CFuller Posted October 14, 2022 Author Share Posted October 14, 2022 (edited) DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of August 2005) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Cambridge Utd 4 2 0 0 6 1 2 0 0 3 0 12 2nd Wrexham 4 2 0 0 4 0 1 1 0 4 2 10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Portsmouth 4 2 0 0 5 1 1 0 1 4 3 9 4th Rochdale 4 0 2 0 2 2 2 0 0 4 1 8 5th Northampton 4 1 1 0 4 2 1 0 1 3 3 7 6th Tranmere 4 1 1 0 3 2 1 0 1 2 2 7 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Bristol Rovers 4 1 1 0 5 4 1 0 1 1 2 7 8th Dag & Red 4 1 1 0 4 2 0 2 0 4 4 6 9th Oxford 4 1 0 1 3 3 1 0 1 5 5 6 10th Shrewsbury 4 1 0 1 2 1 1 0 1 2 3 6 11th Cardiff 4 1 1 0 9 4 0 1 1 3 4 5 12th Hull 4 1 1 0 3 2 0 1 1 5 6 5 13th Carlisle 4 0 2 0 2 2 1 0 1 2 2 5 14th Bristol City 4 0 0 2 3 5 1 1 0 4 2 4 15th Peterborough 4 0 2 0 3 3 0 2 0 3 3 4 16th Norwich 4 1 0 1 2 1 0 1 1 3 4 4 17th Bournemouth 4 1 0 1 2 2 0 1 1 0 2 4 18th Huddersfield 4 1 1 0 5 4 0 0 2 2 6 4 19th Reading 4 1 0 1 2 3 0 1 1 2 4 4 20th Wigan 4 1 0 1 2 2 0 1 1 1 6 4 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Barnsley 4 1 0 1 4 5 0 0 2 1 4 3 22nd Swindon 4 0 0 2 2 6 0 2 0 5 5 2 23rd Watford 4 0 2 0 3 3 0 0 2 0 4 2 24th Port Vale 4 0 0 2 0 3 0 1 1 0 3 1 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... The Confederations Cup sees a couple of shocks, as Brazil and hosts Argentina are knocked out in the Group Stage by South Africa and Australia respectively. The cream eventually rises to the top, with Germany lifting the trophy after Kevin Kurányi scores a 16th-minute winner in yet another Final showdown against Italy. At the Club World Championship in Turkey, Gennaro Ivan Gattuso scores twice as Milan defeat CONCACAF champions Chicago Fire 2-1 in the Final. Silvio Berlusconi celebrates with a quiet night at home. Ten days after becoming world champions, Milan's attempt to qualify for the Champions League ends in humiliation. Having beaten Amica Wronki 2-0 in the first leg at the San Siro, they then collapse to a shock 3-0 defeat in Poland - after conceding twice in the final 10 minutes! Gérard Houllier's side drop into the UEFA Cup, where they are drawn against another Polish team - Groclin Grodzisk - in Round 1. Hélio dos Anjos starts his Manchester United reign straight from where Sir Alex Ferguson left off. His new Brazilian striker França scores four goals in four games as United beat Blackburn in the Community Shield before recording three straight Premiership wins. Things don't go quite so well for Crewe's new boss John Collins, who loses his first three Premiership matches after taking over from the retired Dario Gradi. Two former Real Madrid 'galacticos' find new homes after becoming free agents in the summer. Portugal forward Figo signs for mid-table Serie A side Udinese, apparently after a recommendation from their scout Denis Smith. Meanwhile, playmaker Zinedine Zidane returns to France and signs for Nantes. IN OTHER NEWS... Hurricane Katrina devastates large parts of the southern United States, with the city of New Orleans in Louisiana being worst-hit. It kills over 1,800 people and causes $125billion worth of damage. The Labour Party mourns two of its most high-profile figures. Robin Cook - the former Foreign Secretary who quit Government in 2003 in protest against the Iraq War - dies of a heart attack at 59. Less than a fortnight later, Mo Mowlam - the former Northern Ireland Secretary who helped bring about the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 - passes away from cancer aged just 55. King Fahd of Saudi Arabia dies after 23 years on the throne. He is succeeded by his half-brother Abdullah, who becomes the fifth son of the famously prolific Ibn Saud to rule the oil-rich Middle Eastern state. R&B singer Rihanna releases her debut album “Music of the Sun”. This unassuming 17-year-old from Barbados soon announces her plan to take over the world by putting out a new single every month for the next nine years. Edited October 14, 2022 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted October 18, 2022 Author Share Posted October 18, 2022 SEPTEMBER 2005 After surviving our first four matches in Division 2 undefeated, things were heating up for Dagenham & Redbridge. Our September schedule began with a visit from Wigan, who were just outside the relegation places after a slow start to their campaign. 3 SEPTEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Wigan Athletic We seemingly had no luck in front of goal during the first half. Junior McDougald hit the crossbar from an excellent pass by Ryan Carter after just four minutes. Several later shots from McDougald and our other attackers were well saved by Wigan goalkeeper Gary McGlynn, whose patchy form before that game apparently didn't matter here. We upped the pace and went more direct early in the second half, which eventually got us our rewards. After 55 minutes, Des Hamilton picked out McDougald with a fantastic long ball that our long-serving striker flicked home with ease. And while it might have still been summer for a few more weeks, Craig Winter was thriving in attacking midfield. The Scotsman doubled our advantage eight minutes later, tapping in a low cross from left-back Kerry Mayo. The Latics were well beaten, though a shot from captain Neil Roberts gave our goalkeeper Glynn Thompson a late scare. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (McDougald 55, Winter 63) Wigan Athletic - 0 Division 2, Attendance 4,562 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 7th, Wigan 22nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Thompson; Hawkins, Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Hamilton, Lacey, Carter (McLean); Winter (Gledhill); Mwaruwari (Alsop), McDougald. BOOKED: Mwaruwari. We are traditionally very strong at home, and a third win in four matches at Victoria Road marked a promising start to our life in a new division. But if we were to survive, we also needed to pick up results away from east London. One of our longest trips this season took us all the way to Hull, in East Yorkshire. The Tigers were under the stewardship of veteran manager Dave Bassett, who led them into Division 1 in 2004 but failed to keep them up beyond a single season. Their pursuit of an immediate re-promotion hadn't started too badly, with just one defeat in five games. 10 SEPTEMBER 2005: Hull City vs Dagenham & Redbridge Dave Bassett's boys took only five minutes to hit the front, courtesy of their veteran French striker Marc Libbra, who pounced on a killer ball from midfielder Shaun Derry after a mistake by Daggers defender Lee Matthews. We had several chances to hit back, though it wasn't until Junior McDougald thundered in Mark Janney's low cross in the 30th minute that we drew level. The Tigers showed their teeth again in the 43rd minute, tormenting us with their quickfire attacking play before Derry blasted home for 2-1. Once again, McDougald provided the answer to Hull's question, heading in a lobbed ball from strike partner Benjani Mwaruwari to get us level just before half-time. At 2-2, it was anyone's guess where this match would go... or at least it was until the 74th minute. A fierce drive from right-back Craig McEwan rattled our woodwork and served as a warning shot. Five minutes later, Gavin Mahon skipped across midfield and weighted a fabulous pass to substitute striker Paul McKnight, who outpaced the experienced Matthews and sent Hull back into the lead. Of course, we'd recovered from two deficits, so we still believed we could do so again. Matthews almost redeemed himself in the 87th minute by setting up McDougald, who blazed over a great chance for a hat-trick. We then had one final equalising opportunity through attacking midfielder Craig Winter, who got his head to a Kerry Mayo cross... and flicked it inches past the post. Our unbeaten start was over. Hull City - 3 (Libbra 5, Derry 43, McKnight 79) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (McDougald 30,45) Division 2, Attendance 9,176 - POSITIONS: Hull 4th, Dag & Red 8th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Thompson; Hawkins, Maher, Matthews, Sharps (Weekes); Janney (Winter), Hamilton, Lacey, Mayo; Mwaruwari (Devine), McDougald. BOOKED: Sharps. I wasn't too disappointed about our first defeat of the season. We'd played pretty well for the most part, but Hull were just more comfortable in possession and more clinical in front of goal. When all was said and done, we'd lost to the better team. After the match, three teenagers were promoted to our reserve team. John Powell (18) is a pacey and selfless right-winger who looks to have a fair amount of potential if he can sharpen up his crossing. Alan Jones (17) also has plenty of speed and technique, and he can play anywhere in midfield or attack. However, I'm not as hopeful about forward Peter McCann (also 17), who is pretty average and demanded exorbitant wages when we were discussing a full-time contract. Peter needs to be more realistic, or he'll never make it as a professional footballer. We then returned to Victoria Road to host Northampton, who were in 3rd place and already looking confident of achieving a second promotion in three seasons. Damien Lacey had unfortunately picked up a groin strain on the eve of this match, which meant youngster Alan McLean took his place in midfield, and Lee Matthews took on the captaincy. 14 SEPTEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Northampton Town Craig Winter had now settled nicely into the Dagenham team, and after just seven minutes, he was celebrating his first assist for the club. A skilful exchange of passes with Benjani Mwaruwari ended in the Zimbabwean striker heading the opening goal past Northampton goalkeeper Jorgen Nielsen. The Cobblers were soon losing their cool. Former England defender Andy Hinchcliffe was lucky not to be sent off in the 12th minute, when he reacted angrily to being booked for bringing down Winter. His team-mate Nielsen did see red six minutes later, paying the ultimate price for a professional foul on Junior McDougald. He was replaced with Joe Murphy, who could do nothing about Benjani's subsequent penalty. Though we were 2-0 up and one man up, we made heavy weather of killing Northampton off later in the first half. We were punished seven minutes before the break, when a rare attack from the hosts ended in former Manchester United winger Ben Muirhead halving our goal advantage. Would that be costly? A minute before Muirhead's goal, Sean Maher had the ball in the Northampton net, only to be denied his first Dagenham goal because of an offside flag against McDougald. The Irish defender did beat his compatriot Murphy again in the 54th minute, pouncing on the loose ball after the keeper had awkwardly saved Benjani's volley. This time, Sean was allowed to celebrate breaking his duck, and it was 3-1 to the Daggers! But of course, it was Mwaruwari who had the last word. Ryan Carter cracked open the Cobblers' defence in the 71st minute to help Benjani complete his hat-trick, after which he was subbed off to a standing ovation. We hadn't simply beaten Northampton - we had smashed them! Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (Mwaruwari 7,pen18,71, Maher 54) Northampton Town - 1 (Muirhead 38) Division 2, Attendance 5,953 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 4th, Northampton 3rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Thompson; Hawkins (Gledhill), Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Hamilton, McLean (Carter), Weekes; Winter; Mwaruwari (Alsop), McDougald. We were back in the play-off places... but for how long? Next up was a long journey west, to face an entertaining Bristol Rovers side whose first seven matches had seen them score 15 goals and concede 16. 17 SEPTEMBER 2005: Bristol Rovers vs Dagenham & Redbridge Bristol Rovers made the brighter start and nearly scored in the seventh minute, when Stuart Brightwell's free-kick hit the post. Fellow winger Danny Pugh did likewise in the 27th, and Brightwell scuffed the rebound. Those misses came back to haunt the Gasheads on 38 minutes, as a low strike from Craig Winter gave Dagenham a 1-0 lead that we honestly didn't deserve. Our first-half luck didn't return for the second. Three minutes after the restart, star striker Junior McDougald - who had provided the assist for Winter's opener - felt a twinge in his thigh and gestured to come off. He was replaced with Sean Devine, who had a quiet afternoon in front of goal as we struggled to extend our lead. By the closing stages, with our advantage still at 1-0, I turned my focus towards preserving it. A tiring Sean Maher was replaced in defence by vice-captain John Anderson, who was making his first appearance this month, having been dropped after a decline in form. I mean, what could go wrong? Deep into stoppage time, Bristol Rovers sought the luck of the Irish as they went on one last attack. Centre-half Trevor Challis squared the ball to Irish international midfielder Alan Mahon, whose last-ditch 20-yard strike found the top corner - and brought a wide smile to the face of his Rovers manager Pete Mahon (no relation). All the stats suggested that Gasheads probably deserved at least a point, but we still felt very hard done by. Bristol Rovers - 1 (Mahon 90) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Winter 38) Division 2, Attendance 9,744 - POSITIONS: Bristol Rovers 12th, Dag & Red 6th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Thompson; Hawkins, Maher (Anderson), Matthews, Mayo; McLean (Hamilton), Carter, Weekes; Winter; Mwaruwari, McDougald (Devine). A painful second half in more ways than one. As well as missing out on two points that would have lifted us up to 3rd place, we also had to contend with the news that Junior McDougald was out for two weeks with a thigh strain. Having provided four goals and three assists in eight matches this term, the in-form American would be hard to replace. Four days later, we welcomed Glenn Hoddle's Bolton to Victoria Road in Round 2 of the League Cup. The Trotters' last match had seen them lose 3-0 at Old Trafford against the mighty Manchester United, but this would be a very different experience for them. Could our underdogs spring a surprise? 21 SEPTEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Bolton Wanderers Julian Alsop might not have scored yet this season, but I put my trust in the big target man to break apart the Bolton defence. Jules got his first chance after seven minutes, but Trotters keeper James Evans made simple work of his header. Benjani Mwaruwari and Des Hamilton would also have shots saved by the young Scotsman later on. Though England striker Michael Ricketts was captaining this Bolton team, the visitors' main attacking threats came from a couple of Nordic internationals. Norway striker Thorstein Helstad and Sweden midfielder Kennedy Bakircioglü each had shots hit the woodwork either side of the half-time break. By the 75th minute, Glenn Hoddle was seemingly so desperate to reverse his team's fortunes that I heard him trying to phone a faith healer - called Eileen something. Hoddle need not have worried, because for the second game in a row, we would have our hearts broken in the closing stages by an Irish midfielder. Bolton finally made the breakthrough four minutes from time, when Chris Dawson's corner was headed home by Republic of Ireland B international Kevin Nolan. I thought we were doing well enough to at least take the game to extra-time, but it wasn't to be. Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Bolton Wanderers - 1 (Nolan 86) League Cup Round 2, Attendance 5,970 DAG & RED LINE-UP (5-3-2): Pollitt; Maher, Bayliss, Matthews; Hawkins, Mayo; Carter (Winter), Hamilton, Weekes (McLean); Alsop (Devine), Mwaruwari. Another valiant League Cup performance had ended in a late, narrow defeat to Premiership opposition. Still, we could dry our tears with the £59,700 we made in gate receipts - a new club-record. Another big Victoria Road crowd was anticipated when Norwich came to town. It's incredible to think that the Canaries were flying high in the Premiership a little over a decade ago, yet now found themselves battling to avoid relegation into Division 3. 24 SEPTEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Norwich City The first half was a surprisingly eventful one for teenage midfielder Ryan Carter. Having been booked in the 40th minute for a foul on Danny Hudson, Carter posed an even greater danger to Norwich with a powerful strike that was well stopped by Damian Beckford-Quailey. That was our best chance in a combative opening period, which was a stressful one for our opponents, who made two substitutes before the break! Carter and right-back Lee Gledhill were both on yellow cards at half-time, so I told them to calm down. I was soon wishing I'd given the same pep talk to our left-back Kerry Mayo. Kerry reacted so poorly to receiving a yellow card in the 47th minute that he angrily kicked the ball away, earning him another! I couldn't hide my dismay for Mayo's behaviour as he headed down the Victoria Road tunnel in disgrace. Within moments of Mayo's dismissal, our 10 men predictably fell 1-0 behind. Anglo-Danish centre-back Brett Solkhon - who replaced the experienced Phil Babb in Norwich's defence after just 14 minutes - scored his first Canaries goal to break the deadlock. Norwich's narrow lead lasted just five minutes. Nick Weekes might have been thwarted by a firm tackle from visiting full-back Alex Powell, but Carter got to the loose ball and blasted it home. The homegrown hero celebrated his equaliser wildly with his team-mates... until things took a dark turn when centre-back Shaun Maher pulled a calf muscle. 16-year-old midfielder Simon Warren had to replace the injured Irishman, making just his second competitive appearance. City were back on the offensive in the 69th minute, when a shot from the experienced winger John O'Neil was pushed behind by Glynn Thompson. Powell tried an inswinging corner, and 21-year-old John Sutton (the younger brother of ex-Norwich striker Chris) outjumped Des Hamilton to head in what proved to be the clincher. Fortress Victoria Road had been breached twice in four days. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Carter 52) Norwich City - 2 (Solkhon 47, Sutton 70) Division 2, Attendance 5,973 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 10th, Norwich 18th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Thompson; Gledhill (Hawkins), Maher (Warren), Matthews, Mayo; Carter, Hamilton, Weekes; Winter (Sharps); Devine, Mwaruwari. BOOKED: Gledhill, Carter, Mayo, Devine. SENT OFF: Mayo. What a let-down. As poorly as we'd played overall, Kerry Mayo's needless sending-off was probably the main reason for our defeat. Our left-back received a one-match ban - ruling him out of our next home game against leaders Cambridge on 8 October - and a stern warning. We head into the autumn sitting in mid-table - two points off the play-off places, but six clear of relegation. With seven matches on our October schedule, our season really could go either way. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted October 18, 2022 Author Share Posted October 18, 2022 DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of September 2005) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Cambridge Utd 9 4 1 0 14 5 2 1 1 5 3 20 2nd Rochdale 9 3 2 0 11 6 3 0 1 7 5 20 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Swindon 9 2 0 2 6 7 3 2 0 17 10 17 4th Reading 9 3 0 2 9 6 2 1 1 7 7 16 5th Wrexham 9 3 1 1 8 5 1 2 1 8 7 15 6th Tranmere 9 3 2 0 7 3 1 1 2 3 4 15 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Oxford 9 2 0 2 9 7 3 0 2 10 10 15 8th Carlisle 9 2 2 1 9 9 2 1 1 8 6 15 9th Cardiff 9 2 1 1 14 7 2 1 2 11 11 14 10th Northampton 9 2 2 0 7 4 2 0 3 9 12 14 11th Dag & Red 9 3 1 1 11 5 0 3 1 7 8 13 12th Hull 9 2 1 1 7 6 1 3 1 12 12 13 13th Bristol Rovers 9 1 3 0 9 8 2 0 3 10 13 12 14th Huddersfield 9 2 2 0 12 9 1 1 3 7 12 12 15th Portsmouth 9 2 2 1 15 13 1 0 3 6 8 11 16th Port Vale 9 1 1 2 4 5 2 1 2 4 5 11 17th Peterborough 9 2 2 1 9 9 0 2 2 5 10 10 18th Norwich 9 2 0 2 5 4 1 1 3 6 12 10 19th Bournemouth 9 1 2 1 4 4 0 3 2 1 4 8 20th Bristol City 9 1 0 4 9 13 1 2 1 8 8 8 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Shrewsbury 9 1 1 3 4 5 1 0 3 4 8 7 22nd Barnsley 9 2 0 3 8 10 0 1 3 3 8 7 23rd Wigan 9 2 0 2 7 6 0 1 4 2 12 7 24th Watford 9 1 2 1 6 7 0 1 4 3 9 6 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... England are among the latest countries to qualify for the World Cup, as midfielders Joe Cole and Seth Johnson score the decisive goals in a 2-0 win over Bosnia & Herzegovina. Spain also book their place at next summer's finals - without conceding a single goal. Iker Casillas might have had a say in that. While Manchester United saunter to the top of the Premiership once again, Liverpool's title charge stutters, with just one win from their first five matches. The Scousers respond by paying Monaco £10million for creative winger Ludovic Giuly, who twists his knee on his Anfield debut against Newcastle. Premiership clubs have mixed results early in the Champions League. Chelsea suffer a shocking collapse in Denmark, throwing away a 2-0 lead before conceding a 90th-minute winner against Brøndby. Meanwhile, Leeds record a stunning 3-0 victory over Barcelona at the Nou Camp... but then lose 3-0 at Club Brugge a week later! Lille make a strong start to the Ligue 1 season, with midfielder Michael Essien and striker Dado Prso both in hot form as they win five of their first seven matches. Defending champions Monaco are also unbeaten... but they are also in the relegation zone after five consecutive draws! Could Bayern München's Bundesliga dominance be under threat? Ottmar Hitzfeld's superstars suffer a humiliating 5-0 defeat at Hertha BSC that knocks them off top spot. The new leaders are unbeaten outsiders 1.FC Köln, whose fresh-faced 38-year-old manager Jürgen Klopp implements a high-intensity playing style that German journalists call "gegenpressing". IN OTHER NEWS... 16 years after losing the Ashes, England's cricketers regain the little urn by beating Australia in a thrilling five-match Test series on home soil. The country immediately goes barmy, while star player Andrew Flintoff gets sozzled before planning a new career in showbiz. The Daily Mirror releases an exposé showing supermodel Kate Moss and her musician boyfriend Pete Doherty taking cocaine. Moss loses her advertising contract with H&M, while Doherty becomes THE biggest rock star in Britain. How does that work? In Formula 1, Michael Schumacher’s five-year reign of terr... ific driving is over. 23-year-old Fernando Alonso wins the Drivers’ Championship with two races to spare, becoming the youngest world champion in history. The Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten publish 12 cartoons, many of which depict the Prophet Muhammad. This angers many Muslims and leads to protests worldwide. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted October 21, 2022 Author Share Posted October 21, 2022 (edited) OCTOBER 2005 The new Division 2 season had entered one of its busiest periods. There were seven rounds of matches scheduled, and it was anyone's guess where this mid-table Dagenham & Redbridge team would be positioned come Halloween. A good run of form would place us firmly in the play-off picture, but if our recent string of poor results continued, the relegation places would be on the horizon. First up was an away game against one of the teams who came up with us from Division 3 last season. Oxford had made an inconsistent start, winning five of their opening matches but losing the other four. That said, the U's had one of the league's joint-top scorers in Lee Trundle, who was itching to add to his eight-goal haul. Having hurt his calf in our most recent defeat at home to Norwich, defender Shaun Maher was unable to join the Daggers at the Kassam Stadium. Captain Damien Lacey and striker Junior McDougald were still recovering from their injuries. 1 OCTOBER 2005: Oxford United vs Dagenham & Redbridge As expected, Oxford set their stall out to attack in the early stages, with Lee Trundle putting his first shot just over the bar after just three minutes. Two minutes later, we launched our first counter-attack through Benjani Mwaruwari, who put himself in the shop window with an impressive solo goal that sent us 1-0 up! After a couple of narrow misses at both ends, an entertaining match took a major twist ten minutes from half-time. Our defence was unable to cope with a killer cross from New Zealand winger Leo Bertos, who set up the equalising goal for teenage midfielder James Newell. Bertos followed that up a couple of minutes later by giving Oxford the lead, burying the rebound after Glynn Thompson made a mess of Newell's shot. Our defence suffered a blow six minutes into the second half, when a shin injury ended right-back Lee Gledhill's match. Despite that, we soon pushed forward looking for an equaliser, only to be met by a string of fantastic saves from Alan Fettis. The Northern Irishman wasn't the first goalkeeper to play a blinder against us, and he wouldn't be the last. Oxford took control in the closing stages, and by the 81st minute, it was all over. Journeyman defender Wayne Brown doubled their lead from a cross by substitute Chris Blackburn, and Neil Cooper's side celebrated a massive victory in their pursuit of back-to-back promotion. Meanwhile, defeat saw us slip into the bottom half for the first time. Oxford United - 3 (Newell 35, Bertos 37, Brown 81) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 5) Division 2, Attendance 7,437 - POSITIONS: Oxford 5th, Dag & Red 14th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Thompson; Gledhill (Hawkins), Bayliss, Matthews, Sharps; Carter (Melton), McLean, Weekes; Winter; Alsop (Devine), Mwaruwari. BOOKED: Carter. Including our League Cup defeat to Bolton, we'd now lost three matches on the trot. If we were to get out of this rut, I would have to make major changes. I called centre-back Dave Bayliss, winger Mark Janney and strikers Sean Devine and Victor Renner into my office - and told them all that they were being relegated to the reserves and transfer-listed with immediate effect. Frankly, none of them were good enough for regular Division 2 football and were now surplus to requirements. I also warned three other players - Julian Alsop, Lee Gledhill and Stephen Melton - that they would be heading the same way if their performances did not improve. We couldn't afford to keep any stragglers around at this level. After that, I injected some fresh blood into the team. Firstly, we took the powerful 20-year-old Scottish right-winger William McQuade on a season-long loan from Derby. He was soon joined at Victoria Road by the more experienced Spencer Prior, who had made over 500 league appearances - and spent many years in the Premiership with Leicester, Derby, Manchester City and Gillingham. The strong 34-year-old centre-half signed from the Gills for £65,000 and would take on the captaincy with immediate effect. Prior led the Daggers out for the first time when we hosted league leaders Cambridge a week later. Teenage striker Robbie Walsh also made his first Dagenham start, while McQuade was on the bench, hoping to make an explosive impact if required. With Kerry Mayo serving a one-match ban, Ian Sharps deputised at left-back. 8 OCTOBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Cambridge United This match saw the return of our former keeper Ian Bennett to Victoria Road - a place where he hadn't exactly enjoyed the best of times two seasons ago. Cambridge's soon-to-be 34-year-old goalie had another nightmare after nine minutes, when Daggers midfielder Nick Weekes whipped in a corner - and captain Lee Matthews headed in his first goal since coming back home. Bennett did try to keep the floodgates from bursting wide open, but by the 26th minute, we had doubled our lead. Another Weekes corner was converted by another of our big summer signings - in-form midfielder Craig Winter. United were shellshocked, and it took them nearly the entire first half to launch a response. Though Scott Bannerman's 45th-minute shot was saved by Mike Pollitt, his team's next attack did fool our goalkeeper. Pollitt was beaten to a right-wing Ian Ridgeway cross by the head of Adam Bolder, who pegged us back to 2-1. Given how his set-pieces had given us the lead, it seemed fitting that Weekes should be the man to restore our two-goal cushion. In the 68th minute, Winter returned the favour to Weekes, who dribbled into the Cambridge box and then stroked a cool shot past Bennett. Though Bannerman did get another goal back for the visitors six minutes later, there was no need to panic... especially with Ian Bennett in the opposition goal. After 79 minutes, Bennett made his biggest mistake yet. Substitute John Anderson went clean through on the Cambridge goal when he was taken out by Bennett, who was finally put out of his misery with a straight red card. Substitute keeper Paul Robinson then conceded Benjani Mwaruwari's penalty, which sealed a 4-2 Dagenham win! Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (Matthews 9, Winter 26, Weekes 68, Mwaruwari pen80) Cambridge United - 2 (Bolder 45, Bannerman 74) Division 2, Attendance 5,536 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 9th, Cambridge Utd 1st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Pollitt; Hawkins, Prior, Matthews, Sharps (Gledhill); Carter (Anderson), McLean, Weekes; Winter; Walsh (McDougald), Mwaruwari. Were we returning to form, or was that just a fluke? Next up was a mid-table clash at Ninian Park against Cardiff, who hadn't yet kept a clean sheet this season. Our new loanee winger McQuade would set out to wreak further damage on the Bluebirds' defensive record when he made his Daggers debut. 11 OCTOBER 2005: Cardiff City vs Dagenham & Redbridge This match also saw Damien Lacey - an ex-Swansea midfielder, no less - return to the Dagenham line-up after a month out with a groin injury. But while Lacey was fit again, we would soon have a couple more injuries to contend with. Left-back Ian Sharps pulled up after just 19 minutes, and an even bigger blow came when striker Junior McDougald was stretchered off five minutes from half-time. In terms of attacking action, the first half saw the two teams have one shot apiece. Cardiff made the most of their opportunity in the 28th minute, when Peter Thorne's flick-on was punched away by Daggers keeper Glynn Thompson, only for Thorne's strike partner Keigan Parker to blast in the rebound. By contrast, our only chance of the opening period was volleyed horribly wide by Benjani Mwaruwari. Thankfully, Benjani's next effort in the 49th minute was much better, rocketing past Tony Williams in the Bluebirds goal. Sadly, Williams didn't put a foot wrong in the closing stages, as his assured shotstopping meant we only took one point back home from Wales. Cardiff City - 1 (Parker 28) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 49) Division 2, Attendance 7,411 - POSITIONS: Cardiff 14th, Dag & Red 11th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Thompson; Hawkins (Winter), Prior, Matthews, Sharps (Gledhill); McQuade, Weekes, Lacey, Mayo; Mwaruwari, McDougald (Alsop). Sharps would only be out for around 10 days with a twisted knee, but the news about McDougald's injury wasn't so positive. He had torn a groin muscle and was ruled out for the best part of three months. We had plenty of firepower in this team, so replacing Junior wasn't exactly a priority, but it was still a major blow. As we came to terms with this latest setback, we watched the FA Cup Round 1 draw. The drawmasters had been quite kind to us this time, giving us a home game against Chester, who were recently promoted back to the Conference after three years in the regional leagues. Our next league match saw us go on the road again, meeting 16th-placed Portsmouth at Fratton Park. Pompey were relegated from Division 1 last season, and their journeyman coach Roy Hodgson was already facing a battle to stop them dropping down another tier. 18 OCTOBER 2005: Portsmouth vs Dagenham & Redbridge Portsmouth were unlucky not to take the lead after just six minutes, when Juan Carlos Socorro drove a low shot against the crossbar. Unfortunately, the Venezuela left-winger did s(o)core in the 23rd minute, comfortably beating Glynn Thompson after a great set-up from David Nielsen on the right wing. Benjani Mwaruwari pulled us back level in the 25th minute, helped in part by an assist from his young strike partner Robbie Walsh. Pompey's director of football Harry Redknapp clearly looked impressed with Benjani, who had another opportunity to catch the eye in the 38th minute. Walsh's pace and skill won a foul off left-back Alessandro Zamperini in the area, prompting the referee to award us a penalty. Unfortunately, Benjani's spot-kick prowess let him down this time, as Shaka Hislop made a strong save from the Zimbabwean. Portsmouth had been let off the hook, and they stole the lead again nine minutes into the second half. Gary O'Neil's cross found his midfield colleague Darryl Powell, whose header slipped past Thompson for 2-1. Glynn had now conceded two goals from two home shots on target, and I couldn't stand the thought of his shaky goalkeeping costing us another game. Mike Pollitt took his place between the posts for the last half-hour. By contrast, Portsmouth's shotstopper wasn't so Shaka... er, I mean shaky. Hislop withstood a deluge of Daggers attacks, and I was starting to believe that we were going to come away beaten when an old hero came to the rescue. Just as the referee was about to blow full-time, Kerry Mayo put one last ball into the Pompey box, where supersub Julian Alsop drove in his first goal of the season to snatch a 2-2 draw! Portsmouth - 2 (Socorro 23, D Powell 54) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Mwaruwari 25, Alsop 90) Division 2, Attendance 5,887 - POSITIONS: Portsmouth 17th, Dag & Red 10th DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Thompson (Pollitt); Anderson, Prior, Matthews; McQuade, Mayo; Weekes, Lacey, Hamilton (Winter); Mwaruwari, Walsh (Alsop). BOOKED: Matthews. Welcome to the party, Jules! I'm glad you could join us at last! Alsop's reward for his late equaliser was a return to the starting line-up when we welcomed Wrexham to Victoria Road. The Dragons were perennial play-off contenders - their previous three seasons had seen them finish 6th, 5th and 7th, and they were now faring even better in 4th place. 22 OCTOBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Wrexham Julian Alsop picked up straight where he left off. The big target man's first shot after nine minutes hit the post, and his next effort a couple of minutes later did the same... but his luck was in this time, as the ball deflected into the net. That was a moment of redemption for our three-time Player of the Year, and also for midfielder Des Hamilton, whose killer ball opened up the opportunity. Unfortunately, Wrexham would finish the first period as strongly as we'd started it. Left-winger Kevin Cooper unlucky hit the post in the 39th minute, but midfielder Richard Dunning's 41st-minute strike did manage to beat ex-Dragons keeper Mike Pollitt in the Daggers goal. 1-1, and still all to play for. After wasting several opportunities to restore our lead early in the second half, a frustrating afternoon turned into a potential horror show. Wrexham's right-winger Scott Huckerby was taken out by a clumsy tackle from Damien Lacey, who had otherwise been consistently solid in our midfield. Delapo Olaoye took the penalty, which comfortably beat Pollitt, and our Welsh visitors had the lead. In a moment of annoyance, I decided to sub Alsop off immediately and bring on Robbie Walsh in his place. Just six minutes later, that was looking like a surprisingly smart move. The 18-year-old got himself into space to receive a cross from Benjani Mwaruwari, and a powerful header restored parity! Our game ended on a sour note in the 78th minute, when substitute winger William McQuade suffered a twisted knee that would sideline him for the next three weeks. Despite having to play the final dozen minutes with only 10 men, we somehow held on for a point. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Alsop 11, Walsh 70) Wrexham - 2 (Dunning 41, Olaoye pen64) Division 2, Attendance 5,986 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 12th, Wrexham 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Pollitt; Hawkins (Gledhill), Prior, Matthews, Mayo; Carter, Lacey, Hamilton; Winter (McQuade); Mwaruwari, Alsop (Walsh). In our last three matches, we'd faced six shots on target and conceded from five of them. For all our excellent attacking play, the state of our defence was utterly shocking, even with the addition of Spencer Prior. For our next away game at 2nd-placed Rochdale, I decided to switch to a very defensive 5-3-2. A fit-again Shaun Maher returned at centre-half to try and help us snap a run of 10 games without a clean sheet. 25 OCTOBER 2005: Rochdale vs Dagenham & Redbridge Glynn Thompson went back in goal for our trip to Spotland - but by the 23rd minute, I was wishing I'd sent him to Scotland instead. A low cross from Christian Fox was met by a good but not outstanding shot from Rochdale striker Gavin Holligan, which Thompson probably could've got a glove to. With Glenn Roeder's Dale attacking us hard and not giving us much time on the ball, it was a real struggle to get back into the game. Our plight was only worsened when left-back Kerry Mayo gashed his shin just before half-time. Mayo was replaced with Lee Gledhill, and I decided to make a more significant change during the interval. The 5-3-2 gave way to the more usual 4-3-1-2, with defender Shaun Maher coming off for attacking midfielder Craig Winter. In truth, the tactical overhaul didn't really help when it came to settling us down. Things went from bad to worse in the 56th minute, when Rochdale asserted their dominance with a second Holligan goal, set up by a square-ball assist from midfielder Claus Bech Jørgensen. Just before Rochdale went 2-0 up, I made my final change by replacing midfielder Des Hamilton with rising star Alan McLean. Alan was just a week shy of his 20th birthday, and with 15 minutes remaining, Nick Weekes gave him an early present. Weekes played a perfect weighted pass to McLean, who dribbled to the edge of the Dale area and then rocketed in his first senior goal! Then, barely a minute after one Scotsman had quietened the Spotland crowd, another stunned it into silence! Winter came into the penalty area after Benjani Mwaruwari's header was parried by Ian Gray, and a poacher's finish completed a turnaround. From 2-0 behind, we had salvaged another 2-2 draw - our THIRD in the space of eight days! Rochdale - 2 (Holligan 23,56) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (McLean 75, Winter 76) Division 2, Attendance 5,461 - POSITIONS: Rochdale 2nd, Dag & Red 15th DAG & RED LINE-UP (5-3-2 Defensive): Thompson; Maher (Winter), Prior, Matthews; Hawkins, Lacey, Mayo (Gledhill); Weekes, Hamilton (McLean); Alsop, Mwaruwari. A great comeback, but now the injuries were getting ridiculous. Mayo's shin injury thankfully coincided with Sharps' return to full fitness, which meant he was free to start our home game against a Carlisle side who were just outside the play-off spots. After four consecutive draws, could we end a frustrating month with a decisive result? 29 OCTOBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Carlisle United After sitting out the last game, our young striker Robbie Walsh got another chance to show why his talents were coveted by top-flight clubs. The Irishman only needed five minutes to make an impact, unleashing a killer strike from Nick Weekes' through-ball. Nine minutes later, though, another Irish striker found the net to pull Carlisle back level. Richie Foran's low shot was met with so little resistance by Glynn Thompson that I immediately told my loanee goalkeeper what I thought of his recent form. The fourth official put the subs board up, with Mike Pollitt coming on to replace a bewildered Thompson. In the 19th minute, we set our sights on going back ahead. Julian Alsop's beeline towards goal was interrupted by a tackle from Cumbrians defender Leo Roget, but Craig Winter got to the loose ball and played Weekes through for 2-1 Dagenham. All was well at Victoria Road again... ...until the 39th minute. Pollitt turned away a powerful strike by Carlisle left-winger John Hore, only to watch left-back Adam Drury score the follow-up shot from Jimmy Davis' chipped delivery. Weekes did combine with Walsh again just before half-time to restore our advantage, but even at 3-2 up, there was a very real fear that we would soon lose the lead once again. Our fears came to pass 10 minutes after the restart. Carlisle once again exploited our lack of width, when Hore's cross from the left wing was met with a clinical finish by former Manchester United striker Davis. Now it was 3-3! We fought tooth and nail over the final 35 minutes to try and take the lead for a fourth (and hopefully final) time. Despite the best efforts from Weekes and Walsh, who probably could've shared the 'Man of the Match' award between them, we couldn't quite turn one point into three. Even after Roget was sent off for a frustrated kick at Damien Lacey in the 88th minute, Carlisle's defence managed to hold out. Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Walsh 5, Weekes 19,45) Carlisle United - 3 (Foran 14, Drury 39, Davis 55) Division 2, Attendance 6,000 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 12th, Carlisle DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Thompson (Pollitt); Hawkins, Prior, Matthews, Sharps; Weekes, McLean (Lacey), Carter; Winter; Alsop (Mwaruwari), Walsh. A joy to watch going forward, but a complete shambles at the back. That sums up Dagenham & Redbridge to a tee. I had finally lost my patience with goalkeeper Glynn Thompson, who had apparently forgotten what he was supposed to use his hands for. I cancelled his loan spell from Fulham a month early and sent him back to Craven Cottage with his tail between his legs. We also said goodbye to 33-year-old John Anderson, who signed for Cambridge on a free transfer. The Scottish centre-back had served us with great distinction over the past three years, and having played a pivotal role in two promotions, he will go down as a Daggers legend. Sadly, an average rating of 6.00 across a dozen Division 2 matches just isn't going to cut it. I won’t lie, those are two brutal decisions I’ve taken, but I hope they will give the rest of the defence a much-needed shake-up. Edited March 23 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted October 21, 2022 Author Share Posted October 21, 2022 DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of October 2005) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Cambridge Utd 16 6 1 1 19 8 3 1 4 10 13 29 2nd Wrexham 15 5 1 1 13 7 3 3 2 18 16 28 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Port Vale 16 4 2 2 12 8 4 2 2 6 5 28 4th Norwich 16 6 0 2 15 8 3 1 4 13 17 28 5th Rochdale 16 5 3 0 19 10 3 0 5 10 15 27 6th Swindon 15 3 2 3 11 11 4 2 1 22 14 25 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Portsmouth 16 4 3 1 21 15 3 0 5 12 14 24 8th Shrewsbury 16 4 1 3 14 8 3 1 4 14 13 23 9th Carlisle 16 3 2 3 13 14 3 3 2 17 14 23 10th Huddersfield 16 4 3 1 20 15 2 2 4 10 15 23 11th Northampton 15 5 2 1 15 9 2 0 5 11 18 23 12th Dag & Red 16 4 3 1 20 12 0 6 2 13 16 21 13th Oxford 16 4 0 4 18 15 3 0 5 15 18 21 14th Tranmere 16 3 5 0 12 8 2 1 5 7 13 21 15th Reading 16 4 1 3 13 10 2 2 4 12 20 21 16th Cardiff 16 3 3 2 20 12 2 2 4 14 17 20 17th Bristol City 15 2 0 5 13 17 4 2 2 17 15 20 18th Peterborough 15 3 3 1 13 11 1 3 4 11 17 18 19th Bristol Rovers 15 2 5 1 19 19 2 1 4 14 19 18 20th Barnsley 16 4 1 3 17 16 1 1 6 6 15 17 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Bournemouth 15 3 2 2 9 7 0 5 3 2 8 16 22nd Hull 16 2 1 5 12 20 1 5 2 14 17 15 23rd Watford 16 3 3 2 11 9 0 2 6 9 18 14 24th Wigan 15 4 0 4 13 11 0 2 5 3 15 14 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Here we go again. Five consecutive victories send Manchester United seven points clear of Arsenal, already putting them on course for a fourth Premiership title in a row. United have won 10 of their first 11 games, while Gary Megson's West Brom are on an equally spectacular run, having lost 10 of their 11 matches. After leaving Manchester United in the summer, former Republic of Ireland midfielder Roy Keane embarks on a new chapter, succeeding Jimmy Sandison as player-manager of Division 2 side Barnsley. Keane immediately tries to win the Tykes players over by giving them ice cream and taking them to Flamingo Land. Dado Prso's excellent scoring form for Lille continues, as a brace against Paris-SG and a hat-trick against Le Mans help 'Les Dogues' build a nine-point lead in France's top division. The ponytailed Croatian is now odds on to take the Ligue 1 golden boot from Monaco's Shabani Nonda - not least because Nonda is serving a 90-day ban for assaulting the referee against Toulouse. Madrid are back on top of La Liga... but with an erratic Real Madrid floundering in mid-table, it's Atlético Madrid who hit the front! The strike duo of Uruguayan veteran Fernando Correa and 21-year-old Fernando Torres are in fine form as Atléti win seven straight matches, including a 1-0 victory over 2nd-placed Athletic Bilbao. 19-year-old Tottenham prospect Joe O'Shea scores on his international debut as the Republic of Ireland secure a World Cup place by beating Northern Ireland 2-0. Holland also progress after Ruud van Nistelrooy scores 22 goals in eight qualifiers, but Denmark - who finished 4th in 2002 - miss out on a play-off place on goal difference. IN OTHER NEWS... African American activist Rosa Parks passes away aged 92. In 1955, Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama after refusing an order to give up her bus seat to a white passenger. This started a bus boycott that eventually kick-started a nationwide civil rights movement. …and it’s goodnight from him. Ronnie Barker - one half of the “Two Ronnies” comedy duo with namesake Corbett, and the star of 1970s sitcom “Porridge” - dies of heart failure in Oxfordshire at the age of 76. A Sky News presenter breaks the news that the playwright Harold Pinter has died... but then corrects herself and states that Pinter has actually won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Fortunately, the 75-year-old creator of "The Birthday Party" and "The Homecoming" sees the funny side and revels in his resurrection. Nickelback’s new album “All The Right Reasons” gets a lot of attention for all the wrong reasons. For starters, why does Chad Kroeger have to sound so constipated when he tells us to LOOK AT THIS PHOTOGRAPH?! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 1, 2022 Author Share Posted November 1, 2022 NOVEMBER 2005 After the early cancellation of Glynn Thompson's loan spell from Fulham, I was in the lookout for another goalkeeper. