Up From the Ashes

[Faramir]

22.12.04

I have to say that I am pleased with where we are at the midpoint of the season. After 19 matches played, we are currently 10th and still in contention for a playoff slot. If we can get more consistent backline play, we should be able to avoid any hint of relegation and that would be a major step in our first season.

ECN 2004-5 Midseason Table

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

1- Barrow 38 pts (+16)

2- Worksop 37 pts (+17)

3- Lancaster 33 pts (+9)

4- Hinckley 31 pts (+8)

5- Altrincham 31 pts (+8)

6- Nuneaton 31 pts (+7)

7- Southport 31 pts (+3)

8- Bradford PA 30 pts (+3)

9- Worcester 28 pts (+5)

10- Phoenix Sports 27 pts (+8)

</pre>

[Faramir]

26.12.04

Phoenix Sports (0) Hinckley (0)

Despite outshooting our visitors 13-4, we just couldn't get anything by Tom Whittle in goal. Credit where credit is due though, because Hinckley's backline- led by MOM Rob Gier- played very well in support of Whittle and kept us from getting any really good scoring chances. We controlled the flow of most of the match and the only really good chance they had came in first half injury time as Alan Williams smothered a hard, low shot from Richard Lavery. Our best chance came when David Poole picked out Lawrence Yaku with a pass, but Whittle tipped Yaku's rising shot over the net in the second half. The scoreless draw was a frustrating, but fair result for both sides in the match.

[Faramir]

28.12.04

Kettering (1) Phoenix Sports (0)

We didn't play well in this match and likely deserved to lose by a worse scoreline. They scored in the 2nd minute of the match as our backline missed a chance to clear away a loose ball and Darren Lynch swept it past Alan Williams. Offensively, it took us until the 2nd half to show any life and once we did- Lawrence Yaku could not hit the net. Yaku had three good chances to even the match, but he didn't make Steve Corry handle any of them as he missed over the net each time. Our passing was fairly poor for the match and only Kettering's inability to hit the net with their good chances even left this match within our reach. We need to regroup and figure out how to put the ball in the net, because these last two matches have been pretty dismal in execution.

[Faramir]

1.1.05

Lancaster (1) Phoenix Sports (2)

David Poole scored in second half injury time as we eked out a well-earned 2-1 road win over 4th place Lancaster. It was a great result for us, given our struggles of late, but even more so because we outplayed Lancaster for much of the match and seemed to be headed for a draw. They scored in the opening moments as our struggles with corners continued. Steve Jones outleapt both Sean Daly and Michael Ellison to flick a header past Alan Williams. I was really pleased when we were able to answer that goal quickly as Daniel Bent struck a well-placed shot from just inside the edge of the area to equalize. After that we squandered numerous chances to grab the lead as Jamie Speare was quick to gobble up any loose balls in his area and also made a couple nice saves. Williams gave a good account in our net too as he made a pair of one-on-one saves to keep us even. We struck for the match winning goal when David Poole, who had a terrific match and earned MOM honours, made a strong move past Steve Birks and then blasted a low shot by Speare. It was an important win to start the New Year off with.

[Faramir]

3.1.05

Runcorn (0) Phoenix Sports (1)

Two days later and we were back at it again with another road match at Runcorn. Our backline played its finest match of the season- led by MOM Martin Ridley- and we struck for a goal early in the second half to win another close match. We easily could have won this match by more, but their keeper Mark Cartwright had a sensational match and made several superb saves against Adam Webster and Lawrence Yaku. The one he didn't save was a quick counter-attack early in the second half that saw Yaku spring Webster in free and Webster drilled a shot past him inside the right post for the lone goal of the match. The match was played at a feverish pitch and both sides were dead tired late in the second half. Stuart Scheuber deserves credit for coming on as a sub for Anthony Pulis and doing a great job of ruining many of their attacks with his hard tackling in the midfield. It was another important road win- by a tired club- that really boosted everyone's morale. Ridley's yellow card in the match will leave him suspended for the next match against 1st place Barrow.

[Faramir]

8.1.05

Phoenix Sports (6) Barrow (1)

We stunned top place Barrow with an early barrage of goals and then picked them clean in the second half when they tried to rally against us. We were off on a flyer when David Poole scored a sensational goal in the opening moments of play. Paul O'Brien's through ball off a Barrow free kick put Poole away free and he made the most of it as he faked keeper Simon Bishop off his feet before taking the ball around him for an easy goal- his 5th of the season. Adam Webster then picked out Poole in the area as Jake Osbourne wasn't marking him closely enough and Poole scored his 2nd of the match into the left side of the net. We went up 3-0 when John Spicer made a well placed pass to find Webster breaking free in the area on a throw-in play and Webster half-volleyed it past Bishop. It was a defensive let down at that point that gave Barrow some hope at halftime as our backline got caught running around and not playing sound positional football. Liam Manning took advantage as he escaped marking and chipped his shot past Alan Williams from close range. Barrow attempted to rally in the second half and we just weren't able to build on our lead- despite an abundance of good chances. Eventually they tired, and then we finished them off in the late stages. Poole finally got his hat-trick (after missing several excellent chances) when Lee Mudd picked him out in the area. Poole's good pass then gave Lawrence Yaku (on for Webster) a sitter and he didn't miss to make it 5-1. A late penalty kick- converted by Stuart Scheuber for his 1st goal at Phoenix then capped our impressive 6-1 rout of the top club.

[Faramir]

9.1.05

Young Steve Daly is upset about his lack of playing time and requested a transfer. I allowed him to place himself on the transfer list and offered him to every club in Conference or below with no takers. He will work with our Reserves in the meantime as I don't want him and his attitude affecting the tight-knit group we are developing on the Senior side.

***

11.1.05

Phoenix Sports (2) Nuneaton (0)

We finished our most difficult stretch of the year, 6 matches in 16 days, in fine fashion as we kept working hard and finally cracked the Nuneaton defense for a couple of second half goals in defeating them 2-0. The first half featured many frustrations for us as we put Adam Webster in free twice and Lawrence Yaku once- but had nothing to show for it thanks to the keeping of Nuneaton's Darren Acton. Webster missed another golden chance in the opening moments- drilling a shot over the net with a wide open net peering at him. Chris Taylor was called into heavy action following that miss and ultimately earned the MOM honours for keeping the visitors off the score sheet. We finally broke through with a goal when Paul Parle- just back after missing 3 weeks with injury- skinned a defender and sent a pass to Reza Sotoudeh down the left side. Sotoudeh, who came on for Webster, then crossed and Yaku was there to deflect it past Acton just inside the left post. Anthony Jackson then set up Sotoudeh alone in front of Andy Crabtree (on for slightly injured Acton) and Sotoudeh made a nifty move to skip pass Crabtree and slot the ball home to give us an insurance goal. We were forced to lean on the veteran keeper Taylor in the closing moments as Nuneaton pressed us hard, but we held on for Taylor's clean sheet and a nice 2-0 win.

