Part 39: Chapter the Seventh: Treading water.
Chapter the Seventh: Treading water.February 2, 2016-March 10, 2016
Some of you may have noticed that we were ten points back of the last playoff spot at the end of the previous update. Though that may not seem like an insurmountable barrier with sixteen games to play, we'd have to make up points on eleven different teams to make the playoffs. In other words, banish any thoughts about back to back promotions right now.
At York, February 6, 2016
League Two
York are currently just two ahead of us on the table, but as we're playing away our efforts will be devoted to making sure we keep things strong at the back. I also see if we can't make better use of our chances by turning off the “shoot on sight” command. Also, it's only a few degrees above freezing and it's hailing. Lovely weather.
Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Evans, Reid, Martin, Don-Duncan, Kadhim, Simpson, Bailey, Coulson, Cooper, Bah.
Subs: Higgs, Thomas, Poole, McGuinness, Clarke, Morgan, Harrison
The match is a dull affair throughout the first half, with neither side showing much by way of offense. We manage a single half-chance when Coulson picks the pocket of the opposing fullback, but their keeper is in position to make the save. They manage a half chance from a corner that they fail to put away. The second half is more of the same, even after I insert Harrison for Bah and tell the players to shoot on sight. The good news is that Luke Reid appears to be a new player since the start of the new year, earning his second Man of the Match award and bringing his average rating up all the way to a 6.6.
Man of the Match: Luke Reid
York 0-0 Wrexham
Who's talking smack about my player to the media? And, the screenshot cuts this off, for some reason they're using the French media?
Don't listen to those mean, anonymous foreign players, Billy.
Especially when you've improved so much recently. Given the way Bah has been playing, it's likely that Harrison will see the lion's share of time as our striker.
Oh, well, I guess I can do that.
Uh. Thanks for making me look like an idiot by telling me to praise him.
... Ok.
Damnit. That's the last time I take man management tips from you, Heath. (He's got a Man Management of 17, and he knows the players well, so I don't get why he steered me so wrong here. I thought it might just have been that I praised Simpson last month, but I haven't talked to Al-Beloushi before and it still went poorly.)
Todd has seen improvement in just about every area, and a substantial improvement in his composure and strength. He'll be fighting for a starting spot as soon as next year.
Pitch is finally down to poor! Still not terrible, though. Amhazair is out of the contest. Shazback will win if the pitch becomes terrible before March 13th, JT Jag if later than that. No one will win if we never get to “Terrible” pitch condition. I'll be asking the board to relay the field at the the end of the season as it costs no money.
vs. Mansfield, February 13, 2016
League Two
Mansfield is third in League Two. I'm going to fight for a draw, but I'm pessimistic that we'll pick up points today. It's a chilly, drizzly day, perfect for English football.
Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Evans, Reid, Martin, Ashton, Kadhim, Simpson, Bailey, Coulson, Price, Harrison.
Subs: Higgs, Thomas, Poole, McGuinness, Clarke, Cooper, Bah.
We put ourselves in a hole immediately, letting Mansfield take the lead on a corner in the second minute. It continues to be all Mansfield for the first twenty minutes, though they are unable to get clear shots on goal. Michael Coulson has a perfect opportunity to draw us level in the 38th minute, but sends the ball caroming off the post. We add more chances, but are unable to pull level before the whistle stops play.
The second half picks up where we left off, but with similar results. Coulson fails to score again on a one on one with the keeper in the 46th minute, and in the 50th minute the deficit doubles on a well placed cross into the box. We created better opportunities than Mansfield, but were let down once again by our finishing. If we can solve that piece of the puzzle, we're going to be a forced to be reckoned with. Until then, we're supremely frustrating to watch.
Wrexham 0-2 Mansfield
Harrison and Bah are both on pretty epic dry spells at the moment. Aidan Cooper is getting something like 8% of his shots on target (I've set him to shoot less often now). If it weren't for Coulson we'd be in deep trouble, and as we just saw in the last game he's capable of frustrating us in the same way. This is one of the major areas that I want to fix in the offseason.
