Shildon and beyond
They always say results are more important than the performance well that is certainly the case when you play your 1st game of the season, It’s always nice to get some points on the board and even more so when you are playing a very good team like Shildon away from home. It’s never an easy place to go, and with so many links between the 2 clubs and the strength & quality in depth Shildon have not a lot of teams will come away with 3 points from Dean Street. I felt Shildon shaded the 1st half where we didn’t get the ball down and play as well as we have been doing in the pre season games, we didn’t create a great deal apart from the superb move which resulted in our goal just before half time. I thought 2nd half we were more dangerous especially when we got the Ball to Ruddy & Peaks who caused problems whenever they were in possession all night. I am not getting carried away because contrary to what people are saying there are lots of other teams who will be in the mix come the end of the season not just Shildon & ourselves and every time someone plays Spenny it’s like a cup final.
We know we can play better than Friday but that’s the sign of a good team is when you can grind out a result when not at your best, the commitment, effort & togetherness is what makes this team special and you could see that from the players, not just in the starting 11 but the subs and the lads not in the squad, I have told every player that they will all have a big part to play this season and they will all get a fair crack of the whip it’s up to them when they play to keep the shirt.
We play West Allotment on Wednesday which is not going to be easy, I watched them on Saturday against Synners and they defended superbly for 55 minutes with 10 men so it’s important that we don’t get frustrated and play to our strengths. The pitch is always superb there so there should be no excuses from us.
Saturday is the FA cup which is always special, I was fortunate to play in some big games for Spenny in the FA cup and the Spenny fans are always up for it. We could not have been given a tougher game, Bedlington like a lot of teams; ourselves included have signed some very good players in the summer and will be right up for the game. I have great admiration for what Keith & Tony have achieved at Bedlington and who I count as friends but friendship goes out the window on Saturday. The game will have added spice when we welcome back Dika & Rash who deserve a tremendous welcome for what they did last season and will no doubt want to spoil our day but its what we do that matters and if we play like we can we shouldn’t fear any 1. On the injury front Callum is struggling with a groin strain for Wednesday, Hubby is a couple of weeks away with his calf and Emmsy goes for his Hernia Operation in 2 weeks, on a positive note Titch is back following his suspension and Mickey is available again next week.
All the best Jay
A new season
Welcome back to you all for what we hope is going to be another exciting season. It doesn’t feel like 5 minutes that last season has finished and this pre season has started. It has been a busy time for players and staff and a thoroughly enjoyable one (apart from the defeat to South Shields). I could have arranged an easy set of friendlies but that would have not given us the tests we needed. Overall we have performed well against teams from higher divisions and have received a lot of praise from the respective teams. Considering we brought in a few players over the summer the football has been excellent, the only thing that has been missing is putting away the chances that we are creating, but with the firepower we have it’s just a matter of time before that happens. It will take time for players to gel and get to know one another; Supporters sometimes have to be patient and not expect instant success. Speedy & Tommy for example didn’t play a lot of football last season due to niggling injuries so we have to be patient with them, but I am absolutely delighted to have them here with us Tommy is like a new signing. Of the other new signings Lawsy and Leon have settled in tremendously whilst Jamma has been given the opportunity to join the Glenn Hoddle academy in Spain and will only be with us for the next month. After speaking with Jamma and his family we felt it was too good an offer for him to turn down and everybody at the club wish him well. I have also signed a couple of young lads Matty Welsh & Liam Beeston who in time will prove big hits with the fans. Going back to the South Shields game it was just one of those games when we could have played until Sunday and we wouldn’t have scored. During the game we scored 2 fantastically worked goals which were chalked off for offside, should have had a stone wall penalty and missed 4 gilt edge chances!! Sometimes that happens and it makes me laugh when I read some comments about the system we play with 1 up front or the wrong players playing, the system has worked for me when we won the 2nd division, then when we just missed out on the 1st division the year after and eventually winning it. Granted we need a plan B and we have the players this year to do this. As a manager I’m learning and developing every year and in anything you do you have to take criticism and I accept that and take on board advice from people who I respect to make me a better manager but I can guarantee the supporters than Perry, Carl & myself will be working our socks off to make this a successful season.
Keep the faith.
Jay
Assistant Manager
I have appointed Perry Briggs as my assistant manager for next season. Perry has a wealth of knowledge in the northern league and his experience will be invaluable this coming season I’m looking forward to his enthusiasm and hunger to succeed.
