A Harrowing Misadventure

[Faramir]

15.5.06

Heading into the summer transfer season this is what I felt our 'core' club was- and I was very comfortable and pleased with it for the most part:

GK- Lewis Anderson, Daniel Austen, Ian Hutchinson

DR- Mark Berry, Dave King

DL- Adrian Nevins, Lea Jones

DC- Franklin Simek, Nick Mountford

DC- Simon Downer, Matt Morell

ML- Steven O'Donnell, Jamie McGowan, Ryan Hutchinson

MR- Ryan Ashington, James Tevendale

MC- Patrick Cregg, Jordan Fowler

MC- Gavin Bolger, Chris Clark

SC- Rowan Vine, Danny Singh

SC- Billy Sharp, Chris Williams

Util- Carl Laurie

Looking at the club that way indicates we have a lot of dead weight on the roster and I hope to be rid of some of it during the summer.

***

2.6.06

Another job offer, this time at Wycombe. I had already told the press I wasn't interested- that I wanted to build up the program at Harrow Hill, but they offered anyways and I wound up turning them down.

I was surprised that the Board still allowed 120K in transfer funds. Since there were a couple transfer listed players that could really help us, I made offers. I know the Board isn't happy with our wage structure- we are way over their expected weekly amount- but I am still going to accept that, because adding a few more good players will make the difference. In the meantime, we will have to wait a year to get many contracts I originally signed off the books, because nobody wants them.

[Faramir]

5.6.06

The opening of the transfer season brought us welcome additions. We landed some players that I was sure would help us next season- no more loans if I could help it. Coming aboard were:

Rowan Vine- 23 yr old SC purchased from Luton for 28K. Vine spent the last three months recovering from surgery on his knee, but is now fully recovered and welcomed the chance to come to us to prove his ability- something he hadn't been able to do at Luton the last couple seasons.

Jason Norville- 22 yr old FRC purchased from Watford for 12K. Norville is a young Trinidad and Tobago forward that also has English citizenship. He should help us up front next season with his pace.

Lewis Buxton- 22 yr old DC purchased from Portsmouth for 9K. I had to agree to a min fee release in his contract, but it was worth it to add him to our central defense. We will likely use a 3-man rotation of Simek, Downer and Buxton in the central defense next season.

Dean Morgan- 22 yr old FC purchased from Peterborough for 20K. He also demanded a min fee release, which was Ok by me to add him. Morgan can play either forward or midfield and could be our offensive midfielder.

The problems with getting players of this caliber is the huge drain on our weekly wages. We currently stand 360,000 in the black, so we are still fine at least for this season, but I hope hope to be successful in selling off a few players on the way.

***

8.6.06

Finally some success in transfer sales. Adam Parker went to Chesham for 14K and Matt McGowan went to Chelmsford for 14K. Parker had been a key to survival in our first season, but it was obvious that he wanted more playing time than he got last season and he was ready to move on to a new club. McGowan lost his starting place also and it was time to cash in while we could with him.

[Faramir]

9.6.06

We also managed to attract one free signing. 18 yr old MRC Tommy Miller had been released by Darlington and was willing to sign on with us. I had scouted him extensively earlier last season and was another midfielder I welcomed to the mix. He won't be stepping in to the starting lineup, but he should help our depth.

***

15.6.06

One more sent to another club as Hornchurch paid us 14K to purchase Wayne Barber. Barber never saw any senior time last season and I didn't mind parting with him. It is good to finally be able to sell off a few players that won't have any impact on our future.

***

20.6.06

Steven O'Donnell was selected as Harrow Hill Player of the Year by our supporters. He was a good choice, though Braniff would have been the obvious choice if he was a player of 'ours'. It is ironic that last season's Player of the Year Jamie McGowan was supplanted by this season's- and they both filled the left wing role on our club.

***

20.6.06

The way I look at in the development is that we are in phase 2. The first phase, given that we had no one- no staff or players- was just to get whatever we could to survive. Now we are actually at the point where we have weeded out the few players from that first batch that will be still contributing as the second wave of players develops.

[Spav]

Oh no, I can't believe Harrow Hill failed in the playoffs - what a disaster!! Tough luck to get so close Faramir, then fall at the last hurdle.

I'll be sticking with the lads during your new season - 2006/07 will surely be Harrow Hill's year.

[Faramir]

spav- thanks, it was very disappointing to lose that way- felt like we wasted a whole season...

***

26.6.06

Another sale as Jamie McGowan will move to Carshalton for 18K. Much as I like McGowan, I think Ryan Hutchinson is better overall, so thought we could afford to part with him. The fans weren't wholly in favor of selling our Player of the Year from two seasons ago, but it was clear to most of them that Steven O'Donnell really was a better player.

***

1.7.06

There are a bunch of newly released players floating out on the free list. I offered several contracts, but most weren't interested. One who was and signed on with us is 20 yr old MLC Adam Smith. Smith arrives after being released from the Norwich youth program and gives us more good depth in the midfield.

***

13.7.06

Lewis Anderson is drawing lots of interest from other smaller clubs. He won't be going anywhere though, since I expect him to be our number 1 keeper next season.

***

15.7.06

In an effort to lighten the weekly wage load, I negotiated mutual terminations with Yiadom Yeboah, Nathaniel Griffiths, Kyle Allcock, Justin Marsden, Jordan Yorath and Steven Fraser. Our weekly wages are about 3K above what the Board wants, but that is as close we can get unless we can get rid of some of the 'unriddable' players cluttering the reserve roster. We are currently 344K in the black, so though the mutual terminations cost us some- they will save us more in the long run.

