From the Fringe- Holyhead Hotspur

[Faramir]

24.10.09

Holyhead Hotspur (4) Darlington (0)

Despite a slow start in the first half, we got our offense moving in the second half and destroyed Darlington 4-0 at The New Oval. Neither side played very well in the first half, but we did manage to gain the lead as Michael Holmes scored his 10th goal of the season off a pretty cross from MOM Sean Evans. Robert Clarke had to make two saves late in the half to keep us in the lead to the dressing room. We exploded in the second half as Holmes quickly made it a brace when a bad goal kick by Sander Westerveld allowed him to score an easy goal from 25 yards into the open goal. Simon Hudson, on for tiring Daniel Hayes, then took over for us as he scored off a nice cross from Holmes to make it 3-0. Hudson then made it a brace with his 5th goal of the season by flicking a header over Westerveld on a cross from Hector Caceres.

[Guest]

Great story, but I have to ask - how do you do it? That's three consecutive promotions, isn't it? Incredible stuff. Your U18s are dominating and it seems that despite your low reputation, players are eager to sign for you.

Good read, keep it up

[Faramir]

TenOutOfTen- Worthwhile to point a few things out regarding your comments. One is that this one is an FM2006 story. Because of that there are a bunch of freely available players, many of whom are willing to come to Holyhead if the club offers them a more enticing role than the other bigger clubs who might be interested. Along with that, I have a pretty good knowledge of what type of players I want to make things work- so if I can identify them as youth, it allows me to grab them then and develop them. In FM2006 you can with a youthful side, something else that sees more penalties attached in FM2007.

Now, FM2007 is another kettle of fish and you will notice my stories don't feature this kind of continued success for a couple different reasons- but mostly because it realistically harder to build up a small side. With the youth system in FM2007, no longer am I am able to grab off youngsters out of the pool. Sure, there are some available, but most of them wind up in youth sides. That and the toning down of the skill levels for lower levels makes working your way up in FM2007 difficult- and my stories will reflect that

***

27.10.09

Holyhead Hotspur (4) Wrexham (0)

We celebrated the return of Michael Bradshaw from injury as hard work on the offensive end allowed us to overwhelm visiting Wrexham 4-0 at The New Oval. MOM Paul Lee got us off to a great start as he finished well when set up by Michael Bradshaw as we took the lead at the 14 minute mark. Dave Fleming followed with a goal minutes later as he volleyed past Michal Jarolim on a cross from Matthew Preston. Halftime found us with the 2-0 lead and we stormed into the second half as Bradshaw drove home the rebound after Jarolim parried a hard low shot from Lee. We completed the rout when Simon Hudson, on for Bradshaw, put away a nice shot after a deft pass from Gary Saunders. Robert Clarke put up the easy clean sheet in the match.

[Faramir]

31.10.09

Notts County (0) Holyhead Hotspur (5) FA Cup 1st Round

A late collapse by the home side made this win look easy, but Notts County gave some good effort in the first half as we broomed them from the FA Cup with a 5-0 result. The easy choice for MOM honours was Simon Hudson as he was sensational in scoring 4 goals. Hudson, celebrating his new contract renewal, scored at 9 minutes to give us the lead when keeper Nicholas Baker was caught out of position on a counter-attack. Notts County turned up the pressure and kept us on our backheels the rest of the first half, but Lee Harvey was excellent and kept them off the scoreboard. We played better in the second half and our superior fitness won out late in the match when we scored our last 4 goals in the last 10 minutes of the match. Hudson's ability with the ball allowed him to put their backline to the sword with 3 of the 4 goals. The last goal came from Daniel Hayes.

***

31.10.09

In what may be a key loss, defender Darren Barnes broke several ribs in a collision in training and will miss at least a month- if not more.

***

1.11.09

We were pleased to hear that we swept Player honours for October. Michael Holmes was selected Player of the Month and Jack Hobbs was named Young Player of the Month.

[Faramir]

4.11.09

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Oldham (3)

We played a bad match and received our just desserts as Oldham easily defeated us 3-1 at The New Oval. Lee Harvey played poorly in goal and should have had the first goal- a 25 yard free kick by Claudio Bellucci. Lee Barnard gave them a 2-0 lead when he fired in a shot from just inside the edge of the area. We tried to rally, but weren't playing well in any phase of the game today. A header by Denis Berger on a corner in the early moments of the second half dropped us behind 3-0 and really the only bright spot of our performance was the consolation goal scored by Michael Bradshaw midway through the second half. It was a forgettable effort on our part.

[Faramir]

14.11.09

Oxford (0) Holyhead Hotspur (3)

It was back to work for the boys as they rebounded nicely and we dominated Oxford in beating them 3-0 at Kassam Stadium. We spent almost the entire first half frustrated as we were creating good scoring chances, but we couldn't get the ball into the goal. We hit the post once, the crossbar once and lost a goal on an offside call before finally breaking through in the last moments of first half injury time. Sean Evans broke the single season Holyhead Hotspur record as his deft pass set up Paul Lee to score. It was Evans 12th assist of the season (in only 13 matches played). We broke the match open in the second half. Simon Hudson, after missing a couple wonderful chances, hammered home a rebound after David Preece stopped Bill Walton's initial shot. A late penalty by Hector Caceres, following Mark Wilson being sent off with a redcard after tripping Gary Saunders in their area, was the final marker on our 3-0 win. With Robert Clarke away on International duty, Lee Harvey played well in notching the clean sheet. Jack Hobbs earned MOM honours in the match as our backline play was superb. Hudson and Caceres both suffered bad bruises that will keep each of them out a couple weeks.

***

16.11.09

More bad news on the injury front for us as Michael Bradshaw strained knee ligaments in his National training and will likely miss a couple months. After his sensational last season, Bradshaw has suffered injury after injury this season.

