From the Fringe- Holyhead Hotspur

[Faramir]

19.3.11

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Ipswich (0)

We celebrated the opening of the newly expanded stands at The New Oval with a scoreless draw. We did not execute well, but we were relentless in our play and that kept the visitors from taking all three points in the match. Darryl Knights earned MOM honours for the visitors, but Robert Clarke would have been a worthy choice as stoned Knights when in a one-on-one situation in the second half. Clarke had a couple other timely saves in keeping his side of the clean sheet. Jamie Ashdown did likewise in the Ipswich goal as he came up with key saves on Michael Holmes and Michael Bradshaw to earn his clean sheet. Though we didn't win the match- the celebration following the match was everything we could have hoped for as our fervent fans celebrated our clinching of the Championship Title. It has been a long, mostly great season for us and a monumental achievement- but for the most part we do appear to be a very tired club and it was a relief to clinch the title.

[Faramir]

23.3.11

Holyhead Hotspur (4) Bolton (2) FA Cup 6th Round

So much for being awed by EPL Bolton- as we broomed them from the FA Cup with a fine effort in defeating them 4-2 at The New Oval. Robert Clarke was brilliant in the first half as he kept the visitors off the scoreline with key saves on Carlton Cole and Matty Fryatt. We took the lead to halftime thanks to a well placed shot from Ian Price that slipped just inside the right post past Stephen Williams. With both Price and Dave Fleming banged up late in the first half, Simon Hudson and Mark Potter came on to open the second half and immediately impacted play. Hudson scored a superb goal when he redirected a cross from Matthew Preston off the inside of the left upright and into the goal to give us a 2-0 lead. We built further on the lead when Hudson was taken down by Stephen Day in the area. Hector Caceres calmly converted the penalty to move us comfortably ahead 3-0. We were too comfortable as it turned out. Cole showed how dangerous he is by shedding the marking of Caceres and then firing past Clarke to give the visitors hope. We answered back quickly when Hudson made it a brace on a headed down ball by Michael Bradshaw. Cole wasn't through and scored on a blistering shot from just inside the edge of the area for his brace, but that was the last good opportunity we would yield in finishing out a surprise 4-2 win. Michael Bradshaw earned MOM honours in the match- despite not scoring. We will play West Ham in the Semifinals, while QPR and Manchester City face off in the other Semifinal.

***

30.3.11

Our Reserve side clinched their 4th consecutive Group 3 Reserve Championship with 6 matches remaining.

[Faramir]

2.4.11

Sheffield United (1) Holyhead Hotspur (3)

A quiet first half turned into a turbulent second half as all the scoring came after halftime in our 3-1 win over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane. Neither side scored in the first half and MOM Chris May had a big hand in that on our side of the pitch as he came up with a brilliant save on Simon Francis. The second half started sedately, but both sides quickly turned up the tempo. May made another nice stop on David N'Gog and then we took the lead moments later when Josh Palmer laid the ball off for Andy Thomas to blast past Ruben for his 1st goal at Holyhead. Sheffield United answered back when Francis got the better of May as he flicked a looping header over the stranded keeper on a cross from Steven Kabba. It appeared that United was taking control of the match when Hobbs was called for a push on Chris Zebroski in the area. Michael Brown boomed his penalty kick, but May somehow got fingertips on it and pushed it around the post. Both sides showed animated play in the midfield as each sought the crucial goal. Jack Hobbs was the architect of the match-winner as he flicked a header across the goal on a corner and Tony Owens put the ball away into the left side of the goal. We finally clinched the match moments later as David Mirfin tripped Palmer in the area and Paul Wynne converted the penalty kick for his 1st goal at Holyhead.

[Faramir]

9.4.11

Plymouth (2) Holyhead Hotspur (0)

Injuries and inconsistent play on our part were enough to allow struggling Plymouth to win 2-0 at Home Park. The first half had been evenly played as it moved into the late stages still scoreless. Andy Thomas crumpled as the result of a challenge by Nick Montgomery. As the play went on the home side took advantage of the extra space and Pat May drilled a shot past Chris May on a nicely laid off ball from MOM Piotr Petasz. We were trying to battle back early in the second half when Mark Potter was forced to leave. With a jumbled lineup, it was no surprise when Michael Byrne slipped in on the far post and deflected a headed corner past May. We never solved keeper Robert Elliott as he earned the clean sheet.

***

16.4.11

Our Under-18s also repeated as title holders as they captured the Group 4 title with 2 matches remaining.

[Faramir]

16.4.11

Holyhead Hotspur (4) Rotherham (1)

I was hoping we would be a lot better on the injury front as we head into next week's FA Cup Semifinal, but it doesn't appear to be the case. Missing today were Michael Bradshaw, Michael Holmes, Robert Clarke and Andy Thomas- all hurt within the last week. Still, we dipped into our depth again today and Josh Palmer came up with his both his 1st and 2nd Senior goals in helping us to a 4-1 win at The New Oval. We struck early when MOM Steve Rogers shook free of his coverage and slipped a shot past Stuart Nelson. Rogers' goal equalized as Petra Huskova had fired in a loose ball past Chris May in the opening moments of the match. Rogers set up Palmer beautifully for his first goal as he split the two defenders. Stephen Morgan, making his return from injury, scorched a 30 yard blast past Nelson for his 5th goal of the season. Palmer made his brace early in the second half and we cruised home to the win from there.

[Faramir]

23.4.11

Holyhead Hotspur (1) West Ham (1) FA Cup Semifinal (Holyhead Hotspur advances on Penalties)

When Gary Saunders struck the winning penalty, bedlam finally broke loose at Wembley as we will now make our way to the FA Cup Finals. It was a bruising match that saw us lose our best penalty taker- Hector Caceres- late in the second half. Though we played well in the first half, we found ourselves trailing 1-0 when Maciej Koryzym drilled a shot past Robert Clarke from just inside the edge of the area off a nicely laid off pass from Phil Moran. We came close to equalizing twice, but Samir Kouakbi came up with big saves on Steve Rogers and Michael Bradshaw. Early in the second half we fought back to even when Jean-francois Pignone was called for a handball in the area. Steve Rogers converted the penalty kick to make it 1-1 in the match. It was frustrating to see us come so close to taking the match- as we hit the crossbar and post late in the second half and then saw a ball cleared off the line in Extra-time. Robert Clarke, celebrating his new contract signed this week, was steady in making sure the Hammers didn't score. We moved to the Penalties and I had a world of confidence in Clarke- which he justified by saving the first penalty kick. Both sides hit their next two penalty kicks and then we hit our 3rd to put the pressure on them. After Clarrke saved Matt Rhodes kick, all we needed was a one more, but Paul Wynne's kick was blocked away by Kouakbi. James Morrison scored under intense pressure, but Saunders then wrote his name in the annals by sending his kick into the lower left hand portion of the goal to send us into the Finals. We will face Manchester City in the Finals after they defeated QPR 1-0.

