Showing posts with label stuart fleetwood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stuart fleetwood. Show all posts

Thursday, 20 January 2011

League Two Results 15th January 2011

Barnet 1-1 Shrewsbury Town
Not even a defeat would have put Barnet back in the bottom three but Hereford United are now just a point behind them and Lincoln City have lots of games in hand. So Barnet’s 90th-minute equaliser – and fifth away point - was particularly welcome. Shrewsbury drop out of the play-off zone but only on goal difference.
Tom Bradshaw started for Shrewsbury. He didn’t score but the Shropshire Star seemed very happy with him.

Bury 1-1 Aldershot Town
Aldershot’s new manager Dean Holdsworth was very happy to see his team draw at Bury but Bury are badly missing a certain Welsh goalkeeper they signed on loan. They remain in the play-off zone but are now five points from the automatic promotion places.
Darren Jones played the full match for Bury and there was a substitute appearance for Aaron Morris.

Cheltenham Town 1-2 Accrington Stanley
A late goal for Accrington gave them their second away league win of the season – and their fourth successive game without defeat. They are now just three points behind Cheltenham.
Josh Low, who had just recovered from a hamstring injury, was a 60-minute substitute for Cheltenham. But he still had enough time to get an assist.
Joe Jacobson played the full match for Accrington.

Chesterfield 1-0 Stevenage
Stevenage found Chesterfield a bit more trouble than their last opponents, Newcastle United. Chesterfield haven’t lost in the league since mid-November and although they only scored one goal in this match, it’s their 35th at home in the league. And not every team scores against Stevenage in away matches. They’ve only conceded eight away goals this season.
Craig Davies returned from a hamstring injury for Chesterfield. It might take him a while to find his shooting boots (he is a man, men never seem to know where their shoes are) but he’s probably well in credit as far as goals are concerned.

Crewe Alexandra 2-1 Port Vale
Crewe are three points from the automatic promotion places after beating fellow promotion contenders Port Vale. If they still count as promotion contenders. With just one win in their last five league matches, they probably don’t want to know what position they’re in in the form table.
Rhys Taylor conceded a harsh penalty and for once he didn’t save it but he it probably helped keep things exciting and he still made enough saves to ensure that Crewe won the match.
Lewis Haldane played his first 90 minutes of the season for Port Vale. Gareth Owen also played the full match. Lewis thinks Port Vale’s problem is a lack of confidence but he says they’re eager to learn from new manager Jim Gannon.

Hereford United 3-0 Stockport County
Hereford hadn’t won at home at all this season before this match (except for that time they beat Hythe Town in the FA Cup). Then when it finally did happen, it wasn’t some measly little 1-0 victory, they did it in style (Stockport had just drawn with Rotherham United so it’s not like they’re complete rubbish). Now Hereford have won the same number of home games as Stockport.
Stuart Fleetwood started for Hereford. Ryan Green served the second and final match of his suspension.
Guess where Owain fon Williams was Stockport’s bench.

Rotherham United 1-2 Southend United
Rotherham seem to be a bit confused. They beat Port Vale 5-0, as in promotion contenders Port Vale, then they draw with Stockprt County and lose to Southend United. That’s just not how it’s supposed to be. Have they got the league table upside down or what?
Mark Bradley was missing from Rotherham’s squad again as they try to arrange a loan for him.
Peter Gilbert was back in Southend’s starting line-up for the first time since returning from what is probably one of the longest suspensions ever. He got a 3-match suspension almost two months ago and completed it in early January following several postponements and an abandonment but this was the first time he’s not been on the bench.

Saturday, 15 January 2011

League Two Fixtures 15th January 2011 (Part 2)

Gillingham v Northampton Town
Northampton, who are now well away from the relegation zone, will hope to add to their two away wins against a team who have finally broken their away win jinx – only to forget how to win at home. But Gillingham have only forgotten how to win home games once in the last seven matches.
Paul Walker will be on the bench for Northampton.

Hereford United v Stockport County

Hereford manager/physio Jamie Ptman is ‘confident that [Hereford] will get out of it’. Let’s hope he’s not referring to League Two. But Hereford are still without a win on their home ground while four out of Stockport’s five wins have come away from home.
Stuart Fleetwood should start for Hereford but Ryan Green serves the last match of his two-match suspension and Ryan Valentine is still out with an injury that used to be a stomach injury but it seems to be a hip injury now.
Stockport drew their last match. It was a good draw but they might drop Owain fon Williams anyway. It would be really unfair if they did though.

Oxford United v Bradford City

Bradford wanted to be promotion contenders this season and as long as the play-offs count, they probably are. Admittedly, they have just lost to Barnet but they’re still just four points from the play-offs, two points behind Oxford.
Michael Flynn is still out with a groin injury but he is in training and should be back by the end of the month.

