Taking Town To The Top

[B.W.G]

It's been ten years since I first started posting on the forums.My very first save was with Ludlow Town on FM 10 in which I was posting in the Small Club to Big Club Extended Edition topic back on the Challenges,Sign-Ups & Experiments section.

So for a tenth anniversary treat,I will be doing a one club save in which I will be starting in the tenth tier of English football and hopefully going all the way.The club chosen for this endeavor is...

As Oswestry Town FC...

Oswestry Town Football Club was a football club from Shropshire, playing at Victoria Road. They joined the Birmingham League in 1924 and switched to the Cheshire County League in 1959. In 1975 they made the move to the Southern League before transferring to the Northern Premier League in 1979.

The club folded in 1988, but reformed in 1993 playing in the Welsh National League (Wrexham Area). They played in the League of Wales from 2000 to 2003, at Park Hall, and in 2003 merged with Total Network Solutions F.C. (formerly Llansantffraid F.C.). In 2006 the merged club was renamed as The New Saints.

As FC Oswestry Town....

The club was formed in 2013 as a successor to Oswestry Lions, who had folded, and took the Lions' place in Division One of the Mercian Regional League.[3] After finishing third in their first season,they were promoted to the Premier Division. Their first season in the Premier Division saw the club finish fifth,as they also won the Commander Ethelstone Cup.The club went on to win the Premier Division in 2015–16,earning promotion to Division One of the North West Counties League.The season also saw them retain the Commander Ethelstone Cup as well as winning the League Cup and Shropshire Challenge Cup.

Leagues Loaded

Six Leagues loaded.However there have been some additional leagues downloaded to give things a bit more detail as plenty can change in the future,will a small minnow come to the big time,will a giant fall or will mediocrity carry on for some teams.There is a reason I have put Wales on and that is because TNS are my parent team and I really want to get to the point where I can make them my feeder team instead of being their feeder team.

Aims of the Game

Win the Premier League.

Win the Champions League

With the Club World Cup.

Win the Champions League with British Players

Win the Champions League using players from the Youth Team.

Make TNS the feeder team at some point.

Have my own Stadium

Make FC Oswestry Town the biggest team in the World.

Top the Manager's Hall of Fame for the Worldwide section. 

Can't be that difficult.....right?

[B.W.G]

Hall of Fame

Reserved till we actually have someone worthwhile for here!

Edited January 29, 2020 by B.W.G

[B.W.G]

Club Background

Club Vision

The Team

Manager's Thoughts

Well I've come into now a lot,we're an amateur club so I am expecting a high turnover of players for the time being although finding players to match the board's vision may be a bit difficult,there is literally no staff outside of the Chairman and Assistant manager so that will be first priority before we can get started at looking at the team.As for the team itself,that is our first team,we have players in the u23's and under 18's who have a lot of potential but the ability is lacking a lot and won't be ready for the first team for quite a while so I will have to dive into the transfer market to get a team ready for the start of the season.

As for the facilities,we have have a good size ground for a club of our stature as we share the ground with TNS,they do own the ground but we don't have to pay rent which is always great.Overall we have the best facilities in the league which could be useful in the future as we won't have to pay for any upgrades for a while but it looks like we also share them with TNS so the youth candidate day could be a bit interesting due to sharing,I think TNS will get the better players for now until we topple them in the rankings list.

[WillHoward42]

Good luck!

[B.W.G]

5 hours ago, WillHoward42 said:

Good luck!

Thanks

I think if we can keep the majority of the team together then we should be alright although being an amateur side could count against us as we have no way of protecting the players from getting poached.

[B.W.G]

Hallmark Security League NW Division South - Pre-Season - 2019/20

General - Club Vision - Facilities - Finances

Season Preview - Expectations

Transfers - Released

No players were released but that was to be expected as I wanted to build a team and we had a very thin squad to begin with.One player left as Sam Spridgeon left to join Cymru North side Buckley,to be honest I didn't even see him in the squad so he must of left before I took over!During the pre-season,we signed fifteen players as I looked to strengthen the team by quite a bit as I'm looking to beat the boards expectations this season.

Pre-Season Fixtures

It was a bit of a mixed bag during the summer as I focused more on bringing plaIt's yers in than on the actual games so I used them for fitness purposes to get them ready for the new season.I'm not even taking the 10-1 win over Bangor 1876 into account as that was for a morale boost as the are a fifth tier Welsh side.We definitely looked stronger in the latter games as the new players looked to be settling in.