[Faramir]

25.4.11

Wycombe (3) Holyhead Hotspur (0)

Wycombe took full advantage of our patchwork lineup and poor play in handily beating us 3-0. The match turned on us early when Paolo Galli was redcarded for a cynical foul and Tim Cornelisse converted the penalty kick past Steve Williams. We compounded our woe when a bad giveaway in our area allowed Drew Talbot to fire home past Williams. We never threatened to rally and instead gave them another goal early in the second half when Andy Thomas scored an own-goal to give them their final margin. I was upset with the lack of effort after that 3rd goal and they heard about it after the match.

[Faramir]

27.4.11

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Millwall (0)

Our third match in five days saw us play without our usual heart as we earned a scoreless draw at The New Oval. We were again using a patchwork lineup and they played like they weren't use to each other as we frittered away many opportunities by our poor passing. Millwall had the better scoring chances throughout but Chris May played very solidly in goal today to keep things tidy on the scoreline. Millwall defender Leon Barrett earned MOM honours in a match that saw neither side play well.

[Faramir]

1.5.11

Leeds (1) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

Though the match with 2nd place Leeds didn't mean much in the table, we battled back to earn a 1-1 draw and achieve an unspoken goal of reaching 100 points in the season. We fell behind in the first half when Phil Barnett made a rash challenge of Ryan Rhodes in the area, which resulted in a penalty kick. Robert Vittek converted the penalty past Robert Clarke. We still trailed at halftime and I encouraged the boys to show some life in the second half. We did just that and Michael Holmes scored the equalizer midway through as he half-volleyed a winner past MOM Phil Howell from just outside the edge of the area. We came close to taking all three points in the match, but Howell made several excellent saves in the late stages to preserve the draw.

Championship Table- Final

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

1- Holyhead Hotspur 100 pts (+58)

2- Leeds 85 pts (+25)

3- Plymouth 83 pts (+17)

4- Stoke 79 pts (+19)

5- West Brom 78 pts (+23)

6- Sheffield United 75 pts (+18)

</pre>

[Faramir]

8.5.11

Chelsea clinched their 2nd consecutive EPL title with a win today.

***

11.5.11

Manchester United defeated Deportivo on Penalties to capture the Euro Cup after the two sides battled to a 1-1 draw in regulation.

***

14.5.11

Manchester City (0) Holyhead Hotspur (1) FA Cup Final Extra-Time

It took us until the last minutes of the second portion of Extra-time, but we finally found the goal we needed as Martin Hall's long cross was deflected past Kenneth Stenild by Michael Bradshaw for the match winner as we took the FA Cup 1-0. The jitters were clearly with us in the first half and we didn't play particularly well. We were forced to lean heavily on solid backline play and terrific work in goal by Robert Clarke to keep favoured Manchester City off the scoreboard. Old mate Daniel Hayes was one of the key components of their attack and we had difficulty keeping him under wraps as he had several fine chances in the first half. We seemed to settle down at halftime and played a much more controlled and steady half. We weren't having any luck springing our forward tandem of Michael Holmes and Bradshaw as their coverage kept them from finding any space. The second half found us playing better defensively and we limited their chances quite a bit. The match moved to Extra-time after the scoreless regular time and we had a great opportunity in the first portion as MOM Hector Caceres drilled a shot off the crossbar. They missed a golden chance when Clarke came up with the big save on Hayes in a one-on-one encounter moments later. The match appeared headed for penalties when we capitalized on what appeared to be a very innocent play. Our backline swung the ball from right to left and Hall lofted the ball toward the near left post. Bradshaw, showing exquisite timing slipped in behind the two defenders challenging Holmes for the ball and flicked his header inside the left post. Caceres then earned his MOM honours with a saving tackle just seconds before time ran out and our celebration started.

[coldkohmew]

Hurray Europe!!!

Congrats.

Good story.

Hope you will do well at both fronts.

[Faramir]

coldkohmew- Thanks much It is exciting to get a chance at Europe in our first season in EPL

***

21.5.11

This will be an interesting summer. I managed to get a few new contracts completed- namely Hector Caceres, Stephen Morgan, Gary Saunders and Phil Barnett- but there were several others like Michael Bradshaw and Michael Holmes who want new contracts but we aren't even close when comparing our offers to their expectations. We currently have a bit over 9 Million in the black on our bankline, so I have been responding to a flurry of large transfer offers with 'thanks, but no thanks" on players I want to keep for our first run in EPL play. I don't anticipate a lot of transfer movement on our part during the summer, though I will try to trim a few players.

***

23.5.11

Hector Caceres and Dave Fleming were selected as starters on the Championship Players Select Team. Robert Clarke was selected as a Reserve. All three deserve their honours, but Clarke really should have been the starter on the side.

[Faramir]

4.6.11

It was both strange and wonderful to see Holyhead Hotspur listed on the roster of European Qualification on the basis of our winning the FA Cup. The extra matches will make things a bit more difficult for our young side, but I wouldn't miss the exposure for a moment as we try to take everything in during our EPL debut.

***

19.6.11

The summer has been moving along quietly. About the only thing I have directly accomplished is a heavy slate of friendlies in anticipation of getting the club as ready for EPL play as possible. We have had more transfer offers on several players, but all have been refused at this point.

I was happy the Board indicated they were expanding The New Oval by 1250 seats, which will take 5 months to complete. The upgrades to our training and youth facilities have been completed and we are now ranked with 'Top Facilities and Youth Academy'- something I have been pushing for quite some time. With how young our squad is, it makes perfect sense to have top notch training and youth facilities to develop them. The Board offered me a variety of budgets and I chose a transfer budget of 10 Million, with a weekly wage budget of 220K. I will try to keep our current crop of players under contract together as much as possible.

