The Unwanted

[5legend]

good story i'ts getting really interesting with whats happening between you, nora and flood

[tenthreeleader]

5legend, thanks for following along!

___

Word certainly travels fast.

I had to put down a story in the Newbridge paper the next day that claimed I hadn’t gone to see Flood. I wonder who could have told them that?

As far as I’m concerned, I had nothing to hide. I had gone to see him and had been told not to proceed. However, I wasn’t going to drag Nora into it.

I simply said that there was a disagreement between Flood and me regarding his squad status, and that emotions had made it impractical for me to see him. I tried to take the high road.

Still, though, with at least reasonable success starting to look like something more than a remote possibility, discord wasn’t really something I wanted to deal with.

And in a match where no one showed up to either prove or disprove the veracity of the source’s claims, it quickly became a ‘he-said, she-said’ sort of game which really didn’t solve much.

Flood is popular with those few people in Newbridge who will admit to being our fans. So I have to overcome that if I want to restore the order I need to get things on the right track for this club.

Yet while walking down the streets of Newbridge on my way to training three days after the game, no one would talk with me. Not even a hello on the street, which is what I usually get from people who pass in the direction opposite from the one I’m walking.

Something profound is happening here. I don’t like it.

# #

28 Feb 2010 – Kildare County v Ballina – Friendly #7

We had one more friendly tacked onto our list before finally getting ready to start the season against Monaghan United on 6 March.

Ballina was one more test from non-league opposition and I expected things to be as easy as they had been in our six prior friendlies.

With two weeks separating us from our last semi-competitive friendly, we were well rested, or at least as well rested as we could hope to be.

My planned eleven for the season opener were out there:

Kildare County (4-1-2-1-2)

GK Alex Davies

DR Richard Liburd

DL Darren Nash

DC John Fagan

DC Ian Roche

MC Richard McIntosh

MC Jake Wannell

DM Jim Hastings

AMC Marc Kenny

ST Ger Cheevers

ST Ryan Winter

We kicked off the match. And, we were rank rotten.

Martin Donohoe, a forward of theirs I hadn’t frankly heard of before the match and I’m not sure I will hear of again after it, made us pay for my lack of knowledge fourteen minutes in with a bullet header from a corner that we conceded far too easily, with Davies well beaten.

It is at times like this one that I didn’t mind so few people in town caring about us – even after the hullabaloo about Flood you’d have thought some of his friends would have showed up just to heckle me. They could have said anything they wanted in the ground and everyone else could have heard them. That’s how quiet the place was.

We managed to put exactly zero shots on target in the first half, so I headed to the changing room with a change in tactic as well as some spirited urgings designed to remind the players that both teams have a goal to defend.

The definite feeling I got after finishing the team talk was that the players felt it was only a friendly, and we had already won six of those. That wasn’t exactly the answer I was looking for.

We had had no shots on target in the first half. We doubled that number in the second.

There was a whole lot of nothing heading toward the Ballina goal. I tried alignment changes, tried to get us to play wider, faster, slower…nothing helped.

It was ugly. Noel Tynan added their second one minute before the hour, and we may as well have walked off the pitch right then. We just folded.

Frankly, even though it was only a friendly, I was very disappointed to see this group of players react the way they had. The vast majority of them had nothing to do with the debacle of last season, but in the end, they all showed why they were cut loose by their former teams. They all showed why they had been free pickups, playing for nothing except expenses, for my team.

It was eleven men, six substitutes and the manager. We were all at fault.

I did learn something about our fans, few as there were, when we left the ground.

They knew how to whistle.

Kildare County 0

Ballina 2 (Martin Donohoe 14, Noel Tynan 59)

A – 29 (which may or may not have been a good thing), Station Road, Newbridge

Man of the Match – Gary Grant, Ballina (8.1)

Best I Had – Ian Roche (6.8, which says all that really needs to be said)

##

[nette000]

Open the Flood-gates, I'd say.

[tenthreeleader]

Just as soon as he gets out of the hospital ...

___

“That was not very good, Mr. Livingston.”

Nakov had never called me by my surname before. That wasn’t a good thing.

“Thankfully, it was only a friendly,” I said. “We have six days to get things fixed up before the opener with Monaghan, and I’m confident we can do that. We’ve done pretty well so far.”

“Yes, but the goal for this season is to beat the clubs we should beat. I understand that the First Division is problematic but really, this result should have been better.”

“I’m not disputing that,” I said. “We did not play well at all, but we aren’t in a situation yet where we should expect to carry all before us.”

Nakov didn’t seem to understand that. After all the losing of last season, the Ballina match was our first loss in any competition since right after I took over the club. The victory over Tralee in the relegation playoffs had started a string of improved play, and the new arrivals had only made that process easier.

We still aren’t any great shakes by comparison to the rest of the First Division and we aren’t going to set the world on fire this year. Yet we may win a few matches, and hopefully ease the pressure of relegation. That’s the real goal of the season.

Yet now I saw a chairman with heightened expectations. That wasn’t appropriate, and above all, it wasn’t fair.

Of course, he’s got the right to be unfair. He pays the bills. I was going to say he signs the paychecks, but since there aren’t any at this club, it’s hard to make that claim.

Still, though, the boss wasn’t happy. It was an embarrassing home loss, a setback against a club we should have handled. And we didn’t.

The problem, in my mind, was one of motivation. These players just weren’t up to the job. That’s going to happen in this game but it’s certainly no fun to watch a side with ten players I brought in going to ground with such ease right before our season-opening match.

To make matters worse for us, we lost Fagan to a dead leg about an hour into the match and he’ll more than likely miss out on the Monaghan match. I think he’s our best central defender and since Clive Delaney still won’t consider us, he’s the best we’re going to get at that position.

That will force me to redo the back line for the visit of United, and I can’t say I’m looking forward to that. We’re going to be heavy underdogs anyway and this will just make it worse.

And now Nakov is sticking his nose in. After one loss. That isn’t what I had hoped for either. He wanted me to stay and help guide this team for no money; well, I’m not going to put up with a lot of guff when he isn’t paying me.

Still, though, he got to flap his gums, and I had to sit there and take it.

Losing sucks.

##

[tenthreeleader]

6 March 2010 – Kildare County v Monaghan United – Irish First Division Match #1

The day had finally arrived. We were ready to play a match that meant something after a close season of rather frantic activity and squad building.

A basically new eleven, as compared to last season, took the pitch for the opener against Monaghan United:

Kildare County (4-1-2-1-2)

GK Alex Davies

DR Adam Dowling

DL Darren Nash

DC Richard Liburd

DC Ian Roche

MC Richard McIntosh

MC Jake Wannell

DM Jim Hastings

AMC Marc Kenny

ST Ger Cheevers

ST Ryan Winter

The only changes from the disastrous friendly against Ballina were the movement of Liburd to central defence to replace the injured Fagan, with last season's holdover Adam Dowling slotting into Liburd’s place at right full back.

Other than that, it was the same eleven who had stunk up the joint against Ballina. They had something to prove to themselves, and they had something to prove to me as well.

The pundits expected Monaghan to come out and hammer us into a horseshoe. I hate it when the pundits are right.

They attacked, attacked and attacked some more. Starting us in our 4-4-2 Diamond (technically a 4-1-2-1-2 formation), was probably not the best idea I’ve ever had, since during the friendlies we played lesser opposition and I used the formation to recycle possession.

The problem was that we weren’t getting possession and without any decent wingers on the senior squad it was problematic in switching to 4-4-2.

The end result was that our diamond wound up getting more or less hammered into a flat four by default. That wasn’t good. Yet, they didn’t score.

We continued to bend but not break. Davies was forced into a series of fine saves starting at the half hour including highway robbery of Phillip Donnelly’s rising effort that the keeper managed to acrobatically punch over the bar in 37 minutes.

They were a lot better than we were in the first half, obviously, but I was starting to think we could get to halftime scoreless until referee Neil Doyle somehow managed to contrive a penalty against poor Hastings in first half injury time.

Philip Hughes took the ball into the box and swerved to get around the young holding midfielder, who put his arm out for balance. He made contact with Hughes’ chest but didn’t slow him down or stop him. Hughes went to ground and Doyle pointed to the spot, tugging at his shirt as an indication of his call.

Roche went straight into the book for dissent, which was laudable in concept but also meant a central defender on a card, which was something else we could ill afford. With the few faithful in the stands jeering their disapproval, Hughes put the ball on the spot, and shot.

Davies guessed correctly, diving to his right and slapping the penalty around the post to keep the scores level. Doyle blew for halftime and the players mobbed the keeper, leading me to think we had enough emotion to make something happen in the second half.

Despite the poor relative level of our play in the first half I did nothing to dissuade them. We had had only one shot on target in the first half and the second half started much like the first.

Wannell, though, came off holding his right groin just after the hour, which wasn’t good. Hastings couldn’t seem to get his confidence back after Doyle’s penalty call but I couldn’t spare the substitution for him because Winter didn’t look like he really wanted to be out there in the second half.

That was unfortunate, but Paul Place was ready to go on in his stead, a move I made in 66 minutes.

Winter, who had been so good when he first arrived, was hardly that today and could have had no complaints when he came off. But as the match wore on, and Monaghan continued to pour on pressure but not score, I actually entertained thoughts of a point.

Then it happened. Roche, moved to midfield in place of the ineffective Kenny, released Place between the central defenders three minutes from time. Place had time, sized up his shot – and buried it in the lower left corner of the net.

After 87 minutes of rope-a-dope, we led 1-0. The players looked like they had just won the league. Sounds corny and trite, but it was true.

Meanwhile, I was hollering for a new formation to last us the final three minutes plus added time. Monaghan went to 4-2-4 and I went to 5-4-1, with instructions to get the ball to the corners and waste as much time as possible.

They took the ball right at us, as you’d expect. Our back five gritted its collective teeth, strained with all its might – and still conceded in the second minute of injury time, when Donnelly got above Roche to head home across with the last action of the match.

They celebrated. I stood there on the touchline with my head in my hands. Our players were similarly gutted. Fifteen more seconds would have given us our first league win in nearly two years.

