[FM07] Overtaking Colin

[DaneBramage]

Hednesford Town - January 2012

January started with a return of Le Fondre's personal problems. As mentioned in the previous post, Watson was banging in the goals and Trainor was also netting a few, so since there were players to cover his absence Le Fondre was sent on holiday for a month again.

Goalscorers: McDonald 2, Cottrell 1, Frost 1

Of course, Watson and Trainor both stopped scoring immediately. Zero goals between them for the month, and not much more from anyone else either. A series of utterly pathetic performances, everybody in the squad was fined a week's wages after the Cambridge game, then two weeks' wages after the Forest Green game. 

Morale is at absolute rock bottom, nobody is playing at even a halfway competent level. Every single game there's a calamity in defence. You can't win matches if you keep giving the opposition easy goals every game. The gap to the bottom four has shrunk to just three points.

[DaneBramage]

Hednesford Town - February 2012

Le Fondre scored on his return, but individual errors ruined another game. Weir fumbled a save right into the striker's path for the first, then McNamara gave away a penalty for the second, then McDonald got himself sent off waiting for a corner to be taken.

                          

I'm done with these idiots, If they want to get relegated, they can do it without me. I'm out.

Edited April 30, 2020 by DaneBramage

[Carambau]

[DaneBramage]

After a month sitting at home, I'm back in the game.

Hinckley were relegated from the Conference National last year, and were expected to be in the mix to go straight back up. They haven't really been challenging though, spending most of the year in midtable, and despite three wins in the last four the gaffer was given the boot.

They are currently in 10th place with seven games to go, six points outside of the play-off places.

 

Edited May 1, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - March + April 2010

Some would look at this as a good run of results. I would not, and it made for a disappointing climax to the season. Failing to score in successive home games is not acceptable, and we gave up the lead in both score draws. That's eight easy points missed, and the difference between making the play-offs or not.

 

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - End of Season Review

 

We moved up the table one spot after I took over, but it really should have been more.

I won't go into depth on this as the majority of it is from before I took over, but Berkeley's clearly the star of team. A really impressive year on loan from Gretna. We won't have him back, but Ramsey also appears to be a consistent goalscorer and maybe O'Dowd could step up with more playing time. There are some really low average ratings from some first choice players here, will have to look out for some upgrades.

[DaneBramage]

My History

 

[DaneBramage]

2011/12 Promotions

Promotion Race

[ellzo]

On 30/04/2020 at 21:18, DaneBramage said:

I'm done with these idiots, If they want to get relegated, they can do it without me. I'm out.

I actually quite liked seeing this, just makes your manager seem a bit more Warnock like, heart on the sleeve kind of guy.

Also worth noting that I love how FM07 looks. Good luck with Hinckley.

[DaneBramage]

5 hours ago, ellzo said:

I actually quite liked seeing this, just makes your manager seem a bit more Warnock like, heart on the sleeve kind of guy.

Also worth noting that I love how FM07 looks. Good luck with Hinckley.

Thanks. I'd like to say this was in character, but let's be honest, it was a scream-at-the-laptop, punch-the-sofa, rage-quit moment.

Hinckley United - pre-season

Division: Conference North

League prediction: 5^th

Balance: £600k

Transfer budget: £300k

Wage budget: £8k

Board expectation: Respectable league position

Fan expectation: Respectable league position

Actually having a bit of money to play with is nice. The problem is whether the scouts can find anyone useful to spend it on.

Let a load of contracts expire for players I don't think I'd use.

Kift is in as backup left winger. Evans and Hammond are just bodies to make up the numbers. Hartmann and Hall will be first choice left back and defensive midfielder. Ballard was going to be our number one, but I quickly lost confidence in him and he was replaced with Carson.

Fine results, but an easy set of opponents.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - August + September 2012

Goalscorers: Ramsey 2, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Stevens 1

A very slow start to the season. Just the one win, and there's a lack of cohesion up front with few clear chances being created, let alone finished.

Goalscorers: O'Dowd 3, Dickinson (YP12) 2, S. White 1, Palmer 1

A bit of an improvement, as we picked up a couple more league wins and kept three clean sheets in a row. It's not football for the neutrals though, not many goals being scored at either end. We've picked up a few short-term knocks and injuries to attacking players, meaning there's no consistency upfront. At present our joint top scorer is a newly promoted 16 year old.

We're in 13th place after 11 games, 3 wins, 5 draws, 3 losses, 9 scored, 10 conceded. Pretty mediocre so far.

Edited May 4, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - October + November + December 2012

Goalscorers: Stevens 1, Innes 1

I don't like Telford. They were much better than us in both games.