The Team

Key Players

Sam Greenwood

Jacob Rammell

Harry Bircumshaw

Jake Lofthouse

Manager's Thoughts

It's been a productive pre-season all around as we built a team ready for the new season.We've managed to fill in all the spots for the staff roles with exception to the Director of Football role but I have no intention of filling that role unless I'm told to,I've started looking around for staff for the u23's and u18's to help develop the younger players.We now have twenty eight players in the first team which is a good number although I could do with better quality backups for some but we should be fine for now as I don't think tier 10 has to deal with the transfer window so I can sign players whenever I need to or when I want to as a player of really good quality may show up from being scouted.

As for the expectations,the board want a top half finish while the media have made us heavy favourites for this season,I think we could push for the top two spots if we can keep everyone together as there doesn't seem to be a lot of quality when I looked at the teams but it was surprising to see Vauxhall Motors down here as I remember seeing them in tier six about six years ago!We're not expected to do much in the cups so hopefully the draw will be nice to us so we can get more money in.I will also be asking to do my National C license as we have just over £5k in the bank so hopefully the chairman will be nice to me and let me develop myself.Time to get this show on the road!

Edited February 2, 2020 by B.W.G

[B.W.G]

I'm actually quite surprised he has let me go on a training course for my badge this early as I've been at the club 31 days.Might ask to go on another in December if the finances are right but it''s a good start so far.

[kingjericho]

Looking forward to your progress  

[B.W.G]

1 hour ago, kingjericho said:

Looking forward to your progress  

Thanks  We've started off very well on the pitch but I've had to change things up off the pitch due to players being poached.

[B.W.G]

August 2019

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

First up some transfer news,two players left the club for other teams and we bought in three players,two of these were to replace the players we lost while the other was to add more depth to central defence as we were lacking in that area.

As for the results,it was a perfect start as we won every game,I do feel a bit bad on Stockport Town as they gave us more of a challenge then most of the teams so losing 8-0 was a bit harsh on them,no complaints so far although it is pretty tight at the top in these early days as three points separate the top four but we do have a game in hand on Maine Road.We finished the month off with a 6-1 win over St.Martins in the FA Vase,this was a bit of a weird situation as they fielded a completely different starting XI from when we beat them 1-0 in the league so it looks to me like they threw the cup game.

Six games in September,five of these are in the league while the other is in the FA Vase.In the league we will be facing Abbey Hulton Utd,Maine Road,West Didsbury & Chorlton,Cammell Laird and Cheadle Heath Nomads,my aim is to keep our form going as it is still very early into the league campaign so it is important to keep the form going for as long as possible.No idea who we will face in the FA Vase as the draw hasn't been made yet but I will be going all out as there is money at stake and that will help us boost our balance in the future.

[B.W.G]

September 2019

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

We went the month undefeated but we did drop points against Maine Road which was a bit annoying as our attackers had an off day,the defence on the other hand was impenetrable as no one could hit our net.We currently sit at the top of the table but as you can see it is pretty close as there are three monster teams if you include ourselves,Abbey Hey have a game in hand on us and will equal our points if they win so I am thankful for our superior goal difference,Alsager had no trouble keeping up with us but I was surprised to see them lose 5-2 to Eccleshall in their last game.

Five games in October,four of these are league games while the other match is in the FA Vase.In the league we face Ellesmere Rangers,Abbey Hey,Vauxhall and Cheadle Town,the game against Abbey Hey is a massive match as they are our nearest challengers and we are both undefeated with similar records so that will be an intense affair.As for the other games,the other teams are around mid-table so I will need to keep gaining points to stay in the top two as it is still pretty close at the top.In the FA Vase we will be facing Ash,they are a tier 10 side and they currently sit in 12th in their league so we should have more than enough to see them off as I will be fielding a strong side.

[B.W.G]

October 2019

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

We went unbeaten again but after this month,I think complacency is starting to slip into the players games as several times we have messed things up but we have only really been punished once.We picked up thirteen points during the month,the game where we dropped points was against Abbey Hey where we were 2-0 up and ended up drawing against ten men.We had to come behind against Vauxhall which was a poor performance despite winning and we only won 4-1 because Wythenshawe Amateurs had nine men on the pitch and they still scored.We recorded a good result against Ash but wasn't much to say as fouls kept breaking play up but I'm glad to have gotten through.

Six games in November,four are in the league,one is in the FA Vase and the other match is in North West Counties League Cup.We kick the month off with the FA Vase match against Northallerton,this should be our toughest match as they seem to be a decent side in the ninth tier so we will get to see how we will do against bigger opposition.We then play Golcar United in the North West Counties League Cup,they play in the north division and currently sit in 14th so we should be able to beat them and I do want another cup run just to help with the finnances.In the league we will be facing Alsager,Barnton,Wythenshawe Town and Maine Road,I want us to carry on our good form but I also want to beat Maine Road as they are one of two teams to take points off us this season.