Perry had been offered other jobs in the northern league but when I showed him around the ground and told him the plans of the club he was very excited. Perry is based in Newcastle and this was another major factor in bringing Perry to the club as it gives me the opportunity for Perry to watch games around that area, recruit players and take this club to the next level.
I have also added Carl Beasley to the coaching staff, Carl will still be registered as a player and will play a big part this coming season,but having chatted with him at length I felt it would be a good opportunity for him to take on more coaching responsibilities within the club.
Cheers Jay
Seasons End
Well 9 months of hard work is finally over and when I reflect on the season as a whole it has had far more highs than it has lows and I am proud of what we have achieved this year in only mine and Darrens second season in charge of the team together, although now I am totally drained especially after the celebrations in Spenny on Saturday. When you think of the very 1st game of the season against Tow Law when we were beaten 4-3 everybody was saying that we had no chance of winning the league, that I couldn’t keep all the players we had happy, that we were a soft touch. 100 points later 118 goals scored 33 goals against, the most clean sheets in the league answers all those questions.
There has been some lows, the games that stick out for me are the Gresley and Jarrow Roofing games for different reasons: the Gresley game was one where we just didn’t perform on the day in what was the biggest game of the season up till then, I felt it was a missed opportunity having said that in cup football you rely heavily on home draws and we had 2 very tough away games in the competition and Gresley, were, lets not forget a good side.
The Jarrow one was a great way to add some silverware for the club in a competition that we should be doing well in, and it was a major letdown to go out with a whimper in what seems to be against a team with a curse on me in management hopefully that will change next season when they come up.
I would like to thank the backroom staff Leechy, Kenny & Reggie who have worked their socks off all season and have had me moaning to them all the time, the chairman who has backed me all season and gave me the opportunity to take the club forward, to Billy, Alan, Mike and all the committee who have put in a tremendous amount of work and are often unsung heroes, Terry who has worked miracles on the pitch this season with the help of Pod, Gav who has fed the lads, Liam and Brad who have worked behind the bar, Russ our resident DJ and everybody else who has worked tremendously hard behind the scenes . I would also like to say a big thank you to the supporters who have backed us all season and when in full voice are like a 12th man to the players, your support is second to none in this league and I hope you enjoy many more seasons like this one.
But most of all I would like to thank the players, not just the current ones but the lads who have gone on to pastures new but who also played a massive part in our success this season. Nikki Lawson, Karl Richards, Jamie Clarke, Fozzie, Gaz Waite and Barnsey are ones who stand out for me.
One thing I won’t be doing in the break is taking anything for granted and standing still I will be speaking to every player next week about next season and hopefully getting them signed, I will also be in the market for 1 or 2 others who I believe will strengthen our squad, but whoever comes in will have to fit into a very good dressing room and in my opinion be better than what we already have. Next year is going to be even tougher with some very good teams strengthening in the summer.
I look forward to seeing you all at the presentation night and at our pre-season games, it does seem a long way away but before you know it the new season will be upon us.
On a sad note both personally and professionally Darren has relinquished his assistant managerial duties due to personal circumstances, I have said it in previous comments what I think of Darren and I will not only miss his knowledge of the game and what he brings to the dressing room but I am also losing a true mate. Darren has been superb and has been very influential in our success. I have told Darren he is welcome back anytime and when he gets things sorted I will find a role for him as long as I’m in charge.
Shildon Home
I think the papers said it all! Saturday’s performance was a bit of a damp squib. I’m not taking anything away from Shildon who thoroughly deserved their victory on the day and at times out played us, but I think the fact that we only needed 1 point from our remaining 4 games and even if we didn’t get that point it would of taken a monumental effort from Whitley Bay to overtake us took away our edge, I was a little flat after the game but when I sat in the dressing room alone for 5 minutes I reflected on what we had achieved throughout the season and for us to come so close last year and just miss out to win in it this year was special. The players have been fantastic all season, I can’t praise them highly enough, to keep top players happy has not always been easy but they have worked extremely hard!! Yes we have had blips but what team doesn’t? But to achieve our objective with 3 games to go is a tremendous achievement and to win it with some of the football we have played makes it even more memorable. I think it will sink in more when I finally get to lift the title in our last game.