[OMDave]

Nothing like a good clear-out to keep the rest of the squad focused

[Faramir]

Dave- Exactly :=)

***

21.7.06

Our first friendly was hosting Guiseley. We played a uninspiring first half as we tried to blend the new players for the first time in match play and fell behind when Lewis Anderson couldn't hang on to a shot and it rolled to them. Our second half was much better as we switched the players and the 2nd unit- which were veterans of our offense- performed very well. James Tevendale scored to get us even and then Billy Sharp scored a pair of late goals to give us the win.

***

26.7.06

Injuries are already cropping up and Mark Berry will miss the next 3 weeks after heading off for therapy due to a groin strain.

***

26.7.06

We played indifferently in losing our second friendly to Meir KA by a 2-0 score. Simon Downer lost coverage on both goal scorers and Lewis Anderson should have had the second goal, so neither gave a great performance. With Mark Berry out- I played young Paul Ross the entire match trying to see if he has the goods and he did a solid job at rightback.

***

30.7.06

Another player that I was able to finally pawn off was winger Scott Thomas. Eastborne Boro was glad to land him on free and it was a deal that pleased everyone.

***

31.7.06

We parted with another player as Stone Dominoes wanted Matt Hill on free transfer and it was acceptable to me to let him go.

***

31.7.06

Our third friendly saw us travelling to face Stratford at Stratford-on-Avon. I was surprised that the pairing of Billy Sharp and Rowan Vine worked so well together- it was the first time I had paired them. Sharp had two goals and Vine one as we moved ahead 3-0 at the half. Chris Clark added another off a corner and we finally put together a strong match in the 4-0 win.

[Faramir]

5.8.06

We closed out our friendly schedule by hosting Bromsgrove. I was very happy with our play overall as we came out 2-0 winners and showed more cohesion on offense than in our previous friendlies. Hopefully we are ready for the season to start in a week.

***

7.8.06

Lea Jones had asked to be transfer listed at his request, mostly due to realizing he had dropped to 3rd on the depth chart at Leftback as Carl Laurie assumes the top spot and Adrian Nevins takes the rest of the playing time. I offered him to many clubs and Nuneaton made an offer to accept him on free transfer. Lea had been a big part our first year success and I wished him well as he moved on.

***

8.8.06

The biggest gamble of all for me- but I think the payoff is worth it. We purchased unhappy Ross Flitney from Fulham for 14K up front and another 40K over 12 months. Flitney is a 22 yr old GK that I had scouted heavily over the last season when advised there might be a chance that he would be willing to sign with us if we could get a transfer offer accepted. That didn't turn out to be true in May of this year when I had an offer accepted, but we couldn't get an acceptable contract. I tried again this time and we worked out the contract that actually wound up more beneficial to the club- since this time around he accepted a contract with no minimum fee release and a length through 2010. I am gambling that Flitney is the keeper that will take us to the next level, though I still think Anderson will also be a good keeper. The gamble is that I may have used too much of the clubs funds to land him, since it pushes our weekly wage 4K over the expected and our reserves are under 300K. Still, this was the one available keeper who I thought could make the difference and that was why I rolled the dice.

[Faramir]

As we head into the season our depth chart now shapes up this way:

GK- Ross Flitney, Lewis Anderson, Daniel Austen

DR- Mark Berry, Dave King, Paul Ross

DL- Carl Laurie, Adrian Nevins

DC- Franklin Simek, Simon Downer, Paul Moss

DC- Lewis Buxton, Matt Morrell, Nick Mountford

MR- Ryan Ashington, Chris Clark, Matty Hendra, Tommy Miller

ML- Steven O'Donnell, Adam Smith, Ryan Hutchinson

DMC- Patrick Cregg, Jordan Fowler

MC- Dean Morgan, Gavin Bolger, James Tevendale

SC- Rowan Vine, Jason Norville, Jason Hallett

SC- Billy Sharp, Danny Singh, Chris Williams

[Faramir]

12.8.06

Forest Green (3) Harrow Hill (3)

It was eerily reminiscent of our playoff loss, as we played extremely well offensively but wasted a two-goal lead and were forced to settle for an unsatisfying 3-3 draw. Judged on his first match, Ross Flitney wouldn't come out well- but he only had a few days practice so that isn't fair. Up front, Dean Morgan, Rowan Vine, Billy Sharp and later Jason Norville proved to be potent combination. Morgan and Vine scored in their debuts and Sharp wrong-footed a beautiful goal. Though I can blame our defense and Flitney for the loss, we also missed chances to score more goals and could easily have won the match that way as well. It was a match to build on, but we should have put a win in the books and the draw was a lukewarm consolation prize.

[Faramir]

15.8.06

Gloucester (0) Harrow Hill (0)

It was an immediate test of our depth as we followed with a Tuesday road match. I was pleased with our play in the match, but the result wasn't there because of their keeper- Matt Bath. We had some wonderful chances against him, but he came up with the key save every time for them. Jason Norville was very effective in his first start and Danny Singh had some good opportunities, but we just couldn't get it over the line. James Flood came close a couple times for them, but Ross Flitney was very steady in our net this time. It wasn't exactly a disappointing loss like the Forest Green match, but it was another match that we could have won.

