Enfield Town 2-1 Chelmsford City

[The Crowing Cockerel]

Won a game, so I made the mistake of reminding myself how many points it has taken to survive the past couple of seasons - 50pts in 23/24, 48pts in 22/23 (when Ch*****t went down with 43pts). Means we likely need 30pts from 21 games. So currently just under 1.5pts per game. We need to be performing like a top-mid-table side in order to be in with a shout.

[Benjrider10]

Regardless of how the rest of the season goes, I think some of the grief aimed at the gaffer on this forum is way out of order. He has had one problem after another to solve all season. Apart from Forster, Parcell and Youngs, the rest of the current starting 11 are new. So continuity and team spirit have had to be built pretty much from scratch. People can say we weren't prepared but the reality is that unless the club owners i.e. us are able to increase our monetary support, combined with an increase in sponsorship, grants etc., our playing budget was always going to be one of (if not the) lowest in the league. You gets what you pays for .....

Saturday was a very encouraging performance. First half was scrappy but I thought we edged it, and we were certainly the better team in the second half. Our defence and midfield look pretty solid now. It will be interesting to see if Parcell retains his position in central midfield or reverts to the right side of a 3-man defence against Maidstone. I thought he played well on Saturday and cut out most of of the misplaced passes that plagued him earlier in the season. Youngs was outstanding - covered a huge amount of ground, skillful on the ground and aggressive in the air. Chelmsford couldn't handle him. And I agree with others that the introduction of Kaunda up front in the second half was a game-changer. Hutchinson worked hard but he lacks pace. Kaunda looked like he had bundles of pace and energy. I can see he and Hutchinson forming a decent front 2 that dovetail off each other if given the chance. But then I thought Shakpoke looked good in his first game so won't count any feathered friends just yet 😉

Anyway, a valuable 3 points. Let's see how we get on at Maidstone (which will be tough).

[ETFC2001]

4 hours ago, The Crowing Cockerel said:

Won a game, so I made the mistake of reminding myself how many points it has taken to survive the past couple of seasons - 50pts in 23/24, 48pts in 22/23 (when Ch*****t went down with 43pts). Means we likely need 30pts from 21 games. So currently just under 1.5pts per game. We need to be performing like a top-mid-table side in order to be in with a shout.

I think it’s more about Welling/Hemel then us reaching a certain points target this season.  Obviously we’re going to need around 9 wins still to stay up, but if Welling or Hemel kick on, there’s not really much of a chance as we’re already around 6 points back with their game in hand being played tomorrow. I don’t know if I’d prefer a Weymouth win over a draw tomorrow. 

I think it’ll come down to the final few games. St Albans and Worthing.

[ETFC2001]

5 minutes ago, Benjrider10 said:

Regardless of how the rest of the season goes, I think some of the grief aimed at the gaffer on this forum is way out of order.

I think you can criticise the whole management team is not switching to two strikers when we’ve seen timeless times this season our striker be isolated within the opposition’s defense. Luckily, he changed it and it was for the better on Saturday, so I hope he sticks with it.

Budget/Recruiting is not really Gavin’s fault. I don’t believe he wanted to try around 60 players this season and not wait until around match 18 to have a set 11 to be honest. I think it was just a struggle recruiting with how small our budget is compared to other clubs in our league. I mean Boreham Wood, Torquay etc are all loaded clubs.

[No bull Towner]

Sam and Rhys both in TOTW and deservedly so

[The Crowing Cockerel]

3 hours ago, Benjrider10 said:

Regardless of how the rest of the season goes, I think some of the grief aimed at the gaffer on this forum is way out of order. He has had one problem after another to solve all season. Apart from Forster, Parcell and Youngs, the rest of the current starting 11 are new. So continuity and team spirit have had to be built pretty much from scratch. People can say we weren't prepared but the reality is that unless the club owners i.e. us are able to increase our monetary support, combined with an increase in sponsorship, grants etc., our playing budget was always going to be one of (if not the) lowest in the league. You gets what you pays for .....

I stand by my criticism. There are 48 Step 2 managers and I'm sure that almost all of the 88 Step 3 managers would love a shot at the level above regardless of resources. Gavin didn't have this position thrust upon him against his will. He took on the role. By doing so he knew that he would come under scrutiny for the decisions he makes. He isn't the manager of Torquay or Dorking. Our expectations are lower than the fans of those clubs. We just want the team to finish 20th or above and maybe make a decent fist of it in the cup competitions occasionally. From what I have seen I don't think those expectations are unreasonable. I believe that with our limited resources deployed in the right ways we could be better than 4 other teams in this division. Our limited resources seem capable of beating Tonbridge, Chelmsford, drawing at Dorking. What has been most frustrating has been the manner of our defeats - and that has been the risk of sticking to the 'one up front' system come what may. Whilst the personnel in defence have changed, I'm certain that we could've done a lot better early on in the season by playing Kasimu and Folivi up front together. So the buck stops with Gavin. He's in the wrong job if he expects a cuddle and sympathy each and every Saturday afternoon. He'll get the credit when things go well, but equally he has to take the flack when things don't.

[ETFC2001]

Gavins first National League South Manager of the week award.. Hoping for the Month next!