Rotherham United v Southend
Rotherham are in second, having lost just one home game this season. It doesn’t look good for Southend but the Essex side are one of three teams to have beaten them this season.
As Mark Bradley has been told he can go out on loan, I wouldn’t expect him to start for Rotherham.
Peter Gilbert has been on the bench since returning from his latest suspension but Southend did lose both those games so maybe he’ll start this time.

Wednesday, 12 January 2011

FA Cup Third Round Result 11th January 2011

Wycombe Wanderers 1-2 Hereford United
Hereford only sealed their place in the third round on Saturday but they kept the momentum going to claim an excellent win over Wycombe.
Stuart Fleetwood let some of his Hereford team-mates do the scoring although he did get the assist for the first goal. Ryan Green began his three-match suspension.

Tuesday, 11 January 2011

FA Cup Fixture 11th january 2011 Third Round

Wycombe Wanderers v Hereford United
Just days after beating Lincoln City in a thrilling game which ended 3-4, Hereford must take on Wycombe in order to reach the fourth round. Hereford (and Lincoln) are three points adrift at the bottom of League Two while Wycombe are in an automatic promotion place. But stranger things than a Hereford win have happened in the third round so far. This will be the first time Hereford and Wycombe have played one another in a competitive match which isn’t a league match.
Ryan Green won’t play for Hereford after receiving his second red card of the season against Lincoln. Ryan Valentine is still absent with a stomach injury but manager Jamie Pitman would have to be mad to leave Stuart Fleetwood out of the starting line-up. The striker has five goals and an assist from his last three games.

FA Cup Results 8th January 2011 Third Round (Part Two)

Coventry City 2-1 Crystal Palace
Both these teams are in the Championship and form often doesn’t matter where the FA Cup is concerned – and it very nearly didn’t in this match, with a late penalty save needed to prevent Palace from taking the match to a replay. Coventry travel to Birmingham City in the next round.
Freddy Eastwood made it three goals in three games for Coventry, also picking up the assist for their second goal.
Andy Dorman started for Palace and came close to scoring. Lewis Price was on the bench.

Doncaster Rovers 2-2 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Only a late equaliser prevented Wolves from being the victim of a cupset but as it was only an equaliser, and with Wolves probably more focused on survival than the FA Cup, the cupset could yet happen. The winner of the reply will play either Stoke City or Cardiff City. The second one, I hope.
A John Oster header was the assist for Doncaster’s second goal. He was also involved in a worrying incident involving a red-carded Wolves player but I’m hoping Mick McCarthy was mistaken about John’s role in it.
Some reports said Wayne Hennessey didn’t play due to injury but as he was on the bench and this was an FA Cup match, I think it’s probably more likely he was rested. Dave Edwards kept his place in the starting line-up but he suffered a hamstring injury and was substituted after just 28 minutes . His replacement, David Jones, came close to a goal but his shot went over the bar.

Fulham 6-2 Peterborough United
Fulham ensured they weren’t going to be embarrassed by putting six past League One Peterborough. Some fans might be worried by the fact that their team let in two goals but as one was a penalty and one was an exceptional strike (not to mention that Fulham weren’t playing their first-choice keeper), maybe there isn’t too much cause for concern. Clean sheet or not, Fulham’s win was emphatic and well-deserved. Maybe they can do the same against Tottenham Hotspur in the fourth round.
Fulham keeper David Stockdale had to be at his best to deny Peterborough’s Arron Davies early on.
Simon Davies missed an early chance against his former club Peterborough and was substituted at halt-time – hopefully this was to rest him rather than because he was injured/in Mark Hughes’ bad books for missing.

Huddersfield Town 2-0 Dover Athletic
Two early goals in two minutes from Huddersfield were enough for them to beat Dover Athletic, who have had a great FA Cup run and also played well in this game too but they were unable to break Huddersfield down, although they did come close, also working hard to ensure Huddersfield were limited to just the two goals. Dover miss out on a potential trip to the Emirates but maybe Leeds will win the replay and I’m sure Huddersfield won’t be too disappointed if they do.
Adam Birchall, who must surely still be the FA Cup’s top scorer, was unable to add to his eleven goals but with 29 for Dover so far this season, he surely won’t be playing non-league football forever.