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait long or look far to find one. Taking over Dagenham & Redbridge's number 1 jersey is 25-year-old Robert Green, who joins us from Millwall on loan until the end of February. Though he has never fulfilled the potential he had as a youngster at Norwich, Rob is still a pretty solid and very agile Football League shotstopper. Green hoped to make an explosive start to his Daggers career when we went to Tranmere on Bonfire Night. The Merseyside club were level on points with us, only trailing on goal difference. Though their recent form under John King had been disappointing, we still needed to be prepared for a battle at Prenton Park. 5 NOVEMBER 2005: Tranmere Rovers vs Dagenham & Redbridge Robert Green immediately made the Daggers goal his own, making several saves to keep various Tranmere players off the scoresheet in the first half. Centre-back Lee Matthews also deserved some credit for winning many key tackles and headers, but our attack was struggling to get going... ...until the fourth minute of the second half. We caught Tranmere on the hop, and when midfielder Ryan Carter's shot was spilled by goalkeeper Darren Trigg, the rebound was calmly finished by Craig Winter! Craig then struck again four minutes later, with a low shot bypassing Trigg to double our lead. Rovers gave us a scare in the 58th minute, when ex-Chelsea right-back Leslie Hughes blasted in a superb shot that cut our advantage back down to one goal. Fortunately, Winter allayed any fears by completing his hat-trick in the 68th minute. A bullet header from Julian Alsop's cross rounded off an outstanding solo performance by the flying Scotsman! Tranmere Rovers - 1 (Hughes 58) Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Winter 49,53,68) Division 2, Attendance 8,169 - POSITIONS: Tranmere 17th, Dag & Red 9th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins, Prior (Gledhill), Matthews, Sharps (Mayo); Weekes, McLean, Carter; Winter (Hamilton); Alsop, Walsh. BOOKED: Prior, Sharps. That was our first away win this season. Had we turned a corner? A week later, we were at home to the team who were just one place and two points ahead of us. Bristol City had just come back down from Division 1, having been relegated after a single season back in the top flight. In former German international Paulo Roberto Rink, they had one of the division's form strikers. 12 NOVEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Bristol City A mishap in the Bristol City defence gifted us the opening goal after 18 minutes. Centre-back Nicky Hunt almost headed a wayward clearance onto his own net, and was thankful to goalkeeper John Karelse for pushing it out for a corner. Hunt didn't feel so grateful just moments later, when Dagenham captain Spencer Prior rose highest to head in Nick Weekes' corner and sent Victoria Road rocking! The Robins' defence managed to hold firm for the rest of the first half, but they lost their way again after the break. Weekes latched onto a killer through-ball from midfield colleague Craig Winter to make it 2-0 after 62 minutes. Benjani Mwaruwari then struck in the 79th minute to put the seal on what looked like a comfortable 3-0 win. Unfortunately, the Daggers aren't allowed to keep clean sheets anymore. Prior's centre-back partner Lee Matthews gave away a totally unnecessary penalty in the 88th minute after tripping Tony Thorpe. Though Ian Kilford's spot-kick was well saved by Green, the former Wigan midfielder drove in the rebound, giving Bristol City a consolation. Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Prior 18, Weekes 62, Mwaruwari 79) Bristol City - 1 (Kilford 88) Division 2, Attendance 5,976 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 8th, Bristol City 12th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins (Gledhill), Prior, Matthews, Mayo; Weekes, McLean (Lacey), Carter; Winter; Mwaruwari (Alsop), Walsh. BOOKED: Matthews. That match marked the end of Jocky Scott's tenure as Bristol City manager, as he was sacked the following afternoon. I'll admit that the prospect of managing a club with City's resources - not to mention talent - was a tempting one. However, I wasn't desperate to leave the Daggers just yet, so if the Robins wanted me, they would need to make me a very attractive offer. I also wasn't desperate to sell our in-demand starlet Robbie Walsh. We'd turned down a couple more offers from Coventry and Dundee United for the 18-year-old striker, whose dozen appearances so far this season had yielded two goals and three assists. Now it was time to look ahead to the cup competitions. The Football League Trophy Round 1 draw had given us a tough away trip to Oxford in December... but the FA Cup draw had been much more generous. Our FA Cup campaign began with what looked like a straightforward away game against Conference side Chester. Then again, City were captained by my old nemesis - 38-year-old Craig Forrest, who was the most unstoppable Canadian since Bryan Adams’ reign of chart terror in 1991. Would the former Rotherham goalkeeper haunt us once again? 19 NOVEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Chester City I named a strong team for this match, but a combination of Craig Forrest and his woodwork kept us goalless for just over half an hour. The breakthrough finally came in the 32nd minute from our form man Craig Winter, who skipped past City midfielders Aaron Skelton and Stuart Taylor before driving home an unstoppable shot. Though we were largely dominating the match, Forrest was still saving almost everything we fired at him. At times, it felt like he should have been goaltending for the Vancouver Canucks in the NHL, and not Chester in the Conference. However, there was nothing he could do about our second goal in the 59th minute, which Benjani Mwaruwari smashed in off the crossbar to effectively book our place in Round 2. Chester's attackers finally showed up for the final half-hour. Shots from midfielders Sean McClare and Graham Thorpe kept our goalie Mike Pollitt on his toes, and striker Stephen Grant fared even better with a stunning free-kick in the 73rd minute. The final scoreline of 2-1 did perhaps flatter our visitors, but we'd still done enough to progress. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Winter 32, Mwaruwari 59) Chester City - 1 (Grant 73) FA Cup Round 1, Attendance 2,824 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins, Matthews, Maher, Mayo; Carter, McLean (M Jones), Hamilton; Winter (McQuade); Alsop (Griffiths), Mwaruwari. BOOKED: McLean. We could look forward to playing Conference opposition again in Round 2. This time, though, we faced a journey west to Somerset, to take on Garry Hill's Yeovil side. A few days later, Dundee United came back in for Robbie Walsh - and this time, Jim Leishman was deadly serious. Before long, we had agreed a sale worth £200,000, plus 25% of Robbie's next transfer fee. I was sad to be losing a talented youngster before he'd become a first-team regular, but at least we had made some substantial money through developing him. Walsh's departure also opened the door for fellow striker Chris Griffiths to come back into the Daggers fold. The 19-year-old's cameo against Chester was his first competitive game for us since the Division 3 play-off against Lincoln 18 months ago. If Chris wanted to establish himself in the senior squad, now was his time to step up. We hoped to complete a perfect November with a fourth consecutive win. The latest visitors to Victoria Road were 15th-placed Shrewsbury, whom we would have to face without midfielder Des Hamilton, who'd sprained his ankle in training. 26 NOVEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury's goalkeeper Justin Bray is not Canadian, but he may as well have been another Craig Forrest. Craig Winter, Benjani Mwaruwari and Julian Alsop were all over the Shrews attack in the first half, but Bray's superhuman reflexes frequently kept them at bay. The only shot that beat him in the first half was a piledriver in the 42nd minute from left-back Kerry Mayo, who unfortunately hit the wrong side of the crossbar. For the second half, we tried to crank up the pressure and increase the tempo. Against an unflappable Shrewsbury side with a high-pressing game, that was a mistake. After 62 minutes, they struck on the counter, with Ryan Lowe breaking through the defence to tap in Chris McConville's left-wing cross. Things went from bad to worse for Rob Green in the 74th minute. McConville outjumped the Daggers goalkeeper to head in a quick free-kick from Craig Taylor, and we were facing a second home league defeat this season. Though Alsop did get a shot past the virtually unbeatable Bray eight minutes later, his consolation goal was too little, too late. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Alsop 82) Shrewsbury Town - 2 (Lowe 62, McConville 74) Division 2, Attendance 5,989 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 10th, Shrewsbury 13th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins (Gledhill), Matthews, Prior, Mayo; Carter (Lacey), McLean (Griffiths), Weekes; Winter; Alsop, Mwaruwari. This is what frustrates me about this Daggers team right now. We're entertaining, sure, but 16 matches have passed now since we last kept a clean sheet. We've been on long runs like this before, but something about this feels deeply worrying. You can only make so many signings or tweak your tactics so much before you run out of ideas. For the first time, I'm seriously feeling that I've taken this team as far as I can. Unfortunately, Bristol City isn't an option for me now. They gave the job to Frank Yallop instead. Bloody Canadians. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 1, 2022 Author Share Posted November 1, 2022 (edited) DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of November 2005) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Wrexham 19 6 1 2 21 13 5 3 2 24 18 37 2nd Norwich 19 6 2 2 17 10 4 1 4 15 18 33 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Port Vale 19 5 2 2 16 8 4 3 3 8 8 32 4th Rochdale 19 6 4 0 23 13 3 0 6 10 18 31 5th Swindon 19 4 2 3 12 11 4 4 2 27 21 30 6th Cambridge Utd 19 6 2 2 21 11 3 1 5 11 15 30 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Portsmouth 19 6 3 1 24 15 3 0 6 14 19 30 8th Huddersfield 19 4 4 1 22 17 4 2 4 15 18 30 9th Northampton 19 6 2 2 18 12 3 1 5 16 22 30 10th Dag & Red 19 5 3 2 24 15 1 6 2 16 17 27 11th Cardiff 19 4 4 2 24 15 3 2 4 17 19 27 12th Bristol City 19 4 0 5 19 21 4 3 3 20 20 27 13th Shrewsbury 19 4 1 4 15 10 4 1 5 17 16 26 14th Peterborough 19 4 4 1 15 12 2 4 4 14 19 26 15th Carlisle 19 3 3 4 16 19 3 4 2 20 17 25 16th Oxford 19 5 0 5 22 18 3 0 6 15 19 24 17th Reading 19 4 2 3 14 11 2 4 4 16 24 24 18th Watford 19 4 3 2 14 10 1 3 6 13 20 21 19th Bournemouth 19 4 3 2 12 9 0 6 4 4 11 21 20th Tranmere 19 3 5 1 13 11 2 1 7 7 16 21 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Bristol Rovers 19 2 7 1 21 21 2 1 6 14 24 20 22nd Hull 19 3 2 5 17 24 1 6 2 15 18 20 23rd Barnsley 19 4 1 4 19 19 1 2 7 7 17 18 24th Wigan 19 4 0 6 15 16 0 2 7 6 20 14 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Manchester United suffer their first defeats under new manager Hélio dos Anjos, losing to 10-man Liverpool at Anfield before being ostracised from the League Cup by Coventry. Hélio comes under increasing pressure after dropping Old Trafford favourites Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke - and falling out with Ruud van Nistelrooy. Arsenal narrowly avoid a shock Round 2 exit from the UEFA Cup, only beating Legia Warszawa on penalties after losing the first leg 3-1 in Poland. Leeds aren't so lucky in the Champions League, crashing out at the first group stage for a third straight year after Barcelona exact their revenge at Elland Road. There are wild celebrations in Cardiff, as Wales defeat Scotland in a Playoff to qualify for their first World Cup since 1958. Mark Hughes' Red Dragons overturn a 3-1 first-leg deficit to win 4-3 on aggregate, with Craig Bellamy scoring twice in the second half. Meanwhile, 20-year-old wonderkid Cristiano Ronaldo nets a brace of his own as Portugal overcome Turkey to book their tickets to Germany. Having fallen to 7th in Serie A, Lazio's bid to retain the scudetto suffers a huge blow when captain Alessandro Nesta tears his ankle ligaments in training. Biancocelesti fans burn down the training ground in protest. Atlético Madrid are leapfrogged at the top of La Liga by Barcelona, who recover from 2-0 behind to win 3-2 at the Vicente Calderón. Carles Puyol's 90th-minute winner comes as a huge shock - not least to Carles Puyol, who didn't realise he was allowed to score goals instead of just preventing them! IN OTHER NEWS... Football mourns the death of the legendary and mercurial former Manchester United forward George Best. The 59-year-old Northern Irishman passes away from multiple organ failure in a London hospital after losing a three-decade battle with alcohol addiction. The professional wrestling world is shocked by the sudden death of former WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero at the age of just 38. One of World Wrestling Entertainment’s most popular ‘heels’, Guerrero struggled with substance abuse before passing away from heart failure at a hotel in Minneapolis. It's a big month for women in politics. Angela Merkel is sworn in as Germany's first woman Chancellor, while Liberia's new President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf becomes Africa’s first democratically-elected female head of state. A 38-year-old woman from France becomes the first human to receive a face transplant. Isabelle Dinoire undergoes a five-hour operation in Amiens after being attacked by her dog, losing her nose, lips and chin. Edited November 1, 2022 by CFuller 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 4, 2022 Author Share Posted November 4, 2022 DECEMBER 2005 We were approaching the halfway point of the Division 2 season, and it was still anyone’s guess where we would end up. A chastening 2-1 loss at home to Shrewsbury had just ended a nine-game unbeaten and left us in 10th place - three points off the play-off places, and yet only five clear of relegation. I was rather more concerned with our defensive record. By the time we arrived in South Yorkshire for the first game of a busy December schedule, it had been exactly three months since we last kept a clean sheet. A 2-0 shutout win over Wigan had been followed by 16 consecutive matches in which we shipped at least one goal. But if our leaky streak was to end any time soon, perhaps it would end at Oakwell against Barnsley. The Tykes were second-from-bottom and were still trying to find consistency under their new player-manager - the smiley and cuddly Roy Keane. 3 DECEMBER 2005: Barnsley vs Dagenham & Redbridge Benjani Mwaruwari was our greatest threat to the Barnsley defence in the first half. After firing Craig Winter's lobbed pass against the crossbar in the opening minute, our Zimbabwean marksman had better luck much later on. Six minutes before the break, Ryan Carter played Benjani through on goal, and a tidy finish saw us take the lead! Winter also hit the bar on the stroke of half-time, though he did double our lead six minutes after the restart. The midfielder's volley from Julian Alsop's flick-on brought him a 10th goal this season and made it 2-0! Unfortunately, Alsop then ruined his good work three minutes later with an unprovoked headbutt on Barnsley midfielder Dave Brammer - and a straight red card! We could have collapsed after going down to 10 men, but Roy Keane's Tykes were not playing well enough to threaten a comeback. Keane himself had two shots easily saved by Robert Green before his handball midway through the second half effectively killed the game off. Damien Lacey scored direct from the free-kick, and we were 3-0 ahead! The Tykes did have one last chance to get on the scoresheet, six minutes from full-time. Greek right-back Giorgos Kiriazis flicked the ball ahead of experienced frontman Bruce Dyer, who blazed it over the bar. Green had held onto his first Dagenham clean sheet - and our first in 91 days! Barnsley - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Mwaruwari 39, Winter 51, Lacey 67) Division 2, Attendance 6,207 - POSITIONS: Barnsley 3rd, Dag & Red 9th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins (McQuade), Matthews, Prior (Maher), Mayo; Carter, Lacey, Weekes; Winter; Alsop, Mwaruwari (Griffiths). SENT OFF: Alsop. A well-deserved win put us back to within one point of the play-off spots... but we would now face a lengthy run of matches without Julian Alsop. That stupid red card earned him a three-match ban and a one-week fine. Right-back Lee Gledhill's absence from the Daggers team would be more permanent. After two years at Victoria Road, he was released to Rushden on a free transfer. I then made a move for a new right-back, signing 28-year-old Michael Walsh from Port Vale for £55,000. Walsh is quick, strong and selfless - and his excellent positional awareness will no doubt bolster a Daggers defence that has often looked disorganised this season. Also joining us was Declan Brady - an 18-year-old Irish defender who is determined to fulfil his potential as either a right-back or a centre-half. I'll be tracking his progress in the reserve team closely. Walsh pulled on the Daggers jersey for the first time when we went to Yeovil for Round 2 of the FA Cup. Could we avoid a cup upset against the Conference mid-tablers - and set up a potential money-spiller in Round 3? 10 DECEMBER 2005: Yeovil Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge At first, it didn't look good. When Norwegian forward Petter Halvorsen headed Yeovil into a shock lead after just three minutes, some travelling Dagenhamites were probably fearing this would be Dulwich Hamlet 2002 all over again. However, this simply set up a redemption story for Sean Devine, who was making his first Daggers appearance in over two months. After 17 minutes, a killer cross from loanee winger William McQuade was driven in by Devine, whose equaliser put him straight back into my good books! That goal also spurred us on to power through the rest of the first half. 20-year-old midfielder Alan McLean fired us ahead after 24 minutes, with just his second ever competitive goal. That was followed 11 minutes later by a second assist for his fellow Scotsman McQuade, who set up Benjani Mwaruwari's 12th goal of the season. 3-1 to the Daggers at half-time! Yeovil started the second half strongly and almost pulled a goal back on 55 minutes, but Mike Pollitt got a glove to Glovers striker Micky Moore's shot. Five minutes later, Town midfielder Richard Walker saw his header intercepted by Devine, who powered home his second goal and effectively killed the tie off at 4-1! Though the hosts did get a second goal through a stunning Sean Hankin free-kick in the 71st minute, it looked like it was too late to mount a comeback. Four minutes later, our teenage substitute Chris Griffiths opened his account for the season, and closed the book on an impressive 5-2 away win. For the second time in three seasons, we had made it through to Round 3 of the FA Cup! Yeovil Town - 2 (Halvorsen 3, Hankin 71) Dagenham & Redbridge - 5 (Devine 17,60, McLean 24, Mwaruwari 35, Griffiths 75) FA Cup Round 2, Attendance 7,963 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Pollitt; Walsh, Matthews, Maher (Prior), Sharps; McQuade, Carter, McLean (M Jones), Mayo; Devine, Mwaruwari (Griffiths). BOOKED: McLean, Maher. So... Manchester United? Arsenal? Liverpool? Leeds? Which big-name team would we get in the Round 3 draw? Cardiff, away. Darn it. The cup action continued in midweek, when we faced Oxford at the Kassam Stadium for Round 1 of the Football League Trophy. Our last trip there a couple of months ago ended in a crushing 3-1 defeat, so vengeance was very much on our minds. 13 DECEMBER 2005: Oxford United vs Dagenham & Redbridge After being dropped for our FA Cup tie, Julian Alsop returned to the fold for one more game before he was forced to sit out the next three. Big Jules made the most of his opportunity, heading in William McQuade's right-wing cross to open the scoring after 17 minutes. We had scored from our first shot on target, but Oxford would do the same six minutes later. Homegrown midfielder Dean Whitehead had recently reached 200 club appearances for the U's at the age of just 23, and he underlined his status as a Kassam Stadium favourite with a fantastic equalising long shot. At 1-1, it was anyone's guess which way this cup tie would turn. In the 54th minute, it was Alsop who made the decisive move for Dagenham. His second goal of the night was another header, this time provided by a surprise assist from Oxford defender Wayne Brown. The U's slipped again in the 70th minute, as goalkeeping captain Alan Fettis was caught out by a vicious Sean Devine strike, which booked our place in the next round! Oxford United - 1 (Whitehead 23) Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Alsop 17,54, Devine 70) Football League Trophy South Round 1, Attendance 3,734 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Walsh (Hawkins), Matthews, Prior, Sharps; McQuade, Weekes, Lacey, Mayo; Alsop (Griffiths), Devine (McLean). Tim and Helen on Soccer AM gave us a relatively kind draw for Round 2, where we were pitted at home to a struggling Reading side. Perhaps this would be the year we went on a long Football League Trophy run? While that draw was going on, we were heading to Staffordshire to face 5th-placed Port Vale in the league. Alsop began his three-match ban, but midfielder Des Hamilton was back from an ankle injury. 17 DECEMBER 2005: Port Vale vs Dagenham & Redbridge The first half was basically the Robert Green show. Port Vale mounted their first attack in the 15th minute, but Green sprung into action to save a header from midfielder Matthew Spring. He then made another critical save just before half-time from Valiants captain Stephen McPhee, who had unluckily struck the crossbar earlier on. We'd barely threatened the hosts at all in the first period, so I fired the players up to attack them early in the second. We got our reward after 51 minutes, when a rejuvenated Sean Devine broke the deadlock with a lethal volley from Benjani Mwaruwari's lob. However, Port Vale responded just two minutes later, with McPhee's third attempt on goal being the lucky one that finally beat Green. The Valiants had their tails up, and with McPhee's pace proving too hot for our veteran captain Spencer Prior to handle, Scottish striker would get three more shots on target over the final half-hour. Once again, though, Green was in fine fettle, routinely frustrating McPhee with some blinding saves. We were now having to defend very deep, and then hope that a counter-attacking opportunity would arise. In stoppage time, with the scoreline still at 1-1, opportunity knocked. William McQuade picked up the ball on the right wing and spurred us forward against a tiring Vale team. We quickly moved the ball from one flank to the other until Benjani's lay-off found left-winger Kerry Mayo, whose last-gasp winner silenced Vale Park - apart from the few hundred travelling Daggers fans who roared with delight! Port Vale - 1 (McPhee 53) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Devine 51, Mayo 90) Division 2, Attendance 7,896 - POSITIONS: Port Vale 6th, Dag & Red 5th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Walsh (McLean), Matthews, Prior, Sharps (Maher); McQuade, Hamilton (Winter), Lacey, Mayo; Devine, Mwaruwari. What a way to propel yourselves back into the top six! Another Dagger said his goodbyes, as Victor Renner headed to Spanish third-tier club Ejido on a free transfer. Big things were expected of the powerful striker when he signed from Peterborough in January 2004, but he never really lived up to the billing, scoring 12 goals in 40 games. The last match of our pre-Christmas five-game road trip was at Dean Court, against a Bournemouth team who were just above the relegation zone. 21 DECEMBER 2005: AFC Bournemouth vs Dagenham & Redbridge A miserable first half saw very little attacking action from either team. The one big moment came after 26 minutes, when Damien Lacey's corner was headed home by his midfield team-mate Ryan Carter to give Dagenham the lead! And 1-0 was how the game finished. Frankly, Bournemouth's attacking threat was pitifully weak. Strikers Warren Feeney and Jason Sherlock had a shot apiece at the end of either half, but neither effort came close to threatening Robert Green in the Dagenham goal. We basically had no need to get too far out of our half, and we ground out a boring 1-0 win with the utmost ease! AFC Bournemouth - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Carter 26) Division 2, Attendance 3,847 - POSITIONS: Bournemouth 21st, Dag & Red 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Walsh (Sharps), Matthews, Maher, Hawkins; McQuade (Hamilton), Carter, Lacey, Mayo (McLean); Devine, Mwaruwari. Five away games, five wins! We'd cured our away-day blues - and that augured well for our return to Victoria Road! Christmas Day might have been a no-go, but Boxing Day was alright for fighting when Watford came to town. We would do well to keep their in-form striker Heidar Helguson quiet, especially as our star defender Lee Matthews was sidelined with a shoulder injury. 26 DECEMBER 2005: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Watford Frankly, this was almost as bad as our last match - but while our trip to Dean Court was lacking in quantity of shots, this game was lacking in quality. Both sides were dreadful in front of goal throughout the first half, when Dagenham's Sean Devine and Watford's Heidar Helguson in particular looked nothing like the efficient machines they had been in earlier fixtures. The main issue was that both us and Watford were trying to play through the midfield, and then resorting to low-quality shots either from too far out or - more often - when there was not enough space. As the match wore on, it seemed like it would come down to which team would up the ante first - and I wanted that team to be us. In the 76th minute, Peter Hawkins came into play on the left wing, and then chipped the ball into space for Ryan Carter. After a quick one-two with Damien Lacey, Carter then sought out substitute striker Chris Griffiths, whose low shot slipped underneath Hornets keeper Noel Mooney to extend our winning run to six games! Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Griffiths 76) Watford - 0 Division 2, Attendance 5,977 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 4th, Watford 18th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Prior, Hawkins; Carter, Lacey, Weekes (Sharps); Winter (McQuade); Devine (Griffiths), Mwaruwari. Back-to-back 1-0 wins were nice... but I couldn't blame some Daggers fans from wanting a return to our usual free-scoring way. Thankfully, we now had Alsop and his regular strike partner Junior McDougald back from suspension and injury respectively for our final match of 2005. On New Year's Eve, we faced a play-off six-pointer against Swindon at the County Ground. In our 2-2 home draw with the Robins back in August, we were up against a 39-year-old Nigel Martyn enjoying a late-career renaissance. Martyn had since hung up his gloves and joined Bristol Rovers as a coach, so perhaps we would have better luck against his successor? 31 DECEMBER 2005: Swindon Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge Before we could put Stephen Robertson's shotstopping abilities to the test, though, we had to try and stave off a couple of early Swindon attacks. Right-back Paul Connolly's header in the 5th minute was parried by Robert Green, but a similar effort from striker James Hogg 10 minutes later did beat the keeper. First blood to the Robins. James continued to Hogg the headlines at the County Ground by doubling Swindon's advantage just before half-time. The 21-year-old's quick turn of pace caught out our left-back Peter Hawkins, who clumsily brought him down for a penalty that was easily converted. If we were to come back from 2-0 down and win a seventh game on the bounce, we would need to do something pretty special in the second half. My solution was to go for broke, make all three subs at once, and switch to a 4-3-3. My biggest change saw the fit-again Junior McDouglad joined Julian Alsop and Benjani Mwaruwari up front. All three men combined beautifully in the 65th minute. Benjani swung the ball towards Alsop, whose flick-on to McDougald was taken past the last defender before being blasted home! That was the first shot on target Robertson faced, and it had pulled us back to 2-1! 14 minutes later, the game saw its decisive fourth goal. Unfortunately, it came at our end, where the brilliant Swindon playmaker John Newton skinned Des Hamilton - another of our half-time subs - and set up a third Robins goal for his midfield partner Paul McAreavey. A fantastic year for the Daggers had ended on a rather disappointing note. Swindon Town - 3 (Hogg 15,pen45, McAreavey 79) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (McDougald 65) Division 2, Attendance 7,201 - POSITIONS: Swindon 6th, Dag & Red 5th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Prior, Hawkins (Hamilton); McQuade (Winter), Carter, Lacey (McDougald), Mayo; Alsop, Mwaruwari. BOOKED: Lacey. That was awful - possibly our worst performance this season. It also arguably cost me the Manager of the Month award, which went to David Kemp at Port Vale instead. I’m sure Martin and Gary are proud of him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 4, 2022 Author Share Posted November 4, 2022 (edited) DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of December 2005) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Wrexham 25 7 1 3 23 15 7 4 3 30 20 47 2nd Norwich 24 7 2 2 20 11 7 2 4 22 20 46 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Port Vale 24 7 3 3 27 13 5 3 3 10 9 42 4th Rochdale 25 8 4 0 26 13 4 0 9 13 26 40 5th Dag & Red 24 6 3 2 25 15 4 6 3 23 21 39 6th Swindon 24 6 2 5 20 19 5 4 2 28 21 39 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Shrewsbury 24 8 1 4 26 14 4 1 6 18 19 38 8th Cardiff 24 4 4 3 24 16 6 3 4 27 25 37 9th Northampton 24 7 2 2 20 13 4 2 7 21 30 37 10th Cambridge Utd 24 7 2 2 23 12 3 3 7 14 20 35 11th Carlisle 24 4 3 4 18 20 5 5 3 27 23 35 12th Huddersfield 24 5 6 2 31 26 4 2 5 16 20 35 13th Portsmouth 24 6 3 2 24 16 3 3 7 19 28 33 14th Reading 24 5 5 3 19 14 3 4 4 18 24 33 15th Peterborough 24 5 5 3 19 18 3 4 4 17 20 33 16th Oxford 24 7 1 5 27 21 3 0 8 19 25 31 17th Bristol City 24 5 1 6 25 26 4 3 5 26 30 31 18th Watford 24 6 4 3 19 15 1 3 7 13 21 28 19th Bristol Rovers 24 3 7 2 25 24 3 2 7 18 28 27 20th Hull 24 4 2 5 21 27 2 7 4 22 26 27 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Bournemouth 24 4 5 4 16 15 0 6 5 4 12 23 22nd Barnsley 25 5 2 6 23 25 1 3 8 7 19 23 23rd Tranmere 25 3 6 3 14 18 2 2 9 8 21 23 24th Wigan 24 4 0 9 18 23 0 2 9 9 25 14 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Arsenal crash out of the UEFA Cup with a 5-1 defeat at Saint-Etienne, lose six matches, and plummet to 11th in the Premiership. Oh, and their maniac German goalie Hans-Jörg Butt receives his THIRD red card of the season against Charlton. Gunners boss Arsène Wenger didn't see the incident because he was trying to zip his coat. While Bolton and Crystal Palace emerge as unlikely top-four contenders, Liverpool's campaign stutters after playmaker Pavel Nedved is sold to Barcelona for £2.8million. The Reds also lose defender André Ooijer to Valencia for £10.75million, but boss Eric Gerets swiftly replaces him with... Paul Ritchie from Manchester City. Ooijer is not the only big name to join Valencia's quest for La Liga glory. Rafa Benítez also signs up Zé Roberto from Inter for £10.75million, just five-and-a-half months after the Brazilian wing-back moved to the San Siro from Leverkusen. Meanwhile, Bayern München right-back Willy Sagnol makes a controversial £5.25million transfer to their Bundesliga title rivals 1.FC Köln. As Lille extend their Ligue 1 advantage to seven points, Paris Saint-Germain plummet into the relegation zone after five straight defeats. In unrelated news, everybody hates Nicolas Anelka. Andriy Shevchenko scores 16 goals in his first 16 league games for Ajax, who go top of the Eredivisie with 45 points and are still unbeaten. Unluckily for them, defending champions PSV - and their returning manager Dick Advocaat - also have 45 points and are also still unbeaten. Feyenoord fans can't believe it. IN OTHER NEWS... Gay and lesbian couples in the United Kingdom can now enter civil partnerships, granting them similar legal rights to married heterosexuals. One of the first British celebrities to take advantage of this is pop megastar Elton John, who marries his film producer partner David Furnish. Tony Blair has a new rival, as 39-year-old David Cameron is elected as leader of the Conservative Party. The old Etonian immediately tries to appeal to common folk by enthusiastically expressing his love for Aston Villa, the Arctic Monkeys, and West Ham. Thatcher wins a popular vote for the first time since 1987. Journalist Carol Thatcher - daughter of former Prime Minister Margaret - wins the fifth series of ITV reality show “I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!”. Nine plucky Brits are trained as space cadets at a Russian military base, and then blast off in a Shuttle for a five-day orbit of the Earth. Of course, it’s all an elaborate hoax by Channel 4; the contestants are never actually sent into space, and the whole series is filmed at a disused airbase near Ipswich. Edited November 4, 2022 by CFuller 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 8, 2022 Author Share Posted November 8, 2022 (edited) JANUARY 2006 We were now into the second half of our first season in Division 2. Things were going well, with us sitting in 5th place, but a disastrous New Year's Eve defeat at Swindon was a reminder that it could yet fall apart. We kicked off the new year by saying farewell to Stephen Melton. The 27-year-old attacking midfielder had been an important player for us during our first couple of seasons in the Football League, but the arrival of Craig Winter had seen him lose his starting place. Melton was sold to non-league Lough United for £10,000. A few days later, we returned to action by hosting fellow play-off challengers Huddersfield at Victoria Road. We had a point to prove, having let a 3-1 lead slip in the final six minutes when we visited the Terriers in West Yorkshire earlier in the season. 4 JANUARY 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Huddersfield Town Hold that thought, as we took a two-goal lead in this match too. Indeed, we were 2-0 up inside the first 15 minutes, thanks to a couple of great moves from Benjani Mwaruwari. After his 10th-minute flick-on was volleyed home by Craig Winter, the Zimbabwean sensation blasted in a superb strike of his own. The next 75 minutes, however, told a very different tale of two goalkeepers. Neil Cutler was almost unbeatable for Huddersfield, doing everything he could to stop Benjani, Julian Alsop or whoever from extending our 2-0 advantage. At the other end, Robert Green looked unsteady between the Daggers posts, not least when Chris Beech's half-volley gave the Terriers a goal back just before half-time. Things continued in that vein throughout the second half. Though Ryan Carter created some great chances from midfield, every shot on target we had was stopped by Cutler, who clearly didn't want a repeat of the 3-3 thriller from back in August. Green did make an excellent save from striker Robert Gill in the 72nd minute to keep us ahead... but he was far less secure in the closing stages. As we tried to shut the door on Huddersfield, the Terriers' teenage left-back Roger Brennan found a way through in the 89th minute. After skipping past both Carter and Damien Lacey, Brennan unleashed a rocket that Green didn't see coming before it found the top corner. Another win had slipped away. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Winter 10, Mwaruwari 15) Huddersfield Town - 2 (Beech 45, Brennan 89) Division 2, Attendance 5,991 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 5th, Huddersfield 13th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Prior, Mayo (Sharps); Carter, Lacey, Hamilton (McLean); Winter; Devine (Alsop), Mwaruwari. [Sigh] We need to stop making a habit of this, lads. Two days later, young midfielder Alan McLean gave us some good news by signing a new four-and-a-half-year contract. The 20-year-old Scotsman had become a semi-regular in the first-team this season, and he was now eager to impress me even more. Perhaps a little too eager. Later that morning, McLean got carried away in a training match, and a mistimed slide tackle on Junior McDougald sent the striker crashing to the turf. The crunch of bone was almost as audible as Junior's scream. I knew straight away it was not good news. Before long, head physio Richard Harper had confirmed our worst fears. McDougald had broken his leg and would not play again this season. Barely 24 hours after such a horrible setback, we had to recompose ourselves for an FA Cup Round 3 trip to Cardiff. Robert Green's faux pas against Huddersfield meant that veteran Mike Pollitt got another chance in goal. 7 JANUARY 2006: Cardiff City vs Dagenham & Redbridge This was a low-quality first half, with each team mustering a couple of shots that flew way wide or over. The first moment of brilliance came in the 43rd minute, when Cardiff striker Keigan Parker headed home a killer cross from the Bluebirds' exciting teenage midfielder Richard Edwards. La tristesse durera. Captain Spencer Prior had to fire us up for the second half, and he played a key role in getting us back level four minutes into the second half. After Prior cleared Cardiff skipper Ian Maxwell's free-kick out of our box, Benjani Mwaruwari ran onto it and dribbled all the way into their penalty area. A ferocious strike followed, and it was 1-1! Unfortunately, Prior's hard work would come undone in the 77th minute. The veteran defender lost track of the Bluebirds' substitute striker Glynn Hurst, who broke free and volleyed in a cross from right-back Mark McGregor. Despite Mike Pollitt's best efforts, there was no keeping that one out. And with that, our FA Cup journey was over, but not before we had another injury setback. Left-back Peter Hawkins gashed his leg in the closing stages, forcing us to see the match out with 10 men. Come full-time, I was congratulating Paul Bracewell in the Cardiff dugout and wishing him the best of luck in Round 4... but unbeknownst to anyone at Ninian Park, Bracewell would soon set his sights even higher. Cardiff City - 2 (Parker 43, Hurst 77) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 49) FA Cup Round 3, Attendance 9,814 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Pollitt; Walsh, Maher (Sharps), Prior, Hawkins; McQuade, Hamilton, Lacey (Weekes), Mayo; Alsop, Devine (Mwaruwari). BOOKED: Prior, Lacey. I was now having serious doubts over whether Spencer Prior was the right man to captain this team. His performances since signing from Gillingham in October had not exactly improved a shaky defensive record - his average rating over 17 games was 6.82 - and at 34, his physical abilities were sharply declining. For our midweek league game at Peterborough, I dropped Prior from the squad completely and gave the armband back to Lee Matthews. Unlike Prior, Matthews had been consistently excellent for us and was showing few signs of slowing down, despite only being a couple of years Spencer's junior. 11 JANUARY 2006: Peterborough United vs Dagenham & Redbridge Barry Fry's Peterborough were an old-school team who favoured a fast-paced long-ball game, so we had to be prepared for an array of attacks in the first half. Fortunately, our returning keeper Robet Green was ready for anything, and he superbly shut Posh out not just for the first 45 minutes - but for the next 45 too. Mind you, this rare Daggers clean sheet didn't come without a scare or two. Paul Miller sent a header inches wide in the 55th minute, while his Peterborough strike partner Leon McKenzie's effort in the 77th minute also missed the target. McKenzie was an aggressive frontman who certainly packed a punch, though he would take his aspirations of a future boxing career a bit too seriously later in the month. 10 days after this match, McKenzie received a six-month ban for punching the referee in another league game at Shrewsbury! As far as this match was concerned, our own prizefighters couldn't land a serious blow on the Peterborough goal. Posh keeper Matthew Gilks saved a 14th-minute effort from winger William McQuade but was otherwise untested in a one-sided contest that somehow finished goalless. Peterborough United - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 2, Attendance 11,752 - POSITIONS: Peterborough 12th, Dag & Red 6th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Janney, Hamilton (Carter), McLean, McQuade (Sharps); Winter, Mwaruwari (Weekes). BOOKED: Carter. If you've been following us for some time now, you'll know just how rare 0-0 draws are when it comes to the Daggers. That was actually our first goalless stalemate since we went to Hartlepool in April 2004 - nearly 21 months ago! Naturally, I was hoping for a bit more excitement at Wigan three days later. The Latics were on a rotten 12-match losing run in the league, which had left them marooned at the bottom of Division 2 - and facing a return to the Football League's lowest tier for the first time since 1997. 14 JANUARY 2006: Wigan Athletic vs Dagenham & Redbridge In fairness to Wigan, they could have been even deeper in the mire had it not been for their consistently solid goalkeeper. Gary McGlynn was almost flawless in the first half of this match, when he was beaten just once - by a 29th-minute strike from Sean Devine that was correctly called offside. Rookie centre-half Robbie Gerrard also deserved at least some credit for keeping the deadlock intact at half-time. After surviving our first-half onslaught, Ray Mathias and his Latics gave us an almighty scare five minutes into the second half. Daggers goalie Robert Green was called into action twice within a matter of seconds, saving first from winger John Perkins and then from midfielder Graham Hyde. We'd averted what would have been a painful smash-and-grab, but now we had to kill off our surprisingly resilient opponents. In the 68th minute, Kerry Mayo delivered an incisive free-kick delivery to Craig Winter, whose cheeky lob was met by a sweet header from Benjani Mwaruwari. Benjani's 15th goal of the season gave us a narrow lead, which we preserved after some excellent late defending from 'man of the match' Shaun Maher. Wigan Athletic - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 68) Division 2, Attendance 6,691 - POSITIONS: Wigan 24th, Dag & Red 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Carter, Lacey, McLean (Hamilton); Winter; Devine (Griffiths), Mwaruwari. After the Huddersfield debacle, Green had bounced back with consecutive clean sheets. Indeed, I'd been so impressed with Rob's overall form since joining us in November that I wanted to make his loan deal from Millwall permanent. And when I heard that Tranmere had made the Lions an offer to sign him, I knew it was time to act. Within a matter of days, we'd agreed a club-record £300,000 fee with Millwall, and Green had signed a £2,500-per-week contract to join Dagenham until June 2011. It was a very expensive deal for a club of our stature, but I firmly believed that Rob had the potential to be our number 1 for many years to come. Green's first match after becoming a full-time Dagger was in the Football League Trophy against Reading, on the day before his 26th birthday. The Royals were in good form under their Aussie-born manager Craig Johnston, so we faced a real battle to get to the South Quarter Finals. 17 JANUARY 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Reading Reading might have had Belgium international Erwin Lemmens in goal, but it was Holland who made all the difference for them in the first half. More to the point, it was left-winger Chris Holland who broke the deadlock after 21 minutes, from a killer cross by namesake right-back Chris Makin. The Royals couldn't build on their lead before the break, and we punished them six minutes after it. Craig Winter's prolific form in attacking midfield continued when he burst through unchallenged to stab in a low cross from Damien Lacey. Shortly after our equaliser, Reading boss Craig Johnston took a big gamble to try and turn things back in his team's favour. 37-year-old striker Paolo Di Canio saluted the travelling fans as he was subbed off for 21-year-old Gary Mullen, who added some fresh energy to the attack. By the 65th minute, Mullen's strike partner Martin Butler had restored Reading's advantage. By the 88th, the contest was truly over, with Mullen outjumping Shaun Maher to head in their third and final goal. As far as our Football League Trophy was concerned, it was a Royal knockout. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Winter 51) Reading - 3 (Holland 21, Butler 65, Mullen 88) Football League Trophy South Round 2, Attendance 765 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Weekes (McQuade), Hamilton, McLean (Lacey); Winter; Alsop (Devine), Mwaruwari. Reading had four shots on target and scored three of them. That's 300 grand bloody well spent, isn't it? Eh, who cares about that Leyland DAFT Windscreen Vans Trophy anyway? We were all about the league, and our play-off push continued with a visit from Bristol Rovers. With Benjani Mwaruwari in form, we were confident of making hay against one of the worst defences in the league... ...or at least I was until Benjani tore a groin muscle on the eve of the match. Out for three months, apparently. That left us with just Julian Alsop and Sean Devine as our senior strikers. Brilliant. 21 JANUARY 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Bristol Rovers Bristol Rovers were experiencing a worrying downturn in form under their new manager Brian Flynn, who replaced the Dunfermline-bound Pete Mahon in late October. Despite that, it was the Gasheads who broke the deadlock after 14 minutes, courtesy of a clinical low drive from left-winger Lee Hodges. After a couple of unsuccessful equalising attempts, our luck turned on 33 minutes. Des Hamilton rifled in a shot that Rovers goalkeeper Casper Ankergren could only push back towards the midfield maestro, who blasted in the rebound for 1-1! That was a much-needed confidence booster for Hamilton, whose recent form had been - to put it kindly - pretty mediocre. By contrast, this was turning into a memorable season for another Daggers midfielder. Alan McLean's breakthrough campaign continued with an assist three minutes into the second half, as Sean Devine headed his long ball in to give us a 2-1 advantage! Sadly, our lead lasted just 10 minutes before 'Chas' Hodges struck again (I presume Dave was delighted). There weren't no pleasing our fans in the final half-hour, as several wasted attacks ended with us taking another draw from another match we should arguably have won. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Hamilton 33, Devine 48) Bristol Rovers - 2 (Hodges 14,58) Division 2, Attendance 5,975 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 4th, Bristol Rovers 20th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh (McQuade), Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Weekes (Lacey), Hamilton, McLean; Winter (Griffiths); Alsop, Devine. Having wasted so many chances to kill off Bristol Rovers, I felt we needed another experienced centre-forward to fill in for the injured Mwaruwari and McDougald. When I heard that an old foe had come up on the loan market, I knew exactly what to do. If you recognise David Graham's name, it's probably because he scored twice for Torquay when we went to Plainmoor a couple of seasons ago. The free-scoring Scotsman subsequently earned a big move to Bradford, but despite scoring a few Premiership goals for them, he never really settled in Yorkshire. With his pace, power and creativity, the 27-year-old should be a great temporary addition to our squad over the next four months. Graham was named on the bench for our rematch against Reading, who came to Victoria Road for the second time in barely a week. Would this Division 2 match had a different outcome to our Football League Trophy tie? I really hoped so. 25 JANUARY 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Reading The opening half-hour was very frustrating for us. Defenders Kerry Mayo and Shaun Maher each had efforts saved by Reading keeper Erwin Lemmens before striker Sean Devine rattled the top of the crossbar. But as the old saying goes, when life gives you Lemmens, make Lemmenade... or something like that. Another opportunity came our way in the 33rd minute, when captain Lee Matthews booted a long ball up for attacking midfielder Craig Winter, who dribbled at the Royal defences and then unleashed an unstoppable rocket from 20 yards! After that, Reading looked in total disarray, not least because Paolo Di Canio hated being in midfield so much that he often drifted to the right wing (and not for the first time in his life). Craig Johnston ultimately subbed the former West Ham cult icon after 65 minutes, but Reading still couldn't muster even a single shot on target, with or without him. Meanwhile, David Graham came on to make his Daggers debut, but it was another substitute who would be our player of the week. Midfielder Nick Weekes secured the win with two fabulous assists - the first completed Winter's brace in the 76th minute, before his 84th-minute corner was headed in by Maher. Reading's bad day at the office was further compounded when defender Eddie Forrest limped off injured in stoppage time. Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Winter 33,76, Maher 84) Reading - 0 Division 2, Attendance 5,961 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 4th, Reading 11th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Sharps; McQuade, Winter, Hamilton (Weekes), Mayo (Hawkins); Alsop, Devine (D Graham). All in all, a reasonable start to the new year - and it leaves us just three points off the automatic promotion places! Dare we start dreaming again? Edited March 23 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 8, 2022 Author Share Posted November 8, 2022 DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of January 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Port Vale 28 9 3 3 32 16 6 3 4 14 13 51 2nd Norwich 28 8 3 2 25 13 7 3 5 24 23 51 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Wrexham 28 8 1 4 28 21 7 4 4 31 22 50 4th Dag & Red 29 7 5 2 32 19 5 7 3 24 21 48 5th Swindon 29 7 3 5 22 20 6 5 3 33 26 47 6th Cardiff 29 5 6 3 27 18 7 3 5 30 28 45 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Rochdale 29 9 5 0 30 16 4 1 10 15 29 45 8th Shrewsbury 28 9 2 4 29 16 4 2 7 21 24 43 9th Carlisle 28 6 3 4 24 21 5 7 3 29 25 43 10th Peterborough 29 6 6 3 23 18 4 6 4 24 25 42 11th Reading 29 7 5 3 24 16 4 4 6 20 29 42 12th Northampton 29 8 3 3 26 18 4 3 8 24 34 42 13th Cambridge Utd 28 8 3 2 27 14 3 4 8 17 25 40 14th Oxford 29 8 2 5 31 23 4 2 8 24 29 40 15th Huddersfield 28 6 6 3 33 28 4 3 6 20 25 39 16th Portsmouth 29 7 4 3 29 20 3 4 8 22 32 38 17th Watford 29 7 5 3 23 17 1 4 9 15 27 33 18th Bristol City 28 5 3 7 27 31 4 3 6 26 31 33 19th Hull 29 4 4 6 26 34 3 7 5 24 28 32 20th Bournemouth 29 6 5 4 19 16 0 7 7 5 17 30 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Bristol Rovers 29 3 8 3 28 28 3 4 8 22 34 30 22nd Tranmere 29 5 6 3 18 19 2 2 11 10 26 29 23rd Barnsley 29 5 3 7 25 28 1 4 9 7 23 25 24th Wigan 29 4 0 11 18 25 2 2 10 14 30 20 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... As Roma consolidate their place at the top of Serie A, one story dominates the Italian news - Clarence Seedorf's stunning £10million move across the San Siro divide from Inter to Milan! While the Dutch midfielder lends his supports to Milan owner (and Italian PM) Silvio Berlusconi's re-election campaign, the Nerazzurri spend a large chunk of the transfer fee on San Lorenzo's 25-year-old Argentine winger Walter Erviti. After months of speculation, Alan Cork is finally sacked as Tottenham manager after a shock FA Cup defeat to Reading and replaced with Cardiff boss Paul Bracewell. Cork soon finds a new job at Blackburn, who dismiss Graeme Souness a week after he fields an innovative 7-1-2 formation against Charlton. West Brom boss Gary Megson is threatened with a touchline ban by the FA after repeatedly blaming his team's abysmal Premiership form on bad refereeing decisions. The final straw comes after Michael Owen scores a dubious opener for Liverpool in a 2-0 home win over the Baggies. Referee Andy D'Urso swiftly rebuts Megson's allegations of bias... while collecting a tenner from Jamie Carragher in the Anfield tunnel. Former England forward Paul Merson takes his first managerial job in English football. The 37-year-old takes over at Conference side Morecambe after spending two years in the Welsh Premier League with Rhayader, most of which he spent trying to pronounce the name Rhayader. Barcelona are knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Real Madrid, but then beat their arch-rivals 2-0 at the Nou Camp to close in on a fourth successive La Liga title. Swedish attacking midfielder Mattias Jonson scores both goals to gently remind everyone that - yes - Mattias Jonson is still playing for Barcelona. IN OTHER NEWS... Israel’s 77-year-old Prime Minister Ariel Sharon slips into a coma after suffering a haemorrhagic stroke - his second stroke in less than a month. Ehud Olmert takes over as Acting PM while Sharon remains incapacitated. Los Angeles Lakers megastar Kobe Bryant scores 81 points in a 122-104 win over the Toronto Raptors. It is the second-highest individual points total in NBA history, behind only Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game in 1962. The fourth series of "Celebrity Big Brother" is won by someone who... er, isn't a celebrity. 22-year-old Essex girl Chantelle Houghton wins the public's affection after pretending to be a singer, and falling in love with the frontman of indie rock band The Ordinary Boys. I bet that relationship's gonna lead to some great music... A northern bottlenose whale becomes stranded in the River Thames in central London. Tragically, she dies from dehydration and kidney failure as rescuers try to take her back into the sea. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 11, 2022 Author Share Posted November 11, 2022 FEBRUARY 2006 2006 was already looking like a big year to be a Scotsman in Dagenham. Craig Winter was our second-top scorer (with 14 goals and 6 assists), while his fellow midfielder Alan McLean had established himself in the first-team at just 20 years of age. Meanwhile, big things were being expected of new loan signing David Graham, who'd just arrived from Bradford for the rest of the season. In our reserve team, Dave's namesake Paul Graham looked like being the next youngster to make a senior breakthrough at Victoria Road. The brave and selfless defensive midfielder was racking up plenty of goals and assists in reserve games, and a couple of my coaches were already saying that the 19-year-old deserved some chances in the league. It surely wouldn't be long before I had to listen to those calls. I'm also looking forward to following another young Scot who is the newest addition to our reserve squad. 17-year-old Paul Ferry was a big centre-forward with plenty of energy and a tidy finish, though he had some rather clumsy technique on the ball. Once he sharpens that up, his future looks bright. Anyway, let's get back to the story... and to the next five matches of our Division 2 campaign. We kicked off the month at Sixfields against mid-table entertainers Northampton, who had scored in every match they'd played so far this season! That said, the Cobblers had also not kept any clean sheets since mid-August! So, what odds on this match finishing 0-0, then? 4 FEBRUARY 2006: Northampton Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge Northampton winger Ben Muirhead hurt his leg in the fourth minute, and although he tried to run it off, the pain eventually became too much. When Muirhead went down hurt and signalled to the bench in the 14th minute, our right-back Michael Walsh put the ball out of play so he could be substituted. As soon as the sub was made, the Cobblers caught us on the hop with a very quick throw from left-back Bryan Small to left-winger Ty Gooden. Before we knew it, Gooden had crossed into our box, and striker Sam Parkin had fired it home to break the deadlock. Those same three players combined again in the 16th minute, as Small's long ball was crossed by Gooden for Parkin to double the Northampton lead. Then, three minutes later, the Cobblers produced a breathtaking passing move that ended with the ball being volleyed home by ex-Chelsea youngster Rhys Evans - the man who had just come on for the injured Muirhead. (Hold on, isn't Rhys Evans a goalkeeper?) We were all over the place, and it was frankly a miracle that we were 'only' 3-0 behind at half-time. With the match as good as done, I made sweeping changes and resorted to damage limitation for the second half. Though our defence tightened up a little more after the break, they still couldn't deal with Parkin or Gooden, who completed their respective goal and assist hat-tricks in the 74th minute. Northampton Town - 4 (Parkin 14,16,74, Evans 19) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 2, Attendance 4,960 - POSITIONS: Northampton 10th, Dag & Red 5th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Sharps (Prior); McQuade (Weekes), Winter, McLean, Mayo; Devine (Alsop), D Graham. BOOKED: Matthews. It probably won't surprise you that I was absolutely furious at full-time. Goalkeeper Robert Green, left-back Ian Sharps and striker Sean Devine that I fined each of them a week's wages. Green to his credit apologised, but Sharps and Devine both complained of being singled out. Don't expect to see them again any time soon. With Sharps out of favour, and Kerry Mayo struggling to find consistency, a new left-back was now a priority. After chatting with Hull's new manager Steve Bruce, I persuade him to sell Robbie Ryan to us for £120,000. Formerly of Huddersfield and Millwall, the 29-year-old Irishman is an aggressive man-marker who can also deliver a sweet cross. I rang the changes for our next home game against Cardiff, who were just three points behind us in 8th. Ryan made his debut from the start, with Paul Graham also set to get his first taste of competitive action from the bench. 11 FEBRUARY 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Cardiff City After such a disastrous outing at Northampton, we needed to make a quick start to this match - and that was exactly what happened. Set-piece specialist Nick Weekes swung in a couple of dangerous corners, the second of which was driven home by Des Hamilton to give us the lead after only four minutes! Our new left-back Robbie Ryan almost headed us 2-0 up a couple of minutes later, but his effort was awkwardly pushed off the line by Cardiff keeper Tony Williams. After that scare, the Bluebirds countered in the 14th minute, with left-winger Paul Powell restoring parity from a square ball by forward Keigan Parker. We pushed to regain the lead for nearly half an hour before another Weekes corner in the 42nd minute did just that. Nick's delivery was blasted in by Irish centre-half Shaun Maher... but he was not the only Dagenham defender to score on the stroke of half-time. Right-back Michael Walsh popped his Daggers cherry from a Ryan assist to send us into the break leading 3-1! Things got even better in the second half. After 65 minutes, the magnificent Craig Winter bent in his 15th goal of the season, drawing him level with our injured top scorer Benjani Mwaruwari. Our Grahams put the icing on the cake in the 68th minute, with debutant sub Paul playing the ball through for David to bang in his first Daggers strike. Five goals at a packed Victoria Road - it doesn't get much better than that! Dagenham & Redbridge - 5 (Hamilton 4, Maher 42, Walsh 45, Winter 65, D Graham 68) Cardiff City - 1 (Powell 14) Division 2, Attendance 5,978 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 4th, Cardiff 10th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Matthews, Maher (Prior), Ryan; Weekes, Hamilton, McLean (P Graham); Winter; Alsop, D Graham (Griffiths). What a difference a week makes! From our heaviest defeat of the season to our biggest victory! Next up was a trip to Carrow Road to play Norwich - one of only two teams who had beaten us in a league game at Victoria Road this season. The Canaries had bounced back from a slow start and flown to the top of the Division 2 tree, with new manager John Toshack keeping up David Jeffrey's good work after his defection to Brentford. This was likely to be a real struggle... 18 FEBRUARY 2006: Norwich City vs Dagenham & Redbridge ...and I wasn't wrong, as Norwich powered into the lead after just 14 minutes. Robbie Ryan's slide tackle on Canaries right-back Matt Carragher couldn't quite divert the ball away from danger, and a thunderous strike from veteran midfielder Neil Murray set the tone for a one-sided contest. Norwich could and perhaps should have gone further ahead early in the second half. John Sutton wasted a couple of good chances, and ex-City keeper Robert Green needed to bail us out a few times. Green's best save came just before the hour mark, when he somehow tipped behind a Kevin Betsy free-kick that looked almost certain to be finding the top corner. Though midfielders Craig Winter and Alan McLean managed a shot on target apiece, we rarely looked like countering the Norwich threat before they put us out of our misery. Eight minutes from full-time, Murray rounded off a midfield masterclass with an impressive assist for the young former Oldham striker James Davis. The hosts were 2-0 winners, and comfortably so. Norwich City - 2 (Murray 14, Davis 82) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 2, Attendance 15,004 - POSITIONS: Norwich 1st, Dag & Red 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Matthews, Maher, Ryan (Hawkins); Carter (P Graham), Hamilton, McLean; Winter; Alsop (Griffiths), D Graham. BOOKED: Hamilton, P Graham. Our last match of the month was at mid-table Cambridge, where I decided to try out a 3-5-2 again. I also gave another chance in defence to 21-year-old Richard Rose, who had been in good form for the reserve team. Richard had been on the fringes of the first-team for a few years, so it really was now or never for him. 25 FEBRUARY 2006: Cambridge United vs Dagenham & Redbridge This match saw us reunited with our former goalkeeper Ian Bennett and captain John Anderson - but we had no intention of helping out old friends. Not even three minutes had elapsed before Nick Weekes headed the ball into Bennett's net, taking advantage of a superb delivery from Des Hamilton. In the 29th minute, it was Anderson's turn to suffer. Daggers left-back Kerry Mayo lofted the ball up to striker David Graham, who flew past his fellow Scotsman and then rounded Bennett before tapping into an empty net! 2-0 to the Daggers! Worryingly, Cambridge almost hit back at the start of the second half. Left-winger Scott Bannerman found the net, only for play to be called back because of a handball from Demba Traore in the build-up. Apart from that, we had looked solid at the back and we saw the victory out with some ease. I was also quite impressed with how composed young Richard Rose in his first appearance of the season... ...but come stoppage time, I wasn't so sure. Rose lost track of Cambridge frontman Dave Kitson, who had a late shot saved by Robert Green. Kitson then got to the loose ball and fed it to his Swedish strike partner Traore, whose goal ruined our hopes of a clean sheet. It wasn't enough to deny us maximum points, but it did leave a sour taste. Cambridge United - 1 (Traore 90) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Weekes 3, D Graham 29) Division 2, Attendance 3,755 - POSITIONS: Cambridge Utd 17th, Dag & Red 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Maher, Rose, Matthews; Walsh (McQuade), Mayo (Ryan); Weekes, Hamilton, McLean (Winter); Alsop, D Graham. BOOKED: Hamilton. Two wins, two defeats. Not a bad month, but we conceded more goals than we scored, which is a bit concerning. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 11, 2022 Author Share Posted November 11, 2022 DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of February 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Norwich 33 12 3 2 35 15 7 4 5 26 25 64 2nd Port Vale 34 10 4 3 37 19 8 3 6 20 19 61 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Wrexham 34 9 2 5 33 27 7 5 6 36 30 55 4th Dag & Red 33 8 5 2 37 20 6 7 5 26 28 54 5th Cardiff 34 8 6 3 33 21 7 3 7 32 36 54 6th Swindon 34 8 4 6 26 24 6 6 4 36 30 52 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Northampton 33 11 3 3 37 22 4 3 9 25 36 51 8th Shrewsbury 34 9 3 5 31 20 6 2 9 26 28 50 9th Carlisle 34 7 3 6 29 25 6 7 5 33 32 49 10th Peterborough 33 7 6 3 25 19 5 7 5 32 34 49 11th Rochdale 33 10 5 0 32 17 4 1 13 19 38 48 12th Bristol City 34 7 3 7 33 34 6 4 7 35 40 46 13th Reading 32 8 5 4 27 20 4 4 7 21 33 45 14th Oxford 33 9 2 6 34 25 4 3 9 26 32 44 15th Huddersfield 34 7 7 4 41 34 4 4 8 23 31 44 16th Watford 34 9 6 3 29 21 2 4 10 20 31 43 17th Cambridge Utd 33 8 4 4 30 19 3 5 9 19 28 42 18th Portsmouth 32 7 5 3 31 22 3 4 10 25 37 39 19th Hull 32 5 5 6 31 36 4 7 5 27 30 39 20th Bristol Rovers 34 6 8 3 36 33 3 4 10 23 39 39 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Bournemouth 33 8 5 5 26 20 0 7 8 6 19 36 22nd Barnsley 33 6 3 7 27 29 2 6 9 11 26 33 23rd Tranmere 34 6 7 3 21 21 2 2 14 13 34 33 24th Wigan 33 6 0 12 26 31 2 2 11 14 31 26 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Manchester United win all their games in February and extend their Premiership lead to 16 points after a 1-0 win over 2nd-placed Leeds. Right-back Gary Neville celebrates scoring his 77th-minute winner by running the full length of the Old Trafford pitch and celebrating in front of the visiting Leeds fans. Whites defender Rio Ferdinand shakes his head in disgust. Bayern München's Bundesliga title hopes appear to be over after they squander a lead in four straight matches, including a 2-1 defeat to Dortmund and a 2-2 draw against Hertha BSC. Bayern's new first-choice keeper Vitaliy Reva has not been the best replacement for Oliver Kahn, who joined Nürnberg in August. There are bizarre scenes at the Parc des Princes, where Ligue 1 leaders Lille record a 5-0 win over strugglers Paris Saint-Germain, whose use FOUR goalkeepers! Captain Alexandr Filimonov is sent off for a professional foul, and things get worse when replacement Marcelo Boeck also sees red for violent conduct. Brazilian forward Lucas then goes in goal for a while, but gives up and hands the gloves to Steve Marlet for the final 20 minutes! 18-year-old Lionel Messi scores 11 goals in 7 games - including a hat-trick at Olympiacos - as Barcelona set their sights on a La Liga and Champions League double. Despite being 23 points behind the leaders, Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez insists that coach Vicente Del Bosque doesn't need to worry about his job. Despite losing 3-0 at Rangers, Celtic build an eight-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premier League. All is well at Celtic Park... until John Hartson kicks Enrico Chiesa in the face and is given the strongest punishment possible: being sold to Aberdeen. IN OTHER NEWS... The Winter Olympics take place in Turin, with Great Britain claiming one silver medal. The legendary Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti delivers his final performance of "Nessun Dorma" at the opening ceremony. Also in Italy, a 76-year-old atheist tries to sue a Catholic priest for saying that Jesus Christ existed. To the surprise of nobody, Luigi Cascioli’s case is laughed out of court. A few days later, Italy’s shy and retiring Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi compares himself to Jesus. American vice-president Dick Cheney accidentally shoots an attorney while out quail-hunting in Texas. To quote David Letterman, "Good news, ladies and gentlemen, we have finally located weapons of mass destruction..." There is a new chat show host on the BBC, following in the footsteps of Terry Wogan, David Frost and Michael Parkinson... and it’s Davina McCall. What could possibly go wrong? 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 16, 2022 Author Share Posted November 16, 2022 MARCH 2006 With 13 matches to go, Dagenham & Redbridge's dream of consecutive promotions from Division 3 to Division 1 was still alive. As things stood, we were three points inside the Division 2 play-off places, and seven off the automatic promotion spots. Our first match in March was at home to an Oxford team who looked rather less likely to make the play-offs. Neil Cooper's visitors were in 14th place - eight points off the top six - and their top scorer James Newell was ruled out with a sprained ankle. 4 MARCH 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Oxford United Despite some early resistance from Oxford goalkeeper Alan Fettis, we managed to break through after 25 minutes. Nick Weekes chipped the ball into their penalty area, where Julian Alsop's flick-on was weighted perfect for Craig Winter to run onto it and score! United's day got worse in the 33rd minute, when teenage left-back Michael Harford was forced to come off with a shin injury. Ten minutes later, the weakened U's defence was cut open again. Alsop once again turned provider for Winter, who blasted his second goal of the afternoon right into the top corner. Oxford did up their game after the break, and by the 59th minute, when the experienced Tommy Curtis unleashed an unstoppable volley from just inside the area. The visitors' respite was short-lived, though, as Alsop and Winter combined for a third Daggers goal. This time, it was Jules who finished off Craig's through-ball to restore our two-goal cushion! When another injury befell Oxford's other starting full-back Richard Edghill midway through the second half, the contest looked to be over. But Neil Cooper's side were a resilient bunch, and they once again narrowed the gap in the 70th minute. Robert Green's save from a Lee Trundle free-kick only went as far as rookie striker Sam Williams, whose 10th goal of the season made it only 3-2 to the Daggers. However, that was where the United fightback would end. Their defenders were still not picking up Winter's runs from attacking midfield, even after his two goals in the first half. The Scotsman's predatory instinct was on display again in the 73rd minute, when he was first to the loose ball after compatriot David Graham's strike was parried by Fettis. A tidy finish completed Craig's hat-trick - and a 4-2 home win! Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (Winter 25,43,73, Alsop 61) Oxford United - 2 (Curtis 59, Williams 70) Division 2, Attendance 5,985 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 3rd, Oxford 15th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins, Maher, Matthews, Mayo (Ryan); Weekes, Hamilton, Carter (P Graham); Winter (Prior); Alsop, D Graham. I don't think we've ever had a player quite like Craig Winter. That's 18 goals in 36 matches - from attacking midfield! One man who hadn't been such a big hit with the Daggers was left-back Ian Sharps. After 28 games in barely a year at Victoria Road, I agreed to let the 25-year-old sign for Rotherham in a free transfer. Sharps was happy to drop back down to Division 3 to move closer to his family on Merseyside. We also made our way to the north-west for our next game - in wet and windy Cumbria against fellow play-off challengers Carlisle. Right-back Michael Walsh returned from a brief injury lay-off, but striker Benjani Mwaruwari had only just resumed light training and wasn't ready to play again. 11 MARCH 2006: Carlisle United vs Dagenham & Redbridge In a repeat of the previous week's game, a Scottish Dagger broke the deadlock after 25 minutes. David Graham delighted those Daggers fans who'd travelled all the way up to Brunton Park when he controlled Kerry Mayo's long ball, and then thundered it home from outside the area. Carlisle quickly pushed for an equaliser, with Richie Foran forcing a tricky save out of Robert Green in the 28th minute. One-time England midfielder Gavin McCann then missed a great chance just before half-time. Graham almost doubled our lead on the hour mark, but his strike cannoned off the crossbar. The Cumbrians then brought on the prolific Jimmy Davis, whose fierce effort was well saved by Green before Daggers captain Lee Matthews cleared the danger. Davis could have been Carlisle's hero, but it was he who cost them their last chance of salvation in the 85th minute. A clumsy foul on Graham earned us a free-kick, which our left-back Kerry Mayo curled around the wall and into the top corner for a 2-0 win. The long trek up north had been worth it for our fans! Carlisle United - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (D Graham 25, Mayo 85) Division 2, Attendance 12,993 - POSITIONS: Carlisle 7th, Dag & Red 3rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green; Maher, Rose, Matthews; Walsh (McQuade), Mayo; Winter, Hamilton, Carter (McLean); Alsop, D Graham (Griffiths). A rare clean-sheet win on the road moved us just four points behind 2nd-placed Port Vale, on whom we had two games in hand. Surely we couldn't pull it off? By pure coincidence, our next match just three days later was at home to Port... smouth. 14 MARCH 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Portsmouth Both sides wasted chances in the early stages of what would be a very even contest. Portsmouth had the first shot on target after 19 minutes, when midfielder Darryl Powell's fierce shot was stopped by goalkeeper Robert Green. Four minutes later, though, Craig Winter fared even better for the Daggers, driving a low effort beyond goalkeeper Lee Baxter to open the scoring! Pompey might have been just two points above the relegation spots in 19th place, but Lawrie Sanchez's boys were well up for a fight. They gradually cranked up the pressure late in the first half, and when Daggers defender Shaun Maher made a weak clearance just before the break, they sensed blood. Attacking midfielder David Nielsen took control of the loose ball, ran through unmarked, and then drove home the equaliser. Portsmouth's great Dane turned us into bacon again in the 63rd minute. As Gary O'Neil swung a corner delivery into our box, nobody picked Nielsen up, leaving him free to head in the goal that turned the game on its head. 2-1 to the visitors. Nielsen wasn't Pompey's only Nordic star to shine at Victoria Road. Daggers midfielder Paul Graham showed his lack of experience with a mistimed tackle on Danny Morgan in the 75th minute, conceding a free-kick 25 yards from our penalty area. That was a prime position for Finland forward Antti Sumiala, who drove it in off the crossbar for a 3-1 away lead. Just before Sumiala's goal, I'd taken the gamble of bringing Benjani Mwaruwari back into action, nearly two months after he'd been sidelined with a groin muscle injury. Though it was now too late for Benjani to turn the match around, he did score a last-minute consolation penalty after Winter was upended in the Pompey area by defender Shaun Barker. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Winter 23, Mwaruwari pen90) Portsmouth - 3 (Nielsen 45,63, Sumiala 75) Division 2, Attendance 5,954 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 3rd, Portsmouth 16th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh (McQuade), Maher, Matthews, Ryan; McLean (P Graham), Hamilton, Weekes; Winter; Alsop (Mwaruwari), Graham. With our third league defeat at Victoria Road this season, the gap to Port Vale was now seven points again. But let's face it... if you're conceding three goals at home to a team just above the relegation zone, you really shouldn't be hoping for automatic promotion. Another concern came when one of our hottest prospects - midfielder Paul Graham - turned up late for training one day and looked worse for wear. I fined Paul a week's wages and demoted him to the reserves until he sorted out his attitude. Next up, we hosted another team that sat just above the drop zone. While we were looking at consecutive promotions, Steve Bruce's Hull were battling to avoid the ignominy of suffering back-to-back relegations. 22 MARCH 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Hull City Our wing-backs made a flying start after just two minutes. Peter Hawkins' hard and low delivery from the right flank was finished by his left-sided colleague Kerry Mayo, as we immediately took the lead. As if that wasn't bad enough for Hull, their star striker Marc Libbra broke his toe in the 11th minute, bringing his match to a halt. Ten minutes, a savage strike from midfielder Alan McLean had put us in firm control at 2-0 up. By the 36th minute, though, the Tigers roared back through a similarly vicious effort by Tuomas Haapala - the second Finn to score against us in nine days. I was now hoping that our next opponents Wrexham hadn't signed Jari Litmanen. All the momentum was with Hull as the second half kicked off. Substitute Peter MacDonald was off target in the 51st minute, and veteran Andy Booth had an effort saved by Robert Green in the 55th. Attacking midfielder Paul McKnight had two attempts back-to-back in the 59th, scoring the second of them after Green's initial parry. 2-2. As I despaired at us letting another two-goal lead slip, Benjani Mwaruwari tried his best to redeem the situation in the final half-hour. The Zimbabwe striker had a couple of great efforts, but one was saved by Ashley Bayes and the other just clipped the woodwork. David Graham also gave Bayes a scare after coming off the bench, but our efforts weren't enough. As far as I was concerned, was two points lost rather than one gained. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Mayo 2, McLean 21) Hull City - 2 (Haapala 36, McKnight 59) Division 2, Attendance 5,974 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 3rd, Hull 18th DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green; Maher, Rose (Walsh), Matthews; Hawkins, Mayo; McLean, Hamilton, Carter (Winter); Alsop (D Graham), Mwaruwari. BOOKED: McLean. One point from two home games against weaker teams was a pitiful return. Somehow we remained in 3rd place - but Wrexham would barge ahead of us if they won our next match at the Racecourse Ground. 29 MARCH 2006: Wrexham vs Dagenham & Redbridge Wrexham's boss Gary Speed liked a 5-3-2 wide counter-attacking formation. That left a gaping hole in the midfield, which I hoped our narrow 4-3-1-2 would exploit... or at least that was my plan on paper. After just two minutes, former Crewe and Burnley forward Kevin Street picked the paper up, ripped it up, and headed in Scott Huckerby's cross to give the hosts a very early lead. Despite his impressive finish, Street was actually the foil to one of the most-feared strikers in lower-league football. David Collins doubled Wrexham's lead from a 20th-minute Huckerby free-kick after Street was shoved by Alan McLean. Collins then made it 3-0 to the Red Dragons nine minutes from half-time, outjumping Shaun Maher to head in a cross from right-back Lee Roche. While Wrexham's front two were tormenting our defence, our strike force did produce an impressive move to give just hope just before the break. Julian Alsop nodded McLean's lob on to David Graham, who dribbled through that huge midfield gap and struck from the edge of the area. To try and nullify the Street-Collins tandem, I switched to a more defensive 3-5-2 formation at half-time and made two substitutions. I might as well have brought on Janet Street-Porter too, because Wrexham's terrible twosome managed to mug our defence again two minutes after the restart! Collins slipped the ball ahead of Street, who skipped past substitute defender Michael Walsh and then matched his team-mate's brace! A furious Graham responded - albeit a good half-hour later - by scoring a second goal of his own, pulling us back to 4-2. However, it was Street who had the last laugh for Wrexham in the 85th minute. The 28-year-old skipped past our young midfielder Ryan Carter and then beat a hopeless Robert Green for the THIRD time! Wrexham - 5 (Street 2,47,85, Collins 20,36) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (D Graham 44,79) Division 2, Attendance 7,623 - POSITIONS: Wrexham 3rd, Dag & Red 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins (McQuade), Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Weekes (Walsh), Hamilton, McLean; Winter (Carter); Alsop, Graham. BOOKED: Matthews. While Street took home the match ball, we went back home with our tails between our legs. We hadn't just been soundly beaten by a much stronger team; we had conceded FIVE goals in a match for the first time since I took over as manager! And just like that, any hopes of automatic promotion are dead in the water. We've just been too careless and clumsy at the back, and our defence has just been ripped to ribbons. We need to tighten up, else there's a strong chance we won't even make the play-offs. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 16, 2022 Author Share Posted November 16, 2022 DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of March 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Norwich 38 13 3 2 38 16 10 4 6 34 29 76 2nd Port Vale 39 11 6 3 45 25 9 4 6 23 20 70 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Wrexham 38 11 3 5 43 33 7 6 6 36 30 63 4th Dag & Red 38 9 6 3 45 27 7 7 6 30 33 61 5th Shrewsbury 39 12 3 5 37 23 6 3 10 28 32 60 6th Swindon 39 10 4 6 30 25 6 7 6 42 38 59 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Cardiff 39 8 8 3 39 27 8 3 9 39 44 59 8th Peterborough 39 9 7 4 34 28 5 8 6 32 37 57 9th Carlisle 39 8 3 8 35 32 7 7 6 38 37 55 10th Northampton 38 12 3 3 39 22 4 3 13 29 48 54 11th Huddersfield 39 8 7 5 43 37 6 4 9 31 37 53 12th Rochdale 38 11 6 2 42 29 4 2 13 22 41 53 13th Reading 39 9 6 5 31 23 5 5 9 27 41 53 14th Bristol City 38 9 3 8 41 39 6 4 8 36 43 52 15th Portsmouth 39 9 5 5 38 28 5 4 11 32 42 51 16th Cambridge Utd 39 9 5 5 35 23 4 6 10 24 33 50 17th Bristol Rovers 39 8 8 3 43 33 4 4 12 26 45 48 18th Oxford 39 9 2 9 40 34 5 3 11 31 40 47 19th Watford 39 9 8 3 30 22 2 6 11 24 36 47 20th Hull 39 6 6 7 33 39 4 9 7 33 39 45 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Bournemouth 39 8 6 6 28 25 2 8 9 13 24 44 22nd Tranmere 39 9 7 3 27 24 2 4 14 16 37 44 23rd Barnsley 39 8 3 9 34 36 2 6 11 12 32 39 24th Wigan 39 7 1 12 30 34 4 2 13 26 42 36 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... After five months out with torn ankle ligaments, Lazio captain Alessandro Nesta makes his long-awaited return in a Champions League group game at Benfica. He lasts just seven minutes before tearing his knee ligaments again, ending his season. Biancocelesti coach Alberto Zaccheroni tears out what little hair he has left. Panathinaikos almost join their Greek rivals Olympiakos in the Champions League Quarter Finals... but are cruelly denied when Sporting's Ricardo Quaresma scores a last-minute equaliser in their final group game in Athens. Holders Valencia and last year's runners-up Real Madrid both fall in the second group phase, though Barcelona saunter through without conceding a single goal in their pool. After serving a six-month ban for violent conduct last year, Leeds midfielder Lee Bowyer redeems himself by scoring twice in a UEFA Cup Quarter Final win over VfB Stuttgart. David O'Leary's Whites also reach the Semi Finals of the FA Cup, thrashing Arsenal 5-1 after a first-half hat-trick from Irish goal machine... er, Ian Harte. Despite an impressive 3-0 win over Bayern München, Schalke 04 suffer a couple of away defeats that see them concede top spot in the Bundesliga to 1.FC Köln. The impressive strike partnership of Alexandr Kerzhakov and Ilan looks set to deliver the Billy-Goats their first German league championship since 1978. With Inter mounting a serious Serie A scudetto challenge for the first time in years, fans claim that Ariel Ortega has finally put his attitude problems behind him. On the eve of the Nerazzurri's title showdown at Roma, Ortega announces that he will join Bayern in the summer after just one season at the San Siro. Roma win 3-2. IN OTHER NEWS... Slobodan Milošević - the former President of Serbia - suffers a fatal heart attack while on trial in The Hague. The 64-year-old had been accused of several crimes against humanity during the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s, including the genocide of over 8,000 Bosniaks in Srebrenica. Tony Blair’s premiership is under scrutiny once again, amid widespread allegations that the Labour Party gave out peerages to businessmen in exchange for loans. The Metropolitan Police say they will launch an ‘investigation’, which presumably means they will sweep it under the carpet and pretend nothing happened. New York University student Jack Dorsey posts the first message on his new social networking website Twitter. Soon, people from around the world will be able to discuss what they had for breakfast. “No Tomorrow” by American pop-rock band Orson hits Number 1 in the UK Singles Chart, despite selling 17,694 copies - a record low for a chart-topper. Which iconic song did it replace at Number 1? “It’s Chico Time”. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 18, 2022 Author Share Posted November 18, 2022 APRIL 2006 Despite surpassing expectations once again, the mood at Victoria Road had turned sour as we headed into the final few weeks of the season. Having picked up just one point from our last three games - including a 5-2 pantsing at Wrexham - we were now barely clinging onto a Division 2 play-off place. The Wrexham defeat had left me particularly furious. Goalkeeper Robert Green, left-back Kerry Mayo, and midfielders Des Hamilton and Nick Weekes were all fined and dropped for our next fixture. This meant a recall for former captain Damien Lacey, who hadn't featured since January and was perhaps fearing that he'd played his final match for the Daggers. Our run-in started at home to relegation-threatened Barnsley. The Tykes were down in 23rd and were soundly beaten when we visited Oakwell in December, but would Roy Keane's side get their revenge - and turn us into April fools? 1 APRIL 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Barnsley We certainly looked like fools in front of a capacity Victoria Road crowd after 18 minutes. Barnsley player-manager Roy Keane had a header saved by Mike Pollitt, but just moments later, his young Dutch winger Edwin van den Heuvel drove in his first senior goal. Though Barnsley striker Isaiah Rankin came off with a leg injury two minutes after the opener, the Tykes grew from strength to strength in the first half. Goalkeeper Phil Imray retained their lead by saving from Craig Winter in the 22nd minute, and midfielder Roberto Bisconti extended it in the 37th after a mistake from Spencer Prior. It was Bisconti's first goal of the season, because of course it bloody was. David Graham pulled a goal back for us just before half-time, thanks to a fine assist from Winter. Despite that, I was still furious that we were trailing 2-1 at home to a team who looked like they were dropping into Division 3. During the break, I replaced the disappointing Alan McLean with another young midfielder coming through the Daggers ranks - Mark Jones. Pollitt just about stopped substitute Rory Fallon from putting Barnsley 3-1 up in the 57th minute. Mike's save was particularly important eight minutes later, when we hit the visitors on the counter. Jones outjumped ex-West Ham defender Scott Minto and knocked Ryan Carter's long ball down to Winter, who drove in the equaliser - his 20th goal of the season! A hectic climax saw both teams waste opportunities to take a 3-2 lead. Graham scooped over what looked like our best chance in the 83rd minute... but one more came our way just three minutes later. Damien Lacey's cross was flicked on by Winter and then Jones, before Julian Alsop raised the roof with a powerful strike! We had recovered from 2-0 down to take a priceless victory! Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (D Graham 41, Winter 65, Alsop 86) Barnsley - 2 (van den Heuvel 18, Bisconti 37) Division 2, Attendance 6,000 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 3rd, Barnsley 23rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Pollitt; Hawkins, Prior, Matthews (Maher), Ryan; McLean (M Jones), Lacey, Carter; Winter; Mwaruwari (Alsop), D Graham. Had that comeback given us the momentum we needed to push on and secure a play-off place? We would go seven points clear of 7th-placed Peterborough if we could win our midweek clash with mid-table Rochdale. 5 APRIL 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Rochdale The first half of this match was almost completely dominated by the Daggers... so it won't surprise you that it finished goalless. Nick Weekes and David Graham each spurned decent openings, while Julian Alsop was being kept quiet by excellent man-marking from Rochdale's captain Miika Koppinen. At the other end, Dale had one shot on target - Claus Bech Jørgensen's 11th-minute corner, which was tipped over by Mike Pollitt. Nine minutes into the second half, though, our fortunes changed. Graham might have been denied by a firm slide tackle from Tom Heath, but Craig Winter - who else? - thundered in the rebound to break the deadlock. Winter didn't just settle for one goal, as he doubled his money almost immediately. Alsop finally escaped Koppinen's clutches and provided the cross for Craig to fire home! Though Winter blazed over a potential hat-trick goal in the 75th minute, we did score a third goal in the closing stages to clinch victory. Weekes came alive with a clever chip to substitute Benjani Mwaruwari, whose volley completed one of our finest halves of the season! Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Winter 54,55, Mwaruwari 90) Rochdale - 0 Division 2, Attendance 5,982 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 3rd, Rochdale 11th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Pollitt; Hawkins (McQuade), Prior, Matthews, Ryan; Weekes, Lacey, Carter; Winter; Alsop (M Jones), D Graham (Mwaruwari). Three goals in consecutive games took us up to 81 goals for the season - the joint-highest total in Division 2 this season. We were level at the top with 4th-placed Wrexham... and 12th-placed Bristol City, whom we faced at Ashton Gate. To try and quell City's attacking threat, I decided to try out a 4-1-3-2 formation for the first time, with Lacey sitting in the hole between defence and midfield. 8 APRIL 2006: Bristol City vs Dagenham & Redbridge My tactical plans were undermined after just seven minutes, when Ryan Carter pulled back on Bristol City midfielder Dominique van Dijk and conceded a penalty. Up stepped City captain Paulo Roberto Rink, who beat Mike Pollitt for his 25th goal of the season. Thanks to a string of misses from Daggers strikers Julian Alsop and Benjani Mwaruwari, the German veteran's goal would make the difference at half-time. Our wastefulness continued until well into the second half. It took us until the 80th minute to even get a shot on target, and even then, Mwaruwari's volley didn't exactly trouble John Karelse in the Robins goal. Fortunately, Benjani got another chance four minutes later - and when he headed substitute Alan McLean's cross into the net, it appeared we'd stolen a draw from Ashton Gate! Alas, Bristol City hit back straight from the kick-off. Young winger Alan Gray swivelled skilfully on the ball and then crossed to the Robins' long-serving midfielder Tommy Doherty, who beat Pollitt to head it home. The hosts celebrated wildly, and then cruised through the remaining few minutes to complete their win. Bristol City - 2 (Rink pen7, Doherty 85) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 84) Division 2, Attendance 8,123 - POSITIONS: Bristol City 10th, Dag & Red 3rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Pollitt; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Ryan (Hawkins); Lacey (McLean); Weekes, Winter, Carter; Alsop (D Graham), Mwaruwari. BOOKED: Carter. Two shots on target, two goals conceded. With that, Mike Pollitt's latest - and possibly last - run in the Daggers goal was over. The gap between us and 7th and been whittled back down to four points. The pressure was back on us ahead of a home meeting with third-from-bottom Tranmere. 15 APRIL 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Tranmere Rovers Tranmere had the game's first shot on goal after two minutes, but Leslie Hughes' wayward half-volley would also be their last. The rest of the match was all about our attacks. A couple of midfield strikes from Alan McLean were saved by Rovers goalkeeper David Preece, who also kept out an effort from Julian Alsop. We had our best spell of the match just before the hour mark. Benjani Mwaruwari drew another fine save from Preece and won a corner, which Tranmere struggled to clear out of harm's way. When Craig Winter's cross was finished by Alsop, it looked like we'd finally broken the deadlock... until the referee's linesman raised his flag for offside. Our fortunes didn't change in the final 30 minutes. Benjani still couldn't find a way past Preece, who had joined Rovers from Dundee United in January. Frustrations boiled over in the closing stages, as both David Graham and Damien Lacey joined Spencer Prior in the ref's book for clumsy injury-time fouls. On that note, Victoria Road witnessed its first 0-0 draw in nearly two-and-a-half years. Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Tranmere Rovers - 0 Division 2, Attendance 5,978 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 3rd, Tranmere 22nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Hawkins, Prior, Matthews, Mayo; Carter (M Jones), Lacey, McLean; Winter; Alsop (D Graham), Mwaruwari. BOOKED: Prior, D Graham, Lacey. Though it looked like we'd dropped two crucial point, we actually went a further point ahead of Peterborough in 7th place after they were beaten 3-1 at Hull. With four games to go, that all-important gap was now five points. Shrewsbury were just inside the play-off spot, with a marginally better goal difference than Peterborough. The Shrews looked to consolidate their place in the top six when they entertained us on Easter Monday at Gay Meadow, where I gave a first start to Mark Jones. The 18-year-old midfielder had been pretty solid during most of his five substitute appearances so far this season. 