Disaster Tuesday

Tuesday 29th April 2008 - what a bad, bad day for yours truly !

Always delighted when my son comes to visit, and with Kev nipping round from next door we sat and thoroughly enjoyed the Man U v Barca game -- but with me being a big Barca fan I despaired when ginger fired past Valdes.....what the hell was Zambrotta doing??? Barca lost 1-0 to start my misery.

Then we turn to Sky Sports to see if Stockport had beaten Chester and given my beloved Stags a lifeline -- finished 0-0 and the Stags are now Non-League !!

Then we looked at the Eastwood Town forum to find they had been stuffed 4-0 in their UniBond play-off game at Gateshead.

NOT a nice hat-trick --

Any consolations?

Eastwood get to play Hucknall (my home town club, relegated from BSN) next season!
Mansfield's Filed Mill can become another non-league ground we get to visit!
Barca will get rid of Rijkaard and win everything next season!

Kimberley v Newark Flowserve is off

According to CML forum

http://cmlunofficial.proboards104.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=004&thread=227&page=1

Maybe Stanton Ilson v Calverton ( if Stanton can get a team together)

May be Chelsea / Liverpool

CML Cup final

TO BE PLAYED ON MAY 4TH AT ALFRETON TOWN FC ..

Dunkirk ( Supreme Division) take on Blidworth Welfare ( Premier Division) kick off 3pm.

With it being a bank holiday weekend, this looks attractive......

Saturday 26th April 2008 Pt II

Nice floor !!

Rainworth MW v Hall Road Rangers NCEL Div One

Final chance of the season to visit Kirklington Road ...for the first time for ages NO BIG COAT was required...!!!

Rainworth was a surprise to us when we made our first visit earlier in the season and since that visit the place has changed no end -- all for the better I hasten to add! They have even built a nice shelter for the bloke who fetches the ball behind the far goal... nice touch!

All new netting above the perimeter fencing, and around the reserve pitch - a new working turnstile -- very pleasant place to visit. Rainworth have finished fourth in the table -- very creditable after promotion from the CML last season.
They failed to win their final home game of the season - going down 1-2 to the Division runners up Hall Road Rangers. Football still has the power to amaze me after all my years watching the game - Rainworth had chance after chance to score, but close range shots were cleared off the line, pushed away by a decent keeper or just fluffed...

After Wrens skipper Lee Wilkinson had a penalty well saved by Adam Nicklin, we were saying how typical it would be to end the NCEL season with a 0-0 draw. But as the game entered the last 10 minutes, Wrens keeper Mark Hales decided to dive and tip the ball out for a corner when it was missing his near post by yards. Of course Rangers netted from the corner!! A neat near post header to break the deadlock. It was 1-1 a minute later, Andy Jones powering a far post header from a Wrens corner. A minute later it was 1-2 -- a Rangers striker beating the offside trap to run at Hales and slot past him. F-T 1-2

Rangers received their runners up trophy at the end of the game.

With Dagenham coming back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Darlington and Mansfield losing to Rotherham, it may well be that we will have to add Blue Square Premier to our list of Leagues next season.....

Eastwood won 3-1 at Leek, relegating the Staffordshire club, but setting up an away trip to Gateshead for the Badgers in the play off semis. We saw Eastwood play Gateshead earlier in the season, and this game will be very tricky indeed.

Results

Leek 1-3 Eastwood Tn

Carlton Tn 4-1 Belper Tn

Shepshed 1-3 Retford Utd

Gedling Tn 1-1 AFC Emley

Long Eaton Utd 0-3 Nostell MW

Greenwood Meadows 3-3 Nettleham

Forest Tn 0-1 Dunkirk

Gedling MW 1-2 Hatfield Main

Hartlepool Utd 0-1 Florists

Notts County 1-0 Wycombe

Mansfield Tn 0-1 Rotherham

Saturday 26th April 2008 Pt I

Last regular games of the season for UniBond Clubs..
I would like to wish Eastwood Town good luck - they take on Leek at Harrison Park knowing that a win will secure them a play-off semi-final place.