Lincoln City 3-4 Hereford United (second round)
Seven goals were scored and it could have been either side who scored the winning goal but in the end it went to Hereford – who were probably especially glad to avoid a replay as they tend to struggle at home. Hereford’s third round match against Wycombe Wanderers is also away and if they get through to the fourth round, they will face giant-killers Sheffield Wednesday away.
Hereford opened the scoring with Lincoln then going 2-1 ahead before Hereford took a 3-2 lead, with Stuart Fleetwood scoring the second and third goals, only for Lincoln to equalise again five minutes later. Stuart then set up Matthieu Manset to score his second and Hereford’s fourth and the away side hung on, despite losing Ryan Green to his second red card of the season after the defender received two yellow cards. This was his third match since returning from his last suspension.

Millwall 1-4 Birmingham City

Millwall had 53% of the possession, almost the same number of shots on target, considerably more off-target, and won 8 corners to Birmingham’s 0. But it was the Premier League side who took their chances to set up a fourth round tie with another Championship team, Coventry City. Darren Carter, Jason Puncheon and Ashley Grimes all found the net but as former Millwall loanees Carter and Puncheon are now back with their parent clubs and Grimes is still out on loan, this didn’t do Millwall any good at all. Millwall miss out on the chance to host Coventry City in the fourth round.
Steve Morison did his best to mount a comeback for Millwall and arguably should have scored three: one from a one-on-one situation, one from a penalty which he missed, and one from a goal that was wrongly disallowed. Maybe Steve is still feeling the affects of the flu that kept him out of the win over Crystal Palace last weekend and clearly hampered him during Millwall’s midweek fixture against Derby County..

Saturday, 8 January 2011

Fa Cup Fixtures 8th January 2011 (Part 3)

Doncaster Rovers v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Doncaster have only played Wolves six times but at least four of them must have been in the last two seasons. Doncaster are unbeaten in three matches and their last home defeat was in mid-October.
John Oster and Brian Stock should start for Doncaster.
Wayne Hennessey is expected to be rested. Dave Edwards is hoping for a run in the team but he could be rested too – although this would give David Jones a chance of coming into the side. Sam Vokes is still out with his hamstring injury.

Fulham v Peterborough United
Fulham are having striker problems again. They face Peterborough, who have apparently spent only one season in the same division as them.
Fulham could rest former Peterborough player Simon Davies, who has long-term ankle problems.
Arron Davies (no relation as far as I know) will hope to start for Peterborough.

Huddersfield Town v Dover Athletic

Dover are the lowest-ranked team left in the FA Cup. They scored six against Macclesfield Town in the last round and seven against Thurrock in their last match but Huddersfield are probably better than Macclesfield and Thurrock. They’ll hope so anyway. But they’re not taking any chances: they are expected to name a full-strength team.
Adam Birchall has scored eleven FA Cup goals so far this season. He’s so happy to be back in love with football again but he still dreams of being back in the Premier League one day. As for the FA Cup match, Dover can do it again.


Lincoln City v Hereford Town

Two of League Two’s strugglers meet in this match.
Ryan Valentine (stomach) remains out for Hereford but Ryan Green should start and Stuart Fleetwood certainly deserves to. Stuart feels Hereford can get to the fourth round.

Millwall v Birmingham City
Millwall’s season in the Championship is going better than many predicted (and worse than I predicted, I said they’d get promoted but I only said that to make my dad happy) – they are unbeaten in the last eight matches. Birmingham are perhaps struggling a bit more than most people expected. They’re unbeaten in one.
Steve Morison should play for Millwall but I’m hoping he won’t do anything too brilliant until the transfer window has closed and he’s still safely at Millwall. A hat-trick should be just about okay but four goals will be pushing it.

Welsh Players Christmas-New Year matches 2010-11 (League Two, Part 2)

Chesterfield
Craig Davies was in and out of the team with a hamstring injury but when he played, he scored.
Stockport H 4-1 (Y unsporting 27, G4 90, played all)
Accrington A 2-2 (out, injury)

Robert Page finished 2011 with another appearance on the bench.
Stockport H 4-1 (unselected)
Accrington A 2-2 (bench)

Mark Crossley
hasn’t been named on the bench since September.

Crewe Alexandra
Rhys Taylor has the option to move to another club in January and considering that he’d actually pretty good for a Chelsea goalkeeper, I would certainly have forgiven him if he did just that (although I’m not so sure about the Crewe fans). But the good news is that he hasn’t been corrupted by Ashley Cole and he does know what the word ‘loyalty’ means.
Northampton H 2-0 (played all)
Shrewsbury A 0-1 (played all)

Hereford United
Ryan Green returned from suspension to play Hereford’s final two matches of the season, in which they were unbeaten.
Wycombe A 2-1 (suspended)
Torquay H 2-2 (played all)
Aldershot A 1-2 (played all)

All the same, Hereford probably missed Ryan Valentine, who is still sidelined with a stomach injury.