Goalscorers: O'Dowd 2, Ramsey 1, Kift 1, Wales 1, Ball 1, Own Goals 1

An unbeaten month with eight points from a possible 12, and progression in the Trophy. Whitby will be sick at the sight of us.

Goalscorers: Ramsey 3, Ball 2, Wales 1, O'Dowd 1, Hall 1, Kift 1

A month of two halves. Starting it off with three losses in a row is never good, and the Worksop loss was pretty hard to take as they were slumming it near the bottom. But Nuneaton were top of the table so to run them close was encouraging, and Leigh are a division above us (in addition to being my personal bogey team), so it wasn't the end of the world. It's another early exit from the Trophy though, I'm yet to have a good run in any cup competition so far.

The Blyth result was a disappointment. They were in the relegation area, went down to ten men early in the second half, yet we still failed to win the game despite leading twice. I was worried that harsh words against the team may break their confidence, but instead asked captain Finucane to lead a player's meeting to discuss the poor form. This worked out very nicely, performances completely turning round and ending the year with three wins, all with clean sheets.

At present we have the second best defence in the league, but also the fifth worst attack. We're just outside the play-off places, but really need to start scoring more goals.

Edited May 4, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - January + February 2013

Goalscorers: Dickinson (YP12) 3, O'Dowd 2, Ramsey 2, Wales 2, Ball 2, Kift 1

One accurate shot away from a perfect month. We battered Workington, but just couldn't find a goal. Other than that though, this was a great month. Four wins, plenty of goals scored, and our streak of clean sheets was extended to seven before Alfreton broke through.

Goalscorers: O'Down 1, Ramsey 1, Wales 1, Stevens 1

What a terrible way to end our unbeaten streak. Hucknall went down to ten men after 13 minutes, and offered absolutely nothing going forward. But with our first choice striker out and the second choice nervous about the game, we had to call someone up from the reserves, and we couldn't score either. The game was destined to be a bore draw, until our keeper decided to go for a wander, and was then caught hopelessly out of position for a horribly placed 30 yard backpass. Inevitably, one bad result is followed by another, as we lead most of the Scarborough game before conceding a penalty to let them even things up.

We were looking pretty ineffective against Hyde, then Wales stepped up and walloped in a free-kick to put us back in the winning column. And a free-kick again made the difference against Telford, this time Stevens grabbing the headlines.

Nuneaton have run away with it at the top, but there are then six of us competing for four play-off spots. At the moment we're holding the last of these positions, with 10 games to go.

Edited May 3, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - March + April 2013

Goalscorers: O'Dowd 4, Ramsey 2, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Wales 1

A really lazy month here. The same old mistakes are being repeated, giving up leads against both Marine and Worcester. It's infuriating how many points we drop from winning positions.  We could have played all week against Whitby without scoring.

Goalscorers: Ramsey 3, Kift 2, O'Dowd 1, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Wales 1, Forker 1, Own Goals 1

The Kings Lynn performance was not good. The first half against Nuneaton was just as bad, their keeper may as well have not even been there. But a couple of half-time substitutions really turned things around and we bossed them in the second half. They're top of the league by nine points and guaranteed promotion as champions, but we beat them comfortably. But this was followed up with a limp defeat to sixth-placed Bromley, seriously jeopardising the chances of holding on to a play-off spot.

Luckily, the setback didn't do too much damage. Bromley lost their final match, giving us a bit of flexibility, but it wasn't needed as our final two games were both home fixtures, and we used that advantage to pick up the full six points. We kept fifth place and made it into the play-offs.

Edited May 4, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - April + May 2013 - Play-offs

We're drawn against Burton in the semi-finals. Back in August we drew 2-2 at their place, and in January we smashed them 4-0 at home.

Semi-Final Leg 1

A very even game, but they edged it. The problem is our goalkeeper, Carson. 

His stats would suggest he's had an excellent season, not conceding many and keeping a lot of clean sheets. But his average rating tells the real story. He just doesn't make many saves. Here he conceded from all three shots they had on target. I decided to have a look back over his last ten games, the facts are pretty damning.

Just seven saves in ten games. We've done so well despite him, not because of him. He'd be out if there was anyone to replace him. 

Semi-Final Leg 2

An early goal from O'Dowd gave us the lead on the night, and levelled things on aggregate. Another 30 minutes were played but neither side could break the deadlock. We go to penalties.

