A Harrowing Misadventure

[Faramir]

A Harrowing Misadventure

It began with a mess- as many stories do. The Russian, Sergey Bilardinko, had bought Eastbourne Boro with many assurances that there would be changes for the better. Unfortunately, for both the club and the players, that wasn't true. When everything was sold off and moved out virtually overnight- Conference South and the FA was at a loss on how to handle the disaster on the eve of the season. One bright PR person suggested a lottery to replace the club and the seemingly silly idea was seized upon.

Entering the lottery was abundantly straightforward- put up the fee the FA was imposing to enter and be prepared to declare yourself at least a semi-professional club if you were selected. I didn't really take it seriously when one of the Board members mentioned that he thought they might actually enter us in the lottery- after all every club around seemed to be entering it. Imagine how stunned I, Jack Winston, was when they called out the name of the winning club- Harrow Hill.

The press descended on me (the Board had asked I attend) in droves and there was little enough I could tell them. I was completely unprepared to make any kind of statements, but did my best to murmur the usual platitudes before I could finally free myself from the press conference.

By the time I returned to Mitcheldean, there was a whole host of congratulatory messages on my voicemail. There was also urgent messages to contact the senior Board member. The Board hadn't had a true Chairman in quite some time as the infighting to replace the last one had proved troublesome and they had sorted out an uneasy alliance in the face of their problems.

The information the Board member gave me was certainly nettling. Most of the money they had available had gone to entering the lottery- and now winning it would mean a large chunk going to the ECS coffers. Because of that I would have to build the club without transfer funds. The next call I returned was worse- as a senior player told me that most of the current amateur players weren't in any way interested in participating in play in ECS. With the expectation that Harrow Hill would only last one season, most had little liking for the situation and would not play for us.

I have to admit it was a daunting situation- no players, no staff, and no transfer funds to try and establish the club. Despite that, my fighting spirit was ready to accept the challenge and see if we could make a success out of this unlikely venture. This is my journal of that time.

Obviously, had to edit Harrow Hill in place of Eastbourne. Harrow Hill was picked because I both liked the name and because they had nothing- no staff, no players, no money- and that was how I wanted to start out.

[Faramir]

A Harrowing Misadventure

It began with a mess- as many stories do. The Russian, Sergey Bilardinko, had bought Eastbourne Boro with many assurances that there would be changes for the better. Unfortunately, for both the club and the players, that wasn't true. When everything was sold off and moved out virtually overnight- Conference South and the FA was at a loss on how to handle the disaster on the eve of the season. One bright PR person suggested a lottery to replace the club and the seemingly silly idea was seized upon.

Entering the lottery was abundantly straightforward- put up the fee the FA was imposing to enter and be prepared to declare yourself at least a semi-professional club if you were selected. I didn't really take it seriously when one of the Board members mentioned that he thought they might actually enter us in the lottery- after all every club around seemed to be entering it. Imagine how stunned I, Jack Winston, was when they called out the name of the winning club- Harrow Hill.

The press descended on me (the Board had asked I attend) in droves and there was little enough I could tell them. I was completely unprepared to make any kind of statements, but did my best to murmur the usual platitudes before I could finally free myself from the press conference.

By the time I returned to Mitcheldean, there was a whole host of congratulatory messages on my voicemail. There was also urgent messages to contact the senior Board member. The Board hadn't had a true Chairman in quite some time as the infighting to replace the last one had proved troublesome and they had sorted out an uneasy alliance in the face of their problems.

The information the Board member gave me was certainly nettling. Most of the money they had available had gone to entering the lottery- and now winning it would mean a large chunk going to the ECS coffers. Because of that I would have to build the club without transfer funds. The next call I returned was worse- as a senior player told me that most of the current amateur players weren't in any way interested in participating in play in ECS. With the expectation that Harrow Hill would only last one season, most had little liking for the situation and would not play for us.

I have to admit it was a daunting situation- no players, no staff, and no transfer funds to try and establish the club. Despite that, my fighting spirit was ready to accept the challenge and see if we could make a success out of this unlikely venture. This is my journal of that time.

Obviously, had to edit Harrow Hill in place of Eastbourne. Harrow Hill was picked because I both liked the name and because they had nothing- no staff, no players, no money- and that was how I wanted to start out.

[Peacemaker7]

Excellent another Faramir story, bound to be a classic. Good luck and congrates on all your awards last night, well deserved

[Faramir]

Thanks PM for the confidence Not like you didn't get a mittful of awards yourself Hope you continue to enjoy this one...

***

12.7.04

The starting point needed to be finding some staff. From my long stretches in scouting I knew the names of several I thought might be interested in expanding their horizons. Bob Pearson agreed to join us as the Assistant Manager. David Jarrett signed on as our only coach. Paul Caton signed on as physio. Rob Campkin and Dean Yates joined Harrow Hill as scouts. Running on a shoestring budget was going to be difficult, but I was convinced we needed at least this many staff to make it work.

I went over the freely available players- and this is where my scouting connections and roots paid dividends as I called in some favors with current scouts and managed to get a few recommendations on players who might be willing to play for us. I offered quite a few contracts and hoped to sign at least a few of them over the next few days to help begin building a squad.

***

13.7.04

I felt very buoyant when we were actually able to get some players signed. We signed six of them right away- a day after the initial offer. They were:

Ryan Ashington 21 yr old AMC

Mark Berry 18 yr old DR

Kieron Gradwell 17 yr old DC

Peter Griffiths 24 yr old AMR

Michael Jago 21 yr old GK

Paul Moss 22 yr old DC

Of these, I felt that Ashington and Jago might be key signings as they both seemed to have good talent. Griffiths looked like solid winger and Moss was one I expected to be one of our team leaders. Gradwell and Berry I was unsure of, but we needed to start filling the roster somewhere. The Board communicated that they had an expected wage limit of 1.9K a week- I flat out told them that was unreasonable and they should expect me to slightly exceed that- they didn't seem too surprised or upset at my admonition on that.