[Faramir]

20.6.11

This comes in the 'We are with the big boys now' category as we received 19.75 Million in TV funds for the upcoming season. This puts us over the 25 Million mark in the black on our books. Our current wage budget is only just over 100K, compared to the announced budget of 220K, which hopefully will help me as I seek to retain key players.

It was entirely flattering to see us posted as Chelsea's opponent in the Community Shield. Chelsea is the #1 rated club in Europe, two-time defending EPL Champion and obviously a huge favorite to hand us our head. It will be an interesting match to see how our young team responds to the pressure, because we were underestimated in the FA Cup Finals as well.

***

6.7.11

We started off our friendlies with a solid 3-0 win over Gillingham at The New Oval. It was a good start as we executed well and showed a lot of crisp play- something I was pleased to see.

***

9.7.11

Our second friendly saw us run out comfortable winners as we defeated Merthyr Tydfil 2-1 at The New Oval. Their only goal was actually an own-goal on our part, so the match wasn't as close as the score might indicate.

[Faramir]

13.7.11

We hosted Scottish side Ross County in our next friendly and played a strong second half in handing them a 4-1 loss at The New Oval. I tried to schedule more difficult opponents for our friendlies, but most refuse to come visit the small New Oval.

***

16.7.11

It was easy to feel sorry for Cinderford as we demolished them 9-0 at The New Oval. They had agreed to be a last minute substitution as Dundee United was forced to cancel out because of a qualifying match for the Euro Cup. We played a crisp match and Cinderford had no way of coping with our pace and execution in the match.

***

17.7.11

I was very surprised, but pleasantly so, when I was offered a dual job as Manager of the Poland National side. I accepted their offer when they assured me that I could continue my role at Holyhead Hotspur.

[Faramir]

19.7.11

Our 3-1 win over Dundee was a solid effort and pleased the faithful at The New Oval. Though we gave up a bad goal, we played good defense overall.

***

23.7.11

Our first major transfer purchase was 24 year old Danish SC Lasse Qvist who cost 2.3 Million to pry away from FC Kobenhaven. Qvist is a player my scouts loved and he brings us a veteran presence at forward- something I felt we needed to balance all the youth we have there. I am not sure what the forward rotation will be yet, but Qvist is assured a place in it.

[Faramir]

23.7.11

We looked very good in defeating visiting St.Mirren 4-0 at The New Oval. The first pairing of Michael Bradshaw and Lasse Qvist looked very dynamic and Michael Holmes seemed much more comfortable working on the right side of the pitch.

***

27.7.11

Our next to last friendly saw us easily dump Leyton Orient 4-0 at The New Oval. We continue to look very good and our passing has been exceptional as we moved the ball well all match.

***

2.8.11

A late penalty kick allowed us to score a dramatic 3-2 fightback win over Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough as we closed out our friendlies. The bad news was that we won't have Lasse Qvist to open the season as he suffered fractured ribs and will be out at least a month. It is a bit of a blow, but we have plenty of depth at forward.

[Faramir]

Holyhead Hotspur Senior Roster 2011-12 1st Season EPL

(age)

GK

Robert Clarke (21)

Chris May (18)

Steve Williams (19)

DR

Gary Vaughan (20)

Sam Jones (18)

Phil Barnett (21)

DL

Martin Hall (21)

Paolo Galli (24)

DC

Darren Barnes (20)

Hector Caceres (25)

Jack Hobbs (22)

James Stewart (20)

Craig Simpson (18)

MR

Matthew Preston (19)

Bill Walton (19)

Simon Hudson (18)

ML

Dave Fleming (20)

Mark Potter (19)

Richard Booth (20)

MC

Stephen Morgan (20)

Paul Morris (19)

Gary Saunders (18)

Andy Thomas (20)

Tony Owens (19)

James Wilkinson (19)

SC

Michael Bradshaw (20)

Lasse Qvist (24) **Injured

Michael Holmes (21)

Steve Rogers (18)

Josh Palmer (18)

Paul Wynne (18)

Gary Griffin (18)

[Faramir]

3.8.11

Our lineup for the Community Shield match will be:

GK- Steve Williams

DR- Gary Vaughan

DL- Martin Hall

DC- Darren Barnes

DC- Jack Hobbs

MR- Matthew Preston

ML- Dave Fleming

MC- Paul Morris

MC- Stephen Morgan

SC- Michael Bradshaw

SC- Steve Rogers

Sub- Michael Holmes

Sub- Gary Saunders

Sub- Richard Booth

Sub- Chris May

Sub- Hector Caceres (just back from playing for Paraguay in Copa Americana)

Sub- Sam Jones

Sub- Paul Wynne

[Faramir]

7.8.11

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Chelsea (2) Community Shield- Wembley

We gave vaunted Chelsea everything they could handle in the Community Shield match, but the 'Goat of the Match' award went to Richard Booth, who handed Chelsea the chance to score the match winning goal in the second half on a terrible decision. The first half was entertaining as we didn't stand around in awe- we showed Chelsea and the crowd that we were serious about our place here. Chelsea had the better of play, but good work in goal by Steve Williams kept them from taking the lead. We stunned them in first half injury time when Martin Hall made a terrific play in skinning John Heitenga and then moving down the left side. Hall passed back into the middle and Petr Cech tried to smother Steve Rogers chance in the area. Cech got his hands on the ball, but couldn't control it and Dave Fleming was right there to whip a shot into the open goal as we held a 1-0 halftime lead. Chelsea struck back in the opening moments of the second half when Julio Baptista overpowered Jack Hobbs to deflect a cross from Joe Cole past Williams for the equalizer. With several players tiring badly, we brought on subs- one of those being Richard Booth. Booth doomed us when he tried to send a sweeping backpass to Williams, who was out of his area. Baptista was lurking and despite a valiant attempt by Williams to make a saving tackle- was able to tuck a shot inside the right post from 35 yards out for his brace and the match winner as he earned MOM honours. It was a good effort on our part, but the defensive mistakes kept us from winning.