BUR - Harrad - SAVED (0-0)

HIN - O'Dowd - GOAL (1-0 HIN)

BUR - McLeod - GOAL (1-1)

HIN - Finucane - GOAL (2-1 HIN)

BUR - Davey - GOAL (2-2)

HIN - Corcoran - GOAL (3-2 HIN)

BUR - Ferguson - GOAL (3-3)

HIN - Hartmann - GOAL (4-3 HIN)

BUR - Wells - SAVED (4-3 HIN) - WINNERS!

Goalkeeper Carson is man of the hour, two saves in the shoot-out put us through to the final.

 

[DaneBramage]

May 2013

What a time for this to come along, the first club to try and poach me. 

One game, death or glory. A win, and you're a hero. A loss, and you're fired, and you likely have a relegation on your record. 

But I'm in the same one game challenge at Hinckley. A win, and I'm a hero, and I have another promotion on my record.

League One's a big jump, but it doesn't feel right. I can't do it.

Edit: Walsall beat them 2-0.

Edited May 4, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - May 2013 - Play-off Final

We're up against Telford in the final. We won at home in February, but they beat us in back-to-back games at their place in October, also knocking us out of the FA Cup.

My second shot at a play-off final, and there would be no redemption here. It was awful. We went one down early, and Dickinson (YP12) quickly hit back, but it was ruled out for a foul in the build up. We had plenty of chances, but nobody could put the ball in the net again. A pitiful way to end the season.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Shame about Hednesford... and the playoff final defeat.

[ssestig]

Looking forward to following this - even if you're looking at beating one of our former player's promotion records.

[DaneBramage]

21 hours ago, Nobby_McDonald said:

Shame about Hednesford... and the playoff final defeat.

I was pretty fed up with Hednesford, was definitely the right time to leave. Despite the play-off setback I probably am enjoying Hinckley more.

18 hours ago, ssestig said:

Looking forward to following this - even if you're looking at beating one of our former player's promotion records.

Thanks, I think he'll be holding it for a long time yet...

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - 2012/13 End of Season Review

Fifth is where we were predicted at the start of the season and fifth is where we ended up, so from that regard it has to be considered a good year. A bad run of games at the beginning of the campaign, just one win in seven, gave us too much work to do to try and challenge for the one automatic promotion spot, though the run of form from mid-December through January, with 22 points and seven clean sheets from eight games was pretty great. Regardless of what comes before though, you'll always be disappointed losing in the play-offs.

Top Scorer – David O'Dowd - 16 goals - Both of my strikers ended up in double figures, and kept overtaking each other throughout the year in the top scorer race, as well as who should be my first choice. The problem was that neither were particularly prolific as a starter, lots of their goals came as substitute. Which in its own way is a useful habit to have, but it would be nice if they could impose themselves on the game earlier.

Most Assists – Jonathan Kift - 8 assists - He was signed to be the backup option, but when S. White got injured early in the season Kift took his spot and was a lot more effective.

Highest Rating – Steve Wales - 7.27 - He was going to be my first choice right winger, but got injured early on. When he recovered though he was straight back into the team and impressed on a regular basis, nabbing eight goals, eight assists, and 7 man of the match awards.

Fan's Player of the Year –  Kevin Ramsey - His rival O'Dowd outscored him, but Ramsey was the fan's favourite. This was his fifth consecutive year in double figures, whereas O'Dowd has been at the club longer and this was the first time he'd achieved it, probably explaining why they have more of a connection with Ramsey.

My Player of the Year – Chris Dickinson (YP12) - A newly promoted player from the youth academy, he was thrown straight into the deep end when we had a few players missing, but immediately made an impression with a goal and an assist in his first few games. Bypassed the under 18s completely as he was then called up to the first team squad and remained there all year, generally holding down the attacking midfielder spot and chipping in with eight goals and seven assists.

Waste of Space – Lee Barnard - The first goalkeeper I signed, he was between the sticks during the poor start to the season and I quickly replaced him. By December he was whinging about not playing, by March he had personal problems, and he was released in May. Also a special shoutout to Grant Carson, who was voted the Conference North's worst signing of the season. Not a good year for goalies.

Edited May 9, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

My History

[DaneBramage]

2012/13 Promotions

Promotion Race

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - pre-season

Division: Conference North

League prediction: 3rd

Balance: £377k

Transfer budget: £140k

Wage budget: £7.5k

Board expectation: Respectable league position

Fan expectation: Respectable league position

Same expectations from the board, slightly higher media prediction. Should be up in the play-offs again, but after another final defeat, I'd like to be aiming for automatic.

Nobody important leaving, just a clearout of the reserves.