Stuart Fleetwood made the most of his final two starts of the year by scoring in each of them.
Wycombe A 2-1 (starts, off 64)
Torquay H 2-2 (starts, G1 32, off 79)
Aldershot A 1-2 (starts, G1 3, off 78)

Macclesfield Town
Have Macclesfield Town actually superglued Sam Wedgbury to the bench or do they just not want him to play? I don’t know which is more ridiculous. I’m sure it’s no coincidence that they didn’t win any of their last three games.
Oxford A 2-1 (bench)
Bury A 2-2 (bench)
Rotherham H 0-2 (bench)

Northampton Town

Paul Walker remains Northampton’s second-choice keeper despite apparently being too young to play in League Two.
Crewe A 2-0 (bench)
Lincoln H 2-1 (bench)

Oxford United
Rhys Day was destined never to play with Oxford in the Football League. He spent the first part of the season absent with a knee injury before being sent out on loan to former club Mansfield Town. He has now signed for Mansfield permanently.

Friday, 17 December 2010

League Two Results 11th December 2010 (Part 1)

Barnet 2-0 Accrington Stanley
Barnet remain in the relegation places on goal difference but they do mean business and could move ahead of Accrington if they win their next game too.
Grant Basey helped Barnet to keep a clean sheet.
Joe Jacobson was probably trying to do the same for Accrington but he was less successful.

Bradford City 1-0 Hereford United
It was all going so well for Hereford but now the confidence has gone (and if they keep this up, the physio manager could be going too). Bradford end a run of four matches without a win.
Jason Price didn’t score Bradford’s goal but I’m sure he would have done if he hadn’t been put in a defensive role when he finally came off the bench.
Due to suspension and injury, Stuart Fleetwood was Hereford’s only Welsh representative and even he didn’t make it onto the pitch until the 72nd minute.

Burton Albion 3-1 Southend United
Southend’s five-match unbeaten run came to an end when they were overcome by Burton, who moved into the top half of the table.
Tony James has a hamstring problem and wasn’t in Burton’s squad.
Southend were without Peter Gilbert due to suspension.

Chesterfield 1-0 Torquay United
Chesterfield moved back to the top of the table after beating Torquay.
Craig Davies didn’t recover from injury in time for this game.

Macclesfield Town 2-4 Gillingham
Gillingham are just showing off now. This was their third consecutive away league win. They’re only a point behind Macclesfield now.
Sam Wedgbury was on the bench for Macclesfield.

Morecambe 1-0 Port Vale
Morecambe moved two points clear of the relegation zone with an impressive win over former league leaders Port Vale.
Gareth Owen started for Port Vale but left the field after just half an hour with a back injury. Lewis Haldane was a 59th-minute substitute.

Thursday, 2 December 2010

FA Cup Results 27th November 2010 (Part 2)

Dover Athletic 2-0 Aldershot Town
The FA Cup wouldn’t be the same without them. Dover went through to the third round at the expense of league side Aldershot. Next up are Huddersfield Town. I don’t know about winning but I think they might do better than Macclesfield Town.
Adam Birchall went into the match hoping for a tenth goal of the FA Cup campaign – and ended up with his eleventh too. He scored early in the second half to put Dover ahead before converting a 90th-minute penalty and he says he loves Dover. The way he’s playing, I’m sure Dover loves him too. His manager, at least, really doesn’t want to and doesn't need to sell him.
Darren Jones kept his place in Aldershot’s starting line-up but Aaron Morris was on the bench.

Hereford United 2-2 Lincoln City
Two of League Two’s strugglers probably don’t want another game as they have enough to concentrate on in the League. Their next opponents are also from League Two: Wycombe Wanderers.
Stuart Fleetwood played the full match for Hereford but had a penalty saved. It happens to all the best Welsh players. Ryan Green and Ryan Valentine were out due to suspension and injury respectively.

Huddersfield Town 6-0 Macclesfield Town
Macclesfield are never going to win the FA Cup and maybe they were never going to win this match but did Huddersfield really need to be so emphatic about it? They face Dover Athletic in the next round.
Sam Wedgbury was on the bench for Macclesfield.

Sheffield Wednesday 3-2 Northampton Town

Sheffield Wednesday aren’t as good as they used to be but at least they’re better than Liverpool – although Northampton put up a good fight and things could have been different if they hadn’t kept conceding penalties. Sheffield Wednesday are at Bristol City in the next round.
Paul Walker was on the bench for Northampton.

Southampton 3-0 Cheltenham Town

Cheltenham have been doing well in League Two but for once Southampton showed why it could have been them getting promoted if it weren’t for their points deduction. Their next opponents were expected to be spending this season in League One with Southampton. Instead, they’re tearing up the Premier League.
Ryan Doble was on the bench for Southampton.
Josh Low played the full match for Cheltenhan.