[B.W.G]

November 2019

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

It was a very good month overall as we picked up seven points from nine which leaves us at the top with a gap of eight points over Abbey Hey,Maine Road did manager to keep us out again which means we have failed to beat and score against them this season which is annoying.As for the cups,we beat Northallerton and Newmarket to move onto the fourth round.We also beat Golcar Utd in the North West Counties League cup to move onto the next round,all I can say about the cup games is that they were all simple affairs and we never looked like losing any of them.

Six games in December,five are in the league while the other is in the North West Counties League Cup.In the league we will face Barnton,Cammell Laird,West Didsbury & Chorlton,Abbey Hulton Utd and Eccleshall,my only aim for the league is to keep our run going as we should be pushing for the title as we have a good gap over second place.In the North West Counties League Cup,we will be facing Hanley who currently sit in 8th in the league above,it should be a good test for the players as they always seem to be up for the cup games when compared to the league games.The most important thing to me in December is the Youth Candidate preview,fingers crossed the preview looks good as it could mean we have youngsters to help add depth to the team.

[B.W.G]

Youth Intake Preview 2019/20

Honestly it doesn't look as bad as the personal assistant manager makes it look.If you look at the negative points of the preview,I don't use defensive midfielders or wing backs as I'm using a 4-4-2 formation,this is also the same case for the attacking midfielders as I haven't really needed to use a 4-2-4 formation.If we take those three negative points out then it looks to be more in our favour although the line of don't expect much from this youth intake is a bit concerning but they can't possibly be worse than the youngsters currently in our under 18's!

[Kingofcm03]

Good luck with this! Nice little town as well.

The sharing with TNS and how that plays out will be interesting. I would assume they will get mostly the best Welsh and once you get higher you can get the better English players.

[B.W.G]

Thanks

The youth intake players is rather unusual.I did a test save using just England and Wales to see how it runs,they both got a similar amount of English and Welsh players through the youth system but both teams favoured the English slightly more.

I'm guessing this is because Oswestry is in England but with it being about five miles (8km) away from the Welsh border then we will get two or three Welsh players through every season,although if we can max out our facilities then theoretically we could help both England and Wales in the future.

[Kingofcm03]

1 hour ago, B.W.G said:

Thanks

The youth intake players is rather unusual.I did a test save using just England and Wales to see how it runs,they both got a similar amount of English and Welsh players through the youth system but both teams favoured the English slightly more.

I'm guessing this is because Oswestry is in England but with it being about five miles (8km) away from the Welsh border then we will get two or three Welsh players through every season,although if we can max out our facilities then theoretically we could help both England and Wales in the future.

TNS are mildly cheating however, their stadium is in England by the looks of it? They also have more English players vs Welsh hahaha

[B.W.G]

December 2019

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

First up we played one less game as the game against West Didsbury & Chorlton was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch so I can't wait till we get a stadium with a roof!As for the performance in the league,we picked up nine points from twelve as we suffered out first defeat in every competition as we lost to Cammell Laird,it was annoying but it didn't affect us too much.Surprisingly,despite beating Eccleshall 8-0,it wasn't the highest scoring game of the day as New Mills beat Abbey Hulton 7-3!In the North West Counties League Cup,we beat Hanley 1-0 in what was a poor performance so I was grateful that our left back scored  a cracker.

Seven games in January,five are in the league,one in the  FA Vase and one in the North West Counties League Cup.In the league we face Wythenshawe Town,Stockport Town,Alsager,West Didsbury & Chorlton and Wythenshawe Amateurs.We have an eight point lead over third place so I want us to carry on our good form and stay in the top two come the end of month.In the FA Vase we will be facing divisional rivals Abbey Hey,with the teams that are left in the competition,I wouldn't be surprised if a tier 10 side wins the competition.We face Charnock Richard in the North West Counties League Cup,they play in the tier above but are a relegation battler so we should be able to beat them.

[B.W.G]

January 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

First up,I am despising Cammell Laird who are becoming our bogey team as they knocked us out on penalties in the North West Counties League Cup which was disappointing as I felt we had a good chance of winning the competition.In the league we won all five league games as we opened up a nine point lead at the top,we also gave the fans entertainment as our five league game featured 31 goals!We beat Abbey Hey in the FA Vase,they just had a bad game as they lost three players to injury and had one sent off,if they had a bit luck it would have been a different game but I'll take an easy win as we move onto the 5th round.