Ryan is in to rival/replace Carson between the sticks. Matthews is a left winger with potential, Evans will take some of the attacking midfield burden off of Dickinson (YP12). Campbell is another option at centre back. But the main signing, the only one for any cash, was the reigning Conference South top scorer, Hylton. He got 20 goals last season so hopefully he'll carry on that form for us.

A good win in Scotland, but not impressed with the final result.

Edited May 8, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - August + September 2013

A young lad to provide cover in midfield.

Goalscorers: Hylton 6, Kift 3, Wales 3, Evans 2, Hall 2, Ramsey 1, Dickinson (YP12) 1

A very good start to the season. It would be nice to convert the draws into wins, but seven games unbeaten is always appreciated, in particular the two big wins. Hylton announced his arrival with a hat-trick against Gainsborough, then followed it up with a brace against Vauxhall, which I believe is my biggest win so far in this career.

Goalscorers: Hylton 3, Matthews 2, Ramsey 1, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Evans 1, Kift 1, Hall 1, Jenkinson 1, Stevens 1, Campbell 1

Another good month bookended with two more big wins. Marine should have been an easy win but our forwards had an off day.

Goalscorers: Hall 2, Hylton 1, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Evans 1, Kift 1, Ball 1, Stevens 1

Very contrasting results in the two different competitions. We had an excellent time of it in the FA Cup, with a big win over Moor Green, a solid win over Hucknall, and then another big win over Histon.

But in the league everything went to pot. The Scarborough game was a big disappointment, it was fairly even but we just weren't creating any chances. Then a dismal performance against Droylsden made in two league losses in a row. Against York we took the lead in the first half, totally against the run of play, but fell apart after the break and they punished us.

We're just about holding on to a play-off spot, but a big gap is forming between us and top two.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - November + December 2013

Goalscorers: Ramsey 4, Kift 1, Hall 1, Stevens 1, Own Goals 3

We managed to stop the run of league losses by defeating Frickley, but it wasn't a particularly comfortable win. We then played Stoke in the Cup and did okay, keeping the score down, but the follow up against Hyde was awful. We had a solid two goal lead at halftime, and then collapsed second half to drop two more points.

I then screwed up big time. Hylton had gone five games without scoring, so I meant to criticise him via the press to kickstart his form. But I was on the phone at the time and due to the distraction accidentally fined him two weeks wages instead. He's now upset and thinks he made the wrong decision joining the club...

He got injured next game anyway, and our form picked up with two wins, Ramsey bagging a brace in both matches.

Goalscorers: Ramsey 8, Hall 1, Jenkinson 1, Campbell 1

A perfect month. Five wins from five. Four clean sheets. Full points in the league and progression in the Trophy. Ramsey has been in absolute beast mode, with three doubles and two singles to send him soaring past Hylton in the scoring charts.

The win against Gateshead meant we jumped above them to second in the table, and they lost their next game to give us a little buffer over them. But York are way out in front, we need them to stumble to stand a chance of catching up.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - January + February + March 2014

We brought in a back-up right back, we've been getting by with only Stevens in this position for a couple of years, but he's picked up several knocks in recent weeks.

We let go White who wasn't being used at all, and a couple of reserves. We're consistently losing about £25k a month, so needed to put a bit of cash back into the coffers.

Goalscorers: Ramsey 1, O'Dowd 1, Wales 1, Ball 1, Corcoran 1, Own Goals 1

Ramsey fractured his ribs early in the month to put him out for two months. We smashed Guiseley and should have scored more. But against Burton we created next to nothing. Southport smashed us but couldn't get a second goal, we then scored an undeserved 92 minute equaliser to take it to a replay. I totally rotated the whole squad for this match to rest players for the league, and while we lost as expected, it was a sterling effort to keep them at just one goal again.

This paid off as we followed it up with two solid wins, but ended the month with an awful performance against Vauxhall. York extended their lead to 10 points.

Goalscorers: Hylton 2, O'Dowd 2, Wales 2, Evans 1, Ball 1, Hall 1, Jenkinson 1

Hylton returned from injury and grabbed a couple of goals to help us to three wins and a draw, compared to York's two wins and two draws. We slightly reduce the gap to eight points.

Goalscorers: O'Dowd 2, Jenkinson 2, Ramsey 1, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Evans 1, Kift 1

We were two down against York, before making a substitution and immediately getting a goal back. But they scored a minute later to kill the game off. We were poor in both games afterwards, but were at least strong enough to come from behind to beat Lancaster.

The York game was really our chance to put a dent in their title hopes, but it didn't work out. They only dropped two points during the month, compared to our seven. The gap at the top is now 13 points, and although it is still mathematically possible to catch them, realistically it's not going to happen. We are guaranteed another year in the play-offs though.