Fifteen. Lousy. Seconds.

Kildare County 1 (Paul Place 87)

Monaghan United 1 (Phillip Donnelly 90+2)

A – 89, Station Road, Kildare

Man of the Match – Niall Flynn, Monaghan United (7.3)

Best I Had – Ian Roche (7.2)

##

[tenthreeleader]

“Yes, we’re upset. We had a chance to take three points out of the match tonight and we couldn’t do it.”

Being opening night we had a modest assortment of media meeting on the pitch to talk with the managers after the match.

“We took advantage of the opportunity we got,” I said. “It didn’t really matter that there weren’t a lot of them. We scored to go ahead, we had a lead to hold for five minutes and we couldn’t do it. The players are very upset and we have to learn from it and move on.”

I was asked if we deserved to be in that position of holding a lead in the first place, and I bristled.

“They have to score to lead the match just like we do,” I snapped. “They played well tonight, give them credit. But they didn’t score until the last moments of the match and we have to be better in front of goal to hold them off if we want to win in this league.”

“You came so close to that win.”

“One day we’ll get it and hopefully that day won’t be far away,” I said. “The players believe in themselves but we got a wake-up call in our last friendly and we showed that a resilient side has the potential to do some damage in this league. We aren’t title contenders by any stretch but we are going to give a few teams problems this season and we’re going to grow from tonight’s experience.”

My part of the interview ended and I headed off to my office to prepare to go home.

When I got there, Nakov was waiting for me.

“Could have been three points tonight, Mr. Livingston,” he said.

There was that Mr. Livingston crap again.

“Indeed, Mr. Nakov, it could have been,” I said. “But the opposition made a good play and equalized. I for one am damned disappointed about it.”

“Make that two,” he said. “We need to win matches if we are ever to start drawing fans.”

“We need to win matches if we’re to avoid relegation,” I said. “The team is coming together. Given time I think we will be all right and the building can begin.”

“I need building to begin now,” he said. “From the point of view of money.”

“I understand that,” I said. “We’re trying, and we’re making strides.”

What I couldn’t understand was his intransigence. Nobody in the changing room was making a thin dime and they had just battled hard for 92 minutes to get a draw that virtually no one who came to the ground thought they would get.

“I am doing all I can to sell tickets,” he said. “To pay expenses for all the players you have brought here.”

“Every one of those players was balanced by a release,” I countered. “Look at the squad lists, Mr. Nakov. You know that. It’s fact. We have fewer players on our books now than we did before I came here, and the players we have here now are better.”

“Not according to scoreboard,” he said, shifting into his accent, which told me he was getting agitated.

“Believe me, Mr. Nakov,” I said, trying to stay patient, “but last year’s team wouldn’t have done this. They couldn’t have done it. God bless them, they just were not good enough. We had a couple of strong draws last year which were exactly like what you saw tonight but they were the result of supreme effort. Tonight we didn’t play especially well and we got a draw. What is it exactly that you want from me?”

“Three points, Mr. Livingston,” he said. He turned and left.

##

[tenthreeleader]

“Please come in, Matt. Have a seat.”

The Monday at work had begun with a rather unusual summons from Mr. McDonough to come and see him.

My boss in Dublin and the man who had hired me, McDonough had recently assigned me to a series of special projects to increase the firm’s role in finding qualified candidates for management positions throughout the Republic. I was working hard on it, and we were starting to see results.

Usually Friday was my reporting day on projects before heading out for wherever it was we were doing that weekend – since taking the job, that had always involved a trip to Newbridge for either training or preparation for a friendly match.

A Monday report was odd, though. I brought my note pad in case I needed to know anything important.

I sat, and faced my boss.

“What can I do for you?” I asked.

“It’s about your management of Kildare County,” he said, and a little warning bell went off in my head. Something was happening here and it wasn’t good. McDonough’s face wore an expression that could have been cured by a healthy dose of penicillin.

“All right,” I said, suddenly prepared to give a lot of ground before the conversation ended.

“You know management has no issues with you doing what you are doing because it’s being done on your own time,” McDonough said. “But this whole issue surrounding you and Mr. Flood … well, it’s made the papers.”

“I know,” I said. “He’s said some things that aren’t true and I’ve had to defend myself.”

“I understand that,” McDonough said. “But, Matt, the word on the street is that you’re a womanizer. I know you are a kind, honest and honorable man but we can’t have that sort of talk going around.”

“Certainly not,” I said. “So, what would you like me to do?”

“I’ve talked with upper management about this,” McDonough said, picking up a pencil from his desk and twirling it in his fingertips. “I’m sorry, Matt.”

“You’re sorry? About what?”

Then it hit me.

“Oh, God,” I moaned.

“I’m afraid so, Matt,” McDonough said. “We have a corporate image to uphold. I wish you had told me about this sooner, we might have been able to help you. I’m afraid we’re making you redundant effective immediately.”

I closed my eyes and slumped back in my chair.

Unemployment. What on earth was I going to do?

“We appreciate your work here and we’re happy to give you any reference you need, but if you are going to play rough and tumble in the press we as a firm can’t have anything to do with it.”

I hadn’t mentioned my employer in any way, but reference had been made in some blogs about where I worked, and I had fallen victim to a very cruel stroke of the sword.

And suddenly, I was very, very angry with Fran Flood.

“There’s no possibility of rectifying this?” I asked, my voice sounding small and not a little bit afraid.

“I’m afraid not, Matt,” McDonough said. “You’re well within your probationary period here as you know, and we feel we have no choice. Thank you for all you have done. See Maggie on your way out, she has a P45 prepared for you.”

That was that.

Slowly, I stood up. McDonough had the decency to do the same, and also had the decency to extend his hand.

We shook hands, and I left, leaving my note pad in the chair.

McDonough’s secretary, a middle-aged woman called Maggie, handed me an envelope as I passed her desk. Her face wore a sad expression.

“Good luck, Matt,” she said, looking at me with pity-filled eyes. “Everything you need is in here. It’s been lovely working with you.”

I took the envelope and thanked her quietly.

“Everything I need is in here except a job,” I said. I left the outer office, closing the door quietly behind me.

# #

[Scalamunger]

Really like this story, cant wait to read about every game of the season and hope a successful league position is in reach this season!

[tenthreeleader]

Thanks very much! Though it is safe to say that Mr. Livingston is not in the best of moods ...

___

There was only one thing I could do for the short term.

I had to go and tell Nakov.

My severance would hold me for a short time but what I really wanted was to help with the club in some way to restore at least a portion of my now-lost income.

“I cannot pay you, Matt,” Nakov said. “I have made that very clear, we are not in a financial position to do that at this time.”

“Can’t I do sales for the club or anything like that?” I asked.

“Your job is management,” he said.

“I don’t have a job,” I replied, “at least not one that pays me. “It seems to me that if I could help your club grow, that might be of some use to you.”

He fixed his eyes on me.

“Matt, I said no,” he said. “Now, please let me do my work.”

I wasn’t about to beg. Not to him.

With a range of emotions now starting to swirl around me, I thanked him curtly for his time and left.

I headed back to my car, and turned on the radio to drive back to Dublin and an apartment I now clearly could not afford to keep for the long term.

My mind drifted as I drove. I had some family and friends back in England I could go to while looking for a job in a better climate, but that was clearly a second choice. I wanted to stay in Ireland as long as I could, to avoid the back and forth of my previous job.

I had some savings that would help tide me over, but it was already getting awfully uncomfortable in my car as I drove.

“…to sport, where Steve Staunton has been sacked as manager at Darlington FC in the English League Two,” the presenter said. “The Quakers started the season challenging for promotion after last season’s relegation from League One, but have fallen on hard times of late, taking only one of the last eighteen points on offer. The club is out of the relegation zone on goal difference. Several candidates have been mentioned for the job, but speculation centers around young miracle worker Matt Livingston of Ireland’s First Division side Kildare County, who is expected to be a prime candidate…”

That brought a smile to my face. It was the first one of the day.

##

[Makonnen]

Booo! Booo! Er ... I mean, yay, a job that pays ... but I'll miss the Irish side.

[tenthreeleader]

Well, Makonnen, it's coming to a head now ...

___

Sitting in my office, with more and more time on my hands, was a mixed blessing.

There wasn’t a lot to do during the day. Nakov wouldn’t let me go out on the streets and try to sell sponsorships or even ads for the match programme. It was starting to frost my shorts.

When someone offers something of value to an amateur club, wouldn’t you assume the powers that be might be grateful in some way?

I did, but I guess I never was too bright to begin with.

Flood’s tattle-taling to the press – or whoever had done it – had caused a world of trouble for me. I couldn’t pinpoint who had gone to the local papers, but all I knew was that if I ever figured out who it was, my meeting with them probably wouldn’t go well. Perhaps not for either of us. And I really didn’t care about that.

So, three days after losing my job in Dublin, I sat at Station Road and read the paper, starting with the ‘Help Wanted’ section.

I saw Nakov walk down the corridor away from my office and sighed. I really couldn’t figure him out. He always said he was devoted to the club, but when I suggested doing something to help it, he wouldn’t hear of the idea.

It had to be all about him. I could understand that, but I was having a hard time accepting it.

My degree was in maths. That’s why I wound up working for the Inland Revenue in Blackpool, and it’s probably why I didn’t do too well as a recruiter. At least, that was how I was coming to rationalize everything.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that McDonough’s story was a bunch of bunk. There’s negative publicity about big business all the time and the corporations don’t give it so much as a second thought. Even BP is getting over theirs.

There had to be another reason and it was starting to matter less and less to me what it was.

My conversation with Darlington, and Singh, had gone well. They were impressed, and the thought of working at a club that paid its players and had a little bit of dosh to spend was impressive to me as well. I was told to wait by my phone.

So I was. But I was also looking for work. I didn’t want to take chances.

Nakov returned in the opposite direction and strode straight into my office. As he had done once before, he threw a newspaper that scattered all over the room.

“Darlington,” he snapped. “And you have applied there.”