[Guest]

great success and i find myself excited to read your next post...

what is your attendance now that you're in L1?

also, do you have a really good training scheme and coaches for your youngsters or are you just really good at finding cheap talent?

[Faramir]

el-bullo- Attendance is still pretty low, since there is still only just over 2000 seats at The New Oval.

I have used pretty generic training schemes- nothing fancy, just modified ones that fit my view of developing each position. My coaches aren't that good on Holyhead, since we aren't an attractive club to come coach at. Finding cheap talent- that fits my attacking system and positional expectations- is my main advantage.

***

18.11.09

Luton (1) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

In a closely played match we came out on top thanks to an opportune second half goal as we edged Luton 2-1 at Kenilworth Road. Both sides started slowly, but the intensity quickly built in the first half. Michael Holmes scored midway through the first half to give us the lead when he deflected a cross from Martin Hall past Boaz Myhill. Luton answered when Dean Morgan scorched a shot past Robert Clarke from just inside the edge of the area. Myhill was brilliant in their goal to keep the match locked at 1-1 as he made one-on-one saves against Daniel Hayes, Holmes and Paul Morris. Myhill came up with another save early in the second half when he stopped Andy Smith, who came on for a tiring Hayes. Myhill couldn't stop the match winner as Jack Hobbs picked a great time to score his 1st ever goal for us. Hobbs rapped home the rebound after Myhill managed to parry Stephen Morgan's deflection on a corner midway through the second half. Clarke was steady down the stretch for us and well supported by MOM Martin Hall as we still held our advantage at the final whistle.

[Faramir]

21.11.09

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Lincoln (1)

We were more than a bit fortunate that we escaped our match with Lincoln splitting the points in our 1-1 draw at The New Oval. Overall, our play was poor today. Our passing was very spotty throughout the match and that gave us fits after a defensive mistake by Marc Thompson left Sean Thornton unmarked to score the first goal at 14 minutes of play as Thornton whipped his shot past Robert Clarke. Clarke gave us fine work the rest of the match and kept us in despite a woeful first half. We showed more spirit in the second half, but our execution was definately lacking. We manage to come away with a draw thanks to an impressive debut by Gary Griffin. Griffin, on for ineffective Paul Lee, took a pass from Bill Walton and slipped past two would be tacklers before rounding keeper Michael Ingham and scoring into the open goal at 87 minutes for a dramatic equalizer. Clarke made a saving stop on Christos Balodimos in the waning moments of 2nd half injury time to preserve the draw. Lincoln defender Phil Dennis earned MOM honours in the match.

[Faramir]

25.11.09

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Ipswich (2) League Cup 4th Round

Our run in the League Cup came to a crashing halt when Ipswich scored a late match winner to broom us out with a 2-1 defeat at The New Oval. We took the lead in the first half when Ben Foster made a good save on Daniel Hayes, only to see Matthew Preston drive the rebound past him into the goal. We carried that lead into the dressing room and our fans were hopeful that we could gain another upset. That wasn't to be as our central defense had a bad half and that ultimately cost us the match. Jack Hobbs poor header allowed Ian Westlake to start a quick counter-attack on our side of the pitch and Dean Bowditch scored the equalizer past Robert Clarke. The match winner came late in the half as Marc Nicholson made a bad header. Clarke made a great save on Bowditch, but the ball skittered past him and Hobbs couldn't close down Michal Papadopoulous snapped the ball into the open goal. Ipswich defender Per Kroldrup earned MOM honours in the match. Michael Holmes suffered a broken nose in the match and will miss a couple weeks.

[Faramir]

28.11.09

Brentford (1) Holyhead Hotspur (2) FA Cup 2nd Round

It wasn't our best effort, but it was good enough to see off Brentford 2-1 at Griffin Park as we move on in the FA Cup. The early lead was ours thanks to Gary Griffin- who deflected a cross from Bill Walton past Florent Chaigneau. Brentford equalized late in the first half when Petr Mikolanda slipped his marker to deflect a Kelvin Etuhu free kick past Lee Harvey. We took control early in the second half and Walton scored what would be the match winner as a through ball from MOM Sean Evans found him cruising in alone and he rounded Chaigneau before driving the ball into the goal. The injuries continue to pile up as Gary Saunders suffered broken ribs and will miss a couple months, while Ryan Lynch will miss a month thanks to a broken jaw.

[Faramir]

1.12.09

Bournemouth (1) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

This was a weird match, highlighted by very inconsistent officiating as we fought back for a 2-1 win at Fitness First Stadium. The first goal found us trailing when James Hayter, very clearly offside, took the ball around Robert Clarke to give the home side the early lead when the officials failed to see the obvious. We still trailed at halftime, but early in the second half we were the beneficiary of another clearly offside situation that wasn't called. In our case, Simon Hudson wasn't called and Lewis Price made the save- only to see Paul Morris fire the rebound into the open goal. We took all three points in the match when Hudson skinned Chris Baird and scored a dramatic match winner past Price at 86 minutes. Hector Caceres earned MOM honours in his return from injury.

[Faramir]

5.12.09

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Barnsley (0)

It took a late penalty kick, but we finally put the goal on the board that we needed to edge stubborn Barnsley 1-0 at The New Oval as we reached the midway point of the season. Barnsley only managed one shot in the entire match as we throttled them in the midfield and kept the pressure on them. Their backline did a nice job of tackling and heading away dangerous chances and keeper Phil Howell made a couple diving parries to keep things scoreless. We finally got our break when Ross Gardner was whistled for a handball in the area. Hector Caceres calmly converted the penalty past Howell for the 87th minute match winner as Lee Harvey completed the clean sheet. Jack Hobbs earned the MOM honours in the match.