***

EPL Odds by totalbet.com

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

Chelsea 7-4

Arsenal 7-4

Manchester Utd 2-1

Liverpool 5-2

Tottenham 33-1

Charlton 40-1

Holyhead Hotspur 2000-1

</pre>

They think very little of us- despite our efforts in the Community Shield match. Our club is considered much 'too young', but I think they are underrating us. We open on the road to favorites Arsenal, so we get challenged right away.

[milanfan_apoorv]

hehe, lets them frencies gettin whooped.

[milanfan_apoorv]

yeah new page!!

[Faramir]

12.8.11

I was more than a little surprised to have the press contacting me about comments made by Arsenal Manager Arsene Wenger. I hadn't seen them, but Wenger had expressed confidence that Holyhead Hotspur could stay up and he offered me support in that view. I was flattered that the well respected Wenger had taken the time to specifically comment on the 'nobody' club, led by the 'nobody' manager. Responding in the press I briefly commented on the large amount of respect I have for Wenger and how he had earned that through accomplishments- much as I desire to do.

***

13.8.11

Arsenal (4) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

Against Chelsea, we showed no awe, but we failed to keep our composure at Emirates Stadium and allowed Arsenal to manhandle us in the early going as they built a 3-0 first half lead on our mistakes. Robert Clarke saw his first action in awhile and looked rusty in goal to begin. It mattered little though as Clarke had no chance on any of the first three goals by the home side. Paolo Galli, who had a very poor match, failed to mark Steve Howarth at the far post and Howarth's deflection past Clarke gave Arsenal the early lead. They built on that lead when Jose Antonio Reyes slipped away from Hector Caceres and slipped his shot inside the far left post. Galli then handed them the third goal when he dawdled and lost the ball on the dribble. Alan Byrne crossed to an unmarked Reyes in front and he scored for his brace. The good sign I saw from the match was that we didn't quit. We weren't playing well, but we were still trying. Gilberto Silva made it 4-0 with the only 'good' goal Arsenal scored as he made a terrific 25 yard shot past Clarke. Our woes got worse when Steve Rogers landed a right hook on MOM Kola Toure and received an immediate redcard at 58 minutes and likely a lengthy suspension. We battled on with only 10 men and scored as Richard Booth crossed and Matthew Preston deflected it past Carlos Idriss Kameni. It wasn't a good start for us, but I know we can play much better than we did today. We also lost Paul Morris to a badly sprained ankle in the match and he will be out probably a month.

[milanfan_apoorv]

oops, got reverse whooped by dem frenchies. have you won the prem yet? i suppose you cant tellme that

[Faramir]

milanfan- too far ahead in the story

***

19.8.11

It is exceedingly strange to find out the level of respect I have apparently accumulated before our arrival in the EPL. Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez also offered encouraging commments that he thought I would keep Holyhead up. My comments to the press were that I respected Benitez, but that the best club would win in our tilt at The New Oval.

***

20.8.11

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Liverpool (0)

Liverpool outplayed us by a large margin, but this match still could have been a win for us, had not Jose Manuel Reina come up with a trio of key saves in the late going. Early on, Chris May was brilliant in goal for us- especially on a diving save on Freddy Adu and a rising shot from Carlos Tevez that May tipped over the bar. We played better defensively and helped out May several times with saving tackles. Offensively, we gave away too many passes and are still having a difficult time finding our forwards with free space. I count the result as a good one, given the overall level of play from 'Pool compared to ours, but I know we still haven't shown the level of play that we are capable of- as our youngsters are still finding their footing in EPL play. Liverpool defender Asier Del Horno earned MOM honours in the match. Injuries continue to add to our problems as Martin Hall fractured his arm and will be out at least a month. I have to admit opening against Arsenal and Liverpool is not the easiest way to begin a first season of EPL play.

[Faramir]

24.8.11

Everton (1) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

Our first EPL win came on the road at Goodison Park as we showed our true colours- despite featuring a less than optimum lineup- as we defeated Everton 2-1. The first half was scoreless, but not for lack of effort on both sides. Robert Green and Robert Clarke were staging a fantastic keeper duel in the first half with one amazing save after another. Both sides backline were also playing with determination and despite being action packed, it remained scoreless. We struck for two quick goals early in the second half, beginning with a terrific short cross from MOM Matthew Preston that Paul Wynne put past Green just inside the far left post. Less than a minute later it was Tony Owens scoring his 1st goal at Holyhead as he whipped a low shot past Green from just inside the edge of the area after another good pass from Preston. Everton surged to the attack, but our backline was playing well in support of Clarke. The home side got a glimmer of hope when Clarke tried to smother a ball and it got away from him which allowed Danny Webber to slot the ball home. We hung on from there thanks to a kind upright that kept a rocket shot from Paul Hopkins out and Clarke's palming a shot from Simon Jackson over the bar just before the final whistle.

[Faramir]

28.8.11

Holyhead Hotspur (3) Manchester City (1)

The telly audience got to see a taut match filled with twists and turns- especially in the late going- as we survived to win out 3-1 over Manchester City at The New Oval. The match started well for us as Michael Holmes showed his superior finishing by wheeling past Richard Dunne in the area and ripping a shot past Lee Cook on a pass from Bill Walton. We maintained that edge through the first half as Chris May came up with several sensational saves to frustrate Manchester City. The early portions of the second half were closely played as both clubs battled for the next goal. It appeared our fortunes turned toward disaster at 82 minutes when Darren Barnes was redcarded as last man for a highly disputed penalty call. May judged correctly and made a brilliant parry of Peter Luccin's penalty kick. The man disadvantage came back to haunt us moments later as Matthew Hunt shook free to deflect a Stewart Downing cross past May just inside the far, right post. We weren't through though and a nice pass out by Walton set up Gary Griffin. For the third time in the match, Cook had Griffin shaking his head with a nice save, but Holmes had slipped in and hammered home the rebound for his brace to dramatically put us back ahead at 89 minutes. A late corner saw Cook move forward to the attack and Manchester City paid the ultimate price when the ball was headed clear to Holmes and he launched an audacious 75 yard strike that tucked into the open goal to cement his MOM selection and give him a hat-trick in front of a national telly audience.

[Faramir]

30.8.11

The draw for the Euro Cup left us with a difficult opponent as we will face Dutch side Feyenoord.