February will see us play six times,five are in the league and the other is in the FA Vase.In the league we will be facing Barnton,Cheadle Town,Ellesmere Rangers,Cheadle Heath Nomads and Vauxhall,we have a eleven point lead over third so we are pretty much guaranteed to be in the top two come the end of the month,our run is against teams who are mid-table and below so I don't see why we cant win all the games.In the FA Vase we will be facing Yorkshire Amateurs,this will be a very tough game as they are currently sitting first in the Northern Counties East Premier (Tier 9),this will be our hardest test but the league is our main focus but we will be trying our best to go further as the money will be a godsend for us.

[B.W.G]

February 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

We lost three players to other clubs which has left the first team a bit lighter than I would like but I haven't replace them as I've not found anyone suitable.As for the performances,I'll get the rubbish one out of the way,we were knocked out of the FA Vase by Yorkshire Amateurs on penalties which means we are 0 for 2 when it comes to penalty shoot outs!As for the league,we won all five games which means we wrapped up promotion and we need two points from our remaining games to outright clinch the title so I think we have pretty much the title wrapped up.The attendance against Vauxhall was a bit of anomaly as we had 376 people watch the game which is 99 higher than our previous higher,this is down to having a fan day which people were allowed in for free,we had a good reaction and it looks like it could be good for the future.

Four games in March as we face Abbey Hey,New Mills,St.Martins and Sandbach.We just need one more win to clinch the title and we can do it in our first game against our nearest challengers which would be brilliant.I will also start looking for new signings as we get ready for next season,there are four player I definitely want to keep so I will be looking to add to this.My only aim is to win the title and start looking to get ready for next season.For those interested in the youth,you'll have to wait till April!

[B.W.G]

March 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

Four games,four wins as we clinched they title in style.The win against Sandbach was a new record but we were helped by them being reduced to ten men early in the first half.Only transfer news I've bought in a new goalkeeper and a central midfielder,the keeper will be our first choice as long as he is here as he is much better than our current one while the central midfielder was bought in to add depth to the central area.

Just the one game in April as we close the season out with a trip to Stone OA,season is already done with as everything has been already decided with ourselves and Abbey Hey going up.The most important thing for me comes in April and that is the upcoming youth intake,I am pretty excited to see who we get through as the overall thoughts has changed.....

A real golden generation for the club....ooooooh!!

[B.W.G]

Youth Intake 2019/20

The Intake

The Hot Prospects

Manager's Thoughts

The intake isn't actually as bad as it looks,it's just that compared to the best players at the club,it doesn't look like much.I'm pretty confident that both Taylor and Reckford could both easily be fringe players already while they would more than likely be starting games at other clubs of this level.Overall I am pretty confident that this candidate team would destroy my current u18 team so I will be keeping them all even if they would be emergency backup.

Other Nationalities - 0

Dual Nationalities - 3 

Timi Hokkanen - English/Finnish

Christodoulos Nikolaou - English/Cypriot

Jonathan O'Neill - English/Irish

[B.W.G]

April 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager' Thoughts

Our final game of the season saw our left back Lewis Blackshaw spare our blushes as he netted twice,I'm pretty confident that my attackers could of had another 90 minutes and not score.Really impressed with how we have performed in the league so it was brilliant to finish on a high.

End of Season update to come before we move onto tier 9!

Edited February 1, 2020 by B.W.G

[kingjericho]

1 loss at this level is insane!

[B.W.G]

22 hours ago, kingjericho said:

1 loss at this level is insane!

We were great but it's down to finding the better players who were a step up from the rest of the league combined with poor squad building from the AI.The problem now is that we are going semi-pro which means we will be going onto non-contracts and appearance fees which will cause a problems with the finances,this means our best performing will probably want more than any new players.

[B.W.G]

Hallmark Security League NW Division South - End of Season - 2019/20

General - Facilities - Finances

Season Review

Transfers - Released

Three players were released as they were complaining about lack of game time when they were not good enough for the team.We lost seven players to other clubs during the season,the two biggest losses were Fearon and Barkway,both were getting game time but decided to leave which was quite annoying.We bought in 23 players over the course of the season,some were to replace the players we lost while others were to give us a much stronger team than what we started with.