League 1 Table Midseason

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

1- Holyhead Hotspur 46 pts (+26)

2- Sheffield United (2 matches inhand) 39 pts (+20)

3- Watford 38 pts (+8)

4- Luton 35 pts (-1)

5- Southend 34 pts (+5)

6- Darlington 34 pts (+2)

7- Bristol City 34 pts (+1)

</pre>

[mark wilson27]

Looking good Faramir, wont say much more don't want to put the bad luck on ya

[Faramir]

Thanks mark- as the season has long been completed, it wouldn't matter much

***

9.12.09

Hartlepool (0) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

The result was a good one for us, but it was a strange match where we played much better than Hartlepool at times- yet at the end we were just surviving their pressure to keep all three points. MOM Sean Lake- their keeper- was dazzling and kept them in the match. We outshot the home side 21-7 in the match and Lake really made some fine saves. On our side, Lee Harvey continues to impress and really was the reason we took all three points for the win as he made a trio of sensational saves late in the match. The first half was mostly in our control as we created a lot of chances- but couldn't finish past Lake. The lone goal in the match came early in the second half. Sean Evans lofted a cross over everyone to pick out Bill Walton breaking in free on the right. Lake challenged, but Walton chipped over him for a wonderful 1st goal at Holyhead. Our backline helped give Harvey the support he needed down the stretch to keep the clean sheet.

[BenArsenal]

Did you draw a big name in the FA Cup 3rd round?

Good job you're doing.

[Faramir]

BenArsenal- We drew Leeds for the 3rd Round. Thanks for compliment Glad you are following along...

***

12.12.09

Holyhead Hotspur (2) Grimsby (0)

Visiting Grimsby was grim by the end of the match after we defeated the struggling side 2-0 at The New Oval to add more clouds to their relegation worries. It was a match that we dominated as we outshot them 22-5 and fine work by Romain Larrieu was the only thing that kept the final margin from being worse. We took the lead midway through the first half when a terrific through ball by Darren Barnes put MOM Shaun Cummings away free and he rounded Larrieu before scoring. Cummings came close to adding to his total, but headed off the crossbar late in the half and then missed inches wide in the opening moments of the second half. We finally gained our 2nd goal when Richard Booth deflected a cross from Matthew Preston past Larrieu midway through the second half. We kept firm control of the match and Lee Harvey finished out a very easy clean sheet.

***

15.12.09

With transfer rumours swirling around a half-dozen of our players, it was Sean Evans who came out with the comment that he would really like to move to a larger club. I had planned on keeping Sean, but given his comments- if I receive a good enough offer I will seriously consider selling him.

[Faramir]

19.12.09

Cardiff (0) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

Cardiff may have been favoured, but our play of late has lived up to our name and we played a superb match in defeating them 2-0 at St.David Stadium. The match would have been closer had Cameron Jerome had a bit more luck, but the Cardiff frontman fired a shot off the post early in the match and later headed off the crossbar. We scored both of our goals in a five minute span in the first half. Paul Morris gave us the lead when Michael Holmes picked him out coming into the play late and Morris drilled a shot past Neil Alexander from just inside the edge of the area. Shortly after a terrific cross from Sean Evans was put away neatly by Simon Hudson as he deflected it past Alexander. We weren't able to build on that lead, but our backline- led by MOM Darren Barnes- gave Lee Harvey ample support as he notched another clean sheet in closing out the home side.

***

20.12.09

Leeds must have had scouts at St.David, as they offered us 2.1 Million for Simon Hudson the day after the match with Cardiff. I thought about it, but we don't really need the money at this point and Hudson is our leading scorer so far- more impressive as he has been mostly used as a sub and only recently have I been starting him in the lineup. I turned them down, as I don't want to upset our chemistry right now- especially with Michael Bradshaw still out for awhile.

***

22.12.09

Liverpool offered us 4.6 Million for Matthew Preston. I turned them down as well, even though that would have been twice as much as our club currently has on the positive side of the ledger.

[Faramir]

26.12.09

Holyhead Hotspur (3) Watford (0)

In one of our more important matches, we came up with our best match of the season as we destroyed 3rd place Watford 3-0 at The New Oval. The score could have been even worse as we saw Zac Barrett, the only shining light for the visitors, come up with several terrific saves with his side already down 3-0. We moved quickly into the lead as an excellent passing sequence was finished beautifully with MOM Shaun Cummings drilling a shot inside the left post. Cummings quickly made it a brace as he flicked a header over Barrett for his brace and 5th goal of the season on a cross from Michael Holmes. Holmes wound up earning assists on all three goals when Paul Bignot took him down in the area and Paul Morris converted the penalty kick for his 5th goal of the season. We never let up on Watford, though Robert Clarke had to make several good saves to earn his clean sheet on his return from injury. We could easily have won 6-0 as the chances were there in the second half, but I was pleased to win in any manner as we are now 12 points ahead of 2nd place Sheffield United (though they have a match in hand) with 20 matches remaining. We are 14 points ahead of 3rd place Watford.

[Faramir]

29.12.09

Colchester (4) Holyhead Hotspur (3)

Our winning streak came to a crashing halt when Colchester converted a late, disputed penalty kick to defeat us 4-3. We got off to a horrific start in the match as Colchester scored two times in the first 11 minutes of play. Matt Nicholson played himself off the club by failing to mark or tackle MOM Clay Bond and David Graham as they both scored past Lee Harvey. We settled down a bit and looked like we were back into the match when Paul Lee deflected a cross from Daniel Hayes past Rune Almenning Jarstein. Instead Harvey, who had a poor match, misplayed a ball that allowed Bond to score his brace and give the home side a 3-1 halftime lead. We battled back in the second half and Lee's brace drew us close off a pass from Paul Morris. Dave Fleming's free kick 25 yard rocket equalized for us at 70 minutes and I really thought that we might win the match. I was furious with the call when Lewis Foster was redcarded for a push on Nani in the area. Phillipe Christanval converted the penalty kick past Harvey for the match winner as I fumed. We worked so hard to get back to even and then the Referee handed the match to them- it was tough to take. The match also cost us Fleming for a month with a strained hamstring.