[Faramir]

19.8.06

Harrow Hill (1) Dorchester (0)

We made it much more difficult than it should have been, but at least we were finally able to notch our first win of the season by edging Dorchester 1-0 at Larksfield Road. Our only goal came from Rowan Vine on a terrific play that saw Steven O'Donnell whip a cross into the middle of the pitch and Billy Sharp made a great play to flick it on to the unmarked Vine and he pushed it into the open net. There were plenty of other chances for us to score against Craig Bradshaw, including 4 well placed free kicks, but we just couldn't hit the net today. Our inaccuracy wound up not costing us anything as the visitors managed only three good chances in the match and Juan Ugarte missed inches wide twice. Jake Speight also had a late chance, but Ross Flitney smothered his shot to preserve the clean sheet and the win.

[Faramir]

26.8.06

Harrow Hill (1) Barnet (0)

It was a crucial early season match as preseason favorite and current top placed Barnet came to Larksfield Road. We stung them in the opening minute of play when Rowan Vine made a terrific pass to spring Billy Sharp free and he whistled a low shot past Terry Steele to give us the lead. It certainly seemed like there would be more scoring in the match, but time kept moving on and both sides were missing closely or seeing keepers come up with the saves. Jamie O'Hara came close on several headers for the visitors, while they central duo of John Dickson and Craig Taylor kept coming up with saving tackles in their own area. Patrick Cregg came agonizingly close toward the end of the first half, but his blistering shot bounced back off the post. The second half featured a more frenzied rally by the visitors as they stormed our end, but we continued to keep them off the board with solid work from Ross Flitney. I thought we had it clinched on another good counterattack, but Sharp blasted his shot past Steele off the crossbar. Steele also came up with a wonderful save against Jason Norville, who had come on for Vine. The final whistle was a welcome sound as we had held on for a close and well deserved 1-0 win.

***

29.8.06

Chris Clark came to me with a request to be placed on the transfer list. I decided to go along with the request, he hasn't seemed to fit in well with our system and with our midfield depth now healthy, we can afford to let him leave if we find a taker.

[binny]

Barnet in the ECS

[Brian of Nazareth]

Well - it's a solid start to the season. Defense seems to have tightened up since the start. Sounds like the goals will come with time too. Better luck this year in the promotion push

[Faramir]

Binny- yes, was surprised that Barnet wound up down here, there club appears to be much better than that...

BoN- Thanks much, hope your summation is spot on

***

1.9.06

The only action for us before the trading deadline was the sale of Liam Eves to Staines on free transfer. Eaves was pleased to move to another club where he would have a chance of playing- something he wasn't going to get here.

***

9.9.06

Redditch (2) Harrow Hill (0)

Nothing went particularly well for us in our trip to Redditch as we lost to them 2-0. We yielded an early goal when our backline got caught challenging up the pitch and Redditch worked a nice passing play that saw Dean Keates fire a shot past Lewis Anderson just inside the far right post for the 1st goal Redditch had scored this season and 1st goal at Redditch for Keates. We wasted far too many chances as Billy Sharp and Dean Morgan took turns missing wide of the net on excellent opportunities. They clinched the match when Simon Downer's ill-advised back pass sailed past Mark Berry and allowed Norman Sylla an easy time in scoring his 1st goal past Daniel Austen (who had come on for injured Anderson). It was a disappointing loss, considering we outplayed them for much of the match, but was another example of our execution not being good enough to win.

[Faramir]

16.9.06

Harrow Hill (2) Havant & W (0)

Havant & W must have felt sorely put upon after the match- having received 8 yellow cards and 2 red cards. Despite that, the match was in doubt until we finally clinched it with a goal in second half injury time to finish off the 2-0 win. Gareth Howells was brilliant in their net and the reason that we went to half scoreless. Aaron Skelton drew the first redcard at 50 minutes and less than 2 minutes later it was Neil Sharp going off with his 2nd yellow card. We took full advantage of the free kick following Sharp's sending off as Ryan Ashington smashed a shot that got past Howells for a 25 yard free kick goal- the 1st of the season for Ashington. Even down 2 men, there was no quit in the plucky visitors and they came agonizingly close to evening the match when Clark Davies snuck up into the play, but missed just over the net when free on Ross Flitney. Minutes later we clinched the match when Patrick Cregg slipped a deft pass to Gavin Bolger and he rifled his shot past Howells for his 1st goal of the season to finish out the 2-0 win.

[Faramir]

23.9.06

Harrow Hill (1) Thurrock (1)

Another home match that we left our Larksfield fans disappointed as we had plenty of chances to win the match, but wound up with a 1-1 draw. They scored their goal on a free kick that was perfectly placed in the middle of the pitch due to Lewis Buxton's bodycheck of Tresor Kandol. John Purdie hooked the shot past Daniel Austen inside the right post. We battled back with an equalizer when Steven O'Donnell scored his 1st goal of the season as he drove home a rebound after Shane Higgs stopped Danny Singh in close. Higgs denied us two excellent chances to take the lead late in the first half and early in the second half, both times smothering good shots from Dean Morgan. Thurrock came close to grabbing the win as well as Kandol remained a thorn in our side the entire match. Neither Simon Downer nor Matt Morrell could handle him defensively and Kandol came close- missing just wide and skimming the crossbar to leave them as frustrated as we were about the 1-1 final score.