***

14.7.04

A couple more signings today. We signed 16 yr old D/DMLC Wesley Erskine and 23 yr old DMC Leke Odunsi. I thought both would have a prominent place in our plans for the season. I plan on not featuring Erskine too heavily as I would like to get him under a new contract when 17. Odunsi should be a solid middlefield player for us.

[Faramir]

15.7.04

Three more signings today and one of them I expected to be a key signing for us. Carl Laurie, a multi-talented 22 yr old D/DMRLC, was a player that I hoped could provide both leadership and strong play wherever he was slotted. We also managed to add a 2nd keeper- 18 yr old Jordan Yorath. The other signing was 18 yr old DRC Liam Parrington, who would help us fill out the backline.

***

16.7.04

More signings as we continued to fill out our roster. Nathaniel Griffiths was an 18 yr old SC with enough wheels to start up front. I expected his strike partner to be 19 yr old SC Steven Fraser. 26 yr old DL Lea Jones was one of the few veteran players initially interested in playing for us. 20 yr old DC Liam Eves was another solid cover signing for the backline. We also signed a cadre of unattached 16 yr old players- Paul Bonar AMC, Steven Brown ML, Danny Singh SC, Wayne Barber MR and Dave King SW/DRC. All of the 16 yr olds agreed to very modest contracts which helped take some of the strain off our tight budgetary restrictions. With those signings, I decided to wait and see the further evaluations from Campkin and Yates before adding any other players. I felt we had at least established a core squad, but we were very thin in some aspects- so while I knew we would need to add more players, I wanted to be a bit more selective about further additions.

[Faramir]

21.7.04

Our first friendly at Larksfield Road was a success as we defeated Aintree Villa 3-1. It was a surprisingly good performance, but I refused to get too excited about the results.

***

25.7.04

Our friendly at Bishop Auckland showed we still had plenty of work to do, as they scored a pair of late goals to best us 2-0.

Our first serious injury occurred when Peter Griffiths was lost for a couple weeks due to a calf strain.

***

26.7.04

At Rob Campkin's insistence, I signed promising 20 yr old GK Daniel Austen. I didn't really want a 3rd keeper, but Rob kept hammering away at me and I finally relented and worked out an agreeable contract with him.

***

28.7.04

We came from behind and defeated Bromsgrove Rovers 2-1 at Larksfield Road in a friendly. Despite spotting them the lead with sloppy defending, we managed to rally and set ourselves up with a couple of nice goals.

***

31.7.04

We added a bit more depth with the addition of 25 yr old ML Scott Thomas who was free transferred from Deal and 21 yr old AMC Steve Clark. Clark has a wealth of physical talent, but no guarantees that we can develop him skills wise. Thomas seems a fairly sharp player but also has limited skills.

[OMDave]

Always on the lookout for a new challenge eh?

All the best with this one, Mike, and may it be as good a read as your other running stories

[bartley_m]

"Harrow hill have today gone out of business after tearaway manager faramir drove them into the ground"

Not a chance in hell, will enjoy reading your failure

[Gino]

heh, I used to be mates with Liam Eves before he was released from Burnley (if it's the same player).

I'm sure this'll be great Faramir

[Faramir]

OMDave- yes, I guess that is true This is something that I had tried when still in LLM (and not FMS yet) awhile ago. The main reason- beyond the story that is- that I wanted to do this is because this gives me a lot better idea of how the tactical engine works (if it can work with nothing players, it should do well with some talent )

bartley- it will be a challenge, because even the players I was able to gather are unwanted

Gino- Jack will say hello to your former mate for you (same one). Thanks for the kind comments and hope it stays enjoyable for you.

***

1.8.04

St.Albans allowed transfer listed Adam Parker to come to us on free. Parker is a 29 yr old AM/FC with the reputation as a good finisher. Though he has played mostly midfield, I think he is most likely to help us up front. He adds a veteran presence to the dressing room that we really didn't have. One of the difficulties I had was in convincing veteran players to join us- at modest wages we could afford. I had one flat out tell me that he didn't think we had a hope of staying up and that was why he wanted more money and a one-year contract.

***

6.8.04

I was trying to be more selective with my signings at this point- since we were already over the weekly budget from the Board. I added 20 yr old DRL Ben Griffiths on free because his ability to play either fullback role would provide good cover on our club.

***

8.8.04

While I was watching Manchester United defeat Arsenal 1-0 in the Charity Shield, I managed to finish off a couple deals. 19 yr old D/DMR Wesley Hammond will join us on free after Margate let him come to us that way. Hammond has a lot of potential at the rightback spot. Also, Jordan Fowler- a 20 yr old DMC from Arsenal- will join us on loan for the season. Fowler is a very promising player and should help us a lot in the midfield, though he is still undeveloped offensively.

On the eve of the season, I am not sure how ready we are, but it is time to start facing our trial by fire.

[Faramir]

13.8.04

A reporter asked me about my 'goals' going into the season. I gave him the usual prattle about building the club, but later this question did stir my thinking. For this season, survival is the key goal. With no money to speak of- I will have to hope my free signings are good enough to keep us afloat and to avoid relegation. Beyond that, I am committed to building up a young side that can learn to play well together. I have avoided signing the 'usual suspects'- the veterans that would bring more polish, but at the expense of preventing youthful players from learning from actually playing. Is this the best choice? I don't know, but time will no doubt be the final arbiter on my decisions.