The semi-finals and finals are all live on the excellent NPLTV.. I watched Eastwood beat Skelmersdale in the UniBond Cup final on Monday 21st April on NPLTV, and then watched Fleetwood win away at Leek on Tuesday. Sitting with laptop on the coffee table, and Liverpool v Chelsea on the telly made up for not going to a live game.

It is also the final full Saturday for the NCEL, although there are a few odds and ends games to be played next week.

The CML goes on forever... final week is 3rd May, but still some games to be played on the 10th and one on the 13th !!

Saturday's choices are:

Leek v Eastwood ( too far)

Carlton v Belper

Shepshed v Retford

Forest Tn v Dunkirk

Gedling MW v Hatfield Main

Sutton v Stanton

Rainworth v Hall Road Rangers

Greenwood Meadows v Nettleham

Timetable for the end of season :-

Saturday 26th April - Rainworth v Hall Road Rangers

Tuesday 29th - stay in to watch Man U v Barca pt II

Weds 30th - Kimberley Tn v Newark Flowserve

Sat 3rd May - Gedling MW v Heanor Town

Sunday 4th - Dunkirk v Blidworth CML cup final - (if venue is near)

Monday 5th - Sutton v Ollerton

Tuesday 6th - Forest Tn v Gedling MW

Weds 7th - Eastwood Tn v Ollerton Tn ( Notts FA senior Cup final)

Saturday 10th - Sutton Tn v Newark Flowserve

Tuesday 13th - Blidworth v Calverton

Saturday 19th April 2008

Eastwood Town v Lincoln Utd UniBond Premier Division

Final visit of the season to Coronation Park - Eastwood looking to secure a play-off place - Lincoln already relegated. We thought this would be a decent game, one team really needing the points and the other team under no pressure after their relegation fate has been sealed. BUT -- as usual this season, the Badgers failed to deliver, well for the first hour anyway....as it happened, it turned out to be a GOOD SATURDAY, with smiles all the way home!

The local results came though - Mansfield beat Shrewsbury 3-1, Florists beat Luton 1-0, Carlisle lost at home to Southend, Doncaster drew at Orient, Dag Red lost at Rotherham, Notts lost at Wrexham -- leaving the Stags just one point behind the Daggers, and two behind Chester and Notts... the final game of the season for Mansfield? Away at the Daggers!! Florist moved three points away from auto promotion after their win - two to play......

Back to Coro Park... decided to stand behind the goal despite bad legs and a bad back...great view of Smith and Howells first half misses - but also a great view of the ball arrowing out of the sky as the Badgers played John Ramshaw's "direct" football. Despite a couple of decent chances for the home team, the half ended goal-less. H-T 0-0

As we changed ends, I confidently predicted that Eastwood would win 3-0 -- honest !!

Marc Smith was taken off on 50, his replacement Matt Rhead a favourite of Kev's (not) -- he is big and clumsy but he does know where the goal is. His introduction allowed Anthony Howells to move to the left wing and after making the opposition right back look rubbish on a couple of occasions, you could see him grow in confidence. The Badgers opened the scoring on 67 minutes, a Shaw's cracking free-kick from 18 yards flying past the visitors' keeper.
Five minutes later Rhead volleyed home Brookes' superb cross from 8 yards to double the lead. Howells bagged the third Eastwood goal. Shaw fired the ball to the back post where Howells was waiting - the striker brought the ball down and fired a controlled shot past the keeper. F-T (as predicted) 3-0.

The result move the Badgers into 4th place and a win at Leek next Saturday will secure a play-off place, it is in their own hands....

Eastwood travel to Curzon Ashton on Monday to take on Skelmersdale Utd in ther Unibond League Cup final ...good luck Badgers!!

Coming up are the CML cup semi-finals... Tuesday -- Blidworth W v Holbrook MW at Heanor Town, with Chelsea v Liverpool on TV.