[Faramir]

15.1.05

Leek Town (2) Phoenix Sports (2) FA Trophy 3rd Round

We had to fight back in the second half to score a late equalizer to send us into a 3rd Round replay with Leek Town in the FA Trophy competition. The match started well for us as we played a good first half and took the lead when Ryan Squire's long through ball allowed Lawrence Yaku to fire a low shot past Steven Hodgson. Leek Town equalized in first half injury time as Gary Jones deflected a corner kick past Chris Taylor. We fell behind in the second half when our backline played very disorganized and allowed Robert Hawthorne an easy goal past a diving Taylor. A deft pass from Andrew Wright set Yaku up to score his 2nd of the match late in the half for the dramatic goal to send us into the replay.

[Faramir]

19.1.05

Phoenix Sports (3) Leek Town (2) Extra-Time FA Trophy 3rd Round

In a very hard fought match, we finally edged out Leek Town in the second half of extra time to advance to the 4th Round of FA Trophy play. Veteran keeper Chris Taylor was the star for us and earned MOM honours as Leek Town pressed our backline hard throughout the match, and they faltered at times. We grabbed the lead in the first half when Lawrence Yaku leaped and deflected a lofted pass from Anthony Pulis past Steven Hodgson. They evened the match later in the first half when Ashley Wooliscroft made a great pass to Gary Jones and Jones crossed smartly to Carl Frost. Frost, who had slipped marking by Adam Hart, had an easy time rapping the ball into the net past Taylor. Leek Town took the lead when Robert Hawthorne made a pretty cross to find unmarked Ben Johnson camped on the far post and Johnson pushed the ball into the open net. Leek Town appeared to have us in dire straits when Dean Crowe scored moments later, but he was ruled offside on the play and the goal was waived off to our huge relief. Leek Town still seemed to have the match firmly in hand as they were playing tough defense in their area. Wooliscroft, who had played superbly in the match, started his road to becoming the goat of the match when he nonchalantly headed a John Spicer cross into the middle. Adam Webster, who had come on for Reza Sotoudeh, stepped in and blasted the loose ball past Hodgson for a dramatic equalizer at 87 minutes. The match moved into Extra Time and Taylor made two great stops on Crowe and Frost to keep us even. As the match wound down and appeared to be headed toward penalties, Yaku's free kick found Webster moving into the six yard box. Hodgson managed to get a piece of Webster's shot, but the ball trickled past him. Webster and Wooliscroft raced for the loose ball and Wooliscroft reached it first- but as he tried to push it past the post he instead sent it into his own net for the winning marker. We were a tired club afterwards, but very satisfied to have finally seen off the determined Leek Town side.

[Faramir]

22.1.05

Phoenix Sports (3) Stafford Rangers (2)

After a very sloppy first half, where we handed the struggling visitors a gift of two goals, we fought back to score a second half goal to finally edge them 3-2. We received a gift ourself on the first goal when their keeper- Will Smith- mishandled a ball and David Poole was driving to the net and pushed the ball into the open net. Despite the fact they hadn't won in 11 matches, they had fire in them today and roared right back as they capitalized on our mistakes. Alan Williams gave them the first one with an own-goal, but the fault was really a poor clearing pass from Liam Coyne that triggered the chance. They took the lead shortly after when Williams mishandled a loose ball (in a mirror image of our first goal) and Robert Heath pushed it into the open net. We equalized late in the first half when Daniel Bent fired a well-placed 20 yard blast past Smith. The second half featured more controlled play and tougher marking from both sides. Paul Parle was the architect of our late match winner, as he took the ball down the left and then chipped a pretty pass on to Adam Webster. Webster made a sizzling pass that found Anthony Jackson unmarked in front and he ripped a shot past Smith into the left side of the net. With the lead, we offered a staunch defensive effort to finally close out the win.

[Faramir]

26.1.05

Vauxhall Motors (0) Phoenix Sports (2)

This would have been a much easier win had Lawrence Yaku converted on any of his 10 excellent scoring chances, but he was snake-bit today and couldn't score. Fortunately, David Poole scored in the first half to take some of the pressure off as he took a great pass into space from MOM Paul Parle and rushed right in to drive the ball past Mike Kinsella from the edge of the six yard box. Yaku did make a good pass to set up Adam Webster (on for tiring Poole) for his 10th goal of the season midway through the second half. With the lead, we played very defensively and conservatively in helping Alan Williams to another clean sheet as we chalked up another road win.

[Faramir]

29.1.05

Ashton United (0) Phoenix Sports (0)

We had to be satisfied with a scoreless draw against Ashton United, which was somewhat easy because they outplayed us by a large margin in the match. The only good scoring chance we had in the entire match was when David Poole missed just wide of the left post in first half injury time. Ashton outshot us 14-3 in the match and many of those were good scoring chances. Our backline played really well in support of Alan Williams and he earned his clean sheet with several stellar saves. We looked tired in the match and just couldn't get any good passing sequences to allow us to break out of our own end. The draw was a hard earned one and we can use the point that it resulted in.

[Faramir]

30.1.05

It was surprising to see the transfer interest in Rob Cousins, but in the end the three inquiring clubs weren't about to give us enough money to make allowing him to move worthwhile. Though Rob is only contracted until the end of the season, I value his veteran leadership and that is why it will take a firm monetary offer to pry him away from us. With little money, I avoided making any bids myself- though we really could use another midfielder. Still, we managed to gain an important addition for the next three months when we were able to loan 20 year old FC Mark Yeates from Tottenham. Yeates had been set to go Thurrock in ECS, but the loan had fallen through and we immediately offered to loan him as soon as that happened. I am not displeased with any of my forwards, but this little bit of additional quality may make the difference for us and it was a good opportunity to get a player who might help us a lot.

[Faramir]

1.2.05

Phoenix Sports (2) Bradford PA (1)

A late own-goal by Martin Ridley threw a scare into us after we had held sway over the pace of most of the match, but we held on to put another close win down in the books. We took an early first half lead in the match when Paul Parle whipped a centering pass into the area and Adam Webster volleyed it past Lee Martin. Lawrence Yaku had another match dotted with 'just missed' as he had good chances to add to the lead, but didn't. We played conservatively in the second half and it paid off when Anthony Pulis (on for tiring Yaku) sent a laser-like through ball that found Reza Sotoudeh (on for injured Webster) with space in the area and Sotoudeh nipped a shot inside the left post to increase our margin. We worked hard in the defensive end with the two goal lead and supported the solid play of Chris Taylor as he notched a clean sheet in the 2-0 win.

[Faramir]

5.2.05

Phoenix Sports (0) Scarborough (1) FA Trophy 4th Round

After all our close calls in FA Trophy so far, it wasn't surprising that we finally failed to generate a Houdini trick and lost a close 1-0 match to visiting Scarborough. The only goal of the match came on a terrific 45 yard pass from Steve Burton that picked out David Pounder cruising in from the left wing. Pounder's well-placed shot skipped past Alan Williams and just inside the far right post. We could not get good chances against the hard-working Scarborough backline and midfield as they blanketed us with coverage in limiting us to handful of shots for the match. It was disappointing, but at least we can now concentrate only on League play for the remainder of the season.