14.8.04

Bognor Regis (1) Harrow Hill (3)

We opened our 'trial-by-fire' in EC South with a trip to Nyewood Lane to face Bognor Regis. We dodged a bullet in the opening moments of the match when Mark Berry was whistled for pulling Mark Lovell down in the area. Lovell stepped up and missed wide left as we all breathed a sigh of relief. We expected a grinding match, but the penalty miss seemed to discourage them a bit. We took full advantage of them being down as Nathaniel Griffiths and Adam Parker scored in a 10 minute span to give us a lot of life. Dave Hanson tempered that enthusiasm as he got Bognor Regis back into the match with a strike late in the first half to make it a 2-1 Harrow Hill lead. Steven Fraser, on for a tiring Parker, snapped home the clinching goal as he struck a shot inside the left post to make it a 3-1 final score. It was a very physical match with a total of 12 yellow cards handed out. Moss was sent off with 2 yellows, as was Mark Lovell and David Piper of Bognor Regis.

[Faramir]

17.8.04

Harrow Hill (1) Weymouth (1)

A few short days later we hosted powerful Weymouth at Larksfield Road. We gifted them a goal when our backline apparently thought the referee was going to call an offside and walked away from a live ball. We paid the price when they crossed it and Adam Wilde was in front to head it past Michael Jago. Steven Fraser evened the match with a strong header of his own. It was an exciting match, but a lot of uneven play from us as we started virtually an entire different lineup than at Bognor Regis. Both sides had chances to win it- but the draw was a fair result.

[Faramir]

21.8.04

Weston-super-Mare (0) Harrow Hill (3)

Weston-super-Mare is off to a stumbling start and we added to their woes with a 3-0 win over them. Ryan Ashington deflected the ball past Ryan Northmore to give us the first half lead. Adam Parker and Nathaniel Griffiths scored in the second half to help us score a big 3-0 win over the home side. It was a match that featured lots of excitement, but also had a lot of uneven play.

***

28.8.04

We made a morning announcement about our purchase on free transfer of 20 yr old SC Michael Husbands from Southend. They didn't want him and we needed another forward- it was a deal that worked out fine for both parties.

[Terk]

not a bad start at all, results wise. hope it keeps going

[Spav]

A good start here, Faramir.

I've never played a game where I've built a team from scratch, but I have considered it several times. Until I ever get around to trying such a venture, I will follow your efforts in the meantime.

[Faramir]

Simon- sad to say, but reality looms thanks for the encouragement

Spav- thanks as well, I had been meaning to do this (start from scratch) for awhile now and this seemed a good time to do it. Hope the story keeps your interest

***

28.8.04

Harrow Hill (0) St.Alban's (2)

Our backline play was disappointing as we lost to St.Alban's 2-0 at Larksfield Road. The difference in the match was that their keeper- James Robinson- played superbly and Daniel Austen didn't fare as well in his debut for us. We had more and better chances, but failed to convert well enough. They only had three shots in the match, but the first goal was because of poor defensive backline coverage and Kieron Gradwell contributed an own-goal in the second half. It was a match we didn't play badly in, but we also didn't play well enough to deserve a better result.

***

30.8.04

At the point of the transfer deadline, it is time to start taking a hard look at what our regular lineup should be. What I am planning on trying for the next several matches is:

GK- Michael Jago

DL- Lea Jones

DR- Mark Berry

DC- Kieron Gradwell

DC- Paul Moss

DMC- Carl Laurie

MC- Jamie McGowan

MC- Ryan Ashington

MC- Adam Parker

FC- Steven Fraser (Griffiths is hurt)

FC- Michael Husbands

I plan on using Jordan Fowler off the bench.

[bartley_m]

Doin much better thn I xpected Faramir. Dya reckon you could clear all squads in the football league and have all the teams bidding for free agents? might try that

KUTGW

[Faramir]

bartley- Sounds like something you should try My decrepit old PC is slow enough (took me most of an evening to get Harrow Hill edited into the ECS) that I wouldn't want to tackle that project. Thanks for the comments

***

31.8.04

Even as I made that plan, the injury bug came calling and Husbands will miss two weeks. That leaves a starting spot for Danny Singh.

***

2.9.04

More adjustments needed as now Adam Parker is out for a couple weeks with a thigh strain. This leaves us with Singh and Fraser up front, though Nathaniel Griffiths is finally showing signs of healing. Fowler will also start in midfield for us.

***

2.9.04

Hastings made a surprise 2K bid for Husbands. I gave them a counteroffer that included Ryan Peters- a midfielder that my scouts and I both like- but it is likely this will kill the deal. I am loathe to let Husbands go so quick after getting him.

***

6.9.04

The Hastings offer on Husbands fell through when they couldn't reach an agreeable contract with him. Ryan Peters had listened politely to our offer- but it was likely he wouldn't have agreed also, but the decision was spared as Husbands' decision was enough to finish the deal.

***

10.9.04

We added some depth at forward with the signing of promising 16 yr old AM/FC Shaun Smith. Smith hadn't signed an initial professional contract and was happy to have a chance to play on our club. For a youngster, he has a modest amount of talent, but I am not sure I would project much more than a spot appearence here and there for him.

***

11.9.04

Bishop's Stortford (2) Harrow Hill (0)

It was another wasted peformance as we travelled to Bishop's Strotford and fell 2-0. Their keeper, Robert Elliott was dazzling as we outshot them 11-7 in the match. It was another match where the other side capitalized on our mistakes as we allowed them a header off a throw-in in the first half and then Mark Berry was yellow carded for holding in the area and they converted the penalty kick in the second half for the two goals.

[bartley_m]

You alwasy seem to out shoot the opposition on this game

Lets hope you can stick a few in next time

p.s. trying that idea, should be interesting, will post within the next week

[Faramir]

bartley- Great Look forward to hearing about that try.