Wednesday -- Dunkirk v Gedling MW at Greenwood Meadows, but maybe BARCELONA v MAN UTD on TV may take preference!!

Tuesday 15th April 2008

Calverton MW v Thorne Colliery -- CML Premier Division

First ever visit to the Hollingwood Lane home of Calverton MW FC. When we arrived just after 7:30pm, we thought the game must have been called off -- there was absolutely no-one about! We were pleased when a Calverton official came out of the clubhouse to open the spectators entry gate. £2.00 each and £1.00 for a programme - we actually got a programme each, courtesy of the gate man...

Newish set-up with no cover ... not too bad in the 1st half as it was dry -- but all through the second half it absolutely poured down - we got drenched, despite searching for the limited cover under the trees at the back of the far goal....

Thorne are from Scunthorpe and we had seen them previously at Sutton Tn where they were well beaten 5-1 -- they were 6-0 down at half-time in this game!

Although the visitors started well enough, even striking the post early doors, an own goal opened the scoring for Calverton in the 12th minute, and 4 minutes later it was 2-0, a neat shot from the edge of the box.

On 22, it was 3-0, a header from close range from the no. 10 jacket - then it was 4-0 on 28, another header from the no.10. A 20 yard free-kick conversion in the 33rd minute made it 5-0, and with 5 minutes of the half remaining the home no. 6 fired home a screamer from 25 yards. H-T 6-0

Into the clubhouse for a half-time Lucozade - then out to pouring rain. First time all season we have got soaked, but I guess we have just been lucky!

Credit to the visitors, they came out with their heads up and took the game to the league leaders, although the home defence was rarely troubled. It took until the 65th minute for the 7th goal, a deflected shot flying past the keeper, then another deflected effort made it 8-0 ten minutes later. With 5 to go, the home team added their 9th and final goal, leaving us soaked but well happy with the choice of game....F-T 9-0

Saturday sees us make our final visit of the season to Coronation Park Eastwood v Lincoln Utd.

Saturday 12th April 2008

Hucknall Town v Nuneaton Borough -- Blue Square North

Thought we would pay a final visit of the season to Watnall Road to see our hometown club fight for the three points in their desperate struggle for survival .... well strangely, for 75 minutes there was no fight at all..

Borough had former Mansfield Town player Tom Curtis in their ranks ( I never did like him - too much of a Spirite if you ask me !), but he was a different class to anything on the pitch...

It took 37 minutes for the away team to open the scoring, a mix up between the Town centre-halves allowing Danny Williams a simple tap in from close range. H-T 0-1

The home team levelled on 58, left back Danny MacPherson bundling the ball over the line after the keeper was blatantly fouled - he was so convinced he was fouled, his lengthy protests earned him a place in the Ref's book. 99 out of 100 would be called a foul, on this occasion Hucknall got away with it.

Town were only level for 9 minutes though - they allowed Williams to run all the way across the box before his peach of a ball picked out Curtis who hammered the ball home. Ben Saunders earned Hucknall a point on 38, a ball into the box hitting him on the knee before dropping over the keepers head into the net. F-T 2-2

If Hucknall are relegated, it will be because they are not good enough to be at this level - no other reason ....

We were treated to an elderly gentleman's inane whistling all the way through the first half - aaarrghh, it almost drove me crackers -- no tune - he just kept on whistling !!!!

We were also treated to a fancy dress parade by the away fans ... It's not every game you go to that you get to see : a nurse, a doctor, Chewbacca, a Panda, D'Artagnon, Pirates and a priest!!! Great stuff..

Tuesday should see us visiting Calverton MW for the first time this season.

Revised trips -- 11th April 2008

Subject to alteration at a minutes notice!!

66 down and another dozen available --- how many of these will we be able to get to? Who knows?

Saturday 12th April
Hucknall Tn v Nuneaton Borough ( Blue Square North -- Town's final home game of the season).

Tuesday 15th April
Calverton MW v Thorne ( CML Premier).