Edited May 9, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - April 2014

Goalscorers: Ramsey 1, O'Dowd 1, Jenkinson 1, L. Evans 1, Corcoran 1

A bit of a lame end to the season, in particular the Gateshead game where three players missed open goals. Despite the apparent attempt to throw away second place, Gateshead and Lancaster had even worse months, so we held on. 

Edited May 10, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - April + May 2014 - Play-Offs

We're drawn against Hyde in the semi-finals. We've already beaten them once in knockout competition this year, 2-0 in the FA Trophy. In the league we drew at home, but beat them at their place.

Semi-Final Leg 1

Hyde dominated this game from the start. They had all the early attacks, and made the most of it in the 26th minute, right back Stevens hauling down one of their players to give away a penalty, which they converted. Within ten minutes my other full back, Hartmann, picked up two bookings, the second for a two footed lunge, and was swiftly dismissed. We changed to a back three and largely shut down their attacks from then on.

With 20 minutes to go we made our substitutions, and they paid off. Stevens made amends for his earlier error with a cross for sub Evans to head home.

Semi-Final Leg 2

A perfect start, Wales playing a free-kick short for Kift to smash home. The rest of the first half was a pretty cagey affair, not much going on, until just before the break Stevens repeated his trick from the first leg. Luckily, it wasn't giving away another penalty, but was instead another cross, this time for Osborne to get on the end of to double our lead. A great time for him to get his first goal of the season. 

The second half passed without incident. We never looked like getting a second, but Hyde never troubled us either. A 3-1 aggregate win, we make the final for a second consecutive time.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - May 2014 - Play-Off Final

We're up against Gateshead, who beat Lancaster home and way in the previous round, 5-1 in total. In the league we won 2-0 at home, then had a goalless draw away on the last day of the season.

In the fourth minute Vaughan hit a long ball forward for Dickinson (YP12) to chase. Just as he was about to get on the end of it, his legs went taken out. The penalty was awarded, but no card was waved. O'Dowd put it calmly to the keeper's left, giving us an early lead. The rest of the first half was fairly even, both sides having half-chances, but at the break we remained one up.

Ryan rescued us in the 50th minute with a good save from a dangerous free-kick, but that was the last chance of the game for Gateshead. We should have doubled the lead in the 70th minute when both O'Dowd and Hylton saw their efforts stopped in quick succession, but in the end just the one goal was needed.

Promoted!

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - 2013/14 End of Season Review

We banished the play-off failure of last year (and previously with Hednesford in 2009) to clinch promotion. Very pleased with that result and we surpassed the pre-season expectations. York ran away with it in first place, there was no keeping up with them.

Pleasingly, we will be replacing Hednesford United in the Conference National. After two 18th placed finishes they couldn't do it again, slipping to 22nd and succumbing to relegation.

Top Scorer – Kevin Ramsey - 17 goals - Hit a real purple patch in November and December, netting 12 times in eight matches. Suffered an injury which then put him out a couple of months, and couldn't recapture the same form when he returned to action. Hylton scored on regular basis in August and September, but also had a disrupted season with injuries. I was pleased that plenty of other players chipped in, six of them getting between 6-8 goals.

Most Assists – Jonathan Kift - 12 assists - Second year in a row - Had a great year on the left wing, continuing to create plenty of chances as well as scoring a few of his own. Stevens managed 10 from right back, including important contributions in both play-off semis.

Highest Rating – Steve Wales - 7.57 - Second year in a row - Had an incredible start to the season, but then missed a big chunk of the year through injury. If he'd been around more he'd have almost certainly beaten Kift's assist total, finishing just one behind him on 11. Grabbed seven man of the match awards.

Fan's Player of the Year – Sam Hall  - Good choice. Had an excellent year holding the midfield together, and also scored a good amount of goals. Only problem is he sometimes gets nervous about big games so needs rotating out.

My Player of the Year – Tommy Jenkinson - Hall's partner in midfield, also had a great year and picked up a few goals. Only 18 and on loan from Derby, I'd love to get him back for another year or make it a permanent deal.

Waste of Space – Nobody - It would be very hard to pick anyone for this, nobody who played regularly disappointed. 

[DaneBramage]

My History

[DaneBramage]

2013/14 Promotions

Promotion Race

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - pre-season

Division: Conference National

League prediction: 19^th

Balance: £233k

Transfer budget: £145k

Wage budget: £8.75k

Board expectation: Fight bravely against relegation

Fan expectation: Fight bravely against relegation

Our cash balance is steadily dropping, but higher ticket sales in the new division should turn that around. Fight against relegation seems fair.