We still have 3 games left and although I will be able to rest some tired legs I would love to finish the season on 100 points. Finally I would like to thank my backroom staff. Darren, who has been a rock to me for the past 2 seasons and deserves a great deal of credit for our achievement because without him I wouldn’t have had this success. Andy who has been 1 of my best ever signings he is not only a tremendous lad who is great around the dressing room but the best physio around not only in our league but I’m sure he will 1 day be working in the premier league. Baz who joined the backroom staff in the last few months to work with Turnsy and Bish, the best compliment I can say about him is that I feel I have been working with him for years he has fitted in straight away. Beeso who has not only played a massive part on the pitch but has in recent games supported me on the coaching side to which I am so grateful. See you Wednesday in what will be another very tough game.
Jay
Penrith Away
First of all I and all my players would like to thank the supporters who followed us to Penrith in what I can only describe as a strange night. I don’t know whether it was because mathematically nobody really knew what we needed to do to win the league (I certainly didn’t) the game seemed a bit flat. The pitch wasn’t conducive to good football and it was always going to be a scrap. Defensively I thought we looked solid although going forward we didn’t create a great deal. 1st half we created the better chances and on another night Mickey would of got himself a couple of goals, he hit the bar with a great header and was unfortunate to see his shot fly just over after linking up with Titch superbly. 2nd half we should have done better with the extra man but in the final third it just didn’t happen for us. I can’t fault my players who like always gave there all but the quality just wasn’t there on the night which sometimes happens. I felt a little for Mickey who was kicked from pillar to post all night but he knows he shouldn’t react.
Onto Saturday this in my opinion is the biggest game of the season we still require a point to win the league and we couldn’t have a sterner test. Shildon are the form team and have some excellent players who on their day can beat any 1 as they have proved throughout the season. They certainly won’t want to come here and just make up the numbers. They will still be hurting from the game at their place where we played very well and we need to be ready for a really tough game. Hopefully Saturday will be the best day in my short managerial career, last year we were so close and I was left in tears at the end of the Benfield game ( as Brad knows) so get behind the boys and I’m sure we will reward you.
On the injury front Craig Hubbard is suspended Ian Dixon is struggling with a thigh strain. Chris Emms could return after his groin strain and Stevo and Lawther both return after missing midweek through work.
Cheers Jay
Billingham Town – Away
I’m always worried when I play a team from Teesside as so often we do not do ourselves justice and I’m left frustrated but on Saturday that fear went right out of the window. From the very 1st whistle we were on our game the work rate from the boys when we didn’t have the ball was exceptional and gave us the platform to build on. When we were in possession the player on the ball always had 2 or 3 options which made things a whole lot easier for him.
After playing them on Saturday and watching them again on bank holiday Monday I changed my usual system and went with 4.4.2 as I felt they really struggled defensively against pace and we could get at them more with 2 wide players and 2 upfront, fortunately it paid off. We scored some great goals and could of scored more, the 1st from Peaks was our 100th goal of the season and it was fitting that he scored it. I signed Peaks last year from local Teesside football and we saw then what a tremendous talent he was but with a good pre season behind him this year he has taken his performances to another level. The unfortunate 1 to drop out of the 11 was Hubby which had no reflection on the way he has been playing individually as in my opinion since Gareth left he has been a revelation with his work rate, vital goals and his presence in the dressing room. As I’ve said in previous notes every player is playing his part in our season and Hubby is certainly a big part of what we are trying to achieve here.
The next week is going to be pivotal in the season and if results go our way we could possibly win the league at Penrith on Wednesday, wouldn’t that be ironic as we won the 2nd division title there a couple of years back in what was a tremendous occasion in front of a very large Spenny following.
I’m not counting my chickens and neither are the players, we just needto stay focused in the run in and hopefully we will get our rewards.
See you Wednesday.
Jay
Billingham Town – Home
Can I first say a massive thank you to the supporters who braved the atrocious conditions on Saturday and cheered the boys on, the rain never stopped in the 1st half and it was a credit to Terry that the pitch played so well. I was disappointed by the attendance though, I don’t know what we need to do to attract more people in to the ground we are so close to ending a tremendously exciting season and it would be great to see the place bouncing in the final 3 home games and show the chairman why he chose to come to Spennymoor.
Onto the game itself. I felt we were full value for the 3 points although we played in 2nd gear at times which was a little frustrating because I always want to entertain and play good football but it’s been a long hard season and I can excuse them for sometimes dropping the very high standards they have set.