[Spav]

Faramir, I'm looking forward to seeing Phoenix Sports climb further up the table in the second half of the season.

[Faramir]

Spav- me too Thanks...

***

9.2.05

Moor Green (1) Phoenix Sports (4)

Moor Green struck first, but we used a superior performance on offense at the end of the first half to blow open the match and came away with a solid 4-1 win. Darren Middleton gave them the lead in the opening minutes when his blistering free kick was slightly deflected by John Spicer and that was enough to bank it in off the left post past Alan Williams. It didn't take us long to answer though as MOM Adam Webster, who played his finest match so far for us, took the ball on a throw-in and slid past Gary Cochrane before blasting a 25 yard shot that eluded Darren Bonfield. We grabbed the lead midway through the half when David Poole and Webster played a neat 1-2 passing sequence before Poole took the ball in and fired a precision shot off the inside of the far left post for his 10th goal of the season. We cracked the match wide open in the waning moments of the first half. John Spicer, playing on the left side of our attack for the first time (because of his ineffectiveness on the other side), made a quick move past Cochrane and scored his 1st goal since coming on loan here. Spicer then keyed the last goal with a 40 yard pass to Webster. Webster had enough time and room to make a sharp cross that Poole deflected into the right side of the net for his 2nd goal and a 4-1 halftime lead. With the lead, we played defensively in the second half and easily tamed the home side's attempts to rally in finishing out another important road win. Our impressive play of late has now vaulted us into 3rd place in ECN with 8 matches remaining.

ECN Table 30 matches played

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

1- Worksop 58 pts (+30)

2- Barrow 57 pts (+20)

3- Phoenix Sports 53 pts (+23)

4- Hinckley 53 pts (+20)

5- Southport 52 pts (+8)

6- Lancaster 50 pts (+12)

7- Altrincham 47 pts (+8)

</pre>

[Faramir]

12.2.05

Phoenix Sports (2) Stalybridge (2)

It looked like we had managed to win out over a Stalybridge side that had played better than us- then we made a defensive faux pas and were left with a very maddening 2-2 draw. We started out well and moved the ball with aplomb up the pitch. Lee Mudd gave us the lead when he blasted a rising shot off the left post past MOM Craig Dootson midway through the first half. We handed them the equalizer when Liam Coyne was called for backing into Andy Hayward on a corner and Michael Welch converted the penalty kick. They pressed us hard early in the second half and Alan Williams had to be sharp to keep us even. Lawrence Yaku received a fortunate break when he blasted his 30 yard free kick off the wall and the deflection allowed the ball to roll into the net past a stranded Dootson. We were playing all defensive in the late stages when Martin Ridley tried to stop a ball before clearing it. That mistake allowed Ian Monk to step in and rap a shot off the inside of the right post for a dramatic equalizer in second half injury time to leave us with a disappointing 2-2 draw.

[Faramir]

16.2.05

Injuries are troubling us as we prepare for a trip to face Worcester. Paul Parle has been out awhile with a knee injury. Mark Yeates only managed one match before going out with a slight leg injury. Richard Field will be out 3 weeks due a leg injury from the last match.

***

19.2.05

Worcester (3) Phoenix Sports (1)

Overall, we played an atrocious match at Worcester and deservedly lost 3-1. Alan Williams wasn't his sure handed self in net, he had little help from his backline and we spent the entire first half without a shot at the net- all of which helped equal a loss. We handed them the lead in the opening moments when Rob Cousins headed the ball right to Christian Moore in front of Williams and he stuffed his shot into the net. Our first half was a series of missed passes and tackles as we bumbled through it and were lucky to not be further behind. We did go two goals down midway through the second half when Mark Owen skipped past Adam Hart (on for ineffective Cousins) and blasted a shot past Williams. Our response gave me some small hope as a through ball found Adam Webster with space and he fired a shot past Danny McDonnell. They took the wind from our sails though by hitting back immediately as Owen overpowered Martin Ridley and scored his 2nd of the match. We couldn't get any rally going after that and finished out a disappointing 3-1 loss. Worse, we have lost Anthony Jackson for most of the remainder of the season with a groin strain. The loss drops us back to 5th place and just barely in the playoffs

[Faramir]

22.2.05

Phoenix Sports (3) Altrincham (0)

The first half looked all too familiar as we were having trouble doing anything right with the ball. Chris Taylor was called on for several good saves along the way and it looked like we would escape with a scoreless half. In first half injury time something clicked and we worked a beautiful throw-in that saw Andrew Wright scorch a long pass to pick out Anthony Pulis on the far post. Pulis stopped the ball and then drilled it past Stuart Coburn to turn a dismal half into a cheery dressing room for us. We struck again in the opening moments of the second half when Daniel Bent made a neat move on the dribble and laid the ball back for Lawrence Yaku. Yaku had space in the middle of the area and snapped a well-placed shot into the twine for a 2-0 lead. Our comfortable feeling deserted us quickly after the goal when Sean Daly was sent off for a 2nd yellow card. Altrincham started sending all their players forward and we made them pay when Pulis zipped a through ball that sent Mark Yeates away. Yeates made no mistake in sending a rising shot past Coburn for his 1st goal here. That earned Yeates the MOM honours and we managed to give Taylor a lot of help in closing out the clean sheet on the 3-0 win.

[Faramir]

26.2.05

Phoenix Sports (3) Alfreton (1)

I was very proud of the boys in this match. We hit them for a goal in the opening moments of the match when a good pass from Paul O'Brien found Adam Webster with room and he smashed a shot past Lee Butler. They hit back immediately as Mark Sale, who was a huge problem for us the first time we faced them, got up to deflect a cross from Mitch Ward past Chris Taylor. We didn't falter at all and instead turned up the pressure on them. It paid off when MOM David Poole took a deft pass from O'Brien in second half extra time and pushed it past the sprawling Butler to send us to the dressing room ahead 2-1. Alfreton tried to rally to start the second half and Sale came close to equalizing twice in the space of 2 minutes. A good chip pass from Lee Mudd allowed Mark Yeates to slip into the area and skip a low shot past Butler to give us a more comfortable margin. Alfreton kept coming, but we played better midfield defense down the stretch and kept them from many dangerous chances in closing out the 3-1 win.

[Faramir]

27.2.05

The press are all over various transfer rumours concerning our club. Several clubs have been looking at Adam Webster and Blyth actually put a bid in. I told the press that I had no plans to sell Adam, and while that is true- it isn't the whole truth because I made a counteroffer to Blyth of 85K prior to this interview. Adam Hart wants out and I transfer listed him and offered him to clubs at his request. He is currently considering three offers that I accepted on him. I have inquired to Tottenham about actually purchasing Mark Yeates. He may be a little out of our range, but he seems to fit in well here and I would love to keep him.