***

1.9.11

We wound up not making any transfer moves as the August window ended. There were ongoing negotiations, but nothing finalized by the time the window closed.

It was great to see Michael Holmes selected as EPL Young Player of the Month for August. Holmes is really proving he can play at EPL level so far.

***

POLAND

3.9.11

Poland (5) San Marino (0) European Championships Qualifying Group 2

It was a splendid way to debut as we steamrolled San Marino 5-0 at Warsaw in our Group 2 Qualifying match. I was very relieved when we got off on a flyer as MOM Andrzej Niedzielan scored in the opening minute off a nice through ball from Piotr Petasz. A few minutes later a nasty tackle from behind saw San Marino's Luca Selva sent off with a redcard. Niedzielan made it a brace midway through the first half when he snapped home a rebound past Luca Rossi after Rossi parried a hard shot from Ebi Smolarek. Adam Andrzej broke his duck when Smolarek laid a pass off for him just inside the edge of the area and he boomed it past Rossi. We finished off the first half on a good note when Niedzielan sent a looping cross that Michael Delura deflected past Rossi to make it 4-0 at halftime. In the opening moments of the second half Marco Mularoni pushed Delura in the area to give us a penalty kick. Niedzielan calmly converted the penalty kick to complete his hat-trick as we moved up 5-0. We had more chances, but Rossi played very well in keeping the score limited there. Lukasz Fabianski had an easy time putting up the clean sheet in the match. Czech Republic defeated Cyprus in the other Group 2 match. The convincing win moves Poland into 2nd in Group 2- even with Czech Republic with 12 points, but with them holding the tiebreaker. Ireland, with a match in hand, trails us both by 3 points with 9 points overall, while Cyprus and San Marino both have 4 points- though Cyprus has a match in hand too.

[Faramir]

POLAND

7.9.11

Cyprus (0) Poland (0) European Championships Qualifying Group 2

It appears we should have saved at least one of the goals from our last match as we dominated Cyprus and outshot the home side 14-2, but were left with a scoreless draw when we could not find a way to score against keeper Niklos Asprogenous. Our passing was crisp and our shooting was mostly accurate, but the Cypriot keeper was everywhere he had to be. His backline also hacked two balls off the line to save him along the way. Lukasz Fabianski had an easy time putting up another clean sheet for us in the match. MOM honours went to our defender Kamil Lorbiecki. The other Group 2 match saw San Marino stun Ireland as they managed a 1-1 draw against them in San Marino. Our draw temporarily moves us ahead of Czech Republic atop Group 2, although that won't last.

[Faramir]

10.9.11

Manchester United (3) Holyhead Hotspur (3)

The final whistle sounded and 72000+ in attendance gave both clubs a standing ovation in a cracker of a match that saw struggling Manchester United fight back for a 3-3 draw at Old Trafford. This was a match that we could have won, but also could have lost as we had to lean hard on a terrific effort in goal by Robert Clarke to earn a split of the points. We stunned the crowd when we scored before most of them had even taken their seats at the beginning of the match. Kasper Schmeichel made a good parry on a blast from MOM Steve Rogers, but Gary Saunders was right there to sweep the rebound into the open goal to put us off on a flyer. ManU surged to the attack and Clarke dazzled the crowd with some sensational saves. Ruud van Nistelrooy evened the match midway through the half when he slipped the marking of Hector Caceres to deflect a cross from Loic Abenzor past Clarke. ManU took the lead late in the first half when Rio Ferdinand scored his 1st goal of the season as he deflected an Abenzoar corner past Clarke. We pegged them back immediately in first half injury time as Rogers lofted an audacious 30 yard shot over Schmeichel, who was caught taking a couple steps out and could not get back to palm the lofted shot away. The lead was again ours early in the second half when Rogers made it a brace by putting away a nice shot past Schmeichel after a superior pass from Matthew Preston. ManU hammered away, trying to get the equalizer and finally accomplished that when Kieran Richardson whipped a shot past Clarke after pouncing on a loose ball in our area. Both sides had great chances to score the match winner in the late going, but Schmeichel and Clarke had enough magic left to ensure things remain locked at 3-3 through the final whistle. Considering we aren't close to full strength- thanks to our spate of injuries- I found the result a very encouraging one.

[Faramir]

11.9.11

After failing to find forward Andy Smith a new home before the transfer window closed, we let him go on loan to Carlisle for three months. Smith hasn't shown me enough to impress me and I will keep trying to find him a permanent home with another club.

***

15.9.11

Feyenoord (1) Holyhead Hotspur (1) Euro Cup 1st Round Leg 1

Though Feyenoord scouted us, they apparently didn't put much stock in the scouting report. They were in for a rude awakening as we were clearly much quicker than them and our coverage of the pitch and quick passing put them in fits all match. We took the lead midway through the first half when Bill Walton made a pretty cross that found Tony Owens unmarked in front of the Feyenoord goal. Owens snapped his shot past Paco Bazan and their home crowd was a bit stunned. We missed several chances to add to the lead, but to be fair they also had some excellent chances to equalize- only to see Robert Clarke come up with the saves we needed to keep them off the scoreboard. Nick Hofs ruined Clarke's clean sheet with an excellent 25 yard shot that tucked inside the right post after we failed to clear a loose ball far enough out into the midfield. Both sides had chances to move ahead, but the keepers were sharp and we settled for the 1-1 draw. Paolo Galli earned MOM honours in the match for his play for us from leftback.

[Faramir]

18.9.11

Holyhead Hotspur (5) Newcastle (0)

A blistering first half followed by Newcastle's poor second half showing equaled a big 5-0 win at The New Oval. We struck early for the lead when Jack Hobbs deflected MOM Hector Caceres' corner past Shay Given in the opening minutes of play. We built on the lead when Matthew Preston was in the right place to drive home the rebound after Given made a nice save on Andy Thomas' rocket shot from inside the edge of the area. Paul Morris took over after that, celebrating his return to full fitness with a pair of booming shots from beyond the edge of the area. Morris blasted his first past Given into the upper left corner of the goal and then struck for a wickedly curving shot that slipped inside the right post ten minutes later. Chris May did yeoman work in the first half as we built the lead and had several fine saves. We were content to defend in the second half with the lead, but we did get another goal after Marco Baroni handballed in the area and Caceres converted the penalty kick for the final goal.

