Messages

121

The B-Ark / Re: Vs Gloucester

« on: April 17, 2017, 09:15:44 PM »

pleased for robbo to get the equaliser. he didn't have his best day- losing his marker for goal one and getting out muscled for number two

but he never gives in and is passionate. hope we see him in amber and black next season

122

The B-Ark / Re: Vs Gloucester

« on: April 17, 2017, 09:13:01 PM »

totally disagree re retained players. no way we'll only keep one from today's starting line up, think you underestimate how hard it is to get decent players to come out here

we're not a million miles away from being a competitive NLN side. we have competed today with a top 9 side and this should be our benchmark for the next campaign

smith broadhead and vince are already contracted for 2017/18

aside from robinson mani gatter and simmons (whose futures are other people's calls) i think, from today's starting XI, we will try to retain also durrant thomas batchelor yeomans chapman briscoe and rollins

not sure about the long term injured like burgess roberts pepe etc

i can see st juste marshall fairhurst clarke gordon brown hilliard and maguire being let go. this will free up a lot of budget

the retained list, of course depends on us offering the right deals to the players we want to keep. AM says in todays programme we will make offers to players we want to keep to try to keep them. decent players are also pro active and will already have their feelers out. most have agents too. many of our current players live in leicester sheffield derby leeds nottingham bradford etc so if they get similar offers nearer to home they will take them for sure. let's not kid ourselves we can be too picky. we need a squad of 20 so to say we're keeping one from today is massively unrealistic

123

The B-Ark / Re: o/t - Grimsby Town

« on: April 14, 2017, 08:23:25 PM »

i hear hopkins and kirkwood from matlock in frame for alfreton

124

The B-Ark / Re: Kidderminster away

« on: April 14, 2017, 08:22:09 PM »

salford are a pub team with sunday football managers. they won't last til xmas in charge i don't think. players won't put up with being shouted at day in day out for long. to me they're just a bunch of chavs. hope they go up as will be glad to see the back of em

as for us today- so nearly another defensive masterclass. soaked everything up for 87 minutes. unlucky to see the original header deflect off robbo hit the bar and fall to their fella

solid display from us again though. they were a quality side, make no mistake. best footballing side i;ve seen in NLN. we showed that, with a schemer to pick a pass, a decent winger and a 20 goal striker that we can be right up there next season, we really aren't far away. my ratings:

durrant 7.5. no chance with goal, 3 decent saves, wasted time effectively!
thomas 8.5. our best player for me. improves every week. great energy
yeomans 8. another who continues to improve. a real prospect
gordon 6.5 steady in a alien position. missed our best chance though
batchelor 7.5 won everything in a typically batchelor display
robinson 7.5 same as batch, solid
chapman 6.5 not his best game but not bad. looked a yard off it first half but improved
broadhead 7.5 does a lot of dirty work in the background. will improve with time. 100% effort
rollins 7 tireless running and a couple of half chances
simmons 6 never got into the game. not sure he's quite up to it
bishop 6.5 tried hard without much luck

subs
vince 6.5 industious as ever. more effective further forward for me
briscoe 6.5 switched off in build up to goal but dis some good things

well done to all involved. a good effort and plenty  to build on

125

The B-Ark / Re: Player of the Year

« on: April 14, 2017, 08:44:49 AM »

undecided between smith thomas and rollins to be honest

agree with ken- if it was 'player of the second half of the season' there are a number of other contenders like batch ross etc but that isn't what we're voting on is it?

so it has to be either tommo or jay given gregg hasn't played since NYD

it's been a really strange season but i think we are on the verge of something good next season people

126

The B-Ark / Re: Vs Telford

« on: April 09, 2017, 10:12:57 AM »

decent performance against a very average bucks side. we closed down very well, hunted in packs and didn't give them a second on the ball. closing down like that has to be coached to get it spot on and you could see the lads working in groups and off certain triggers to get it 100% effective

early goal helps and we got it again, after which we were very efficient at preserving the lead. had hughes taken his chance, or had they scored the follow up then 1 1 at half time may have made it a different game second half but the keeper saved both and we were ruthless after the interval i thought

pleased for mani to get the goal his performance deserved. for me he ran jay close for MOM award and is steadily improving. shame he can't play at kiddy but that will give someone else a chance i suppose