You're too right about our outshooting- playing with players who don't exactly open anyone's eyes with their abilities mean I also have to live with their lack of execution on gameplan. I am hoping I can sift through forwards and find one who has a goal scoring touch at least.

***

14.9.04

The injury bug continues to plague us as we lost Jordan Fowler for three weeks due to a sprained knee. We are having a difficult time gelling as a club when our lineups shift continually due to injuries.

***

18.9.04

Harrow Hill (0) Hayes (0)

Another disappointing performance as we were forced to settle for a 0-0 draw against visiting Hayes. It was very frustrating to watch us get 4 excellent scoring chances for Steven Fraser- and he missed the net on every one of them. We scored early in the second half as Danny Singh, who I had brought on for Fraser, headed in a wicked cross from Nathaniel Griffiths, but we lost that goal to a weak offside call on Singh. We almost wound up losing the match as Kieron Gradwell was called for pulling down Paul Symons in the area, but Symons missed the penalty. For our third match in a row the opposing keeper was MOM as Mark Bunn earned the honours despite missing the last 10 minutes of the match with an injury. Despite the fact they were forced to put midfielder Kevin McKenna in net- we couldn't score as both Ryan Ashington and Singh missed wide on shots that would have gone in if on net. I am disappointed by our play- we are finishing poorly and it is costing us better results. Hopefully Husbands and Adam Parker will get healthy soon.

[Faramir]

25.9.04

Maidenhead (0) Harrow Hill (2)

Finally a reward for a good effort as we edged Maidenhead at York Road by a 2-0 score. Our shooting overall was atrocious, but Adam Parker's hard work in the first half resulted in a goal when he knocked in a rebound after Nick Hart mishandled a lost dribble by Danny Singh. They came very close to evening the match several times, but Daniel Austen was superb in net today and the difference in earning three points for us. We finally clinched the match when their skipper Rob Paris knocked an own-goal past Hart while trying to dispute a through ball that Michael Husbands was challenging for. The result was well earned with tough backline play (even though they were occasionally wandering well away from their positions) and good backstopping by Austen.

[Faramir]

28.9.04

Harrow Hill (1) Suttons United (3)

We battled visiting 3rd place Suttons United til the bitter end, but our luck continuals to be abysmal, while theirs was unfortunately better. We spotted them an early goal when Paul Moss couldn't handle Andrew Martin and he drove home a rebound after Daniel Austen blocked a shot from Joff Vansittart. We came back and equalized when Nathaniel Griffiths whipped in a wicked cross that Ryan Ashington was able to deflect past Phil Wilson. The frustrations for us were many after that- as Ashington and Griffiths both hit posts squarely and Adam Parker drilled a shot off the crossbar. Ashington was again shaking his head when his beautiful free kick sailed just over the bar. Suttons then took all three points when Martin leaped higher than Moss and deflected a Vansittart free kick past Austen. The last goal in the 3-1 loss was just a gift to them as Austen made the save on a free kick- only to see our backline stand and watch as Mark Peers walked in and rammed home the rebound. It was disappointing to see us play so well and then fall apart at the end, but that is a hazard of young teams and we are by far the youngest team in ECS. It was a match we clearly missed having Mark Berry at rightback in, though Wes Hammond didn't acquit himself badly while filling in.

[Faramir]

2.10.04

Harrow Hill (3) Aveley (3) FA Cup 2nd round Qualifying

I was coldly furious with my club after we squandered a 3-0 lead at home against non-league Aveley and wound up with a 3-3 draw in our FA Cup 2nd round qualifying match. This wasn't our top lineup as I was trying to rest some players, but we looked very comfortable after having taken a 3-0 lead on goals from Steven Fraser, Liam Eves and Adam Parker. Instead, our backline fell apart and played very stupidly the remainder of the match. Lea Jones was forced to give away a penalty for taking down James Wood in the area and they converted it against Michael Jago to give them a way back into the match. Then Wes Hammond and Liam Parrington were caught up the pitch and Colin Fry motored down to make it 3-2. They scored the equalizer when we failed to mark Rio Alderton and they crossed smartly to him to head into the left side of the net. We are a young club, but that excuse carries no water when we play a wasteful match like we did today. I can't shy away from a portion of the blame though as my defensive tactical switch proved to be the wrong one to combat Aveley's attack at the end.

[Faramir]

6.10.04

Aveley (2) Harrow Hill (3) FA Cup 2nd round Qualifying

Our FA Cup 2nd round Qualifying replay was at Aveley's Mill Field and it seemed an awful lot like deja vu. Michael Husbands picked this match to showcase some of the talent that attracted me to him. Nathaniel Griffiths did a wonderful job of setting him up twice with good crosses that allowed him to deflect his 1st and 2nd goals as a Harrow Hill player past Dave Pearce. Early in the second half a good through ball sprung Husbands and he caught the far left corner to complete his hat-trick. With a 3-0 lead, it was time once again to try and figure out a way to hold on to it. My last match choices were ditched in favor of a different approach and it seemed to be working a charm. That is until Darren Fowler ripped home a 40 yard free kick past Daniel Austen and suddenly we were right back in the soup- and some of the same doubts lingered in both my mind and our players- would we blow a 3-0 lead again? Everyone was starting to really sweat when they worked an excellent passing sequence that freed James Mason and he blasted a shot that Austen got a hand on, but couldn't keep out of the net and it was back to a one-goal match in second half extra-time. Husbands missed two golden chances to put the match out of reach in one-on-one situations as he missed over the net both times. They came close to equalizing off a free kick when Mason's header skimmed just over the bar, but when the final whistle blew- we had survived with a 3-2 win that sends us on to the 3rd Qualifying round in FA Cup competition.