[Faramir]

26.9.06

Hendon (2) Harrow Hill (2)

I was screaming at our backline as we gave away a win when they played like chickens with their heads cut off as we were trying to protect a 2-1 lead. We gave them a golden chance and they took it and we were left with another unsatisfying 2-2 draw. They had worked an excellent passing sequence in the first half and Steve Househam had placed his shot inside the right post past Ross Flitney. We fought back in the second half thanks to excellent passing from Billy Sharp. Sharp picked out Jason Norville moving in the area and Norville's crisp header past Adam Bartlett was the equalizer. Sharp then picked out Norville on the run and Jason scored his 2nd goal of the match to give us the lead. I had to pull Billy Sharp off as he was completely knackered and that wound up hurting us badly. I have no clue why our backline fell so completely apart- but they were all trying to chase down players they had no business doing and despite my admonitions- my midfield didn't come back and help. Predictably, they equalized and also came very close to winning the match. Fortunately, Flitney came up with a pair of huge saves and Carl Laurie was able to clear away the rebounds before any damage came of them. Wasting chances to win is a problem of our club so far and I am not sure what the cure is. Chris Williams was extremely disappointing up front- Norville had come on as a sub for him.

[binny]

It's like a NW London get-together with Harrow, Hendon & Barnet.

KUTGW Faramir - results will go your way (I hope)

[Faramir]

Binny- cheers Well, Harrow Hill (as opposed to Harrow) is a bit further out- west of Cheltenham and north of Bristol (that is where Larksfield Road and Mitcheldean are)

So far we haven't shown much consistency and we certainly need to find some soon...

***

30.9.06

Harrow Hill (0) Dunstable (1) FA Cup 2nd Qualifying Round

We were roundly booed by our Larksfield fans after the match, and we deserved it. We only managed two shots on goal- both in the second half as we played very poorly in losing to non-league side Dunstable. The only goal of the match came when Lewis Anderson completely misjudged a 40 yard shot and it sailed past him to stun our club. Though I had started mostly our 2nd line players, it was very frustrating to see nothing working as we could not complete a pass to save our lives. The loss left both me and the club disheartened and wondering how we could return to playing well.

[Faramir]

17.10.06

Maidenhead (1) Harrow Hill (3)

After our disappointing play of late, I was leery about this match as we faced 1st place Maidenhead at York Road. It was a totally different Harrow Hill that came to play today. We were forced to survive a few close calls in the early going as Maidenhead looked much sharper than us, but we managed to grab the lead when Dean Morgan made a superior cross that Billy Sharp was able to deflect past Nick Hart. The referee was very whistle conscious and we were paying the price in yellow cards- including two to Steven O'Donnell in a three minute span. We clung to our lead to finish out the first half as Maidenhead hit the crossbar and forced Ross Flitney to make a great smothering save on Mark Nicholls to keep us ahead at halftime. Despite being a man down and having to ask Billy Sharp to play on the left wing, we came out in the second half and started catching them leaning to much to the attack. That paid off when Sharp made a good pass that found Rowan Vine with space and he didn't miss in firing a low shot past Hart into the far left side of the net. They were growing increasingly anxious and their fans started leaving when we moved ahead 3-0 as Morgan pounced on a rebound and slashed it past Hart. They received a glimmer of hope when Elliott Ward blasted a shot that deflected off of Lewis Buxton past Flitney, but their hopes were finally dashed when Richard Harris earned a redcard for kicking Buxton in the late stages.

[binny]

Just read in the local paper that Ross Flitney is on his way to Barnet IRL. I recognise that name

[Faramir]

Binny- I'll tell you why I grabbed Flitney- because he is playing in EPL in "The Bet"- I figured if he had enough potential to do that, then he was good enough for us

***

21.10.06

Harrow Hill (3) Lewes (0)

Last match it was 1st place Maidenhead, this time 2nd place Lewes and our fans were much happier as we looked very crisp in dumping them 3-0. Our passing up front in the first half was impeccable and Rowan Vine proved his scorer's touch by rifling three shots past Ademola Bankole into the far left hand corner. Unfortunately for Rowan, only two of them counted and he lost his hat-trick when he was ruled offside on the last goal- but those two goals earned him MOM and gave him 5 for the season. Billy Sharp made a nice deflection on a corner from Adam Smith for our 3rd goal in the first half. Ross Flitney dodged a bullet in the opening moments of the second half when his panicky clearing kick went right to Lucas Cornwall. Cornwall slid the ball over to Marc Whiteman, but Flitney managed to block away his shot to preserve the clean sheet. We didn't score in the second half, but it wasn't for lack of chances as Vine missed his hat-trick on three different good late scoring opportunities.

[Faramir]

22.10.06

It wasn't until after the match that I heard rumours of several scouts from higher level clubs had been on hand for the match. It was a bit more obvious today when I received specific inquiries from the Wolves about Rowan Vine and Lewis Buxton. My options in answering were pretty limited, since both of them carry 250K minimum fee releases. I responded that they would need to meet that minimum fee release for them. Considering the Wolves are struggling in League 1- currently 22nd- and are dealing with a spate of injuries- and seem well funded- our chances of keeping these two promising youngsters appear slim. I also received an inquiry from Doncaster (15th in League 1) about Jason Norville. Norville also carries a minimum fee release and I responded the same way to them. Just as we seem set to really gel as a squad, we will likely lose the heart of our improving club. It's very frustrating, but such is the life of a small club.