[Faramir]

1.1.10

Sean Evans has a new home. Doncaster was the club that got him under contract (out of the three bidding) and paid us 1.9 Million to purchase the talented leftwinger. I was loathe to lose Evans, but he and his agent made it clear that he wanted to move to a bigger club and would not be happy if he wasn't given the chance to move. The sale boosts our bottom line to 4.6 Million in the black, but hurts us by moving clearly our best player this season (8.00 rating 2 goals 14 assists 4 MOM). The plan right now is for Richard Booth to move over and take over Evans' spot in the lineup.

***

2.1.10

Leeds (1) Holyhead Hotspur (5) FA Cup 3rd Round

Did it matter that we gave up a goal in the 1st minute of play? Not in the least, as we shocked EPL Leeds by roaring past them 5-1 at Elland Road and the home side closed out the match to a chorus of catcalls from their disgruntled fans. A giveaway by Bill Walton turned into a counter-attack and Michal Kubala finished well past Lee Harvey for an immediate lead. We hit back quickly when Ian Price scored his 1st goal for Holyhead when he snapped a shot into the open goal after a nice cross from Richard Booth. MOM Shaun Cummings fired past Vincent Degre to give us the lead at 11 minutes after a cross from Martin Hall. Cummings made it a brace midway through the first half on a good pass from Price. We moved ahead 4-1 at halftime as Walton hammered a rebound past Degre. Walton scored the only goal in the second half as he whisked home another rebound and we finished out an impressive 5-1 win.

[Faramir]

3.1.10

I was very surprised to get an offer to take over Northampton. The offer was generous- but Northampton is 19th in League 2- and I really have no desire to move down in levels.

***

6.1.10

Southend (0) Holyhead Hotspur (0)

We squandered several excellent chances in both halves to win this match and had to settle for a scoreless draw at Roots Hall despite outplaying the home side by a large margin. Joe Robbins came up with big saves on Michael Holmes and Paul Lee in the first half as we sprung each of them free. Richard Booth had a golden chance that he passed up shooting on in the opening moments of the second half. We failed to take full advantage when Steve Cross was sent off with his 2nd yellow card at 70 minutes. Robert Clarke had to come up with a key save in the waning moments as he parried away a powerful header by MOM Yoann Folly to preserve his clean sheet and the draw.

[BenArsenal]

5-1 against Leeds! What a result!

Bears comparasion to England's win in Munich...

[Faramir]

BenArsenal- I would admit to being surprised by the Leeds result, I didn't think we had a chance of beating them.

***

9.1.10

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Walsall (0)

I was really pleased with the intensity we showed from the opening whistle until the final whistle and the hard work paid off in a close 1-0 win over Walsall at The New Oval. Both sides had good chances in the match and keepers Robert Clarke and Robert Beckwith were busy in keeping things close. The only goal in the match came after Rikki Bains was forced to trip Ian Price as Price outmanuevered him in their area. Martin Hall converted the penalty kick for his 1st goal of the season. The second half featured more intense play as both sides battled until the final whistle and we still held our 1-0 margin as Clarke earned his clean sheet. Bill Walton earned MOM honours for his play up and down the right wing.

[Faramir]

16.1.10

Bristol City (0) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

It took a worthy effort, but we managed to score two second half goals and defeat Bristol City at Ashton Gate. The first half was quiet as the fine tackling by both sides' backlines kept the good scoring chances to a minimum. Early in the second half Paul Lee slipped a pass through traffic to Michael Holmes in the area and Holmes snapped his shot inside the right post past Steve Phillips. Bristol City tried to fight back, but found Robert Clarke very alert as he continually played away their long passes down the wings. Holmes put the match away for us with his brace as he deflected a cross from Stephen Morgan past Phillips late in the match. Clarke closed out the clean sheet with solid help from the backline- led by MOM Martin Hall.

League 1 Table- 30 matches played

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

1- Holyhead Hotspur 65 pts (+36)

2- Sheffield United 59 pts (+36)

3- Hull 47 pts (+11)

4- Luton 47 pts (+1)

5- Darlington 46 pts (+5)

6- Bournemouth 46 pts (+3)

7- Swansea 45 pts (+14)

8- Watford 45 pts (+9)

</pre>

[Faramir]

16.1.10

In another transfer sale spurred by our need to provide financial stability, I agreed to a 1.3 Million offer from Swansea for Shaun Cummings. Cummings has played well for us- but forward is our deepest position and Michael Bradshaw is finally getting healthy, so it made sense to accept the offer which helps our bottom line to be more stable.

***

18.1.10

Stuart Cain will move to Walsall as we sold him for 10K. Cain hadn't much future on our club and was very happy to move to a club that might give him more of a chance.

[Faramir]

23.1.10

West Ham (6) Holyhead Hotspur (0) FA Cup 4th Round

It is hard to believe that we made it to halftime scoreless as a late first half redcard helped West Ham find the space needed to destroy us in the second half as they broomed us out of FA Cup. We looked pretty good in the first half and traded attacks with the home side. Lee Harvey made a couple nice saves to keep things even at halftime. Lewis Foster was sent off with a redcard for a two-footed tackle in first half injury time and we paid dearly in the second half. Scott Sinclair found space twice in the opening minutes and scored each time past Harvey. Harvey had a horrible half after a solid first half and a hat-trick by MOM James Morrison- two of them on free kicks- swelled the lead to 5-0. It was a bitter finish as Marc Thompson was also redcarded- for a disputed push in the area- and Maciej Korozym finished off the scoring by rapping a shot inside the left post. David Blackmore earned the clean sheet for West Ham.