[Faramir]

16.10.04

Harrow Hill (1) Workington (1)

Workington was who we hosted in the 3rd round FA Cup Qualifier and we got off to a terrible start when Ian Arnold slipped away from Paul Moss in the first minute of play to score his 5th goal of the season past Daniel Austen. We worked hard and rallied, but were having problems solving their keeper Adam Collin. Finally in the 78th minute Matthew McGowan's through ball put Nathaniel Griffiths away and he didn't miss as he fired a low shot past Collin for the equalizer. Neither side could get the match winner, so we face our 2nd straight road replay after the 1-1 draw. Nothing like making things difficult for ouselves...

***

18.10.04

There was reason for good cheer today as Arsenal allowed Jordan Fowler to come to us for free- if we could sign him. Jordan acknowledged that he was happy with the chance to play here and liked the dressing room- so we were able to sign him and now he is our player- no longer on loan.

[Faramir]

20.10.04

Workington (1) Harrow Hill (2) ET FA Cup 3rd round Qualifying

I can't even begin to say how proud of the boys I am after this trip to Workington. We had to battle and overcome mistakes, but they never quit. We scored first when Paul Moss fired home a 25 yard shot through a crowd in front following a scramble after a free kick. Wes Hammond made a bad mistake and that allowed Niall McNamara to break in unmolested and fire a shot inside the far right post to equalize at 72 minutes. We came close, oh so close to winning the match several times in regulation, but the posts weren't kind to us and Adam Collin made a pair of brilliant saves. Daniel Austen was matching him in our end as he also made a couple superb match-saving stops. In extra time, Jordan Fowler went out and left us with only 10 men. Carl Laurie showed the heart of a lion though and he joined a counter attack late and was able to deflect a cross from Danny Singh past Collin to put us ahead in the first portion of extra time. We had to survive wave after wave of Workington's attack in the second portion, but Austen stood tall and even though we were dead tired- we managed to pull out the 2-1 extra time win that will send us to play Hinkley from ECN in the 4th round of Qualifying.

***

21.10.04

Injuries continue to hurt us badly as Michael Husbands will now miss the next month due to strained knee ligaments. We are very thin up front and I may be forced to dip into the free transfer list for some help- unless we can loan someone to help.

[Faramir]

23.10.04

Harrow Hill (2) Welling (0)

Things certainly looked grim when Wes Erskine decided to keep mouthing off to the ref despite an initial yellow card and saw himself booted from the match with his 2nd yellow card at 21 minutes. Because of how winded our regular starting lineup was from the Workington win- we had started a patchwork lineup against Welling. There was a grim 'stick-to-it' mentality of the 10 men left on our side and we continued to give as good as we took and it was a keeper's duel in the first half. Both Michael Jago and Martin Brennan gave a good account of themselves with key saves as they kept things scoreless at halftime. The second half continued on same as the first, but I was worrying about our club tiring badly at the end. Danny Singh and Paul Bonar came on at 54 minutes to try and get some fresher legs in- and it paid off for us. Singh ran down a ball in the left corner and sent a looping cross that Peter Griffiths (recalled from reserves because of a dire need of a rested midfielder) showed exquisite timing as he deflected the ball past Brennan for his 1st goal at Harrow Hill. Welling tried to rally, but still found our resolute 10 man contingent tough to break down. Singh finally netted his 1st goal for us on a quick counterattack that caught Welling's backline flatfooted. With the 2-0 lead we battened down the hatches and tried to survive the storm of their rally as best we could. Jago played superbly- earning MOM honours as we held on for the surprising 2-0 win.

[Spav]

You seem to be getting a reasonably consistent run of good results. KUTGW

I'm always a little wary of posting in one of your stories, Faramir - they always sit together in such a neat little block when you post all four of them and I hate to move one out on its own with my response.

[Faramir]

Thanks Spav Ah, never worry about posting on the stories, ok? I just update them all together in either the wee hours of my weekday mornings (before I leave for work) or at night (on the weekends)- that is the *only* reason that I post them all together- because easier to update all of them together. Thanks again for the comments- this one is going to be a bit of work to avoid relegation, since only the dribs and drabs of players are wanting to come to 'Harry' Hill

***

27.10.04

Grays (3) Harrow Hill (2)

We squandered another 2-0 lead as we let Grays come back to beat us at their Recreation Ground when Freddy Eastwood fired the match winner past Daniel Austen at 88 minutes. We had earned the lead in the first half when Nathaniel Griffiths and Danny Singh had scored, but they had drawn a goal back just before halftime. With us trying to play a defensive standoff- Scott Sudgen had drilled a 25 yard shot past Austen, which was disappointing since Daniel had played superbly to that point in the match. Ryan Ashington had missed two gift chances in the first half and we wound up short because of our failure to execute on both sides of the ball.

***

29.10.04

A little help arrived up front as we were able to secure the season long loan of Southampton's 20 yr old Welsh FRLC Arron Davies. Davies has more pace than anyone we have on the squad and should be a welcome addition.

[Faramir]

30.10.04

Hinckley (1) Harrow Hill (0)

We finally came up short in our 4th round FA Cup qualifier as we were edged by Hinckley 1-0 in a closely played match. They managed to come up with the lone goal of the match at 84 minutes when Wayne Dyer's shot trickled past Daniel Austen and into the net. We had chances, but the number of matches we have been playing and the lack of depth in our squad seemed to catch up with us in this match and we didn't have enough to rally at the end.

***

2.11.04

I added another promising midfielder on free transfer after Sheffield Wednsday allowed 21 yr old AMRC James Tevendale to move to us. Both my scouts thought he would be a good addition to our midfield mix and we can certainly use the depth he give us.