17 APRIL 2006: Shrewsbury Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge Shrewsbury had beaten us at Victoria Road earlier in the season, and after 15 minutes, they came very close to taking the lead in this game as well. Marc Edworthy's cross from right-back found left-back Scott Stamps, whose strike cannoned off the underside of the crossbar before Damien Lacey cleared. The rest of the first half was more of a street fight than a football match. Dagenham left-back Peter Hawkins slid through Graham Kavanagh with both feet in the 22nd minute - and just four minutes later, Shrewsbury forward Nick Evans put his fingers into Spencer Prior's eyeballs! Incredibly, the referee decided to only give yellow cards to Hawkins and Evans. What would you have to do to get a red card from him - decapitate the goalkeeper?! After another booking for Edworthy in the 60th minute, tensions finally simmered, and we got on with the job at hand. Nine minutes later, Lacey chipped the ball into the Shrews' penalty area, where Benjani Mwaruwari's fierce shot broke the deadlock. Could we now hold on? With nine minutes to go, Shrewsbury launched one last attack. Northern Irish forward Steven Thompson tried to score from distance, only to be thwarted by Robert Green, who was determined to keep his second consecutive clean sheet. With Green in such fine form, and Lacey dictating the midfield, the rest of the match was surprisingly comfortable. Shrewsbury Town - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 69) Division 2, Attendance 7,135 - POSITIONS: Shrewsbury 7th, Dag & Red 3rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green; Maher, Prior, Matthews; Hawkins (Walsh), Mayo; M Jones (Winter), Lacey, Weekes (McLean); Alsop, Mwaruwari. BOOKED: Hawkins. While Shrewsbury had lost their play-off spot, we were now on the brink of securing ours. Two more points from our final three matches would do the job. Our first opportunity to extend our season was back at Victoria Road, against a Peterborough side who'd just leapfrogged the Shrews into the top six. Could we deliver when it mattered most? 22 APRIL 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Peterborough United We instantly streamed forward and took the game to Barry Fry's Posh boys. Julian Alsop couldn't control his header in the 2nd minute, but he was more assured in assisting Craig Winter a minute later. Our attacking midfield goal machine comfortably beat Daniel Connor in the visiting goal, and we were 1-0 up. Winter eyed up a brace midway through the first period. After Craig skilfully skinned Peterborough captain Graham Bowater to go clean through, Connor had to come off the goal line to parry his shot. However, Winter made light work of the rebound, doubling our lead and moving on to 24 goals this season! And 2-0 was how it finished. Peterborough had their opportunities to get back in the game, but an inspired Robert Green shut them out superbly. Meanwhile, substitute David Graham had three excellent chances to extend our winning margin - two were saved, and the third unfortunately hit the bar. Not that any of that mattered, because Winter's first-half brilliance had done just what we needed! Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Winter 3,22) Peterborough United - 0 Division 2, Attendance 5,968 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 3rd, Peterborough 6th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Mayo; Weekes, Lacey, McLean (Carter); Winter (Prior); Alsop, Mwaruwari (D Graham). Good work, lads. We were now confirmed in the Division 2 play-offs, which meant we could relax for our last two games of the regular season. Our penultimate match was at the Madejski Stadium against Reading, who were still firmly in a fight against relegation. I decided to give Craig Winter a well-earned rest and play a youthful midfield of Ryan Carter, Alan McLean and the returning Paul Graham. Mark Jones was on the bench alongside his fellow Welsh teenager Chris Griffiths. 29 APRIL 2006: Reading vs Dagenham & Redbridge Benjani Mwaruwari was kept off the scoresheet after just six minutes by a fingertip save from Reading keeper Erwin Lemmens. Keen not to be overshadowed by his Belgian counterpart, Robert Green produced a couple of blinding saves of his own later on, stopping winger Chris Holland and midfielder Alex Nyarko from putting the Royals ahead. After a goalless first period, Reading started the second half strongly. Holland's low cross in the 53rd minute presented an opportunity to midfield substitute Joe Gamble, whose dangerous effort clipped the post. After that, I decided to freshen up our midfield, replacing a disappointing Alan McLean with the more energetic Mark Jones. Tensions rose as the game wore on, with Green doing everything in his power to keep Reading off the scoresheet and extend his clean-sheet run to four games. Holland was frustrated once again, as were left-back Chris Makin and striker Simon Buckley. Then, in the 82nd minute, we produced a counter-attack from out of almost nowhere. Julian Alsop took the ball from Michael Walsh on the right-wing and then drilled it to the near post, where it was tapped in by... Mark Jones! The 18-year-old's first competitive goal had won us the game, and secured us a 3rd-place finish - at worst! Reading - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (M Jones 82) Division 2, Attendance 15,387 - POSITIONS: Reading 20th, Dag & Red 2nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Maher (Rose), Prior, Matthews; Walsh, Mayo; Carter, McLean (M Jones), P Graham; Mwaruwari (Griffiths), Alsop. I had to double-check the table on Ceefax at full-time, just to make sure I wasn't seeing things. I honestly had no idea that we were even still in the race for automatic promotion, let alone that we had overtaken Port Vale into 2nd on goal difference! But there it was in black and white... well, in black and white and cyan, to be more precise. As things stand, Dagenham & Redbridge are 90 minutes away from playing in Division 1. And who do we play in our final game of the season? Port Vale - at Victoria Road. One match to decide automatic promotion! You couldn't write it! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 18, 2022 Author Share Posted November 18, 2022 DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of April 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Norwich 45 16 4 2 45 18 11 4 8 38 35 89 2nd Pl Dag & Red 45 12 7 3 53 29 9 7 7 33 35 77 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Pl Port Vale 45 13 6 4 53 30 9 5 8 25 28 77 4th Wrexham 44 12 4 5 48 36 8 6 9 43 40 70 5th Swindon 45 11 5 7 37 31 8 8 6 47 41 70 6th Peterborough 45 12 7 4 40 29 6 8 8 36 43 69 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Shrewsbury 45 14 3 6 44 25 6 3 13 30 37 66 8th Cardiff 44 8 10 4 41 31 9 3 10 42 47 64 9th Northampton 45 15 3 4 46 26 4 3 16 32 59 63 10th Cambridge Utd 45 12 5 5 40 25 5 6 12 26 37 62 11th Bristol Rovers 45 11 8 3 52 34 5 6 12 30 47 62 12th Bristol City 45 11 3 9 46 42 7 4 11 41 51 61 13th Portsmouth 45 11 5 6 46 35 6 4 13 39 50 60 14th Carlisle 45 9 4 9 43 40 7 8 8 43 48 60 15th Rochdale 45 13 6 3 47 33 4 3 16 24 48 60 16th Watford 45 12 8 3 38 24 3 6 13 28 44 59 17th Oxford 44 10 3 10 45 38 7 3 11 36 41 57 18th Hull 45 9 6 7 46 43 4 11 8 40 48 56 19th Huddersfield 45 9 7 7 49 42 6 4 12 34 50 56 20th Reading 44 9 7 6 34 27 5 5 12 27 45 54 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st Bournemouth 45 9 7 7 32 29 3 9 10 15 27 52 22nd R Barnsley 45 10 4 9 40 39 3 7 12 17 37 50 23rd R Tranmere 45 10 7 5 29 29 2 6 15 19 42 49 24th R Wigan 45 7 2 14 33 39 5 2 15 29 47 40 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Even without Sir Alex Ferguson, there's no stopping Manchester United. The Red Devils secure a record fourth successive Premiership title with three games to spare, thanks to Dwight Yorke's brace in a 4-2 win over Newcastle. Meanwhile, Gary Megson blames the referees for West Brom's relegation to Division 1, with Charlton also going down - and Crewe almost certain to follow. Manchester United also reach the Semi Finals of the Champions League, coming from behind to thrash Liverpool 6-2 on aggregate in the Quarter Finals. Awaiting them in the last four are Barcelona, who celebrate winning yet another La Liga title by annihilating Bayern München. The other Semi Final is - surprise, surprise - another eternal derby between Roma and Lazio. Jean Tigana lifts his first trophy as Chelsea manager, with Craig Bellamy banging in a hat-trick in a 4-0 League Cup Final win over Division 1 leaders Manchester City. Russian businessman Roman Abramovich seems very impressed with what he sees... Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi, not so much. The Bundesliga title race takes another huge twist. 1.FC Köln wear themselves out from constant gegenpressing and are soundly beaten 4-0 at home by Schalke 04, who retake top spot with four games to play. Dortmund's fleeting championship hopes fade away after head coach Matthias Sammer is poached by Espanyol. Ajax's unbeaten Eredivisie record crumbles in their 29th game, conceding an 89th-minute winner at Fortuna. Despite that, the Amsterdam giants look set to end PSV's six-year reign as Dutch champions, and also reach the UEFA Cup Final. Andriy Shevchenko has scored 44 goals in 45 matches this season. IN OTHER NEWS... Iran announces that it has successfully enriched uranium, while American officials brand Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s regime as “one of the world's most active sponsors of terrorism”. Er... good news? After a five-year term as Italy’s Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi loses the general election to a centre-left coalition led by Romano Prodi. Berlusconi refuses to concede defeat, complaining about electoral fraud – and while he’s at it, the AC Milan president also accuses Lazio and Roma of match-fixing. US pop singer Gene Pitney - who had several hit records in the 1960s - dies in his sleep aged 65, just hours after performing at a concert in Cardiff. Apparently, something had gotten hold of his heart. One of the great rivalries in British soap history comes to an end. 12.6million viewers tune in to “Coronation Street” as Mike Baldwin succumbs to Alzheimer’s disease and dies in the arms of his former foe Ken Barlow. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 22, 2022 Author Share Posted November 22, 2022 MAY 2006 Dagenham & Redbridge had returned to form in April. Following a run of one point from three games, we had taken 16 points from our next dozen. This impressive run saw me win the Division 2 Manager of the Month award, which was actually the first time I'd won one of those since we were in the Conference! Having been barely clinging onto a play-off spot at the start of April, we ended that month by not just securing our position in the top six, but also leaping above Port Vale into 2nd place! We were ahead of the Valiants by just two goals as we headed into the final day of the season - and the biggest match in the club's history. On the afternoon of Sunday 7 May 2006, Dagenham & Redbridge hosted Port Vale at Victoria Road, with automatic promotion on the line. We only required a draw to join champions Norwich on the trip to Division 1, whereas David Kemp's Valiants needed to win away from home. Whichever team failed would have to battle through the play-offs. We were odds-on favourites to secure a third promotion in four seasons. Excluding Junior McDougald's long-term injury, our entire senior squad was available to choose from. Craig Winter and Benjani Mwaruwari had scored 43 goals between them this season, and goalkeeper Robert Green had kept clean sheets in each of his last four games. By contrast, Port Vale were missing one of their key men - Scottish striker Stephen McPhee, who had provided 32 goals and 10 assists in 50 matches before being given a three-match ban for violent conduct. While Valiants captain Ian Armstrong was a prolific goalgetter himself, he wasn't quite on the same level as McPhee. But yet, I wasn't entirely confident we could see the job through. In my five years as Daggers boss, we'd made a habit of choking on big occasions - or at least falling over the finish line. This match would test our resolve and composure like nothing else before. 7 MAY 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Port Vale After such a big build-up, it would have been a pity if... say... Port Vale had taken the lead after two minutes. You know exactly how this match was going to start, didn't you? The Valiants burst out of the traps, and when Ian Armstrong's through-ball was finished by backup striker Steve Brooker, we already found ourselves trailing. Our first shot on goal was not as clinical as Port Vale, with Benjani Mwaruwari blazing it well off target in the 11th minute. At that point, Julian Alsop took it upon himself - as one of our senior squad members - to calm Benjani down and try to reduce some tension in the team. Alsop's pep talk rubbed off almost immediately. Vale keeper Jon Ashwood's goal kick was intercepted by attacking midfielder Craig Winter, who calmly nodded it down towards Jules. The big target man took the ball on, and then drove it past Ashwood to draw us back level. More importantly, we were back in pole position to go up automatically! The rest of the first half didn't quite live up to that epic start. Daggers midfielder Damien Lacey fired a free-kick into the Vale wall, but that was as close as either team would take to making it 2-1 before the break. Winter almost gave us the lead just after the restart, when a vicious shot hit the crossbar before being cleared by Pierre Issa. The experienced South African defender was marshalling the Port Vale defence superbly and helped them keep the scoreline at 1-1. Issa would make another vital intervention in the 70th minute, tackling Benjani just before our Zimbabwean could get a shot in. While the Valiants struggled to string any attacks together, we continued looking for a second goal that would surely seal promotion. Mwaruwari's volley from Alan McLean's long ball in the 80th minute went well over the bar, but he would get another chance just three minutes later. Issa stuck out a hand to block a cross from ex-Vale right-back Michael Walsh, and the referee had no choice but to point to the spot - and award Dagenham & Redbridge a penalty. Benjani composed himself before taking the most important kick of our season. He had scored three of his previous four penalties for the Daggers and was looking to score his 20th goal of the campaign. He opted for a powerful but controlled to the right of Ashwood, who dove to his left - and was helpless to keep it out! Benjani's team-mates mobbed him in celebration, though we still needed to finish the job. Winter appeared to have done that with a ferocious strike in the 86th minute, only to be flagged offside. It didn't matter, however, as Port Vale had nothing left to give. They sank to their knees at the ref's final whistle, when pretty much the entire Victoria Road crowd swarmed the pitch! Dagenham & Redbridge had been PROMOTED to Division 1 - on the final day!! Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Alsop 11, Mwaruwari pen83) Port Vale - 1 (Brooker 2) Division 2, Attendance 5,979 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 2nd, Port Vale 3rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Maher (Prior), Matthews, Mayo; Weekes, Lacey, Carter (McLean); Winter; Alsop (D Graham), Mwaruwari. Our first season in Division 2 had been chaotic. We went through three different captains, three goalkeepers, lost our record scorer for half the season - and several Daggers went from key players to unwanted reserves (or vice versa) within a matter of weeks! And yet, when all was said and done, we had pulled off something that even the most optimistic Dagenhamite could not have seen coming. In successive seasons, Dagenham & Redbridge had been promoted from the Football League's bottom rung - and into the second tier! Charlton, Coventry, Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Sunderland, West Brom - those are just half a dozen of the big teams we'll playing against in Division 1 in the 2006/2007 season. That is scarcely believable, especially as it's only been about three years since we were struggling to beat Halesowen and Slough in the Conference! Honestly, I did feel some sympathy for Port Vale, especially as they had automatic promotion within their reach, only to see it slip from their fingers. Fortunately, the Valiants did make amends in the play-offs, battling past Wrexham in the Semi Finals before an extra-time Wembley win over Peterborough secured their place back in Division 1. After such an epic campaign, there was a strong case for either David Kemp or me to be named Division 2's Manager of the Year. But I only finished in 2nd place, and Kemp wasn't even on the ballot. Instead, the award went to... ...Craig Johnston, who had led Reading up from a 14th-place finish last season and to the giddy heights of... er, 19th? SERIOUSLY?! Reading were only four points clear of relegation! I can only think that Johnston gave everybody on the awards committee a pair of brand-new Adidas Predators, because there's NO WAY he should be Manager of the Year!! [Sigh] Okay. Calm down now. It's just a silly award. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 22, 2022 Author Share Posted November 22, 2022 (edited) DIVISION 2 TABLE (End of 2005/2006 season) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Norwich 46 16 4 3 46 20 11 4 8 38 35 89 2nd P Dag & Red 46 13 7 3 55 30 9 7 7 33 35 80 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd P Port Vale 46 13 6 4 53 30 9 5 9 26 30 77 4th Swindon 46 11 5 7 37 31 9 8 6 49 42 73 5th Peterborough 46 12 7 4 40 29 7 8 8 39 44 72 6th Wrexham 46 12 5 6 49 39 8 6 9 43 40 71 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Shrewsbury 46 14 3 6 44 25 6 4 13 32 39 67 8th Cardiff 46 9 10 4 42 31 9 3 11 43 49 67 9th Northampton 46 16 3 4 48 26 4 3 16 32 59 66 10th Bristol Rovers 46 12 8 3 54 34 5 6 12 30 47 65 11th Bristol City 46 11 3 9 46 42 8 4 11 43 52 64 12th Cambridge Utd 46 12 6 5 40 25 5 6 12 26 37 63 13th Portsmouth 46 12 5 6 49 35 6 4 13 39 50 63 14th Rochdale 46 13 7 3 49 35 4 3 16 24 48 61 15th Oxford 46 10 3 10 45 38 8 3 12 38 43 60 16th Carlisle 46 9 4 10 44 43 7 8 8 43 48 60 17th Hull 46 10 6 7 49 43 4 11 8 40 48 59 18th Watford 46 12 8 3 38 24 3 6 14 28 47 59 19th Reading 46 10 7 6 36 28 5 5 13 27 48 57 20th Huddersfield 46 9 7 7 49 42 6 4 13 34 51 56 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st R Bournemouth 46 9 7 7 32 29 3 10 10 15 27 53 22nd R Barnsley 46 10 4 9 40 39 3 8 12 18 38 51 23rd R Tranmere 46 10 7 6 30 31 2 6 15 19 42 49 24th R Wigan 46 7 2 14 33 39 5 2 16 29 49 40 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Manchester United reach their first Champions League Final since 1999, and take Serie A champions Roma to penalties after Ryan Giggs cancels out Marco Delvecchio's opener in Brussels. Unfortunately, Giggs turns from hero to villain when his spot-kick is saved by Francesco Antonioli. Veteran defender Sebastiano Siviglia then converts his penalty to give the Giallorossi a 6-5 win - and their second European Cup in three seasons! There is English success in the UEFA Cup Final in Glasgow, where Mark Viduka strikes five minutes from time to give Leeds a 2-1 win over Dutch champions Ajax. After the match, Ajax's Egyptian forward Mido kicks up a fuss - and says that a team with Andriy Shevchenko, Wesley Sneijder and Victor Valdés needs to sign better players. The UEFA Cup is the second part of a cup double for Leeds. Pablo Aimar's 79th-minute strike at Wembley secures a 3-2 victory over Everton in the FA Cup Final - and reduces 20-year-old England star Wayne Rooney to tears. Meanwhile, Valladolid secure a historic Copa del Rey victory after seeing off Real Madrid on penalties. After leading Ligue 1 for almost the entire season, Lille do their best to throw the title away to Monaco on the final day of the season. Les Dogues fall to an early Armand Oné-nil deficit against Le Havre, but an equaliser from Peruvian wonderkid Jefferson Farfán is enough to give them the championship on goal difference. The Bundesliga title is also decided on goal difference. Ebbe Sand scores the decisive goal in Dortmund, which sees Schalke 04 hold off 1.FC Köln - and end their 48-year championship drought! After winning the last seven titles, Bayern München finish 4th behind Hertha BSC and fail to even qualify for the Champions League! IN OTHER NEWS... After being dominated by cheesy pop for decades, fans of the Eurovision Song Contest are in for a shock when... the United Kingdom picks rapper Daz Sampson to represent them in Athens. He finishes in 19th place, as Finnish heavy-metal band Lordi steal the show with "Hard Rock Hallelujah". Journalist Guy Kewney is interviewed by BBC News 24 about the court case between Steve Jobs' tech company Apple and The Beatles' record label Apple. Only, there is a mix-up in reception and the BBC get the wrong Guy - a Congolese graduate called Guy Goma, who turns up for an IT job interview and finds himself on national TV! The BBC are rather more alarmed when campaigners from Fathers 4 Justice invade the National Lottery studio and take the “Jet Set” programme off air for several minutes. Maybe they just don’t like Eamonn Holmes... Sony unveils its new PlayStation 3 console at the E3 video game expo in Los Angeles. The two-hour announcement goes off without a single hitch or any remotely embarrassing moments. Edited November 22, 2022 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 22, 2022 Author Share Posted November 22, 2022 DAG & RED PLAYER STATISTICS (2005/2006) Goalkeepers Apps Con Asts Yel Red MoM Av R ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Green, Robert 29 37 0 0 0 1 7.14 13 Pollitt, Mike 10 (2) 16 0 0 0 0 6.92 * Thompson, Glynn 14 22 0 0 0 0 6.86 Outfield Players Apps Gls Asts Yel Red MoM Av R ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10 Alsop, Julian 33 (7) 8 12 0 1 2 7.20 * Anderson, John 4 (2) 0 1 0 0 0 6.00 21 Bayliss, Dave 6 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 14 Carter, Ryan 32 (4) 2 4 4 0 1 6.83 16 Devine, Sean 13 (7) 7 0 1 0 1 7.00 * Gledhill, Lee 2 (13) 0 0 1 0 0 6.47 12 Graham, David 10 (6) 6 0 1 0 0 7.44 34 Graham, Paul 1 (4) 0 1 1 0 0 6.80 23 Griffiths, Chris 0 (12) 2 0 0 0 0 6.92 22 Hamilton, Des 28 (6) 5 5 2 0 2 6.74 3 Hawkins, Peter 31 (6) 1 1 2 0 0 6.57 7 Janney, Mark 4 0 1 0 0 0 6.75 36 Jones, Mark 1 (6) 1 2 0 0 0 6.86 4 Lacey, Damien 27 (5) 2 3 4 0 2 7.00 15 Maher, Shaun 35 (3) 3 0 1 0 1 7.03 5 Matthews, Lee 45 1 2 4 0 1 7.42 11 Mayo, Kerry 41 (2) 3 7 2 1 4 6.95 9 McDougald, Junior 8 (3) 5 3 0 0 0 7.18 35 McQuade, William 11 (11) 0 5 0 0 1 6.68 31 McLean, Alan 25 (13) 3 4 3 0 0 6.84 * Melton, Stephen 1 (2) 1 0 0 0 0 6.33 8 Mwaruwari, Benjani 36 (5) 20 5 1 0 5 7.56 26 Prior, Spencer 21 (6) 1 0 3 0 1 6.85 19 Rose, Richard 3 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 6.75 17 Ryan, Robbie 6 (2) 0 1 0 0 0 6.75 * Sharps, Ian 14 (6) 0 1 3 0 0 6.40 2 Walsh, Michael 23 (4) 1 0 0 0 0 6.70 * Walsh, Robbie 5 (1) 2 3 0 0 0 7.83 38 Warren, Simon 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 6.00 20 Weekes, Nick 29 (6) 5 9 0 0 2 6.77 18 Winter, Craig 35 (12) 24 9 1 0 6 7.47 * [Player not currently at club] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oche balboa Posted November 24, 2022 Share Posted November 24, 2022 Well done on getting Promotion Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 24, 2022 Author Share Posted November 24, 2022 Just now, oche balboa said: Well done on getting Promotion Thanks. I still don't quite know how we pulled it off. It's also the first time I've ever had back-to-back promotions, either on CM or FM. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 25, 2022 Author Share Posted November 25, 2022 JUNE 2006 I'll be honest with you. A few months ago, I seriously thought that I was coming towards the end of my reign as Dagenham & Redbridge manager. Despite flying high in Division 2, I was starting to believe that I had taken this team as far as I could, and that it would soon be time to move on to a new challenge. Well... you know what happened next. An unbelievable late surge in form not only booked us a play-off place at worst - it also got us a second automatic promotion in a row! The Daggers were riding the crest of a wave into Division 1! And so, at the post-season board meeting where I had been planning to tender my resignation, I instead signed a new two-year deal to extend my stay at Victoria Road. I would be staying on for the latest chapter of the Daggers' evolution from Conference part-timers to Football League challengers. Chairman Dave Andrews couldn't hide his pleasure as I put my pen to my new contract. The 63-year-old shared my ambitions for not just consolidating this club's status in the second tier, but also putting the building blocks in place for Dagenham & Redbridge to eventually secure one more promotion - into the Premiership. That dream perhaps wasn't as ridiculous as it sounded. After all, both Crewe and Gillingham were small clubs who recently made it into the top flight - though Crewe were recently relegated back to the second tier, while the Gills had actually plummeted into the third. We could also take inspiration from Kidderminster, who - much like us - enjoyed three quick promotions from the Conference to Division 1 between 2000 and 2005. To that end, Dave agreed to further upgrade our training facilities, which had already undergone some significant renovations over the past 12 months. He also announced that Victoria Road's capacity would be expanded by 25% over the summer - from 6,000 to 8,000. The ground would soon have a seated capacity of 3,012, though the board were reluctant to convert it into an all-seater just yet. The bill for all that ground maintenance was well over £5million. Fortunately, that was offset by our prize money for finishing 2nd in Division 2, a significant increase in TV revenue - and a lucrative deal with one of those new-fangled gambling websites that have been cropping up lately. Even so, I was staggered when managing director Steve Thompson announced that I was being given a transfer budget of... wait for it... £4million. To put that into perspective, all my previous Daggers signings had cost us 'only' £1.5million. Before I could go on a spending spree, though, it was time to shift some dead wood. The first two players to leave were centre-back Dave Bayliss and midfielder Damien Lacey, who each spent four years with the Daggers. Bayliss returned to his native north-west after signing for Blackpool, while former captain Lacey also dropped into Division 3 and joined Rushden. Five youngsters - Nathan Betts, Jamie Cartwright, Peter McCann, Richard Rose and Kevin Sheridan - were released at the end of their contracts. Central defender Rose made 17 appearances for the Daggers since his debut in 2003, but none of the others came even close to a first-team breakthrough. In terms of signings, I began with a couple of free transfers. 24-year-old Paul Mitchell was a determined right-back who had previously made 87 appearances for Wigan. I also brought in 29-year-old Luke Beckett - a strong and intelligent centre-forward who was discarded by Blackburn in January. I then focussed on strengthening the centre of our defence, which looked to me like our weakest area. Lee Matthews and Spencer Prior were both in their mid-30s and likely to struggle with the intensity of second-tier football, while I had some question marks about Shaun Maher's consistency. After holding talks with Watford chairman Elton John and manager Danny Wilson (that's the former Northern Ireland midfielder, not the Scottish pop band), they agreed to sell 21-year-old Simon Bell to us for £60,000. That might be a huge coup for us, as Simon has fantastic heading ability and has the positional awareness of a much older defender. One of Bell's rivals for a starting place will be a rather more exotic signing - from Lleida, in the Spanish third division. We spent £150,000 on 26-year-old stopper David Navarro, whose aggression and aerial ability could strike fear into opponents. I may sign another Spaniard to help David settle in; there aren't many bullrings or paella restaurants in Dagenham. I also decided to improve my backroom staff and assemble a coaching team that was worthy of Division 1. I sent assistant manager Terry Harris and coach David Nish my best wishes at the end of their contracts, and reluctantly sent them on their way. My new assistant will be Johnson Hippolyte (42) - a smart tactician who comes in from non-league Chesham United. Former Exeter striker Eamonn Dolan (38) will be our new attacking coach, while Welshman Gary Evans (36) arrives from Flexys Cefn Druids as a fitness coach. I also made room for a new scout, taking our recruitment team up to five. David Ludzic isn't Scottish, so he doesn't quite complete our full set of Home Nations, but the 30-year-old Irishman is an exceptional youth scout who comes to us from Derry City. I'm sure he'll find us a gem or two on his travels. So much is changing at Victoria Road over the summer - both off the pitch and on it. There will inevitably be some growing pains as we adapt to life in another new division. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 25, 2022 Author Share Posted November 25, 2022 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Ken Bates retires as Chelsea chairman and sells the club to an extremely wealthy and extremely ambitious 41-year-old businessman... John Warner. The Blues' first signing of their new era is 22-year-old Spanish wing wizard José Antonio Reyes, on a Bosman from Sevilla. Their star midfielder Frank Lampard heads in the opposite direction, joining Real Madrid after five years at Stamford Bridge. Sven-Göran Eriksson's controversial decision to leave Real defender Sol Campbell out of England's World Cup squad is vindicated. The Three Lions breeze through their group before Lampard swiftly endears himself to Madridistas by knocking out Spain in Round 2. Next up for England in the Quarter Finals... Argentina. Mark Hughes' Wales hold Spain to a draw in their opening group game, before beating Tunisia and Colombia to finish top. Despite conceding a 90th-minute equaliser against Mexico in their last-16 clash, the Red Dragons eventually prevail on penalties, with Crewe defender Scott Young becoming a national hero by scoring the decisive spot-kick. Wales' opponents in the Quarter Finals are surprise packages Egypt, who sensationally thrash Brazil 5-1 - and put Seleção coach Guilherme Rocha's job in serious jeopardy! Host nation Germany also suffer a shock Round 2 exit against arch-rivals Holland. Holders Italy reach the last eight after coming from behind to defeat Portugal, whose 34-year-old captain Rui Costa retires after the tournament. Seleção wonderkid Cristiano Ronaldo is in tears at the final whistle, despite scoring the opener. IN OTHER NEWS... Roger Federer reaches the Final of the French Open, where he attempts to become the first man in 37 years to hold every grand slam tennis singles title at the same time. However, the Swiss superstar is thwarted by 20-year-old defending champion Rafael Nadal, who wins in four sets. “They Think It’s All Over”... it is now! The sports comedy panel show, which was hosted by Nick Hancock for most of its run, is cancelled by the BBC after 11 years on the air. Pixar release their new animated film “Cars”, which is a loving tribute to the 70s electronic musician Gary Numan. No, actually, it’s a film about talking cars, starring Owen Wilson and the great Paul Newman. "Tim McGraw" - named after a popular country musician who surprisingly recorded a duet with rapper Nelly two years ago - is the debut single by a 16-year-old singer-songwriter from Pennsylvania. Remember the name: Taylor Swift. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 27, 2022 Author Share Posted November 27, 2022 SEASON REVIEW 2005/2006 ENGLAND NOTE: All goals and assist records relate to league matches only. PREMIERSHIP Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Man Utd 38 18 1 0 49 8 10 4 5 26 14 89 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Chelsea 38 14 4 1 37 18 8 7 4 35 28 77 3rd Leeds 38 12 2 5 34 14 9 6 4 25 15 71 4th Newcastle 38 11 4 4 44 27 10 1 8 28 22 68 5th Liverpool 38 11 5 3 30 14 9 3 7 23 21 68 6th Arsenal 38 9 2 8 22 16 11 2 6 29 20 64 7th Bolton 38 13 2 4 40 19 7 2 10 22 36 64 8th Middlesbrough 38 9 5 5 39 27 7 5 7 28 31 58 9th Ipswich 38 8 6 5 34 21 7 2 10 26 37 53 10th Stoke 38 10 3 6 25 20 4 5 10 19 33 50 11th Aston Villa 38 9 6 4 30 18 3 7 9 21 27 49 12th Crystal Palace 38 10 2 7 38 26 4 5 10 23 35 49 13th West Ham 38 8 5 6 36 28 6 2 11 19 36 49 14th Blackburn 38 9 5 5 37 27 2 8 9 13 29 46 15th Tottenham 38 11 1 7 39 23 2 5 12 23 44 45 16th Southampton 38 6 4 9 30 39 7 2 10 26 39 45 17th Everton 38 9 5 5 26 16 1 3 15 16 43 38 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18th R Crewe 38 7 4 8 24 25 1 3 15 12 42 31 19th R Charlton 38 5 5 9 20 33 2 3 14 23 51 29 20th R W.B.A. 38 4 5 10 16 30 1 1 17 12 47 21 Top Goalscorer - Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Newcastle): 24. Most Assists - Ludovic Giuly (Liverpool), Frank Lampard (Chelsea): 11. Highest Average Rating - Ruud van Nistelrooy (Man Utd): 8.29. PFA Player of the Year - Ruud van Nistelrooy (Man Utd). PFA Young Player of the Year - not awarded. DIVISION 1 Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Man City 46 18 3 2 47 19 11 4 8 37 32 94 2nd P Sheff Wed 46 17 2 4 43 18 11 4 8 40 35 90 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Sunderland 46 16 5 2 55 23 11 2 10 45 39 88 4th P Wolves 46 16 3 4 53 24 10 4 9 35 29 85 5th Fulham 46 13 5 5 36 21 10 6 7 33 31 80 6th Burnley 46 14 4 5 48 28 8 8 7 29 27 78 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Birmingham 46 14 3 6 43 22 9 5 9 44 40 77 8th Bradford 46 15 6 2 44 23 6 7 10 32 37 76 9th Coventry 46 15 3 5 45 28 7 5 11 35 44 74 10th Derby 46 14 3 6 38 23 6 9 8 24 28 72 11th Grimsby 46 13 4 6 41 29 9 2 12 37 42 72 12th Chesterfield 46 15 1 7 49 29 6 6 11 29 39 70 13th Kidderminster 46 12 7 4 44 29 8 1 14 28 47 68 14th Preston 46 12 5 6 45 26 4 11 8 31 40 64 15th Millwall 46 10 8 5 38 25 4 3 16 18 44 53 16th Sheff Utd 46 9 7 7 36 32 6 1 16 20 41 53 17th Brentford 46 11 3 9 37 32 3 7 13 31 54 52 18th Notts Co 46 10 6 7 35 35 4 4 15 31 53 52 19th Walsall 46 8 5 10 44 49 6 4 13 37 59 51 20th Nottm Forest 46 6 7 10 35 38 5 4 14 27 40 44 21st Luton 46 9 6 8 36 29 1 6 16 9 39 42 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd R Gillingham 46 8 5 10 32 33 2 3 18 11 42 38 23rd R Leicester 46 5 5 13 34 60 5 2 16 30 59 37 24th R Q.P.R. 46 6 5 12 35 42 3 3 17 24 52 35 DIVISION 2 Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Norwich 46 16 4 3 46 20 11 4 8 38 35 89 2nd P Dag & Red 46 13 7 3 55 30 9 7 7 33 35 80 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd P Port Vale 46 13 6 4 53 30 9 5 9 26 30 77 4th Swindon 46 11 5 7 37 31 9 8 6 49 42 73 5th Peterborough 46 12 7 4 40 29 7 8 8 39 44 72 6th Wrexham 46 12 5 6 49 39 8 6 9 43 40 71 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Shrewsbury 46 14 3 6 44 25 6 4 13 32 39 67 8th Cardiff 46 9 10 4 42 31 9 3 11 43 49 67 9th Northampton 46 16 3 4 48 26 4 3 16 32 59 66 10th Bristol Rovers 46 12 8 3 54 34 5 6 12 30 47 65 11th Bristol City 46 11 3 9 46 42 8 4 11 43 52 64 12th Cambridge Utd 46 12 6 5 40 25 5 6 12 26 37 63 13th Portsmouth 46 12 5 6 49 35 6 4 13 39 50 63 14th Rochdale 46 13 7 3 49 35 4 3 16 24 48 61 15th Oxford 46 10 3 10 45 38 8 3 12 38 43 60 16th Carlisle 46 9 4 10 44 43 7 8 8 43 48 60 17th Hull 46 10 6 7 49 43 4 11 8 40 48 59 18th Watford 46 12 8 3 38 24 3 6 14 28 47 59 19th Reading 46 10 7 6 36 28 5 5 13 27 48 57 20th Huddersfield 46 9 7 7 49 42 6 4 13 34 51 56 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st R Bournemouth 46 9 7 7 32 29 3 10 10 15 27 53 22nd R Barnsley 46 10 4 9 40 39 3 8 12 18 38 51 23rd R Tranmere 46 10 7 6 30 31 2 6 15 19 42 49 24th R Wigan 46 7 2 14 33 39 5 2 16 29 49 40 DIVISION 3 Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Torquay 46 14 5 4 52 29 11 5 7 44 39 85 2nd P Wycombe 46 13 7 3 39 27 10 4 9 40 40 80 3rd P Lincoln 46 16 5 2 51 19 7 4 12 30 32 78 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th P Doncaster 46 10 6 7 49 40 12 6 5 47 39 78 5th Mansfield 46 11 7 5 45 31 10 6 7 43 37 76 6th Darlington 46 12 5 6 42 25 10 5 8 35 33 76 7th Hartlepool 46 12 5 6 50 31 10 5 8 30 34 76 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8th Brighton 46 11 4 8 38 30 11 5 7 40 37 75 9th Rotherham 46 13 3 7 44 37 10 3 10 38 40 75 10th Exeter 46 13 4 6 50 29 7 8 8 29 33 72 11th Oldham 46 13 6 4 37 21 7 6 10 25 35 72 12th Bury 46 13 3 7 40 29 9 2 12 33 39 71 13th Colchester 46 12 7 4 33 21 7 4 12 30 34 68 14th Wimbledon 46 12 5 6 49 39 6 4 13 38 50 63 15th Macclesfield 46 12 6 5 47 35 5 6 12 29 46 63 16th Leyton Orient 46 12 3 8 44 30 5 7 11 41 51 61 17th Scarborough 46 9 4 10 39 31 6 9 8 21 25 58 18th Rushden 46 11 2 10 36 35 5 6 12 27 45 56 19th Blackpool 46 9 4 10 39 41 6 4 13 42 56 53 20th Scunthorpe 46 8 8 7 40 39 4 3 16 20 54 47 21st Stockport 46 9 6 8 39 42 4 1 18 23 46 46 22nd Cheltenham 46 7 5 11 40 43 5 4 14 32 51 45 23rd Plymouth 46 5 8 10 27 32 3 6 14 26 51 38 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 24th R Halifax 46 5 2 16 20 39 0 7 16 12 43 24 CONFERENCE Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Nuneaton Borough 42 15 4 2 51 28 12 2 7 45 30 87 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Farnborough 42 14 3 4 49 30 9 5 7 39 37 77 3rd Southend 42 14 2 5 55 29 9 4 8 45 40 75 4th Northwich Vics 42 12 4 5 48 29 9 6 6 36 34 73 5th Stevenage 42 10 7 4 49 39 11 2 8 46 41 72 6th Slough 42 13 2 6 39 27 8 5 8 29 35 70 7th Hereford 42 11 4 6 42 34 9 2 10 35 47 66 8th Boston Utd 42 11 5 5 40 27 7 5 9 27 31 64 9th Barnet 42 11 5 5 47 38 7 4 10 44 48 63 10th Swansea 42 10 3 8 50 43 8 5 8 42 40 62 11th Margate 42 11 4 6 39 32 7 4 10 35 42 62 12th Yeovil 42 9 4 8 35 30 8 4 9 43 44 59 13th Grays Athletic 42 11 3 7 49 46 6 5 10 27 35 59 14th Telford 42 9 4 8 22 17 7 6 8 27 31 58 15th Stalybridge 42 8 6 7 39 41 7 4 10 31 38 55 16th Morecambe 42 9 5 7 35 29 5 3 13 24 39 50 17th Stafford R 42 9 6 6 44 36 4 3 14 24 45 48 18th Frickley 42 6 5 10 26 34 7 3 11 32 37 47 19th Bath City 42 8 3 10 29 27 3 5 13 24 41 41 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20th R King's Lynn 42 5 6 10 21 32 4 6 11 21 39 39 21st R Chester 42 7 5 9 34 37 2 4 15 20 46 36 22nd R Dover 42 6 2 13 28 34 2 5 14 23 51 31 Promoted to Conference: Hucknall, Salisbury, Sutton Utd. FA Cup: Leeds 3-2 Everton. League Cup: Chelsea 4-0 Man City. Community Shield: Man Utd 2-1 Blackburn. Football League Trophy: Rochdale 4-3 Northampton (aet). 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 27, 2022 Author Share Posted November 27, 2022 OTHER LEAGUES FRANCE Ligue 1 Top Three: Lille (1st), Monaco (2nd), Bordeaux (3rd). Relegated: Metz (18th), Le Mans (19th), Strasbourg (20th). Promoted from Ligue 2: Nice (1st), Nîmes (2nd), Lorient (3rd). Top Goalscorer - Dado Prso (Lille): 23. Most Assists - Florent Malouda (St-Etienne): 15. Highest Average Rating - Dado Prso (Lille): 8.14. Coupe de France: Lille 3-1 Troyes. Coupe de la Ligue: Monaco 3-3 Nantes (3-2 penalties). GERMANY 1. Bundesliga Top Three: Schalke 04 (1st), 1.FC Köln (2nd), Hertha BSC (3rd). Relegated: Karlsruhe (16th), Mainz (17th), Ahlen (18th). Promoted from 2. Bundesliga: St Pauli (1st), Rostock (2nd), Duisburg (3rd). Top Goalscorer - Ilan (1.FC Köln), Ebbe Sand (Schalke 04): 21. Most Assists - Sebastian Deisler (Hertha BSC): 14. Highest Average Rating - Robert Kovac (FC Bayern): 8.07. DFB-Pokal: Dortmund 4-3 Werder Bremen. DFB-Liga Pokal: FC Bayern 1-1 Dortmund (5-4 penalties). HOLLAND Eredivisie Top Three: Ajax (1st), PSV (2nd), Feyenoord (3rd). Relegated: Roda (16th, lost play-off), NAC (17th, lost play-off), Heerenveen (18th). Promoted from Eerste Divisie: ADO (1st), Excelsior (2nd, won play-off), Volendam (4th, won play-off). Top Goalscorer - Andriy Shevchenko (Ajax): 34. Most Assists - Wesley Sneijder (Ajax): 15. Highest Average Rating - Andriy Shevchenko (Ajax): 8.60. KNVB Beker: Ajax 4-0 Heerenveen. ITALY Serie A Top Three: Roma (1st), Lazio (2nd), Inter (3rd). Relegated: Napoli (15th), Reggina (16th), Salernitana (17th), Empoli (18th). Promoted from Serie B: Sampdoria (1st), Perugia (2nd), Modena (3rd), Chievo (4th). Top Goalscorer - Hernán Jorge Crespo (Lazio): 20. Most Assists - Cafú (Roma), Fabio Liverani (Lazio), Andrea Pirlo (Milan): 12. Highest Average Rating - Fabio Cannavaro (Roma): 8.08. Coppa Italia: Atalanta 5-1 Venezia (aggregate). PORTUGAL Primeira Liga Top Three: Sporting (1st), Porto (2nd), Maia (3rd). Relegated: Vitória Guimarães (16th), Belenenses (17th), Alverca (18th). Promoted from Segunda Liga: Salgueiros (1st), Leixões (2nd), Campomaiorense (3rd). Top Goalscorer - Cristiano Ronaldo (Sporting): 33. Most Assists - Bruno (Varzim): 19. Highest Average Rating - Cristiano Ronaldo (Sporting): 8.88. Taça de Portugal: Sporting 3-2 Benfica (aet). SCOTLAND Premier League Top Three: Celtic (1st), Rangers (2nd), Motherwell (3rd). Relegated: Arbroath (12th). Promoted from Division 1: Stranraer (1st). Top Goalscorer - Tore Andre Flo (Rangers): 20. Most Assists - Barry Ferguson (Rangers): 12. Highest Average Rating - Barry Ferguson (Rangers): 8.31. Scottish Cup: Motherwell 2-1 Celtic. League Cup: Rangers 1-0 Celtic. SPAIN La Liga Top Three: Barcelona (1st), Valencia (2nd), Real Madrid (3rd). Relegated: Valladolid (18th), Sporting Gijón (19th), Real Sociedad (20th). Promoted from Segunda División: Levante (1st), Badajoz (2nd), Extremadura (3rd). Top Goalscorer - Gastón Casas (Betis): 22. Most Assists - Pavel Nedved (Barcelona): 13. Highest Average Rating - Pavel Nedved (Barcelona): 8.21. Copa del Rey: Valladolid 1-1 Real Madrid (4-3 penalties). CONTINENTAL & INTERNATIONAL CLUB Champions League: Roma 1-1 Man Utd (6-5 penalties) - in Brussels. UEFA Cup: Lazio 2-1 Ajax - in Glasgow. Super Cup: Valencia 1-0 Inter. Intercontinental Cup: Valencia 2-2 Vasco (3-0 penalties). Club World Championship: Milan 2-1 Chicago. FIFA World Player of the Year - Hernán Jorge Crespo (Lazio & Argentina). World Footballer of the Year - Hernán Jorge Crespo (Lazio & Argentina). African Player of the Year - Julius Aghahowa (Schalke 04 & Nigeria). European Player of the Year - Ruud van Nistelrooy (Man Utd & Holland). South American Player of the Year - Juninho (Vasco & Brazil). Oceania Player of the Year - Mark Viduka (Leeds & Australia). LEADING TRANSFERS (Premiership) DATE NAME POSITIONS FROM TO FEE 08/07/05 Torsten Frings D/DM RC Deportivo Arsenal £17.5M 11/07/05 Iván Helguera D/DM C Valencia Man Utd £13.25M 16/11/05 Jesper Grønkjær AM RL Man City Aston Villa £11.5M 30/07/05 França F C São Paulo Man Utd £10M 17/09/05 Ludovic Giuly AM RC Monaco Liverpool £10M 10/07/05 Juan Pablo Sorín D/M L Cruzeiro Arsenal £9.75M 09/10/05 Phil Jagielka D/DM C Sheff Utd Newcastle £7.75M 16/08/05 Stephen Hughes M LC Bolton Chelsea £7.25M 14/08/05 Wayne Bridge D/M L Sunderland West Ham £7M 16/08/05 Seth Johnson DM LC Southampton Middlesbrough £5.75M LEADING TRANSFERS (not including Premiership) DATE NAME POSITIONS FROM TO FEE 01/07/05 Zé Roberto D/DM L Leverkusen Inter £14.75M 11/07/05 Alessandro Del Piero F LC Juventus FC Bayern £12.5M 08/07/05 Ilan S C Paranaense 1.FC Köln £12.5M 15/12/05 Andre Ooijer D RC Liverpool Valencia £10.75M 15/12/05 Zé Roberto D/DM L Inter Valencia £10.75M 16/10/05 Fabio Liverani DM LC Celtic Lazio £10M 12/01/06 Clarence Seedorf AM RLC Inter Milan £10M 14/09/05 Reinaldo F C Flamengo Nürnberg £9.75M 21/09/05 Thomas Reidl DM RC Kaiserslautern VfB Stuttgart £9.25M 03/10/05 Sebastián Battaglia DM C Boca Inter £9M Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted November 27, 2022 Author Share Posted November 27, 2022 (edited) WORLD CUP REVIEW: GERMANY 2006 GROUP A 7 June [Berlin] Italy - 2 (Stefano Fiore 53,90) Sweden - 0 7 June [Hannover] Nigeria - 1 (Peter Odemwingie 73) South Korea - 1 (Young-Min Hyun 56) 13 June [Hamburg] Sweden - 0 Nigeria - 2 (Victor Ikpeba 9, Garba Lawal 24) 13 June [Dortmund] South Korea - 0 Italy - 1 (Giacomo Cipriani 28) 20 June [Frankfurt] Italy - 1 (Gennaro Ivan Gattuso 19) Nigeria - 1 (Taribo West 74) 20 June [Stuttgart] Sweden - 0 South Korea - 0 Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Italy 3 2 1 0 4 1 7 2nd Q Nigeria 3 1 2 0 4 2 5 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd South Korea 3 0 2 1 1 2 2 4th Sweden 3 0 1 2 0 4 1 GROUP B 8 June [Hamburg] Uruguay - 2 (Diego Forlán 17, Diego Fernando Pérez 80) Guinea - 2 (Titi Camara 31, Souleymane Youla 48) 8 June [Düsseldorf] Portugal - 0 [Tiago s/off70) France - 3 (Patrick Vieira 56, Tony Vairelles m/pen71, Frédéric Piquionne 86, Patrice Evra 90) 14 June [Stuttgart] France - 1 (David Trezeguet 20) Uruguay - 0 14 June [Hannover] Guinea - 1 (Mohamed Cissé 45) Portugal - 3 (Luís Boa Morte 17, Rui Costa 20, Pauleta 61) 20 June [Berlin] Guinea - 0 France - 5 (Djibril Cissé 6,68, Mickaël Silvestre 31, Robert Pires 45, Laurent Robert 84) 20 June [Dortmund] Uruguay - 0 Portugal - 2 (Rui Costa 9, Jorge Andrade 71) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q France 3 3 0 0 9 0 9 2nd Q Portugal 3 2 0 1 5 4 6 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Uruguay 3 0 1 2 2 5 1 4th Guinea 3 0 1 2 3 10 1 GROUP C 9 June [Nürnberg] Ghana - 2 (Derek Boateng 6, Augustine Ahinful 69) Saudi Arabia - 2 (Naji Majrashi 17, Abdulrahman Al-Bishi 45) 9 June [Frankfurt] Germany - 2 (Frank Baumann 13, Christoph Metzelder 62) Finland - 0 15 June [Berlin] Saudi Arabia - 0 Germany - 3 (Michael Ballack 12, Bastian Schweinsteiger 45, Miroslav Klose 84) 15 June [Düsseldorf] Finland - 1 (Teemu Tainio 10) Ghana - 2 (Stephen Appiah 19,36) 21 June [Hamburg] Finland - 3 (Mikael Forssell 7,31,53) Saudi Arabia - 2 (Mohammad Al-Shahoub 50, Nawaf Al-Temyat 65) 21 June [Gelsenkirchen] Germany - 4 (Miroslav Klose 25,76, Bastian Schweinsteiger 57, Aílton 90) Ghana - 2 (Michael Essien 34, Stephen Appiah 89) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Germany 3 3 0 0 9 2 9 2nd Q Ghana 3 1 1 1 6 7 4 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Finland 3 1 0 2 4 6 3 4th Saudi Arabia 3 0 1 2 4 8 1 GROUP D 9 June [Hannover] Republic of Ireland - 0 United States - 1 (Landon Donovan 85) 10 June [Dortmund] Greece - 1 (Zissis Vryzas 8) Holland - 1 (Denny Landzaat 35, Wilfred Bouma s/off43) 17 June [Stuttgart] United States - 2 (Brian Ching 47, Alecko Eskandarian 89) Greece - 4 (Tassos Venitis 15, Dimitris Nalitzis 45, Stelios Giannakopoulos 56, Zissis Vryzas 61) 17 June [München] Holland - 0 Republic of Ireland - 0 21 June [Düsseldorf] Republic of