***

2.3.05

As I expected, neither Blyth nor Halesowen were willing to meet my price on Adam Webster- so he isn't going anywhere. Adam Hart is leaving though as he has accepted a contract from Barrow. The sale only netted us 1K, but every little bit helps when you have a club as cash strapped as ours is. Currently we 109,000 in the black and are comfortably within our weekly budget- which is pleasing our Board to no end.

***

3.3.05

Another problematic injury as Andrew Wright is out for a couple weeks. With Richard Field also out, we don't have a true defensive midfielder to fill that role and our showdown match with top place Worksop is not far off. Likely it will be Stuart Scheuber trying to fill in for now.

[Faramir]

5.3.05

Phoenix Sports (4) Redditch (0)

After spending most of the first frustrated at having good chances and not scoring, David Poole stepped up and contributed a hat-trick in a 10-minute span to help us roll over visiting Redditch 4-0. Poole's first goal came on a nice through ball from Paul O'Brien. Poole had an easy time firing it past William Coyles inside the right post. Daniel Bent then passed to Poole with a step on Matthew Gardiner and Poole again fired it into the right side of the net. Poole then capped his hat-trick with his 15th goal of the season as Bent sent a cross into the middle and Poole deflected it into the left side of the net. Lawrence Yaku came on for Poole and benefitted from Bent's 3rd assist of the match as he had room in the area to blast a shot past Coyles and finish off an impressive 4-0 win. The win vaulted us into 3rd place in ECS and we also moved into the lead as the most prolific scoring club with 70 goals.

ECS Table 35 matches played 7 remaining

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

1- Southport 65 pts (+14)

2- Worksop 64 pts (+29)

3- Phoenix Sports 63 pts (+30)

4- Hinckley 61 pts (+23)

5- Barrow 58 pts (+10)

6- Lancaster 56 pts (+12)

7- Worcester 54 pts (+8)

8- Nuneaton 54 pts (+7)

</pre>

[Faramir]

12.3.05

Phoenix Sports (0) Worksop (2)

Our showdown match with Worksop showed one thing clearly- we still have a ways to go. Worksop dominated us in the match and took advantage of defensive mistakes in the first half to build a 2-0 lead. Adam Muller's pace troubled us the last time we played and it was again the difference in the match as he set-up the first goal by Gary Townsend and then scored the second himself past Alan Williams as he simply ran away from our defenders. Offensively, we could not crack their defense. Kristian Rogers only had to make a few saves as their strong midfield tackling took us out of our game and we really only had one or two good chances. It was disappointing, but there is no time to wallow in our ale, we need to play more determined in our next match and improve our execution.

[Faramir]

19.3.05

Gainsborough (2) Phoenix Sports (0)

I was fuming at the referee following this match. Not only did he whistle us for 10 fouls, 6 yellow cards and a 1 red card in the first half (to the 1 foul on the home side), he also awarded them a dodgy penalty call that left us trailing 1-0. His quick 2 yellow cards on Anthony Jackson was the major problem for us. Despite that we tried to fight back and if David Poole could have finished any of his good chances we would have earned a better result. Instead, we had to go full attack in the last 10 minutes of play and they turned that situation into the match clinching goal in the late moments. It was a decent effort on our part, but we were completely undone by the referee's antics today.

***

22.3.05

As if we needed another distraction. Reza Sotoudeh isn't happy at not starting regularly here and failed to show up for practice. I found a place for him on the reserve side and transfer list.

[Faramir]

29.3.05

The whole day was a bit numbing in an eventful time. I decided we needed to add at least one more midfielder before the transfer deadline and both Rob Campkin and David Jarrett agreed that Lancaster's Ian Dawes was the top recommendation (in terms of youth, cost, wages). Lancaster was willing to let the 21 year old MC come to us on free transfer and Dawes quickly agreed to our wage offer for the opportunity to gain some playing time. I also had to make a hard choice not to try and re-sign 34 year old Rob Cousins to a new contract for next season. Cousins has several clubs interested and asked me for a yes/no answer so he could consider his options.

I thought the day's frantic activity was finally dying down when I was approached- out of the blue- by Kidderminster to take over as caretaker manager (with the promise of at least starting next season as manager) for them. The club and the offer was attractive. Kidderminster is currently in 4th in League 2 and is just a point out of automatic promotion. They are also only bare points in front of 8th place Swansea in a tangle of clubs trying to hold playoff spots when the merry-go-round stops. It took me a full half day of thinking before I contacted them later in the night to confirm that I would be staying with Phoenix Sports.

[Faramir]

2.4.05

Phoenix Sports (2) Southport (0)

Southport thought we were ripe for the picking- after our last two losses- but they were mistaken as the boys showed a lot of heart and desire today as we knocked off the top placed visitors in a fine 2-0 win. Both of our goals came from David Poole and the first one saw Poole powering his way past their skipper- Earl Davis- after getting a nice pass from Adam Webster before slotting the ball home past Steve Dickinson. The second one saw Southport trying to take advantage of a disputed yellow card to Paul Parle and quickly kicking the ball up the pitch. The plan backfired when Liam Coyne won the header the other way and Lawrence Yaku (on for tiring Webster) made a great flick on to find Poole alone in front (and strangely onside, due to their backline being caught offguard by the quick kick) and Poole rapped his shot inside the left post. The loss allowed Hinckley to slip past Southport into 1st place, with Worksop nipping at both their heels and us trailing them in 4th.

[Faramir]

2.4.05

Paul Gascoine's Harrow Hill squad was the second club to reach the relegation in either ECS or ECN. Sorrowful Redditch had already ensured that they were on their way down from ECN. Harrow Hill had only managed 7 wins in their 38 matches to date.

***

3.4.05

So much for Ian Dawes adding depth down the stretch. He suffered an ankle injury in training today that will keep him out of action the remainder of this season.

***

9.4.05

Phoenix Sports (2) Harrogate Town (0)

I can't say enough about how well Mark Yeates played today. He certainly earned his MOM honours with a spectacular effort. His goal in the early stages of the first half helped us set the tempo of the match and was the result of a beautiful passing sequence that wound up with Paul Parle putting him in free in the area. The club seemed very heartened when we took the lead and we wound up dominating much of the match after that. It took until late in the second half to gain the clinching goal. Yeates' good pass allowed Lawrence Yaku (on for David Poole) to drive a shot past Nick Buxton to give us a final margin of 2-0. I would dearly love to keep Yeates- he seems very well suited for his role in our offense, but the chances of actually doing so are very dim. Our win catapulted us into a 4-way horserace for the top spot in ECN with 3 matches remaining.