[Faramir]

23.10.06

Some players I have actually been trying to transfer finally garnered some interest. Liam Powell will likely soon sign a contract to move to a Wales club at January 1st after I accepted offers from two sides. Michael Hayward is moving to non-league side Chesham on free transfer. Ryan Hutchinson, who turned suddenly unhappy with his playing time and asked to be placed on the transfer list at his request, will be moving to Basingstoke for 3K.

***

24.10.06

I guess it could have been worse. Rowan Vine happily signed with the Wolves and declared it was a dream come true for him to go to a club of their caliber. But, Lewis Buxton and the Wolves couldn't reach a contract agreement, so they decided to call off that offer. Of the two, I would prefer to keep Buxton- who has been a linchpin in our defense, so this pleased me to keep him. Doncaster wasn't willing to offer the full 250K for Norville, but did offer a substantial 70K up front and another 100K spread out over 12 months. I was faced with the dilemma all small clubs face, keep the player or take the money? I weighed this one heavily- especially with the loss of Vine already- and decided we still needed to accept the money and let Jason move upwards. He is very ambitious and with his contract only through 2008- I have the feeling we wouldn't be able to re-sign him. He agreed to their contract offer and was pleased to join a higher level club. I think he also relishes the chance to improve his International standing with Trinidad & Tobago with the move.

[Faramir]

25.10.06

All the sales left us much better off on the bottom line. Before these we had been sinking quickly and were down to 223K in the black with a weekly budget that was 3,600 higher than the Board's outlined goal. With the moves our bottom line grew to 550K in the black and our weekly budget is now only 1,600 over the Board's expectations. I may have to see if we can add a forwqrd on the transfer market- but I think that will need to wait awhile.

26.10.06

With the loss of Vine and Norville, I will now be forced to shift Dean Morgan up front from the midfield. I have a feeling he will be more comfortable there anyways. Gavin Bolger will likely get his midfield starting role back with that switch.

27.10.06

Having gained a second chance, I decided to approach Lewis Buxton about a new contract- one that didn't feature a minimum release fee. Surprisingly, he told me he was very happy here and was enjoying being paired with Franklin Simek. Because of that, he was willing to sign a new contract with only a slight increase in wages- but his agent did insist on a relegation release fee, which was certainly something I could live with. Getting him under this new contract buoyed me immensely, as we now have the core of our defense under favorable contracts.

[Faramir]

28.10.06

Harrow Hill (0) Grays (0)

The loss of Vine definitely threw our improving offense out of whack and we showed little of the skill demonstrated in our last match as we managed only a scoreless draw against 20th place Grays. They showed little in the match and we were a perfect match for them. Our best scoring chance saw Carl Emberson parry away a Gavin Bolger shot and then tip Billy Sharp's shot past the post on the rebound. Neither side had another good chance and the crowd was a little unhappy with the scoreless draw.

[Faramir]

4.11.06

Warrington (0) Harrow Hill (2) FA Trophy 1st round

Our 2nd line looked much better as we dominated Warrington in the 1st round of FA Trophy play, but had to settle for a 2-0 win thanks to good work on the part of their keeper Neil Thomas. It took almost an entire first half of pressure, but Tommy Miller gave us the lead with his 1st goal here when he whipped in a 15 yard blast off a loose ball. They came close to equalizing twice early in the second half, but Daniel Austen kept them off the board. Danny Singh scored his 1st goal of the season when he made a nice flick header past Thomas inside the near left post on a pretty pass from Adam Smith. Thomas kept us from increasing the margin as we kept the pressure up until the final whistle ended the 2-0 win.

[Spav]

Nice, Faramir.

It's become my habit to click on "a Harrowing Misadventure" and see how your team is doing - just like I do when following the exploits of my favourite teams via the internet in real life.

[Faramir]

spav- nice to have an 'official' fan for Harrow Hill then Thanks for the kind words.

***

7.11.06

Harrow Hill (1) Weymouth (0)

If Chris Williams had done any kind of job finishing, this match wouldn't have been close, but I was happy enough to hear the final whistle sound on our 1-0 win. The only goal of the match came early in the first half when Billy Sharp made a superb cross and Dean Morgan deflected it past Lance Cronin into the left side of the net. We had plenty more chances in the first half, but Cronin was sharp the rest of the way. Early in the second half Cronin made another excellent save to stop Sharp and keep it close. With Morgan tiring, I brought on Chris Williams and we proceeded to set him up nicely not once, not twice, but three times and all three wound up with nothing. Cronin smothered the first, Williams made a nice move around Cronin for an empty net- which he missed- on the second and Cronin was able to parry his third chance. They revived late in the second half and Franklin Simek was in the right place at the right time to make a pair of excellent defensive plays to support Ross Flitney's clean sheet.