Saturday, 27 November 2010

FA Cup Fixtures 27th November 2010 (Part 3)

Hereford United v Lincoln City
Hereford are keen to get back to the good form that briefly took them off the bottom of the table – but it was their away form rather than their home form. Luckily it’s a Cup game and league jinxes often don’t count.
Stuart Fleetwood should play for Hereford but Ryan Valentine is out due to a stomach injury (or possibly a hip injury) while Ryan Green begins a three-match suspension after being sent off against Shrewsbury.

Huddersfield Town v Macclesfield Town

Huddersfield are going to show Macclesfield the same amout of respect as they showed Everton in the Carling Cup but I’m not sure that’s a good idea. They don’t want Macclesfield beating them 5-1.
Sam Wedgbury will hope to play some part for Macclesfield.

Notts County v Bournemouth

These two teams were promoted together but while Bournemouth are up in the play-off places, Notts County are lower down. Quite a lot lower down. They will hope Bournemouth are still reeling from losing one of their star strikers to Millwall.
Ben Davies should play for Notts County. He hasn’t scored for a while but that isn’t because he’s not trying.
Rhoys Wiggins will probably play for Bournemouth.

Sheffield Wednesday v Northampton Town

Sheffield Wednesday probably aren’t finding much to enjoy in League One. They’re not even noticeably better than everyone else. But I’m sure they wouldn’t mind going one better than Liverpool and seeing off Northampton.
Paul Walker will be on the bench for Northampton.

Southampton v Cheltenham Town
Cheltenham manager Mark Yates believes Southampton will get promoted this season. But they won’t be in the third round of the FA Cup if he has anything to do with it.
Josh Low will probably start for Cheltenham. He believes Cheltenham’s young team will keep improving. Not that it’s a completely young team, not with you in it, Josh.

Torquay United v Walsall
Torquay will think they have a chance against Walsall, who are at the bottom of League One – but Walsall have actually won two of their last three games. And one of them was against a good side.
Sean Geddes could be on the bench for Walsall.

Tuesday, 23 November 2010

League Two Results 20th November 2010 (Part 2)

Lincoln City 3-1 Hereford United
Hereford missed the chance to move out of the relegation zone when Lincoln beat them.
Hereford striker Stuart Fleetwood (who started for once) scored in the 57th minute to bring the score to 2-1 but two minites later Lincoln scored again. Ryan Green also played the full match for Hereford.

Port Vale 2-1 Wycombe Wanderers
Port Vale moved into second place after beating Wycombe and ending their unbeaten away record.
Gareth Owen played the full match for Port Vale, while Lewis Haldane was a late substitute.

Shrewsbury Town 1-1 Southend United
Promotion contenders Shrewsbury probably thought they’d won it. But then Southend scored a great goal to earn them a point and move three points away from the relegation zone. Shrewsbury do remain unbeaten at home though.
Peter Gilbert played in defence for Southend.

Stockport County 1-1 Torquay United
Stockport did well to claim a point from a long shot, just fourteen minutes after Torquay had taken the lead.
Anthony Pulis played the full match for Stockport.

Saturday, 20 November 2010

League Two News/Fixtures 20th November 2010 (Part 2)

Lincoln City v Hereford United
Hereford still aren’t quite out of the bottom two but if they do better than Gillingham this weekend, that will be enough. And considering Gillingham (no wins away for years) and Hereford (no wins at home this season) are both playing away, Hereford might fancy their chances.
Ryan Green will be back in central defence for Hereford after doing a great job as a stand-in full-back. Stuart Fleetwood should be back in the squad after serving a one-match suspension but Ryan Valentine is out with a stomach ’problem’ – which I would guess means an injury but I’m not sure.

Port Vale v Wycombe Wanderers
Port Vale will hope to continue their strong home form and keep their place in the automatic promotion places but Wycombe are creeping at the table – and they haven’t actually lost away this season.
Gareth Owen should start for Port Vale but Lewis Haldane might not be ready for another start just yet.

Shrewsbury Town v Southend United
Shrewsbury are unbeaten at home this season and could replace Port Vale in the top three if results go their way. Southend are ten points behind them.
Tom Bradshaw could return to Shrewsbury’s squad after recovering from an ankle injury.
Peter Gilbert should be in defence for Southend.

Stockport County v Torquay United
Stockport have only won once at home this season and Torquay seem to be on another of those long unbeaten runs that saw them break a club record last time.
Unfortunately Stockport don’t have any goalkeepers on loan at Torquay so they won’t be able to beat them in the sneaky way they beat Bury.
Anthony Pulis should be in midfield for Stockport.