That day’s Darlington and Stockton Times was now gently fluttering to earth on the floor in several disparate pieces. I looked around, gently swatted their financial section off the arm of my chair, and addressed him.

“Yes, I have,” I said. “I need a job, Mr. Nakov. I asked you to help me and you said no.”

“We talked about your loyalty once before,” he said.

“You accused me of looking elsewhere once before,” I said. “It was not true. At that time, anyway. I find it odd that you will not accept my desire to attempt to find paid employment.”

“Your loyalty to this club is not sufficient,” he said. “You are a traitor to Kildare County. I tell you now: resign or be sacked.”

“Sacked? From what?”

“From your job.”

I reached into my shirt pocket and pulled out an envelope.

I looked Nakov in the eye and handed it to him.

“The Kildare Nationalist is getting an identical copy within the hour,” I said. “I resign with immediate effect.”

# #

[5legend]

hopefully you'll get the darlington job or will this be the end of the story?

[tenthreeleader]

I have no plans to end the story

____

9 March 2010

Kildare Nationalist

LIVINGSTON QUITS STATION ROAD POST

Kildare County manager Matt Livingston has sensationally resigned his position with immediate effect.

The English-born manager, 42, released the following statement to the local press regarding his situation:

“It is with deep regret that I must resign my position as manager of Kildare County Football Club with immediate effect.

Recently, public speculation regarding squad choices and personnel matters entered the local press, which was the reason given to me last week for my termination from a full-time paid position in Dublin.

Working without a salary, as all employees at Kildare County Football Club do, was my pleasure for the time I was here. However, in this economic climate I must do what is necessary for my own well being.

I attempted to find local employment but the interest shown in my services by English clubs has prompted me to seek employment there, in the field of my choice.

This simple fact of life has resulted in an ultimatum from the club chairman demanding my resignation, which is contained in this note.

I hope the fans of the club will understand that my need and desire for full-time employment prompted me to make this necessary decision. The nucleus for a more successful team has been brought in and I know the players and my successor as manager will work as hard as necessary for the people of Newbridge and the Thoroughbreds supporters.

Thank you for your understanding.

# #

[salkster2102]

Why was there no dig at Flood in there 10-3

[fergie83]

Will the possible change in job mean the end to Nora?

[tenthreeleader]

Now, if I told you that, what would be the sense in writing the story?

___

I felt a curious sense of freedom as I walked to my car this time. I felt very good about my situation and about what the future held. England awaited me.

I made the last turn to the car park outside my apartment in Dublin and my phone rang.

Parking the car, I flipped open my phone. It was Raj Singh.

“Matt, I wanted to call you,” he said. “I wanted you to know we’ve decided to hire Liam Watson as our new manager.”

I was thunderstruck.

Liam Watson had managed Southport to a mid-table position in the Blue Square Premier, but hadn’t been considered by any media observer as a serious candidate for the Darlington job.

Yet, he obviously was.

“You…hired Liam…Watson.”

“Yes,” Singh said. “I wanted to call and let you know personally before it got into the press. You interviewed very well and we think you’re quite impressive, Matt. It’s just that Liam has experience here in England and that swayed the majority of the board.”

“I see.”

“Good luck, Matt. Hopefully we’ll see you here someday with another club.”

I thanked him, and hung up my phone. I then threw it out the window of my car.

I stalked upstairs, picking up the two pieces of my mobile, opened and then slammed the door to my apartment once through it, and hurled open the door to my liquor cabinet.

Yanking out a bottle of scotch and a glass, I sat heavily in my chair and turned out all the sitting room lights.

Opening the bottle, I poured myself a full glass and started in.

“Livingston, you bloody f***ing fool,” I said to myself. Over and over again.

# #

[Scalamunger]

uh - oh :O

[Dale0718]

Loving the story mate, keep it up!

[tenthreeleader]

Glad you all are enjoying things so far!

___

Waking up drunk is not any fun.

Getting to that point is sometimes not any fun either, but now with absolutely nothing to do except sit in my apartment and drink, it seemed like a reasonable short-term option.

The newspaper still came to my house, though. I spent my days looking through it, and online, while staring out my window, cursing my own stupidity, and nursing a week-long hangover.

My mood was improved, but only to a point, on the 13th March. My former players went to Wexford – and won 3-2 in their first match after my departure. They had reached fourth place in the First Division and that would have been a real reason to celebrate had I been in charge.

A win – and away from home – does a world of good.

Kenny had been the hero, slotting home the winning goal five minutes from time – and this time Bishop, as caretaker manager, had made it stick. I supposed that he was Nakov’s Man of the Hour for that.

I was happy to see Bishop get his due for winning the match, and even though he never answered my text of congratulations for the win, I was glad for him anyway.

As the one who had left the post, I was in for a fair bit of criticism afterward in the press as the man who had walked out on a suddenly successful club.

That hurt. Yet, there Kildare County sat - fourth in the First Division with four points out of six, only one of which had been earned by my direction.

Of course, the players who had won the points were virtually all imported by me, so there was that little bit of pride I could take from the Wrexham result, but still … it hurt.

What hurt worse was the employment search I now had to begin. Late in the season in England, some clubs were either dismissing their bosses or allowing speculation about their futures.

After a series of media reports linking me with various jobs in the Conference National and League Two as a comparatively bright young manager, those enquiries now had appeared to dry up. That figured. Now, I needed those contacts.

My first step was to look around back in Blackpool, where I knew a few people. I figured the government would always be growing, so my first step was to turn in a re-application with the Inland Revenue, in essence putting me back to square one.

Unfortunately, my old position had been filled. That figured too, I supposed.

I thought that someone with my background in math and accounting wouldn’t have a really difficult time finding work. I thought so, anyway.

Dreaming, perhaps.

The other thing I wanted to do was find a place to live that wasn’t in Dublin and wasn’t anywhere Newbridge.

Nakov had given me my chance to manage a club and I had saved his First Division bacon. Now, though, I was last week’s news and that was fine with me. I had never been accepted by that town anyway, so perhaps it was time for me to go someplace else.

Sitting in my apartment the night before I left for England, I watched television while waiting for more bad news, whatever it might have been.

I was starting to wallow in my own self-pity, but at least my liquor cabinet was empty.

The first week after losing my jobs … well, frankly, I didn’t remember much of it. I remembered the win over Wexford, I remember Bishop not replying to me, and I remembered sort of falling sideways across my bed to sleep that first night.

That had led to some interesting circulatory problems in the middle of the night, followed by a drunken trip to the biff that had resulted in more than one trip – and a gashed leg for my trouble.

I didn’t have any friends in Newbridge, and that had never been more apparent than right after I lost my job. No one – not Nora, certainly not that self-centered little bint Alana, and positively not Flood, who got out of the hospital a few days after his fall to receive all the attention his junior varsity status deserved once he got back to the pubs.

Together, though, they had all managed to take my measure. Well, fine for them. They had earned the right, I guess. They chased me out of town.

It was enough to make me feel sick to my stomach.

##

[tenthreeleader]

That said, as the days passed and my job search intensified, I wasn’t disappointed at Darlington’s results.

Watson had crashed 3-nil at Northampton Town in his first match in charge, and for his encore had lost 2-1 at home to Barnet, results which had his new team clinging to its spot above the relegation zone.

While the losses didn’t sadden me, the fact remained that Watson had a job and I didn’t. So regardless of his results, he was in a better position than I was.

I managed to keep my football mind more or less sharp by looking at matches on television and reading everything I could get my hands on regarding the lower leagues.

It was a way to stay sharp, in case I was ever called upon. Though, for me, ‘lower leagues’ could mean anything from the Blue Square down to God knows where. So I had a fair bit of reading to do.

Or, so I hoped.

Having managed to deftly maneuver my way out of two jobs in the last month – one paying and one not – I decided to not rely on my fabulous intellect to get me into a job. As long as my savings held out, I could wait.

It turned out that my phone rang a bit sooner than I had thought it might, but from a place I hadn’t expected.

Having just finished a wonderful breakfast of cottage cheese, pears and lettuce in salad form, I sat in to watch a bit of morning television when the call came.

“Matt, this is Barry Norgrove at Kidderminster,” I heard a voice say. “I’m sorry to hear things didn’t work out for you with Darlington, but I wonder if you wouldn’t mind having a word with me instead.”

I had a hard time believing the words I was hearing, but, making certain first that it wasn’t a prank by double-checking my caller identification, I agreed.

“Thank you for calling, Mr. Norgrove,” I said, stifling down a soft belch from breakfast. That wouldn’t have made a good first impression.

“We have made a move, as you know,” he said. “Steve Burr is no longer with us after yesterday’s home loss to York and we feel it is in the best interests of the club to move on. I’d like to know if you’ll come to Aggborough for an interview.”

“Of course,” I replied. “I’m in Blackpool at the moment so I’ll need a bit of time to travel.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Norgrove said. “Come down south and stay at the Stourport Manor, I’ll make a reservation for you. If you can meet with me tomorrow morning at nine o’clock that would be lovely.”

“Of course,” I said, happy to be stuck in that kind of conversational rut. “I’m on my way.”

It was an opportunity, but given how things had gone at Darlington, I was cautious.

It turned out I needn’t have been. Norgrove was everything Nakov wasn’t – he was aggressive, understanding in his fashion and also willing to pay both me and my players a salary. There was something to be said for that.

The interview went very well. He had to tell me to wait around since he had two other candidates to speak with, but he seemed forthright enough. So had Raj Singh, but I had a much better feeling about this particular interview.

For once, my instinct was right. I was called in to meet with the board at noon and presented with terms of employment.

“We like that you can make things happen and build a team with little or no money,” Norgrove said. “We like what has happened with Kildare County since you took over and surely that is a very challenging job.”

“It was, yes,” I admitted. “I wouldn’t mind a position that I can take without having to worry about outside interference from other employment.”

“That, of course, is the goal,” Norgrove admitted. “You’ll see that the contract in front of you will alleviate a bit of need for you in that regard.”