5 clean sheets in 7 is terrific. the back 5 are rock solid at the moment and are developing a superb understanding. you can tell they are very much a unit and are prepared to put themselves on the line for each other

a month ago i wrongly wrote nat brown off. he has been superb recently forming a great pairing with batch. also we now have the size to handle the long ball/ long throw teams. ross batch nat broadhead mani are all well over 6 foot and both full backs are really good in the air too

all in all a solid win. lovely day out in the sun so lets hope we can get something from both easter games to keep building. the end of the season is coming at the wrong time for us really but i think we are well equipped for next season and if summer retention/ recruitment is good then we will be aa force next season

many clubs are now starting to reveal which players are staying/ going and i expect we'll here news coming out of york street pretty soon on our retained list

when you have the likes of gatter gordon burgess pepe roberts gregg not even changed for various reasons you see how strong we are already and a couple of shrewd signings will top the squad up. i'd love to see us get robbo permanently but that's up to york. i think we also need a proper number 10

but happy overall. keep the faith people. fans were good again yesterday.  really good support. plenty doubted mr murray a month ago but i bet they don't now!

127

The B-Ark / Re: Brackley v Boston Live Stream YouTube

« on: April 02, 2017, 09:54:26 AM »

i don't think we need a lot more defensively. depends a) if we can keep robbo and b) if nat gets a new deal. but in the rest oftem (batch kalern ross jan gordy etc) we have a defensive unit that is improving all the time

none of the above players are currently contracted to us for next season though I don't think so that will depend on AM's decisions i guess

a 20 goal forward, a proper number 10 and a schemer who can pick a pass are my priorities. but they are the players that cost the most so some wheeling and dealing is needed. who would others keep/ release? interested to know

good news is we're not going down and are moving in the right direction so let's all get right behind the group for the rest of the season as i think some good times are just around the corner. well done to travelling support again yesterday too. excellent

128

The B-Ark / Re: Brackley v Boston Live Stream YouTube

« on: April 01, 2017, 07:44:02 PM »

just 2 conceded in 6 games. could have won it at the end but a draw was fair. we were well drilled throughout. murray sure knows how to coach a defensive shape

very solid foundation to build on. back 5 really put a shift in for each other as do the rest of the side. brackley never really looked like scoring. ross made a good reflex save from an effort that deflected off browny and tipped a free kick over but other then that they created very little and we ran the clock down professionally

well done to all involved. nice people at brackley. good atmosphere too to say there were only 300 odd there. good playing surface helped us too

on ward and upward

129

The B-Ark / Re: Prediction League - Brackley Town vs Boston United

« on: March 28, 2017, 03:02:51 PM »

0 1 479

130

The B-Ark / Re: Fantastic victory v S@lford...

« on: March 27, 2017, 07:12:34 PM »

we're not far away. we have some good lads who we 'own' who are good enough and who i wouldn't mind being here next season

in these i class chapman briscoe vince batchelor durrant thomas smith broadhead rollins yeomans gordon as those players

add to these loans who may or may not stay like simmons/ robinson/ gatter/ desurewe and we're not a million miles from being a decent outfit. these lads are of course dependant on decisions from their parent cluns

i'm unsure on hilliard clarke roberts emery adams brown st juste bishop maguire burgess marshall chippendale ngoma fairhurst as to whether they'll be here next season. some might not be wanted and some may choose to leave. would be interested to hear other fans views on the above. these are just my views but the 11 i'd like to keep will form the basis of a solid squad i think

we have much reason for optimism and should look forward to next season in my view. looks like we're playing at york street for another season and we have time now to restore the pitch which will also help. i've seen nothing to be scared of this season so let's hope we can continue the development of the young squad we are assembling. good times aren't far away

131

The B-Ark / Re: Fantastic victory v S@lford...

« on: March 26, 2017, 05:26:32 PM »

loved the 'one nil to the proper club' chants from the town end

132

The B-Ark / Re: Fantastic victory v S@lford...