Ireland - 0 Greece - 3 (Nikos Liberopoulos 22, Zissis Vryzas 38, Sotiris Konstantinidis 85) 21 June [Nürnberg] United States - 0 Holland - 2 (Ruud van Nistelrooy 19,44) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Greece 3 2 1 0 8 3 7 2nd Q Holland 3 1 2 0 3 1 5 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd United States 3 1 0 2 3 6 3 4th Republic of Ireland 3 0 1 2 0 4 1 GROUP E 10 June [Gelsenkirchen] Mexico - 2 (Juan Pablo Rodríguez 57, Carlos Ochoa 69) Bahrain - 0 (Talal Yousef Mohamed s/off58) 10 June [Berlin] England - 4 (Tommy Smith 35,43,90, David Beckham 45) Switzerland - 1 (Johann Vogel 19) 17 June [Hamburg] Switzerland - 0 Mexico - 0 17 June [Frankfurt] Bahrain - 0 England - 5 (Steven Gerrard 19, Michael Owen 28,47,pen50, Tommy Smith 59) 22 June [München] England - 2 (Michael Owen 49,57) Mexico - 0 22 June [Stuttgart] Switzerland - 3 (Blaise Nkufo 9, Léonard Thurre 15, Fabio Celestini 18) Bahrain - 1 (Husain Pele 62) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q England 3 3 0 0 11 1 9 2nd Q Mexico 3 1 1 1 2 2 4 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Switzerland 3 1 1 1 4 5 4 4th Bahrain 3 0 0 3 1 10 0 GROUP F 11 June [Stuttgart] Colombia - 0 Tunisia - 1 (Nabil Taïder pen53) 12 June [München] Wales - 1 (John Hartson 55) Spain - 1 (Javi Moreno s/off10, Joaquín 28) 18 June [Nürnberg] Tunisia - 1 (Nabil Taïder 66) Wales - 4 (Robert Earnshaw 27,55, Ryan Giggs 30, John Hartson 75) 18 June [Gelsenkirchen] Spain - 1 (Iker Casillas s/off63) Colombia - 1 (David Arturo Ferreira pen64) 22 June [Hannover] Colombia - 0 Wales - 2 (John Hartson 28,42) 22 June [Dortmund] Tunisia - 0 Spain - 1 (Capi 59) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Wales 3 2 1 0 7 2 7 2nd Q Spain 3 1 1 1 2 2 4 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Tunisia 3 1 0 2 2 5 3 4th Colombia 3 1 0 2 1 3 3 GROUP G 12 June [Frankfurt] Brazil - 1 (Amoroso 18) Serbia & Montenegro - 2 (Dejan Stankovic 78, Mateja Kezman 89) 12 June [Gelsenkirchen] Costa Rica - 3 (Winston Parks 32,58, Gilberto Martínez 68) Peru - 0 19 June [Hannover] Serbia & Montenegro - 1 (Mateja Kezman 32) Costa Rica - 1 (Gerald Drummond 19) 19 June [Düsseldorf] Peru - 0 Brazil - 3 (Adriano 55, Roberto Carlos 76, Guilherme 86) 23 June [Berlin] Brazil - 2 (Adriano pen13, Júlio Baptista 83) Costa Rica - 0 23 June [Nürnberg] Serbia & Montenegro - 1 (Mateja Kezman pen51) Peru - 3 (Gianfranco Labarthe 21,39, George Forsyth s/off50, Juan Carlos Aponte pen59) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Brazil 3 2 0 1 6 2 6 2nd Q Costa Rica 3 1 1 1 4 3 4 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Serbia & Montenegro 3 1 1 1 4 5 4 4th Peru 3 1 0 2 3 7 3 GROUP H 11 June [Düsseldorf] Iraq - 0 Egypt - 4 (Tarek El-Saïd 3, Mido 12,13, Hady Khashaba 22) 11 June [Nürnberg] Czech Republic - 1 (Vratislav Lokvenc 74) Argentina - 2 (Ariel Ortega 5, Hernán Jorge Crespo 77) 17 June [Dortmund] Egypt - 2 (Ahmed Hassan 45, Hady Khashaba 62) Czech Republic - 1 (Ivo Ulich 51) 18 June [München] Argentina - 6 (Ariel Ortega 1, Marcelo Gallardo 22, Juan Sebastián Verón 32, Hernán Jorge Crespo 40,66,71) Iraq - 0 23 June [Gelsenkirchen] Egypt - 0 Argentina - 2 (Ariel Ortega 45, Fernando Pandolfi 90) 23 June [Hamburg] Iraq - 1 (Ahmed Salah 23) Czech Republic - 4 (Pavel Nedved 22, Ivo Ulich 26, Jan Koller 28,44) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Argentina 3 3 0 0 10 1 9 2nd Q Egypt 3 2 0 1 6 3 6 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Czech Republic 3 1 0 2 6 5 3 4th Iraq 3 0 0 3 1 14 0 ROUND 2 24 June [Frankfurt] Italy - 3 (Filippo Inzaghi 28, Davide Possanzini 41,78) Portugal - 1 (Cristiano Ronaldo 23) 24 June [Dortmund] Greece - 2 (Nikos Machlas 12, Michalis Kapsis 27) Ghana - 1 (Isaac Boakye 5) 25 June [Berlin] Argentina - 2 (Ariel Ortega 5, Juan Sebastián Verón 44) Costa Rica - 1 (Walter Centeno 19) 25 June [Gelsenkirchen] England - 3 (Michael Bridges 19,47, Frank Lampard 60) Spain - 0 26 June [Hamburg] Germany - 0 Holland - 3 (Wilfred Bouma 2,27, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink 64) 26 June [Köln] France - 2 (Anthony Reveillère 36, Ifeanyi Udeze og58) Nigeria - 1 (Yakubu Aiyegbeni 50) 27 June [Stuttgart] Brazil - 1 (Adriano 20) Egypt - 5 (Mohamed Abou-Trika 11,79, Mido 21,35, Ahmed Hassan 55) 27 June [Düsseldorf] Wales - 2 (Daniel Gabbidon 2, Arron Davies 66) Mexico - 2 (Antonio de Nigris 61,90) [after extra-time, Wales win 6-5 on penalties] QUARTER FINALS 30 June [Nürnberg] England - 0 Argentina - 1 (Hernán Jorge Crespo 90) 30 June [Berlin] Italy - 1 (Simone Inzaghi 16) Greece - 2 (Stelios Giannakopoulos pen7, Nikos Machlas pen68) 1 July [München] Wales - 3 (Arron Davies 40, Simon Davies 53, Jason Koumas 103) Egypt - 2 (Mido 28,37) [after extra-time] 1 July [Frankfurt] France - 2 (David Trezeguet 18, Djibril Cissé 90) Holland - 1 (Ruud van Nistelrooy 54) SEMI FINALS 4 July [Frankfurt] Greece - 1 (Giorgos Karagounis 72) Argentina - 5 (Ariel Ortega 17,57, Lucho González 55,75, Fernando Pandolfi 84) 5 July [Berlin] France - 3 (David Trezeguet 17,47, Djibril Cissé 76) Wales - 0 3RD-PLACE PLAY-OFF 8 July [Dortmund] Wales - 0 Greece - 2 (Zissis Vryzas 27, Nikos Liberopoulos 64) FINAL 9 July [Berlin] France - 0 Argentina - 1 (Patrice Evra og5, Martín Demichelis s/off46) FRANCE (4-4-2): Sebastien Frey; Anthony Reveillère; Lilian Thuram (Sidney Govou), William Gallas, Patrice Evra; Ludovic Giuly (Tony Vairelles), Patrick Vieira [C], Olivier Dacourt, Laurent Robert; Djibril Cissé (Jean-Alain Boumsong), David Trezeguet. ARGENTINA (3-5-2 Sweeper): Franco Costanzo; Roberto Fabián Ayala [C], Martín Demichelis, Facundo Quiroga; Javier Zanetti, Juan Pablo Sorín; Lucho González (Fernando Pandolfi), Marcelo Gallardo (Kily González); Juan Sebastián Verón; Ariel Ortega, Hernán Jorge Crespo (Claudio López). BOOKED: Demichelis. SENT OFF: Demichelis. Top Goalscorer - Mido (Egypt), Ariel Ortega (Argentina): 6. Most Assists - Hernán Jorge Crespo (Argentina), Ronaldinho (Brazil): 4. Highest Average Rating (at least 4 matches) - Ariel Ortega (Argentina): 8.71. Edited November 27, 2022 by CFuller 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 13, 2022 Author Share Posted December 13, 2022 JULY 2006 When the Dagenham & Redbridge players reconvened for pre-season training in July, I could sense that many of them had an extra spring in their steps. Barely three years after we were playing in the Conference, there was clearly much excitement about our forthcoming Division 1 debut. Naturally, the odds were stacked against us staying up after securing consecutive promotions to Division 3 - but we had already spent half a decade shattering all expectations. There was no reason to believe we couldn't do that again, especially after making some quality signings early in the summer. Three of our four signings so far had been in defence, with ex-Watford youngster Simon Bell and Spanish star David Navarro beefing up our centre-back options, and Paul Mitchell adding some right-back depth. We'd also recruited the experienced Luke Beckett to give us some additional firepower. I was still looking for a tough-tackling midfielder to help protect the Daggers defence. Our shakiness could have cost us promotion from Division 2 last season if Craig Winter and Benjani Mwaruwari hadn't been in such hot scoring form. Speaking of Benjani, it sadly looked like our success last season wasn't enough to persuade him to stay at Victoria Road for the long-term. The Zimbabwean striker wasn't willing to withdraw the transfer request he'd submitted last year, which was a worry seeing as his contract only had 12 months left to run. That left me with a huge dilemma - should I sell Benjani now, or risk losing him on a free next year? One Dagger who remained committed to the cause was 20-year-old midfielder Ryan Carter. Ryan had been a first-team regular for nearly four seasons now, and though his form last term hadn't been spectacular (2 goals, 4 assists, 6.83 average rating), I still believed his best years were still to come. I offered Carter a new three-year contract, which he gladly signed. The future didn't look so bright for left-back Peter Hawkins or midfielder Des Hamilton. Despite playing big roles in our promotion from Division 3 a couple of seasons back, they both struggled in Division 2, so I sure as hell wasn't going to trust them. They were both made available for transfer, and I was also open to selling centre-half Shaun Maher after the arrivals of Bell and Navarro. Anyway... let's get into some action, shall we? Our annual pre-season training camp took us back to Ireland, for the first time since the heavy-drinking debacle that was Galway 2003. Keen to avoid a repeat, we instead visited a city with absolutely no links to alcohol whatsoever - Cork. Our first match was against a local semi-professional club called Casement Celtic, who were founded in 1970 by a bloke called (and I'm not making this up) Paddy Power. Not that one, obviously. At least I hope not. Our players really don't need another addiction. 18 JULY 2006: Casement Celtic vs Dagenham & Redbridge This match was almost enough to make a staunch teetotaler like me turn to drink. David Folan gave Casement a shock lead 39 minutes into a scrappy contest, scoring from a retaken free-kick after Robert Green had saved his first effort. Benjani Mwaruwari levelled just before half-time, but our relief was short-lived. Midway through the second half, striker Matthias O'Malley restored Celtic's lead, which they held onto after some staunch defending late on. For God's sake... Casement Celtic - 2 (Folan 39, O'Malley 66) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 45) Friendly, Attendance 1,937 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green (Pollitt); Mitchell (Hawkins), Bell, Prior (Navarro), Ryan (Mayo); Carter (Weekes), Hamilton (Graham), M Jones (McLean); Beckett (Winter); Alsop, Mwaruwari (Griffiths). BOOKED: Prior. What is it about part-time teams that always brings out the worst in us? If this is the form we take into the Division 1 season, then God help us! Spencer Prior had let me down so badly there that I put him on the transfer list and sent him on the next plane straight back to England. Benjani Mwaruwari and Alan McLean also went home early, after their pre-seasons were cut very short by groin and calf injuries respectively. Fan-bloody-tastic. Our next match was against Cobh Ramblers. If their name sounds familiar, it's because Roy Keane started his senior career there in 1989, before going on to win the Treble with Manchester United a decade later. More recently, he was the manager who took Barnsley down to Division 3 last season. I've got a funny story about Barnsley, actually... 22 JULY 2006: Cobh Ramblers vs Dagenham & Redbridge We made a much brighter start to this match than the last one, with midfielder Nick Weekes scoring from a Kerry Mayo free-kick after just seven minutes. That opener would actually be the only goal of a one-sided game. Chris Griffiths and Luke Beckett each had a couple of shots saved by Cobh's impressive goalkeeper Jimmy Fyffe, whose team-mates hardly threatened us at the other end. It wasn't pretty, but at least we'd got the win. Cobh Ramblers - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Weekes 7) Friendly, Attendance 1,106 DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green (Pollitt); Navarro, Matthews, Bell (Maher); Mitchell (Walsh), Mayo (Ryan); Graham, Hamilton (Warren (Carter)), Weekes (Winter); Alsop (Beckett), Griffiths (Devine). BOOKED: Walsh. ...now, what was that funny story about Barnsley? Oh yeah, that's right. We've been drawn against them in Round 1 of the League Cup! I'm sure Roy Keane will have a few crackers to tell when we meet up again next month. For the last leg of our Irish tour, we were supposed to be playing Cork City - but they pulled out a week before the game, citing some silly excuse about having to play some Estonian club in the Champions League. Seriously, what kind of name is Flora Tallinn - is that some kind of Eastern European margarine spread? Thankfully, Cork's league rivals Waterford stepped forward at the last minute and offered us a game instead. This match would see 24-year-old midfielder James Williams make his Daggers debut, having arrived on a four-month loan from Southampton. We also welcomed back our record scorer Junior McDougald, nearly seven months after he broke his leg. 26 JULY 2006: Waterford United vs Dagenham & Redbridge Though Junior McDougald didn't score from his comeback, we weren't short of goals. 18-year-old midfielder Mark Jones opened the deadlock with a sublime solo goal after 13 minutes, and we went from strength to strength in the second period. James Williams got a debut assist when his 59th-minute corner was headed home by fellow newcomer Simon Bell, and Nick Weekes' late brace completed a resounding 4-0 victory. Waterford United - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (M Jones 13, Bell 59, Weekes 70,77) Friendly, Attendance 2,387 DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Pollitt (Green); Navarro, Maher (Matthews), Bell; Hawkins (Walsh), Mayo (Ryan); M Jones (Weekes), Williams (Winter), Hamilton (Graham); Beckett (Alsop), McDougald (Ferry). With our Irish journey ending on a high note, we then made a triumphant homecoming at a newly-expanded Victoria Road. Our opponents were Joe Royle's Crystal Palace, who had finished 12th on their first season back in the Premiership last term. 29 JULY 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Crystal Palace Our usually reliable goalkeeper Robert Green had a nightmare in the 11th minute. Green spilt a shot from Palace defender David Partridge into the path of midfielder Jamie McClen, who thundered it home. Though Luke Beckett restored parity within four minutes, the Eagles' tricky winger Julian Gray would put them back ahead before the interval. We pushed forward in the second half to try and get back level, but despite our best efforts, Crystal Palace's greater quality would prove telling. A counter-attack in the 62nd minute ended with Mark Smith's cross providing an assist for another young winger in Michael Marsh. The Joe Royle family came away with the spoils, and I wanted to kick my defenders up the ar-[REDACTED]. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Beckett 15) Crystal Palace - 3 (McClen 11, Gray 36, Marsh 63) Friendly, Attendance 1,542 DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green (Pollitt); Navarro, Maher (Bell), Matthews; Mitchell (Walsh), Mayo (Ryan); Warren (Weekes), William (Graham), Hamilton (Winter); Beckett (Alsop), McDougald (Griffiths). Another typical Daggers defensive disaster. Yeah, I’m sure our first ever season in Division 1 will go brilliantly... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 13, 2022 Author Share Posted December 13, 2022 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... As England fly home from the World Cup after a 90th-minute Quarter Final defeat to Argentina, neighbours Wales defeat Egypt in extra-time to reach their first ever Semi Final. Unfortunately, they are overwhelmed by France in the Semi Final and then miss out on 3rd place to Greece, who previously knocked out holders Italy. Nonetheless, the Red Dragons receive a heroes' welcome upon their return to Cardiff. The Final sees France face Argentina in Berlin's Olympiastadion. A 5th-minute own goal from Arsenal left-back Patrice Evra gives Argentina a narrow lead, which they hold onto after surviving a wave of French attacks and a second-half red card for defender Martín Demichelis. The Albiceleste lift their third World Cup despite not having a single shot on target in the Final - a true managerial masterclass from Marcelo Bielsa! A couple of Argentina's World Cup winners swiftly move on to new clubs. Golden Ball winner Ariel Ortega completes a £6.5million move to Bayern München after just one year at Inter, who sign his midfield compatriot Marcelo Gallardo from Porto for £8.5million. England defender Sol Campbell also shacks up at the San Siro, joining Milan in an £11.25million deal from Real Madrid. Rudi Völler is sacked as Germany manager after a humiliating tournament on home soil, where Holland chewed them up and spat them out in Round 2. Lille boss Christoph Daum takes over the Mannschaft reins after leaving the Ligue 1 champions, who replace him with another German coach named... er, Rudi Völler. After six difficult years at Paris Saint-Germain, France's enfant terrible Nicolas Anelka returns to the Premiership and joins Leeds for £4.8million. Monaco left-back Eric Abidal is a £9.25million signing for 'noveau riche' Chelsea, who also appoint 35-year-old Alan Shearer as a player-coach after his exit from Aston Villa. IN OTHER NEWS... At the G8 summit in St Petersburg, US President George W Bush greets the British Prime Minister, "Yo, Blair!" Sadly, there is no recorded footage of Bush's salutations to other world leaders, such as "Wassup, Merkel," or "Howdy, Putin," or "Smell ya later, Chirac". After 42 years, the BBC airs the last regular edition of "Top of the Pops". Colombian pop señorita Shakira sings about her honest hips on ToTP's final chart-topper... but viewers are too busy wondering if one of the show's presenters has been lying about his past. Cinema buffs flock to watch "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" - the second film in the swashbuckling franchise, starring Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow. It will gross over $1billion worldwide in just 63 days, setting a new record. Better luck next time, James Cameron. After seven years of domination by an American cyclist who insists he has never doped, the Tour de France's yellow jersey is won by... another American cyclist who insists he has never doped. Spaniard Óscar Pereiro finishes less than a minute behind Floyd Landis in one of the closest finishes in the tour’s history. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 14, 2022 Author Share Posted December 14, 2022 Dagenham & Redbridge squad - Start of 2006/2007 season GOALKEEPERS 1. Robert Green - GK, age 26, English Determined shotstopper Green played a big role for us initially arriving on loan from Millwall. Now a full-time Dagger, his agility and catching skills will be even more crucial. 13. Mike Pollitt - GK, age 34, English Pollitt's experience isn't used much on the pitch these days, but he's still a decent backup. He remains a sprightly presence in the sticks despite his advancing years. 24. Andy Woodman - GK, age 34, English Woodman is our third-choice goalkeeper, in the third and final year of his contract. If you ever see him playing for us again, something terrible has happened. DEFENDERS 2. Michael Walsh - D RC, age 28, English Walsh joined us from Port Vale last December and has been a pretty solid right-back for us. He's an aggressive tackler with good positional awareness, though he can be erratic. 3. Peter Hawkins - D RL, age 27, English Full-back Hawkins has now been part of two promotion-winning teams. Sadly, I'm not sure he has the consistency or technical ability to hack it in Division 1. 5. Lee Matthews - D C, age 33, English If I could trust any player with my life, it would be captain Matthews. The powerful centre-half made a glorious return to Victoria Road last year and was better than ever. 6. David Navarro - D C, age 26, Spanish Former Valencia reserve Navarro is a fearless defensive stopper who also has a surprising talent for set-pieces. He should be an excellent signing once he settles down. 11. Kerry Mayo - D/DM L, age 28, English Mayo is our longest-serving wing-back, having signed from Cheltenham in 2003. While not a fantastic defensive player, his crossing ability makes him a useful weapon at set-pieces. 12. Paul Mitchell - D/DM R, age 24, English Formerly of Wigan, Mitchell is one of the newest additions to the team. A selfless and determined right-back, I am certain he will have a long and successful career at Victoria Road. 15. Shaun Maher - SW/D C, age 28, Irish Adept with both feet and almost unbeatable in the air, Maher is a quality lower-league defender. I wouldn't put it past him to be a success in Division 1 either. 17. Robbie Ryan - D L, age 29, Irish Ryan is a brave left-back who's confident on the ball and quick out of the blocks. He already knows all about Division 1 from his previous spells at Millwall and Hull. 19. Simon Bell - D C, age 21, English I'm looking forward to watching Bell's development over the coming season. The former Watford youngster is great at heading and shows tactical knowledge beyond his years. 26. Spencer Prior - D C, age 35, English Ex-Premiership stalwart Prior was a semi-regular last season but is no longer needed after our promotion. Though he's still got good technique, his lack of pace is a serious concern. MIDFIELDERS 4. James Williams - SW/DM RC, age 24, English Southampton loanee Williams will be with us until mid-November. The tireless box-to-box midfielder has great defensive capabilities, and his passing ability is pinpoint. 7. Mark Janney - M R, age 28, English This is Janney's 10th season at Dagenham, and it will be his last. The popular pacey right-winger played just four times last season and is now merely a mentor for our younger players. 14. Ryan Carter - M C, age 20, English Carter has now shown his playmaking abilities in over 100 league games for the Daggers. The talented youngster will continue to work hard to justify his new and improved contract. 18. Craig Winter - AM/F C, age 30, Scottish Winter was our undisputed player of the season in 2005/2006. The experienced attacking midfielder was in very prolific form, grabbing 24 goals and 9 assists. 20. Nick Weekes - M C, age 24, English I doubt Weekes has any regrets about turning his back on cricket now. The pass master got nine assists last term, though his creativity has slowed a little of late. 22. Des Hamilton - M C, age 29, English Hamilton's days as a Dagger might be numbered. The high-scoring, tough-tackling midfielder was sensational in his first Victoria Road season but mediocre in his second. 31. Alan McLean - DM C, age 20, Scottish Last season saw McLean make his breakthrough as a first-teamer. He has shown great passing vision at times, but still needs to work on his more defensive abilities. 34. Paul Graham - SW/DM C, age 20, Scottish Brave holding midfielder Graham has shown glimpses of his potential but needs regular first-team action. If I can find a club who'll take him on loan, that would be great. FORWARDS 8. Benjani Mwaruwari - S C, age 28, Zimbabwean [33 caps, 8 goals] Mwaruwari scored 20 goals last term to fire us to another promotion. However, the pacey international striker still has his hearts set on a transfer and may move on very soon. 9. Junior McDougald - S C, age 31, American Record scorer McDougald was blighted by injuries last season, but still scored 5 goals in 11 games. The Texan poacher is now happy to settle for a bit-part role at Victoria Road. 10. Julian Alsop - S C, age 33, English Alsop actually got more assists than goals last season as his firepower diminished in Division 2. I fear that Division 1 might be a step too far for the burly target man. 16. Sean Devine - S C, age 33, Irish [capped at B level] I'm amazed nobody has taken Devine off us. While his services are no longer needed here, I thought there would be more demand for a clinical lower-league striker. 23. Chris Griffiths - S C, age 20, Welsh Griffiths is a talented forward with pace and power, but consistency has always been an issue. He might need another loan spell to take his game to the next level. 25. Luke Beckett - S C, age 29, English I've got high hopes that ex-Blackburn star Beckett will quickly become our new main man up front. He's strong, smart, energetic and - most importantly - a classy finisher. RESERVES DEFENDER: Declan Brady (18) MIDFIELDERS: Alan Jones (18), Mark Jones (18), John Powell (19), Simon Warren (16), Alex Wood (20) FORWARDS: Paul Ferry (17), Bob Fowler (19), John McGlynn (19) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 16, 2022 Author Share Posted December 16, 2022 (edited) AUGUST 2006 You may remember that in our last friendly, we lost to a team from Selhurst Park. As it so happened, our next one was at Selhurst Park - against Crystal Palace's tenants. Wimbledon had fallen on hard times since dropping out of the Premiership in 2000 and now found themselves struggling in Division 3. 1 AUGUST 2006: Wimbledon vs Dagenham & Redbridge Wimbledon might have had Nigel Reo-Coker, but we danced the conga through their midfield before Craig Winter put his black laces into a lethal shot in the third minute. Had either Junior McDougald or Julian Alsop been more clinical with their chances later on, we might have left South London with more than that. Thankfully, the dismal Dons didn't have it in them to punish our profligacy, and we notched up a narrow 1-0 win. Wimbledon - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Winter 3) Friendly, Attendance 2,067 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Pollitt; Hawkins, Navarro (Maher), Matthews, Ryan (Mayo); Weekes (Hamilton), Williams (Warren), Graham (M Jones); Winter; Alsop (Beckett), McDougald (Devine). BOOKED: Warren. A few years ago, avoiding defeat against Wimbledon would have been a huge result. Now, only beating the Dons by a single goal was a cause for concern. We had got away with wasting so many scoring opportunities - but against tougher opponents, we would surely not be so fortunate. Take the Crystal Palace defeat, for example. Perhaps we would have better luck against another low-end Premiership side? Southampton finished 16th in last season's top-flight, and they paid us a visit a week before the new league campaign got underway. 5 AUGUST 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Southampton I'm afraid that some sinful Daggers defending sent the Saints into first-half heaven. Firstly, we were unable to clear Philip Mulryne's 12th-minute cross out of danger before Latvian hotshot Marian Pahars fired it home. We were then tormented by Norwegian attacking midfielder Trond Fredrik Ludvigsen, whose double left us staring at a 3-0 deficit. Nick Weekes did salvage some pride just before the break, pouncing on Des Hamilton's corner to score his FOURTH goal of pre-season (the rest of our squad had scored FIVE between them). We then went through a major half-time reshuffle, which at least prevented another Southampton blowout in the second half. We also finished with more possession than Lennie Lawrence's visitors... as if that mattered after such a weak performance. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Weekes 45) Southampton - 3 (Pahars 12, Ludvigsen 29,33) Friendly, Attendance 1,429 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green (Pollitt); Walsh (Mitchell), Bell (Navarro), Matthews, Ryan (Mayo); Weekes (Carter), Hamilton (McLean), Graham (Williams); Winter; Beckett (Alsop), McDougald (Griffiths). Christ, that's not a good sign at all. After such an erratic pre-season campaign, it already looked like we would be in for a world of pain in Division 1. If we were to have any chance of staying up, we needed to bring in reinforcements - quickly. First in was a new striker with plenty of second-tier experience. The man I went for was 28-year-old Isaiah Rankin, who signed from Barnsley for £140,000. Rankin was very quick, determined, hard-working, and a clinical finisher on his day. In other words... Izzy's whizzy, let's get busy! Joining him at Victoria Road - in a £250,000 deal from Chesterfield - was Simon Rusk. The former Scotland Under-18s international, now 24, was a defensive-minded box-to-box midfielder with marvellous technique and a bit of a hot streak. To complete our signing spree, we also recruited Irish youngster Michael Foley-Sheridan on a free transfer after his release by Liverpool. Michael was a well-rounded creative playmaker who had been on my radar for a few years now. Though primarily an attacking midfielder, the 23-year-old can also play on the left wing. Rankin and Rusk went straight into the starting line-up - and Foley-Sheridan was named on the bench - when we made our Division 1 debut on 12 August 2006. I expected a baptism of fire at Victoria Road against our opening-day opponents Notts County, who surely wanted to prove a point after we comfortably beat them in the League Cup last season. 12 AUGUST 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Notts County Unfortunately, pressures of playing at a higher level got to two of our players early on. Shortly after Robbie Ryan was booked for tripping Notts County captain Alan Navarro close to our penalty area, attacking midfielder Craig Winter hacked down their midfield general Andy Johnson in the box. Winter was shown the red card, and Johnson's penalty sent the Magpies 1-0 up after just 11 minutes. Just six minutes later, though, one of our new strikers repaired the damage. Luke Beckett was thwarted by a firm tackle from County midfielder Steve Lomas, but Isaiah Rankin was first to the loose ball, which he thundered right into the top corner. Rankin's rocket had drawn us level... ...until the 29th minute, when County dealt us another blow. Daggers goalkeeper Robert Green was beaten by a powerful 20-yard strike from Aussie-Italian middleman Anthony Magnacca. Despite some brave second-half defending from captain Lee Matthews, we couldn't conjure up a second equaliser after the break, and so our Division 1 bow ended in defeat. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Rankin 17) Notts County - 2 (Johnson pen11, Magnacca 29) Division 1, Attendance 7,967 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 19th, Notts County 5th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Mitchell, Matthews, Maher, Ryan (Mayo); Weekes (Foley-Sheridan), Rusk, Williams; Winter; Beckett (McDougald), Rankin. BOOKED: Ryan. SENT OFF: Winter. Yeah... looks like we're in for a struggle. Craig Winter was given a three-match ban for his early moment of madness. Of course, suspensions don't start until two weeks after the fact, but I still dropped him for our trip to Millwall the following weekend. Spanish defender David Navarro made his league debut as part of a back three with Lee Matthews and Shaun Maher. 19 AUGUST 2006: Millwall vs Dagenham & Redbridge We faced a swarm of Millwall attacks in the first half-hour, and somehow managed to survive intact. We got a huge let-off in the 10th minute, when Steven Reid's headed finish was chalked off for an offside against his Lions team-mate Phil Stamp. However, we tightened up after that, and goalkeeper Robert Green looked in great form against his previous club... ...or at least he did to begin with. Peruvian wing-back Martín Hidalgo finally got the better of him in the 35th minute, after which Millwall took complete control. Stamp made it 2-0 just five minutes later after heading in a cross from Sweden international Christoffer Andersson, who provided the assists for both goals. With that double salvo, our spirit was broken. It really was a day to forget for our attacking players - particularly Isaiah Rankin, whose shooting was lacklustre to say the least. In midfield, Simon Rusk missed a string of tackles that allowed Millwall to dominate and see the match out comfortably. Millwall - 2 (Hidalgo 35, Stamp 40) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 15,660 - POSITIONS: Millwall 7th, Dag & Red 20th DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green; Navarro, Matthews, Maher; Mitchell (Walsh), Mayo; McLean (Carter), Rusk, Williams; Beckett (Alsop), Rankin. BOOKED: Rusk. After the match, I sent young striker Chris Griffiths on loan to Connah's Quay for the season. It is Chris' third loan spell in the Welsh Premier League, and I really hope it's the one that turns him into a consistent finisher. We then played host to Division 3 side Barnsley in a midweek League Cup Round 1 tie. I just wanted us to get a win on the board no matter what it could, so I fielded a strong team which included the fit-again Benjani Mwaruwari. 22 AUGUST 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Barnsley Luke Beckett started his career as a youth player at Barnsley, so it seemed apt that he should break the deadlock after just six minutes. Having been played through superbly by Ryan Carter, the experienced striker glided through the Tykes midfield before slipping a cool shot past keeper Alan Miller. Carter got himself another assist in the 24th minute, when Simon Rusk - another of our summer signings - volleyed the young playmaker's flick-on into the net. 13 minutes later, Michael Foley-Sheridan made it a hat-trick of first-time Daggers scorers, finishing off a flowing passing move to give us a commanding 3-0 lead. There were no more goals in the second half, when our focus turned to killing the tie off and booking our place in the next round. Barnsley did get a couple of shots on target, but neither of them gave Robert Green too much to worry about. Come full-time, Tykes boss Roy Keane could only hold his hands up and wish us the best of luck in Round 2. Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Beckett 6, Rusk 24, Foley-Sheridan 37) Barnsley - 0 League Cup Round 1, Attendance 2,523 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Mitchell (Walsh), Navarro, Matthews, Ryan; Williams, Rusk, Carter; Foley-Sheridan (Winter); Beckett, Mwaruwari (McDougald). The Round 2 draw gave us another home tie against lower-tier opposition. This time around, we would play a high-scoring Swindon side who had made a decent start to their Division 2 campaign. James Williams would not play in that match - or any of our future matches. After just three outings for the Daggers, the on-loan Southampton midfielder was signed permanently by Stoke for £975,000. While we had the funds to buy Williams, I wasn't prepared to spend so much money on a player whose early performances hadn't exactly caught fire, so I reluctantly let him go. So we now had a midfield vacancy - and I decided to fill it with another loanee. 24-year-old John-Joseph Melligan was a flamboyant Irish right-winger who joined us on loan from Wolves until Christmas. Our new arrival made his debut from the start when we hosted Alan Curbishley's Charlton, who were relegated from the Premiership last season. I went back to the good ol' 4-4-2 formation for this match, with JJ on the right wing and his compatriot Foley-Sheridan on the left. 26 AUGUST 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Charlton Athletic The first 20 minutes or so of this match were an absolute car crash. The carnage began after four minutes, when Robert Green carelessly brought down Charlton's teenage attacking midfielder Andy Brown in the penalty area. Green escaped with just a yellow card, but he couldn't keep out Darren Huckerby's spot-kick, which immediately put us on the back foot. A couple more Addicks midfielders then wreaked further havoc on us. Alan Pouton put his head on Neil Barrett's 12th-minute cross to double the visitors' advantage, which Scotland star Allan Johnston built on five minutes later. Having already watched my team fall 3-0 behind, drastic action needed to be taken. The 4-4-2 experiment was a complete failure, with Charlton having free rein of the midfield. I moved our two Irish wingers inside and dropped Simon Rusk into an anchoring role, turning the tactic into a 4-3-1-2, while also bringing on right-back Michael Walsh to replace the hapless Paul Mitchell. Left-back Kerry Mayo was having a much better time of things, with his assist for Luke Beckett five minutes later giving us a goal back. Another major change midway through the second half also paid dividends. Benjani Mwaruwari was replaced up front with Isaiah Rankin, who was on the pitch for only a few second before he headed in David Navarro's free-kick. That pulled us back to 3-2, and though Beckett tried to complete the comeback in stoppage time, a magnificent save by Athletic keeper Kostas Chalkias sadly denied us a point. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Beckett 22, Rankin 73) Charlton Athletic - 3 (Huckerby pen4, Pouton 12, Johnston 17) Division 1, Attendance 7,966 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 24th, Charlton 2nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2): Green; Mitchell (Walsh), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Melligan, Carter, Rusk, Foley-Sheridan (McLean); Beckett, Mwaruwari (Rankin). BOOKED: Green, Rusk, Mwaruwari, Matthews. Another defeat saw us plummet to the bottom of Division 1... but our response to falling 3-0 behind gave me hope. Next up was a Bank Holiday Monday match at fellow promotees Port Vale. It had only been three-and-a-half months since we last faced the Valiants in a Division 2 automatic promotion decider. We came from behind to win, though of course, Vale still went up via the play-offs. 28 AUGUST 2006: Port Vale vs Dagenham & Redbridge Port Vale had themselves taken time to adjust to Division 1 football before beating Nottingham Forest in their third match. Their heightened confidence was clear from the start, as they had three shots on target in the first eight minutes. Captain Ian Armstrong and wing-back Wayne Corden were each denied by Robert Green before teenage midfielder Tom Laws made the breakthrough with his first senior goal. Six minutes later, Vale were 2-0 to the good, as veteran winger Jimmy Crawford struck from an Emmerson Boyce cross. That marked the end of a disastrous cameo for the Daggers' holding midfielder Simon Rusk, as I brought him off to give Des Hamilton his first outing of the season. Des helped calm our nerves before David Navarro pulled one goal back in the 33rd minute, heading in a corner from Michael Foley-Sheridan. We almost got back level in the first minute of the second half, but Foley-Sheridan drove a hopeful shot just over the bar. MFS' miss would come back to haunt us just moments later, as Matthew Spring sliced our defence open to set up a third Vale goal, with Armstrong restoring their two-goal cushion. Just before the hour mark, our front two combined to give us fresh hopes. Isaiah Rankin's cross was volleyed by Luke Beckett, who saw his initial shot saved by Chris Stringer before scoring the follow-up. Sadly, our attack fizzled out in the final 30 minutes, and so we again found ourselves on the wrong end of a 3-2 scoreline. Port Vale - 3 (Laws 8, Crawford 14, Armstrong 47) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Navarro 33, Beckett 59) Division 1, Attendance 11,486 - POSITIONS: Port Vale 10th, Dag & Red 24th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Walsh, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo (Ryan); Carter, Rusk (Hamilton), McLean; Foley-Sheridan; Beckett, Rankin. BOOKED: Rusk. Four games, four defeats. Rock bottom of Division 1. That's what I call a baptism of fire. Edited March 24 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 16, 2022 Author Share Posted December 16, 2022 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of August 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Sunderland 4 2 0 0 6 1 2 0 0 4 1 12 2nd Preston 4 2 0 0 2 0 1 1 0 1 0 10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Sheff Utd 4 2 0 0 5 0 1 0 1 3 3 9 4th Birmingham 4 2 0 0 4 0 1 0 1 6 6 9 5th Brentford 4 1 1 0 2 1 1 1 0 2 0 8 6th Charlton 4 0 1 1 2 3 2 0 0 5 2 7 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Luton 4 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 2 7 8th Burnley 4 2 0 0 7 0 0 0 2 1 4 6 9th Fulham 4 2 0 0 5 1 0 0 2 0 2 6 10th Port Vale 4 1 0 1 4 4 1 0 1 4 4 6 11th Notts Co 4 0 0 2 1 4 2 0 0 4 1 6 12th W.B.A. 4 1 0 1 3 2 1 0 1 2 4 6 13th Crewe 4 1 0 1 2 2 1 0 1 2 3 6 14th Walsall 4 1 0 1 3 4 1 0 1 2 3 6 15th Coventry 4 1 0 1 2 2 1 0 1 2 5 6 16th Millwall 3 1 0 0 2 0 0 1 1 3 4 4 17th Kidderminster 4 1 0 1 5 4 0 1 1 2 3 4 18th Chesterfield 4 1 0 1 1 2 0 1 1 3 4 4 19th Norwich 4 1 1 0 5 4 0 0 2 0 5 4 20th Derby 3 1 0 0 4 3 0 0 2 2 4 3 21st Bradford 4 1 0 2 4 5 0 0 1 0 1 3 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Grimsby 4 1 0 1 2 3 0 0 2 0 5 3 23rd Nottm Forest 4 0 1 1 2 4 0 0 2 3 6 1 24th Dag & Red 4 0 0 2 3 5 0 0 2 2 5 0 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Leeds start the season by adding two more trophies to their cabinet. First off, they rip the Community Shield from Manchester United's grasp after Lee Bowyer scores the decisive penalty in a 4-3 shoot-out win after a 1-1 draw. Mark Viduka then scores a brace as the Whites see off European champions Roma 3-0 in the Super Cup. Manchester United's bid for a fifth consecutive Premiership title gets off to a rocky start, as they suffer away defeats against Liverpool and West Ham. Instead, it's newly-promoted Manchester City who are the early pacesetters after winning their first two games under new captain Damien Duff - a club-record £10.5million signing from Blackburn. AC Milan qualify for their first Champions League Group Stage since 2002/2003 after scraping past PSV in a penalty shoot-out. Newcastle also end a three-year absence from Europe's top table, recovering from a first-leg deficit to knock out Lokomotiv Moscow. Magpies captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates by showering head coach Brian Quinn with a barrel full of Brown Ale. Bayern München lose their first match of the Bundesliga campaign, going down 3-2 to Hertha BSC. Ariel Ortega immediately has second thoughts about joining the German giants last month - and tells manager Ottmar Hitzfeld that he wants to leave. I think that boy might be a primadonna... With 34-year-old Zinedine Zidane still running the show in midfield, Nantes lead Ligue 1 after winning four of their opening five matches. By contrast, champions Lille get off to a stuttering start, losing at Bordeaux and Sedan. New Dogues boss Rudi Völler tries to rectify things by signing Wales midfielder Simon Davies from second-tier Guingamp for £3.2million. IN OTHER NEWS... The Metropolitan Police uncovers a terrorist plot to detonate liquid explosives on trans-Atlantic flights. 24 suspects are arrested in and around London, and unprecedented security measures are taken at airports in the United Kingdom and the United States. Natascha Kampusch - an 18-year-old Austrian woman who was abducted when she was just 10 – escapes her captivity and alerts police in Vienna. Kampusch’s kidnapper subsequently kills himself by walking in front of a train. In cricket, Pakistan forfeit the fourth Test against England at The Oval after the umpires accuse them of ball-tampering. Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq and his team refuse to return after tea in protest, and the umpires’ actions are strongly criticised. Paul Gascoigne's daughter Bianca and George Best's son Calum are crowned 'winners' of the soon-to-be-cancelled ITV reality show "Love Island". Thank goodness that is never ever coming back on our screens! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 20, 2022 Author Share Posted December 20, 2022 (edited) SEPTEMBER 2006 After four consecutive defeats, Dagenham & Redbridge were rooted to the bottom of Division 1. We were becoming increasingly desperate to get some points on the board before we got cut adrift from the rest of the league. Following the September international break, we looked to get ourselves off the mark at Pride Park. Roy Hodgson's Derby had also got off to a slow start, taking just three points from their opening four games. 9 SEPTEMBER 2006: Derby County vs Dagenham & Redbridge Well... we survived the first half without conceding, so that was a start. It wasn't for the want for trying where Derby were concerned, though. Long-serving striker Malcolm Christie spurned a couple of great opportunities for the Rams, while Benjani Mwaruwari missed the target with our best effort just before half-time. Our hopes of turning one point into three were strengthened early in the first half, when Derby's defence suffered a couple of major blows. Firstly, left-back John Hills twisted his ankle in the 57th minute and had to come off. A minute later, centre-half Alex Dick - a new £550,000 signing from Bradford - lived up to his name by pushing Luke Beckett to the ground unprovoked. Dick was out of the game, and County were down to 10 men! Sadly, we lost our left-back in the 65th minute, when Robbie Ryan's thigh gave up on him. Kerry Mayo wasn't in the squad, so centre-back Shaun Maher had to come on as a makeshift replacement for his compatriot. Midfielders John-Joseph Melligan and Ryan Carter then had late shots saved by Derby captain Mart Poom, whose goalkeeping heroics kept the deadlock intact. When all was said and done, a 0-0 was perhaps a fair result. Derby County - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 16,290 - POSITIONS: Derby 20th, Dag & Red 23rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Mitchell, Navarro, Matthews, Ryan (Maher); Rusk (Hamilton); Carter, Foley-Sheridan (Melligan), McLean; Beckett, Mwaruwari. BOOKED: Matthews, Rusk. The good news was that we not only had our first point on the board, but were also off the bottom after leapfrogging Nottingham Forest on goal difference. The bad news was that Robbie Ryan was now out for two weeks with a thigh strain. Could we now build on an encouraging performance and secure our first Division 1 victory in midweek? We were at home to 17th-placed Coventry, and last season's top scorer Craig Winter was back in the squad after serving a three-game ban. 13 SEPTEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Coventry City Coventry flew out of the traps, with Ysrael Zuniga firing them into the lead after just three minutes. The Peru striker used his pace to get past David Navarro in the Daggers defence before firing a low shot beyond keeper Robert Green. Zuniga could have scored again four minutes later, but this time, Green prevailed. We remained 1-0 behind after a frustrating first half, but Ryan Carter came to our rescue 11 minutes after the restart. It was a sublime solo goal from the 20-year-old midfielder, who dribbled past three City players before banging in his first goal of the season. Coventry had the best chance to win the game in the 75th minute. A handball from Simon Rusk gave City a free-kick on the edge of our area, but fortunately, Green managed to get his fingertips to John Eustace's strike. Another solid goalkeeping performance kept us on track for another point - our first at an expanded Victoria Road this season. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Carter 56) Coventry City - 1 (Zuniga 3) Division 1, Attendance 7,958 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 23rd, Coventry 15th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Mitchell (Walsh), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; McLean (Weekes); Carter, Winter, Rusk; Beckett, Mwaruwari (Rankin). That first win was continuing to elude us after half a dozen matches. Would it be a case of 'lucky seven' against Brentford? We would definitely need a big slice of good fortune at Griffin Park, as the Bees were buzzing in 3rd place. 16 SEPTEMBER 2006: Brentford vs Dagenham & Redbridge In a role reversal of our last game, we broke the deadlock early on away from home. Michael Foley-Sheridan sent an excellent delivery into the box for Benjani Mwaruwari, who rose high and planted a header past the advancing Jussi Jääskeläinen. 