[Faramir]

27.1.10

Holyhead Hotspur (2) Leyton Orient (0)

A strong effort for us as we outshot visiting Orient 22-4 in defeating them 2-0 at The New Oval. We celebrated the return from injury of Michael Bradshaw, Hector Caceres and Darren Barnes in the match and it was a big relief to get them all back into the lineup. The presence of Bradshaw seemed to open up space for MOM Michael Holmes and he took full advantage in putting us in the lead midway through the first half. Holmes slipped free of marking and Stephen Morgan picked him out with a pass before Holmes hammered his shot past Joe Lewis. It took us until late in the second half to finally put away stubborn Orient and it was Holmes setting up Morgan in front to score the clinching goal just as the match was moving into second half injury time. Robert Clarke earned another clean sheet with minimal effort.

[Faramir]

30.1.10

Swansea (0) Holyhead Hotspur (3)

Despite seeing Darren Barnes sent off with an unjustified redcard at 34 minutes, we rallied and dominated the second half with only the hard work of 10 men in defeating 3rd place Swansea 3-0 at White Rock Stadium. This was a match that Swansea needed to win to improving their diminshing chances of overtaking us and they played really well in the first half. We had a couple good chances that Steve Mandanda made good saves on- denying Paul Lee and Bill Walton- but they controlled much of the half of play. That was especially true after Barnes was sent off for being the last man when there was clearly two other defenders still closer to the goal. We survived the first half scoreless thanks to yeoman work from our backline, led by MOM Martin Hall, and fine work in goal from Robert Clarke. We turned the tables in the second half, as they expected us to retreat into a defensive shell and we came out counter-attacking. Stephen Morgan scored one of the prettier goals of his career as he boomed a 30 yard shot that curled around traffic in front of Mandanda and slipped inside the right post. Swansea's play took on an element of desperation at that point and we exploited it to move ahead 2-0 when Lee made it a quickfire double as he deflected a cross from Richard Booth past Mandanda. The crushing blow to the home side was a handball by Carl Fletcher in the area. Martin Wood, back on the Senior side due to our spate of midfield injuries, calmly fired the penalty kick home for his 1st Senior goal in quite some time. Clarke kept things tidy to earn another clean sheet. The win makes promotion look eminently possible and now we will settle into a battle with Sheffield United for the top spot in League 1. The win also denied ex-mate Shaun Cummings any possibility of revenge.

League 1- 32 matches played

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

1- Holyhead Hotspur 71 pts (+41)

2- Sheffield United 65 pts (+41)

3- Swansea 51 pts (+15)

4- Luton 51 pts (+2)

5- Hull 50 pts (+11)

6- Darlington 50 pts (+7)

</pre>

[Faramir]

1.2.10

Martin Hall was named Young Player of the Month for January. We almost made it a sweep, but Michael Holmes finished runner-up to David Clarkson for Player of the Month honours.

***

3.2.10

David Poole failed to show up for training yesterday. He received the stunning news that he had been released when he decided to return to training today. With his carping to the press about his status on the Reserves, I thought an immediate break was worth the 55K to pay out the remainder of his contract.

***

6.2.10

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Preston (1)

We played well enough to deserve a better fate, but a costly missed tackle allowed Preston to score the only goal of the match as they edged us 1-0 at The New Oval. The chances were there for us- and we had several excellent ones- but Robert Olejnik was dazzling in goal for the visitors and his stop on Michael Bradshaw's header was the best save today. Preston's backline- led by MOM Youl Mawene- provided excellent support to Olejnik, especially in the second half. The lone goal came when James McFadden slipped a pass through to Dave Hibbert. Jack Hobbs missed the tackle on Hibbert and he tucked his shot inside the left post past Lee Harvey. I really thought we would equalize, but Michael Holmes crashed a shot off the left upright late in the match on our last, best chance.

[Faramir]

9.2.10

Hull (0) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

It was a nice effort as we rebounded from our loss to Preston to score a gritty 1-0 win over Hull at The Circle. Paul Lee proved very opportunistic as he intercepted a mishit pass from James Goodall and fired it past Artur Kotenko for the only goal of the match midway through the first half. That isn't to say we didn't have chances to build on the lead, as we came close several times but just weren't able to put things away. Our backline was solid and MOM Martin Hall earned the honours with several saving tackles and timely headers in support of Robert Clarke. Clarke put up another clean sheet- one that was easier than it appeared thanks to Hull's inability to get their shots on target. It was just the kind of win we needed after the disappointing loss.

[Faramir]

13.2.10

Holyhead Hotspur (3) Brighton (1)

Finally. Michael Bradshaw's return to form was a very welcome sight as he finally shook the rust off and led us to a difficult 3-1 win over Brighton at The New Oval. With Sheffield United nipping at our heels (3 points behind us), we needed a good effort today and our tandem of Michaels (Holmes and Bradshaw) was the force behind our win. Holmes scored first to give us the lead at 11 minutes when he powered a header past Richard Lee on a pretty cross from Richard Booth. Brighton hit back when Dennis Mimm pounced on a rebound and slotted the ball past Robert Clarke to equalize. Booth then slipped a pass through to Bradshaw to spring him for a goal later in the half as we regained the lead and took the 2-1 margin to the dressing room. Midway through a taut second half, a good chip pass from Holmes found Bradshaw with space and he drilled a shot inside the far left post for his brace as we closed out a good effort.

[Faramir]

20.2.10

Oldham (0) Holyhead Hotspur (3)

I don't know that we have played a better match than this one so far this season. Our passing was crisp and exact as we sliced and diced the Oldham backline in defeating them 3-0 at Boundary Park in a match that could have been a much worse score for the home side. We wasted little time moving ahead in the first half. Paul Lee hooked a ball past Francesco Marini after a short pass from Bill Walton. MOM Michael Bradshaw then scored a sensational goal as he skinned Gareth Owen at midfield and then burst down the center of the pitch. As three Oldham players tried to close him down, Bradshaw kept moving fast and then whipped a shot past Marini that had the home fans ooohing and aahing- despite the fact it was an opposition goal. The goal was Bradshaw's 10th of the season. We kept firm control of the midfield througout the match and Marini's fine play kept the score in check. We finally finished off the home side's hopes when Simon Hudson, on for a tiring Lee, hammered home a rebound into an open goal after Marini barely got a hand on a drive from Bradshaw in the closing moments of the match. Robert Clarke earned another clean sheet in the match.