ECN- 39 matches played, 3 remaining

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

1- Worksop 71 pts (+34)

2- Hinckley 70 pts (+28)

3- Phoenix Sports 69 pts (+30)

4- Southport 69 pts (+12)

5- Barrow 66 pts (+13)

</pre>

[cruiseylee]

Another story im following of yours!! :-) Was just wondering when you sign players do you scout them yourself or always wait for recomendations from your scouts? or mixed? As some play the game with no scouting do you have a policy to make it more realistic to just use scouts? And that goes for all your games really!

[Faramir]

cruiseylee- Two parts to the answer- the first part is I play with 'fog-of-war' so I don't see all stats until scouted. Because of that I do occasionally sign players that I haven't scouted, gambling that the skills I see are part of a player that can help me. Usually I depend fairly heavily on my scouts though to at least give me the entire picture of the player. If I like a player, and my scouts don't, then it is a 50/50 proposition on whether I will actually sign him.

***

10.4.05

Carlisle surprised me today with an offer to take over as their manager. They are currently 10th in Conference National, and it was much easier to turn this offer down than it was to walk away from the Kidderminster offer.

***

15.4.05

Another tempest in the teapot as the press had a field day today. Hinckley's Manager Dean Thomas commented that they were very confident of beating us in our showdown match at Hinckley tomorrow. I could not accept that kind of comment from him and spouted off that I wasn't a fan of Thomas and I wouldn't mind seeing them go down to us. Several of my players came up after practice and commented that they really liked my comments and were convinced that Phoenix is the right place for them to be- including key players Martin Ridley and David Poole. On the other side of spectrum was Lawrence Yaku angrily demanding an improved contract. Considering that we are the first club in England to really give Lawrence any playing time in the last 5 seasons, I was a little unhappy at his demands coming out in the press. I don't plan on redoing his contract any time soon and this may create a situation that needs to be resolved in the summer.

[cruiseylee]

Originally posted by Faramir:

cruiseylee- Two parts to the answer- the first part is I play with 'fog-of-war' so I don't see all stats until scouted. Because of that I do occasionally sign players that I haven't scouted, gambling that the skills I see are part of a player that can help me. Usually I depend fairly heavily on my scouts though to at least give me the entire picture of the player. If I like a player, and my scouts don't, then it is a 50/50 proposition on whether I will actually sign him.

So you do go to the manager search option and scout players yourself? COs Ive kinda got to the point where im over scouting on my game and its overwhelming me when you think of the thousands of players you can sign on free's and 1k and 2k! Ive got over 1300 players on my shortlist! Mostly duds! Im thinking of just letting my scouts tell me which ones I should sign? what do you think? As im also thinking of doing a story soon and you have to be the most exp writer on here so thought I would ask your advice! And do you always play roughly the same tactics with all your teams? And do you go into real detail with your tactics like really detailed individual tacics/instructions? Thanks!!

[Faramir]

16.4.05

I was forced to deny reports from the press that I would be taking over at Wycombe. I have no interest in doing anything other than finishing the season out with Phoenix Sports at this point.

***

18.4.05

A day of celebration for me. Tottenham was willing to accept 60K for a transfer purchase of Mark Yeates (virtually all the transfer funds available at this point). Yeates agreed to 775/week contract through 2009, which unfortunately had to include a minimum fee release. Still, I am over the moon about adding him on a more permanent basis to our club- even if it does blow our wage budget out of the water. With how well he, Poole and Webster have been playing up front- we have the core for a very dangerous offense. The deal can't be official until June, but that matters not at all since that is when he is loan to us to.

[Faramir]

23.4.05

Droylsden (1) Phoenix Sports (3)

We continued our strong stretch drive by overcoming another penalty kick with a pair of second half goals to win out 3-1 over a determined Droylsden side. We took the early lead in the match when David Poole ripped a rising shot past Craig Mawson in the 5th minute of play. We seemed well in control of the match until an innocent counterattack resulted in a disputed penalty call on Martin Ridley and Craig Serrant converted the kick past Chris Taylor to even the match at 1-1. We took control of the match for good in the second half when Poole scored his 2nd of the match and 20th goal of the season after Adam Webster did a brilliant job of holding the ball until he could break free of coverage. We put the match away dramatically when David Poole was off the pitch being treated and Lawrence Yaku (on for Webster) drove past two defenders before smashing a shot that skipped past Mawson to conclude our 3-1 win. All 4 contending clubs won today, setting up a tense, wild final day of the season with three clubs all vying for the top spot.

ECN- 41 matches played, 1 remaining

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

1- Worksop 77 pts (+42)

2- Phoenix Sports 75 pts (+34)

3- Southport 75 pts (+17)

4- Hinckley 73 pts (+29)

</pre>

[Faramir]

25.4.05

Double whammy time for us as we prepare to face Kettering in our final match of the season. That match will be Mark Yeates final match with us until he rejoins us in June- because his loan expires on May 1st. That means he would miss the playoffs if we wind up not overtaking Worksop. David Poole really took a knock at the end of that Droylsden match and I will have to hold him out of the Kettering match to let him recover fully. The better news was that Manchester United accepted our small 8K offer (now we have only a pittance left) for the transfer offer we tendered for 19 year old Keeper Tommy Lee. Lee agreed to a contract with us for 220/week through 2009 and will join us in June. Chris Taylor has really come through (so far) down the stretch for us and Alan Williams carried us earlier in the year (but fell into a funk in his last few matches, which is why we had to lean on the veteran Taylor), but I had been looking for a young, promising keeper to really build around and I think Lee fits the bill quite nicely. Lee was just happy for a certain opportunity to gain more playing time.

***

27.4.05

Another wonderful job offer out of the blue, that I had to think long and hard before deciding to remain at Phoenix Sports. Macclesfield, currently 4th in League 2 and still with a great chance to grab the last automatic promotion spot, offered me the position as Manager. It is a good club, but my loyalty to Phoenix Sports won out and I will remain.

[Faramir]

30.4.05

Phoenix Sports (2) Kettering (1)

All we could do is go for the win on our part and hope for the best on the rest. We met a determined Kettering side and barely hung on behind two superb saves in the last few minutes by Chris Taylor to post a close 2-1 win. Our first goal was a complete fluke as their keeper Steve Corry mishit a goal kick and Lawrence Yaku deflected it back into their net to gain us an early 1-0 lead. We maintained that lead through halftime as neither club was yielding good scoring chances. Midway through the second half Paul Parle deftly dealt the ball to Adam Webster and he raced past a defender before driving a shot through Corry's hands to put us up 2-0. Kettering, much to their credit, didn't quit and made the game close when Taylor couldn't grab off a sizzling shot from Chris Difante and Daniel French knocked in the rebound at 85 minutes. Taylor made the save of the match moments later when he tipped French's rising blast over the crossbar to preserve the lead. As we walked off, the groan from the crowd was apparent when the final was posted- Worksop defeated Gainsborough 4-2 and won the ECN. We finished in 2nd due to today's win and will face Worcester in the first round of the playoffs.