Schedule 1 - Schedule 2 - Schedule 3

Competitions

NW Division South - Winners

It ended up being a walk in the park as we were much stronger than any other team in the league.It was a really impressive team effort and we had six players in the list of top 20 goal scorers as those six scored a combined 81 goals between them.I am confident to say that there is no way that these records will be broken any time soon.This sort of form won't keep happening as we move up as the challenge to keep the finances stable begins.

FA Vase - 5th Round

We beat St.Martins,Camelford,Ash,Northallerton,New Market and Abbey Hey on the way to the fifth round.As for the match itself,we were lucky we even got it to penalties,Yorkshire Amateurs probably deserved to win it sooner but the right team went through.This shows that we still have a bit of work to do in the next tier as Yorkshire Amateurs won their league to move up to tier eight.

North West Counties League Cup - Quarter-Finals

We beat Golcar Utd,Hanley and Charnock Richards to reach the quarter finals.As for the match against Cammell Laird,this will go down as the most disappointing result this season as we were the much better side and we failed to convert our chances as we ended up losing on penalties.Even though we lost,we can at least say we lost to the eventual winners as they beat Abbey Hey in the final.

Players,Stats and Awards

Stats - Awards - Best XI

The Team

Jacob Rammell

Kel Akpobire

Lewis Blackshaw

Sam Greenwood

Ryan Smith

Manager's Thoughts

In the league,it was a fantastic season as we won it at our first attempt as we steam rolled the competition to clinch my first bit of silverware at the club.The cup competitions saw us bow out both times on penalties which gives me something to work on,the upside to this was the board were more than happy with the performances in the cups.This season saw the perks of being an amateur clubs as we constantly made money during each month which means we finish the season with £49.7k in the bank,this leaves us in a okay position for finances as we are way down the rankings.Not much else to say as it is still early days but I do find it a bit bizarre to finish the season in April but that just gives me more time to scout potential new players.

As for next season,the board have already spoke about going semi-professional.It is a good thing as it will potentially attract more players to the club but at the same time,it could cause more losses in the finance section as players will more than likely want non-contracts with appearance fees but we should also gain a bit more as we may have an average attendance wise due to the promotion.I do want to keep quite a few of the team so I will be looking to move them to non-contracts as soon as possible but I think I need to look at the wings as they are our weakest area.The board vision is to get promotion by winning the lead but I know we will need to strengthen to try and make that a reality.

 

Edited February 4, 2020 by B.W.G

[B.W.G]

Club have gone semi-professional.This should allow us to attract better players to the club as we can now offer non-contracts so at least players will get paid now!

[Northernpilgrim]

Great start, KUTGW

[Nobby_McDonald]

Romped that.

[B.W.G]

11 hours ago, Northernpilgrim said:

Great start, KUTGW

Thanks!

2 hours ago, Nobby_McDonald said:

Romped that.

We did indeed,just need my team to practice their penalties and we should be fine in the cups!

[B.W.G]

Hallmark Security League North West Premier - Pre-Season - 2020/21

General - Club Vision - Facilities - Finances

Season Preview - Expectations

Transfers - Released

Just the one player on the released list as Shaun Williams decided to retire from playing football,he has since gone on to become the u23 manager for Worcester Raiders.Five players left to join other clubs and of those who left,Greenwood,Eli and Blackshaw played a massive part in our defence last season so to lose three in one pre-season was a bit of a blow,not as bothered by losing Gilpin and Oyibo,despite both playing the same position,I already had potential replacements on my shortlist.We bought in twelve players as I decided I wanted a bigger squad due to having a really busy start to the season,any player who hasn't played by December will likely be released so there is more change to be expected.

Pre-Season Fixtures

I decided to go with easier pre-season fixtures as I wanted to build up the match fitness and cohesion up while keeping morale higher going into the new season.I am impressed with what I saw during pre-season but the cohesion does need a bit more work but that will come when the players become more familiar with each other.

The Team

Key Players

Mackenzie Hunt

Sam O'Halleron

Liam Loughlan

Andy Jackson

Alex Wollerton

Manager's Thoughts

We are either being set up for failure or we are going to completely romp this league.The board want us to win the league which doesn't seem to be too difficult but the media have made us heavy favourites to do so and the media dream eleven is just made up of my players.We do have a bigger squad than we did last season but that is because we have a really busy start to the season and when we throw in the cup competitions as well then we will probably be busy till December so a big squad is needed for rotation.This pre-season has been one of my longest ever as I went through hundreds of players to make sure I got the right ones ad out others on short lists in case players decide to move.Mackenzie Hunt is now our key player and is a massive coup for the club as he is considered a national league player (tier 5!) and he will be playing in the ninth tier!