A big transfer out here. We weren't looking at selling Stevens (right back), he's been a reliable regular in my time here, but we can't turn down this sort of money. He had a £180k release clause, so Raith played themselves by bidding so much. This also includes a friendly and 20% of his next sale.

Jenkinson's (defensive midfielder) contract with Derby ran out, so we've brought him back on a permanent deal. Roberts (defensive midfielder) and Yelland (centre back) have come in to strengthen our options, Murdock (right back) is the replacement for Stevens.

Edited May 10, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - August + September 2014

Goalscorers: Hylton 8, Roberts 3, P. Evans 2, Kift 2, Wales 2, Hall 2

A busy start to the season with a lot of games taking place. We've adjusted to the higher league very well, only losing once in the first nine games. Against Farnborough and Cambridge we battled and hustled towards the results, grabbing some counter-attacking goals against the run of play. My bogey team Leigh beat us once again, but that was sandwiched between two comfortable 3-0 wins.

A couple more good wins followed at the beginning of September, but then goals became harder to come by. Over the rest of the month we picked up just one win from six, and suffered a heavy loss to Aldershot.

We hold a solid midtable position, though we do have two games in hand over most teams. 

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - October 2014

Goalkeeper, defenders, and midfielders all fined a fortnight's wages and demoted to the reserves for two weeks.

 

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - October 2014

Goalscorers: Hylton 2, P. Evans 2, Clarke 1, Matthews 1, Wales 1, Forker 1, Own Goals 1

As shown above, the Telford game was an absolute travesty. From three-nil up we conceded two quick-fire goals just before half-time. Everything fell to pieces after the break and we got completely smashed.

A much changed team bounced back to claim a narrow win against Nuneaton, but then fell to Gravesend without a single shot on target. Another 2-1 win came next to steady the ship in the league. We're 11th after 17 games, still with two matches in hand.

The FA Cup game away at Burton was an awful day for our attack, ten shots without a single one on target. At home wasn't much better, needing extra-time to get past the Conference North side.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - November + December 2014

Goalscorers: Wales 3, Hylton 1, Ramsey 1, P. Evans 1, Finucane 1, Own Goals 1

My old enemies Leigh defeat me once again, this time completely dominating us and putting the game out of sight by half-time. We were just lucky it wasn't a cricket score.

But if we ignore that, it was a good month in the league. The win over Oxford was particularly pleasing, a big away victory over a side pushing for a play-off spot. Speaking of which, this run pushed us up to fifth place, still with a game in hand.

Goalscorers: Ramsey 1, P. Evans 1, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Smith (NZL, 12) 1, Wales 1

I know the aim of this save doesn't involve cup success, but just once it would be nice to achieve some sort of competency in these competitions. The two games against Sutton were an exercise in sabotaging ourselves. In the first encounter Finucane got sent off in the first half, meaning the rest of the game was a backs against the wall effort to keep a clean sheet. And in the replay Corcoran hit a blind backpass early on to give them a lead and a morale boost we could not come back from.

I can cope with that while things are going well in the league though. Two wins with clean sheets to open the month was grand, in the Cambridge win both goals were scored by academy graduates, regular starter Dickinson (YP12) getting the first then recent debutee Smith (NZL,12) bagging the second. He got his chance due to a scarcity of options in attack, Hylton has massively gone off the boil with just one goal in his last nine matches, while O'Dowd and Ramsey are both in their thirties now and swiftly declining. I'll be looking for additions up front in January.

Morecambe was nearly a spectacular FMing of the game, but they got two late goals to take that away from us.

   

Despite that, our form in the previous run of games has left us in a good position. We've now played as many games as everyone else and sit in the play-off places. That could easily change though, after Stockport running it away with at the top there are a lot of sides very evenly matched just behind them aiming for these spots.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - January + February 2014

We got rid of two rubbish reserve strikers who were never going to make it. Yelland was expected to be a regular centre back for me, but he never got up and running in the team. A few poor performances, including the 6-3 loss against Telford, and I went back to using the players who'd earned the promotion instead. A few clubs were interested so I offered him out and received a nice profit.

Just one player in, another striker. He's an international star too, four caps for Montserrat. 

Goalscorers: Hylton 4, Wales 2, Jermy 1, Matthews 1, Own Goals 1

Good times in January with an unbeaten month. We beat Leigh for the first time in ages, Jermy scored his first goal for the club, and we recovered to gain a point after being two-down at Southport.