1-0 to the Daggers! Brentford soon went on the offensive, with their front two having mixed fortunes. Frode Johnsen saw a couple of shots saved by Robert Green, but his team-mate Emmanuel Tetteh was right on the button nine minutes from half-time. The Ghanaian beat our left-back Kerry Mayo to an incisive pass from Bees skipper Paul Evans, and a powerful header left our lead in tatter. David Jeffrey's hosts were a constant nuisance to our defence throughout the match, with all eight of their shots being on target at least. Sadly, Green only kept six of them out. He conceded for a second time in the 76th minute, when Tetteh beat Mayo again to finish Robbie McGlynn's left-wing cross. I think full-back might be a problem area for us... We never threatened the Bees after they took the lead. Indeed, we were very lucky not to concede again in stoppage time, when captain Lee Matthews brilliantly cleared substitute Nathan Wood's header off the goal line. And with that 2-1 defeat, we found ourselves propping up the table again. [Sigh] Brentford - 2 (Tetteh 36,76) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Mwaruwari 11) Division 1, Attendance 8,445 - POSITIONS: Brentford 3rd, Dag & Red 24th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Mitchell, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Rusk; Carter, Foley-Sheridan (Winter), Melligan (Weekes); Beckett (McDougald), Mwaruwari. Simon Rusk was handed a one-match ban after that match, having already picked up five yellow cards this season. It had barely been a month since I paid Chesterfield £250,000 to sign the holding midfielder, and his chequered disciplinary record - not to mention his performances - were raising questions about whether I'd spent that money wisely. The pressure on us would only increase in our next match, when we entertained Swindon in Round 2 of the League Cup. The Division 2 Robins had experienced a dip in form since beating Doncaster in their opening tie, so this was a good opportunity for us to reach Round 3 for the first time. 20 SEPTEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Swindon Town Swindon were forced into an early substitution after just six minutes, when midfielder Craig Pead gashed his leg. 11 minutes later, Robins captain David Johnson was very lucky not to join Pead in the dressing room. Johnson clearly kicked out angrily at Daggers counterpart Lee Matthews, but the referee turned a blind eye - annoying everyone in the Dagenham dugout and the Victoria Road crowd! By half-time, I was directing my anger at my own players, who had been utterly toothless in front of goal during the first period. I especially wanted to see more from attacking midfielder Craig Winter, who responded by breaking the deadlock in the 56th minute. Winter pounced on a skilful cross from John-Joseph Melligan, and it looked like Swindon were broken... ...but Johnson had other ideas. Our fury at his continued presence on the pitch only grew in the 77th minute, when he took the ball past debutant defender Simon Bell and hit a ferocious strike to square the match. All was well in the end, as Winter restored our lead just two minutes later, and we then held firm to reach Round 3. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Winter 56,79) Swindon Town - 1 (Johnson 77) League Cup Round 2, Attendance 2,742 DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Mitchell (Walsh), Bell, Matthews, Mayo; McLean; Carter (Graham), Winter, Melligan; Mwaruwari, Rankin (Alsop). The Round 3 draw wouldn't take place until later in the month, so I had some time to do some transfer business. Firstly, I finally managed to get Spencer Prior off the wage bill, with Division 2 strugglers Northampton agreeing to sign the 35-year-old centre-back on a free transfer. I also brought in yet another defensive midfielder. Neil Barrett - a tireless and aggressive 24-year-old - joined on a four-month loan from Charlton, and he made his Daggers debut in our home game against high-flying Preston. 23 SEPTEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Preston North End Though we were perhaps the slightly better team in a tight first half, it was Preston who took the lead after 32 minutes. Attacking midfielder Richard Cresswell put a killer ball into the six-yard box, where a poacher's finish from Northern Ireland striker David Healy put us right on the back foot. The Daggers defence had looked very shaky in recent weeks, and David exposed our Achilles Healy again three minutes into the second half. After a rapid exchange of passes with Steven Campbell, Healy sent the young attacking midfielder clean through to double the Lilywhites' advantage. David Moyes' boys were in clinical form, but my lads were most certainly not. Luke Beckett and John-Joseph Melligan were especially profligate in front of goal on another frustrating afternoon for the Daggers. Fan favourite Junior McDougald did eventually find the net from a Paul Mitchell cross - but by then, the match was deep into stoppage-time and Preston's victory was no longer in any doubt. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (McDougald 90) Preston North End - 2 (Healy 32, Campbell 48) Division 1, Attendance 7,953 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 24th, Preston 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-4-2 Diamond): Green; Walsh (Mitchell), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Barrett; McLean (Graham), Melligan; Beckett, Mwaruwari (McDougald). BOOKED: Mwaruwari, McLean. Forget about just signing Neil Barrett! I might have to sign a whole new team at this rate! At the top of my list was a new striker, with the Benjani Mwaruwari transfer saga finally coming to an end. With the Zimbabwean still refusing to extend his contract with us, I reluctantly accepted a £500,000 offer from Neftochimik Burgas. After scoring 25 goals in 61 games for the Daggers, Benjani was on his way to Bulgaria. Fresh from scoring his first goal of the season, Junior McDougald took Benjani's starting spot when we hosted Bradford. Could our Division 1 bantamweights put up a fight against the promotion-chasing Bantams, or would this be another knockout? 27 SEPTEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Bradford City The die was cast in the very first minute, when Bradford's first attack caught us right off the hop. Robert Green was still putting on his gloves when he was soundly beaten by a left-footed rocket from Sam Dalla Bona, whose name roughly translates into "annoyingly talented Italian midfielder". After a slow start, it took our attack half an hour to get up and running. Junior McDougald's volley was kept out by Bantams keeper Erwin Lemmens, and Craig Winter was thwarted by the woodwork, but Luke Beckett made it third time lucky on 39 minutes. Promising midfielder Alan McLean picked him out with a well-weighted cross, and a fierce strike levelled the scores. Despite losing their human trebuchet Rory Delap to a torn groin muscle late in the first half, Bradford were back to their destructive best in the second half. In-form Danish forward Henrik Pedersen powered a shot home in the 58th minute, and then provided the assist for Dalla Bona's second strike five minutes later. It was not a good day for Robert Green, who had conceded from each of Bradford's three shots on target. In sharp contrast, Green's Bradford counterpart Erwin Lemmens was the main reason why Beckett didn't have a hat-trick - and we didn't have any points to show for our efforts. Just our luck. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Beckett 39) Bradford City - 3 (Dalla Bona 1,63, Pedersen 58) Division 1, Attendance 7,953 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 24th, Bradford 8th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Mitchell (Walsh), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Barrett; McLean, Winter, Foley-Sheridan; Beckett, McDougald (Rankin). Pathetic. Absolutely PATHETIC. And I'm only talking about Paul Mitchell. In 10 matches this season, Mitchell had recorded a match average of 6.10. That is embarrassing, and just shows that he's utterly incapable of performing at this level. I fined him a fortnight's wages, relegated him to the reserves, and made him available for transfer. I'm sure a club with more money than sense will come along to collect him soon enough. There was likely to be even more pain in our last match of the month. We went to St Andrew's to take on league leaders Birmingham, who'd opened the campaign with seven wins from nine games. Imagine the scenes if THIS is where we get our first win! 30 SEPTEMBER 2006: Birmingham City vs Dagenham & Redbridge Birmingham went on an early assault and took the lead inside nine minutes. Robbie Savage provided the assist for his fellow Wales midfielder Gareth Williams, whose rifled shot looked to be heading into the stands but dipped below the crossbar just in time. For all their attacking play, though, the Blues could not build on that advantage before the break. Then, four minutes into the second half, it looked like the tide was turning. Luke Beckett's right-wing cross was headed home for Isaiah Rankin's third goal of the season, levelling the scores at 1-1. We then missed some chances to win the game, but even taking one point against the league leaders was an achievement in itself. Alas, our last-minute attempt to convert a 1-1 draw into a 2-1 win ended in absolute catastrophe. Michael Foley-Sheridan's Hail Mary corner was intercepted by Williams, who embarked on a two-man counter-attack with his midfield colleague Nabil Abidallah. They sauntered through a paper-thin Dagenham defence before Abidallah's through-ball into the penalty box was blasted home by Williams, sealing victory for Birmingham! Birmingham City - 2 (Williams 9,90) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Rankin 49) Division 1, Attendance 20,460 - POSITIONS: Birmingham 1st, Dag & Red 24th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Walsh, Maher, Matthews, Ryan (Mayo); Barrett; Graham (Navarro), Winter (Melligan), Foley-Sheridan; Beckett, Rankin. The result wasn't completely unexpected... but the manner of it was incredibly dispiriting. We just looked like a team who were so low on confidence that we had already given up on staying up. So that's 10 games played - no wins, two draws, EIGHT defeats. We're five points adrift of safety. It's not looking good, is it? And as if things couldn't get any worse, the League Cup Round 3 draw gave us an away game at Everton, who sit 2nd in the Premiership. Now that's bloody marvellous. Edited March 24 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 20, 2022 Author Share Posted December 20, 2022 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of September 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Birmingham 10 5 0 0 12 4 3 1 1 14 10 25 2nd Preston 10 3 0 2 7 6 4 1 0 8 4 22 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Bradford 10 3 0 2 11 6 4 0 1 12 5 21 4th Sunderland 10 4 0 0 11 2 2 3 1 11 10 21 5th Sheff Utd 10 4 1 0 10 3 2 2 1 7 5 21 6th Burnley 10 4 1 0 14 4 2 1 2 9 7 20 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Brentford 9 3 2 0 11 5 2 2 0 6 2 19 8th Notts Co 10 3 0 2 9 7 3 1 1 9 6 19 9th Fulham 9 2 1 1 6 3 3 0 2 4 2 16 10th Chesterfield 10 3 0 2 7 5 2 1 2 6 8 16 11th Charlton 10 2 1 2 9 9 3 0 2 8 9 16 12th W.B.A. 10 4 0 2 10 4 1 0 3 4 11 15 13th Coventry 10 3 0 2 8 5 1 1 3 3 10 13 14th Luton 10 2 1 2 2 3 1 2 2 2 5 12 15th Grimsby 10 3 0 2 9 7 1 0 4 6 13 12 16th Crewe 10 2 0 3 7 10 2 0 3 5 8 12 17th Port Vale 10 1 1 3 7 11 2 0 3 9 10 10 18th Derby 9 2 2 1 11 11 0 1 3 6 10 9 19th Millwall 9 1 1 2 4 5 1 1 3 6 9 8 20th Nottm Forest 10 1 3 1 6 6 0 1 4 4 13 7 21st Walsall 10 1 1 3 7 12 1 0 4 4 9 7 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Kidderminster 10 1 2 2 5 5 0 1 4 4 10 6 23rd Norwich 10 1 2 2 6 9 0 0 5 2 10 5 24th Dag & Red 10 0 1 4 6 11 0 1 4 4 9 2 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Manchester City's unlikely challenge for the Premiership title continues, with the evergreen Kevin Phillips providing four goals and six assists in just three games. The nearest challengers to Trevor Francis' Citizens are 2nd-placed Everton, whose 21-year-old talisman Wayne Rooney is high on confidence after scoring his first England international goal against Luxembourg. England and Real Madrid left-back Ashley Cole celebrates his marriage to pop star Cheryl Tweedy and heads to Rome for their honeymoon... which just so happens to coincide with a Champions League group match against Roma. Real are thumped 2-0 at the Olimpico, but Cole likes the place so much that he decides to stay there - and signs for the Giallorossi for £12.5million. Milan also go out shopping for a left-back, signing Marek Jankulovski from recently-relegated Napoli for £9million. The Rossoneri also bring in Spain centre-half Iván Helguera in a £12million deal from Manchester United, whose long-serving full-back Phil Neville heads to Celtic for £1million. Gary is distraught. As they battle against relegation from Serie A once again, yo-yo club Fiorentina sack manager Carlo Ancelotti and poach Gianfranco Zola from fellow strugglers Chievo. Zola immediately wins over the Viola fanbase by bringing back club legend Enrico Chiesa, who joins the coaching staff after ending his playing career at Celtic last season. Bayern München forward Ariel Ortega is verbally abused by Borussia Mönchengladbach fans after scoring one goal and setting up the other in a 2-0 away win. The happy-go-lucky Argentine responds by giving them the middle finger, which cops him a one-match ban from the DFB. Bayern boss Ottmar Hitzfeld is not amused. IN OTHER NEWS... Thailand’s Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is overthrown in a military coup following a year-long political crisis. The 57-year-old billionaire considers making an offer to buy Manchester City - and plans to replace Francis with current England boss Sven-Göran Eriksson. Wildlife expert and conservationist Steve Irwin - one of Australia's biggest TV personalities - tragically dies after being pierced in the chest by a stingray while filming in the Great Barrier Reef. He is just 44 years old. Two of America's biggest pop superstars release new albums within a fortnight of each other. While Beyoncé is experiencing déjà-vu on her "B'Day", Justin Timberlake is bringing SexyBack on his record "FutureSex/LoveSounds". Jagshemash! British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen gets out his green mankini for his new mockumentary film "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan". Is nice? 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 23, 2022 Author Share Posted December 23, 2022 (edited) OCTOBER 2006 Our first two months in Division 1 had been a sobering experience. After 10 matches, we were winless, rock-bottom, and already facing the prospect of an immediate return to Division 2. October began with an international break, so I had plenty of time to rebuild this team into an outfit that was at least capable of staying up. There would be significant changes to the playing squad over the next two weeks - the 'Fortnight of the Long Knives', if you will. The first casualty of the overhaul was one of Dagenham & Redbridge's greatest ever players. Julian Alsop had scored 71 goals for the Daggers since signing from Cheltenham in 2002, but the 33-year-old target man was no longer able to keep up with the increasing standards expected at this club. With regret, I released Jules to Division 2 strugglers Lincoln on a free transfer. He went away with my best wishes for the future - and a guarantee that he’d be welcome to return to Victoria Road in a non-playing capacity once his playing days were over. I cancelled the contract of striker Sean Devine, who hadn't played a first-team match since February. Right-back Paul Mitchell also got his marching orders, just four months after joining the club. The less said about him, the better. There was a fonder farewell for Shaun Maher, who returned to Ireland in a £45,000 transfer to Bohemians. The centre-half was never the first name on the teamsheet during his two-and-a-bit years at Victoria Road, but he usually did a decent job. However, I felt we needed some fresher legs in the defence. Step forward, Michael Nelson. The Geordie centre-half was my first signing of the month, arriving from Ayr for £100,000. He has the strength, bravery and aerial power I need from a defender at this level - and at the age of just 23, his best years are shortly ahead of him, Another signing from north of the border was 25-year-old Brechin striker Kevin Kyle, who cost us £150,000. Kyle was the top scorer in Scotland's Division 3 last season, but my scouts believe that his athleticism and natural finishing ability can translate well to a higher level. I hear Kevin's also a pretty good darts player, so he knows a thing or two about hitting the target. For my last signing, I looked closer to home. Ex-Everton youth midfielder Leon Osman had been tearing up the Conference with Hereford for several seasons now, and the skilful playmaker was someone I'd wanted to add to my team for quite so time. After stumping up £200,000, I finally got my hands on the 25-year-old Scouser. Sadly, Daggers fans would have to wait a while to see Osman pull on the red and blue. Leon was sent off in Hereford's 0-0 draw with Halifax at the end of last month, so he would have to miss our next three matches through suspension. That meant the earliest game he could make his Dagenham debut in was our League Cup tie on 25 October against... Everton. After all that, we finally returned to action on 14 October, with a daunting trip to Sunderland. The Black Cats got unlucky in last season's play-offs, and they had their sights set on automatic promotion this time around, sitting in 5th place after 10 games. 14 OCTOBER 2006: Sunderland vs Dagenham & Redbridge We got a big stroke of luck in the 11th minute. Michael Foley-Sheridan's cross from the left took a big ricochet off debutant Kevin Kyle and fell towards Luke Beckett. The experienced forward then dribbled past Sunderland captain Stanislav Varga and fired home for a 1-0 lead! It looked like we'd turned a corner, but Sunderland had other ideas. 15 minutes later, Mackems striker David Connolly provided an excellent low cross for Liberia midfielder Dulee Johnson, who duly equalised. Johnson then returned the favour to Connolly just before half-time, with the Irishman's cool low strike leaving us 2-1 behind at the break. To our credit, we responded strongly in the second half. An excellent strike from Craig Winter in the 59th minute had to be tipped behind by Sunderland keeper Danny Coyne, giving us a corner. Kerry Mayo's delivery was weighted perfectly for David Navarro to head it home, levelling the scores! But that was as good as it got for us. After 76 minutes, Sunderland won the game by scoring their third goal from their third shot, as Johnson's diving header completed another miserable afternoon for Robert Green. I took our goalkeeper out of the firing line and brought on Mike Pollitt, who saved a late Stephen Crainey free-kick to spare us even more agony. Sunderland - 3 (Johnson 26,76, Connolly 45) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Beckett 11, Navarro 60) Division 1, Attendance 36,689 - POSITIONS: Sunderland 3rd, Dag & Red 24th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green (Pollitt); Walsh (Ryan), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Barrett; McLean (Melligan), Winter, Foley-Sheridan; Kyle, Beckett. "Do you guys WANT to stay up?" I barked at my players at full-time. "DO YOU EVEN WANT TO PLAY FOR THIS TEAM?!" After our ninth defeat in 11 games, the axe fell on two more Daggers. Right-back Michael Walsh had his contract cancelled by mutual consent, and winger/midfielder John-Joseph Melligan was sent back to Wolves, as I wanted to take another player on loan from the Molineux club instead. With the two right-backs ahead of him now seeking alternative employment, Peter Hawkins got another chance in the team. Hawkins made his first start of the season for our midweek home game against 17th-placed Crewe. There was also a first league start for young centre-half Simon Bell, while Mike Pollitt replaced the out-of-sorts Robert Green in goal. 17 OCTOBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Crewe Alexandra Crewe withstood some early pressure from the Daggers, and then started to pile it on us around the half-hour mark. Mike Pollitt did well to parry a Florentin Petre shot in the 27th minute, but the veteran goalie was less convincing four minutes later. Former Port Vale goal machine Stephen McPhee saw his initial effort spilled by Pollitt, and then gladly gobbled up the rebound. Though we looked a bit more threatening in the second half, we weren't really getting a rub of the green - with or without Robert. Strikers Kevin Kyle and Luke Beckett hit the woodwork in the 58th and 63rd minutes respectively, and those misses pretty much killed their confidence. In the end, despite the narrow scoreline, it was a comfortable win for John Collins and his Railwaymen. Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Crewe Alexandra - 1 (McPhee 31) Division 1, Attendance 7,992 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 24th, Crewe 15th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Pollitt; Hawkins (Mayo), Bell, Matthews, Ryan; Barrett; Carter, Winter, Foley-Sheridan (Graham); Kyle, Beckett. BOOKED: Barrett. It was the middle of October, and we were already into double figures for defeats. The gap between us and 21st was eight points. With each passing result, the league table was looking more and more grim. To try and address our defensive issues, Wolves let us take their 28-year-old right-back David Worrell on loan until mid-February. The Republic of Ireland B international was energetic, tactically smart, and strong in the tackle - just the kind of player we needed. Just one small problem. On his first day, David turned up for training on crutches. Apparently, the scout who'd recommended Worrell had neglected to tell me that he had torn a groin muscle in a recent Wolves reserve game - and that he was unlikely to be match-fit again before December. In effect, I signed a player on loan for four months who would only be available for two of them. ARGHHHH!! That left us with just one player in our ranks who could play at right-back - defensive midfielder Neil Barrett. He slotted into that role for our next match at Sheffield United, where we reverted to an ultra-defensive 5-3-2. Our goal at Bramall Lane wasn't to win, but simply to not lose - or at least not by a cricket score. 21 OCTOBER 2006: Sheffield United vs Dagenham & Redbridge The first half painted a sorry picture of the state of this Dagenham team. Sheffield United striker Billy Paynter got his easel out in the 18th minute, opening the scoring with a half-volley from Stephen Foster's cross. Daggers forward Isaiah Rankin then had a couple of equalising chances. After being thwarted by keeper Mark Brown in the 24th minute, Izzy headed wide from a Kerry Mayo cross just moments later. To make matters worse, Dutch master Gerald Sibon doubled the Blades' advantage on 41 minutes, floating a free-kick past a reinstated Robert Green. United eased off after the break, giving us a slither of hope. The half-time introduction of Craig Winter added some fresh impetus to our midfield, and his 49th-minute strike brought a great save out of Brown. However, it would take us until the 81st minute to pull a goal back, courtesy of Winter's impressive assist for Ryan Carter. Craig could have completed the job six minutes, when he sent Luke Beckett bearing down on goal. Unfortunately, Brown managed to push the shot away, blunting our final attack and preserving the Blades' lead. Sheffield United - 2 (Paynter 18, Sibon 41) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Carter 81) Division 1, Attendance 13,669 - POSITIONS: Sheff Utd 4th, Dag & Red 24th DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2 Defensive): Green; Nelson, Navarro (Bell), Matthews; Barrett, McLean (Winter), Mayo; Rusk, Carter; Rankin, Beckett. BOOKED: Navarro, Bell. Yet another match where we didn't deserve to lose, but somehow did. It seemed like there was nothing I could do to save this team from relegation. Our best ever run in the League Cup did offer some respite, but even that looked certain to end after our Round 3 tie. We were on a hiding nothing when we arrived at Kings Dock to face Premiership big boys Everton. Former Toffees midfielder Leon Osman made his Daggers debut, but this probably wasn't going to be pretty... 25 OCTOBER 2006: Everton vs Dagenham & Redbridge Unsurprisingly, this wasn't even close. Everton dominated from start to finish, and once they took the lead in the 19th minute, they never looked back. Kerry Mayo got sloppy and lost track of the Toffees' right wing-back Michael Lamey, who latched onto Clive Clarke's through-ball and blasted in the opener. Things only went from bad to worse after 28 minutes. After a robust challenge, Daggers captain Lee Matthews went down clutching his calf, bringing his game to an early end. Youngster Simon Bell came on in Lee's place, and by all accounts did well to help our defence keep the score down amid an Everton onslaught. Four minutes into the second half, Everton effectively clinched victory with a second breakthrough. This time, Lamey provided the cross for Canada striker Tomasz Radzinski to score. Walter Smith's side then firmly protected their 2-0 lead by only allowing us a single shot on target - a tame effort from substitute Isaiah Rankin that was saved by Magnus Hedman. Everton - 2 (Lamey 19, Radzinski 49) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 League Cup Round 3, Attendance 12,216 DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2 Defensive): Green; Nelson, Navarro, Matthews (Bell); Barrett, Rusk, Mayo; Graham (Carter), Osman; Beckett, Kyle (Rankin). BOOKED: Rusk. At least it was only 2-0. But that was really the only positive I could take from this match, especially as we were now without captain Lee Matthews for a month. We were now in the throes of a full-blown crisis, and I sensed I was running out of time to turn things around. As a last throw of the dice, I signed two more right-backs to try and fix our weakest position once and for all. The first of them was Barry Prenderville - a 30-year-old Irishman who was a free agent after being released by Lincoln. Our other new arrival - and the man most likely to fill the right-back role for the foreseeable future - was David Brooker. The 22-year-old Londoner was a £200,000 signing from Dutch club Utrecht, where he'd gained some invaluable experience playing in the Eredivisie. Brooker was versatile (he could play anywhere across the defensive line) and had plenty of technical ability with either foot. Brooker debuted against mid-table Fulham at Craven Cottage, where we were desperately battling to avoid what would be an eighth consecutive defeat in all competitions. Interestingly, the Cottagers were managed by Maurice Malpas, who also coached the Scotland national team in his spare time. 28 OCTOBER 2006: Fulham vs Dagenham & Redbridge I switched back to the 4-3-1-2 formation that had led us to success in the past... but Fulham countered it with a strong attacking game of their own. Uruguayan midfielder Carlos Grossmüller drove a promising shot against our upright in the sixth minute, giving us a warning of what was to come. Ten minutes before half-time, our right-back David Brooker had a moment to forget on his Daggers debut. Brooker was too slow to intercept a left-wing cross from Eddie Lewis, which was headed goalwards by striker Chris Worthington, Although captain Robert Green pulled off a valiant save, he couldn't keep the rebound away from one-time Italy right-back Cristian Zenoni, who fired home and broke the deadlock. Brooker's struggles continued in the 60th minute. The Cottagers' other frontman Brett Ormerod effortlessly dribbled past the youngster to go one-on-one with Green, who could do little to keep his shot out. Fulham then saw the match out, with captain Edwin van der Sar producing a late save to deny Leon Osman a consolation strike. Fulham - 2 (Zenoni 35, Ormerod 60) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 7,166 - POSITIONS: Fulham 6th, Dag & Red 24th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Brooker, Nelson (Navarro), Bell, Mayo; Carter, Rusk, Foley-Sheridan (Weekes); Osman; Beckett (Winter), Rankin. BOOKED: Nelson. That was our 12th defeat in 14 league games. I'm honestly struggling to come up with new words to describe our situation. I'm not the kind of guy who gives up easily when things get tough. But the longer this run of form goes on, the harder it becomes for me to continue in this job. Edited March 24 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 23, 2022 Author Share Posted December 23, 2022 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of October 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Birmingham 15 7 1 0 21 10 3 2 2 20 17 33 2nd Burnley 14 6 2 0 21 8 3 1 2 12 8 30 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Notts Co 14 6 0 2 15 9 3 2 1 10 7 29 4th Preston 15 4 2 2 14 11 4 2 1 8 6 28 5th Sunderland 14 6 0 0 18 5 2 3 3 12 13 27 6th Sheff Utd 14 5 2 0 13 5 2 3 2 10 9 26 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Fulham 15 5 2 2 15 9 3 0 3 5 6 26 8th Chesterfield 15 6 0 2 14 8 2 2 3 7 11 26 9th Coventry 15 5 1 2 14 9 3 1 3 9 14 26 10th Bradford 14 4 0 4 15 11 4 0 2 14 8 24 11th Brentford 14 3 3 0 12 6 3 2 3 10 9 23 12th Charlton 14 4 2 2 13 11 3 0 3 10 12 23 13th W.B.A. 14 6 0 2 16 5 1 1 4 6 15 22 14th Grimsby 14 5 0 2 13 7 2 0 5 9 16 21 15th Luton 15 4 2 2 5 4 1 3 3 3 7 20 16th Millwall 15 3 2 2 10 8 1 3 4 9 13 17 17th Crewe 15 2 1 4 10 14 3 0 5 8 12 16 18th Nottm Forest 14 2 3 1 9 8 1 2 5 8 18 14 19th Derby 15 2 3 2 13 14 1 1 6 13 19 13 20th Walsall 15 3 1 3 13 16 1 0 7 9 20 13 21st Port Vale 14 1 1 4 8 14 2 2 4 12 14 12 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Kidderminster 14 1 2 3 7 8 0 3 5 8 16 8 23rd Norwich 14 1 3 2 6 9 0 0 8 2 15 6 24th Dag & Red 14 0 1 5 6 12 0 1 7 7 16 2 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Manchester City crash back to earth with three successive Premiership defeats. This run includes a 5-1 thrashing at Chelsea, in which Craig Bellamy scores three goals to strengthen his challenge for the Golden Boot. Meanwhile, Arsenal emerge as title challengers as Thierry Henry scores a hat-trick in a 4-0 derby win over Tottenham. City's collapse coincides with Manchester United's return to form, as the Red Devils regain their usual place at the summit. The champions are further strengthened by the arrivals of Valencia's attacking midfielder Araújo (£13million) and Atalanta's anchor man Damiano Zenoni (£10.5million). However, another club stalwart leaves Old Trafford, as 35-year-old striker Andrew Cole is released. Lazio and Roma are among the first teams to qualify for the Champions League second phase, but the eternal rivals have mixed fortunes in the league. Roma sit top of the table - with the Biancocelesti six points adrift in 7th - ahead of their first league meeting at the Olimpico this season. Fabio Capello's Giallorossi take a 2-0 lead, but Walter Samuel's sending-off turns the game around, and Guilherme's 88th-minute strike secures a 2-2 draw for Lazio. Paris Saint-Germain were almost relegated from Ligue 1 last season, but those struggles now seem a distant memory. Galvanised by new manager Jacques Santini and Egyptian playmaker Ahmed Hassan, 'Les Parisiens' beat Troyes 2-0 to go top of the table. Things don't look so great for Santini's old club Lyon, who plummet to the bottom. After a few lean years, could this finally be Leverkusen's time to shine in the Bundesliga? Igor Demo's last-minute equaliser at title rivals Dortmund maintains Die Werkself's unbeaten start and keeps them on track for a first ever German league championship. Fatih Terim's side are galvanised by the renaissance of 32-year-old winger Bernd Schneider, who has provided 11 assists in just 10 league games so far. IN OTHER NEWS... Fresh off a huge concert tour to promote her comeback album "Confessions on a Dance Floor", pop star Madonna travels to Malawi to fund an orphanage. She also adopts a young African child, which seems to be a growing trend among American celebrities. Meanwhile, one of the most soulful British pop singers of their generation releases a masterpiece of an album that blows critics away and goes straight to Number 1. I am, of course, talking about "Rudebox" by Robbie Williams. Renault’s Fernando Alonso holds off his Ferrari rival Michael Schumacher to successfully defend the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship. After narrowly missing out on an eighth world title, Schumacher retires from F1 aged 37. Tech giants Google buy out a fledgling video-sharing service called YouTube for the princely sum of $1.65billion. So, er, I take it that Google Video wasn’t a great success... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 27, 2022 Author Share Posted December 27, 2022 (edited) NOVEMBER 2006 The atmosphere at Victoria Road on the night of Wednesday 1 November was not a good one. Stranded at the bottom of Division 1 with just two points from 14 matches, Dagenham & Redbridge could not have been in a worse position when we welcomed 13th-placed West Brom to our home. The Daggers ground staff might as well have replaced the Victoria Road turnstiles with a revolving door, such was the turnover of playing staff. In October alone, six players left us and another seven joined us - and one of those new boys turned up with an injury! Indeed, my best signing in October was probably a 17-year-old rookie centre-back called John McCourt, who joined our reserve team and looked pretty solid on his debut. If our defence kept leaking goals like a sieve, perhaps the young Northern Irishman would get a first-team call-up sooner rather than later! By the time play kicked off against West Brom, I could sense that our fans' usually enthusiastic support was waning. If the Baggies won here, we would have lost as many home league games in three months as we had done in the previous four years. They would be on my back quicker than you could say, "Bring back Garry Hill!" While I was perhaps nearing the end of my Daggers tenure, West Brom manager Andy Hessenthaler was just starting his new job. The former Gillingham and Hearts boss had recently replaced Gary Megson, and a 4-1 home win over local rivals Walsall in his first match had already left Baggies fans bouncing with optimism. This would be a very difficult night, to say the least. 1 NOVEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs West Bromwich Albion After just three minutes, midfielder Ryan Carter found the perfect way to lift the crowd. A powerful strike from Carter was pushed behind by Thomas Sørensen, giving us a corner kick. Carter then outjumped Dominic Matteo to get his head to Leon Osman's delivery and put us ahead! Things got even better for us in the 12th minute, when Craig Winter doubled our advantage. The Baggies were in disarray, and when their captain Neil Clement was sent off seven minutes later for picking up two yellow cards, it looked like our long winless run was finally coming to an end... ...but if you know anything about the Daggers, it's that we never do things the easy way. As we struggled to build on our 2-0 lead, West Brom got themselves back into the game in the 66th minute. Left-back Gary Croft's free-kick was fired home by Stern John, who got Albion on the scoresheet from their first shot. That's just typical, isn't it. Other than that, though, it had been a solid Daggers debut for right-back Barry Prenderville, who was subbed off for fellow newcomer David Brooker for the closing stages. A nervy climax followed before the final whistle blew, confirming our first ever victory in Division 1 - at the 15th attempt! Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Carter 3, Winter 12) West Bromwich Albion - 1 (John 66) Division 1, Attendance 7,968 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 24th, West Brom 14th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville (Brooker), Nelson, Navarro, Mayo; Carter, Rusk, Osman (Weekes); Winter; Beckett (Kyle), Rankin. BOOKED: Nelson. The fans might have been delighted... but I was just relieved. Even in victory, we never looked comfortable. If West Brom had not had Neil Clement sent off early on, I'm sure they would have come back to get at least a point, if not all three. I was now thinking long and hard about leaving the Daggers... and perhaps even dropping back down to Division 2. A couple of days later, I was offered the opportunity to do just that. Watford were looking for their fifth manager in just over four years, with Danny Wilson having recently jumped ship to Northampton. Things were actually starting to look up again for the Hornets, who - having battled against relegation last season - now found themselves just outside the Division 2 play-off places. But while the prospect of working for Elton John was an interesting one, I wasn't too enthralled when managing director Tim Shaw told me that they only had "a small amount of money" to spend on transfers. As bad as things might have been at Dagenham & Redbridge, we were still in a good financial position, so I wasn't going to leave this job for a lower-league team with a more modest budget. After politely turning Watford's job offer down, I turned my attention to our next home league match. Visitors Grimsby had been Division 1 mainstays for quite a few years now, and after a slow start, the Mariners were on a five-game winning run in all competition. 4 NOVEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Grimsby Town Things were looking grim against Grimsby after just four minutes. Robert Green's chequered recent record continued when he parried Jonathan Greening's shot from the edge of the area, and then watched centre-half Gary Elliott drive in the follow-up. 1-0 to the Mariners. After a series of unsuccessful equalising efforts over the next half-hour, we needed Kerry Mayo's set-piece prowess to save us. The left-back's whipped corner in the 33rd minute was headed in by midfielder Simon Rusk, delighting the majority of a record crowd at Victoria Road. The atmosphere then got even louder when Isaiah Rankin gave us the lead on the stroke of half-time! Our joy was cut short in the 54th minute, when Grimsby's strikers combined to pull them level. David Hagen put a low cross towards the near post, where 19-year-old Jason Jenkins evaded a desperate slide tackle from Dagenham midfielder Neil Barrett to tap it in. Four minutes later, however, the visitors' early hero made a costly mistake. Elliott carelessly pulled back on Luke Beckett's shirt in the Grimsby area, and the referee awarded us a penalty. After some debate, Rusk stepped up and nestled the spot-kick into the back of the net. We were back in the ascendancy, and when Craig Winter made it 4-2 in the 72nd minute, another victory looked to be in the bag. If only it was that simple. Five minutes from time, a needless handball from Ryan Carter handed Grimsby a free-kick about 25 yards from goal. Substitute winger Stuart Campbell lifted it into our area, where centre-back Jonathan Fortune's header hit the jackpot. Now it was 4-3, and the Daggers fans were no doubt fearing the worst. Three minutes afterwards, midfielder Davy Byrne had the chance to seal a 4-4 draw for Grimsby and deny us back-to-back victory. The Irishman escaped our defence and got on the end of Nick Wright's right-wing cross... but volleyed it over the bar. What a let-off. Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (Rusk 33,pen58, Rankin 43, Winter 72) Grimsby Town - 3 (Elliott 4, Jenkins 54, Fortune 85) Division 1, Attendance 7,998 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 23rd, Grimsby 14th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville (Brooker), Nelson, Navarro, Mayo; Rusk, Barrett (McLean), Osman (Carter); Winter; Beckett, Rankin. BOOKED: Nelson. You wait months for a win, and suddenly you get two in a row! We were now off the bottom - thank you, Kidderminster - and only five points adrift of safety! Perhaps the great escape was on! The following weekend saw us travel to Luton in a more confident mood than we'd been in for some time. This was likely to be a scrappy contest against the team who had scored and conceded fewer goals than any other Division 1 side this season. The Hatters' last four matches had all finished 1-0 - with three of them going in their favour. 11 NOVEMBER 2006: Luton Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge The first half of this match was all about Luton striker Lee Hughes, who was capped once by England in 2002 while playing for Coventry. He didn't look like an international centre-forward when two of his shots midway through the period were blazed wide, but he was just warming up. In the 37th minute, Luton's Welsh winger Paul Parry played an excellent cross into our penalty area. It had been midfielder Neil Barrett's job to mark Hughes out of the game, but Neil lost his man at just the wrong time - and a simple tap-in left us trailing. Needless to say, Barrett would not be returning for the second half. Our struggles continued seven minutes after the restart, when a shin injury took centre-back Michael Nelson out of the game. David Brooker took his place and actually did a pretty decent job, despite being a more natural full-back. The Hatters could not score again, but a series of mistakes from Barrett's replacement Des Hamilton meant we could not get any counter-attacks going. After successive wins, we were back to losing ways. Luton Town - 1 (Hughes 37) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 9,428 - POSITIONS: Luton 11th, Dag & Red 23rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville, Nelson (Brooker), Navarro, Mayo; Rusk, Barrett (Hamilton), Osman; Winter (Kyle); Beckett, Rankin. BOOKED: Mayo. After our 13th league defeat of the season, I was now becoming incredibly intolerant of any shirkers or primadonnas at this club. In all honesty, Des Hamilton had put in an especially shocking performance after coming on for the second half. When I fined Des a week's wages and he complained about it, I decided that enough was enough - and cancelled his contract on the spot. Peter Hawkins' time at Dagenham was also up. After making just one league appearance this season, the full-back was sent to Wycombe on a free transfer. After another week of intensive training, we faced arguably our biggest match of the season so far - against Walsall, who were six points ahead of us in 21st place, having played a game more. With captain Lee Matthews making a timely return from injury, this game would surely show me if we had it in us to survive. 18 NOVEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Walsall Despite their lowly position, this was a talented and cosmopolitan Walsall team, starring the likes of Tonton Zola Moukoko in midfield and Slovenia international Oskar Drobne up front. They also - rather confusingly - had a goalkeeper called Lee Matthews, who was beaten by an Isaiah Rankin header in the 27th minute. At least our Lee Matthews was delighted with that one! We carried a narrow lead into the second half, but by the 58th minute, the Saddlers were blazing a trail towards our goal. Moukoko's long-ranger was pushed behind by Robert Green for a corner, which the Swedish ex-wonderkid swung into our box. Dagenham midfielder Craig Winter managed to clear Drobne's shot off the goal line, but he could do nothing to stop the follow-up from Iceland centre-half Òlafur Örn Bjarnason. 1-1. Both Lee Matthewses were severely tested over the next 13 minutes, until another Walsall defender broke through with a potentially decisive strike. Bahrain wing-back Salman Isa Ghuloom leapt onto a cross from England Under-21s midfielder Craig Ward, and his header looked to have won the game for the Black Country boys. But there would be one more twist in this relegation battle. Winter continued his return to form with a powerful shot that found its way past Walsall's former Arsenal goalkeeper, saving us a crucial point. Perhaps we should have had more than that, but when you're fighting the drop, you've got to take what you can get. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Rankin 27, Winter 86) Walsall - 2 (Bjarnason 58, Isa Ghuloom 71) Division 1, Attendance 7,993 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 23rd, Walsall 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville, Navarro, Matthews, Brooker (Ryan); Rusk, Barrett, Osman (Carter); Winter; Beckett (Kyle), Rankin. Craig Winter's late equaliser was a godsend for us... and a fateful blow for Walsall's manager David Platt, who was sacked just moments later. Our next match was another relegation six-pointer at Victoria Road. We were only one place below Division 2 champions Norwich last season... and the Canaries were one place ahead of us again in the Division 1 relegation spots. If we could take the spoils this time around, we would move just one point behind them. 22 NOVEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Norwich City Norwich had played nine away matches in the league so far this season and had lost the lot... but that didn't stop the Canaries from pushing forward throughout the first half. Fortunately, we were spared by a series of narrow misses from their front three of Nathan Tyson, John Sutton and Dean Sinclair. At the other end, Luke Beckett headed over our only chance in the 39th minute. The Canaries got even closer to our goal early in the second half, when Dagenham keeper Robert Green had to bail us out with three classy saves. Sadly, the one mistake he did make in the 60th minute was a very costly one. Green charged from his line to try and claim Stephen Clemence's cross, only to be easily beaten by Sutton's header. After Norwich's opener, John Toshack told his team to slow play down and keep their cool. Sinclair didn't heed the call, as a confrontation with Neil Barrett eight minutes later ended in our midfielder being shoved to the turf! The red card came out, Sinclair was off, and we had a great opportunity to fight back! It hadn't been a good afternoon for Beckett, who was subbed off for Junior McDougald just after Sutton's opener. Junior played the supersub role to a tee in the 83rd minute. McDougald drove Kerry Mayo's cross low and hard past City keeper David Lucas to give us another dramatic late draw... at home... to another bottom-four team. Not great, is it? Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (McDougald 83) Norwich City - 1 (Sutton 60) Division 1, Attendance 7,534 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 23rd, Norwich 22nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Rusk (Carter), Barrett, Osman; Winter (Weekes); Beckett (McDougald), Rankin. The fighting spirit we were showing was giving me hope that we could turn things around... but for how long? We finished the month at Turf Moor, where 3rd-placed Burnley were hot favourites to give us a ninth defeat in 10 away league games. 