ECN- Final Regular Season

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

1- Worksop 80 pts (+44)

2- Phoenix Sports 78 pts (+35)

3- Southport 78 pts (+18)

4- Hinckley 76 pts (+35)

5- Worcester 71 pts (+14)

</pre>

[Faramir]

1.5.05

It will hurt us to lose Mark Yeates for the playoffs. In his 11 matches with us, he is our top rated average rating at 7.73 with 3 goals 2 assists, 3 MOM. His dynamic play helped loosen the coverage on David Poole and Adam Webster and they both played very well in combination with Mark. Nothing we can do about it though and I hope that either Lee Mudd (because of his experience, he gets first choice) or Anthony Jackson can fill the role for the playoffs.

***

5.5.05

Phoenix Sports (1) Worcester (3) Playoff Semifinal Leg 1

Chris Taylor's magic disappeared in this match and our season may have poofed along with it. Taylor gave up three goals on 4 shots by a gritty Worcester side and that was enough to give them a 3-1 win over us. After they had scored twice in the early going, we rallied nicely and Lawrence Yaku- who was on early for ineffective Adam Webster- setup David Poole nicely to draw a goal back and leave us trailing only 2-1 at halftime. We stormed their end to open the second half, but Lewis Skyers was brilliant in saves on Poole, Yaku and Lee Mudd from close in to keep them in the lead. Both we and our fans were thunderstruck when Taylor just plain missed an easy 20 yard shot that proved to be the backbreaker for us. Our chances of coming out of this debacle to move to the final appear very dim. Hinckley and Southport battled to a scoreless draw in the other match.

[Faramir]

8.5.05

Worcester (1) Phoenix Sports (3) Playoff Semifinal Leg 2

Pure bedlam and joy for our side when Chris Taylor made the save on Colin Hoyle's penalty kick to cap our improbable fightback to advance to the Playoff Finals. The first half of the match was exceedingly grim for us as went down 4-1 on aggregate when Jai Stanley blasted a free kick that Anthony Pulis slightly deflected- enough to send it past Taylor. The dressing room was quiet during halftime- but we mapped out a new attacking formation to try and show some semblence of the club we had been all season. The new formation, with increased pressure on their backline paid immediate dividends when David Poole drove a shot in at close range past Lewis Skyers in the opening moments of the second half. You could sense the momentum shifting back to us when Poole netted his 2nd of the match when he whacked in a rebound after Skyers stopped Lawrence Yaku's blast. Things were suddenly all rolling our way when Poole fired a well placed shot inside the left post for his hat-trick to suddenly pull us back even with Worcester both at 4-4 on aggregate and on away goals at 66 minutes. We didn't bother to shift out of the formation as it was yielding such good play and we came close to winning in regulation- only to see Skyers stop Poole once and Yaku to miss inches wide another time. We also just missed in Extra-time and faced the penalty shoot-out with tired trepidation. Les Hines scored first and Gary Sucharewycz (on for injured Liam Coyne) missed for us, but Michael Doyle missed over the net and Rob Cousins scored easily. Mark Owen scored, but Paul O'Brien answered for us. When Matthew Platt missed wide left, our hopes were answered when Yaku drilled his into the left side of the net. Hoyle's shot went right to Taylor and he smothered it easily to set off a wild celebration. We will face Southport in the Finals as they scored in Extra time to edge Hinckley 1-0.

[Faramir]

9.5.05

Transfer interest and rumours continue to swirl around Martin Ridley. Both Port Vale and Leicester have publicly stated that they may be interested in him and there were several scouts watching our 1st and 2nd Legs against Worcester. My only comment- repeated several times- to the press was that any club wanting Martin would have 'break the bank' for us to even consider selling him. Martin privately thanked me for those words- he felt reassured on how we viewed him.

***

10.5.05

Two in one day!! Morecambe and Barnet- both in the Conference National- came calling about taking over their respective clubs. I explained I didn't need this distraction only days away from our matchup with Southport and turned both of them down.

[Faramir]

14.5.05

Southport (0) Phoenix Sports (1) Extra-Time Playoff ECN Finals- Old Trafford

The final whistle finally sounded and a very tired, but joyous bunch of Phoenix players celebrated on the Old Trafford as we had held to edge Southport 1-0 in Extra-time in a very spirited match. Both sides were cautious in the opening moments of the first half, but it appeared we were set to take advantage when David Poole was tripped in the area by Jimmy Williams. Unfortunately, Rob Cousins blasted the penalty kick directly at Steve Dickinson and we were left rueing a great chance to grab the lead. Both sides played extremely well defensively throughout the match and I was most pleased at our positional play on defense as our midfielders continually frustrated Southport's attempts to go across the pitch with their passing. We had a lack of first touch ability today and that meant we weren't gaining control of the ball much. With Poole looking exhausted, I brought on Adam Webster late in the second half, and he had a golden chance immediately- only to see Earl Davis make a fantastic saving tackle when he appeared set to score. We moved to Extra-time and both clubs looked very tired- as we had both gone to Extra time in our Semifinal matches as well. The decisive moment came when Paul O'Brien made a clutch 25 yard free kick and it just hooked inside the right post past a diving Dickinson to give us the lead at 110 minutes. We went into a very defensive mode- as I didn't want to fend off their full-attack formation with just our tired backline. They came close twice to sending the match to penalties, but both Lee Mulvaney and Davis sent headers over the net and Chris Taylor was breathing sighs of relief on both chances. The final whistle came none too soon for us and we could celebrate moving into the Final against ECS Welling.

[Faramir]

21.5.05

Phoenix Sports (1) Welling (0) Playoff Finals- Brittania Stadium

It may sound odd- I know it does to me when I repeat it now- but this win over Welling that moves us on to Conference National next season felt weirdly anti-climactic. After all we fought through to get here, the win also seemed less compelling than our comeback against Worcester and our closely fought win over Southport. The lone goal in the match came when Lee Mudd sent a well-placed shot into the left side of the net after a nice pass from Anthony Pulis found him with space in the area at 29 minutes. We didn't let our guard down and that was fortunate as they almost answered- only to see Jamie Day miss inches wide past Chris Taylor. The second half found both clubs contesting well in the midfield and neither club was getting too many chances. As time began to wind down, tiredness seemed to set in our backline. Tommy Tyne broke in free twice in a four minute span as he zipped by Martin Ridley- but huge sighs of relief from our fans as Tyne missed over the net once and wide once. I switched to more compact defensive outlook for the last 10 minutes of the match- only to see Tyne free again. Tyne missed inches wide again and everyone could see the anguish on his face after all his misses cost his side dearly. Martin Brennan came up with a big save on Lawrence Yaku to keep us from clinching the match- but the final whistle blew moments later and we could finally celebrate our promotion to the Conference National!

