View from the Shed January 2002

JANUARY 2002

4 points from 15, great start to the year?

Not the best of starts but looking at it objectively it's not that bad, no really. Look at the teams we've played against Crawley, Havant, Tamworth and Weymouth. At the time we played them they were 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 5th, respectively. Had we played them separately over the course of the season, we wouldn't really have expected to win nor would we moan about losing so many games at once. These teams are not in those positions by luck. They were and are better than us this season, so we shouldn't expect too much from Hinckley. What we must hope is that the players realise that. Losing games to the best teams in the league is not a bad thing, only if it starts to affect the confidence can it damage the team. Teams get into a losing habit, that is why certain good footballing sides get relegated. How many times have you heard the 'too good to go down' tag? Not that I think we will get relegated, for a start most of our hardest games are now out of the way, but I'd like to be a bit further away from the zone than 7 points. 2 wins for other sides and we could be dragged into the fight. To make sure we need to win 5 more games, and looking at the fixture list we can do that. So even though Hinckley got nothing really from January, and I never expected them to get anything, it's all in perspective to the rest of the season. Let's just let the players know that though, and not berate them for losing to better sides, and encourage them when they play against teams we can beat. Only 5 wins remember.

It'll be a cold cold day in hell...

... and it was as having had the first game of 2002, at Tamworth, frozen off, Hinckley would make their New Year bow at Twerton Park, home of Bath City. Having recently been on the receiving end of a smash and grab by Tiverton, Hinckley would now do the same to Bath. Two goals in the last 10 minutes from Lucas and Rowland gave Hinckley a 0 - 2 lead before Bath got a last minute consolation penalty. All this after Chris Taylor had saved a penalty and the follow up when the score was 0 - 0. However saving two penalties in a game is a bit much to ask, so the final score was 1 - 2, getting the first of the 6 wins we need to avoid relegation.

Probably the only game we had any chance of winning this month was against Sh*ph*d in the Leicestershire Challenge Cup. Being holders we should still take this one seriously and so did DT. He picked almost a full first team. Within 10 minutes we were 2 - 0 up. A very early free kick saw Gavin O'Toole find the net. Then, Gavin O'Toole again, with a 20 yard half volley made it 2. Ah, we've been here before. 2 goals, 10 minutes surely it couldn't happen again. Well, Sh*psh*d did their best and got a goal back before half time. Afandiyev made a good save but Carl Lawrence followed up and scored from an angle. After half time though it was all Hinckley. Andy Lucas eventually scored against his old club and should've had a second if it wasn't for a sympathetic (pathetic?) linesman's flag calling offside. Gavin O'Toole completed his hatrick late on from another freekick (and we've been letting Jamie Lenton take them all this time!), for a final score of 4 - 1. Really it could have been 6 or 7, but the win was the most important thing, especially as I had to face Sh*psh*d fans at work the next day.

For a total antithesis of teams (get a dictionary, I did!) the visitors to the Lane for the following match were League leaders Crawley Town. This game can only be described as er, dour. Hinckley were only allowed to play as much football as Crawley would let them. They hurried and hassled us off the ball, forced hasty errors and generally cut off any supply to the front two. They're also not afraid of 'bending' the rules. Shirt tugging, climbing, nudge in the back, holding, and obstructing. All the things a successful football team can get away with! You can see why they're top of the league. Even their goal was somewhat of a 'melee'. Chris Taylor came for a cross and ended up on the floor with about 3 players plus the ball. Remember when you used to have a 'pile on' at school, well this was it. Legs and boots flying in for a minute and then the ball 'popped out' to the waiting Danny Carroll who rolled it into the empty goal. Hinckley rallied late on, but it was never enough and Crawley got away with a successful 'ram raid' in a 0 - 1 win.

There would be no respite either as three days later Hinckley travelled to the Lamb ground to play Tamworth. Having gone behind when Gavin O'Toole gave away a penalty, O'Toole then redeemed himself when he struck a 20 yard shot from a Lenton corner. It was end to end after that and both sides could have and should have taken the lead. Eventually it was Tamworth, another late goal conceded for Hinckley as they came away from the Lamb with a 2 - 1 defeat. After handing us our biggest defeat for some time, early on in the season, Havant & Waterlooville came to the Lane in 4th place and looking for another big win. Hinckley surprisingly took the lead against the run of play in the 1st half. Scott Huckerby's looping header came off the crossbar and the diving Jamie Lenton headed hid 50th goal for Hinckley United. It wasn't long before Havant equalised. A bump ball from a suspicious offside pass (of course I'm biased) came into the path of Taylor who didn't miss from close in. Second half was a different story. Havant changed their tactics and decided to let us come on and then hit us on the break. Unfortunately Hinckley didn't realise this until it was too late. Havant scored twice in a couple of minutes in exactly the same way. They waited for the wide men to get forward and then pumped the ball into the corners when they were out of position. They looked like they would score on every attack, and it was only because of Chris Taylor that they didn't. However the 2 quick goals from O'Rourke had done the damage and we were chasing the game from then on. A 4th for Havant followed later as again Hinckley were caught out of position Havant settled for this, but Hinckley never gave up and Guy Hadland scored his first goal this season with literally the last kick of the game. A 2 - 4 home defeat and now only 6 points off the relegation zone.