Finances don't look too bad at the moment but considering nearly all the team are on non-contracts so there will be a lot of appearance fees and bonuses so I am expecting the £47k in the bank to disappear very quickly,the only way to counter act this is by going on a fairy tale run in the FA Cup as that will help keep us afloat and I don't  want to resort to arranging big friendlies to help increase the income as that for me is a cheap way to keep things going smoothly.No upgrades to the facilities,coaching or recruitment but I don't feel like they need to till we get much higher up the ladder.Only thing what is being upgraded is my coaching badges I should gain my National A license at some point in August.Time to get this show on the road after a long build up!

Edited February 10, 2020 by B.W.G

[vara]

nice work mate, great first season and added some quality for the step up.

preseason preperation gone very well too, that result over Stalybridge can't be scoffed at.

Also liking that you're playing a 442.

KIU 

[B.W.G]

10 hours ago, vara said:

nice work mate, great first season and added some quality for the step up.

preseason preperation gone very well too, that result over Stalybridge can't be scoffed at.

Also liking that you're playing a 442.

KIU 

Thanks

It was an impressive result as they are currently top of their 7th tier division so it was more impressive than I first thought it was.

4-4-2 tiki-taka is all I need,who needs gegenpress anyway   

[B.W.G]

August 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

Well that was a busy start to the season!The first bit of news is that one of the stars of last season Jacob Rammell has left and joined 8th tier side Clitheroe.Result wise,we picked up eighteen points from seven games as we only lost once which was to Runcorn as they were more ruthless in front of goal than we were.We do currently sit at the top but other teams do have game(s) in hand on us so the gap will probably close,AFC Emley seem to be the one to keep an eye on as they won their division last season.Our FA Cup run has started well as we beat Hengrove and Cray Valley quite comfortably,the money we received from these games was a godsend as it has helped keep our finances up.I've been impressed with how we have played so far as the cohesion is currently at a average level so it can only get better.

September sees even more games for us as we play eight times,six of these are in the league,one in the FA Cup and one  in the FA Vase.In the league we will be facing Burscough,AFC Emley,Litherland,Three Bridges,AFC Blackpool and Longridge,AFC Emley  will be the toughest of the matches as like us they won their league and they are currently unbeaten so it will be an intriguing match up,my aim is to be at the top as only one team goes up from this division.In the FA Vase we were drawn away to Whitchurch,256 teams in the draw and I managed to land a team in the same division as us,they have been average so far but they are not to be underestimated as the board want us to progress.The big game comes in the FA Cup as we have been drawn away to Weston-super-Mare,they currently sit top of their 7th tier league so I really couldn't of got a more difficult draw in all honesty,I will try my best and if we do go out then I can blame the draw!

[B.W.G]

Bit of a upset in the FA Cup!!!

We were the better team but did they really think I was going to let Weston-super-Mare play their game,got to love get stuck in despite the fact I have now lost two players due to suspension for the next game.Our reward for beating a tier 7 side is drawing a tier 6 side at home....

I do not like that line of "With the draw pitting the in-form semi-pro outfit against Oswestry Town",it makes me feel like I'm being disrespected!

[B.W.G]

This is a massive blow as he is our best player by a long shot and is probably the best player in the league as well but I just can't compete with those sort of finances.At least I've got three more months with him,he only joined in July so in two months he has already found another club!

[B.W.G]

September 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

We finished the month unbeaten but we are really feeling it now at the end of the month despite having a much bigger team compared to last season.We finished the month in the league in first with a twelve point gap at the top but we probably would have dropped points if it were not for Liam Loughlan,he scored the winning goals against Burscough and Longrdige from free kicks and provided both assists in the game against AFC Blackpool!As you can see we made great progress in the FA Cup as we beat Weston-super-Mare and Guisley to move onto the third qualifying round so we are guaranteed more money.We kicked off our FA Vase campaign with a fantastic 10-2 win over Whitlock,Akpobire was the start of that show but he has largely been inconsistent so far this season.

The games keep coming in October as we play nine times!In the league we play Abbey Hey,Rylands,Bootle,Squires Gate,Padiham,City of Liverpool and Whitchurch,again I am to finish Ocotber at the top of the table but I am expecting to start dropping points as the players are starting to look tired despite heavy rotation.In the FA Cup we play 7th tier side Grantham,we do have home advantage over them and they have been fairly inconsistent in the league so I think we could surprise them,if we do win then the 4th qualifying round will be played at some point.In the FA Vase we will be facing May & Baker,they play in the tenth tier so I will be fielding a weaker team to keep things fresh as I believe our second XI could beat them.My main aim for October is to get out without losing too many players!