Tuesday, 16 November 2010

League Two Results 13th November 2010 (Part 1)

Bury 0-1 Stockport County
BBC Sport described this as a shock win over Stockport but I’m not so sure. Bury have been doing well lately but they were forced to play without their goalkeeper, Owain fon Williams, as he is on loan from Stockport.
Robbie Williams (not the famous one, by which I mean not the one at Altrincham who played for Wales) is credited with the assist for Stockport’s goal but it sounds like Anthony Pulis’ free kick was a very important part of it.

Chesterfield 1-2 Burton Albion
Chesterfield lost at home for the first time this season while Burton won away for the first time. But Chesterfield are still top of the table so things aren’t too bad.
Craig Davies didn’t score for what I believe is the second time in three matches. But I don’t think that’s anything to worry about.
Tony James was in Burton’s starting line-up. Tony says he’s happy to have found himself again after being lost on the bench.

Gillingham 1-3 Crewe Alexandra
Gillingham lost again even though they need all the home points they can get but the manager was happy. Why? Because he had 12-14 players out through injury or suspension. Manager Andy Hessenthaler used to be a footballer so I think we can forgive him for having trouble with counting to fourteen.
Rhys Taylor was in goal for Crewe after recovering from an ankle injury (it seems to be Goalkeeper Injury Curse month – Rhys, Danny Coyne, Lewis Price and Tony Roberts have all been injured) and his presence was probably another reason why Gillingham lost. He did actually do them a big favour at one point but luckily Gillingham didn’t score.

Hereford United 1-1 Cheltenham Town
It’s a bit unfair when you’re unbeaten in six whole games and you’re still in the bottom two. Even if you do have an aversion to winning at home. But Hereford are only there on goal difference and if they can win the next game they should move ahead of Gillingham who are playing away.
Right back Ryan Green has been playing in central defence for Hereford and he says he likes it which is always good. He and Ryan Valentine played the full match for Cheltenham but Stuart Fleetwood was suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season.
Josh Low played the full match for Cheltenham. He thinks Cheltenham are playing a bit like Spain.

Monday, 8 November 2010

FA Cup Results 6th November 2010 (Part 3)

Gillingham 0-2 Dover Athletic
Dover were out for revenge. Gillingham had taken two of their managers, their youth team coach and one of their best players. But it was Dover who went through to the second round of the FA Cup.
Adam Birchall has scored no fewer than nine goals in the FA Cup this season. I didn’t see the first eight but his ninth was spectacular.

Guiseley 0-5 Crawley Town

No giant-killing here but we still have another non-league side in the second round of the FA Cup. The winner came from Torres. Liverpool must have been jealous. But only for twenty-four hours.
Glenn Wilson wasn’t in Crawley’s squad due to a hamstring problem.

Harrow Borough 0-2 Chesterfield

Chesterfield are at the top of League Two for a reason and, unlike many clubs, they weren’t about to be caught out by their non-league opponents. But the fact they only scored two probably means that Harrow did a pretty good job.
Substitute Craig Davies made the game safe only in the 93rd minute.

Hartlepool United 0-0 Vauxhall Motors
And another non-league side force a replay against League One opponents. It could have been a lot worse for Hartlepool but luckily when Vauxhall scored, it was offside.
Rob Marsh-Evans wasn’t playing for Vauxhall Motors because he’s gone back to parent club Southport.

Havant & Waterloovilw 0-2 Droylsden
No dazzling Cup run for Havant this season – not unless Droylsden made the same mistake as they did against Chesterfield two years ago.

Hereford Town 5-1 Hythe Town
Hythe, the lowerst-ranked team in the first round proper, became the second team in three matches to concede five against Hereford. But the difference between Hythe and Stockport County is that Hereford didn’t keep a clean sheet aganst Hythe.
Stuart Fleetwood finally got the start that he should have got weeks ago. He got the assist for the third goal, then scored the fifth. Ryan Green played at centre back but Ryan Valentine was unselected.

Macclesfield Town 2-2 Southend United

Macclesfield and Southend prepare for the second of four meetings between these sides this season.
Sam Wedgbury was on the bench for Macclesfield.
Southend were without Peter Gilbert, who was suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card. He was disappointed about missing this FA Cup match but Southend kindly ensured he would be playing in the first round after all.

Mansfield Town 0-1 Torquay United
Mansfield were very disappointed to lose after holding League Two’s Torquay at bay for 87 minutes.
Rhys Day couldn’t play for Mansfield following a red card in a previous game. Matt Somner also couldn’t play as he seems to be on loan at Altrincham.