***

23.9.11

Injuries continue to pile up and not only the minor kind. Paul Morris tore his hamstring today and is likely gone until well into 2012. Hector Caceres' injury to his ankle was less damaging, but he will miss a couple weeks- including our 2nd leg against Feyenoord. We also will be missing Gary Vaughan, whose twisted knee will keep him out 2-3 weeks.

[Faramir]

26.9.11

Sunderland (1) Holyhead Hotspur (6) TV

We are no longer a secret, as we handed Sunderland a 6-1 thrashing in front of a stunned Stadium of Light and national telly audience. Michael Bradshaw, who not done anything so far this season, suddenly showed the superior form we expected of him. Sunderland leaped into the lead when Chris Brown volleyed past Steve Williams on a good pass from Stephen Caldwell at six minutes for his 100th goal at Sunderland. We hit back quickly when MOM Bradshaw sent a curving cross that found Richard Booth lurking unmarked at the far post and Booth deflected past Kelvin Davis for his 1st goal of the season to get the match even at nine minutes. Booth then returned the favor with a deft pass that Bradshaw put away inside the left post for his 1st goal of the season. After Ian Harte was called for a push on Michael Holmes in the area, young Craig Simpson- making his first start- calmly converted the penalty kick for his 1st goal at Holyhead. Holmes then showed superior vision by flicking on a pass that found Bradshaw as he split the center defense of Sunderland and scored his brace at 37 minutes. Bradshaw then cemented his reputation in the telly's unblinking eye as he showed great anticipation in skinning Martin Skrtel just shy of midfield and then racing down the pitch before eluding an attempted tackle and rounding Davis to finish off a quick first half hat-trick with his 2nd goal in two minutes of play. With Bradshaw's goal we took a 5-1 halftime lead. Sunderland came out with more fire to open the second half, but that didn't pay off when Ben Christensen took down Josh Palmer (on for a slightly injured Holmes) as last man and received a redcard while we had our second penalty. Just as in the first penalty, Simpson calmly drilled the ball into the right portion of the goal for a surprising brace and the final goal in our 6-1 barrage of the home side. We lost two more center midfielders in the match as Gary Saunders went out with a bad toe and James Wilkinson suffered bruised ribs- both are expected to miss a couple weeks of action.

[Faramir]

29.9.11

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Feyenoord (1) Euro Cup 1st Round Leg 2- Feyenoord advances on 2-1 aggregate

From the high of our last win to the despair of losing a close match and being broomed from the Euro Cup- such is the life of football. We played a solid match against Feyenoord and had our chances against Paco Bazan, but we could not gain the goal we needed. We almost scored in the opening moment of play, but Gianni Zuiverloon managed to hack the ball off the goal line when it appeared it was going on after a hard shot from Lasse Qvist. The first half was closely played and remained scoreless as both backlines were playing solid positional defense. Andy Thomas had three superb free kicks in the second half- only to see Bazan make diving saves on all three of them. The turning point came from an uxpected source- Robert Clarke. Clarke, who had been excellent in the match, made a horrible mis-hit of a goal kick. Clarke managed to parry the shot from Danko Lazovic- who the ball had gone directly to- but the rebound bounced to Cristiano and he put the shot away into the open right side of the goal. We tried our best, but the experience of Feyenoord came into play with them gaining the lead and they closed out the closely played win to send our fans home disappointed. MOM honours went to Feyenoord defender Miguel Buades.

[Faramir]

2.10.11

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Charlton (1)

It could have been a better result, but we didn't really play very well against Charlton and were a bit fortunate to escape with a 1-1 draw at The New Oval. We squandered a strong first half as we failed to score on Daniel Nieto, despite some wonderful chances. To be fair, Nieto was dazzling in goal as his acrobatic saves left even our fans oohing and ahhing. Charlton came out more organized to open the second half and it paid dividends when MOM Darren Bent slipped free of our marking to rifle a shot past Chris May after Claudio Pizzaro headed the ball down for him just inside the edge of the area. We equalized when James Fleming was called for a trip of Michael Holmes in their area. Andy Thomas converted the goal kick past Nieto for his 1st goal of the season. Neither side came close to breaking the deadlock and settled for splitting the points.

[Faramir]

POLAND

12.10.11

Poland (0) Czech Republic (3) Euro Championships Qualifying Group 2

Czech Republic proved they were the class of Group 2 as they took advantage of a horrible match by our backline to hand us a stinging 3-0 loss in Warsaw. MOM honours went to Vaclav Sverkos as his first half hat-trick was our ruination. This was a self-inflicted loss as every assist on Sverkos' goals came directly from our backline as our horrid passing triggered each goal. Jakub Rzezniczak gave away the first goal with a backpass right to Sverkos and Lukasz Fabianski had no chance to stop him. Sverkos skinned Sebastien Madera and scored past Fabianski for his brace and then finished his hat-trick when he stepped in front of Kuba Platnek and took his crossing pass right in to score. We tried to rally, but Petr Cech proved why he is regarded as one of Europe's best keepers by making several timely stops to keep us from gaining any momentum. It was a deserved loss in a showdown match for the top spot in the Group. Fortunately, we do finish in 2nd as we held the tiebreaker over Ireland with both of us at 13 points and will now face against Belgium in one month to qualify for the European Championships.

[Faramir]

16.10.11

Norwich (2) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

Though we held the first half lead, I could sense trouble in the second half and it came to pass as we allowed Norwich to fight back and hand us a disappointing 2-1 loss at Carrow Road. Michael Bradshaw scored midway through the first half thanks to a nice pass from Richard Booth and we were more than a bit fortunate to keep that lead at halftime as Robert Clarke had been called on to make a trio of timely saves. Our backline play in the second half was very inconsistent and we paid the price for it. Keeper Ricardo Batista, who had a fine match, picked out Jose Mora with a long goal kick and caught our center defenders sleeping. Mora motored down the pitch and beat Clarke cleanly for the equalizer. Shortly after, Ryan Dickson sent a terrific cross that Will Smith powered past Clarke to give them the lead. Our effort to rally was doomed to failure as we were clearly flagging in our effort and went quietly to a frustrating loss.