None of these guys know how to run for office. You're supposed to slag the current incumbent regardless of their policy and promise to make things better!
This gives us more than a single day off between our next matchup with Tackleford, which is appreciated. It does mean we'll only have a day off before we face Bradford on April 2nd, but we'll be at home and have a week off after that match.
I have no clue what Shrewsbury's coach is talking about here. We haven't been playing “patient possession” soccer for a long time now. Even in victory we've generally had less than 45% of the ball. Anyways, giving the credit to our players can't hurt me in the eyes of either the media or the players.
At Shrewsbury, February 20, 2016
League Two
Shrewsbury is in a playoff spot right now. It's even less likely that we get points from this match than the Mansfield game. On a day exactly like the Mansfield match we tromp out onto the field to take our licks.
Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Evans, Reid, Martin, Ashton, Kadhim, Simpson, Bailey, Coulson, Price, Harrison.
Subs: Higgs, Thomas, Poole, McGuinness, Clarke, Cooper, Bah.
We are lucky to not give up a goal in the first half. Shrewsbury seemingly spends the entire 45 minutes in our third of the pitch, earning a half dozen corners and repeatedly putting the ball into the penalty area while we get off just two shots on target. They cannot score. The second half is more of the same outside of a few minutes around the 60 minute mark where we are able to get a couple more shots on goal, but can't put them past the keeper. Our defense plays well, with the exception of Ben Evans, and our centerbacks Stuart Martin and Luke Reid torment Shrewsbury's attackers. We play worse overall than we did against Mansfield, but I'm happy to take the draw.
Man of the Match: Stuart Martin.
Shrewsbury 0-0 Wrexham
We're goalless in our last three matches, and were fortunate to draw twice in that stretch. If we don't start scoring soon making even the mid-table will be difficult and we might slip back into a relegation fight.
Ratcliffe has four stars of potential but is not yet at even a single star for the first team, so I'm going to hold off signing him to a professional contract unless someone swoops in to sign him away from us. There's no point in signing him to a professional contract if it means I'm going to have to find a place for him each year and he ends up getting released without playing in the senior squad.
This is what happens in a country that doesn't have multi-year long election cycles. Your regular people don't understand how to make promises, and how to caveat those promises so they don't actually have to follow through.
Luke Holtham never caught up with the team in terms of skill. He's not going to be tendered a contract, and will be a free player after the year is up. Forest Green has paid for almost all of his salary this year, which is nice.
At Rochdale, February 27, 2016
League Two
The last time we met Rochdale they were below us on the league table. Now they're comfortably mid-table, and we're still roughly where we were when the season started. We're playing away from the friendly confines of our home stadium and have not been in good form this month, so I'm going to be happy if we can manage to put some balls in the back of the net regardless of outcome.
Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Evans, Reid, Martin, Don-Duncan, Kadhim, Simpson, Bailey, Coulson, Price, Harrison.
Subs: Higgs, Thomas, Poole, McGuinness, Clarke, Cooper, Bah
Michael Coulson put us up by one in the 7th minute, but the side judge flags him for offsides. You judge for yourself whether he was or not:
After that bullroar call neither side is able to do much of anything, the only thing of note for most of the match is an injury picked up by Stuart Simpson that hampers him for the remainder of the game. In the 80th minute, the ref decides that he hasn't influenced the game enough, giving a penalty for a phantom push by Femi Don-Duncan. Rochdale converts, and we're down one-nil instead of up. The game isn't over yet, and we do get a measure of satisfaction watching Coulson score again, this time without an offsides call. The refs round of the game by denying a second goal by Rochdale in stoppage time, a goal where even an American could tell you what's wrong with this picture:
We escape with a draw, when we should have walked off with a 2-0 victory. It's lucky there wasn't a press conference after this match, because I would have had many, many harsh things to say about the gambling addicts the FA chose to ref this match.