[B.W.G]

October 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

Well that was a very unusual month for us as we were nowhere near our usual selves as we were very inconsistent.The league we picked up five points from twelve,we stayed at the top but the lead is down to two points but we do have a game in hand on Abbey Hey,it's also nice to see a reminder of last season when we were top and Abbey Hey were second!The cup is where we have been a massive success,the FA Vase saw us beat May & Baker and Bristol Telephone to move onto third round,the FA Cup saw us finally get past Grantham thanks to a penalty shoot out before we beat Vanarama National League side Fylde thanks to a goal against the run of play to reach the 1st round!

November brings us another eight games,this fixture list has been like hell on Earth so far!We play five league games,one FA Cup match,one FA Vase match and a match in the North West Counties League Cup.In the league we will be facing 1874 Northwich,Congleton,Three Bridges,Northwich and Whitchurch,my aim is to try and turn our league form around and to finish November at the top.In the FA Vase we will be facing Cammell Laird,I want revenge for last seasons penalty shoot out defeat in the NWC League Cup,the NWC League Cup will sees us start out campaign against Chadderton,they are a mid table side in tier 10 so I will be fielding a strong team to try and avoid an upset.The big game comes in the FA Cup where we will take a trip to League 2 side Walsall,I'm not expecting anything from the game but it will be great to see how we fare against a much better team!

Edited February 5, 2020 by B.W.G

[Kingofcm03]

Small bump in the road for sure but the early season form and your quality should help you ride it through. The 2k people who showed up for the FA cup is massive for that level!

[B.W.G]

9 hours ago, Kingofcm03 said:

Small bump in the road for sure but the early season form and your quality should help you ride it through. The 2k people who showed up for the FA cup is massive for that level!

It was a small bump,I made some tweaks to the roles of the players which seems to have worked.I find it a bit weird as that attendance against Fylde was massive but we were then drawn against Walsall in the first round,it was at their ground and only 2,786 showed up which is one of their lowest attendances.

I'm guessing as they are much bigger sides than we are,if I'm at home then the attendance will be bigger while we are seen as a tiny club so if I'm away than the attendances for that team will be lower than usual.At least I still get money from it!

[B.W.G]

November 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

The big game of the month is one we lost but we gave it a real go but in the end Walsall's class came through,even though we lost I can say the FA Cup run has done wonderful things to our finances as we currently sit at £147k!In the league we picked up thirteen points from fifteen as we only dropped points against 1874 Northwich at the start,after that I did tweak the player roles and it seemed to have worked brilliantly as the players are now finishing their chances a lot more and it has been great for the morale.We also easily beat Cammell Laird in the FA Vase which I really enjoyed after they dumped us out of the NWC League Cup last season.We finished the month at the top but Abbey Hey have not given up so there is still a lot to play for.

We're now going into December and the games are still coming at us as we play seven times,six of these are in the league while the other match is in the NWC League Cup.In the league we will be facing Abbey Hey,Irlam,Hanley,Runcorn Town,Winsford and Burscough,the Abbey Hey game is massive as if we win then it will give us some breathing space but if they win then it will turn up the pressure on us as we are only six points clear of them.My aim is to finish the month top of the table as we are into the second half of the season and only one team will go up.In the NWC League Cup we will be facing Abbey Hey,the pressure is on us to win this match as the board want us to win the NWC League Cup this season so anything less than that will be considered a failure.

[Kingofcm03]

7 hours ago, B.W.G said:

Fixtures

There you go! no shame to lose to Walsall and in tight game. League Two is very very far ahead of you hahahaha

[B.W.G]

This is my first interview offer,of course I'm going to say no as I'm staying at Oswestry Town.Although I do feel insulted at the line of "This is mainly as a result of you not having the desired experience of winning silverware".Last time I checked,I did win a league last season    

[B.W.G]

Youth Intake Preview 2020/21

Looking at it,it doesn't look to good but it doesn't look that bad either so I will have to give it a meh rating.Wingers and full backs will always be welcome as I have struggled finding players for those specific roles so I am intrigued by who is coming through,the Romanian winger from Tasnad is a weird one and I think he may have gotten lost and ended up here as there is a distance of 1,483 miles .Not really bothered by the negatives as I don't use wing backs or defensive midfielders and there are plenty strikers and attacking midfielders available so it is actually more favourable to me.