It was pleasing to see Mickey get on the score sheet again and his performance was superb throughout. It’s been a very difficult period for Mickey with niggling injuries and he has been very frustrated at not been involved which for a manager is very pleasing, but on Saturday I felt it was the perfect opportunity to bring him back into the team and it certainly paid off, his two goals were what he is all about. In my opinion when Mickey Rae is 100 per cent fit he is the best finisher in the league and would of topped the goal charts if he hadn’t had bad luck with injuries, he just needs to stay injury free till the end of the season. Another plus was Rudds, I spoke to him before the game about getting more goals from his position and he duly obliged with a goal and an assist Rudds has got tremendous ability and energy, sometimes I forget he is still a young lad learning the game he will get better and better with his decision making. It just shows the strength in depth of our squad when you look at the quality on the bench and who is out injured. At this stage of the season its results that count and we need to keep winning games to put pressure on the teams around us I’ve always said that in football you need to have a togetherness in the dressing room to succeed and win trophies
and this squad definitely has that. We are all determined to bring the title back home but keep biting your nails till the end of the season.
On the injury front Kenny Boyle will hopefully come back into the squad next week after ligament damage to his ankle, Emmsy is still a week away and the long awaited debut for Tommy English is getting closer he has worked tremendously hard with Andy and will definitely be involved in the run in providing he comes through training successfully.
Jay
West Auckland
A disappointing performance from us on Saturday we just didn’t get started, I told the boys that it was important to start well but we didn’t keep the ball and were 2nd best all over the park which was disappointing especially in the 1st half where we were lucky to go in on level terms. We got into good areas but didn’t test there keeper at all. 2nd half I thought we controlled the game and looked more of a threat and missed some good chances especially the one from Titch, Chrissy caused them problems when he came on but on the whole I don’t think we did enough to win the game, West were full value for the point and worked there socks off. Every team that plays us wants to beat us and we have to deal with that. You could see from the reaction of the west players what it means to take points off us and the players know that. Every team has a spell when they are not playing great that’s football it happens to the very best teams but the pleasing factor for us is that we’re still keeping a lot of clean sheets and grinding out results. If you’d of asked me before the season with 8 games to go that we would be where we are now I would of snapped your arm off. It’s going to be a tremendously exciting run in and we all need to stay focused. On the injury front Mickey Rae is nearing full fitness and had a run out for Hetton on Sunday. Emmsy is out with a groin injury and Lewis is seeing Andy on Monday but should hopefully be fit for Benfield.
Keep up the support
Jay
Billingham Synthonia
As I said in my last managers comments Wednesday’s game against Synners certainly wasn’t going to be a formality and I was proved right. Bearing in mind the exertions of the weekend and a very intense game with Whitley I thought the players fitness levels were exceptional. We got off to a perfect start with a goal by Titch but once we scored we let them back into it, as a team we didn’t work hard enough off the ball, gave possession away very cheaply and we were rightly punished, fortunately we got the equalizer just before half time with a well worked set piece to go into the break level. Some very harsh words were said by Darren and I about work rate and desire which the players took on board and 2nd half we were much more solid defensively and dangerous going forward. It was a great move involving Hubby and Peaks for the penalty and if one thing Peaks certainly isn’t is a diver, in fact there are times in the season when the lads been kicked from pillar to post and tried to stay on his feet! Capps duly obliged with the penalty.
On the whole it was a great 3 points especially at the business end of the
season when results far out way performances, we have another 8 cup finals left, at present we are top scorers in the league, we have the best defensive record in the league and with 1 more win will see us pass last year’s points total but as I keep saying its nowhere near over yet.
I’m hoping for a large turnout on Saturday to cheer the boys on this Saturday in what will be another very difficult game against a team in a false position who are fighting to stay in this league.
See you Saturday
Jay
Whitley Bay
To me Saturday’s game had more of a cup tie feeling about it as the right result for either club could have swung the pendulum in their favour and both sets of supporters come out in force, it was fantastic to see so many of our fans behind the goal in great voice and it certainly gave us a massive lift. With every game I am learning more about management and the fact that you need to put out a team for each game. The most important thing for us was not to get beat on the day and we achieved our objective; although I never put a side out to play for a draw I would have settled for that before 3pm.
I felt we started the game very well and played some great football in the 1st 30 minutes although i was disappointed we didn’t test their keeper more. We had a great chance to go 1 up but somehow one of their defenders managed to turn a point blank Cogdon header over the bar from on the goal line. Whitley are a quality side who score goals for fun and are a major threat from set plays with their height and on the day we dealt with that admirably. You know that you are going to get spells in the game where you need to roll your sleeves up and to a man we did just that especially 2nd half when they got a bit of momentum with a few corners in quick succession. A draw was probably a fair result on the day even though I thought we played the better football throughout the game. All the squad deserve credit for playing there part on the day but for me Lewis was immense, he covered every blade of grass and very rarely made a wrong decision when in possession of the football, it was a pleasure to watch such an accomplished mature performance from him.