[Faramir]

22.10.11

Holyhead Hotspur (3) Nottingham Forest (1)

We rebounded nicely, though it took us until the second half to get going, as we dumped the Tricky Trees 3-1 at Larksfield Road. A good first half was a goal today and offensively we created the type of chances we needed. We didn't finish well though and could not score on James Cousins in the half, though we did lose a goal by Lasse Qvist on a disputed offside call. Our backline struggled at times and after avoiding too close calls- including Rey Valpato rounding Robert Clarke, only to miss the wide open goal- we finally paid the price when Craig Simpson dallied on the ball. Ciprian Andrei Marica skinned Simpson and slipped the ball past Clarke inside the right post. After halftime, we appeared much more focused and evened the match right away after John Kennedy tripped MOM Michael Bradshaw in the area. Simpson atoned for his earlier mistake by calmly slotting his penalty kick past Cousins. Midway through the half Bradshaw took over for us and he fired a well placed shot past Cousins after a nice lay off pass from Qvist. Bradshaw then cemented the win as he made it a brace after a nice pass from Tony Owens for his 5th goal of the season as we finished out our 3-1 win.

***

24.10.11

Stephen Morgan continues to have hard luck as he received his 3rd injury of the season- already- during practice today. A bruised and bandaged head after a practice collision will keep him out another two weeks at the minimum.

[Faramir]

26.10.11

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Manchester United (2)League Cup 3rd Round

It was a game effort on our part, but the tone seemed set early on when Michael Holmes missed putting the ball into the open side of the goal after a good pass from Steve Rogers. Manchester United hammered away early and it was Matt Lloyd who gave them the lead when he deflected a centering pass from MOM Gabriel Heinze past Steve Williams. We had a few other chances, but after Ruud van Nistelrooy scored a wonder goal early in the second half, we didn't seem to have quite the heart to survive the blow and the match played out quietly from there as they broomed us out of the League Cup.

[Faramir]

29.10.11

West Ham (1) Holyhead Hotspur (2)

Once again, we were forced to fight back after trailing early and the boys did a nice job as we won out 2-1 in a closely played match over West Ham at Upton Park. The home crowd was quickly into the match after a poor clearance by our backline allowed Arnaud Mallinger to cross and Maciej Korzym to deflect past Robert Clarke to put them off on a flyer. We equalized at 14 minutes when Jack Hobbs deflected a Simon Walton corner past Paul Lancaster. We had the better of play the rest of the first half, but their consistent tackling kept us from really getting any good scoring chances. West Ham surged out after halftime and only fine work from Robert Clarke kept them from gaining the lead. We scored the match winner midway through the second half as Mark Woods headed away a cross from Walton. Andy Thomas came into the play late and blasted the loose ball for a 25 yard winner past Lancaster. We held on from there as they sent everyone forward trying to equalize. Hobbs earned MOM honours in the match for us.

[Faramir]

5.11.11

Holyhead Hotspur (0) Blackburn (0)

Though we played better than Blackburn, we didn't finish well and that cost us a chance to win as we settled for a scoreless draw at The New Oval. Michael Holmes had two glorious chances- one in each half- but Chris Kirkland got the better of him both times. On the first time, Holmes let the dribble go too far in front of him and Kirkland smothered the chance. In the second half Kirkland got his fingertips on Holmes' rising shot and pushed it just over the upper right corner of the goal. Robert Clarke saved our point from the match in the late going when he palmed away Chris Scott's low blast. Blackburn's midfielder Jonathan Douglas received MOM honours in the match.

[Faramir]

POLAND

12.11.11

Poland (2) Belgium (2) Euro Championship Qualifying Playoff Round Leg 1

I was pleased with our play overall, but we let down and our backline didn't give Artur Boruc the support he needed down the stretch as we allowed Belgium to fight back for a 2-2 draw in our first leg match. The result means we will have to beat Belgium on their home soil to advance into the European Championships. Boruc was brilliant in the first half as he single-handedly kept the powerful Belgium forwards off the scoreboard with timely saves on Wesley Sonck and Stein Huysegems. We took the halftime lead when Maciej Korzym put home his own rebound after Silvio Proto made the initial save in first half injury time. Proto did well to keep us off the scoreline until that goal as we generated some quality chances. We moved ahead 2-0 early in the second half when Adam Andrzej drilled a 25 yard free kick past Proto and sent the crowd into rapture. The good feelings didn't last as Huysegems slipped free of Przemek Balkowski's attempt to mark him when he deflected a long pass from Guy Dufour past Boruc. We desperately tried to keep the lead, but at 87 minutes it was Patrick de Schryver who slipped in to head a Huysegems cross at the far post for a dramatic equalizer. It will be a difficult test, but if we can play with composure- we may well have a chance in Brussels.

[milanfan_apoorv]

lets get on wid it!

[Faramir]

milanfan- sorry, was shovelling snow a bit this weekend

***

POLAND

16.11.11

Belgium (0) Poland (1) Euro Championship Qualifying Playoff Round Leg 2 (Poland advances on 3-2 aggregate)

In a stellar day for Polish football, we didn't back off at all in challenging Belgium on their home pitch and defeated them 1-0 in one of our best played matches to advance to the European Championships. In reality, we should have won easier than we actually did. We looked to score in the opening moments of the match when Maciej Korzym broke in and had an open goal after Silvio Proto parried Michael Delura's shot. Thomas Vermaelen stymied Korzym with a terrific saving tackle before just as he got the shot off and the ball bounced well wide. Vermaelen's heroics were early, but he will likely be the goat of the game to the Belgian fans after he tripped Korzym in the area. MOM Adam Andrzej calmly converted the penalty past Proto and we had the lead. We maintained that lead to halftime and I warned the boys that Belgium would come storming out in the second half. That was the case and Lukasz Fabianski did yeoman work in goal with several key saves under heavy pressure. I was getting frustrated with the officiating as offsides calls had nullified three excellent counter-attacks for us and then another cost us a goal when Andrzej Niedzielan pushed a ball past a diving Proto, only to see himself called offside. On our end though, Belgium was never offside- despite their forwards ranging well past our backline. Down the stretch it was more intense pressure, but our backline really stepped up and led by Mariusz Lewandowski, we survived to help Fabianski keep his deserved clean sheet- which will put us into the Championships.