I opened a folder in front of me and saw a proposal of employment for three years, at £28,000 per year -- a comparative king's ransom.

“I think I can make this work,” I said. “I’ll do this job if you’ll have me.”

“We will indeed,” Norgrove said without so much as a second thought. “Welcome to Kidderminster Harriers.”

# #

[gavrenwick]

Go on my son. Time to light up the world from Aggborough, Livingston.

[Jamcee]

Being kind of local to me, Kidderminster were always the team I'd take over in the earlier incarnation of CM/FM. Good luck Livingston, make it happen.

[tenthreeleader]

Thanks, fellows ... I was really frustrated by my complete inability to bring in even reasonable non-affiliated players to Kildare County and even though they were fun to play, there was really no hope of improving that club to the point where I'd be able to avoid the sack.

Keeping that club in the First Division must have given Livingston enough reputation points to attract interest from lower level English clubs, so when Darlington's job came open I applied, got the board ultimatum, resigned because I knew the job was coming -- and then didn't get it. So it was a really interesting story arc until Kidderminster came calling.

It wasn't 'the plan' - but then when do things in this game go as you really and honestly wish?

___

They rushed me right into a media event on the 15th March, with the Birmingham area press mildly interested in what the Blue Square Premier side was up to now.

What I was after was a bit of respect, first and foremost. Second, I was after as much knowledge about my new team as I could scrape up.

I had a bit of a reputation as a pistol over here, it seemed. Word had traveled fast from Newbridge, and I deflected questions about how I had handled my departure from two jobs with a request to let my past personal employment history remain just that – personal.

It didn’t hold much water, but then in private business, not much could really be said about the reasons for an employee’s departure and I was just fine with that.

More importantly, my team is in trouble.

When I was hired, it stood at 12-7-20 and with seven matches to play in the season they were in 16th place in the league, just five points out of the drop zone. They had lost five on the spin and were winless in their last eight, taking only three of twenty-four points on offer. That had spelled doom for Burr.

They hadn’t won since the end of January, since a 3-0 win at Crawley Town on the 23rd. Things are pretty bad.

My first order of business was to travel with the team for its match the next night, at Luton – and watch, not manage. With five points still separating my new club from the maw of relegation, I could afford to sit in the stand and watch the players perform.

Playing under the guidance of assistant manager Mike Marsh, we won 1-0 against the Hatters on a 40th minute long-range strike from striker Duane Courtney. And I got a chance to see my new players.

  | Pos   | Team            | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | G.D.  | Pts   | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 1st   | Rushden         | 40    | 22    | 11    | 7     | 58    | 32    | +26   | 77    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 2nd   | York            | 40    | 20    | 9     | 11    | 57    | 35    | +22   | 69    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 3rd   | Stevenage       | 39    | 18    | 13    | 8     | 57    | 36    | +21   | 67    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 4th   | Histon          | 39    | 18    | 11    | 10    | 46    | 33    | +13   | 65    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 5th   | Cambridge       | 40    | 17    | 13    | 10    | 57    | 43    | +14   | 64    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 6th   | Gateshead       | 39    | 20    | 4     | 15    | 53    | 45    | +8    | 64    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 7th   | Mansfield       | 38    | 16    | 13    | 9     | 49    | 31    | +18   | 61    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 8th   | Wrexham         | 39    | 17    | 10    | 12    | 50    | 42    | +8    | 61    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 9th   | Eastbourne Boro | 40    | 14    | 16    | 10    | 47    | 45    | +2    | 58    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 10th  | Barrow          | 40    | 18    | 4     | 18    | 45    | 52    | -7    | 58    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 11th  | Oxford          | 40    | 15    | 12    | 13    | 38    | 34    | +4    | 57    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 12th  | AFC Wimbledon   | 40    | 15    | 12    | 13    | 54    | 56    | -2    | 57    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 13th  | Forest Green    | 40    | 14    | 11    | 15    | 44    | 39    | +5    | 53    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 14th  | Luton           | 38    | 13    | 14    | 11    | 43    | 39    | +4    | 53    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 15th  | Altrincham      | 40    | 13    | 11    | 16    | 43    | 50    | -7    | 50    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
[color=red][b]  | 16th  | Kidderminster   | 40    | 13    | 7     | 20    | 42    | 50    | -8    | 46    | [/b][/color]
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 17th  | Kettering       | 40    | 11    | 12    | 17    | 37    | 46    | -9    | 45    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 18th  | Tamworth        | 39    | 11    | 10    | 18    | 38    | 51    | -13   | 43    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 19th  | Grays           | 40    | 11    | 9     | 20    | 35    | 57    | -22   | 42    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 20th  | Ebbsfleet       | 38    | 11    | 8     | 19    | 38    | 50    | -12   | 41    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 21st  | Crawley         | 39    | 9     | 14    | 16    | 49    | 62    | -13   | 41    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 22nd  | Hayes & Yeading | 40    | 9     | 5     | 26    | 30    | 58    | -28   | 32    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 23rd  | Salisbury       | 40    | 9     | 14    | 17    | 33    | 45    | -12   | 31    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 24th  | Chester         | 40    | 11    | 15    | 14    | 36    | 48    | -12   | 23    | 
 | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
 | 25 points deducted from Chester
 | 10 points deducted from Salisbury

[tenthreeleader]

Goalkeepers

The first choice for Burr was twenty-year old Pole Erwin Sak, who has held the team in many a match judging by the early video I’ve seen. He’s played in 31 matches in all competitions and conceded 40 times – not bad, but we’ll need a special effort from him down the stretch.

Sak is the only non-Englishman in the first team. His primary backup is 24-year old Dean Coleman, who is a former Walsall trainee now in his third season at Aggborough. He was expected to be The Next Big Thing, but is now on the list as Not Having Delivered.

The third keeper intrigues me. Jasbir Singh is half Indian and has quite a bit of talent. He’s only twenty and I’ve been told that I should rate him higher than Coleman. We’ll see, but I like the look of the young man.

Defenders

If I were to pick a reason why the club is having trouble, I’d start here. Ronnie Henry, 26, is probably the best option at right full-back but he’s got issues, most notably a worrying lack of pace. In the event he gets to the byline, his cross is too often wayward.

This leads me to young Liam Dolman, 22, who’s a long, tall drink of water as the Americans say. He’s also a brave young man who isn’t afraid to stick his head in where it probably doesn’t belong. However, he’s only good to do it for a few minutes at a time and it takes him plenty of time to get where he’s going. His physical condition is appalling and he’s slow on top of it all.

On the left side, 21-year old Lee Baker is the prime candidate to play. He’s got very good ability, especially at this level, to put a useful ball into the box. However, like too many of his teammates, he doesn’t have the fitness level to put in a full ninety-minute shift.

His competition is 28-year old Mark Jones, a five-foot-three dynamo who, like Baker, Dolman and Henry, is running a bit low on gas. In training he seems to like to show off his concentration skills, especially in looking over free kicks. However, despite a look that indicates he can bend spoons like Uri Geller, he can’t bend the football. So I can’t see him playing much.

In the middle, 23-year old Martin Riley looks a half-decent player. He’s a decent man-marker and for someone five-foot-eleven, he can really get up in the air and head the ball. He’s also in much better shape than many of his compatriots, which means he’s going to play and play quite a bit.

21-year old Tom Sharpe is one candidate to play alongside Riley. The young man is tall (6’2”) and can head a ball, but he’s raw in lots of other areas such as man-marking skill and his positional sense is a bit worrying. He makes up for that worrying sense by being slow.

Midfielders

One of the more intriguing players on the team is 27-year old Chris McPhee. He can play in the center of defense, any position in midfield and he is also evidently the club’s emergency striker. He hasn’t played anywhere outside of the middle of the park this season, though, but it’s nice to know he has that versatility. Unfortunately, he’s not especially prolific at any of his positions, which is why he’s at this level. He does take a good penalty, though, and he’s the club’s vice-captain.

Then there’s 32-year old Dean Bennett, who’s similar to McPhee in that he can play most any position in midfield as well as lead the line. However, he’s also an emergency goalkeeper, as part of the multiple layers of positions that sometimes make up utility players in the Conference.

Among the true midfielders, Burr brought in 34-year old John Finnigan on a two-year deal last summer. He reminds me of Jim Hastings, only twice as old. That isn’t good, so he’s headed to the transfer list in the close season. He started his career in Nottingham Forest’s Premiership days, moved to Lincoln City and spent the last seven years at Cheltenham.

Thomas Nolan, 20 years old, is the great hope in the middle of the park. He plays just about every week and has a lot of potential. He’s a half-decent holding midfielder and he’s got both pace and stamina. He’s the closest thing we have to a box-to-box player. He’s played 31 matches this season, though, and is yet to score.

Now to the wingers, and our first stop is 28-year old Marc Goodfellow, who is on a season-long loan from Burton despite a value estimated by our scouts at £500. He’s a typical Conference-level player – he does a few things decently but not enough of them to raise his game any higher than where it’s at. He’s a squad player for the club to this point, but he can cross a ball and if we need to play a flat 4-4-2 he’s probably going to be in the mix someplace.

24-year old Brian Smiklie is a fine physical specimen. However, his play reminds me of the famous line from Macbeth: “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” Okay, that’s harsh, but the video I’ve seen so far is of a player who’s really good at running up and down his wing ... and then running up and down his wing some more.

This brings me to perhaps the team’s best player – and certainly it’s most saleable asset. 19-year old Conor Tinnion has been an ever-present on the left side of midfield. He’s easily the most talented player we’ve got, can cross a ball or dribble out of a jam, and he’s a good passer with fine technique, good pace and he’s a good physical specimen as well. In short, I don’t know how long he is for this club but if we sell him, we’ll get our money’s worth for sure.

Forwards and Strikers

Kidderminster was built to be a multi-purpose outfit. There are equal numbers of attacking forwards, old-fashioned centre-forwards and strikers.

22-year old David McDermott is one who hasn’t quite figured out what he wants to be as yet. He’s scored six goals this term and he’s got good pace, but unfortunately too many of his lashes at goal wind up in the net – over at St. Andrews. He needs to fix that if he wants to play regularly.