[Faramir]

3.11.04

Cambridge City (2) Harrow Hill (1)

Our match at City Ground against Cambridge City started so well. Good passing got Arron Davies free in the area and he scored his 1st goal for us. That lead didn't last long though as Louis Riddle drilled a 30 yard shot that Daniel Austen should have had, but went in for the equalizer. Next we botched our defensive coverage and that allowed Jonathan Stevenson an excellent chance in the area and he didn't miss as we fell behind 2-1. The match was another exercise in frustration for us from that point on. Duncan Roberts made four sensational saves when it looked like each one was labeled 'equalizer'. I blew up at the officiating crew later in the half. Danny Singh had subbed on and the Assistant Ref must have had a burr in his bonnet on him- because he was called for two offsides when he was nowhere near being offside- on the last one he wasn't even the furthest Harrow Hill player down the pitch as Nathaniel Griffiths had drawn two defenders deep. The 2-1 loss was hard to take, since we certainly played well enough to win the match.

[OMDave]

You had a decent run before those last three games, pity things have been going against you on the pitch recently. Still, keep the faith

Sorry I haven't replied yet but I wasn't in much this week-end -I'll get back to you shortly.

[Faramir]

Dave- No worries on getting back with me, idea has been percolating a bit- so no time pressure on it Thanks for the help and comments too

***

6.11.04

Ossett Town (1) Harrow Hill (0)

Our FA Trophy 1st round match featured a trip to face Ossett Town and as has been the case too often this season- we chalked up another frustratingly close loss. The lone goal came in the match when they sprung Paul Eversham and he took it around Michael Jago at the 10 minute mark. We had plenty of chances but their keeper- Mick Clark- earned MOM honours for being a brick wall today. Midway through the second half we scored the equalizer when Arron Davies rapped home a rebound after Clark stopped a low blast by James Tevendale. In another unbelievable offside call- they decided Steve Clark had been offside on the play. Clark hadn't even ventured that far down the pitch. Between losing the goal we scored and Clark's antics in net- we were broomed out of the FA Trophy competition. Even with a patchwork lineup today, I am pleased with our effort, but the results aren't there. Some of that is undoubtably due to my committment to youth- we have little veteran leadership on our side and that lack comes into play in close matches- which is what we have been playing all season.

[Faramir]

9.11.04

Harrow Hill (2) Basingstoke (1)

We fell behind in the first half to visiting Basingstoke when our backline shift left Lee Fitzpatrick uncovered and he walked right in and blasted a shot past Daniel Austen. In our unlucky fashion, we missed a couple chances to equalize- including one where the ball just laid on the goal line and we weren't able to reach it in time. A more encouraging sign was how we rallied in the second half. We evened the match when Carl Laurie drove a 25 yard shot off of Ricky Allaway- and the change of direction found keeper Scott Tarr flatfooted as the ball went into the right side of the net for Laurie's 1st Senior goal. We then scored the match winner late in the match when a stellar passing sequence saw Danny Singh slip a pass over that allowed Matthew McGowan to volley the winning goal past Tarr. We had to survive their late rally and barely did- as a skimmed bar in the waning moments brought gasps to our crowd. After that close call, we managed to put away the win.

***

15.11.04

Another forward my scouts thought highly of was Jason Hallett. Hallett was a 19 yr old SC on Canvey Island's reserve side and they accepted my free transfer offer for him. It didn't take long to agree on a contract and I hoped he would help add the layer of depth we need up front.

[binny]

Congratulations on getting back to winning ways.

Good luck with Harrow Hill. I've heard of Harrow Borough before, but this side must be in an ever lower league IRL.

[Faramir]

binny- Thanks for the kind comments Just for the record- Harrow Hill is currently in the Hellinic Division 1- West League.

***

17.11.04

Harrow Hill (2) Thurrock (2)

In a stirring match, we managed to fight back to earn a 2-2 draw in the waning moments against 2nd place Thurrock. We had taken the lead in the first half when Daniel Austen's long kick sent Jason Hallett away and he fired a low shot past Billy McMahon to score in his debut. We were fighting to keep the lead and Thurrock came close several times as Tresor Kandol kept escaping coverage, but also kept missing the net with his shots. Austen made a couple sensational saves to preserve the lead early in the second half, but was undone by his own defender as Kieron Gradwell made a terrible own-goal to allow the visitors to equalize. As we struggled to get our rhythym back, Thurrock's Kerry Butler caught Austen off his line and fired a 30 yard skimming shot into the left corner of the net to stun our crowd as we went from ahead to behind within a 3 minute span. It looked like a loss, but Danny Singh (on for an ineffective Nathaniel Griffiths) managed to slip past Scott Reaney on the dribble and then scored the dramatic equalizer when he blasted a low shot past McMahon as the match was well into second half injury time.

***

19.11.04

Just when it seemed we were getting healthier- Adam Parker will miss the next month due to sending him to rehab following another dreaded groin injury. He will be missed since he was putting in solid efforts every time out and remains one of the few proven scorers on our club.

[Faramir]

binny- Thanks for the kind comments Just for the record- Harrow Hill is currently in the Hellinic Division 1- West League.

***

17.11.04

Harrow Hill (2) Thurrock (2)

In a stirring match, we managed to fight back to earn a 2-2 draw in the waning moments against 2nd place Thurrock. We had taken the lead in the first half when Daniel Austen's long kick sent Jason Hallett away and he fired a low shot past Billy McMahon to score in his debut. We were fighting to keep the lead and Thurrock came close several times as Tresor Kandol kept escaping coverage, but also kept missing the net with his shots. Austen made a couple sensational saves to preserve the lead early in the second half, but was undone by his own defender as Kieron Gradwell made a terrible own-goal to allow the visitors to equalize. As we struggled to get our rhythym back, Thurrock's Kerry Butler caught Austen off his line and fired a 30 yard skimming shot into the left corner of the net to stun our crowd as we went from ahead to behind within a 3 minute span. It looked like a loss, but Danny Singh (on for an ineffective Nathaniel Griffiths) managed to slip past Scott Reaney on the dribble and then scored the dramatic equalizer when he blasted a low shot past McMahon as the match was well into second half injury time.