[Faramir]

27.2.10

Holyhead Hotspur (4) Luton (1)

This match was decided early as we dominated the first half and broke out to a 4-0 lead at halftime before cruising to a 4-1 win over Luton at The New Oval. We were off on a flyer when Paul Lee fired a well placed shot past Miguel Suarez after getting a good pass from Stephen Morgan in the opening moments of play. We quickly built on that lead as MOM Michael Bradshaw put away a shot past Suarez after a through ball from Paul Morris. Darren Barnes then deflected a Richard Booth corner past Suarez midway through the first half before Bradshaw made it a brace by deflecting a short cross from Bill Walton home late in the half. Luton's woes got worse when Warren Feeney was redcarded in the opening moments of the second half for a nasty elbow thrown at the head of Walton. Despite having only 10 men, Luton managed to ruin Robert Clarke's shot at a clean sheet when Aaron Labonte crossed and Simon Walton flicked a header past Clarke. We clinched a Playoff spot already (9 matches remaining) with the win and also bought ourselves some breathing space at the top as Sheffield United could only draw while visiting Watford.

[Faramir]

1.3.10

Since we sold him to Swansea, Shaun Cummings has been on fire and he was selected as February Young Player of the Month over Martin Hall. Darren Barnes was 3rd in balloting for Player of the Month honours.

***

2.3.10

Injuries continued to dog us. Robert Clarke injured a shoulder in practice, so we will be forced to lean on Lee Harvey to fill in for a short while. Hector Caceres also reinjured his thigh and will be out for a month or so and Simon Hudson suffered a chest injury that will keep him out for at least a couple weeks.

***

6.3.10

Cheltenham (0) Holyhead Hotspur (5)

We have been playing extremely well of late and today's match was another point of evidence as we crushed Cheltenham 5-0 at Whaddon Road. It was the 'St.Michaels combo' of Michael Holmes and Michael Bradshaw that helped demolish the home side today. Bradshaw saw his first chance saved by Peter Kostolani in the early going but sent a pinpoint cross that found Holmes as he slipped free of his marker to deflect it past Kostolani and give us the lead midway through the first half. Holmes returned the favor later in the half as he headed the ball down and Bradshaw finished well past Kostolani. Holmes then gave Bradshaw a pretty cross that he put away for his brace in first half injury time to move us ahead 3-0. The second half saw us apply more pressure and Bradshaw was tripped in the area by Julian Bennett. Lewis Foster converted the penalty kick for his 1st ever goal. Holmes made another nice pass- his 3rd assist of the match- that Ian Price, on for tiring Bradshaw, put away for his 1st League goal to finish the scoring in the impressive win. Lee Harvey had an easy time keeping the clean sheet. The win, coupled with Sheffield United's 1-1 draw hosting 23rd place Colchester, pretty much forces United into a 'must-win' approach as we host them next week at The New Oval. If they fail to beat us, their chances of catching us for 1st place will be slim.

[Faramir]

13.3.10

Holyhead Hotspur (2) Sheffield United (1)

Our 2-1 win over Sheffield United at The New Oval leaves them a very difficult road to try and catch us for the League 1 crown. The win not only put us 10 points ahead of them with 7 matches left, but it also ensured we will be promoted to Championship play next season. We got off to another flying start as Paul Morris made a deft pass and Michael Bradshaw ghosted past a would be tackler before driving a shot inside the near right post past Ruben at 3 minutes. Sheffield United quickly equalized as David Mirfin overpowered Stephen Morgan to deflect Raffaele Palladino's corner past Lee Harvey. It was a serious blow to United when the Referee ruled Palladino's handball in our area was intentional and he redcarded him at 19 minutes. I told the boys to just stay with the game plan and not press too far forward- since a draw was almost as good as a win to us. MOM Michael Holmes took advantage of an errant backpass and skinned the ball and split the defense before firing a well placed shot inside the left upright in first half injury time. We suffered a serious loss when Holmes was carted off moments into the second half, but we kept hammering away at the visitors. We never scored again, but did a nice job of limiting United to long shots and Harvey kept them from equalizing as we completed our win. The injury to Holmes was a torn calf muscle and he is out until the beginning of next season.

[Faramir]

13.3.10

I had to fend off all the press speculation that I would be moving to a major club after the accomplishments with Holyhead. I held an impromptu press conference and told them our success this season just made me hungrier to bring even more accomplishments to Hotspur.

***

15.3.10

With an injury to Gary Griffin, besides the loss of Holmes, I decided it was time to bring Steve Rogers up to the Senior side. Rogers has been a dominant player on our Reserves- with 19 goals, 12 assists and 8 MOM honours in leading our Reserves to a 20 point lead atop Group 3.

***

20.3.10

Wrexham (0) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

A pair of early goals keyed us to a solid 2-0 win at Racecourse Ground. We struck twice on counter-attacks as Wrexham was pressing forward from the opening whistle- trying to take advantage of young keeper Steve Williams 2nd start. Dave Fleming made a beautifully timed pass that found Paul Lee in full stride and Lee fired a shot inside the left post past Richard Martin to send us off to a quick start. Minutes later it was James Wilkinson's timely through ball that put Michael Bradshaw away and Bradshaw rounded Martin to score. The home suffered another blow when Paul Wotton was redcarded for an elbow at Bradshaw's head late in the first half. We were content to control the flow of play in the second half and though we didn't score any more, I was well pleased with closing out the 2-0 win that gave Williams his 1st clean sheet.