Darryl Knights is a 21-year old midfielder and centre-forward who has huge pace – he’s the fastest on the club by a considerable margin – he’s good off the ball and he is just fine with the ball at his feet. Unfortunately, at 5’7” the only way to get the ball to him is to play to feet since he can’t jump worth a damn and the entire league knows it. That has helped hold him down this season, which is too bad since if he gets an inch of space he’s dangerous.

Robbie Matthews is a 28-year old striker who, if I should choose a big-little partnership, would definitely be the big half. A fine example of a target striker, the 6’3” Matthews checks in at 14 stone and six, and he can head, jump and finish. He is the top goal-scorer who is actually contracted to the club, with nine.

Which brings me to the club’s leading scorer, 28-year old Damian Spencer, who is on a season-long loan from Kettering Town. A striker similar in size to Matthews, which has limited the former’s playing time, Spencer is faster and stronger, which forced him to the forefront of Burr’s plans. His 14 goals paces the club.

So, that’s it. My first order of business is going to be to hit the loan wire.

This club has only used two loans, and if I can bring in a few decent players before the deadline for the stretch run, the club has a better chance to survive.

We are weak along the back line, could use a bolstering in midfield and if I can bring in a pacey striker I’m going to do it. Surely there has to be a phenom at a bigger club who wouldn’t mind six games of first-team football to aid in development.

I’m not above giving a new face that chance. That should have been obvious from Kildare County. I have no allegiances.

That’s because no one has an allegiance to me.

# #

[gavrenwick]

I'm currently Darlington manager on my career game (I'm Liam Watson in disguise), and I have Knights, Sak and Ronnie Henry on my books. Brian Smikle is a thorn in any Conference sides back passage so he's a good player to have. Good luck for the season!

[tenthreeleader]

Thank you, sir .. hoping for a decent finish and hoping to keep Harriers up!

___

Hitting the loan wires was not a bad idea, as it turned out.

I had a surprising amount of success. I targeted four players to come in for the last six weeks of the season and snagged three of them on two-month loan contracts.

We also didn’t spend a shilling on salaries. That was even better.

It was fun calling bigger clubs and, for a change, having my calls returned. Thankfully, our scouting network was reasonably up to date, and our loan lists were current. So it took only 36 hours to bring in three players I really believe will help us.

From front to back: 20-year old Nick Blackman is ours for the rest of the season courtesy of Blackburn Rovers. This boy is everything a Conference striker should be, and perhaps even a bit more.

He can run, he’s fit, he’s strong, and he can finish. Unfortunately for him, he’s behind a few better strikers at Rovers and the thought of six first-team games appealed strongly to him. My call to that club was returned immediately and the loan deal was signed by noon that day.

Unfortunately, though, it means the two best strikers I have are both here on loan, but that’s something I’ll hopefully address in the close season, if I last that long.

Moving to the midfield, QPR was happy to loan us their 19-year old midfielder and defender Joseph Oastler, who has a fair bit of talent and really wants to play. Our scouts said his motor never stops running; all I can say to that is, well, we’ll see.

The third request was the one I didn’t get, and I suppose I really don’t blame them. I set my sights high.

I asked Arsenal about their u-18 defender Craig Eastmond, who isn’t playing at any level of their organization. The Gunners, perhaps surprisingly, agreed to make the loan but the player wasn’t keen on coming to us.

I could understand that, even if it was disappointing. He’s only young, and that sort of field trip is a bit much to ask for a player who is still barely past schoolboy terms.

That idea now scotched, my next call was to Scunthorpe to check out their defender Niall Canavan, who is an excellent man-marker, especially for this level. That loan was bit easier to arrange, and all three of the new loan players arrived on the same day – the loan deadline day of 25th March.

With my own first match in charge just over the horizon against Salisbury Town, I had my first decision to make; the loan players were clearly better than what I had under contract, but could I rush them into the team without them having played together?

The formation I had in mind was basic – a simple 4-4-2 with no variations – so I decided it was worth the risk. After two training sessions with the first eleven, it seemed the right thing to do. Blackman especially must play; he’s far too talented to leave on the bench.

There’s also a fair bit of pressure on for a result. I have six games to keep the club out of the relegation zone, but four of those games are against teams in the top seven.

That makes things a bit more difficult.

Salisbury Town will enter the match 23rd in the table thanks in part to their ten-point administration penalty, but even if you add ten points to their total they’d still be four points behind us.

So, I think it’s a match we can win. But if we don’t, we’ve got real problems due to our remaining fixtures:

• Salisbury (23rd place, 31 points)
  
• @ Altrincham (15th place, 50 points)
  
• Rushden (1st place, 77 points)
  
• @ Gateshead (5th place, 65 points)
  
• Stevenage (3rd place, 68 points)
  
• @ Mansfield Town (7th place, 62 points)
  

I met with Marsh about the Salisbury contest and realized that he would need to be the man as far as my main assistant went. Bishop would not return my texts when I asked him how much he’d like to work – for pay – back in England.

Oh, well. Some people’s kids.

Marsh has been places in this game that I’ll probably never go – Anfield, for one – and so when he spoke, I listened with as much deference as my position would allow.

He’s got the experience. I’m the boss, so there’s a little dichotomy I have to deal with right there on the spot.

He had also led the team to victory in his match as caretaker, so he could have been forgiven for feeling pretty good about himself – and upset for not being the full-time guy.

Yet, he wasn’t. I appreciated that, but then not everyone wants to be a manager. Just the idiots do, like me.

##

[tenthreeleader]

We looked at a video of the Luton match, as much to make ourselves believe we could win again as anything else, and we went over the plan for the match.

“Just the basics, Matt,” he advised. “Let the players’ energy carry them through. They’ll all want to impress because they like their places, so turn them loose and let’s see what they can do. They’ve been playing scared for the last month or so until a determination on the manager was made, so hopefully they’ll loosen up a bit.”

From a fellow who has an FA Cup winner’s medal, that was decent advice, so I took it.

There was nothing else to do but let the players play.

##

27th March 2010

Kidderminster Harriers (13-7-20, 16th place) v Salisbury Town (9-14-17, 23rd place) – Blue Square Premier Match Day #41

The answer was, all three.

The squad was in such poor overall physical condition that I handed places in the starting eleven to all three of our loan players for the match against Town.

Of course, the loan players were delighted – that was why they were here on loan, after all – but it raised some eyebrows in the squad as well as in the stands, I would presume.

I took care of that when addressing the team prior to the match.

“We’ve had this discussion once before,” I said, as the squad sat around me in front of their lockers. “We need points and we’ve got three men in this room today who are going to help us get them. Here, it’s all about the club and it’s all about digging ourselves out of the hole we’re in. Put your shoulders to the wheel and we won’t have problems.”

I looked around, to make sure the players understood the gravity of the situation.

“Show me what you’ve got,” I said. “You only get one chance to make a first impression. So make yours a good one. Meanwhile, if you don’t like something you see today, you’re welcome to come talk with me, but even at this early stage you’ll notice I’ve got a reason for everything I do. Don’t come to me if you don’t want to know what that reason is. Okay, let’s get it done today.”

We headed out to the ground with this lineup:

Kidderminster Harriers (4-4-2)

GK – Erwin Sak

DL – Lee Baker

DR – Ronnie Henry

DC – Niall Canavan

DC – Martin Riley

ML – Conor Tinnion

MR – Dean Bennett

MC – Thomas Nolan

MC – Joseph Oastler

ST – Damian Spencer

ST – Nick Blackman

There was no sense in holding back any longer. It was time to start our new adventure. Spencer and Blackman kicked off for us, and we got the thing under way.

##

[Boydy9]

Noooooo just spent an hour in between matches reading this story and I've run out of reading:(

[tenthreeleader]

Oastler showed he wanted to play very early on in the match. He took a lead ball from Henry, and found our second loan player, Blackman, on the right.

The Blackburn loanee looked up, put a little shimmy move on his man, got by him toward the byline and saw Spencer standing unmarked in the middle of the Salisbury box waving his arms like a crazy man.

So Blackman did the sensible thing and got him the ball. Our on-loan Kettering man made no mistake, giving us the lead five minutes into the match.

It was at that point I looked around the stand, seeing more fans there than I had seen in my entire time at Kildare County. Most of them were standing up. Most of them were cheering, which made it even more satisfying.

They had made it look so easy. It didn’t seem right somehow.

Thus buoyed, the players surged forward again. All it took was a little confidence, and the results were dramatic.

Full back Ryan O’Hara showed his quality for Salisbury by completely fluffing an interception that sent Spencer free a few minutes later and this time he wanted to return the favor. Unfortunately, Blackman was wearing defender Sean Clohessy like a cheap suit, which meant Spencer had to bide his time.

Blackman shrugged the defender away and quickly backtracked to stay onside. At that point Spencer returned the ball toward the striker and his quick loop around Clohessy had left the defender tied up in knots.

Blackman took the ball, took one stride to the inside for a better angle and cleanly beat the exasperated James Bittner to make it 2-0 just eleven minutes into the match.

“Hell, this is easy,” I joked to Marsh, leaning back in my seat while the fans worked themselves into a lather.

“Don’t you wish,” he grinned in reply. Play resumed.

Martin Riley barely missed with a header from Tinnon’s corner in 18 minutes and all I could think of was that I wasn’t watching a 16th placed team.

“How the hell did these guys wind up in a relegation fight?” I asked quietly. Beside me, Marsh shook his head.

“They wouldn’t play,” he said. “When they play, and they’re made to fight for places, you see the result.”

Tinnion, Riley, Henry and Blackman ruled the first half for us and we went to the rooms with as comfortable a 2-0 lead as I’ve seen in football.

So I repeated my words to Marsh.

“I don’t how the hell you guys wound up in 16th place but that was great,” I told them. “Show me you want your spots in the second half and put these guys away.”

It took nearly an hour before Salisbury had a decent chance, and then it didn’t even count as a shot on target as Jack Payne’s effort from fifteen yards hit Sak’s right post and stayed out. A few minutes later, the keeper was forced into an actual save from Chris Giles, who appeared to have ruptured himself in making the attempt.

