Our previous meeting earlier in the season saw us play out a 1-1 draw with Glasshoughton but this time around we took all 3 points thanks to Chris Long’s 7th goal of the season from the penalty spot. The only dampener on the match for us was the injury that Tom Brown picked up in 2nd half injury which will see him out for 2 months.

28.12.13 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Brighouse Town v Long Eaton United : 0-0 : We ended 2013 with a boring 0-0 away draw at Brighouse Town which leaves us sitting top of the table, level on points with Scarborough Athetic as we enter 2014.

December League Table : Another decent month for us sees us claw back, what was at one stage a 9 point deficit on the leaders, to leave us sitting at the top of the table, level on points with Scarborough Athletic with 2 games in hand. Also, including the cup games, which sees us in the hat for the 5th round of the Northern League Challenge Cup and the 4th round of the FA Vase, we managed to extend our unbeaten run to 21 games stretching back from the 25th September 2013. We can’t afford to get complacent though as while it’s been a great first half of the season for us, last season is still fresh in my mind and it’d be very disappointing to end this season how we ended last after all of the hard work we’ve put in regarding, rebuilding the squad, performances etc.

Blimey, that is tight, albeit you have games in hand.

I have a feeling the end of the season will be squeaky bum time again!

Too close for comfort even with games in hand.Hopefully you can come out on top.

Blimey, that is tight, albeit you have games in hand.

I have a feeling the end of the season will be squeaky bum time again!

I hope not. Don't think my bum could take any more squeakyness after last season!

Too close for comfort even with games in hand.Hopefully you can come out on top.

Hopefully! As you say, even with games in hand, it's close.

01.01.14 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Brigg Town v Long Eaton United : 3-3 : We raced into a 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Marcel Barrington, Ryan Humphries and Jack Maloney but failed to hold onto that lead as Brigg Town came back to score 3 goals in 32 2nd half minutes to take a share of the points, leaving us wondering how we failed to win the game.

04.01.14 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Parkgate v Long Eaton United : 2-4 : Things started well for us against bottom of the league Parkgate as Marcel Barrington struck his 19th goal of the season to put us 1-0 up. Parkgate however, showed glimpses of why they shouldn’t be bottom of the league as they replied 4 minutes before half time to send us in at the break on level terms. The 2nd half though saw us up the tempo and stamp our authority on the game as we struck 3 times through Nicky Travis, Bradley Mason and Ryan Humphreys to put us 4-1 up. Parkgate grabbed a late goal but it was nothing but a consolation goal as we took all 3 points.

14.01.14 - Northern League Challenge Cup 5th round - Long Eaton United v Curzon Ashton : 0-1 : We got off to a bad start as within 20 minutes we lost 2 men through injury and had conceded a penalty, but our keeper saved the resulting spot kick from Kristian Dennis to keep us on level terms as we reached the break. We came back out looking as lackluster as we did in the 1st half so it was no real surprise that Curzon Ashton went ahead through the man that missed the spot kick earlier and that turned out to be enough to send them through to the Quarter Final and end our hopes in this cup for another year.

18.01.14 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Bridlington Town v Long Eaton United : 0-2 : A massive top of the table clash saw us make the trip to league leaders Bridlington Town with us looking for our first win in 4 meetings and 6 minutes in saw us break the deadlock through Lloyd Jones to put us 1-0 up. Just after the half hour mark and we doubled our lead through Marcel Barrington’s 20th goal of the season which turned out to be enough to give us all 3 points and secure a place back at the top of the table.

22.01.14 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Staveley Miners Welfare v Long Eaton United : 0-4 : 20 minutes into this game saw us take the lead against struggling Staveley Miners Welfare as the on loan Nicky Travis netted his 4th goal of the season to put us into the lead. We had to wait until 5 minutes after the restart for our 2nd goal of the game as central defender Ryan O’Reilly doubled his tally for the season with his 2nd goal of the season before Chris Long and Ryan Humphreys completed the scoring for us, both with their 8th goal of the season as we ran out comfortable 4-0 winners.

25.01.14 - FA Vase 4th round - Long Eaton United v Worksop Parramore : 3-0 : The FA Vase 4th round saw us take on fellow Northern Counties East Premier Division outfit Worksop Parramore and from the 1st minute to the 90th minute we dominated the game as a brace from Ryan Humphreys and a goal from Nicky Travis confirmed our passage to the 5th round.

29.01.14 - Northern Counties East Premier Division - Retford United v Long Eaton United : 1-4 : We met Retford with both them and us in good form, but the 90 minutes didn’t reflect that as I expected much more from Retford. As it happened, they caused us very little problems and in the end we ran out comfortable winners thanks to goals from Jack Maloney, Ryan Humphreys, Marcel Barrington and Chris Long to extend our unbeaten league run to 18 games and leaving us sitting top of the table at the end of January.

January League Table : The end of January sees us open up a 7 point lead with 3 games in hand and while it definitely puts us in a very strong position to win the league, we have been in a similar position last season which saw us throw away a 7 point lead. However, we have to be positive and there’s no reason why we can’t continue our fantastic league form which currently sees us at 18 league games unbeaten.

As for the cup competitions and while we’re out of the Northern League Challenge Cup, we’re still in the FA Vase and still have a chance of retaining it. Yes, it’d be nice to win the FA Vase again but after last seasons calamitous end to the season, my only priority is to get us out of the league so we can look at turning semi-pro and taking the club forward.

Wow, really flying with that lead and game in hand!

I have a strong feeling you won't blow it this time. Keep up the good work.

Don't mess it up this time!