***

19.11.04

Just when it seemed we were getting healthier- Adam Parker will miss the next month due to sending him to rehab following another dreaded groin injury. He will be missed since he was putting in solid efforts every time out and remains one of the few proven scorers on our club.

[Terk]

always nice when a signing grabs a debut goal hope the results continue to pick up

[Faramir]

Simon- Yes, always reassuring when a player kicks in on his debut. Hallett's signing was due to faith in scouts, because I wasn't as sold on his being a good player (after all he couldn't even start for Canvey Island...).

***

20.11.04

Havant & W (3) Harrow Hill (3)

My heart ached after this match- we missed so many excellent scoring chances against 3rd place Havant & W. We fully deserved at least the draw, but this was a match I wanted to win and really thought we were going to. They scored first when our backline overplayed a pass and left Geoff Pitcher to rifle home a shot past Daniel Austen. The next ten minutes of the match featured 5 great chances for us- and we couldn't score. On two of them Gareth Howells came up with dazzling saves. We hit the post once and had not one, but two shots go waltzing along the goal before being cleared away by Havant defenders. Just when we were most frustrated, Jamie McGowan whipped in a long cross and Danny Singh deflected it past Howells to even the match at 1-1. We missed a couple more decent scoring chances and then found ourself trailing 2-1 as our backline bumbled a scramble badly- all they had to do was clear the ball away, but instead stood around admiring each other as Alec Masson drove the ball past abandoned Austen. I was proud of us as we rallied and Jason Hallett scored his 2nd goal in as many matches with a sizzling move past Nathan Bunce before firing it past Howells late in the first half. The second half saw both sides getting good chances early, but nothing coming of them. We took our first lead in the match when James Tevendale (on for a tiring Peter Griffiths- who played really well) made a deft pass that allowed Danny Singh to move in and blast a ball inside the far left post for his 2nd goal of the match. We were desperately trying to keep the lead, but Bobby Howe snaked a 30 yard shot past Austen and they had their dramatic equalizer late in the match. It was a goal they shouldn't have scored. We had one more chance to win the match, but Howells made a brilliant point-blank save on Hallett to preserve the draw. The most important thing that came out from this match was how well Hallett and Singh teamed up at forward. I hadn't expected that kind of dynamite from their pairing, but it was worth seeing if it could continue.

***

28.11.04

I was more than pleasantly suprised when Arsenal's Franklin Simek chose to come on loan to us for the remainder of the season. He also had an offer from Accrington, so it was a bit of a surprise that he chose to come over to us. His addition- though it may upset our defenders a bit- will help a lot as he is a quality center defender and will see as much playing time as he can handle with us.

[Faramir]

30.11.04

Margate (1) Harrow Hill (0)

It was a gallant effort, but the referee's 2nd yellow card that took Jordan Fowler off at 30 minutes was a problem we couldn't overcome. They took advantage of overloading our defense and that allowed Che Stadhart to be alone on the corner of the six yard box in first half injury time and he beat Daniel Austen with a low shot for the only goal of the match. We managed a couple chances in the second half, but Danny Singh shot over the net on both of them. We worked hard to keep ourselves in the match, but couldn't find a way to score the equalizer in the close loss.

[Faramir]

8.12.04

Harrow Hill (0) Newport Co (2)

It was an all too familiar refrane for us as we squandered scoring chances early in the match and then played hard, but made defensive mistakes late in the match that cost us another loss. With this being a midweek tilt, I decided to rest some players- even though 3rd place Newport was at Larksfield. Our lineup showed the uneveness, but we still earned some good scoring chances in the first half. Michael Husbands returned from his lengthy injury stay to play a solid match, but found himself stymied as Roger Freestone stopped him twice from close-in. Michael Jago was also giving us good work in our net, but as has been our wont, we failed to give him enough help and Sam O'Sullivan knifed through to score the first goal of the match midway through the second half. They then slammed the door on us when they converted a late corner with Scott Young scoring his 1st goal for them. We needed to play much better if we hope to beat a side with quality like Newport. Another injury cropped up as Leke Odunsi will miss a couple weeks with a strained knee.

[Faramir]

8.12.04

Harrow Hill (0) Newport Co (2)

It was an all too familiar refrane for us as we squandered scoring chances early in the match and then played hard, but made defensive mistakes late in the match that cost us another loss. With this being a midweek tilt, I decided to rest some players- even though 3rd place Newport was at Larksfield. Our lineup showed the uneveness, but we still earned some good scoring chances in the first half. Michael Husbands returned from his lengthy injury stay to play a solid match, but found himself stymied as Roger Freestone stopped him twice from close-in. Michael Jago was also giving us good work in our net, but as has been our wont, we failed to give him enough help and Sam O'Sullivan knifed through to score the first goal of the match midway through the second half. They then slammed the door on us when they converted a late corner with Scott Young scoring his 1st goal for them. We needed to play much better if we hope to beat a side with quality like Newport. Another injury cropped up as Leke Odunsi will miss a couple weeks with a strained knee.

[Faramir]

11.12.04

Carshalton (2) Harrow Hill (0)

This was one of those matches that leaves you feeling like the referee has it in for you. We received 12 foul calls (to Carshalton's 3) 5 yellow cards (to their none) and he sent off Carl Laurie at 48 minutes with his 2nd yellow card. We were already behind 1-0 at that point when they scored a fluke goal in the 7th minute as a looping pass from Matthew Peters sailed over everyone and into the net for an unlikely goal. We kept plugging away despite being a man down and had a few good chances- but couldn't score. They clinched the match in the 82nd minute when a cross was deflected by Ellis Hooper past Daniel Austen after Hooper outleaped Franklin Simek. The loss dropped us to 15th place and we needed a good result pretty badly to break the 3 match losing streak we found ourselves in.