Unfortunately, that was as good as it got for them. Which, in the end, is pretty bad.

Thomas Nolan, the 20-year old midfielder who has struggled to make an impact despite playing in every match to date, finally made one just after the hour by banking in his first-ever goal for the club in 63 minutes. His long-range effort banked home off the right post and sent him into a sprinting, chest-pounding display of delight that made him appear a cross between Tarzan and Duncan Ferguson.

He had scored. We had scored three. Their backs broken, Salisbury hardly bothered us after that.

It was the perfect way to start.

Kidderminster 3 (Spencer 5, Blackman 11, Nolan 63)

Salisbury 0 (bageled)

A – 995, Aggborough, Kidderminster (and no I’m not counting arms and legs)

Man of the Match – Nick Blackman, Kidderminster (9.1 MR)

# # #

[tenthreeleader]

In some leagues the managers share a glass of wine after matches. In my case, I couldn’t afford any just yet, so I cracked open a beer to share with an understandably subdued Tommy Widdrington after the match.

Technically Salisbury’s player-manager, he hadn’t opted to dress for the match, meaning he stood in a suit on the touchline opposite me in my Harriers warmup.

It hadn’t helped, though. He looked great but he still had a problem on his hands that he wasn’t sure he could fix.

“We should be right in the thick, but we got docked those ten points,” he said, a tinge of the misery of the condemned in his voice. “We’ve next to no chance and the hiding we got today has pretty well doomed us.”

It’s at times like these that I imagine managers really don’t know what to say, so I did the smart thing for once and said nothing.

My thoughts were not only with the doomed Widdrington, they were with my former players, who had fallen 2-0 to Drogheda United after that famous win over Wexford to start the First Division season. They were sliding.

So I knew what Widdrington meant. By comparison to my former club, I felt like I was at Real Madrid. I just couldn’t abide the chairman.

Nakov had rubbed me the wrong way, first by not paying me and then by not even letting me help his club.

We hadn’t been docked points, but I could understand Widdrington’s sense of abandonment.

I got up and headed to my fridge to get him another beer before wondering if I really did have unfinished business in Ireland.

# # #

[ScottleeSV]

Good to see this story back again

...although I reckon my Conference team could probably take yours.

[tenthreeleader]

Happy to have the time to write this again, frankly. As for teams taking teams, you're probably right. Your Luton is a beast. Kidderminster will stand or fall through its loan players. Blackman is not a non-league striker and I was shocked to get him even short term. He's the one I'm hoping will do the job.

___

Paul Sixsmith sat behind the manager’s desk at Station Road, looking through the morning mail.

Things weren’t going well for the former Maltese international. After that 3-2 win over Wexford that had placed County in fourth place in the First Division, the next two matches had been comparative gong shows.

Bernard Brennan’s eighth minute straight red card for one of the most ridiculous challenges Sixsmith had ever seen led to a 4-0 crash – at home – against Mervue United. That had hurt especially badly, because 82 fans, the team’s highest total for two years, were in the stands.

His boys had followed that up with an uninspired 2-0 loss at Drogheda three nights before, and the manager was wondering what to do.

His boys faced an away match at comparatively unfancied Mullingar Town in the League Cup two nights hence, and it was a match that for once, his team was expected to win.

However, he didn’t have the faintest idea of how to motivate a squad of part-timers. The young players with which he had been left were starting to jell with the veterans, but the question would be whether the rest of the league would be out of sight before the process had moved far enough along.

For a part-time club, Kildare had plenty of players on the books, but when you didn’t know who would be in shape to play from one night to the next, the reasoning for that squad size was sound.

Nakov’s directive had been for money to come into the club coffers. Which was why the letter Sixsmith now held in his hands was so intriguing.

He opened it, and read the contents from top to bottom. Then, he read them again.

Mr. Paul Sixsmith

Manager

Kildare County Football Club

Congratulations on assuming the manager’s role at Kildare County. The purpose of this letter is to propose a friendly match between our clubs for 4 May 2010. This match would be played at Station Road with a nominal appearance fee, to cover our travel costs.

I believe that the match will provide a way for our players to wind down from an arduous season and to give your side match practice for the more arduous matches which await it in the coming days.

I await what I hope will be your favorable reply.

Cordially,

Matt Livingston, Manager

Kidderminster Harriers FC

# # #

[Mark Snellink]

Cheeky, going to rub it in to the chairman eh?

[Makonnen]

Cheeky, going to rub it in to the chairman eh?

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

[tenthreeleader]

That would be nice, yes.

___

“One cannot have everything the way he would like it. A man has no business to be depressed by a disappointment, anyway; he ought to make up his mind to get even.”

- A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

With a bit of a break in the fixture list, I headed back to Ireland for a couple of days.

The reason was simple: there was a man there I wanted to talk to.

He didn’t give me the time of day when I was at Kildare County, but now that I had a slightly larger name tag, if you will, he wanted to talk.

Clive Delaney, all six-foot-seven-inches of him, sat across a table from me at a Newbridge coffee house. The central defender would quite simply end my worries in the centre of the back line, and since somehow he hadn’t yet managed to find a club in Ireland, we were now first on a short list of suitors.

“I thought you’d have been dominant in my side,” I said, as I sipped on a cup of coffee. “I have no reason to think any differently now that I’m at Kidderminster.”

“You’re low in that table,” he noted.

“But I think we’re playing well,” I countered. “We won handily in my first match there and they won the match prior to that under a caretaker. There’s talent on that club, Clive. I think you’d fit right in.”

“I’ve not had an offer from England,” he said, starting to warm to the possibility of playing in a foreign land.

“Well, you’d have one from me,” I said simply. You’d step straight into my eleven.”

That news would certainly have alarmed Ronnie Henry had he heard me say it, and probably Niall Canavan as well. Both of them had played impeccably in the center of defense against Salisbury and had certainly earned the right to retain their places for awhile yet.

Still, Delaney would make us better, no question about it. That was why I had traveled across the Irish Sea once again.

Oh, that and to meet with Sixsmith. He had decided to take me up on my offer.

I didn’t worry about Delaney seeing my successor in the coffee shop. He had no desire to play for Kildare because I could offer him something Sixsmith couldn’t.

That would be a salary.

However, my reason for challenging my old club was far from financial. It was quite personal.

Delaney promised to think it over, and rose from the table. Somehow I didn’t think he would take too long. My offer of a trial was on the table and since it was better than any offer he had received to that point, I felt I could allow myself the pleasure of a little optimism.

He left, and Sixsmith entered the coffee shop moments later. I rose to greet him.

“Matt, thank you,” he said by way of greeting. “We can accept the friendly and I think you should know that Mr. Nakov wouldn’t mind the extra gate we’d generate.”

“Of course,” I replied. “And the £2,500 is guaranteed, whatever that works out to in Euros.”

“It would all help,” he admitted. “And of course it would be a pleasure to welcome you back to Station Road.”

“I’d very much like to come back,” I said. “How are your lads playing?”

“Lost in the Cup last night,” he said miserably. “I can see why this was such a challenge for you. The players you brought in are decent but they are yet to jell. They’d better hurry, though, else we’ll get dragged into that relegation scrap from last season you managed to avoid.”

He seemed deferential to me. That seemed odd. Looking at him, it seemed like he wanted that friendly at least as much as I did.

That brought a little added spice into the equation.

Agreement was quick, and the date was decided – the Wednesday following our season-ender at Mansfield Town.

The coffee now finished, we rose to leave. I headed out onto the sidewalk to take a quick look around my former home before hopping back into my rental car to return to Dublin.

Sixsmith turned right, to head back to Station Road, and I turned left.

“Bloody hell, not you.”

I grinned.

“Hello, Fran,” I said, looking at Flood and Nora. She held his hand as they walked down the street toward me. “You want a shot at me? Well, you’re about to get your chance.”

# # #

[tenthreeleader]

It was a satisfying trip back across the Irish Sea to my new home.

I really had enjoyed the look of shock on Flood’s face as he came face to face with me. Obviously his injured ribs had healed and he looked pretty sprightly as he walked the streets of Newbridge with his girl friend.

Her reaction had been rather priceless as well.

As pretty as I had remembered her, the expression that crossed her face was one of disbelief followed by one of seeming dismay.

I hadn’t minded that in the slightest. Had Alana Carrigan been behind Nora, that would have made the whole day perfect.

I wouldn’t mind going over there, hooking up with a few of my old boys from the club, and then pounding Nakov’s team senseless.

Yeah. I’m thinking about a little revenge.

Not that anyone in Newbridge will care, mind you. Nakov needs the extra gate and he needs the guarantee, which is why he accepted the match in the first place. If they get 100 people into Station Road for the match I’m sure he’ll be thrilled.

Maybe he’ll promote the match as the Thoroughbreds trying to hang a defeat on their traitorous former manager. I really don’t care.

All I know is I’ve got another shot at them. I’m going to break their hearts – all their hearts – like they broke mine.

And that’s a promise.

##

[tenthreeleader]

Altrincham (13-11-17, 15th place) v Kidderminster (14-7-20, 16th place) – Blue Square Premier Match Day #42)

On paper, the teams were practically level.

Altrincham were one point ahead of us in the table at 50-49, with one fewer victory but four more draws.

It was a match I thought we could win, especially given our form in the first match under my charge. So I sent out my team the same formation:

Kidderminster Harriers (4-4-2)

GK – Erwin Sak

DL – Lee Baker

DR – Ronnie Henry

DC – Niall Canavan

DC – Martin Riley

ML – Conor Tinnion

MR – Bryan Smikle

MC – Thomas Nolan

MC – Joseph Oastler

ST – Damian Spencer

ST – Robbie Matthews

There were two changes to the eleven. Smikle was preferred to Dean Bennett on the right side of midfield and Matthews was preferred to Blackman as Spencer’s strike partner. Nick hadn’t recovered as well as I had hoped from his previous week’s exertions and though he was on the substitutes bench, he wasn’t in complete match fitness just yet.