To take 4 points and keep 2 clean sheets against Whitley Bay is certainly no mean achievement and as I have said previously any team who finishes above them won’t be far away.
We have 9 games to go and some very difficult fixtures wait. I will be stressing to all the players that just because we have had a couple of great results there is still a long way to go, Wednesday is going to be very tough, Synners are unbeaten in their last 5 matches and will be wanting to turn us over especially on their home pitch, we have got to be prepared to win the battle 1st and hopefully our quality will shine through. I am expecting the Spennymoor fans to turn out in force and cheer us on because it makes a tremendous difference to the team.
After the events at Whitley Bay and a long 7hr trip down to London. The lads produced an excellent performance against Hazelhurst on Sunday. Brad put out a very strong team and we got off to a great start creating several Good chances although it was Hazelhurst who scored with virtually their 1st attack. Hetton replied with Spennymoor player Chris Emms hitting the home bar from fully 35yds with a tremendous free kick. It was Emmsy who got us back on the game with a bit of magic he picked the ball up just outside the box and let fly with a superb strike that went in just inside the post. After the break we dominated possession and had numerous goal scoring opportunities although Hazelhurst were always a threat on the break. Brad brought on Spennymoor’s Chrissy Lawther with 20 mins to go and the decision nearly had an immediate impact when Chris beat a couple of players and hit a thunderous effort against the outside of the post his disappointment turned to ecstasy 5 mins to go when he raced through to fire a shot under the keeper to put us into the final for the 3rd time in the last 5 yrs. All the boys put a superb effort into the game but for me Whitley Bay’s Leon Ryan was outstanding in defence for us. The journey home was truly special and will live with us all forever. I hope all the Spennymoor supporters travel to anfield to cheer on the boys and support our chairman and Hettons manager in his quest to be in charge of the very 1st side to win the FA Sunday cup 3 times.
All the best Jay
Consett
What a difference a week makes in football, it was only last Tuesday that I was left feeling frustrated and angry with the lack of hunger and desire not only to win a football match but more importantly one against out local rivals Bishop Auckland. I could go on and make excuses that we were missing two key players in Paul Stephenson and Craig Hubbard and also the fact that a readymade replacement Ian Dixon was suspended but I think that would be unfair on Bishop Auckland who on the night deserved to win the game and also the other players in our team who were involved. Nobobody hates losing football matches as much as me but as a team we stick together and the manner in which the players have bounced back is why we are sitting at present top of a very strong league. When your most consistent performers throughout the season have an off night its nothing to do with tactics or formations you just have to take it on the chin and move on!! Which the boys have done.
Myself and Darren have assembled with the help of our chairman an exceptional squad and each player has a major role to play in achieving our goal this season. We have to pick a team for each game and the players are well aware of that. Although we looked sluggish in the opening 20 minutes against Esh Winning, once we scored and especially in the 2nd half we looked back to our usual self passing the ball quickly and playing with a high tempo. It was nice to see Lewis get on the score sheet because I believe the quality we have in the midfield department all are capable of reaching double figures in a season.
The Consett game was a very professional performance and showed the character that I feel has been missing in the last few away games. It’s not fair to single lads out although I thought the lads who came into the team Sheeran and Griffiths playing in an unfamiliar role of left back were exceptional on the night.
The supporters have a massive part to play until the end of the season there is nothing better than hearing your voices behind the goal backing us. You are like an extra man, they will be ups and downs but we are a very tight knit group and will fight right until the end.
Whitley Bay is going to be a tremendous occasion win lose or draw I know my players will be ready for it get behind the team and I’m sure we will do you proud
On the injury front Kenny Boyle is out with ankle ligament damage, John Toft has a knee injury both will be out for the next couple of games at least, whilst I am hopeful that Stephen Capper will be available for Saturday.
Long term injury concerns Gary Pearson is rehabilitating after his foot operation and Tommy English is now back in light training after a horrendous spell on the sidelines: I wish them both a speedy return to 1st team action.
And finally I would like to personally thank Matty Tyman for his loan spell with us he was a credit to himself and Hartlepool United in the way he conducted himself throughout his loan period and if the weather hadn’t been unkind to him i think Matty would of scored a lot more goals for the Club but his record of 2 goals in 3 games 2 as a sub speaks volumes of the lad.
Thanks for the support
Jay