Goalscorers: Hylton 1, Wales 1, Jermy 1

Not a month for the neutral as goals were pretty sparse. At home we had two narrow wins, away we had two narrow losses. The Stockport game was an important one, a bit of a six-pointer as we had a chance to reduce the gap at the top. Although we did take an early lead (through a Wales free-kick), they were too strong for us and turned it round after the break. The gap is now 13 points and we fell to third place. 

Stockport's lead is seemingly insurmountable, but we're definitely in the play-off mix.

Edited May 16, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - March + April 2020

Goalscorers: Jermy 3, Dickinson (YP12) 2, P. Evans 1, Forker 1

An unbeaten month, mostly thanks to the incredible defensive efforts. Just one goal conceded in this time, and even that was an own goal. We actually have the best defensive record in the division.

On the other hand, scoring has proved a bit more difficult, though Jermy is looking like a good acquisition.

Stockport have the title in the bag, crowned champions with five games to go. We sit 17 points behind them in second place, it would take a disaster to not end up in the play-offs.

Goalscorers:  Jermy 2, P. Evans 1

We certainly tried to mess it up. The good form and good defence collapsed the very next game. It was an abysmal showing against Gravesend, the hairdryer came out in the changing rooms afterwards and ten players were fined a week's wages. We bounced back with a solid win against Swindon but the end of the regular season saw a number of lazy, uninterested performances, just one goal and no more wins from the final three matches. The lack of goals at this point is nothing short of a disgrace.

This led to us losing the second place finish we'd been holding most of the second half of the season. We're in terrible form heading into the play-offs.

 

Edited May 16, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - April + May 2019 - Play-Offs

The draw puts us against Oxford. In November we smashed them at their place, just a couple of weeks ago we struggled to a draw at home.

Semi-Final Leg 1

The first half was terrible. They were all over us, we were lucky to go in only one down. The second half was much better, much more competitive, though we still never looked like scoring from open play. 

Luckily they helped us out with this, Kift being wiped out on the edge of the area to give Finucane the opportunity to level it up from the spot.

Semi-Final Leg 2

Useless. Completely and utterly useless.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - 2014/15 End of Season Review

We massively overachieved to finish this high up the table, the expectations of battling relegation were totally out as instead we battled for promotion. However, when it got to the business end of the season performances completely tanked, leaving a black cloud over the season. We barely put up a fight and were knocked out of the play-offs at the semi-final stage.

Top Scorer – Danny Hylton - 16 goals - Had a strong start to the season with 10 goals by the end of October, and then had another good run in January. But he suffered a couple of injuries that put him for most of February and March, and when he returned in April (mostly as substitute) he was completely off the pace.

Most Assists – Steve Wales - 12 assists - Managed to stay fit all season and only missed one game. Made some really strong contributions, not just these assists but also being the only other player to get double figures for goals.

Highest Rating – Steve Wales - 7.19 - Second year in a row - Hall and Hartmann both had higher ratings, but didn't play in even half of our matches. Hall gets nervous before big games so can't be trusted to string together a run of performances, and Hartmann tore his hamstring while on international duty with The Philippines. So Wales gets this nomination by default, though it's hard to say he didn't deserve it.

Fan's Player of the Year – Steve Wales  - Also picked up eight man of the match awards throughout the year.

My Player of the Year – Andrew Ryan - I'm happy to have found a goalkeeper that I'm confident with. Had an excellent season, conceding only 27 times in 41 matches, and keeping 22 clean sheets.

Waste of Space – Karl Yelland - Given how badly the season ended, quite a few players could be considered a waste of space at the moment. But Yelland takes the biscuit, signed with high expectations in the summer, he was kicked out in January after just five underwhelming matches.

[DaneBramage]

My History

[DaneBramage]

2014/15 Promotions

Promotion Race

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - pre-season

Division: Conference National

League prediction: 9th

Balance: £860k

Transfer budget: £450k

Wage budget: £10.75k

Board expectation: Safe mid-table position

Fan expectation: Respectable league position

We now have a very healthy bank balance, I've asked the board to upgrade our training facilities. The bookies have more faith is us than the board or fans do, we're 6/4 joint favourites to go up.

A lot of players from in and around the first team squad left this summer. Carson had good spells, as well as periods when he couldn't catch a cold, but he'd outstayed his usefulness and was no longer needed. Last year he'd broken his leg and was replaced by Ryan between the sticks, and he's proved to be a much stronger choice. Vaughan was useful in both full-back positions but had personal problems and didn't want to re-sign. O'Dowd and Ramsey were both past their best and barely getting a look in, while Ball and Evans were back-up options who never showed they deserved any more than that.