[Faramir]

2004-5 Phoenix Sports Stats Summary

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

Keepers-

Alan Williams 32 apps 38 conceded 8 clean sht 2 MOM 7.06 avr

Chris Taylor 22 apps 24 conceded 7 clean sht 3 MOM 7.23 avr

Backline-

Paul O'Brien 37 apps 2 gls 8 asts 1 MOM 7.41 avr

Liam Coyne 22 apps 0 gls 0 asts 0 MOM 7.18 avr

Michael Ellison 27 apps 0 gls 0 asts 0 MOM 7.30 avr

Craig Clark 7 apps 0 gls 0 asts 0 MOM 7.43 avr

Martin Ridley 43 apps 1 gl 3 asts 4 MOM 7.60 avr

Sean Daly 24 apps 0 gls 0 asts 0 MOM 7.04 avr

Rob Cousins 34 apps 0 gls 0 asts 0 MOM 7.24 avr

Gary Sucharewycz 11 apps 0 gls 0 asts 0 MOM 6.91 avr

Midfield-

Paul Parle 26 apps 1 gl 8 asts 3 MOM 7.50 avr

Lee Mudd 28 apps 5 gls 4 asts 1 MOM 7.18 avr

Andrew Wright 39 apps 0 gls 2 asts 0 MOM 7.18 avr

Richard Field 20 apps 0 gls 3 asts 0 MOM 7.25 avr

Anthony Jackson 27 apps 6 gls 6 asts 1 MOM 7.07 avr

Anthony Pulis 30 apps 2 gls 6 asts 0 MOM 6.53 avr

Rory Squire 14 apps 0 gls 1 ast 0 MOM 6.29 avr

Stuart Scheuber 27 apps 1 gl 3 asts 0 MOM 6.26 avr

John Spicer (L) 21 apps 1 gl 2 asts 0 MOM 6.19 avr

Forwards-

David Poole 26 apps 24 gls 5 asts 8 MOM 7.73 avr

Adam Webster 36 apps 17 gls 11 asts 3 MOM 7.53 avr

Lawrence Yaku 43 apps 18 gls 10 asts 1 MOM 7.26 avr

Daniel Bent 25 apps 7 gls 10 asts 1 MOM 7.16 avr

Reza Sotoudeh 16 apps 3 gls 2 asts 0 MOM 7.00 avr

</pre>

[Faramir]

Summer 2005-6

20.6.05

It didn't take long for this to turn into a summer of upheaval for me. I hadn't had a chance to jot down notes in a couple weeks, so I will have to summarize the proceedings to this point.

An offer to good to refuse

While there were many players I was trying to sell- unhappy about not being in the starting lineup at the end of the season- I explicitly wasn't looking to sell Martin Ridley. Martin was our best defender all season and after refuting all the press comments- or at least explaining that they would have to 'break the bank' to get him- I was met with an offer from Port Vale that I found I couldn't refuse. They offered me 85K, which was less than I was hoping- but wound up accepting. The reason for my acceptance was because I had some other plans in the works and the funds would help placate the Board when they discovered what I was doing.

The gamble

Why allow our best defender to move? There were several reasons, but I had kept the full picture from the Board- afraid they would step in before I could complete my plans.

The background is that our stirring comeback win (which had been televised) over Worcester in the Playoffs, and the comments from both Mark Yeates and David Poole had earned us interest from several other younger players who were looking to gain playing time and whose contracts were running out with higher level sides. I heard extensive reports from both my scouts- Rob Campkin and David Jarrett- on agents who had contacted them directly to pass the word along that players they represented would be willing to consider coming to Phoenix Sports. I was a bit floored with this discovery- as some of the players were clearly high quality and above the level of Conference National. With the offer in hand for Ridley- and the imminent departure of Rob Cousins- I had already been scouting for at least one other quality center defender. I was also looking to improve our midfield. Tommy Lee and Yeates had already joined us on transfer at this point and that also seemed to improve our attractiveness.

With those quiet murmurs in the background, I knew the Board might quickly step in and put a cap on salary offers- because to add players of this caliber would blow away our weekly wage budget. If I was going to make this work, I needed the temporary smoke screen of Ridley's sale along with a near simultaneous signing of the other players. I made quiet offers to the clubs in question and was very surprised that they were willing to accept these small transfer offers (Yeates and Lee's signings kept me from offering much for any of them).

The negotiations went quietly and quickly and we announced in a single press conference the transfer purchases of Eugen Bopp (on free from Nottingham Forest, 875/week with a 475K min fee release), Adam Tann (2K from Cambridge, 775/week) and Phil Bolland (on free from Chester, 675/week). Tann and Bolland will undoubtably be the starters for us in center defense next season. Bopp is a terrific player and will likely slot behind the strikers- allowing me to use Yeates as a striker- something he had been hoping for, though he had said he would play wherever needed. In a more minor deal, we also purchased on free Sean Ardley from Crawley. Ardley will give us more cover for our defensive midfield role.

More leavings

I had been trying to find new homes for several unhappy players and minor sales netted us 2K for Stuart Scheuber, 3K (with future fees of 2K) for Alan Williams, 2K for Reza Sotoudeh. A more substantial sale found Lawrence Yaku moving to Rushden for 22K. I also allowed Steve Daly to leave on free transfer.

The bottom line

After all these changes- we are currently at a weekly wage cost of 6,243/week. The Board had bumped our weekly wage budget upwards to 5,500/week- so while we are over, it was close enough to keep them from squawking too much about the overage. With the 150K awarded us for TV money and the Ridley sale- we are also in decent shape on the bottom line as we are currently 262K in the black. The Board will still allow me another 42K in transfer funds for the season- so if we have additional needs I still have some room to meet them, though I have to keep from blowing the weekly wage budget out of the water to do so. Overall, the Board expects we will be in a relegation battle this season- though with the new additions I am quietly confident.

[Faramir]

1.7.05

Squad Overview

A few needs remain, as we sold off our midfield depth during the summer. I would like to add a 3rd keeper, but that isn't a priority yet. Mostly I will scour away at the free list and keep an eye on who gets cut from the big club's youth programs to add another player or two.

***

3.7.05

A prize fruit fell to us during the release of youth program players from bigger clubs. 19 year old Irish Keeper Robert Elliott agreed to a contract that brings him to Phoenix. Elliott and Lee will make an excellent tandem and Chris Taylor will help mentor both young keepers.

[Faramir]

15.7.05

The eve of our first friendly finds us battling injury problems already. Both Daniel Bent and Mark Yeates are out with injuries- so the timely arrival of James Graham, who is on loan for the season from Leicester, really helps out as we had no depth up front. We managed a small transfer purchase- Philip Gilder from Chippenham for 3K (but he hurt himself in training and will miss a couple weeks) and he should help add depth behind Paul Parle when healthy again.

***

16.7.05

We showed surprising resiliency as we hosted Blackpool in our first friendly. We fell behind 2-0 in the first half thanks to bad coverage on a pair of corners. The bigger club wasn't expecting the second half rally that we showed as Anthony Jackson and James Graham scored to earn us a 2-2 draw.

