Part 53: Chapter the Ninth: Wembley or bust.

Chapter the Ninth: Wembley or bust.
February 2, 2016-March 2, 2016

By the end of the month we'll know whether we're going to Wembley for a chance at our first non-league hardware. Before March arrives we have a set of games that present modest difficulty. The hardest League game will be against AFC Wimbledon, who are perched atop the league for the moment. After that we go up against a couple of mid table sides and a pair of patsies. If we can take 10 points from those five games I'll be pretty happy.



I've gone from “Very Insecure” to “Very Secure” in the space of four months. You guys are fickle.



Who's going to take down Sky Shadowing? Someone promise me the world!

vs. Southend, February 4, 2017
League Two


Southend's mid-table, but we're on a good run and at home. My only concern is our stamina levels, it seems like half the team just got back from international duty and the other half haven't quite recovered from our last game. This is going to be a recurring problem, we won't get a real break in the action until late in the month.

Formation: 4-5-1 Attack
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Thomas (c), Reid, Poole, Smissen, Jenkins, Cobb, Bailey, Price, Mujkic, Read.
Subs: Higgs, Tench, Lewis, Sinclair, Kadhim, Netala, Spilsbury.

Price gets the match started off right with a goal in the 6th minute, but we give it right back on a dubious penalty call when third string midfielder Neil Jenkins challenges for a cross. We fall behind on a well struck free kick later in the half, and then fall further shortly after halftime when Southend's counter attack gets behind our defense. It's looking like our streak of league games without losing is about to end, except Southend hadn't reckoned on a career day from Tony Price. Price adds his second goal of the game in the 71st minute and completes his hat trick in the 76th on what the game announcer called “A MAGNIFICENT INDIVIDUAL EFFORT.” And no, the game doesn't usually go all-caps. We are unable to find a fourth goal, but coming back from down two to salvage a draw is still impressive.

Man of the Match: Tony Price




Wrexham 3-3 Southend



Stuart Martin who? Selling him off worked perfectly. He's gotten just a cameo at Crystal Palace this season while Poole has taken on his role and done a thoroughly excellent job of it for a third the price.



Speaking of Price, he's the reason we took points from our last match. Rather than letting him go for nothing at the end of the season I extend his contract a year. I'm not sure if Netala will be back next year, Liam Franks is going to be leaving the club, and Price can fill in at four positions so I can rationalize the decision instead of admitting to myself that I've been swayed by his stunning performance in the last match.



That Watkins, always trying to start a spat. I've had two press inquiries and a press conference before the upcoming game. I have no idea why we're getting so much press in the run-up to what's a bog standard League Two game. That being said, Cheltenham's coach is being a jerk.

At Cheltenham, February 7, 2017
League Two


He's especially being a jerk considering that we're at the top of the table right now and they're barely keeping their heads above water. Maybe he should focus on not sucking before he starts talking about how we're not really that good. Fatigue sees me give a start to Neil Sinclair, who's one of our youth players and who's acquitted himself well in the time I've given him this season.

Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Higgs, Tench, Lewis, Poole, Thomas, Kadhim, Jenkins, Sinclair, Coulson, Netala, Harrison (c).
Subs: Al-Beloushi, Smissen, Todd, McCarthy, Price, Franks, Spilsbury.

We run Cheltenham off the field. Coulson strikes early to put us ahead, and we go up two-nil before the half when Cheltenham performs a Keystone Kops routine while trying to clear a corner kick and instead put the ball into their own net. They present no threat in the second half, and other than a late injury to Sinclair that earns the offender a straight red card the day is unmarred beauty for Wrexham supporters. Of course, they're from Wales, so a day of unmarred beauty is probably one where the sun actually comes out for a whole ten minutes and the mud doesn't swallow your shoe. Still, good result, and a nice performance from Coulson to continue his Jekyll and Hyde season of great performances alternating with dreck.

Man of the Match: Michael Coulson




Cheltenham 0-2 Wrexham



The hard tackle late in the match cost's us Neil Sinclair for a month and a half. I don't like seeing youth players injured, they're not on the first team because they're not good enough yet and they're not going to get any better if they're not on the practice pitch.



Says the guy in 21st place to the guy in 1st place.



I want piles of trophies! Piles I say!

vs. Accrington Stanley, February 11, 2017
League Two


Now that we're at the top of the league we have to stay there. We've got two points on our closest competition, and given how bad Accrington Stanley has been we should be able to maintain or extend that lead. Ioan Peters, another of our youth players, will get the start so that the Tenchman can get the day off. It's also just three days before our away leg of the League Trophy semi-finals, so I'm resting some first team players. That means Eoin McCarthy, a centerback/central midfielder, and Gareth Rainey, a winger, are on the bench and looking to get into the game if we pull away with the lead.

Formation: 4-5-1 Attack
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Peters, Todd, Lewis, Smissen, Jenkins, Cobb (c), Bailey,
Subs: Higgs, Thomas, Reid, McCarthy, Price, Rainey, Read.

I may have been a bit optimistic in my pre-match comments. We're level at two-all going into half-time, but after going up two-nothing on two goals by Spilsbury we let Accrington right back into the game. Worse, Neil Jenkins continues to make me wish that I could will Stuart Simpson back to health as he scores an own goal himself to tie the match. We're unable to muster anything in the second half, and I'm much displeased at coughing up a two goal lead to a team like Accrington.

Man of the Match: Shaun Spilsbury




Wrexham 2-2 Accrington

At Chesterfield, February 14, 2017
Johnstone's Paint Trophy, North Final Away Tie


No time to dwell on the Accrington result. We're headed to Chesterfield for the second part of our semifinal. Because Chesterfield scored a goal when they played at the Racecourse Grounds in the first half of the semifinal we need to either win or score at least two goals in a draw to advance to the finals without having to endure a penalty kick shootout. Moreover, if we draw 0-0 we'll lose due to Chesterfield having the away goal advantage.

Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Higgs, Tench, Reid, Poole, Smissen, Kadhim, Cobb, Bailey, Coulson, Mujkic, Harrison (c).
Subs: Thomas, Todd, McCarthy, Price, Spilsbury.

We're given a gift in the form of a terrible penalty call in the 14th minute. Cobb calmly converts, and we take the lead. Reid adds to our advantage in the second half with a goal off of a header. Coulson is hurt and has to come off, but we keep them off the scoreboard throughout the rest of the first 45. I spend the mid-game pep talk urging them to go out and finish the job, and within five minutes we've added a third goal from another corner, this one by Matthew Poole. Expecting an all out offensive by Chesterfield, I bring in McCarthy for the fatigued Cobb and switch us to a defensive format.

The final half hour is manic. Just as McCarthy is waiting to come on Chesterfield scores after Sam Smissen gets his pocket picked, and less than a minute later they've scored again. I had been confident that they couldn't score four times in thirty minutes, as they needed to win else we go to the final on away goals, but I wasn't nearly so sure about not scoring twice in that amount of time. The run of play turns on a dime, though, and we spend the next ten minutes earning corners. It pays off in Poole's second goal of the game, and I can relax. Chesterfield score one more time in the 73rd minute, but we win both the match and the semifinal. We're going to Wembley, again.

Man of the Match: Matthew Poole




Chesterfield 3(4)-4(5) Wrexham



The victory comes at a price, Michael Coulson will miss most of the rest of the season. That means more playing time for Price and Netala, Mujkic has cemented himself as my first choice at left wing over the last two months with regularly solid play.



You are a terrible politician, Sky Shadowing.

At Dagenham & Redbridge, February 18, 2017
League Two


Dag & Red are lurking around the edges of the promotion playoff, so this isn't going to be an easy game. We've got a full week before our next fixture, so I'm going to use largely the same lineup as we used in the last match.

Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Higgs, Tench, Todd, Poole, Smissen, Kadhim, Cobb, Bailey, Price, Mujkic, Harrison (c).
Subs: Al-Beloushi, Thomas, Lewis, Jenkins, Franks, Netala, Spilsbury.

Harrison scores in the eighth minute, and that's about the last good thing that happens in this game. Dag & Red take the lead just after thirty minutes, and the only reason we're still in the game at the half is yet another own goal, this time when the defender volley'd in a cross from Mujkic as well as any of our strikers could. It's not the only moment that would see a player hanging their head in shame. In the second half Matthew Poole serves up his own target of mockery when he deflects a shot directly into his own net. I have to pull Poole, who has been as atrocious today as he was great prior, but we can't force an equalizer. Stewart Lewis, Poole's replacement, caps off this farce with yet another own goal, this time heading in a cross. It's a game where half the goals come from players in the wrong jerseys, and it's a humiliating way to lose.




Dag & Red 4-2 Wrexham



The streak had to end sometime, but losing in that fashion is a disgrace. It's also troubling that our previously stout defense has given way to a deluge of goals over the last five games. Allowing two goals a game makes for exciting football when our offense is clicking, but it's deeply disappointing after the extended stretch of excellent team defense we just had.



Finally, a chance to stop and catch our breath. We haven't had more than three days between matches since mid-January, and with the additional time for players on international squads we've been unable to run out my first choice for our starting eleven often.

vs. AFC Wimbledon, February 25, 2017
League Two


Wimbledon is tied with us on points, but occupy second place thanks to a better goal differential. Gillingham is once again atop the league table, ahead of us by three. The outcome of this game islikely to determine whether we're likely to challenge for the league title or will have to content ourselves with just the joys of automatic promotion.

Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Higgs, Tench, Reid, Poole, Smissen, Kadhim, Cobb, Bailey, Price, Mujkic, Harrison (c).
Subs: Al-Beloushi, Thomas, Todd, Jenkins, Franks, Netala, Spilsbury.

Wimbledon plays directly into our hands in the first half. They patiently try to work the ball into the penalty area while we play disciplined defense and with a lightning quick counter attack. We earn a whole lot of corners early, but are unable to convert on them, while Wimbledon gets a lone, off target, shot on goal in the first half. Harrison scores twice in the second half, both on runs where he uses his incredible speed and acceleration to leave the opposing defense in the dust and on both occasions he was sprung by excellent through balls, one from Smissen and the other from Mujkic.

Man of the Match: Billy “The Kid” Harrison




Wimbledon 0-2 Wrexham



Haha, look at the biggest underachievers. It's like no one thinks we have any business beating a Championship side. Oh, they'll learn to expect defeat at the hands of the dragon. They'll learn or they'll burn.



My scouts turned up this Irishman. He's going to replace Spilsbury as our backup striker next year, if he can develop quickly enough he could be with us all the way up the promotion ladder.

Gavin Baker
Striker


He's raw at the moment, but tall and strong enough that he could work as the big lug that we hammer crosses towards. He's got a ways to go before he's that good, but at just 21 he still has several years of development ahead of him. If he doesn't work out it's not a huge hit financially, he came in on a free and is only getting £550 a week. He'll join the pile of potential first team strikers in our youth system.



We're at the top of the league, though just barely. We're ahead of Gillingham on goal differential. But with AFC Wimbledon out of the way we only face two more teams that are currently in the top 7. If we can get two points from those games and handle the rest of our schedule as we should I think we'll win the title with a game or two in hand. And that's not to mention competing for the Johnstone's Paint Trophy at Wembley stadium in late March, if we can accomplish the Lower League double they're going to be naming babies after me in North Wales.