Rochdale 1-1 Wrexham
Simpson's injury is minor, but it does mean he'll miss our next two games. McGuinness will take his role as our ball-winning midfielder and captain.
Cardiff fails to bring the Capital One Cup to Wales. While watching our Welsh rivals lose is satisfying, it would have been great if Wales had taken home a trophy from the English.
Liam Franks, the loaner that helped us to promotion last season, is out of contract and needs to find a team. He wouldn't be that expensive, he'd ask for £625-£925 a week, but his best position is the same as Coulson's and I'm hesitant to add more payroll than we already have. That's especially true as we're only a week and a half away from youth intakes and my annual search for the next teen player who could make it to the Premier League with us.
vs. Yeovil Town, March 5, 2016
League Two
Yeovil Town is another team in the promotion hunt, and like our matches against Shrewsbury and Mansfield will be tough for us unless we can step up our game. Bah and Harrison have both continued to be brutal on the pitch, so I swing Coulson back into the striker's position hoping that it will give our team some spark.
Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Thomas, Reid, Martin, Don-Duncan, Kadhim, McGuinness, Bailey, Price, Cooper, Coulson.
Subs: Higgs, Evans, Poole, Clarke, O'Hanlon, Harrison, Bah.
Boy does it ever. We start on a flyer when a surging Coulson's shot from outside the area rockets directly back off the post. He had not stopped his run after shooting, blowing past the opposing centerback, and he's now onsides with the goalie out of position. He buries it, and we've got the early lead. Yeovil ties it up in the 18th minute with a very pretty piece of passing around the perimeter that ends in a gorgeous volley, but Coulson isn't done until he leaves the man marking him for dead at the edge of the penalty area, has a perfect first touch on a ball from Cooper, and then rounds the keeper to tap home his second goal of the day. Yeovil struggle to equalize after that, but when the final whistle blows the score remains the same. Best of all, we scored twice on three chances, a level of efficiency that we haven't seen all season.
Man of the Match: Michael “Agent” Coulson.
Wrexham 2-1 Yeovil Town
Coulson has been talismanic for us, and is making a strong argument to be our primary striker for the rest of the season. If I move him there from the wing I'd add Franks on a free transfer as a replacement and to keep Cooper and Price from wearing out. Plymouth is the team with five players in the team of the week, they must have thrashed some poor opponent.
vs Dagenham and Redbridge, March 8, 2016
League Two
Due to our inability to score, and the paid off ref in the Rochdale game, we've fallen back to 20th place in the league. Dag & Red are in 18th, if we beat them we'll at the very least move past them on the table.
Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter
Starting 11: Al-Beloushi, Evans, Reid, Poole, Don-Duncan, Kadhim, Simpson, Clarke, Coulson, Cooper, Harrison.
Subs: Higgs, Ashton, Martin, McGuinness, O'Hanlon, Price, Bah.
I don't always advise telling your team to go get them some revenge, it leads to them ignoring your orders about not putting the boot in and makes them play more recklessly, but in certain situations it's perfect for motivation. Sometimes motivated players aren't enough, but quite often good pep talks make the difference between a win and a draw. In this case it worked well, we had the better chances all game, and we take a two goal lead going into the final ten minutes of the match. Dag & Red deny us a clean sheet with an 88th minute consolation goal, and strikers Bah and Harrison are now so cold that they're threatening to redefine absolute zero, but those are the only negatives to take away from a confident performance.
Man of the Match: Daniel Clarke.
Wrexham 2-1 Dag & Red
We haven't actually improved our position, but because of how compacted the middle of the table is. We're now just three points off of 13th place and just six off 11th. We also held our own against a tough set of opponents, beating Yeovil and drawing with Shrewsbury. The only real disappointment in this stretch of matches was not beating York. The schedule for the final 10 games is a mix of tough and easy, we have three games against the top third of the league, three against the middle third, and four against the bottom third. If we can take 15 points from them, we'll finish in the middle third ourselves, only slightly back from where I hoped to end up at the start of the season.