In a match where I had high hopes, our start was indifferent. We traded corners over the first ten minutes but never really had any sense of purpose when we took them, so it wasn’t until Spencer blazed over the bar in fourteen minutes that either side had a real chance.

Canavan got himself booked just before the interval for a shirt pull on Altrincham’s Irish midfielder David Ward, with Colin Little shooting a piledriver over the bar from the ensuing free kick.

Meanwhile, another Irishman, defender Michael Welch, was making sure we couldn’t get the ball anywhere in the direction of Spencer after his initial effort, and Matthews wasn’t up to the task of creating either for his strike partner or himself.

The halftime whistle brought things to a merciful end, with nil-nil being the score only because neither team could contrive to score minus one goal and thus gift their opponent the lead.

However, being away from home I opted to hold my fire with the players at halftime.

“You know, this really is out there for the taking for you,” I said. “If you want it. How much would you like to leapfrog this team in the table and take some of the pressure off yourselves? It’s up to you.”

Altrincham looked to jump start their fortunes by making a double swap at halftime, with veteran Anthony Danylyk coming on in the midfield and Dale Johnson coming on to give the home team another strike option in place of Ward.

With all three substitutions in my pocket, I sat next to Marsh on the bench to see if the motivational speech I had tried to give would do any good.

The answer was ‘not really’, but we had Canavan fired up and that mattered quite a bit. The on-loan defender controlled the penalty area, playing with a confidence that really opened my eyes. There’s a reason he’s on loan, of course, but it isn’t because he can’t play in the Conference.

My optimism was somewhat squelched when Riley got booked for a silly challenge on their veteran striker, 37-year old Colin Little. That spurred me into action.

I nodded to Blackman and told him to strip off and get ready. Beside him, Bennett thought I was looking at him and he got up too.

“Wouldn’t be the worst idea, Matt,” Marsh said. “Conor is looking past it.”

Tinnion has a world of talent but his gas tank only holds about six Imperial gallons. He was dragging. And as bad as Matthews had been alongside Spencer, our leading scorer had been worse. We were generating nothing.

In 65 minutes, both players came on. Three minutes later, Blackman had the ball in the Altrincham goal, on a terriflc pass from our third loan player, Oastler.

The home team responded by bringing on their only player older than Little, 38-year old midfielder Russell Wigley, and moving to 3-4-3.

The two Ancient Robins worked 1-2 shortly after the restart with Wigley ballooning the result effort over the bar, over the back railing of the stand and in the general direction of Golf Road.

Our 4-4-2 was holding firm, though, and Bennett nearly gave us a second thanks to a bullet header from Blackman’s perfect cross on a half-volley. Unfortunately, the header was straight at keeper Richard Acton, who made a self-defense save in order to preserve his teeth.

The final substitution of Finnegan for Smikle and a shift to 4-5-1 simply cemented a win that had contained exactly one moment of brilliance. It wasn’t anything artistic by any stretch, but when referee Dean Mohareb blew his whistle, Marsh had the right idea.

“Congratulations, Matt,” he said, as the third long blast sounded. He extended his hand. “That ought to be enough to keep us up.”

Altrincham 0 (There’s that number again)

Kidderminster 1 (Blackman 68)

A – 818, Moss Lane, Altrincham

Man of the Match – Joseph Oastler, Kidderminster (MR 7.4)

[tenthreeleader]

Graham Heathcote couldn’t hide his disappointment after the match – dropping a spot in the table at home is never the best way to start your weekend – but he was as kind as he could have been in his post-match comments.

“We were wasteful and they made us shoot from distance,” he said. “We had twelve attempts but when you only get one on target you aren’t going to win very often. Kidderminster were organized and we couldn’t break through. Blackman was a nice acquisition for them, and he’s probably helped keep them up with his play over the last two weekends.”

I was equally effusive, but I didn’t want to give the Blackburn player a head any bigger than it already was. The boy doesn’t belong in this league, that’s for certain, and it was a great thing that Rovers allowed us to loan him for a few weeks.

“He stepped off the bench and did a job,” I told the press. Since the match was near Greater Manchester, the gaggle was a bit bigger than it otherwise might have been, but the questions were all still the same. Football journalists are nothing if not pack animals at least in terms of their mentality.

While the team coach was loaded up for the long trek home, I shared a glass of wine with my opposite number.

Each team had won on the other’s ground this season – they had defeated us 2-0 the first time the teams had met – but in this case our revenge was sweet.

A shock 1-0 win over leaders Rushden two weeks ago had sparked the thought of a late-season run that might bring optimism for next season, but Altrincham had squandered that momentum by dropping a 3-2 decision at The New Lawn against Forest Green and their loss to us was their second on the bounce.

“We were set up for our run-in,” Heathcote said. “Yours is difficult too.”

“Ours is not easy at all,” I admitted. “Four in the top seven to finish out the season.”

“You seem to be playing well enough to take a few points,” he said, hoping perhaps to encourage me.

“I’ve seen some bad clubs already,” I said. “I don’t think mine is one, and neither is yours.”

“That’s kind,” he said, raising his glass and taking a sip. “In a month I get a holiday I can really use. What are you doing with yours?”

I smiled and took a drink from my glass. “I’m going to visit some old friends,” I said.

##

[tenthreeleader]

Just not this week. It was time to prepare for Rushden and we don’t have much time.

The league leaders have struggled a bit in recent games but they are top for a good reason – they are very good offensively, especially at this level.

England C performer Lee Tomlin leads a talented group of players that has slumped dramatically in form since racing off to a huge early lead in the season. They are now winless in their last five matches since a 3-1 win at home to Gateshead on 10 March. Since their 2-2 draw at Nene Park to Crawley Town was on 3 April, that isn’t good.

Diamonds have taken only three of the last fifteen points on offer and have drawn their last three on the spin. They’ll be looking for more and for better – and only 48 hours after both teams played last.

Diamonds fell behind twice against Crawley and clawed the deficit back both times. They led twice in their prior game against AFC Wimbledon and were pegged back both times. So at least they show some variety.

The best part about Blackman not being entirely ready for Altrincham is that he’ll be ready for Rushden. In the form he’s in, that could make him a difference-maker. Otherwise, though, we’re going to put a tired team out there for the match.

I cancelled training for the first team until the Rushden match – if they haven’t got it down after 42 matches they aren’t ever going to get it – and simply allowed the players to rest their legs while on the club’s property. It gets a lot harder for us starting right now, so fresh legs will be key.

At least, that’s what I think. Watching the 19-year old Tinnion walking around like the numbers in his age were reversed, I was convinced I had made the right decision.

I couldn’t get my thoughts off Ireland, though. I wouldn’t mind getting back there before the friendly if time permits.

I’m looking forward to it. But that should be obvious.

##

[tenthreeleader]

Monday, 5 April – Kidderminster (15-7-20, 15th place) v Rushden and Diamonds (22-13-7, 1st place) – Blue Square Premier Match Day #43)

Aggborough was jumping as we prepared to kick off today. Two wins in a row for the new manager had made a few of the locals want to come out to see Harriers again, and the quality of the opposition didn’t hurt either.

Rushden travels fairly well and the away support dotted the South Stand after making the trip from Northamptonshire.

Meanwhile the East Stand and the Reynolds Stand both had a few more people in them than usual – though the crowd was still well short of capacity. People are going to wait before really supporting us, unfortunately.

There’s also a bit of rivalry between Diamonds and ourselves, going back to the salad days of our visitors. Rushden made it all the way to the old Second Division once upon a time, during the days of Onandi Lowe and Billy Turley. Both left the club under inauspicious circumstances – Turley’s proven and Lowe’s not.

Since then, Diamonds have been sold by the Griggs family, run by a supporters’ trust, taken over by businessman Keith Cousins, and sold again within the last year, all while showing great promise on the park and not quite delivering on it.

My club was Diamonds’ promotion rival once upon a time, so matches between the clubs were generally a bit more intense.

I tried to tap into that in my pre-match talk, reminding my team that we were facing the league leaders with a chance to knock our rivals down a peg.

York City has been charging hard in recent weeks, taking advantage of Diamonds’ slide to close within a few points of the top spot and automatic promotion to the Football League. So, Rushden had all to play for.

I had a surprise for Diamonds as we prepared to start the match. We lined up:

Kidderminster Harriers (4-2-3-1)

GK – Erwin Sak

DL – Niall Canavan

DR – Liam Dolman

DC – Tom Sharpe

DC – Martin Riley

DM – Joseph Oastler

DM – Dean Bennett

ML – Conor Tinnion

AMC – Nick Blackman

MR – David McDermott

ST – Damian Spencer

Which is why it was so satisfying to see Spencer bulge the Diamonds’ goal just four minutes into the match after a wonderful cross from Tinnion.

The on-loan Kettering Town man probably liked nothing better than to score against a double rival, and the home crowd seemed to agree with the concept as well.

Unfortunately for us we eased up after scoring and just three minutes later the veteran midfielder Rob Wolleaston had beaten Sak comprehensively from ten yards after being allowed far too much space on a foray into our box.

Both managers were up and yelling – Justin Edinburgh in celebration and me screaming at my defenders to kindly pull their heads out of their nether regions and remember why they were wearing red and white shirts.

“Sometimes I could just scream,” I said, sitting heavily back on the bench. Marsh just looked at me with an empty expression.

“They’re good,” he said, pointing to the opposite bench.

“I don’t care,” I replied.

The conversation continued while McDermott, who was getting his first start for me, weaved his way into the box and drove a low shot past Dale Roberts in the Diamonds’ goal to put us 2-1 to the good with barely ten minutes on the clock.

McDermott has been pretty patient in his desire to play, but since I don’t often use a pure attacking mid except when my strikers need the support, he hadn’t yet gotten his chance. He was also making me rethink a portion of my philosophy after a fine strike.

In fact, he looked like he wanted to be out there. We held possession for long stretches of the first half. Referee Richard Clark let the teams play and after the early orgy of scoring, the teams settled down into a more ordered first half after that.