Saturday 19th April
Eastwood Town v Lincoln United ( UniBond Premier Div -- Town's final home game of the season).

Wednesday 23rd April
Dunkirk v Gedling MW ( League Cup 1/2 final at Greenwood Meadows).

Saturday 26th April
Rainworth MW v Hall Rd Rangers ( NCEL Div One -- Rainworth's final home game of the season).

Tuesday 29th April
Clipstone Welfare v Radcliffe Olympic ( CML Supreme Divison ).

Saturday May 3rd
Gedling MW v Heanor town ( CML Supreme Division).

Sunday May 4th
CML Cup final -- Blidworth / Holbrook v Dunkirk / Gedling MW (depends on venue).

Monday 5th May
Sutton Town AFC v Ollerton Town ( CML Premier Division).

Tuesday 6th May
Forest Town v Gedling MW ( CML Supreme Division).

Wednesday 7th May
Eastwood Town v Ollerton Town ( Notts Senior Cup Final - at Meadow Lane).

Saturday 10th May
Kimberley Town v Thorne or Sutton Town v Newark Flowserve ( CML Premier Division)

Wednesday 9th April 2008

Carlton Tn v Eastwood Tn -- Notts F.A. Senior Cup 1/2 final

Carlton fans and players must be wondering why they are not in the Notts F.A. Senior Cup final - they dominated the game from start to finish, despite being down to 10 men for the second half. Striker Phill Bignall was dismissed for an incident as the players went in for their cups of tea.

As it was, Eastwood go through to the final. After 120 minutes the game finished 1-1 and it took penalties to decide the outcome.... unlucky Steve Chaplin the only player to fail with his kick, leaving Eastwood 5-4 winners.

We've been to Carlton a few times this season - since our last visit, they have laid tar-mac in the area between the club-house and snap-shed... much better than the muddy feet we were used to...

The game? Eastwood were battered in the first half - Carlton were really up for it. Bignall looked dangerous, and Marquin Smith was excellent ....

Jay Smedley saved Eastwood twice with clearances off the line, and although the home team should have been 4-0 up at the break, they went in 1-0 down -- a defensive slip-up allowing Rhead the time to slot home for the Badgers. H-T 0-1

I managed to trap my beard in my coat zip... much to the amusement of one or two "friends" -- that hurt did that!!

Bignall failed to emerge after the half time break - dismissed for an incident in the tunnel apparently.......

Second half was still all Carlton - Eastwood managed a few attempts at goal, but their kick and rush tactics were plan A, and they didn't seem to have a plan B.

10 man Carlton levelled after Eastwood failed to clear a free-kick - Jay Smedley unfortunately bundling the ball into his own net. F-T 1-1

Bear in mind that the night was one of the coldest for ages -- and we had to endure the agony of 30 more minutes extra time!!

The 30 minutes extra time produced nothing noteworthy....so penalties had to settle it.....and would you believe it - we were stood at one end of the ground, and the penalties were taken at the other end!

Anyway -- Eastwood netted all their 5 spot-kicks - Chaplin fired his off the bar and over - Eastwood win 5-4...

One point worth noting - although Eastwood were outplayed and lucky to progress to the final, they have been drawn away in all the preceding rounds -- at Retford Utd -- top of Unibond Div One South, at Hucknall (Blue Square North) and at Carlton ( second highest scorers UniBond Div One South). So well done Badgers!.

Wednesday May 7th at 7:30pm Notts Senior Cup final --- Eastwood Tn v Ollerton Tn

Saturday - Hucknall Tn v Nuneaton maybe ... I fancy going to Ollerton v Calverton but that is quite a hike -- not really too bothered as long as we take in a game !!

Tuesday 8th April 2008

Gedling MW v Ollerton Tn -- Notts F.A. Senior Cup 1/2 final

A place in the final at Meadow Lane should be enough to motivate players, but it was Ollerton who wanted it most, beating Welfare 3-2, although the scoreline is somewhat flattering to Gedling, their goals both coming in added time at the end of the game. Ollerton are top of their division, CML Premier, while Gedling are in the league above, CML Supreme.