[Faramir]

19.11.11

Our next home match will celebrate the completion of the stadium expansion. The addition will bring The New Oval up to 3750 capacity (2350 seated), but we at least have top level training facilities and an excellent youth academy.

***

26.11.11

Holyhead Hotspur (1) Aston Villa (1)

Another match that we should have won, but instead wound up fighting back to earn a 1-1 draw at The New Oval. We dominated the first half of play. That domination didn't turn into goals due to good tackling by the Villa backline, good keeping from Vitor and the officiating as Steve Rogers' goal was waived off when he was ruled offside. I fail to see how they could make the call on Rogers (possibly a step offside) and stick their whistles away when Villa's Luke Moore was miles offside- not once, but twice. We went to half scoreless and a bit frustrated. Villa took the lead early in the second half when Jack Hobbs made a terrible play and lost the ball to Moore. When Moore skinned Hobbs he caught all of our backline going forward and he motored down the pitch to score a terrific goal past Robert Clarke. We weren't about to quit and finally gained the equalizer when Josh Palmer, in for slightly injured Lasse Qvist, looped a cross that Rogers deflected past Vitor to even things at 1-1. Neither side could get late match winner and settled for splitting the points. Rogers earned MOM honours.

[Faramir]

30.11.11

Sheffield United (1) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

In a virtual replay of the Villa match, we outplayed Sheffield United by a large margin but were forced to settle for splitting the points against them as we fought back for a 1-1 draw at Bramall Lane. Our bad play that handed them the lead midway through the first half was a collaboration of sorts as Mark Potter sent an idiotic backpass (from well inside Sheffield's side of the pitch), followed by Craig Simpson just standing there and watching as Mitchell Murphy swooped in and fired a shot past Chris May. We battled back for the equalizer early in the second half as Michael Bradshaw showed exquisite touch in lofting a 35 yard shot over Ciro D'Ambrosio after the Italian keeper got caught ranging too far afield by a good pass from Richard Booth. Bradshaw earned MOM honours in the match but wouldn't score again as I was forced to remove him with a slight injury.

[Faramir]

3.12.11

Chelsea (4) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

Though we gained the lead, our backline play ensured that it would be Chelsea winning today as they easily dumped us 4-1 at Stamford Bridge. Lasse Qvist scored his 1st ever goal for us as he whipped a shot past Petr Cech on a cross from Steve Rogers. Chelsea equalized when Arjen Robben betwitched two defenders on the dribble and then celebrated when his shot trickled past Robert Clarke and into the goal. Robben made it a quickfire double with a fluke goal on a cross that sailed into the upper right corner of the goal after Gary Vaughan wandered away from him up the pitch. Yakubu took advantage of poor communication between Darren Barnes and James Stewart to add another goal to the lead early in the second half. Ricardo Carvalho deflected a corner past Clarke for the final goal in second half injury time. Overall, I didn't feel we played too badly, but the horrible backline play led to a loss that we deserved.

[Faramir]

POLAND

6.12.11

We were drawn into an interesting mixture of clubs for the World Cup Qualifying as we will be competing with France, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania and Armenia in Group 4.

***

10.12.11

Holyhead Hotspur (3) Bolton (0)

After our last stretch of matches, it was good to finally earn a comfortable win with a strong all-around effort as we thumped Bolton 3-0 at The New Oval. Michael Holmes was ready to have a good match he keyed the win for us. Holmes gave us the lead early on with an audacious 25 yard lob over Stephen Williams as he spotted Williams slightly off his line. It was a battle of the Williams boys in goal as Steve was performing well in our goal and made key saves on Carlton Cole and Gary Thompson in the early going to keep us in the lead. Midway through the half, Josemi tripped Holmes in the area and Dave Fleming converted the penalty kick past Stephen Williams to make it a 2-0 match. We kept that lead to halftime and then applied more pressure to begin the second half. Holmes made it a brace on the day when Michael Bradshaw flicked on a pass to allow Holmes an easy score for his 5th goal of the season. Our backline worked hard in helping Steve Williams earn the clean sheet in the win. Paolo Galli earned MOM honours for us with his dynamic play from leftback.

[Faramir]

POLAND

11.12.11

Our European Championship Group 4 draw is extremely challenging. Besides Germany, we will also be facing Czech Republic and Slovenia.

***

13.12.11

As the opening of the transfer window looms, I wasn't surprised to see the enquiries start to arrive again about our players. Both Chelsea and Arsenal offered me 13.75 Million for Matthew Preston, but I turned both of them down. We don't really need the money (we remain 17 Million in the black on our books) and I have no intention of letting our excellent youngsters wander down the road to the big EPL clubs- not while we can afford to keep them and have them contribute to our success.

***

13.12.11

The other half of the transfer equation is considering whether to add anyone. Earlier in the season I believed the addition of Lasse Qvist might be the one that we needed. Qvist has played well, though not really scoring for us yet, after getting over his injuries and I think he will be a key contributor in the stretch run. I also see a need for an experienced center defender and a worthy rightback. With the injuries that Hector Caceres has suffered- he has only played 3 matches this season, though he finally is back in training again- and the inability (or unreadiness) shown by James Stewart and Craig Simpson, we do need another presence to help us. Gary Vaughan, Sam Jones and occasionally Phil Barnett have not shown me as much as I had hoped at rightback either. These two spots are where I am planning on spending the limited (well in comparison to most EPL clubs) transfer funds available.

[Faramir]

17.12.11

Middlesbrough (2) Holyhead Hotspur (1)

We dug ourselves too deep of a hole to get out of this time as Middlesbrough defeated us 2-1 at Riverside Stadium. Brazilian forward Schumaker scored in the 1st minute when he caught Robert Clarke leaning forward and chipped a shot over him for his 5th goal of the season. We showed none of the crispness that characterized our previous match and had trouble breaking down the stubborn Middlesbrough defense. Midway through the second half Darren Barnes pushed Mark Green in the area. Green converted the penalty kick and we were down 2-0. We drew a goal back when Michael Holmes wheeled and scored past Kenneth Steinld to give us a glimmer of hope. Hope wasn't enough today as Stenild earned MOM honours for preserving the win for the home side.