[B.W.G]

December 2020

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

First up a bit of transfer news,my right back Andy Jackson has left to join AFC Telford,Jackson is a Hall of Shame player as he managed to get 14 yellow cards,3 red cards and managed to miss 9 games through suspension! I've bought in Harvey Neville to replace Jackson in the right back position,he replaced him very well as he was sent off on his debut!I've also bought in Isaac Christie-Davies in the MC position,he will be replacing Mackenzie Hunt who is joining Shamrock in January.

Results wise we were brilliant as we through December unbeaten.In the league we picked up sixteen points from six games,we have a sixteen point lead at the top with thirteen games to go so the title is ours to lose now.I've not got any complaints to make from the Burscough match as we were unable to score but there finishing was as bad as ours!We also beat Abbey Hey in the NWC League Cup,we beat them 7-0 which was a brilliant result as we moved onto the next round.

Seven games in Janaury as it is still non-stop for us so I can't wait for February for a break!In the league we will be playing Bootle,City of Liverpool,AFC Emley,Three Bridges and Litherland,no matter what happens we will be top of the league come the end of the month but I do want to pick up some points as we move towards the title,as any points we gain will put the pressure on the chasing teams.In the FA Vase we will be facing Ashington,they currently sit in 4th in their league so it will be a tough game and I will put a strong team out to try and get further in the competition.In the NWC League Cup we will be facing Pilkington,I'm not going to underestimate them despite them being in the tier below as they are surprising many teams in that division so I will want to beat them to keep the board off my back!

[B.W.G]

Andy Jackson

Harvey Neville

Boy oh boy do I know how to find an aggressive right back,in the last update I jokingly said Neville replaced Jackson very well after he got sent off on his debut,I wasn't expecting him to get sent off again in his second game for us!!!

Neville could possibly out do Jackson for worst discipline at this rate!

[kingjericho]

 I also had the pleasure of managing Andy Jackson... I liked his mentals but he always got too carried away!

[B.W.G]

On 07/02/2020 at 17:02, kingjericho said:

 I also had the pleasure of managing Andy Jackson... I liked his mentals but he always got too carried away!

Players like him will always produce a memorable moment for the wrong reasons,he was absolute bonkers and it was brilliant  

[B.W.G]

January 2021

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

It was a very good month as we went unbeaten,we picked up eleven points from fifteen as maintained our top position,I was disappointed about drawing against City of Liverpool in the league as it means we failed to beat them in the leagur but I did get one up on them as we knocked them out of the NWC League Cup at the quarter final stage.We beat Ashington in the FA Vase 4th Round but I feel a 3-0 scoreline did flatter us a bit as it was a pretty even match between the two sides.We currently sit eighteen points clear at the top of the table and with eight games to go then it is in our hands and I feel it will take a colossal downturn in form for us to mess this up.

February is the start of the quiet months as we only play five times,three in the league,one in the FA Vase and one in the NWC League Cup.In the league.In the league we will be facing AFC Blackpool,Longridge and Abbey Hey,I will not be prioritizing the league as much this month as we have such a massive gap at the top so there will be rotation involved.Most of the focus will be on the cups,in the FA vase we will be facing Whitton,they are a mid-table side in their tier 10 division but I will be fielding a strong team as I want progress.In the NWC League Cup we will be facing Northwitch,we are very familiar with them as we played them twice this season and we are unbeaten against them (two wins) and again I will be fielding a strong team as I want to progress and win this trophy.

[B.W.G]

February 2021

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

It was a very successful month as we wrapped up the league and made progress in the cups.We had no problems in the league as we won all thee league games with relative ease to clinch the title which we won in the match against Longridge.The FA Vase was a bit more of a struggle,we easily beat Whitton in the 5th round but it was Newcastle Benfield who came close to beating  us as it took a 90th minute winner from Christie-Davies to see us through to the semi-finals.In the NWC League Cup,Northwich actually came the closest to beating us in any competition for quite a while as a late equalizer from Neville made sure we took it to extra time and we managed to finish them off in extra time as we moved onto the final.

We play seven times in March,four times in the league,two in the FA Vase and one in the NWC League Cup.In the league we will be facing Rylands (Fan Day!),1874 Northwich,Squires Gate and Bootle,not really bothered about what happens as we have won the league although I would like to beat Rylands as it is a fan day and may encourage more fans to come along in the future if we get a positive result.In the FA Vase we have a two legged semi-final against Bridlington,they are a top half team in their 9th tier division but I will have to go all out as the board want us to make it to the final of the FA Vase.The big game of the month comes against Padiham in the NWC League Cup,this is the final and the board want us to win the competition as otherwise I'll get a fail on the club vision so I will be going all out for the win as it would be extra silverware for ourselves.