[Faramir]

17.7.05

Patrick McCarthy a left footed center defender was happy to leave Manchester City and we were very happy to add him to our backline. His wage of 675 a week hurts a bit- but it was great to add a quality defender to the mix for a minimal transfer amount. Sean Daly should be moving on soon, as I have accepted a small transfer bid on him and McCarthy will step right into his role.

***

20.7.05

We lost a decidedly chippy friendly to Carlisle at home as they converted a penalty kick past Robert Elliott for the only goal in the match. Eugen Bopp drew a redcard in the second half and we lost both Adam Webster and James Graham to injuries- so it wasn't a very pleasing match for us.

***

23.7.05

It was a fair effort as we played to a scoreless draw in our first road friendly at Bognor Regis. There were some good signs offensively, but our finishing was poor for the day.

[Faramir]

30.7.05

A last moment goal by James Graham gave us a 1-1 road friendly draw while visiting Northampton. We didn't play well until the second half, but still kept battling even though we went a goal down early in the match.

***

2.8.05

UKbetting.com published their Conference National Odds:

Halifax 6-4

Stevenage 7-4

Carlisle 7-4

Gravesend 2-1

Dag & Red 3-1

Cambridge 3-1

Phoenix Sports 200-1

***

2.8.05

I felt we were shy of depth at forward and was able to add 24 year old SC Dan Trenkel from Chelmsford on free transfer. Trenkel will likely not be a starter- except in case of multiple injuries, but he should get occasional duty.

[Faramir]

3.8.05

Our last friendly saw us upend Scottish side Airdrie 2-1 in a well played match. I was very pleased with us defensively and Robert Elliott did some fine work in net for us.

***

7.8.05

It's only taken over a full year- but we finally have a physio for the club. Actually we finally have two physios for the club. No English physio was willing to work for the wages we could offer, but 39 year old German Frank Glass and 36 year old Belgian Geert Ryckebusch both agreed to contracts. It is a relief to finally have some help in keeping the club healthy. We also brought in 53 year old Scot Coach Joe Jordan to help the staff.

The big news of the day that had our fans excited wasn't the coaches. 20 year old FLC Danny Morgan joined us after Oxford accepted our 3K bid and we worked out a contract. Morgan is versatile enough to help in several ways, but likely will begin in a left wing role for us as Paul Parle is currently out with injury. Phil Bolland is also out for a month with a hip injury.

Our likely opening day lineup as we host favored Cambridge will be:

GK- Tommy Lee

DR- Paul O'Brien

DL- Liam Coyne

DC- Patrick McCarthy

DC- Adam Tann

DMC- Andrew Wright

MR- Eugen Bopp

ML- Danny Morgan

AMC- Mark Yeates

SC- David Poole

SC- James Graham

I hope we can keep this lineup together enough that they gel quickly, because this is about the best lineup we can field.

[Faramir]

13.8.05

Phoenix Sports (6) Cambridge (0)

We handed favored Cambridge a stunning 6-0 thrashing that started in the opening minute of play and continued until the last moments of the match. I was very surprised that our lineup clicked that well- we hadn't used them together in the friendlies- but when Danny Morgan- Mark Yeates and David Poole completed a tic-tac-toe passing sequence that resulted in a Poole goal in the first minute of play, we certainly seemed to have found a working combination. Eugen Bopp stepped up into the play and smashed a shot past beleaugered John Ruddy shortly after to put us up 2-0. Cambridge tried to rally then and Tommy Lee had to be sharp to keep them off the board. Next to score in his debut was James Graham, who took a good lead pass from Poole and marched in to score from the left side. Morgan then added a goal in his debut as he was in the right place to pick off a loose ball and snap it past a stumbling Ruddy to make it 4-0 at the break. We kept the pressure on them in the second half, but the lone down note came when Yeates had to leave with an injury in the early stages of the half. Anthony Jackson came on and was close to adding to the lead, but it was finally Morgan who struck for the 2nd goal of the match that left Cambridge bereft of hope. Morgan then capped his MOM performance by delighting the crowd with a sizzling cross that Jackson deflected past Ruddy to cap a wonderful 6-0 win that sent our fans out of the stadium with delight. Yeates will only be out a day, but Poole and Andrew Wright both will likely miss next week's tilt at Woking.

[Faramir]

20.8.05

Woking (2) Phoenix Sports (3)

We survived a determined rally effort in the closing moments to hang on for a well deserved 3-2 road win over Woking. The first half belonged to the home side as we sputtered a bit- clearly missing David Poole up front. Woking outshot us in the first half 7-4 and took the lead to the break when Julian Alsop deflected a cross past Tommy Lee in the early moments of the half. Danny Morgan went down with an injury that knocked him out of the match in the last minutes of the first half. We made adjustments at halftime and Anthony Jackson stepped up to fill in for Morgan (with Mark Yeates moving to forward). That move paid great dividends in the opening minute of the second half as Yeates threaded a laid off ball back to hard charging Jackson and he volleyed a winner past Shwan Jalal to get us back to even. Less than two minutes later we took the lead when Yeates was again the architect of laid off ball that James Graham drilled past Jalal. Woking stormed our end, but Lee was quick to bat away headers by Alex Tiesse and Karl Murray that looked destined for the top half of the net. Jackson then made the play of the match as he skinned James Mann to key a 3 on nobody situation. Jackson held on the ball until he could zip a pass by keeper Jalal and Yeates had an easy time slotting the ball into the open net that appeared to clinch the win for us. Woking had other ideas and after we let Stevie Ferguson in behind Adam Tann he flicked a header past Lee to suddenly draw the match close again in injury time. Lee parried away a header off a corner from Jonathan Boardman to finally cement the 3-2 win for us. Morgan dislocated his jaw and will be out of action for three weeks. We are seeing an early test of our depth with the injuries.

***

22.8.05

It was a huge surprise to me to have Barnet offer me their Manager position. This was mid-week of our upcoming match with them. I politely told them I wasn't interested in the job.

[Faramir]

27.8.05

Phoenix Sports (1) Barnet (0)

Shane Gore kept this match close until the end as the Barnet keeper performed some wonderful acrobatics to keep us from gaining the lead. We kept pounding away, but Gore was there for the big save every time. Robert Elliott was also giving a workmanlike performance in his debut and the scoreless match appeared headed for that as the final scoreline. The winning goal came about on an excellent example of teamwork. We headed away a corner from Barnet and then Ian Dawes (on for a tiring Anthony Pulis) sent a terrific through ball that found James Graham with space down the left. Graham went in free, but instead of shooting at Gore, he laid the ball off for the trailing Paul O'Brien. O'Brien had shown his veteran moxie by jumping up into the break and was rewarded when he drilled a ball into the left side of the net off the good pass from Graham. We closed out the match in fine fashion and Graham just missed clinching the match when Gore came up with another big stop on him in second half injury time. The 1-0 win was hard earned and hopefully indicative of the grit we have shown so far this season.