An expected attendance of 350 in the local press was a bit optimistic, Florists at home, Champs League on telly - but still a decent turnout.

The visitors took the lead on 25, a toe-poke from the 18 yard line flying past Mason in the Welfare goal. H-T 0-1

Highlight of the game was the second Ollerton goal --- after a Gedling attack broke down, the Town no. 11 picked the loose ball up well inside his own half and just ran and ran before slotting past Mason ... superb goal, well worth the £4 entrance fee.

With 3 to go, Town added a third and the game seemed all over. But Gedling managed to score twice right at the death to give the scoreline some respectability. F-T 2-3

Ollerton's back four were seldom troubled over the whole 90 minutes, just a case of relaxing too much as the game drew to a close.

Very cold night again, we spent all the half time break with our backsides planted firmly on a radiator in the clubhouse!!

Carlton v Eastwood coming up... can't wait.....

Saturday 5th April 2008 results

Results

Blidworth W 4-0 Louth
Calverton MW 4-0 Thoresby
Gedling MW 4-0 Clipstone W

Long Eaton 0-2 Lincoln Moorlands
Teversal 0-2 Hall Road Rangers
Shirebrook 1-1 Eccleshill

Saturday 5th April 2008

Shepshed Dynamo v Carlton Town -- UniBond Division 1 South

One of our favourite grounds -- the Dovecote on Butthole Lane ....final visit of the season to see "Gedling Town old-boys" take on Carlton Town.. the Shepshed team had no fewer than 5 ex-Gedling Town players ( Whitehead, Millns, Saunders, Wilkes, Cobley) in the starting 11, with 2 more ( Jefferies, Massingham) on the bench...add the Manager and Assistant Manager -- you see what I mean about " Gedling Town old-boys".

Anyway, a lot of local rivalry between the two sets of players meant this would be full of incident - and it was.

After Carlton's Gent had received a yellow for a poor challenge on Whitehead, Carlton's no. 3 was given a straight red after about 25 minutes for a clattering challenge on Saunders ...

Clarke put the home team ahead on 33, a well timed run saw him latch onto the ball some 18 yards out, and fire over the Carlton keeper. H-T 1-0

Gent received a second yellow early into the second half, leaving Carlton to battle on with 9 men. They did trouble the Shepshed defence on the odd occasion, but Millns was superb at the back, hardly missing a thing. Dynamo substitute Jefferies' run and cross from the right was tapped in by Menga to double the Dynamo lead and ease the tension -- after failing to impress when coming from the bench, Massingham didn't endear himself to the Dovecote faithfull by firing a spot-kick so far over the bar, that Jonny Wilkinson would have been proud of it !! F-T 2-0

Snow, rain, sleet, hail and glorious sunshine -- God, I love this Country!!

Tuesday -- Gedling MW v Ollerton Tn -- Notts Senior Cup 1/2 final

Wednesday -- Carlton Tn v Eastwood Tn -- Notts Senior Cup 1/2 final

Saturday was supposed to be a trip to Borrowash, but it's Hucknall Town's final home game of the season, so we may just dig deep to find the £9 entrance fee.....

Tuesday 1st April 2008

Kev had family business to take care of, and I wasn't that bothered about going out ( Barca on the telly!), so we will have to wait until Saturday to get our footie fix...

Tuesday results ---

Gedling MW 0-0 Pinxton
Rolls Royce Leisure 0-5 Dunkirk
Blidworth 1-3 Sutton Tn AFC
Mansfield Tn 2-1 Wrexham
Carlise 0-2 Florists

Saturday should be Shirebrook v Eccleshill, but there are a lot to chose from:

Blidworth v Louth
Calverton v Thoresby
Gedling MW v Clipstone
Long Eaton v Lincoln Moorlands
Teversal v Hall Rd Rangers
Shepshed Dyn v Carlton Tn