[Faramir]

24.3.10

I was very proud of our Reserve side as they won their 3rd consecutive Group 3 Reserve Championship. Our development really rests on the success of our Under-18s and and Reserves and we have a lot of quality coming up from both.

***

27.3.10

Holyhead Hotspur (2) Oxford (1)

We built a quick 2-0 lead and then kept it until almost the final whistle as we saw off visiting Oxford 2-1 at The New Oval. Steve Rogers had a terrific debut and put us off on a flyer when he ran down a long looping pass down the center of the pitch from Jack Hobbs and then slipped a shot past David Preece to score in his first appearance. Gary Teale earned a quick pair of yellow cards to put the visitors down to 10 men at 13 minutes. MOM Paul Morris scored when he whipped a shot past Preece after taking a Bill Walton free kick in the area. We maintained that lead until the waning moments of the match when Mark E'Beyer scored his 1st goal at Oxford to ruin Chris May's shot at a clean sheet in his debut in goal.

[Faramir]

28.3.10

Sheffield United defeated Yeovil 2-0 to capture the LDV Vans Trophy.

***

31.3.10

I was pleased to receive a new contract from the Holyhead board. I had no intention of leaving the club, but it feels much better to have everything cemented. The Board offered me a 65K weekly wage and 5 Million budget, but I chose to use the flexibility offered to alter that to a 3.8 Million transfer fund and a 90K weekly wage budget. With our youth developments, I don't think we will be plying the transfer market.

***

31.3.10

Sheffield United managed a 1-1 draw at 3rd place Swansea to clinch their own promotion. They remain 12 points behind us in the table with 5 matches remaining.

***

1.4.10

Martin Hall was awarded Young Player of the Month honours for his performances in March.

[Faramir]

3.4.10

Holyhead Hotspur (2) Hartlepool (0)

Another workmanlike effort has put us on the brink of capturing the League 1 crown. MOM Paul Morris skipped a pass through for Paul Lee to score midway through the first half. Dave Fleming added a goal off a cross from Matthew Preston in the second half to keep the match very comfortable as we helped Lee Harvey notch a clean sheet. The key to the match was the firm control we kept on the midfield throughout the match, which limited Hartlepool to only 4 shots on goal. We remain 12 points ahead of Sheffield United with only 4 matches remaining.

[Faramir]

5.4.10

Darlington (0) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

The celebration with our road fans began when the final whistle sounded, as our 2-0 win over Darlington clinched the League 1 crown for us. The Darlington backline deserved credit in the first half as they were superb in their tackling. They blunted many good chances for us with timely tackles and those they didn't- Sander Westerveld made the saves on. Lee Harvey was also perfect on our end as we went to halftime scoreless. Early in the second half, Paul Morris shot a pass up the middle. MOM Michael Bradshaw took the ball away from Jay DeMerit and bulled his way up the center of the pitch. With three Darlington players trying to close him down, Bradshaw buried a shot past Westerveld for a sensational goal. After much back and forth play, we clinched the match in the late going. Steve Rogers, on for a tiring Paul Lee, was pulled down in the area by DeMerit. Rogers stepped up and converted the penalty kick to make the final margin 2-0 as Harvey closed out the clean sheet.

[Faramir]

10.4.10

Our Under-18s clinched the Group 4 Championship over the strong challenges of Manchester United's Under-18s and Liverpool's Under-18s. It was a nice accomplishment and a treble of sorts as we captured the League 1 title- Reserves title- and Under-18 title this season.

***

10.4.10

Lincoln (2) Holyhead Hotspur (4)

Steve Rogers is certainly making a nice case for himself to be a starter in our forward rotatation next season as he earned MOM honours in leading us to a 4-2 win at Sincil Bank. Rogers got us off to a flying start when Richard Booth curled a pass into him with space on the left side. Rogers scorched a well placed shot past Florent Chaingeau to give us a quick lead. Lincoln answered as Steve Dunn took a nicely laid off ball from Michael Higdon and fired it past Robert Clarke. Clarke, making his return from injury, then came up with a series of key saves to keep us from moving back in front. Things looked worse for us when Darren Barnes was redcarded for a tough tackle from behind at 31 minutes. We surged back in front when Gary Saunders made a pretty pass to pick out Simon Hudson breaking free in the area and Hudson drilled his shot past Chaigneau. Despite being down to 10 men, we kept counter-attacking in the second half and Rogers made it a brace as Saunders slipped him a pass through traffic in the area. We also kept it close for the home side as Martin Hall scored an own-goal with an inadvertent header that changed direction and Clarke couldn't react. We move back to a two-goal lead as Hall made up for his earlier miscue by deflecting a James Wilkinson corner past Chaigneau. Lincoln got another chance when Richard Booth was called for a handball in the area, but Clarke made a great save on the penalty kick by Martin Andresen to keep us on track for the win.

[Faramir]

12.4.10

In an effort to help boost our bottom line I transfer listed Daniel Hayes today. Hayes listing price was 2.9 Million and no less than 10 clubs made an offer on him. Hayes has a lot of talent, but has never demonstrated any kind of scoring touch around the goal- something that we need out of our forwards here at Holyhead. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he goes on to star for a bigger club, but I am very happy with our youthful contingent of Michael Bradshaw, Michael Holmes, Paul Lee, Steve Rogers, Gary Griffin and Ian Price- with all of those plus more promising youngsters on the way- it made a lot of business sense to help bolster our funds.