[Faramir]

15.11.06

Braintree (1) Harrow Hill (1)

We were very fortunate to escape with a 1-1 draw in this match. We struck early when Adrian Nevins made a terrific through ball that Danny Singh knocked past Paul Binder to give us the early lead. We were playing well early on, but the referee decided that Patrick Cregg shouldn't be tackling so much and handed out two questionable yellow cards- leaving us with only 10 men at 35 minutes into the match. We managed to make it to halftime with the lead, though they had come close. Late in the half we lost Ross Flitney to injury and Lewis Anderson came on to mind our net. They piled on the pressure in the second half and finally equalized when Darren Beasley made a good cross and Danny Coleman outleaped Lewis Buxton to deflect it past Anderson. We had to lean heavily on our young keeper and he played his best match this season as he made three huge saves to keep us knotted at 1-1. We only managed a couple scoring chances in the second half, but Matty Hendra came oh so close to giving us a second goal in the late stages as his shot was inches wide. I was content to take the draw, given everything that had happened during the match. Flitney's shoulder injury will keep him out for a couple weeks, so it will be interesting choices on who the starting keeper will be.

[Faramir]

17.11.06

It was very, very difficult to turn down the offer from Wrexham to take over their club. They are currently 14th in League 1 and feature many players that I like and admire. Despite the attractiveness, I decided I wanted to stick with Harrow Hill and try to continue improving the club.

***

18.11.06

Carshalton (1) Harrow Hill (2)

This became a very tight match in the second half after we had played a strong first half. Gavin Bolger scored both of our goals in a three minute span in the first half and both were the result of superior interior passing by our midfield and forwards. Billy Sharp was feeling very snakebit by halftime as we had sprung him for three seperate one-on-ones with Stuart Searle and Searle had stopped him every time. They scored in the opening moments of the second half and it was clear they wanted to equalize badly. We stood up to them though defensively and in the end our scrambling team defense and good work from Daniel Austen in net allowed us to win a very close 2-1 match. During the match we saw ex-Harrowers Jamie McGowan and Steve Clark come close to getting the home side back to even.

[Faramir]

25.11.06

Harrow Hill (1) Hendon (1) FA Trophy 2nd round

We will be forced into a replay because they capitalized on their one good chance in the match and we wound up in a 1-1 draw. Chris Clark gave us the lead when he scored his 1st goal for us and capped off another excellent passing sequence. It was only minutes later when we gave back the lead. Steve Housham fired a shot off the inside of the post. Eugene Ofori was quickest to the ball as it lay there in front of an open net and he pushed it into the net to equalize. We wasted several chances in the second half as we were frustrated in the 1-1 draw.

[Faramir]

29.11.06

Hendon (2) Harrow Hill (0) FA Trophy 2nd round Replay

They wanted this match more than we did. That is what it came down to as they threw a defensive blanket over us and swarmed us in our area. They took the lead when we couldn't clear a loose ball away and Nicky Tomlinson fired it past Daniel Austen. They clinched the match when Danny Julienne snapped a close-in shot over a diving Austen after he had parried away the initial shot from Chris Johnson. The second goal took whatever heart we had left and we went quietly as they will move on to play in the 3rd round.

[Faramir]

6.12.06

Harrow Hill (1) Newport County (1)

An uncharacteristicly bad choice by Ross Flitney and a play set in motion by a poor backpass allowed the visitors to split the points in a 1-1 draw. Newport struck in the opening moments of the first half when a back pass from Ryan Ashington went directly to Sam O'Sullivan and he sent a long pass forward to Carl Wilson-Denis. Wilson-Denis then chipped the ball past the offbalance Flitney. We equalized when Billy Sharp pounced on a rebound by Roger Freestone and drilled it home. Neither side managed much offense in the second half.

[Faramir]

9.12.06

Cambridge City (2) Harrow Hill (3)

You should never give a struggling team a break, and that is exactly what we did when they took the lead in the opening moments of the second half. They capitalized on a rebound that we couldn't clear away and we were trailing 1-0. We struck back immediately though as Danny Singh returned the favor and blasted in a rebound. We took the lead when a good through ball from Lewis Buxton allowed Jason Hallett to finally score his 1st goal of the season. Hallett added his second goal of the match when Matty Hendra, who had just subbed on for James Tevendale, zinged a pass that found him unmarked at the far corner of the net and he rapped it home. We wound up needing that 3rd goal when Daniel Austen was whistled for pushing Ryan Jenner in the area and Jenner converted the ensuing penalty kick. We kept them from equalizing and were pleased to gain the win.

[Faramir]

13.12.06

Harrow Hill (3) Hornchurch (0)

Our improving play suddenly showed up as we played a dazzling match in defeating Hornchurch 3-0 at Larksfield Road. Two first half goals by Dean Morgan keyed the win and we also saw Ryan Ashington blast home a 25 yard shot after a nice pass from Morgan. Jordan Fowler made a wonderful through ball to put Morgan free to score his 2nd goal in the waning moments of first half extra time. Carl Laurie saved the clean sheet for Ross Flitney when he threw himself in front of a blast from Bertie Brayley at an open net after Flitney parried Carl Rook's initial shot.

[Faramir]

16.12.06

Welling (0) Harrow Hill (0)

Martin Brennan was our bane today- and the MOM as well- as he played brilliantly in earning a scoreless draw for the home side. We had some terrific scoring chances, and we put the shots on net, but Brennan was there every time. Jason Hallett, Chris Clark and Chris Williams all had good one-on-one chances, but were denied. Tommy Tyne came close a couple times for them, but Ross Flitney blocked away the first one and Tyne missed over the net with a late header.

[Lord Crumb]

I do love the ECS stories, the best bit is that Sutton Utd got promoted in the first season, they preferred Martin and Vansittart a lot more in attack than I did.

When I played with Sutton I used the Freebies market to good effect, surprised that none of my favourites have turned up for you though.