[Faramir]

18.12.04

Harrow Hill (1) Hornchurch (2)

Same old story, new refrain. Hornchurch outplayed us by a large margin, but thanks to yeoman work by Michael Jago in net we were able to hang around with hope. Darren Caskey finished that hope with a late match winner as our backline let us down again. We showed little offense and I was very frustrated that we were making both bad decisions and bad passes throughout the match. Our goal came on a Danny Singh header as he deflected a cross from Matthew McGowan past Ashley Bayes. It is back to the drawing board as we need to find a way to generate more offense. We also lost Singh for a week with a wrenched elbow. The loss dropped us to 16th place in the ECS.

***

19.12.04

In the midst of our poor performances of late- it was nice ray of sunshine when we were able to secure Franklin Simek as a player of ours. Arsenal accepted a free transfer offer and though it was costly, I managed to negotiate a contract with him through 2008. He has played very well since arriving and I counted it a coup to be able to get him as our own. The fans welcomed the news as well, since he has quickly become a fan favorite since arriving. On the down side, Paul Bonar asked to be transfer listed and though I don't want to lose him- I felt compelled to grant his request.

[Faramir]

21.12.04

Harrow Hill (2) Lewes (0)

We badly needed a win and finally things broke right for us and we got one. It was a grueling, hard tackling match. We took the first half lead when Michael Husbands skimmed a pass across the edge of the area and Jamie McGowan threaded a shot inside the left post for his 1st goal for us. With the match on the line in the second half we caught a break. Jason Hallett had worked free on the left side and was breaking in. Hallett meant to cross for Husbands in front, but mishit the ball and it instead clinked into the net off the inside of the near left post. With the two goal lead we defended more stoutly than we had shown in any match lately and were able to hold on for the clean sheet and 2-0 win. The win was costly though as we lost Ryan Ashington for the next month with a fractured wrist and Kieron Gradwell will be out 3 weeks with a groin strain.

[binny]

Yes

Mid-table here we came

[Spav]

Good stuff Faramir, I'm still enjoying this.

[Faramir]

binny- yes, it was a relief to get the win- we needed something to build on pretty badly

Spav- glad you are still enjoying it, thanks for following along

***

26.12.04

Dorchester (1) Harrow Hill (1)

Despite facing a 10 man side for most of the second half, we couldn't break 1-1 deadlock and had to settle for splitting the points. Dorchester keeper Craig Bradshaw earned his MOM honours with several brilliant saves sprinkled throughout the match, including one on Arron Davies in the closing moments of the match. Daniel Austen had to be just as sharp in our net as he also made a game saving one-on-one stop of Matt Groves in the last minutes of the match. We took the lead in the first half when Steven Fraser was tripped in the area by Justin Wheeler. Fraser calmly converted the penalty kick for a hard-earned lead. Dorchester answered when our backline failed to come back quickly enough after a throw-in and Leon Clarke chipped it over Liam Eves and Robbie Turner walked in alone and beat Austen inside the far right post with his mid-level shot. Alex Browne, who was feuding with the referee all afternoon, said too much in the opening moments of the second half and earned his 2nd yellow card and an early exit. We tried to capitalize, but missed high on a few good chances and saw Bradshaw work his heroics on others.

[Faramir]

apologies to everyone looking for an update earlier- I had 3 of 4 stories updated when they took the Board posting ability away to update

***

28.12.04

Harrow Hill (0) Redbridge (2)

Our lack of depth was starkly illustrated as we were forced to play last place Redbridge with a patchwork lineup and we looked terrible. Both goals they scored were goals we should have prevented. The first came midway in the first half when they lobbed in a free kick and Kevin Stephens caught Daniel Austen flatfooted with his 20 yard blast past him. James Tevendale came close to evening things before half, but missed inches wide on a good chance. Paul Moss pretty much handed the clinching goal to them. Franklin Simek had shuffled a pass over to Moss, and instead of moving the ball right away, he tried to dribble in front of the net. Jay Murray made us pay for that mistake when he took the ball off of Moss' foot and drilled a shot past Austen to make it 2-0. We didn't really threaten after that point. The match is a reminder to me that if we manage to stay up- we badly need to add some more quality players, because our 2nd unit has been pretty horrid much of the season. I was pretty unhappy with Moss' performance in this one and he may have to sit awhile until I think he learned his lesson- my center defenders *don't* hang on to the ball in front of their own net.

[Faramir]

1.1.05

Harrow Hill (3) Bognor Regis (1)

I thought this match was pretty important for us. Going into the match, Bognor Regis were holding 20th place- the last relegation slot. If they could beat us they would certainly help haul us down closer to the relegation mire. We got off to a quick start, buoyed by the return from injury of Danny Singh. Adam Parker made a nice pass to find Singh with space in the area as he broke the offside trap and he smashed his shot past Matt Dickins. Bognor Regis rallied and took advantage of poor play on a corner as Dave Hanson picked up Carl Laurie's corner and then raced down the pitch and past Franklin Simek before firing a shot past Daniel Austen for a sensational goal. We took advantage of a poor goal kick by Dickins as Mark Berry headed forward to Matthew McGowan. McGowan made a quick move past a defender and then slipped a pass to Singh. Singh drove his shot past Dickins into the upper left corner for his 2nd goal of the match. We pressured them in the second half, but weren't able to clinch the match until injury time when Matthew McGowan made another fine pass- this time that put Arron Davies away. Davies snapped a shot past Dickins for the final marker in the important 3-1 win.