Notts County 2-0 Gateshead
Gateshead might have harboured hopes of taking advantage of Notts County while things were in disarray following the shock sacking of one manager and very quick appointment of another.
Unfortunately, Notts County had other ideas. Ben Davies scored the penalty to put them 1-0 up.

Plymouth Argyle 0-4 Swindon Town

Swindon looked more like the play-off finalists they were last year than a team not all that far above Plymouth and the relegation places.
Carl Fletcher is still out for Plymouth with a leg injury.

Saturday, 6 November 2010

FA Cup Fixtures 6th November 2010 (Part 4)

Hereford United v Hythe Town
Hereford really have lost Tony James this time but parent club Burton Albion probably wouldn’t have allowed him to play anyway. Stuart Fleetwood will hope for the start he should have got two matches ago and maybe Ryan Green and/or Ryan Valentine will be in line for a rest.

Macclesfield Town v Southend United

Sam Wedgbury will hope for another start for Macclesfield.
Southend defender Peter Gilbert has five yellow cards and will be suspended for this match. He was originally suspended for their match against Cheltenham Town but then he got updates from his team-mates telling him the floodlights have gone. He didn’t believe them but it was true and the match was abandoned, meaning Peter’s suspension has been carried over to this fixture.

Mansfield Town v Torquay United

Mansfield have signed Rhys Day on loan from Oxford United. I don’t know if Oxford gave them permission to play him but it doesn’t matter because he’s suspended. Rhys feels his red card for punching an opponent was undeserved as it wasn’t so much a punch as mutual shoving. But at least the fans were nice to him.
Rob Duffy, brother of Exeter City’s Richard, and Matt Sommer are the other Welshmen in Mansfield’s squad.

Notts County v Gateshead
I heard a while ago that Ben Davies was playing through an injury. If he still is, this would be a good chance to give him a rest. And even if he isn’t, Notts County might prefer not to play their first-choice team.

Plymouth Argyle v Swindon Town

Plymouth are still without Carl Fletcher, who has an injured leg.
Swindon might want to give Billy Bodin a chance.

Friday, 5 November 2010

League Two Resuts 2nd November 2010 (Part 2)

Cheltenham Town A-A Southend United
Cheltenham were leading 1-0 when the match was abandoned due to floodlight failure.
Josh Low got the assist for Cheltehnam's goal so he's probably a bit annoyed it won't count.
He won't be as annoyed as Southend's Peter Gilbert though. He picked up his second yellow card at the weekend and he didn't mind missing this match if it meant he could play in the FA Cup the following weekend. But suspensions only count if the match is completed and this one wasn't/

Hereford United 2-2 Aldershot Town
Hereford’s search for a home win continues after a draw with Aldershot.
Stuart Fleetwood did a pretty good job coming off the bench in the last two games, first scoring two goals for his side, then one. Unfortunately the pattern continued and he ended up scoring none in this game. How many will he score next week, minus one? It’s possible, he could score a disallowed goal.
Tony James played his final game on loan at Hereford but was substituted in thr 45th minute due to injury which really messes up Burton Albion’s plans. Ryan Green and Ryan Valentine also played.
Aldershot decided not to appeal against Darren Jones’ red card so he missed this match. And there’s a lot to be said for missing a match against a former club where the supporters might be just a little bit annoyed with you.
Aaron Morris took Darren’s place in central defence and helped them to get a point

Lincoln Cirt 0-2 Northampton Town
Northampton win their second game in succession but if there is such thing as an easy game, at this or any other level, a home match against Gillingham (whose away form has been well-documented) and any match against Lincoln (who have only won one of their last nine games) could be included in this description. But three points is three points (especially at the wrong end of the table, where three points can seem like six) and it will hopefully give Northampton a bit more confidence to push up the table.
Paul Walker was on the bench for Northampton.

Morecambe 5-0 Stockport County
Stockport suffered their second successive defeat to a struggling side when Morecambe thrashed them 5-0. Although to be fair to Morecambe, it doesn’t look like they did much struggling in this match.
Anthony Pulis played the full match for Stockport.

Rotherham United 1-1 Macclesfield Town
Macclesfield must have got all hopeful when they took an 84th-minute lead against Rotherham. But a minute later (it can’t have been much of a goal celebration then) Rotherham had their equaliser.
Mark Bradley wasn’t in Rotherham’s squad.
Sam Wedgbury was an unused substitute for the third consecutive game. Not that I’m counting.

Thursday, 4 November 2010

League Two Results 30th October 2010 (Part 2)

Southend United 1-0 Rotherham United
Southend won for the first time in three matches with an excellent win over promotion hopefuls Rotherham.
Peter Gilbert got his fifth yellow card of the season for Southend.
Mark Bradley was back on the bench for Rotherham.