Another long trip to the Wessex Stadium and could we repeat the performance against Weymouth as we did in the FA Cup. Weymouth keeper Potter kept them in it with a save from Guy Hadland and Lynden Rowland, then a goal line clearance by Hale after Morton Tittertons close shot. Then Weymouth scored, in the 85th minute, another penalty, just like the cup game. D�j� vu, yes! Scott Huckerby drove home after a Storer free kick in the final minute, to equalise and give Hinckley a 1 - 1 draw. Not exactly the highs of the cup game but 1 point is a gold mine at the moment. After this month any point is worth its weight in gold.

In Out, Shake it all about.

Surprise of the month has to be the return of Paul Hunter. He should never have gone in the first place. Regardless of his age, he's still fit and very experienced. Having spent a couple of months at Moor Green Paul has now re-signed for Hinckley United. Dean Thomas told the papers that the reason he left was purely financial, and that as he's returned that may mean someone else has to go. Now we all have our own oppinions of who does or doesn't add to the team, but the last player I think anyone wants to let go is Paul Hunter. Let's hope he's back for good.

World of Football Stuff

You may remember a few months ago, I told you about referee Brian Saville who scored a goal for a club who were losing 20 - 1. It seems despite no complaints from any team or official the FA decided, in their 200 year old wisdom, to charge Brian with bringing the game into disrepute. After receiving a 7 week ban from the FA, Brian has decided to quit his 18 year stint as a referee. He said: "I can't accept they have no sense of humour. Referees are not all little Hitlers." The Essex County FA said: "A fair punishment was given." Now should the FA wish to see the game being brought into disrepute, then all they have to do is look towards Wembley. A �500 Million Stadium shagged up by countless different boards of directors. Funding lost and gained and lost again. Then completely disregarding the opinion of fans around the country and building a new National Stadium in the same sh*tty place as the old one. That's disrepute!

Backpacker Andy Sloan has literally got the whole world in his hands, after playing table football in fifteen countries around the globe. Andy has towed his portable table top game around Europe and the Middle East, in the process beating professional footballers and even FIFA President, Sepp Blatter. He now plans to take his table to Japan and Korea for the World Cup. Andy Said: "I turn up at famous grounds and challenge anyone I can find to a game. I went to the FIFA offices in Zurich, but they told me Sepp Blatter was too busy to play, however when I turned up on his doorstep he agreed to a game." Andy eventually met his match when he was beaten by an Iranian football official in Tehran (got nothing to do with the fact that they cut his hands off first!)

Two under-18 teams set a new World record for a penalty shoot out. Hednesford Town and Rugby United took a total of 48 penalties in a Midland Floodlit Youth Cup game. Hednesford eventually were the winners, netting 23 of their 24 penalties.

Footballers on the Scilly Isles have been placed in the record books because their League consists of just 2 teams. Wollpack Wanderers and Garrison Gunners play each other 20 times in each season, in the St Mary's Sunday League. All the games are played on one pitch, as there is only one pitch! As well as the league games there are 2 cup competitions, so it is possible to have a treble. Howard Cole, who is secretary for both clubs, said: "They have been playing each other for 39 years and is fiercely competitive. There are around 40 blokes aged between 16 and 60 and each skipper wants the best team. So to be fair they take turns picking players at the start of the season, just like in school playgrounds. Transfers can be done mid-season, with the fee being 2 pints of beer." So far Garrison Gunners have won the title 21 times and Wollpack Wanderers 17 times, with one season being drawn.

Libyan Despot Colonel Gaddafi has bought a �14 Million stake in Italy's top football club, Juventus. His share is the second largest after Fiat boss Gianni Agnelli. A club source said: "The money will come in very useful for transfer deals and will be used for new players." The Libyan Embassy said: "Colonel Gaddafi likes his football very much. He has devoted a lot of money to develop the National team."(Into a crack commando unit, no doubt!) His son El Saady has had trials in Scotland (Lockerbie?) and hoped to play in the Premiership too. There is no truth in the rumour Juventus have brought an American International, Sam Tex, and have already sold him on to an Irish club. If nobody sees me at the footy then Gaddafi has obviously read this, and I'm currently chained to a radiator, somewhere in a desert.

Coming next Month: Hopefully some points on the board, against Newport County, Cambridge and Salisbury. Harder games (not that any game has been easy!) against Moor Green and Worcester, and a semi final versus St Andrews in the Rolleston Cup.

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