***

17.4.10

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Bournemouth (3)

Unfortunately, we were due for a bad match and it happened to be our final home match of the season. The first half was evenly played and both sides had quality chances, but neither could convert their best opportunities into goals. The dynamics of the match changed in the opening moments of the second half. Hector Caceres drew a redcard for a professional foul on Guy Bates as he tripped him in our area. Giles Barnes converted the penalty kick and we were under the gun. Bournemouth added a 2nd goal when Bates found open space and finished well on a short pass from Jose Machado. We floundered after that and Martin Brittain put the finishing touches on the 3-0 win for the visitors when he slipped a shot past Robert Clarke in the late moments of the match. Bournemouth keeper Lewis Price earned MOM honours and a clean sheet- mostly for his work in the first half.

[Faramir]

19.4.10

Daniel Hayes sifted through the offers and accepted the one from Manchester City. He will join them on July 1st and we will receive 2.9 Million.

***

24.4.10

Barnsley (0) Holyhead Hotspur (3)

We closed the season on a much better note as we scored early at Oakwell and saw off struggling Barnsley 3-0 thanks to a good all action effort from our backline. Steve Rogers continued to demonstrate he will be a key player in our future with a pretty pass that allowed Ian Price to push the ball into the open left side of the goal to give us the early lead. Rogers then added a goal as he deflected a cross from MOM Martin Hall past Owain Fon Williams. Chris May earned a clean sheet with a fine effort dotted with terrific saves as Barnsley desperately tried to rally. We clinched the match midway through the second half when Simon Hudson- playing rightwing today- crossed to James Wilkinson for a driving shot through a crowd inside the right post for his 1st goal. The goal took the last of the home side's spirit and the match finished out quietly after that. Hall's MOM honours broke the Holyhead season record as he recorded his 7th of the season. The loss almost pushed Barnsley into relegation, but they wound up one point ahead of Colchester.

League 1 Table- Final

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

1- Holyhead Hotspur 107 pts (+64)

2- Sheffield United 95 pts (+56)

3- Bournemouth 78 pts (+13)

4- Swansea 73 pts (+19)

5- Hull 72 pts (+17)

6- Cheltenham 72 pts (+4)

7- Preston 70 pts (+9)

</pre>

[Faramir]

25.4.10

I am better able to appreciate our accomplishment of winning League 1 on the day after. Going into the season, my faint hopes were to contend for a Playoff spot, but it became clear that our club was much better than even I expected. We played extremely well down the stretch- something that I hope bodes well for our development. We managed to survive major injury problems, which forced us to exploit our depth. We overcame a lot to win League 1 and I will be happy to take our current side- with maybe some small tweaking- into Championship play.

***

5.5.10

Inter defeated AZ 3-0 to capture the Euro Cup.

***

12.5.10

Chelsea, EPL Champion this year also, defeated Barcelona 2-0 to earn a historic double as they captured the Champions Cup.

***

22.5.10

Bournemouth defeated Swansea 2-1 in the Playoff Final to gain the 3rd promotion spot from League 1.

***

25.5.10

We placed four players on the League 1 Players Select Team. Selected as starters were Martin Hall, Jack Hobbs and Stephen Morgan. Selected as a Reserve was Paul Morris. Robert Clarke would have been starting keeper for the team, but injuries kept him just short of qualifying for selection.

[mark wilson27]

Congrats Faramir another promotion, is that a record points total

[Faramir]

16.6.10

I received an offer from the Wolves on Dave Fleming. Despite the fact that 7.50 Million would more than double our coffers- there is no way to replace Fleming and he is a key component for the club next season. Still, every player has a price and I counter-offered them at 15 Million. I don't expect them to want him that badly.

***

18.6.10

Predictably, the counter-offer was too rich for the Wolves Board, so Fleming will remain at Holyhead.

***

20.6.10

The Board agreed that we should expand the stadium, so work has begun on that. Because of that, we are down to 3.7 Million in the black- even with the receipt of our TV money- as the cost was over 2 Million for the expansion. Martin Hall was selected Fans Player of the Year for the club for last season.

The Board's expectations are very realistic in that they would love to avoid going back down this season.

[Faramir]

mark- Thanks Not a record total...

[Faramir]

1.7.10

The sale of Daniel Hayes to Manchester City for 2.9 Million leaves us much better off on the bottom line. Hayes could develop into a terrific forward, but he didn't fit well with our attack because of his lack of scoring touch around the goal. Matt Nicholson moves to Barnsley for 400K, which delighted their fans. Nicholson couldn't crack our starting rotation because he never played well when given a chance last season. Nick Doran will join Hinckley on free transfer. His future as a keeper at Holyhead was blocked. Lee Harvey was sold to Doncaster for 230K. Harvey will be supplanted by youngsters Chris May and Steve Williams and because of that it was better to let him move now before he became unhappy.

Our only addition was 17 year old DRL Sam Jones who we paid 130K to Leeds for. Jones should be able to earn playing time at both fullback positions for us.

***

6.7.10

Spain scored a huge upset in the World Cup Semifinals when Julio Alvarez scored in Extra-time to propel them past heavily favoured Brazil 2-1. Spain will move on to the Finals to face either England (who defeated Italy on Penalties) or South Africa (who defeated Denmark on Penalties).

[Faramir]

7.7.10

England's good fortunes with Penalties continued as they edged South Africa on Penalties after the two sides battled to a scoreless draw in their World Cup Semifinal.

***

10.7.10

We lost our first friendly as Blackburn defeated us 1-0 at The New Oval. It was a decent effort, but we didn't play particularly well on offense.

***

11.7.10

After all their history with Penalties, England broke from their past with their 3rd consecutive Penalty kick wins as they captured the World Cup after they and Spain battled to a scoreless draw in regulation and Extra-time. England somehow survived redcards to both Frank Lampard (18th minute) and Ashley Cole (76th minute) in surviving to make it into Penalties. John Terry converted the winner after Oleguer missed wide for Spain.

***

14.7.10

Our second friendly mirrored our first as we could not get much offense going and lost to Bolton 1-0 at The New Oval. Though we haven't scored, I am still pleased with how we are battling these bigger clubs.