Stevenage 0-0 Chesterfield

Chesterfield have been going well so some would have been surprised to see them drop points against league newcomers Stevenage. But it extends their unbeaten run to six games and Port Vale couldn’t quite knock them off the top of the table.
Craig Davies had a break from scoring for Chesterfield. Unfortunately, so did the other strikers.

Stockport County 0-5 Hereford United

Being thrashed 5-0 at home would have been bad enough if they were playing Chesterfield. When it’s Hereford United, a team who were at this stage still in the bottom two, it’s just embarrassing. No disrespect intended to the goalkeeper but maybe Stockport are beginning to regret sending Owain fon Williams on loan to a team in the top three.
Anthony Pulis played 90 minutes for Stockport.
For the second consecutive match, Stuart Fleetwood came off the bench and scored. Defenders Ryan Green (who had some good moments at both ends of the pitch… or possibly at one end, depending on when they changed ends), Ryan Valentine and Tony James helped Hereford get a clean sheet. But it wasn’t Tony’s last match with Hereford, I messed up again.

Tuesday, 2 November 2010

League Two Fixtures 2nd November 2010 (Part 2)

Crewe Alexandra v Shrewsbury Town
Rhys Taylor will play in goal for Crewe.
Tom Bradshaw is missing for Shrewsbury due to injury.

Hereford United v Aldershot Town
Hereford are without defender Tony James, whose loan has come to an end but they’ve still got Ryan Green and Ryan Valentine. Stuart Fleetwood is pushing for a start after scoring three in his last three substitute appearances.
Aldershot are without Darren Jones, who is suspended following a red card against Bury. Aaron Morris came off the bench to plug the hole left in the defence so he’ll be hoping to start in Darren’s place.

Lincoln City v Northampton Town
Paul Walker seems to be Northampton’s second-choice goalkeeper now.

Morecambe v Stockport County
Southampton loanee Anthony Pulis will hope to start for Stockport. It’s all gone downhill a bit for Anthony but it does tend to happen when you score on your debut.

Rotherham United v Macclesfield Town

Rotherham’s Mark Bradley could take the place if injured Arsenal loanee Mark Randall.
Sam Wedgbury will probably be on the bench for Macclesfield.

Thursday, 28 October 2010

League Two Results 23rd October 2010 (Part 2)

Crewe Alexandra 3-1 Aldershot Town
Rhys Taylor played in goal for Crewe.
Darren Jones was in defence for Aldershot with Aaron Morris on the bench.

Hereford United 1-1 Accrington Stanley

Ryan Green, Tony James and Ryan Valentine played in defence for Hereford. Stuart Fleetwood came off the bench after 72 minutes. Last time Stuart came on as a substitute, he’d scored two goals by the 70th minute and Hereford came back to win. He came on a bit too late this time.

Lincoln City 0-0 Stockport County
Anthony Pulis played the full match for loan side Stockport County – against last season’s loan side Lincoln City. Owain fon Williams was on the bench.

Oxford United 3-1 Northampton Town

Paul Walker was on the bench for Northampton.

Rotherham United 3-4 Wycombe Wanderers

Mark Bradley started for Rotherham

Wednesday, 20 October 2010

Welsh Player News 16th October 2010 (League One, League Two, Scotland)

League One
Exeter City manager Paul Tisdale was impressed with the performance of his 37 year old assistant manager Rob Edwards when he made his third start of the season against his former side Carlisle United. Rob’s defensive partner Billy Jones also had some good words to say about Rob and Vital Exeter City agrees that Rob has still got it.

Daniel Nardiello had a feeling Exeter could beat Carlisle – it’s just a shame he stayed on the bench and missed the whole thing. But as he says, it just shows how strong Exeter are up front.

League Two
Chesterfield striker Craig Davies has been nominated for the PFA Fans’ League Two Player of the Month award.

Stuart Fleetwood says Hereford United need to stop making so many errors. He can’t come off the bench and inspire a fightback every week. But other than that, he was delighted with the 4-3 victory over Northampton Town.

Rhys Day was thrilled to get an ovation from Mansfield Town supporters when he returned to his former club on loan from Oxford United. He also hinted that the move could become permanent. He nearly marked his debut with a goal but unfortunately Mansfield could only draw when home side Darlington scored a late equaliser.

Gareth Owen says that in order to end their winless run, the Port Vale players must stick together. But maybe the fans’ expectations are just a tiny bit too high.

Scotland
Joe Ledley was delighted when Celtic won their eighth successive game of the season against Dundee United.

Rhys Weston speaks of his personal devastation following the likely demise of his club Dundee.