Question. How have your castoffs fared? Have players like Griffiths and Allcock fared better away?

[Faramir]

Lord Crumb- thanks for your comments

Castoffs have done ok, but none of them have really been difference-makers for their clubs.

As far as your faves off the freebies- it is likely just my different approach to tactics and what I prefer in my players. I do have to admit my longrunning 'The Bet' may have coloured my perceptions on players- since I have seen where some of them wound up (even though that is CM 0304, not FM).

***

19.12.06

Harrow Hill (2) Kingstonian (0)

Our showdown match with 1st place Kingstonian was as close as could be expected, but we had the markmanship of Billy Sharp and Dean Morgan to thank for the 2-0 win. Sharp scored early in the first half as he whipped in a beautifully laid off ball by Gavin Bolger. Morgan scored toward the end of the first half when he deflected a sharp cross from Adam Smith past David Denton. Denton had to give thanks to the crossbar in the match. We hit the bar 5 different times, including twice in one sequence of chances. Carl Laurie earned his 2nd yellow card at 67 minutes and we had to play good defense to preserve the clean sheet. Ross Flitney came up with good saves on Josh Francois and Martyn Lee in the late going to help save the 2-0 margin for an important win. The match was our 3rd in 6 days and I really feel our depth helped us earn this win, since we were playing fresher players than they were due to our 2nd line playing at Welling.

[Faramir]

23.12.06

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

The lack of finishing showed up acutely as we had to settle for a scoreless draw on the road. Jason Hallett missed several chances, but none so easy as in the last moments when a perfect cross from Matty Hendra gave him an open net and he headed it over the bar. They played better than we did in the match, and their shooting was actually even more atrocious than ours as Ryan Jones missed several excellent chances and saw Daniel Austen push one over the bar. I will have to keep searching for forwards, because we can't continue to only lean on Dean Morgan and Billy Sharp.

[Faramir]

26.12.06

Harrow Hill (2) Gravesend (0)

In the midst of this difficult portion of the schedule that began on December 6th- where we have 9 matches is 26 days- our fitness and depth seem to be holding us up. Gravesend gave us a difficult time and were limiting us to mostly ineffective long shots well into the second half. We finally put together some good passing sequences and also finally took the lead when Dean Morgan rapped home the rebound after Darren Mathews parried away Gavin Bolger's blast. Less than three minutes later we really crushed their spirit when Ryan Ashington made a pretty cross from the right sideline and Bolger deflected it past Mathews. They finished out quietly from there and we had another important win in the books. Our depth will be further tested as Adam Smith broke a couple ribs and will now miss the next month. The post match conference surprisingly focused on rumors that I would be selected to take over at Chesterfield. I denied those rumors and told the press I was still completely focused on my work at Larksfield Road.

***

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

ECS Midpoint 2006-7 season (all 21 matches played)

1. Harrow Hill 42 pts (+17)

2. Kingstonian 37 pts (+9)

3. Maidenhead 34 pts (+12)

4. Newport Co 33 pts (+8)

5. Barnet 33 pts (+8)

6. Hornchurch 33 pts (-5)

7. Hendon 32 pts (+8)

8. Welling 30 pts (+8)

9. Redditch 30 pts (+1)

10. Thurrock 30 pts (-10)

</pre>

[FF15]

Do you have a real life as well?

Sorry, I just had to ask because all those stories going on at once must take up a fair bit of time!

[Spav]

Nice to see the team at the top of the table, Faramir. More of the same would be lovely.

[Faramir]

FF 15- No offense taken Actually, that is a fair question- one thing you need to realize is that all of my stories are played into the future. By that I mean all of them are played ahead- and the posting trails along. To give you an example with the 4 current ones- 'Troubled Visions' is complete (well it still needs some more writing on the window dressing elements around the plot- but the football side is done)- 'The Bet' is a favorite of mine and I will be playing it for awhile- right now I think I am one full season ahead of where story is- On 'Harrowing' I am about a season and a half ahead of where you are currently reading- 'Delusions' is at least a couple years ahead of where actual postings are.

I tend to play them in streaks- and build up ahead that way. I found out the hard way when doing 'Wind on the Canal' (Alex Fergie Challenge) that if you want to post daily like I prefer at this point- you have to play ahead to be able to make it happen. I play a few other games (EHM for example), but CM/FM still takes up the majority of my gaming time. I hope that gives you some insight

(By the way, new story will be starting soon- after I am back from a few days vacation this weekend-- OM Dave, yes this is the one you have been patiently waiting for- thanks again for your assistance )

Spav- Thanks for the encouragement- we look much more on track this season, despite a few rough spots

***

30.12.06

We completed the transfer purchase of promising 21 yr old AMR Daniel Flack from Ipswich. Though adding his large weekly wage was hard, I felt he was a good right side player who might balance out some of the poor performances we have seen from those on that side this season.

***

30.12.06

Harrow Hill (0) Gloucester (1)

A shoddy effort all the way around, compounded by a huge defensive mistake saw us fall 1-0 at Larksfield Road. We really only had a couple good scoring chances during the match, but also hadn't given them all that much chances. A long shot from Neil Mustoe carrommed back off the right post. Dave King and Simon Downer failed to clear the loose ball away and Lewis Anderson missed his chance to smother it- which resulted in James Flood pushing it into the net for the lone goal. We didn't deserve a better result based on our poor play.