A couple of loans for the year. Heath is a striker, Vassell a goalie.

Peachey is a right-back, Savage a right winger, Harris a centre-back. None will enter the starting 11 straight away but should all play plenty throughout the season.

A bunch of wins, including in Scotland and Wales.

Incidentally, the Raith game was part of the agreement when we sold them George Stevens last year for £250k. He didn't play a single league game for them, making just three cup appearances, all as substitute, with a 5.33 average rating. A couple of weeks after this game he was sold to Connah's Quay for just £35k, which we got 20% of. Someone should be fired for that disaster of a deal.

[DaneBramage]

Over the last couple of years we've asked Birmingham, our parent club, for a bunch of players on loan. They agreed nearly every time, but the player would say no so it wouldn't happen. I'd stopped asking, not worth the rejection, but this time they sent us a lad unprompted.

And it's safe to say he's much too good for us. I have high hopes for him to bang in a lot of goals, he's been a good scorer at higher levels before, both nationally and abroad.

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - August + September 2015

Goalscorers: Heath 4, Jermy 2, Dickinson (YP12) 1, Evans 1, Wales 1, Kift 1, Roberts 1, Own Goals 1

A great first month to the season, going unbeaten in five games to leave us in second place on goal difference. Heath showed signs of his talent on the opening day of the season, three times dancing through the defence only to blaze his shots over. He got off the mark in the next game though, netting twice against Thurrock in a dominant win. He then added to his tally with strikes against Morecambe and Chelmsford. 

Jermy made sure he wasn't forgotten about too, coming off the bench to grab goals in the last two matches. 

On the other hand, penalties haven't gone well. Finucane missed on the opening day, while Peachey (on his debut) had his effort saved against Morecambe, costing us a couple of points,

Goalscorers: Heath 7, Kift 2, Evans 1, Murdock 1

A poor month. We've turned into a one-man team, our loanee striker smashing in the goals while everyone struggles to even pass the ball to each other. Heath continued his cracking form, now up to 11 goals in 11 games. But he can't carry the load for the whole team, and the defence has been terrible. We dropped points from winning positions against York and Northwich, couldn't make a breakthrough against a ten man Forest Green, and although the Woking result looks close, it would have been a complete fluke if we'd managed to get anything out of it.

We're in the play-off area, but form and results both need to improve a lot if we're to stay there. And in reality, since I've now lost in the play-offs three times, we need to be aiming for top spot so we don't have to go through it again.

Edited May 20, 2020 by DaneBramage

[DaneBramage]

Hinckley United - October 2015

Goalscorers: Jermy 5, Clarke 3, Heath 1, White 1, Savage 1, Jenkinson 1, Hall 1

After drawing a blank despite countless chances against Sutton, Heath was rested for the next game Swindon. Jermy took his spot upfront and scored early on, though Heath did come on as a sub to get the winner. Jermy kept his starting place and bagged a couple in the demolition of Burton, the one good performance this month. 

Gravesend was awful, allowing them to go two up in half an hour, we had to battle back to secure an undeserved point. The next two games were diabolical and there were several fines handed out for underperformance. The Cup display was just as bad, although at least we had enough about us to beat the non-league opposition.

After the game Kift and Peachey both criticised my team-talks to the press. Both were fined two weeks wages, transfer-listed, and banished to the reserves.

 

[DaneBramage]

Bottom of League Two, but I'd probably accept any halfway decent job elsewhere at the moment.

Hinckley United - November 2015

Goalscorers: Jermy 1, Roberts 1

The terrible form from October continued into November, as we barely put up a fight against Lewes. The Cup game against League One Shrewsbury was always going to be a struggle, and although we did make a game of it with a Jermy header, when midfielder Jenkinson got himself sent off it was over. 

We were beating Crawley for most of the game from a Roberts piledriver, then conceded in the 77th and 92nd minutes. When your team just doesn't want to win it's pointless even trying.

[DaneBramage]

Nothing interesting was coming up in England, just a bunch of struggling Conference North and South clubs, and I don't want to take a backwards step down to that level again. I turned down Havant & Waterlooville five times.

So when I was offered a job in foreign lands, I decided to hop on a plane bus all the way to... Wales.

Previous boss Derek Brazil had jumped ship to Livingston in the Scottish First Division, but he's left them in a comfortable position. Haverfordwest sit in second place in the Welsh Premier League, with four games remaining. They trail Bangor by six points, though Bangor do have a game in hand, so winning the league is unlikely but UEFA Cup qualification is still to play for.