« on: March 26, 2017, 11:22:28 AM »

batch and brown were fine for this game. salford are notoriously direct. a proper long ball side and this played into our hands i thought. they had a couple of chances before we got settled but thereafter we did well. a relatively comfortable win. pitch looks much better so a pat on the back for the new groundsman. fans were great too. at times this season it feels like a few are just waiting for a mistake then they get right on the lads' backs straight away. this achieves nothing apart from unsettling the players further. if you are one of the negative ones then please try to change as this will benefit our club for sure. but superb support yesterday has to be applauded

just watched salford's post match interview with their joint boss and he gave us no credit whatsoever which i think shows a lack of respect. our lads deserve massive credit for a
 really good battling display. it's not our fault their lad had 'head loss' and got sent off. in reality he should have been given a straight red the first time for kicking vinno off the ball but was really thick in getting his second yellow which he fully deserved

for me, the game showed that in this league there is little between bottom and top. salford were ok but not miles better than alty or alfreton. at least we are all but mathematically safe now. looks like gainsboro or worcester for the third drop slot and gainsboro have a horrendous run in so i think they'll go down. i also hear unconfirmed rumours that worcester will drop down two leagues voluntarily and look for a base in their home town at step 4 next season so gainsboro may benefit from this

i think we have much to look forward to. we have a very young squad for this league. if recruitment and retention is successful over the summer we'll be much better next campaign. broadhead had a solid debut. he's only 21 as are ross and jan. colby is 20 and young vinno is a real prospect so i think we can be optimistic. the manager is very very good too so let's get behind them all for the last 6 games

133

The B-Ark / Re: Alfreton (A)

« on: March 24, 2017, 08:05:47 PM »

hilliard on his day is just the player we need. for me he just isn;t consistent enough. one decent game in 4 isn't good enough but the lad can play. no doubt about that. just needs to work harder when he hasn't got the ball and i'm not convinced he has that work ethic in his make up. hope he proves me wrong as he's got ability

134

The B-Ark / Re: Alfreton (A)

« on: March 24, 2017, 08:54:57 AM »

hearn is a poacher. proven scorer. but his injury record is dreadful

morgan, for a relative youngster, has had lots of clubs. never a good sign. can be effective on his day in the same way hilliard can (albeit in a different position)

neither diesurewe or bishop are the answer. smith and rollins as a front two i think would be an excellent combination

suspect that within a few weeks we'll know which of the current squad will be retained

we have vince broadhead and smith on contracts until the end of 2018

if it was up to me i'd retain batchelor, rollins, thomas, yeomans, gordon, briscoe, robinson (if york let him go), durrant, chapman and maybe roberts depending on how his injury works out

that gives us 12 or 13 which is a decent nucleus. 8 or 9 places to fill on top of that which shouldn't be difficult. maybe be harsh on hilliard but he doesn't deliver often enough for me and needs to work harder. haven't been impressed with simmons either TBH

releasing the likes of fairhurst, brown, hilliard, clarke, pepe, bishop,  maguire, burgess, marshall etc frees up quite a bit of budget

if burton don't retain gatter i'd look at him if step 2 football is to be a permanent option for him as he shows promise

would be interested in the views of others on the above

keep the faith chaps and ladies, we must all pull together and try to avoid negativity but i don't think good times are far away. we have a good manager and coaching staff and a solid board

onward and upward eh?

135

The B-Ark / Re: Alfreton (A)

« on: March 23, 2017, 04:37:22 PM »

we do lack a  20 goal forward but we also lack a midfielder who can 'pick a pass'

chapman can pass but plays very deep. hilliard for me should be the one pulling the strings but he has one good game in 4 and in the other 3 he's ineffective and doesn't put himself about enough

vince will be an excellent long term signing. great to see him commit. with greg we'd be 6 or 8 points better off than we have been since his break so all is not lost and we have much to enthuse about long term i think

the back 5 are pretty solid. since AM came we've kept  3 clean sheets in 15, let one goal in 8 times, 2 and 3 twice each so in 11 of 15 we've let 1 or less in which is much improved. this gives us a sound base to work with. add a striker (who we already have in greg) and a schemer and we'll do well

onward and upward