25 NOVEMBER 2006: Burnley vs Dagenham & Redbridge Robert Green knew from the start that he would be in for a busy afternoon. Green's fingertip save kept Burnley striker Ian Moore off the scoresheet after just eight minutes. The follow-up corner from Russia midfielder Vladislav Radimov also caused issues, but Green punched it clear. The Clarets' onslaught continued in the 24th minute. Zema Abbey crossed from the left, and getting on the end of his delivery was right wing-back Michael Cummins, whose header made it 1-0 to Sam Allardyce's men. We had chances to get back in the game in the second half, only to be constantly let down by wayward finishing. Even if one of those shots had found the net, though, it wouldn't have really made the difference. Burnley captain Dimitris Papadopoulos had effectively secured a 2-0 win for the hosts three minutes later by nodding in a cross from Kevin de Vet. Any more defeats like this, and we'll probably need Kevin the Vet to euthanise this team and put it out of its misery. Burnley - 2 (Cummins 24, Papadopoulos 48) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 17,994 - POSITIONS: Burnley 3rd, Dag & Red 23rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green; Navarro, Nelson, Matthews; Prenderville, Mayo; Osman, Barrett (Rusk), Carter; Beckett, Rankin (McDougald). BOOKED: Nelson. And now we were seven points adrift in the relegation places. Those glimmers of optimism we had after beating West Brom and Grimsby were now a distant memory. Edited March 24 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 27, 2022 Author Share Posted December 27, 2022 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of November 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Notts Co 20 8 0 2 18 10 5 4 1 16 10 43 2nd Sunderland 20 8 2 0 28 10 4 3 3 16 15 41 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Burnley 20 9 2 0 27 9 3 3 3 16 15 41 4th Birmingham 20 8 1 1 25 11 3 3 4 24 23 37 5th Brentford 20 4 6 0 21 13 4 3 3 16 9 33 6th Preston 19 4 4 2 15 12 5 2 2 11 9 33 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Chesterfield 20 7 0 3 17 11 3 3 4 11 16 33 8th W.B.A. 20 7 0 3 20 10 3 2 5 12 19 32 9th Bradford 20 5 0 5 16 17 5 1 4 19 15 31 10th Millwall 20 5 3 2 16 10 3 3 4 15 15 30 11th Sheff Utd 20 5 3 2 18 13 3 3 4 15 16 30 12th Luton 19 5 3 2 6 4 3 3 3 6 8 30 13th Charlton 20 4 2 4 14 14 5 1 4 17 18 30 14th Fulham 20 5 2 3 16 11 4 0 6 8 10 29 15th Grimsby 20 6 1 3 19 13 3 0 7 14 26 28 16th Crewe 19 4 1 4 18 17 4 1 5 10 12 26 17th Coventry 20 5 1 4 18 15 3 1 6 13 24 26 18th Derby 19 4 3 2 21 15 1 2 7 16 24 20 19th Nottm Forest 20 4 3 3 15 13 1 2 7 10 24 20 20th Port Vale 20 2 2 6 12 20 3 2 5 16 19 19 21st Norwich 20 4 4 2 14 13 0 1 9 4 19 17 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Walsall 20 3 1 5 13 20 1 3 7 16 27 16 23rd Dag & Red 20 2 3 5 15 19 0 1 9 7 19 10 24th Kidderminster 20 1 3 6 11 17 0 3 7 9 21 9 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Premiership frontrunners Manchester United are held to a 0-0 draw at Manchester City - but the post-match headlines are not about the result. United playmaker David Beckham is substituted at half-time, and manager Hélio dos Anjos angrily kicks a boot at him in the dressing room. Beckham leaves Maine Road with a conspicuous stitch above his left eyebrow, and rumours swirl that he may soon be moving to Spain. As newly-capped England playmaker Michael Jack sets the Premiership alight for Arsenal, the Gunners add further flair to their midfield by signing Barcelona's Boudewijn Zenden for £4.8million. Who needs Ray Parlour, anyway? Leeds qualify for the second group phase of the Champions League... but it all goes wrong in their opener. The Whites are thrashed 6-0 at Club Brugge, and captain Rio Ferdinand is controversially sent off after allegedly pushing Wesley Sonck. After Ferdinand is shown the red card, Sonck grins and tells him, "Vous avez été merked." Barcelona also suffer a humiliating Champions League defeat, as Inter prevail 5-0 at the San Siro, despite Ronaldo missing the game with a papercut. Nonetheless, it's still a month to remember for 19-year-old Barça striker Lionel Messi, who leads La Liga's Golden Boot race and then earns his first Argentina cap in a friendly win over Germany. Inter's thrashing of Barcelona comes just three days after a huge victory in Serie A, as Adriano's double ends Roma's unbeaten start and sends the Nerazzurri to the top of the table. Meanwhile, mid-table regulars Vicenza - who inflicted Inter's only league defeat last month - continue their impressive form and climb into 2nd place. IN OTHER NEWS... Legendary Hungary and Real Madrid forward Ferenc Puskás dies aged 79. Regarded by many as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Puskás was the talisman of the ‘Magical Magyars’ team that famously defeated England 6-3 at Wembley in 1953 and then reached the World Cup Final a year later. The latest James Bond film "Casino Royale" is released, with Daniel Craig making his debut as 007. Though fans are immediately sceptical about seeing a blond Bond, Craig emphatically woos over the doubters and the movie receives widespread critical acclaim. There's a more real and far more serious spy story in London, where former KGB officer Alexander Litvinenko dies from suspected radiation poisoning. Litvinenko defected from Russia to the United Kingdom in 2000 and had accused Vladimir Putin of conspiring to murder his critics - including the journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was killed in Moscow last month. Nintendo launches its new Wii console, which has a wireless motion-sensing remote control. It is great news for rivals Sony, as clumsy wannabe tennis players help bring new TV sales to an all-time high. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 (edited) DECEMBER 2006 It's not an exaggeration to say that our home game against Kidderminster on 2 December was the biggest game we had ever played in Division 1. Sitting seven points adrift in the relegation zone, we knew that our survival prospects would look grim if we couldn't take maximum points against the only team below us in the table. Kidderminster had enjoyed a meteoric rise through the leagues, but they were suffering from a severe bout of 'second-season syndrome' in the second tier. Since beating Port Vale 4-2 at home on the opening day, the Harriers had failed to win any of their next 19 league matches - losing 13 of them. 2 DECEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Kidderminster Harriers Luke Beckett hadn't scored since mid-October, and his misfortune continued in the 9th minute. After volleying a Leon Osman flick-on against the bar, Beckett wide another chance from Alan McLean's cross. Our frustration grew when visiting forward David Collins found the net from Kidderminster's first attack on 29 minutes - but our blushes were spared by the offside flag. The Harriers' first actual shot on target came in the 57th minute. Captain Baichung Bhutia - arguably India's greatest ever footballer - saw his header turned away by Robert Green, who otherwise had little to do and kept a surprisingly easy clean sheet. Though we did put together some promising attacks, we lacked the killer touch needed to break the deadlock. Until the 77th minute, that was. Ryan Carter sliced the Kidderminster defence open and found Isaiah Rankin, whose volley was pushed away by goalkeeper Andy Pettinger, Izzy then thundered in the rebound, earning us three precious points! Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Rankin 77) Kidderminster Harriers - 0 Division 1, Attendance 7,988 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 23rd, Kidderminster 24th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville (Worrell), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; McLean, Carter, Rusk (Weekes); Osman (Winter); Beckett, Rankin. Not a great performance, but still a priceless win that moved us a bit closer towards the safety zone. Now, though, we would have to address our away day demons. We had played 10 league matches on the road and lost nine, with a solitary draw coming at Derby on 9 September. Exactly three months to the day, we were back in Derbyshire for a daunting contest with 6th-placed Chesterfield. 9 DECEMBER 2006: Chesterfield vs Daegnham & Redbridge Chesterfield came out on the attack straight away, with midfielder Leon Bell heading a very early chance wide. They would have better luck with their next attack on 11 minutes. Left-back Paul Boertien nodded the ball down to play in an unmarked Andy Rushbury, and the homegrown striker hit a simple finish. We launched a strong response to falling behind, piling pressure on the Spireites' defence. Eventually, in the 34th minute, Craig Winter got us back level by half-volleying Ryan Carter's delivery beyond the reach of goalkeeper Gary Martin. Green then kept out an effort from Bell late in the first half to maintain parity at the break. Green continued to excel in the second half, regularly thwarting anything that Chesterfield could fire at us. Bryan Robson's hosts were dominating the midfield, though, so I switched to my 'Plan B' - go back to a standard 4-4-2 and bypass their midfield with fast-paced, direct attacking play. The match was still level in the 81st minute when I decided to make one last gamble - bench our goalscorer Winter, and throw on Leon Osman in his place. It was a switch that would pay dividends seven minutes later. Fellow substitute Kevin Kyle was 30 yards from goal when he spotted Osman making a run into the penalty area. Kevin chipped the ball up to Leon, whose volley earned us another late winner - and perhaps our most important one yet! Chesterfield - 1 (Rushbury 11) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Winter 34, Osman 88) Division 1, Attendance 5,887 - POSITIONS: Chesterfield 8th, Dag & Red 23rd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; McLean (Barrett), Rusk, Carter; Winter (Osman); Beckett (Kyle), Rankin. BOOKED: Barrett. After our first away win this season, we watched the FA Cup Round 3 draw. We were the second team drawn out of the proverbial hat - and were given a trip to Division 2 mid-tablers Shrewsbury. That looks winnable to me. Perhaps we might reach Round 4 for the first time... Having spent many months tinkering my team in the hope that something would work, it was my pleasure to name an unchanged starting line-up for the visit of Millwall. The Lions had spent the previous three seasons struggling in the bottom half, but they were now setting their sights on a play-off challenge. 16 DECEMBER 2006: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Millwall Millwall's counter-attacking game in the first half was so ferocious that Dennis Wise was probably wondering why his team failed to score. A lot of the credit had to go to our keeper Robert Green, whose return to form continued with a couple of blinding saves to keep left-winger Wasiu Taiwo and striker Neil Harris off the scoresheet. Captain Lee Matthews also enjoyed a good game and organised the defence well to withstand the Lions' attacks. By the second half, Millwall had started to lose their way, and we began to take control of the midfield battles. At the heart of that was Simon Rusk, who helped us to take the lead against the run of play after 59 minutes. Rusk's long throw was collected by Isaiah Rankin, who dribbled past Lions defenders Clint Hill and Gareth Blackwell before hitting a clinical finish. Three minutes later after going a goal up, though, we almost went a man down. Rusk was already on a booking when he dived in hard on Millwall midfielder Phil Stamp, but somehow avoided another. Moments later, left-back Kerry Mayo appeared to eyeball Stamp, for which he escaped with only a yellow card himself. I had to calm my players down before they really lost it, and the final half-hour thankfully passed without a red card - or an equaliser. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Rankin 59) Millwall - 0 Division 1, Attendance 7,951 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 22nd, Millwall 11th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Navarro (Bell), Matthews, Mayo; McLean, Rusk (Barrett), Carter; Winter; Beckett (Kyle), Rankin. BOOKED: Rusk, Navarro, Mayo. Three wins in a row, and up to third-from-bottom! The great escape is on, folks! Sadly, our momentum took a knock when two midfielders were injured ahead of our pre-Christmas trip to division leaders Notts County. Ryan Carter would miss that game with a twisted knee, while a groin strain sidelined Leon Osman until the new year. 23 DECEMBER 2006: Notts County vs Dagenham & Redbridge Dagenham defender David Navarro almost got us off to the perfect start after four minutes, when his free-kick was brilliantly punched away by Stephen Mildenhall. Notts County then launched a quick counter-attack, from which their wonderkid forward Gary Anderson set up a fantastic goal for his experienced strike partner Mark Stallard. The Magpies might have stolen the first goal, but when Navarro won another free-kick in the 18th minute, the Spaniard made the most of it. His delivery was finished by 21-year-old Alan McLean, who fired home his first goal this season. Both teams had chances later on, but at half-time, the scoreline remained 1-1. Then, just three minutes into the second half, disaster struck for Navarro - Alan Navarro, that is. The Notts County defender was already carrying a booking for conceding the free-kick that led to his namesake David's assist. When Alan Navarro mistimed a sliding tackle that wiped Luke Beckett, he was shown his second yellow card, reducing the Magpies to 10 men! We capitalised on that mistake to take a decisive lead in the 54th minute. Shortly after his header was cleared off the County goal line by Andy Johnson, Daggers skipper Lee Matthews tried his luck again from a Kerry Mayo corner - and this time, there was nothing the hosts could do about it! That was also Matthews' first goal of the campaign, but it was enough to claim our biggest scalp so far! Notts County - 1 (Stallard 5) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (McLean 18, Matthews 54) Division 1, Attendance 9,928 - POSITIONS: Notts County 2nd, Dag & Red 22nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; McLean, Rusk, Barrett; Winter (Foley-Sheridan); Beckett (Kyle), Rankin (Bell). This was truly incredible. When we opened the first window of our advent calendar, we had as much chance of survival as a Christmas turkey. Three-and-a-half weeks later, we would be unwrapping our presents under the tree knowing that were now just one point behind Norwich in 21st place! That said, I did tell my players to go easy on the eggnog. We were back in Nottingham on Boxing Day, facing an in-form Forest side who had also gone undefeated in their last four games. 26 DECEMBER 2006: Nottingham Forest vs Dagenham & Redbridge Despite being much lower in the table than their city rivals, Nottingham Forest looked far more assured on the ball and dictated play from the first whistle. Our defenders initially held firm against Forest's constant attacks, but they eventually buckled in the 21st minute, when wing-back Andy Reid deftly flicked the ball out right for Welsh workhorse midfielder Robert Evans to score. At that point, I decided to revert to a direct 4-4-2, which had played such a big role in our comeback at Chesterfield. Attacking midfielder Craig Winter was sacrificed to bring Michael Foley-Sheridan onto the left wing, with Neil Barrett moving to the right. Of course, the gamble almost immediately blew up in our faces, as Evans scored again barely a minute later. And then the floodgates burst open. Forest increased their lead to 3-0 with a 28th-minute volley from Gary Glasgow, who - as the name suggests - is from Trinidad & Tobago. Maybe he’s good friends with Jason Scotland? Former England Under-21s midfielder Jermaine Jenas then completed the 11-minute goal rush, giving the Tricky Trees an insurmountable 4-0 lead after just 32 minutes! Those few hundred Dagenhamites who’d made the three-hour journey up the M1 were probably wishing they’d stayed at home for the holidays! Forest coasted through the rest of the match without breaking a sweat. With the match now completely out of our control, we resorted to damage limitation, and managed to survive the second half without conceding again. That was pretty much the only positive we could take from such a pitiful result. Nottingham Forest - 4 (Evans 21,22, Glasgow 28, Jenas 32) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 8,965 - POSITIONS: Nottm Forest 17th, Dag & Red 22nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Navarro, Matthews (Bell), Mayo; McLean, Rusk, Barrett; Winter (Foley-Sheridan); Beckett, Rankin (McDougald). Erm... how did that happen? Did we just completely switch off for about 10 minutes? It was just as well Norwich also lost their game at Port Vale, otherwise all our good work from the previous weeks would have been completely undone. Some harsh words were exchanged in the dressing room, and the lads knew that they had to make amends in our next match. We exited 2006 by entering The Valley - and facing off against a resurgent Charlton side who'd scored 11 goals in their last three games. 30 DECEMBER 2006: Charlton Athletic vs Dagenham & Redbridge We had ourselves a penalty after just eight minutes, when right-back David Worrell's cross was handled in the Charlton box by Addicks centre-half Alan Tate. Simon Rusk took his second spot-kick of the season, and - just like with his first one against Grimsby last month - the goalkeeper was soundly beaten. 1-0 to the Daggers. Unfortunately, Charlton striker Darren Huckerby soon knocked us back down a couple of pegs. Huckerby assisted journeyman midfielder Justin Walker for the hosts' equalising goal in the 13th minute, and then gave them the lead with an excellent pot-shot in the 18th. It was a chastening experience for our young centre-back Simon Bell, whose weak tackling hadn't put Huckerby under enough pressure. Charlton retained their 2-1 lead all the way up to the 76th minute... and then Huckerby doubled it with his second assist. The beneficiary this time was attacking midfielder Alan Pouton, who dribbled past Daggers left-back Robbie Ryan before skidding a shot across the wet pitch and beyond Robert Green's reach. Junior McDougald grabbed us a second goal four minutes from the end, taking advantage of an impressive pass from 20-year-old substitute midfielder Paul Graham. Sadly, it couldn't inspire us to a late comeback, as 'flying Dutchman' Romano Denneboom had the last laugh by scoring Charlton's fourth goal. We'd now shipped eight goals in the space of five days. Charlton Athletic - 4 (Walker 13, Huckerby 18, Pouton 76, Denneboom 90) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Rusk pen8, McDougald 86) Division 1, Attendance 7,656 - POSITIONS: Charlton 5th, Dag & Red 22nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Bell (Navarro), Matthews, Ryan; Carter, Rusk (Graham), Barrett; Winter (Rankin); Beckett, McDougald. So much for that post-Christmas optimism. Back-to-back defeats - combined with Norwich's 3-0 win at Birmingham - left us four points adrift of safety again. If there was any consolation, it was that Walsall and Kidderminster were somehow doing even worse than us. It's still a big ask to pull ourselves out of the danger zone. We just have to start believing again. Edited March 24 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 (edited) DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of December 2006) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Notts Co 26 10 0 3 24 15 6 4 3 22 17 52 2nd Sunderland 26 11 3 0 37 13 4 3 5 19 22 51 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Brentford 26 7 6 1 27 16 6 3 3 20 10 48 4th Burnley 26 10 3 1 34 14 4 3 5 19 19 48 5th Charlton 26 7 2 4 22 17 7 2 4 27 24 46 6th Birmingham 26 9 2 3 31 17 4 4 4 30 24 45 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Preston 25 5 4 3 18 19 6 4 3 16 13 41 8th Coventry 26 7 1 4 20 15 6 1 7 19 27 41 9th W.B.A. 26 8 1 3 23 12 4 3 7 16 27 40 10th Chesterfield 26 8 0 6 24 21 4 4 4 14 17 40 11th Sheff Utd 26 8 3 3 27 19 3 3 6 15 18 39 12th Millwall 26 6 3 4 21 17 4 3 6 17 19 36 13th Crewe 25 5 1 5 19 18 6 2 6 13 16 36 14th Luton 25 7 3 4 8 7 3 3 5 7 11 36 15th Bradford 26 5 2 5 18 19 5 2 7 21 23 34 16th Port Vale 26 5 2 7 21 26 5 2 5 20 21 34 17th Derby 25 7 4 2 31 21 2 2 8 17 27 33 18th Fulham 26 5 4 5 17 15 4 2 6 9 11 33 19th Nottm Forest 26 6 4 3 23 14 2 3 8 17 29 31 20th Grimsby 26 6 2 4 19 14 3 1 10 16 34 30 21st Norwich 26 5 4 3 18 15 2 1 11 11 24 26 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Dag & Red 26 4 3 5 17 19 2 1 11 13 29 22 23rd Walsall 26 3 2 7 16 25 1 3 10 20 36 17 24th Kidderminster 26 1 3 8 13 22 0 3 11 12 30 9 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... After falling out with Manchester United boss Hélio dos Anjos, midfield megastar David Beckham gets his dream move to La Liga, joining Barcelona for £14.25million. As Javier Saviola won't give up the number 7 shirt, Becks picks a different number in honour of basketball legend Michael Jordan, who wore the number 12 for one match in 1990. United's post-Beckham era gets off to a rocky start, as they concede three late goals at Chelsea and then lose the Premiership lead with a 3-1 defeat at Arsenal. The Gunners' Boxing Day stalemate at Liverpool sees the Red Devils regain top spot by beating West Ham... but their dominance of English football remains under threat. After sliding into the Premiership relegation zone by going 10 matches without a win, Southampton sack manager Lennie Lawrence and bring in Guus Hiddink. The Dutchman returns to Europe after his recent adventures in South Korea and Brazil - and a 1-0 home win over Middlesbrough raises the Saints' hopes of escaping the drop. Following a six-month stint at Bayern München, Argentine club-hopper Ariel Ortega makes a £9.75million move to Ajax - his sixth club since 2002. Before making his Eredivisie debut, Ortega demands another transfer when his new team-mate Andriy Shevchenko says, "Hello." Vicenza's Serie A fairytale continues when 19-year-old Augusto Monti's first senior goal defeats Roma at the Olimpico - and sends the Biancorossi to the top of the table! Meanwhile, Leverkusen lose their Bundesliga lead in spectacular style by suffering consecutive defeats against Kaiserslautern, Dortmund and Bayern - a run which sees Dortmund pull five points clear. IN OTHER NEWS... Iraq's former President Saddam Hussein is executed by hanging. The 69-year-old was convicted last month of crimes against humanity, specifically relating to the massacre of 148 Shia Muslims in the town of Dujail in 1982. In a bad month for deposed dictators, Chile's General Augusto Pinochet dies of heart failure aged 91. Music pioneer James Brown does not feel good on Christmas Day, when the 'Godfather of Soul' dies from pneumonia aged 73. Former US President Gerald Ford - who succeeded Richard Nixon in 1974 - makes it to Boxing Day before finally succumbing to cardiovascular disease at the age of 93. A new singing star is born, as receptionist Leona Lewis becomes the first woman to win "The X Factor". The 21-year-old Londoner immediately enjoys a Christmas Number 1 hit with her debut single "A Moment Like This". Hold on, that song sounds familiar... Australia’s cricketers demolish England to regain the Ashes. Shane Warne takes a record 700th Test wicket to dismiss Andrew Strauss in the 4th Test, and then announces his international retirement at the end of the series. Edited December 30, 2022 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 3, 2023 Author Share Posted January 3, 2023 JANUARY 2007 Dagenham & Redbridge's push for Division 1 survival continued on New Year's Day. We sat four points inside the bottom three as we prepared to welcome Derby, who were themselves scrapping to avoid being dragged into the relegation scrap. After holding the Rams to a goalless draw at Pride Park in September, we were hopeful of going one better at Victoria Road. 1 JANUARY 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Derby County After just six minutes, things were already looking good for the Daggers. Alan McLean won a free-kick about 20 yards from the Derby goal after being brought down by Rams midfielder Siyabonga Nomvethe. Our free-kick specialist David Navarro came forward from the defence to take it... and sent a stunner right into Terje Skjeldestad's top-left corner! Derby looked for an equaliser throughout the first half, with star striker Malcolm Christie wasting a golden opportunity in the 19th minute. County had better luck five minutes from half-time, when they won a free-kick within shooting range. Horacio Angel Carbonari's set-piece cleared our defence and found Nomvethe, who redeemed himself with a great header. It looked like we would go into the break stewing over that equaliser... but a stoppage-time foul on Craig Winter gave us one more opportunity before the half-time whistle. Navarro's free-kick might have been 25 yards from goal this time, but that didn't faze the Spaniard, who unleashed another belting strike! Our 2-1 advantage lasted until the 54th minute, when Richard Hinds’ mazy run ended with the Derby midfielder scoring their second equaliser. That didn't break our spirit, as we moved back ahead from yet another set-piece in the 66th minute. Kerry Mayo's corner was finished by midfielder Neil Barrett, who picked just the right time to bag his first Daggers goal! Three minutes later, however, our two-goal hero lost his cool. Navarro shoved Derby's left-back and captain Tero Penttilä to the turf and was shown a straight red card. Michael Nelson came off the bench to replace midfielder Paul Graham and fill the defensive hole for the final 20 minutes, which thankfully passed by without Derby levelling for a third time. A priceless victory moved us just four points behind 21st-placed Norwich, who had drawn 0-0 at Sheffield United. Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Navarro 6,45, Barrett 66) Derby County - 2 (Nomvethe 40, Hinds 54) Division 1, Attendance 7,956 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 22nd, Derby 19th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell (Brooker), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Graham (Nelson), Barrett, McLean; Winter (Foley-Sheridan); Beckett, Rankin. SENT OFF: Navarro. What a game for David Navarro - two goals and a red card! The latter meant that he would be suspended from our next home game against Port Vale on 20 January. We then took a brief detour from our relegation battle, and headed to Gay Meadow to play Shrewsbury in Round 3 of the FA Cup. The Shrews were enjoying another solid top-half season in Division 2 and had won their previous four matches, so this wouldn't be an easy tie at all. 6 JANUARY 2007: Shrewsbury Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge Shrewsbury began the match like a team in top form. They took just three minutes to breach our defence, as centre-back Craig Taylor's knockdown was finished with aplomb by ex-Stoke and Bournemouth midfielder Lewis Neal. We looked totally floored by the Shrews' rapid start to the match, and our shock only grew in the 25th minute. The hosts' leading scorer Neil Somerville made a mug of Daggers right-back Barry Prenderville, and then hammered in a fierce shot to double our deficit. Though Somerville blazed his next shot over the bar three minutes later, it already seemed that our FA Cup adventure would be a short one. At half-time, I replaced Prenderville with youngster David Brooker and barked orders at the rest of the team. I might as well have been shouting at the dressing room walls. A dismal display hit a new low in the 53rd minute, when a flowing attacking move from Shrewsbury was finished by Ryan Lowe. It was now 3-0, and we had been completely outclassed. Shrewsbury Town - 3 (Neal 3, Somerville 25, Lowe 53) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 FA Cup Round 3, Attendance 7,970 DAG & RED LINE-UP (3-5-2): Green; Bell, Nelson (Winter), Matthews; Prenderville (Brooker), Mayo; Carter, Barrett, McLean; Beckett, McDougald (Kyle). Now that was just embarrassing. It had become clear that certain players just didn't have the bottle to play regularly for this club. More determined characters were needed in the squad. A few days later, I equalled the club's transfer record - and spent £300,000 to sign Leyton Orient's defensive midfielder Steven Sidwell. The 24-year-old former Arsenal youth player had spent the past two seasons with the Division 3 club, and his intelligent and energetic play had won many admirers at Brisbane Road. Sidwell made his Daggers bow the following weekend at Bradford. Despite their clinical 3-1 win at Victoria Road earlier in the campaign, John Gregory's Bantams had struggled for consistency and found themselves in mid-table. 13 JANUARY 2007: Bradford City vs Dagenham & Redbridge We took the game to Bradford in the 11th minute, and there were calls for a Dagenham penalty when Isaiah Rankin was wiped out by a slide tackle from Bantams defender Scott Young. After deliberating with his assistant for a couple of minutes, the referee eventually pointed to the spot - and Ryan Carter's penalty was as cool as they came! 1-0 Daggers! Rankin could have put us further ahead later on, but this was one of his more wasteful afternoons in front of goal. While Bradford had taken advantage of such profligacy in our last meeting, things were rather different this time around. After 33 minutes, an excellent shot from City midfielder Gary Holt was well saved by Robert Green before new boy Steven Sidwell cleared the danger. There was another scare seven minutes later, when David Livermore hit the post. The woodwork sadly prevented Luke Beckett from doubling the Daggers' lead in the 51st minute. Our resident Yorkshireman had another couple of attempts against his compatriots five minutes later, but Bradford's Belgian keeper Erwin Lemmens managed to thwart him both times. At the other end, Green saw off late shots from Wales defender Young and Denmark forward Henrik Pedersen. Rob's brilliant goalkeeping had kept our narrow lead intact - and secured just our third away win this season! Bradford City - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Carter pen13) Division 1, Attendance 14,524 - POSITIONS: Bradford 17th, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Carter (Winter), Sidwell, McLean (Barrett); Osman; Beckett (Kyle), Rankin. BOOKED: Carter, Navarro. While we celebrated our second league win in a row, Norwich were being narrowly beaten 1-0 at Fulham. With those results, we leapfrogged the Canaries into 21st place - and were outside the relegation places for the first time since the very early stages of the season! On that triumphant note, Neil Barrett took his leave and headed back to Charlton. The defensive midfielder had made 20 appearances for the Daggers during his four-month loan, and while Neil's performances weren't amazing, the determination he'd shown throughout his stay hadn't gone unnoticed. I was certainly grateful for his contributions. Because of our early FA Cup exit, our next match at home to mid-table Port Vale was our last fixture this month. With Navarro suspended, youngster Simon Bell took his place at centre-half alongside the ever-reliable veteran Lee Matthews. What could possibly go wrong? 20 JANUARY 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Port Vale If Robert Green was at his best against Bradford, this match saw the Dagenham goalkeeper at his very worst. Things went downhill for Green as early as the fifth minute, when a tame header from Port Vale defender Pierre Issa somehow found its way past him. By the 29th minute, the visitors had surged into a two-goal lead. Daggers left-back Kerry Mayo was skinned by veteran midfielder Martin Thomas, who then laid on a fine low cross for wing-back Wayne Corden, who celebrated his 250th league appearance for Vale by finding the net. That was quite some going for the Valiants, whose young sweeper Tom Laws had been forced off with an injury just moments beforehand. Our first attack after falling 2-0 behind gave me encouragement. Steven Sidwell scored 35 minutes into his Victoria Road debut, elegantly controlling Luke Beckett's flick-on before unleashing a cool low finish. It was sadly rendered meaningless six minutes later, when Vale substitute Delapo Olaoye headed home to put clear daylight between the teams once again. By the 64th minute, any slim hopes of recovering from a 3-1 deficit to take even a draw had been snuffed out. Olaoye outjumped a despairing Green to head in Thomas' free-kick for his second goal of the afternoon - and Port Vale's fourth. In fairness, the rest of our team hadn't played that badly. We had 57% of possession and managed five shots on target compared to seven for the visitors. While Valiants keeper Chris Stringer had done brilliantly to stop us from scoring more than one goal, our goalie had been nothing short of a liability. Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Sidwell 35) Port Vale - 4 (Issa 5, Corden 29, Olaoye 41,64) Division 1, Attendance 7,656 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 22nd, Port Vale 13th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Bell, Matthews, Mayo (Ryan); Carter, Sidwell, McLean (Rusk); Osman (Winter); Beckett, Rankin. Why does this keep on happening? As soon it looks like we've turned a corner, Robert Green has one of his howlers and sends the whole team straight back to square one! After the game, I had a long chat with Port Vale's manager David Kemp. I was interested in signing Vale's 22-year-old left-back Lee Fox, who had been a regular starter in their promotion-winning campaign but had recently fallen out of favour. This is how the negotiations went: "Alright, Dave. We'll offer you £350,000 - spread out over two years." "Counter-offer. £170,000 up front." "And?" "That's it. 170 grand." "Really? You want us to give you HALF of our original offer? Okay, Dave. If you say so..." I'm not quite sure what was going on in Kemp's mind there, but I'm pretty sure we've fleeced him there. Fox is strong, powerful - and certainly a more defensively reliable left-back than either Kerry Mayo or Robbie Ryan. That £170,000 might be money very well spent. Then again, we have already made a few dodgy purchases over the last few months - perhaps none more so than David Brooker. The young right-back had been absolutely shocking in his seven outings for the Daggers, recording an average match rating of just 5.86. Barely three months after signing Brooker from Utrecht for £200,000, I flogged him off to their Eredivisie rivals Telstar and got only half that money back. Honestly, I might as well have signed Charlie Brooker. Now go away, David. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 3, 2023 Author Share Posted January 3, 2023 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of January 2007) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Notts Co 29 11 0 3 27 17 6 5 4 26 22 56 2nd Sunderland 29 11 3 1 37 14 5 4 5 23 24 55 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Burnley 29 10 3 2 34 15 5 3 6 20 21 51 4th Brentford 29 8 6 1 29 17 6 3 5 21 15 51 5th Charlton 29 8 2 4 25 18 7 3 5 30 28 50 6th Birmingham 29 10 2 3 36 18 4 4 6 33 30 48 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Preston 29 6 5 3 20 20 6 5 4 19 17 46 8th W.B.A. 29 10 1 3 29 15 4 3 8 17 30 46 9th Crewe 29 7 2 5 23 20 7 2 6 14 16 46 10th Coventry 29 8 2 4 24 17 6 1 8 20 30 45 11th Chesterfield 29 9 0 6 27 22 4 4 6 15 20 43 12th Sheff Utd 29 8 4 3 29 21 3 5 6 15 18 42 13th Port Vale 29 5 3 7 24 29 7 2 5 25 22 41 14th Derby 29 9 4 2 35 21 2 3 9 22 33 40 15th Nottm Forest 29 8 4 3 30 17 3 3 8 18 29 40 16th Fulham 29 6 4 5 18 15 5 3 6 13 14 40 17th Millwall 29 6 4 5 23 20 4 3 7 18 21 37 18th Bradford 29 6 2 6 21 22 5 2 8 22 26 37 19th Luton 29 7 4 4 8 7 3 3 8 7 17 37 20th Grimsby 29 6 3 5 20 16 3 2 10 16 34 32 21st Norwich 29 6 5 3 20 15 2 1 12 11 25 30 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Dag & Red 29 5 3 6 21 25 3 1 11 14 29 28 23rd Walsall 29 3 3 8 16 27 1 3 11 21 41 18 24th Kidderminster 29 2 3 9 18 26 0 4 11 14 32 13 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Despite losing captain Torsten Frings to Inter for £13.25million, things briefly get better for Arsenal. The Gunners jump back to the top of the Premiership after Manchester United are beaten 1-0 at Old Trafford by Leeds. Whites midfielder Lee Bowyer scores the winning penalty and then sets a new league record - by receiving his 16th yellow card of the season, his THIRD red card, and a seven-match ban! A week later, it is Arsenal's turn to fall apart. Having helped the Gunners come back from 2-0 down at Bolton to equalise at 2-2, midfielder Nicky Butt loses his cool and is sent off. Bolton striker Thorstein Helstad then scores a 90th-minute winner, which sends Manchester United back to the top after they beat Sheffield Wednesday. The battle for Serie A supremacy becomes a five-horse race. Milan are in the ascendancy after a successful month in which Gérard Houllier's side beat leaders Vicenza and champions Roma, with Lazio and Inter both just three points behind the Rossoneri. Even 6th-placed Juventus cannot be ruled out after an impressive 4-0 demolition of Roma. Things also look tight in La Liga, where 2nd-placed Real Madrid and 10th-placed Sevilla are separated by just four points at the halfway stage. But while the race for Europe is well and truly on, Barcelona look certain to win a fifth straight championship after going 16 points clear! In 21 league games, Barça have scored 43 goals and conceded 5! Eredivisie leaders Ajax try to help Ariel Ortega settle in by bringing one of his Argentina team-mates to Amsterdam. 29-year-old sweeper Sebastián Méndez comes in from Turkish side Besiktas for £9.5million. Meanwhile, their compatriot winger Luciano Martín Galletti makes a controversial £6million hop from Roma to Lazio. IN OTHER NEWS... Steve Jobs introduces the world to Apple's newest gadget - the iPhone. It's like a regular mobile phone, but you can play games and take photos on it! Eh, you're better off keeping your BlackBerry... There's much drama on "Celebrity Big Brother", where 70s pop star Leo Sayer feels a thunder in his heart, so he walks away from the show. Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty is voted series champion, having received huge public sympathy after allegedly being racially abused by three other housemates. It's a sad day for British sports television, as "Grandstand" ends its 48-year run on the BBC. Renowned for broadcasting a wide variety of sports, it signs off with the greatest event of them all - the World Indoor Bowls Championship in Hopton-on-Sea, Norfolk. Raymond van Barneveld defeats 13-time champion Phil Taylor in the greatest darts match ever to win the World Championship at Purfleet’s Circus Tavern. The 40-year-old Dutchman – who joined the Professional Darts Corporation last year - recovers from losing the first three sets and eventually wins the title in a sudden-death leg. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 6, 2023 Author Share Posted January 6, 2023 FEBRUARY 2007 There were just over three months left in the Division 1 season, and Dagenham & Redbridge's survival was very much on the line. The 4-1 thrashing we'd been handed by Port Vale in our last match was a reminder that we still had lots of work to do to pull ourselves out of danger. February began with a trip to Preston, who were chasing a different goal - promotion to the Premiership, perhaps through the play-offs. However, the Lilywhites were missing their top scorer David Healy, who'd twisted his knee in a recent League Cup Semi Final win over Manchester City. Healy's absence was undoubtedly good news for our defence, including 22-year-old left-back Lee Fox, who made his Daggers debut after his £170,000 transfer from Port Vale. There was also a place on the bench for the highly-rated 17-year-old reserve centre-back John McCourt. 3 FEBRUARY 2007: Preston North End vs Dagenham & Redbridge While Preston's main man was on the treatment table, one of our most prominent players would soon join him. Just eight minutes into the match, Simon Rusk strained his knee ligaments and had to come off. Rusk was ruled out for two weeks - a major blow for a player who'd become a consistently reliable part of our midfield after a shaky start to his Daggers career. Things went better for another of our summer signings. Six minutes before the end of a rather dull first period, Luke Beckett picked up an exquisite 50-yard ball from playmaker Ryan Carter, and then smashed it past Preston keeper Stephen Bywater! With that, we took a 1-0 lead into the break. After struggling through most of the match, the Lilywhites gave us a couple of scares late in the second half. Disaster appeared to have struck in the 78th minute, when Richard Cresswell scored a rebound shot after being initially denied by Daggers goalie Robert Green - but the offside flag came to Rob's rescue. Nine minutes later, it was his crossbar that thwarted home midfielder Paul McKenna, keeping us ahead at the final whistle. Preston North End - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Beckett 39) Division 1, Attendance 13,789 - POSITIONS: Preston 8th, Dag & Red 22nd DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Worrell (Prenderville), Navarro, Matthews, Fox; Sidwell; Carter, Osman, Rusk (Winter); Beckett, Rankin (Kyle). This win wasn't quite enough to take us out of the relegation zone, as Norwich's 1-1 draw at Notts County meant they remained ahead of us only on goal difference. Nonetheless, it felt great to smash and grab a rare away victory after so much disappointment on the road. And though Luke Beckett was back on the scoresheet, I still had some concerns about Isaiah Rankin's form in front of goal. I decided to freshen up our attack by taking Australian youngster Scott McDonald on loan from Southampton for the rest of the season. The 23-year-old was an explosive left-footed centre-forward who won his first Socceroos cap last October, but was struggling to hold down a first-team place at St Mary's. McDonald was my 20th signing of the season, but it was the long-serving Junior McDougald who got the nod to play up front alongside Beckett when we hosted 4th-placed Brentford. Could the now 32-year-old add to his three goals this season and get us another win on the board? 10 FEBRUARY 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Brentford We raced into the lead after just four minutes, with Ryan Carter producing the opening goal for his midfield colleague Alan McLean. Seven minutes later, though, our left-back Lee Fox sustained a dead leg and was unable to carry on. As neither Kerry Mayo nor Robbie Ryan was on the bench, I had to bring on right-back Barry Prenderville to play on the left flank. Our makeshift defence came under severe pressure throughout the next half-hour, with only some solid goalkeeping from Robert Green keeping Brentford from drawing themselves level. Then, in the 34th minute, Green's Bees counterpart Jussi Jääskeläinen miscued a goal kick. Craig Winter intercepted and flicked the ball on to Junior McDougald, whose powerful drive gave us a solid 2-0 advantage. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite as solid by half-time. In stoppage time, Brentford striker Emmanuel Tetteh easily went past Prenderville and floated the ball across goal to Norwegian striker Frode Johnsen, whose header gave the visitors fresh hope. Things got worse in the 53rd minute, when Daggers centre-back David Navarro pulled back on Tetteh's shirt to try and stop the Ghana international having a clear run on goal. Navarro received his second red card of the season, and Michael Nelson replaced Winter to fill the Spaniard's spot in our defence. Three minutes later, a handball from McLean gave Brentford's 11 men their first chance to equalise against our 10. Captain Ijah Anderson stepped up to deliver the free-kick, and veteran forward Andy Cooke headed it home for 2-2. From that point, our defence just fell apart. Tetteh skinned Prenderville again in the 64th minute before delivering another killer cross for Johnsen to score from. 15 minutes after Brentford took the lead, their Norwegian Bees celebrated a treble, as midfielder Georg Jensen joined his countryman on the scoresheet. Having led by two goals until late in the first half, we had now lost by two goals. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (McLean 4, McDougald 34) Brentford - 4 (Johnsen 45,64, Cooke 56, Jensen 79) Division 1, Attendance 7,965 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 22nd, Brentford 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Worrell, Navarro, Matthews, Fox (Prenderville); Carter, Sidwell, McLean; Winter (Nelson); Beckett (McDonald), McDougald. BOOKED: Carter. SENT OFF: Navarro. I've seen us collapse a few times before, but that's our most spectacular one yet. And there's only one person to blame, really. Getting sent off once in a season can be put down to bad luck, but getting sent off twice is simply careless. After the match, David Navarro was handed a four-match ban, a two-week fine – and was demoted to the reserves until further notice. I didn't care if you've been one of our most consistent performers this season, David. You've let me down big time. Meanwhile, our eternal hunt for a half-decent right-back continued, with David Worrell returning to Wolves after a four-month loan spell. I'd already used up all five of our loan signings for the season, so our options were rather limited. We'd spent so much on transfer fees and wages this season that we only had £1million left in the kitty. That was barely enough to sign a mediocre Division 2 right-back, let alone one who could do a job in Division 1. Short of raiding the free transfer market or hoping that the next Cafú would emerge from our youth team, it seemed my only choice was to put all my trust in Barry Prenderville. Bazza's time to shine came against Sunderland, who were just behind frontrunners Burnley on goal difference and had never been outside the top five all season long. Could we survive the inevitable Mackem onslaught? 20 FEBRUARY 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Sunderland Sunderland winger Paul Konchesky almost scored in the 7th minute, when Robert Green had to come out of his area to push the shot away. Two minutes after that scare, we launched a counter-attack through Junior McDougald, whose chip was headed in by strike partner Luke Beckett! That 1-0 advantage only stayed intact until the 14th minute, when the Black Cats sharpened their claws. The visitors' Celtic front two combined to devastating effect, as Scot Robbie Winter's lay-off was finished coolly by Irishman David Connolly. Leon Osman almost restored our lead in the 19th minute, when his diving header struck the post. The Scouser's luck took a turn for the better in the 39th minute, when he lifted in the corner delivery that centre-back Simon Bell headed in for his first Daggers goal. Once again, though, Connolly provided a swift response, beating Green for a second time before the break. Sunderland had lost centre-back Danny Cullip to a leg injury after half an hour, and his aerial abilities were clearly missed when it came to defending set-pieces. After 63 minutes, Osman delivered another devastating corner, which Beckett put away to put our noses in front once again. This time, we stayed in front, claiming a stunning 3-2 win over one of the league's sleeping giants! Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Beckett 9,63, Bell 39) Sunderland - 2 (Connolly 14,45) Division 1, Attendance 7,979 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 21st, Sunderland 4th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville (McCourt), Bell, Matthews, Ryan; Carter (Graham), Sidwell, McLean; Osman; Beckett, McDougald (McDonald). BOOKED: Ryan. As great as that victory was, there was perhaps an even more significant result at Carrow Road. Norwich had needed to come back from 2-0 down to salvage a late draw against Charlton, having lost 3-2 at Burnley three days earlier. The Canaries' struggles meant we were now one point clear of relegation - with a game in hand! Up next was another mighty challenge at Gresty Road against one of the best defences in the division - 'so-solid' Crewe. 24 FEBRUARY 2007: Crewe Alexandra vs Dagenham & Redbridge Crewe weren't too shabby going forward either. Lee McCulloch might have missed their first scoring opportunity after 10 minutes, but their next effort two minutes later was more successful. Home right-winger Florentin Petre might have been stopped by a firm challenge from Simon Rusk, but the ball was quickly picked up by right-back Martin Albrechtsen, who drove it firmly into the net! We put together a clear response in the 14th minute. After settling into the Daggers team with a couple of substitute cameos, our new loanee striker Scott McDonald got his full debut off to a strong start. The Australian sauntered through the Crewe backline to latch onto Alan McLean's through-ball and stroke in the equaliser! Crewe had quickly lost their lead, and McCulloch would soon lose his cool. After an unprovoked push on Steven Sidwell, the Scottish striker - who hadn't scored in nine previous outings this season - was immediately sent off. Railwaymen boss John Collins didn't look pleased at all - and why would you when one of your strikers has more red cards than goals? Alex survived the rest of the first half before conceding again, but by the 55th minute, our extra man was making a real difference. McDonald doubled his and our goal tallies with a powerful header from Sidwell's cross. That was enough to give us our second away win in a row, despite a valiant effort late on from Crewe's leading scorer Dean Ashton. Crewe Alexandra - 1 (Albrechtsen 12) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (McDonald 14,55) Division 1, Attendance 6,683 - POSITIONS: Crewe 7th, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Prenderville, Bell, Matthews, Ryan; Sidwell; Rusk, Osman (Winter), McLean (Carter); Beckett (Rankin), McDonald. BOOKED: McLean. Another win was in the bag, and our delight only grew on Sunday afternoon, when Norwich succumbed to another defeat at Preston! For the first time this season, we had some breathing space ahead of the bottom three! We wrapped up February by playing our game in hand. If we could win at Coventry, we would actually leapfrog Millwall and Grimsby up into 19th place. New boy Fox was back in the squad after injury, but stand-in left-back Robbie Ryan kept his place in the starting XI. 28 FEBRUARY 2007: Coventry City vs Dagenham & Redbridge In truth, the first half-hour of this match was pretty dismal. Coventry strikers Jay Bothroyd and Lee Thorpe each sent shots well wide of goal, while Ryan Carter didn't fare any better with Dagenham's first opportunity. You probably couldn't blame the fans at Highfield Road for wondering why they'd bothered turning up. Come the 31st minute, though, the home crowd had well and truly livened up. Thorpe's knock-down for Kristian Bergström was met by an absolutely stunning strike from the veteran Swedish winger. While Barry Prenderville could maybe have done a better job of closing Bergström down, we could have few complaints about conceding a goal of such quality. The Sky Blues wouldn't let go of their lead in the second half. After some fantastic defending from Daggers captain Lee Matthews stopped them pulling further ahead, we tried to put together a counter-attack in the 89th minute. Unfortunately, Steven Sidwell's equalising effort was easily caught by City keeper Andy Marshall, who sent us from Coventry in defeat. Coventry City - 1 (Bergström 31) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 9,660 - POSITIONS: Coventry 7th, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Prenderville (McCourt), Bell, Matthews, Ryan (Fox); Sidwell; Rusk (Osman), McLean, Carter; Beckett, McDonald. BOOKED: Ryan, Rusk. We could have finished the month seven points clear of the drop. As it stands, the gap is four points with 12 games left to go. We've put our fate back in our hands at least. 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CFuller Posted January 6, 2023 Author Share Posted January 6, 2023 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of February 2007) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Burnley 34 13 3 2 44 20 7 3 6 24 22 66 2nd Notts Co 34 12 1 4 31 20 7 6 4 28 23 64 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Sunderland 34 12 4 1 40 16 6 5 6 30 30 63 4th Brentford 34 10 6 1 33 19 7 4 6 26 19 61 5th Birmingham 34 11 3 3 38 19 6 4 7 39 33 58 6th Charlton 34 9 4 4 30 21 7 4 6 33 35 56 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Coventry 34 11 2 4 31 19 6 3 8 23 33 56 8th Crewe 34 8 3 6 31 25 8 2 7 16 18 53 9th Preston 34 7 6 4 23 22 7 5 5 20 18 53 10th Chesterfield 34 10 1 7 31 26 5 5 6 18 20 51 11th W.B.A. 34 11 2 4 31 17 4 4 9 19 34 51 12th Sheff Utd 34 8 5 5 31 25 5 5 6 20 18 49 13th Derby 34 10 4 3 36 24 3 4 10 26 37 47 14th Fulham 34 8 4 6 22 19 5 4 7 15 17 47 15th Bradford 34 9 2 6 26 24 5 3 9 23 29 47 16th Luton 34 8 5 5 10 9 5 3 8 10 18 47 17th Nottm Forest 34 8 5 4 32 20 4 4 9 19 31 45 18th Port Vale 34 5 4 8 26 34 7 2 8 28 28 42 19th Millwall 34 6 4 7 24 24 4 4 9 20 26 38 20th Grimsby 34 7 4 5 22 16 3 3 12 18 39 37 21st Dag & Red 34 6 3 7 26 31 5 1 12 17 31 37 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Norwich 34 6 7 3 22 17 2 2 14 14 31 33 23rd Walsall 34 3 3 10 16 31 1 3 14 24 49 18 24th Kidderminster 34 2 3 11 20 31 1 5 12 19 37 17 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Tottenham haven't finished in the top half of the Premiership since 2002, but are their fortunes turning for the better? Spurs record a couple of impressive wins over Newcastle and Liverpool to climb up into 4th place - only nine points behind leaders Manchester United. With Danish wonderkid Rune Rasmussen Lind leading the Golden Boot race on 17 league goals, and fellow youngster Joe O'Shea on 12 goals, the future looks bright at White Hart Lane. Four years after winning the FA Cup, a run of five straight defeats sends Middlesbrough perilously close to the relegation zone. As Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler slides an 85th-minute winner past Mark Schwarzer, Boro boss Steve McClaren hides under his umbrella to shelter from the Anfield rain - and a deluge of calls for his sacking. Nantes are thrashed 5-0 at Bordeaux but stay top of Ligue 1... though the destiny of the title is no longer in their control. 2nd-placed Marseille and holders Lille respectively trail by two and three points, each with a game in hand. The new favourites, however, appear to be PSG - four points behind in 5th place, but with FOUR games in hand! The goals dry up for former La Liga champions Deportivo, who finally lose patience with long-serving coach Irureta after slipping to 14th place. He is replaced with Manuel Pellegrini - a 53-year-old Chilean who comes in from Brazilian giants Palmeiras. Meanwhile, runaway leaders Barcelona suffer a shock home defeat to mid-table Málaga. With Porto on course to win the Portuguese Primeira Liga title undefeated, defending champions Sporting may be losing their two prize assets. Forward Cristiano Ronaldo and winger Ricardo Quaresma ask to leave the Lisbon club before their Champions League double-header against Roma, which ends with both teams sharing 1-0 home wins. IN OTHER NEWS... An outbreak of avian flu strikes a Bernard Matthews turkey farm in Suffolk. Over 2,000 birds die from the virus, and another 159,000 are culled, as the deadly H5N1 strain spreads across Europe and Asia. It’s not “bootiful” at all. American model and TV personality Anna Nicole Smith is found dead from a drug overdose at a Florida hotel aged 39. Smith came to prominence in the 1990s as a Playboy centrefold who later married an 89-year-old billionaire. Martin Scorsese’s “The Departed” wins four awards - including Best Picture and Best Director - at the Academy Awards. Helen Mirren and Forest Whitaker also claim Oscars for their respective leading roles as “The Queen” and “The Last King of Scotland”. Ordinary Boys singer Preston storms off the set of BBC comedy panel show "Never Mind The Buzzcocks", after presenter Simon Amstell ridicules his wife Chantelle Houghton. The whole farce is almost as embarrassing and cringey as the Ordinary Boys' new single "I Luv U". Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 10, 2023 Author Share Posted January 10, 2023 MARCH 2007 The fight for Division 1 survival was into its latter stages. Walsall and Kidderminster had been cut adrift and looked doomed, but that still left one relegation place available, and several teams were still battling to avoid joining them in Division 2. As things stood, Norwich were occupying that last remaining spot in the drop zone, but we were only four points ahead of them. If the next five matches went badly, there was every chance we would be back there again come the end of March. Our first match of the month was at home to Birmingham, whose focus was on the other end of the table. Richard Hill's Blues were the top scorers in Division 1, but a questionable defensive record meant that they were 'only' in the play-off places. 3 MARCH 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Birmingham City Robert Green made a big save in just the second minute, catching a free-kick from Birmingham captain Darren Purse. Sadly, our goalkeeper was rather less reliable in the 24th minute, when he brought Robbie Savage down in the penalty area. Blues midfielder Steven Hampshire stepped forward to take the spot-kick, which he fired confidently past Green. Our attacking efforts before half-time were limited to a couple of shots from Junior McDougald, both of which comfortably missed the target. Indeed, it would be a very comfortable afternoon for Birmingham goalkeeper Mart Poom, who only had to make two saves all day. Even when Hampshire was sent off in the 72nd minute for a violent shove on Daggers captain Lee Matthews, we just didn't have it in us to mount a strong response. The loud boos that greeted our players at full-time told you all you needed to know. Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Birmingham City - 1 (Hampshire pen25) Division 1, Attendance 7,984 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 21st, Birmingham 5th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville, Bell, Matthews, Fox (Mayo); Rusk, Sidwell, Carter; Osman (Winter); Beckett (Rankin), McDonald. That was our EIGHTH home defeat of the season, which perhaps explains why we're in such a tough spot. Norwich only managed to claw one point back on us after conceding an 89th-minute equaliser to Coventry, but it could have been worse. Four days later, we were at The Hawthorns to face West Brom, who you may remember were the victims of our first league victory this season back in November. The Baggies were out of form and struggling to stay in the top half, so we had to believe that we could inflict more pain on them. 7 MARCH 2007: West Bromwich Albion vs Dagenham & Redbridge After conceding a costly penalty against Birmingham, Robert Green had a point to prove when we faced another team from the Midlands. Green saved a couple of early efforts from West Brom midfielder Neil Danns and striker Jason Roberts, while Craig Winter was denied a goal at the other end by Albion custodian Panagiotis Dilberis. Despite some brave Daggers defending throughout the first half, we were eventually breached on the stroke of half-time. It was a moment to forget for right-back Barry Prenderville, who was beaten to a header to ex-Charlton forward Andy Brown that sent us behind at the break. Not for the first time this season, our full-backs were horribly exposed by their classier counterparts. Left-back Lee Fox couldn't get to grips with West Brom's right-back Gary Croft, while on the opposite flank, the experienced Scottish international Dominic Matteo was constantly skinning Prenderville. Matteo's class told in the 67th minute, when his cross was finished by substitute Antti Pohja to give the Baggies a 2-0 lead. That goal effectively consigned us to a third straight defeat - though we did at least take something back home to east London. Michael Foley-Sheridan hadn't seen much action lately, but the Irish playmaker did impress me with his floated assist for Steven Sidwell four minutes from time. Sidwell's header gave us a consolation goal. West Bromwich Albion - 2 (Brown 45, Pohja 67) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Sidwell 86) Division 1, Attendance 14,849 - POSITIONS: West Brom 11th, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Prenderville, Bell, Matthews, Fox (Ryan); Sidwell; Rusk, Winter (Foley-Sheridan), McLean; Beckett, McDonald (McDougald). Norwich wasted another chance to take advantage - this time losing to a 90th-minute Bradford goal at Valley Parade. Our advantage over the Canaries remained at three points. Sheffield United were next up, with Neil Warnock taking his mid-table Blades to Victoria Road. 10 MARCH 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Sheffield United Sheffield United had to change their goalkeeper after just 18 minutes. Mark Brown hurt his foot in a collision with Daggers striker Luke Beckett, and he hobbled off to be replaced with serial benchwarmer Neil Moss. This was actually Moss' first competitive appearance since he was playing for Southampton in 2002 - and as you can probably guess, he played like a man possessed against us. Moss' time to shine was in the second half, but as far as the first was concerned, that ended with us conceding another injury-time goal. Journeyman forward Julian Joachim gave United the lead with a clinical header from Neil Scally's midfield cross, and we once again had to pick ourselves off the floor. After the break, Moss kept the Blades' lead intact with four impressive saves - two from Craig Winter, and one apiece from right-back Barry Prenderville and substitute striker Isaiah Rankin. The 31-year-old did not look rusty at all. Indeed, it was our team that seemed to be falling apart in the 71st minute, when Alan McLean came off injured, forcing defender Michael Nelson to deputise in an unusual midfield role. Our other substitute was Michael Foley-Sheridan, who replaced Simon Rusk at the break. Just like in our last game, MFS came off the bench to set up a goal - and this one was an important equaliser for Luke Beckett in the 77th minute. Our Sheffield-born striker had saved us a point against United, and perhaps moved us a step closer to safety! Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Beckett 77) Sheffield United - 1 (Joachim 45) Division 1, Attendance 7,973 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 21st, Sheff Utd 12th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Prenderville, Bell, Matthews, Ryan; Rusk (Foley-Sheridan), Sidwell, McLean (Nelson); Winter; Beckett, McDonald (Rankin). BOOKED: Sidwell, Matthews. Let's start with the bad news. Alan McLean had strained his groin and would be out for around a month. The good news: Norwich lost again, going down 3-0 at home to West Brom. That meant we had regained our four-point lead over the Canaries ahead of a season-defining trip to Carrow Road. That was 10 days away, though, so I still had time to get in one more signing - our 21st of an incredibly turbulent campaign. Indeed, he would be the SIXTH right-back we'd used this season! 32-year-old Jamie Smith moved from Brentford to Victoria Road for £160,000, with the transfer fee being paid out over 12 months. Smith's pace and intelligence would be great assets to us, but it was important that our new number 2 hit the ground running against Norwich. 20 MARCH 2007: Norwich City vs Dagenham & Redbridge Norwich were now under the management of Brian Flynn, who played a rather more attacking game than his patient predecessor John Toshack. The Canaries wasted little time to go on the offensive, as Irish youngster Darren Kelly fired a shot against the post in the 11th minute. Our first effort on goal was a poor Junior McDougald effort that curved well wide in the 26th minute. Four minutes later, Norwich's John Sutton went for power and caught Robert Green off his guard to open the scoring. Kelly then hit the woodwork again as we headed into the half-time break lucky to still only be one goal behind. I tried to change things up for the second period, bringing Michael Foley-Sheridan and Barry Prenderville on as wingers in a 4-4-2. Our switch to a more direct counter-attacking approach did make some decent opportunities, but Scott McDonald and Luke Beckett could only fire them wide. For the third time in five games, we would finish the game without so much as a single goal. While we'd played like a team struggling for consistency and confidence, Norwich didn't at all resemble a team who'd gone exactly two months without a victory. City's barren run was put to rest in the 89th minute, with Sutton's volley from Jon-Paul McGovern's cross completing a 2-0 home win. Norwich City - 2 (Sutton 30,89) Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Division 1, Attendance 15,639 - POSITIONS: Norwich 22nd, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Smith, Bell, Matthews, Ryan; Rusk, Sidwell, Graham (Foley-Sheridan); Winter (Prenderville); Beckett, McDonald (Rankin). Was that a major turning point in the relegation race? We were now only one point clear of the drop - and because of Norwich's superior goal difference, it really was only one point. After the international break, the pressure was firmly on our shoulders when we went to Grimsby, who were not quite safe from relegation themselves. I welcomed Spanish centre-back David Navarro back into the fold for the first time since his red card against Brentford last month - but I made it very clear to David that he was now in the last-chance saloon. 31 MARCH 2007: Grimsby Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge Because Scott McDonald and Luke Beckett had been so profligate in our recent matches, I decided to start Junior McDougald and Isaiah Rankin as our front two at Blundell Park. Rankin almost justified his selection after three minutes, but he didn't quite play his cards right against Grimsby keeper George Forsyth. After midfielder Leon Osman went close in the 30th minute, McDougald tested his luck in the 40th. Junior's strike from Lee Matthews' through-ball looked good, but Forsyth did well again in making the save. Rankin then hit the bar just before half-time, at which point I decided to sub him off for Beckett. Though this would be another barren afternoon for Beckett, he did play a major role in us finally breaking the deadlock after 59 minutes. Beckett's dribble towards goal was halted by a clumsy foul from Grimsby winger Stuart Campbell, handing us a free-kick 20 yards from goal. Osman's delivery found Simon Rusk, who headed it past Forsyth - so nice to beat him, to beat him nice! Meanwhile, Grimsby's forays towards goal were consistently thwarted by anchor man Steven Sidwell and the two centre-backs he was protecting. Matthews was as solid as ever, but his returning sidekick David Navarro was almost unstoppable, even being named 'man of the match'. We kept our first clean sheet since winning at Preston eight weeks earlier... which just so happened to be the last match David completed for us. Now there's food for thought. Grimsby Town - 0 Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Rusk 59) Division 1, Attendance 7,126 - POSITIONS: Grimsby 18th, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Smith, Navarro, Matthews, Fox; Sidwell; Rusk, Osman (Winter), Carter; McDougald, Rankin (Beckett). Get in! And with Norwich collapsing to a 5-1 defeat at Crewe (having scored the opening goal), we were once again four points clear - with seven games to play! We're not actually going to pull this off, are we? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 10, 2023 Author Share Posted January 10, 2023 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of March 2007) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Burnley 39 15 4 2 50 21 8 3 7 29 27 76 2nd Sunderland 39 14 4 1 43 16 7 6 7 32 33 73 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Notts Co 39 13 3 4 33 21 8 6 5 30 24 72 4th Birmingham 39 12 3 4 40 22 7 5 8 42 36 65 5th Brentford 39 11 7 1 38 23 7 4 9 27 23 65 6th Charlton 39 11 5 4 35 23 7 6 6 34 36 65 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Crewe 39 11 3 6 40 28 8 4 7 17 19 64 8th Coventry 39 11 4 5 32 22 7 4 8 26 35 62 9th Chesterfield 39 12 2 7 36 29 6 5 7 22 23 61 10th W.B.A. 39 13 2 5 40 23 5 4 10 23 36 60 11th Bradford 39 12 2 6 30 24 5 4 10 24 31 57 12th Sheff Utd 39 9 5 5 32 25 6 6 8 24 24 56 13th Preston 38 7 8 4 25 24 7 5 7 20 20 55 14th Fulham 39 9 4 7 25 23 6 5 8 19 21 54 15th Nottm Forest 39 9 6 4 34 21 5 5 10 23 35 53 16th Luton 39 9 6 6 14 13 5 3 10 11 23 51 17th Derby 39 10 4 5 37 28 3 7 10 29 40 50 18th Grimsby 39 9 5 6 26 17 4 3 12 20 39 47 19th Port Vale 39 6 4 9 30 37 7 3 10 30 33 46 20th Millwall 39 7 5 7 27 26 4 6 10 22 29 44 21st Dag & Red 39 6 4 8 27 33 6 1 14 19 35 41 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Norwich 39 7 8 4 26 22 2 2 16 15 37 37 23rd Kidderminster 39 4 3 11 22 31 1 5 15 22 48 23 24th Walsall 38 3 4 11 17 33 1 3 16 25 52 19 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... Chelsea, Leeds and Celtic are the three British teams through to the Champions League Quarter Finals, but Manchester United crash out at the second group stage after losing their final game 2-0 at Inter. United keeper Roy Carroll is sent off for a 66th-minute professional foul on Ronaldo after the Red Devils use all their subs, which means a bemused Ruud van Nistelrooy has to go in goal - with dire results! These are tough times for Aston Villa, who drop to 19th in the Premiership and look set to exit the top flight for the first time in 20 years. Under-fire manager Bruce Grobbelaar gets the dreaded 'vote of confidence' after a 3-2 defeat at Sheffield Wednesday. Grobbelaar instructing his goalkeeper Sander Westerveld to wobble his legs before every opposition shot was maybe not a good idea... German clubs dominate the UEFA Cup, with Bayern München, Dortmund and Schalke 04 all going through to the Semi Finals. The odd team out is Juventus, who battle past Liverpool thanks to a Luca Toni winner at Anfield. Reds fans express their anger at Eric Gerets' boring style of play and call for a new manager. Lazio defeat fellow title-chasers Vicenza 3-0 to go to the top of Serie A. The Biancocelesti then concede top spot to Milan after a shock 1-0 loss to second-from-bottom Chievo... and then bounce back to the summit with a Hernán Jorge Crespo winner against Roma! With seven matches to play, it's still anybody's guess who will prevail! The Republic of Ireland's hopes of qualifying for Euro 2008 take a signficant blow, as they lose 2-1 to Belarus at Lansdowne Road. Both of the visitors' goals are scored by a 23-year-old Roma reserve striker called Maksim Tsyhalka. After the game, Ireland boss Mick McCarthy concedes, "That lad's quite alright, y'know." IN OTHER NEWS... The Cricket World Cup takes place in the West Indies, where Pakistan suffer a shock exit at the Group Stage after being defeated by underdogs Ireland. Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer dies suddenly in Kingston just a few hours later, and Jamaican police subsequently launch a murder investigation. Estonia becomes the first country in the world to allow electronic voting at a general election. 30,000 Estonians cast their votes online - but sadly, there are no votes for Mart Poom to be the next Prime Minister. It seems the United Kingdom couldn't make its mind up about who to send to the Eurovision Song Contest. Terry Wogan announces that French singer Cyndi Almouzni has won the public vote, while co-presenter Fearne Cotton declares pop quartet Scooch as the winners! After much confusion, it is confirmed that Scooch will be "Flying The Flag" for the UK in Helsinki. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon1982 Posted January 10, 2023 Share Posted January 10, 2023 This brings a lot of memories back. I remember Junior McDougald tearing Conference defences apart back in the day.. The first version I played. Looks a really detailed and fun story. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 13, 2023 Author Share Posted January 13, 2023 On 10/01/2023 at 23:19, Jon1982 said: This brings a lot of memories back. I remember Junior McDougald tearing Conference defences apart back in the day.. The first version I played. Looks a really detailed and fun story. Thanks. Junior McDougald was one of those iconic non-league names, but it appears he was even better in CM! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 13, 2023 Author Share Posted January 13, 2023 (edited) APRIL 2007 39 games played, seven to go. Virtually every Dagenham & Redbridge had bitten off all their fingernails as the battle to stay in Division 1 reached its final stages. Walsall and Kidderminster were doomed. One team would join them on the journey back down to Division 2, and while Norwich currently occupied that last relegation place, the Daggers were only four points ahead of them in 21st. Several teams above us were not quite mathematically safe from the drop - most notably Millwall, Port Vale and Grimsby - but barring a sudden collapse from any of them, this battle was basically between us and the Canaries. Dagenham & Redbridge's run-in (41 PTS, -22 GD) 4 April: vs Fulham (14th, H), 7 April: vs Luton (16th, H), 14 April: vs Kidderminster (23rd, A), 16 April: vs Burnley (1st, H), 21 April: vs Walsall (24th, A), 28 April: vs Chesterfield (9th, H), 6 May: vs Nottm Forest (15th, H) Norwich City's run-in (37 PTS, -18 GD) 4 April: vs Grimsby (18th, H), 7 April: vs Kidderminster (23rd, A), 14 April: vs Walsall (24th, H), 16 April: vs Nottm Forest (15th, A), 21 April: vs Millwall (20th, H), 28 April: vs Derby (17th, A), 6 May: vs Port Vale (19th, H) We looked to have an easier run-in on paper than the Canaries, with five home games compared to their four. Our last two away fixtures were against the bottom two - Kidderminster and Walsall, whose relegations would surely be confirmed very soon. Both teams started off with home games against fairly local opposition. While Norwich welcomed Grimsby to Carrow Road, we opened the Victoria Road doors for Fulham. Maurice Malpas' Cottagers were the most mid-table of mid-table teams, having won 15 games, lost 15 games, scored 44 goals, and conceded 44. 4 APRIL 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Fulham If Fulham were mid-table, we looked every bit the relegation battlers. Junior McDougald volleyed our first shot well off target after three minutes, and it all spiralled from there. The Cottagers cranked up the pressure in the 15th minute, when Brett Ormerod glanced a header wide. Strike partner Paul McVeigh used his head to more devastating effect four minutes later, finishing an excellent left-wing cross from Eddie Lewis to break the deadlock. Despite losing right-winger Andrejs Stolcers to a knee injury in the 28th minute, Fulham almost went 2-0 up just moments later. Playmaker Carlos Grossmüller had a fierce shot pushed behind by Robert Green. That save could have been pivotal five minutes later, when only the woodwork prevented Isaiah Rankin from drawing us level. Fulham carried their narrow advantage into the second half, and then built on it. Grossmüller fed an excellent pass to McVeigh, who dribbled past Daggers defender David Navarro and then scored his second goal. That was the killer blow for us, and we whimpered to another home loss without even forcing Cottagers keeper Jon Ashwood into a single save. Dagenham & Redbridge - 0 Fulham - 2 (McVeigh 19,58) Division 1, Attendance 7,974 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 21st, Fulham 13th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Smith, Navarro, Matthews, Fox (Mayo); Rusk, Sidwell, Carter; Osman (Winter); McDougald, Rankin (Beckett). That really could not have gone any worse. As we failed to register even a shot on target, Norwich comfortably beat Grimsby 2-0 to move just one point behind us. The Canaries would be hot favourites to win at Kidderminster three days later, which meant we really could not afford another slip-up when we hosted Luton. If this went badly, it would be our TENTH league defeat on home soil this season. 7 APRIL 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Luton Town Since scoring a brace against Crewe in mid-February, the goals had dried up for our loanee striker Scott McDonald. The angry Aussie was determined to make amends. Though McDonald missed the target with a half-volley in the 14th minute, he fared much better ten minutes later, heading in David Navarro's free-kick to end his drought! A shaky first-half performance from Luton got worse five minutes before the break. A clumsy trip on McDonald from the mad Hatters' goalkeeper Colin Meldrum handed us a penalty - and the chance to go 2-0 up. Simon Rusk relished the opportunity, firing in his third successful penalty from as many attempts! The Daggers onslaught resumed midway through the second half. Having fired a shot inches over the bar in the 69th minute, McDonald wrapped up another double in style just four minutes later. Steven Sidwell delivered a low cross from the left flank, and Scott turned sharply past Luton captain Jason Gavin to give himself a clear shot at goal, which he gladly took! At 3-0 up, the points were now ours, but Luton did take something away from Victoria Road. Robert Green threw a clean sheet away on 78 minutes, when he parried Lee Hendrie's shot straight back to the former England midfielder, who fired in just his second goal of the season. Ah well. Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (McDonald 24,73, Rusk pen40) Luton Town - 1 (Hendrie 78) Division 1, Attendance 7,957 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 21st, Luton 17th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Smith (Prenderville), Navarro, Matthews (Bell), Fox; Rusk, Sidwell, Carter (Osman); Winter; Beckett, McDonald. Boy did we need that win! Norwich did indeed beat Kidderminster - though only by 2 goals to 1 - and were still breathing down our necks. Kiddy's defeat meant that their relegation to Division 2 was now confirmed (Walsall had fallen by the wayside three days earlier). However, it also meant the pressure was off the hosts when we went to Aggborough a decade later. Having parted company with long-time manager Jan Mølby in February, the Harriers now had the wily former Grimsby and Southampton boss Lennie Lawrence at the helm. 14 APRIL 2007: Kidderminster Harriers vs Dagenham & Redbridge Our top scorer Luke Beckett helped us get off to a strong start after just five minutes. His fancy footwork drew a foul out of Kidderminster defender Matt Sadler, and the subsequent free-kick was fired home from 20 yards out by Leon Osman. Leon's recent Daggers form had been inconsistent, to put it lightly, but had he turned a corner? Osman had a couple more attempts later in the first half, but one went wide and the other was easily caught by Michael Haxthausen - probably the worst goalkeeper in the league, by the way. The not-so-great Dane would concede again two minutes into the second half, when Beckett headed in Simon Rusk's cross for his 10th goal of the season. A 2-0 lead against a struggling team like Kidderminster should have been pretty simple to hold onto, right? Well, unfortunately, we seemed to get complacent in the final quarter of the match, letting the Harriers attack us and look for at least one goal back. Forwards David Collins and Baichung Bhutia each had shots saved by Robert Green, who needed to be on his guard when our defenders weren't. By the 87th minute, things were getting very edgy. Rusk horribly mistimed a tackle on Harriers midfielder David Poppleton, who then drove in his free-kick to pull us back to 2-1. Kidderminster then launched one more counter-attack in the 90th minute. Our delight turned to despair when Bhutia broke free from our defence to volley in Daniel Ryan's left-wing cross... and then back to delight when the Indian striker was flagged offside! We had somehow got away with a win. Kidderminster Harriers - 1 (Poppleton 87) Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Osman 5, Beckett 47) Division 1, Attendance 6,217 - POSITIONS: Kidderminster 23rd, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Smith (Bell), Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Sidwell; Rusk, Osman, Carter (McLean); Beckett, McDonald (Kyle). That offside flag might just have saved Dagenham & Redbridge from relegation. With Norwich suffering a surprise 2-0 home defeat to Walsall, we have restored our four-point lead on the Canaries. We had also drawn level on point with Port Vale, whose recent slump had dragged them back into the relegation scrap. And it was just as well that we had some breathing space again. Next up on Easter Monday was a home game against leaders Burnley, who had secured a play-off place at worst and were now looking to secure automatic promotion to the Premiership. Big Sam Allardyce's Clarets had lost just one league game since 13 January. 16 APRIL 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Burnley After seven minutes, Dagenham midfielder Craig Winter got hold of the form book and promptly ripped it to shreds. Junior McDougald spearheaded our first attack, and his right-wing cross was laid off by full-back Barry Prenderville to the Scottish midfielder, whose powerful strike stunned the visitors! Then, on 29 minute, the other Scot in our midfield popped up to score a second Daggers goal. A 20-yard drive from youngster Alan McLean slipped across the wet Victoria Road turf and beyond the reach of ex-England keeper Ian Walker. Burnley trailed 2-0, and it was fair to say Sam Allardyce was not a happy man at half-time! It was a very different Clarets team that turned up for the second period - a team with much more determination and attacking vigour. In the 67th minute, Kevin de Vet stormed up the left wing and crossed deep to striker Zema Abbey, whose shot had to be blocked in the six-yard goal by our left-back Lee Fox. Unfortunately for Lee, he could only divert the shot into his own net. Fox was pretty cut up afterwards, so I quickly subbed him off. I was calmly consoling the distraught 22-year-old when disaster struck again. Burnley striker Ian Moore provided a devastating cross for Division 1's top scorer - attacking midfielder Dimitris Papadopoulos, who outjumped Robert Green and headed in his 24th league goal this season. Having almost chucked a 2-0 lead away at Kidderminster, we had now done exactly that - albeit against probably the best team in the league. We did have one chance to regain our lead just before full-time, but Walker saved from Winter to keep the scores level at 2-2. Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Winter 7, McLean 29) Burnley - 2 (Fox og67, Papadopoulos 70) Division 1, Attendance 7,951 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 20th, Burnley 1st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Prenderville, Navarro (Nelson), Matthews, Fox (Mayo); Sidwell; McLean, Winter, Carter; Beckett, McDonald (McDougald). While the draw was enough to leap us over Port Vale, we had lost a couple of points on Norwich, who had won at Nottingham Forest. Our advantage had been cut in half, and the relegation picture was now looking even more complicated than ever. Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18th Luton 43 9 6 7 14 14 5 4 12 15 30 52 19th Grimsby 43 9 5 7 26 18 5 3 14 22 43 50 20th Dag & Red 43 7 5 9 32 38 7 1 14 21 36 48 21st Port Vale 43 6 4 12 32 46 7 4 10 32 35 47 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Norwich 43 8 8 5 28 24 4 2 16 18 38 46 23rd R Kidderminster 43 4 4 13 26 37 2 5 15 25 50 27 24th R Walsall 43 3 4 14 20 39 2 3 17 29 55 22 At this rate, I'll be lucky if my heart holds out until the Nottingham Forest game! The three-way battle heated up on 21 April, as Norwich hosted Millwall, Port Vale made the short trip to Crewe... and we faced rock-bottom Walsall at the Bescot Stadium. The Saddlers sacked their previous manager David Platt after our late equaliser against them at Victoria Road in November - and with relegation now confirmed, there was speculation that his predecessor Gary Speed would soon be dismissed as well. 18-year-old Paul Ferry joined us on our journey to the West Midlands, having been named in our matchday squad for the first time. The Scottish striker had been rewarded for his impressive form in the reserves, upstaging more experienced frontmen such as Isaiah Rankin and Kevin Kyle. 21 APRIL 2007: Walsall vs Dagenham & Redbridge A couple of our McDaggers came up big in the 12th minute, when Alan McLean assisted Scott McDonald to score the opening goal from our first attack. Unfortunately, Walsall also scored from their first attack about 10 minutes later. Bahraini wing-back Salman Isa Ghuloom's shot was awkwardly parried by Robert Green, giving Brazilian striker Herivelto the easiest of tap-ins. After that equaliser, Walsall's culture club looked the most likely team to score again. The mercurial Tonton Zola Moukoko posed a real threat in the 29th minute, though Green did manage to push the shot away from another red-and-black shirt this time. Green also saw off an effort from Slovenian Oskar Drobne on the stroke of half-time. While Green was doing his best to keep us level, it was a rather quieter afternoon for his Walsall counterpart. This time around, the Saddlers had decided to avoid another confusing clash of the Lee Matthewses, instead putting David Fish between the sticks. Though Fish wasn't given too many tests by a weak Daggers attack, his 69th-minute save from David Navarro's header would have made his dad Billy very proud. The match remained level at 1-1 until the 78th minute... and then we were Moukoko'd. Tonton skipped past the challenge of Lee Matthews (our captain, obviously) to go one-on-one with Green, who could only watch the Swede's silky shot glide into his net. Just when we couldn't afford another defeat, we had been beaten by the team sitting bottom of the table. Walsall - 2 (Herivelto 22, Moukoko 78) Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (McDonald 12) Division 1, Attendance 6,557 - POSITIONS: Walsall 24th, Dag & Red 21st DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-1-3-2): Green; Smith, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo; Sidwell; Rusk (Foley-Sheridan), Winter, McLean; Beckett, McDonald (Ferry). Embarrassing. We deserve to be relegated after a result like that! Norwich beat Millwall 1-0 to jump out of the bottom three... but it was Port Vale who took their place after losing 2-1 at Crewe. Only the Valiants' incompetence was keeping us safe, albeit by a single point. Now it was all change - and come the following weekend, we had one eye on Vale's results rather than Norwich's. If the Valiants could get a better result at home to Grimsby than we could muster against play-off contenders Chesterfield, then we would go into the final day of the season sitting in the relegation zone. On the other hand, if Grimsby could do us a favour and beat Vale, we would have the chance to mathematically secure our survival by defeating Chesterfield! Considering our remarkable propensity to implode at just the wrong time, there was surely no way that was gonna happen... right? 28 APRIL 2007: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Chesterfield The chances of another Daggers collapse could only grow in the first 15 minutes, when Scott McDonald scored twice to give us the perfect start. The Australian poacher was assisted by Steven Sidwell for the 3rd minute, and then by Alan McLean for his next strike 11 minutes later. After Italian striker Andrea Di Napoli missed a couple of poor efforts for Chesterfield, we dealt another blow to the Spireites' play-off hopes in the 29th minute. Left-back Kerry Mayo's proficiency from corners was on full display again, when he delivered the perfect ball for Luke Beckett to head us into a strong 3-0 lead! Chesterfield's hopes looked even more dire after playmaker Bogdan Mara gashed his leg in the 33rd minute, bringing his game to an early end. Their manager Bryan Robson had a big job on his hands to try and get their attacking game going again after that - and to Robson's credit, they were much better in the second half. Thankfully for us, Robert Green was having another of those games where it seemed like nothing could beat the enigmatic Daggers goalkeeper. It was a particularly frustrating afternoon for Spireites midfielder Chris Carruthers and forward Andy Rushbury, who each had a couple of decent chances that were well saved by Green. Thanks to a clinical attacking display in the first half, and a solid defensive showing in the second, we came away 3-0 winners. That was our biggest league victory of the season - perhaps in more sense than one! Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (McDonald 3,14, Beckett 29) Chesterfield - 0 Division 1, Attendance 7,966 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 21st, Chesterfield 10th DAG & RED LINE-UP (4-3-1-2): Green; Smith, Navarro, Matthews, Mayo (Fox); Rusk (Osman), Sidwell, McLean; Winter; Beckett (Kyle), McDonald. As I congratulated my players on a professional performance, my assistant Johnson Hippolyte was on the phone frantically trying to find out the latest scores. I turned to him, and then he sighed, "Port Vale won 1-0. They scored in the 85th minute." Our battle for survival was not over. We were one of FOUR teams still with a chance of being relegated on the final day. Edited March 24 by CFuller Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFuller Posted January 13, 2023 Author Share Posted January 13, 2023 DIVISION 1 TABLE (End of April 2007) Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Burnley 45 16 5 2 55 25 10 5 7 36 31 88 2nd Pl Sunderland 45 17 4 2 49 18 7 6 9 33 36 82 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Pl Notts Co 45 14 4 4 35 21 9 7 7 35 31 80 4th Birmingham 45 13 6 4 46 27 8 5 9 45 39 74 5th Brentford 45 13 8 2 46 27 7 4 11 29 28 72 6th Sheff Utd 45 13 5 5 39 26 7 7 8 26 25 72 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7th Charlton 45 12 5 5 37 26 8 7 8 37 44 72 8th Coventry 45 13 4 5 37 23 8 4 11 32 41 71 9th Crewe 45 12 4 6 42 29 8 6 9 22 27 70 10th Chesterfield 45 13 2 8 37 30 8 5 9 24 27 70 11th W.B.A. 45 14 2 6 44 27 7 4 12 30 41 69 12th Nottm Forest 45 12 6 5 39 24 6 6 10 25 36 66 13th Preston 45 9 9 4 31 28 8 5 10 24 27 65 14th Bradford 45 13 2 7 33 27 6 6 11 29 37 65 15th Fulham 45 10 4 9 28 27 7 5 10 21 23 60 16th Derby 45 11 5 7 42 34 4 8 10 33 43 58 17th Millwall 45 10 6 7 37 33 4 7 11 22 30 55 18th Luton 45 9 7 7 15 15 5 4 13 15 32 53 19th Norwich 45 9 8 5 29 24 5 2 16 19 38 52 20th Grimsby 45 9 6 7 27 19 5 3 15 22 44 51 21st Dag & Red 45 8 5 9 35 38 7 1 15 22 38 51 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22nd Port Vale 45 7 4 12 33 46 7 4 11 33 37 50 23rd R Kidderminster 45 4 5 13 27 38 2 6 15 28 53 29 24th R Walsall 45 4 4 14 22 40 2 3 18 30 57 25 ELSEWHERE IN FOOTBALL... In the League Cup Final, Wolves race into an early 2-0 lead over Division 1 Preston, who then mount one of the most stunning Wembley comebacks ever. Richard Cresswell and Paul McKenna score either side of half-time, before 20-year-old winger Dave Marsh heads in the winner in the 76th minute. David Moyes' Lilywhites lift their first major trophy for nearly 70 years - and become the first League Cup winners from outside the top flight since 1991! Middlesbrough drop into the Premiership's bottom three, and the board finally sack Steve McClaren after a 3-1 loss at Tottenham, severely damaging his chances of managing England in the future. Ipswich also look doomed to relegation, but new chairman Michael Baker vows to keep faith in long-time manager George Burley. Celtic's Champions League fairytale rolls on as they see off Inter on away goals, setting up a 'Battle of Britain' Semi Final against Leeds. That leaves holders Roma as the last Italians standing after a 2-0 win over arch-rivals Lazio... but they must face Barcelona without captain Fabio Cannavaro, who broke his leg against Vicenza in the league. While the Serie A lead continues to switch back and forth between Lazio and Inter, Fiorentina's relegation battles lead them to appoint their third manager of the season. Gianfranco Zola is dismissed after just six-and-a-half months in the Viola hotseat, and replaced with ex-Deportivo coach Irureta. After spending £127million on new players over the past five seasons, Valencia probably expected Rafa Benítez to lead them to La Liga glory. But with 'Los Murciélagos' dropping to 9th place and struggling to even qualify for Europe, the spendthrift manager is sacked just before his 47th birthday. Claudio Ranieri soon returns to the Mestalla for a second spell in charge. IN OTHER NEWS... The larger-than-life former Russian President Boris Yeltsin dies from heart failure in Moscow aged 76. Known as much for his erratic behaviour and alcoholism as he was for bringing democracy to his homeland, Yeltsin came into office after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 and served for the next eight years. There is shock across the United States after the country’s deadliest mass shooting. A 23-year-old South Korean student kills 32 people at Virginia Tech university in Blacksburg, Virginia before turning the gun on himself. Australia become the first team to win three Cricket World Cups consecutively. Adam Gilchrist scores 149 runs as the Aussies defeat Sri Lanka in the Final in Barbados, adding to their previous triumphs in 1999 and 2003. Jacqui Oatley makes a historic appearance on "Match of the Day", commentating on Sheffield Wednesday's 1-1 draw with Blackburn on 21 April. For some reason, BBC viewers aren't too impressed with Oatley's debut. Maybe it's because of her Black Country accent... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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