[Faramir]

1.1.07

Dorchester (1) Harrow Hill (3)

We rebounded nicely with a strong road performance in defeating Dorchester 3-1. Daniel Flack paid immediate dividends in his debut when he made a superb pass to pick out Billy Sharp in the area. Sharp ripped a low shot past Craig Bradshaw to give us the lead in the first minute of play. Dean Morgan put us up 2-0 when Steven O'Donnell curled a cross that he volleyed past Bradshaw. Dorchester got right back in the match when they drew a goal back as Justin Keeler drove home the loose ball after our backline failed to clear away the rebound off Ross Flitney. I was a lot more comfortable when we restored the 2-goal lead as Morgan scored his 2nd goal of the match after a nice pass from Sharp. We tried hard to build on the lead, but had to settle for the 3-1 final margin.

***

2.1.07

All of the sudden, Dean Morgan-Lewis Buxton and Simon Downer are drawing a lot of interest. I had to respond to rumors in the press with a truthful 'They will have to fork over the price if they want him'- alluding to the 250K min fee release clause. Buxton isn't going anywhere since I successfully signed him off of a min fee release. Downer would only go if somebody seriously bid on him (in other words well above his rated amount). We also have some American clubs interested in Franklin Simek, who is not going anywhere and Lewis Anderson rekindled some interest with his last performance, but it would take a stupendous offer for me to sell him at present. Daniel Austen and Dave King both signed new contracts with us (they were six months away from expiration).

[Faramir]

5.1.07

Seeking help for the front line, I was spurned by several forwards after getting their clubs to accept transfer offers. Surprisingly, the one youngster interested to coming to us- and also suprisingly allowed by his club- was Simon Hodgson of rival Kingstonian. Hodgson is a 17 yr SC whose contract was ending- likely the reason they were willing to let him go- and for a youngster had a splendid blend of talents. He signed a very modest contract and he is very likely to see playing time up front as the season moves along- we desperately need at least one more scorer to establish himself up front.

***

6.1.07

Harrow Hill (1) Forest Green (1)

I threw Hodgson right into the mix for our next match. We had problems with their corners the entire match and it hurt us dearly in the opening moments of the second half when Paul Moss didn't bother to challenge Jon Richardson as he blasted a ball past Ross Flitney inside the left post. We were trying to rally and it looked like Hodgson had got us even when he took a long goal kick and flicked it past an onrushing Steve Perrin, but a late offside call from the Assistant took it away from him. We did manage to fight back when Chris Clark, who had spent the first half gaining good scoring chances, but hadn't managed to hit the net- or really even come close- drilled a shot into the right side of the net after Danny Singh found him trailing the play just inside the edge of the area. We had to survive a couple close calls to keep the draw in the late going and Ross Flitney earned MOM honours. Our backline did not play up to its usual steady self and we were actually fortunate to earn the 1-1 draw.

[Faramir]

9.1.07

Barnet (1) Harrow Hill (1)

It is hard to say that you should have won a match when you have been outplayed, but that was the case for us today. Barnet peppered Ross Flitney with shots and he was dazzling. We had taken the lead when Daniel Flack had deflected a corner from Jordan Fowler past Shane Gore early on in the first half. We survived wave after wave of attacks through timely backline tackling and Flitney's play. It looked like we had moved ahead 2-0 when a superior passing sequence allowed Dean Morgan to rifle one home, but a questionable offside call took it away. Another questionable call wound up costing us the win, as Lewis Buxton was whistled for pushing Mark Crossland in a loose ball scramble in our area. Nick Bailey converted the penalty kick and we were left with a very frustrating trip home after the 1-1 draw. This Tuesday match heralded the end of a long string of matches that really challenged us, since December 6th, we have played 11 matches and with the lack of second line scoring we are fortunate to come out of it as well as we have.

[Faramir]

13.1.07

Harrow Hill (1) Redditch (0)

Talk about a game effort. I couldn't have been prouder of the boys as we persevered through horrendous officiating, bad breaks and playing hurt to win out 1-0 over 3rd place Redditch at Larksfield Road. Gavin Bolger, who seriously tried my patience in this match, kept his motor mouth going way too long and, despite a momentary restraint from the referee, earned himself 2 yellow cards in the space of 30 seconds at the 18 minute mark- NOT the way you want to begin a key match. Despite that, and the other 6 yellow cards we received in the FIRST half (they were *warned* four times- no cards), we really kept control of the tempo of the match. Simon Hodgson has been a wonderful find- I am so glad that we got him- he played hurt the entire match and was a factor they just couldn't ignore in their end. He didn't get a goal because they waved off his brilliant header past Danny Knowles because he was 'fractionally' offside- just adding to my roaring anger at this officiating crew. The lone goal in the match came due to Hodgson though, as Gregg Pierce took him down when both were leaping for a long pass just outside their area. Ryan Ashington made them pay by drilling the 20 yard free kick past Knowles. We maintained our pressure to the final whistle- and missed clinching it twice when Hodgson hit the crossbar and Shaun Smith (subbed on for Danny Singh) hit the post. When the final whistle blew, we had outshot them 17-4 for the match, despite playing over 70 minutes with only 10 men. It was a gallant effort and a great result- though I am sorely tempted to fine Bolger for his lack of composure in the match. Injury wise it was costly as we lost Steven O'Donnell to a strained knee for the next month and Hodgson will nurse a sore groin for the next two weeks.