Craig Ferrell came close twice for Diamonds but we weren’t bothered until on-loan striker Jamil Adam rattled Sak’s crossbar with an artful effort from nearly thirty yards right before the halftime whistle.

I wanted a little more defensive stability in the team in the second half so I brought off Bennett and replaced him with Ronnie Henry, who told me he had enough juice in his legs to give me 45 good minutes.

Edinburgh wasn’t as patient, going to his bench twice. Max Porter and the copiously talented Mark Byrne came on to give Diamonds a much more menacing look.

It didn’t take long. Byrne found Adam in the left channel of our defense just three minutes after the restart, and Sak was picking the ball out of his goal.

The two holding midfielders didn’t seem to be helping much. We outnumbered them 5-2 in the box, with Oastler playing an especially deep-lying position, but it just didn’t matter. They had taken it right to us.

Shifting us back to 4-4-2 seemed to give us a bit of life, and Oastler managed to loop a header over the outstretched arm of Roberts and right across the face of goal a few minutes later – but the ball stayed out.

After 65 minutes, Blackman had given all he could give and came off for another loan player, Marc Goodfellow. He tried to distinguish himself nine minutes from time by latching on to a free kick from McDermott, but his shot went wide.

The game started with a roar and ended with a whimper. But in the end, the result was highly credible. It wasn’t a win – but against this opposition, there was no disgrace in that.

Kidderminster 2 (Spencer 4, McDermott 10)

Rushden and Diamonds 2 (Rob Wolleaston 7, Jamil Adam 48)

A – 1,301, Aggborough, Kidderminster

Man of the Match – David McDermott, Kidderminster (MR 7.8)

##

[tenthreeleader]

Edinburgh was a bit upset. He thought he should have won, but was gracious about it. He’s now gone six straight without a win and York’s 2-0 win at home to Altrincham had allowed that club to pull within a single point at the top of the table.

He’s feeling the pressure. My job, though, is to make sure he feels pressure. I have problems of my own. We had started so strongly with the ball at our feet and yet had finished so poorly.

We need a performance where we play ninety minutes of solid football. I don’t know when that will come this year – or even if it will come.

However, we got some very good news after the match. The result, and Grays 2-0 loss away to Luton, made us officially safe with three matches to play.

That piece of news was handed to me by Marsh, who interrupted my post-match discussion with the Diamonds’ boss.

“Now it’s official,” he said, and Edinburgh’s offer of congratulations seemed genuine.

He’s going to the playoffs at the very least, while I’ll be retooling my team. Yet, I’ll be doing it in the BSP, which was a big part of my charge when I was hired.

All I need now is for them to play ninety minutes. We might be able to do that in our next match, against the overachieving part-timers from Gateshead, but if we don’t watch out, they’ll bite us like they have bitten many other clubs this season.

My meeting with Edinburgh broke up, the Diamonds got on their coach for Irthlingborough with a split of the day’s spoils in their pockets, and I headed home.

I should have felt the urge to go out and have a celebratory drink. We are staying up, we have seven points in the bag out of the nine on offer, and I am managing a club that in every respect is far superior to the one I left.

Yet, I can’t get my thoughts away from Ireland.

They had lost again on Saturday night, 2-0 to UCD, a team I had managed to draw during my short time there. Sixsmith was probably ready to tear out his hair, and the players I had brought in were struggling.

I headed home and picked up my phone, dialing a number I had been given while I was still manager there.

Clive Delaney answered.

“Clive, I’d like to offer you a trial here,” I said. “With an eye to signing you if you’d like.”

The six-foot, seven-inch defender still hadn’t found a club, which was a mystery to me. His raw physical size would allow him to dominate just about any forward he would face at this level, and the fact that no one in Ireland seemed to want him really made me scratch my head.

Of course, I’d have moved heaven and earth to have him at Kildare, but now if he performed well, I could offer him something I couldn’t in my prior posting.

That would be money.

“How long?” he asked.

“Two weeks,” I responded. I know you can play because I’ve seen you, but I want you to do it for our coaches. Then if you’re willing I’d like to look at a deal.”

He thought for a moment. I knew he was having trouble finding a club and I didn’t expect an answer any different from the one I got.

“I’ll be there Wednesday,” he said.

“Good. I’ll see you then,” I replied.

I hung up the phone and remarked that while the players were out quietly celebrating a big win – but not too much, since we only had four days to prepare for Gateshead – their manager was home by himself calling up unemployed central defenders.

It didn’t seem fair. I leaned back in my chair and watched the evening advance. The sun was a little higher in the sky now and it was pleasing to me. Spring was in the air.

Yet, I still didn’t seem fulfilled. I looked down at my phone and saw the speed dial numbers.

The name of Alana was first. I had never had the heart to remove it, even as angry as I was with her.

I picked up the phone and scrolled up to the number. Staring at it for a long moment, I powered down my phone instead.

##

[lewis999]

Great read tenthreeleader, trying to predict what will happen next but I can't, a lot of twists and turns so far, will be following closely.

[Chao Yang]

Great story so far 10-3leader, just got into it.

Interested to see how you'll do come next season and have your chance to retool.

[Galeru]

Finally catched up with this story, great read!

[glennuk]

read all of this over the last 24 hours, and love it.

KUTGW.

Reading makes me want to play a similar game

[Makonnen]

That's funny. Reading made 10-3 want to play a different game.

Heh. I crack myself up.

[tenthreeleader]

Thanks, everyone! To answer lewis999's question on the Rat Pack thread, I am continuing Unwanted as I enjoy writing it quite a bit. I tend to write in streaks -- since Rat Pack has a large following I feel bound to continue it too. As I get time I update both, and I thank everyone for their patience!

___

“Sit down, Matt,” Barry Norgrove said.

He was sat behind his large oaken desk in the chairman’s office at the stadium. I thought back to the last time I had had a meeting with a chairman that wasn’t a job interview. Nakov was firing me.

That must have led to a bit of apprehension on my face, but Norgrove was keen to put me at ease.

There’s no need to worry, Matt,” he said, again waving me to a chair. I sat opposite him, my feet together and my hands in my lap.

He seemed like a decent sort, and had done nothing to indicate otherwise during my short time at the club. But then, I hadn’t asked him for anything yet.

“I have a business proposition for you,” he said, sliding a business-sized manila envelope across the table to me. “We’ve put out feelers for a parent club and some big boys have responded. I’m quite pleased with that.”

I opened the envelope and pulled our reports from the club’s business development office regarding Birmingham City, Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The clubs are roughly equidistant from us, and all had something to offer.

“This is interesting,” I said. “You care about my opinion?”

“You’re the manager, Matt. Of course we care about your opinion.”

I laughed in spite of myself. I’m not used to people caring about my opinion.

Looking at the reports, I saw Birmingham sitting at mid-table in the Premiership with a smaller squad an a reputation as a yo-yo club.

I saw Wolves, sitting 19th in the Premiership and in a situation worse than Birmingham’s. Not only were they a yo-yo club, they were likely to be in the second part of their yo phase, if you will, fairly soon.

That left Villa, sitting in eighth place in the Premiership and on the cusp of European football. The world of the Premiership was turning upside down – they were just six points behind sixth-placed Arsenal, with Manchester City and Spurs holding Champions League places in the late going of the top flight schedule.

That didn’t interest me as much as a look into the organization.

Villa has the best youth setup of the three. They had won six of their last eight matches and despite being bounced out of the FA Youth Cup in an upset setback against Norwich, they could score goals.

These were the players I could request on loan. I jumped.

“No contest, it’s Villa,” I said. “That’s the one I want.”

Norgrove nodded.

“Sensible,” he said. “That’s the decision, then. We’ll also get a friendly, so be ready for anything. We should draw a tidy crowd for that match.”

That gave me reason to smile. Of course, they’d overwhelm us, but it was a chance to test my players against some very good players. I wouldn’t expect a full-strength side from them, but we will surely enjoy the experience.

Thanking the chairman, I rose to leave. On my way to my car, I checked my mobile phone.

There was e-mail on it, from Alana. It looked like we had been thinking the same thing at the same time.

##

[lewis999]

Ahh always good to see an update in here great stuff!

[tenthreeleader]

Talking with Alana was sort of an out-of-body experience. Frankly, I don’t know why I responded to her message.

The complete and utter rudeness with which she treated me the last time we talked should have been enough to end any further contact between us.

However, a sense of pity overcame me as I read her message: “Hi, how are you? I see you have moved on to better things. No different for me. Hope to hear from you.”

It sounded rather dramatic, but then Alana always sounded rather dramatic. I remembered Nora’s warning about her, and then realized that Nora was every bit as dramatic as Alana.

The difference between the two is that Alana admits it.

And, of course, there’s the Flood issue.

I haven’t yet come across a player who has reacted the way he did toward being told he wasn’t good enough. That’s a fact of life in football, and players either wise up and improve or they find other clubs. Or, in some cases, they retire.

Yet at Kildare County, there’s no money to pay anyone. So why should it matter? It’s not like he’s going to move on to anything of substance in the game anyway.

Or did he just think I was trying to move in on Nora?

I really wasn’t. I mean, she’s beautiful and all that and I wouldn’t mind if she decided to move here and move in with me, but really. I wasn’t trying.

Not that it would have mattered anyway, given my track record. It’s best that I stick to football, while people around here still think I know a bit about it.

But, I digress.

I decided to return her message, perhaps out of a sense of masochism as much as anything else. She’s as odd as she is beautiful, and that seemed to appeal to me somehow.

Masochism, hell. It must have been a sense of stupidity.

She answered, which was odd enough. I didn’t really expect that, at least not in a tone that took me to task for daring to communicate.

“You’ve changed your tune,” I said, in a four-word reply.

I waited ten minutes for a response.

“No hard feelings,” she answered.

“Easy enough for you to say,” I growled, thankful for the moment that my tone couldn’t travel electronically.

I waited a few minutes before replying again.

“Nice of you to say hello,” I answered. Then, I turned off my phone.

##

[glennuk]

Nice update Glad to see another one of these up