(FM23/24/25) Notts Again -- Back in Time

[Punch]

Congrats!

[Blarney]

Match Forty-Six

[Blarney]

12 minutes ago, Punch said:

Congrats!

Cheers, mate.

I was seriously getting worried there at the last.  I guess I shouldn't have assumed that we'd win the league by 20 points even though it looked like that was the way it was going through the first half but Wrexham made it tight there at the end.

[Blarney]

April in Review

Schedule

FA Trophy Semi-Final win... and 4 wins in league play is enough to secure the title.

Table

110 league points for the win!  Wrexham gets 102 themselves.

Oldham... poor Oldham.  After going neck and neck with us for a good part of the season they fall completely out of the playoffs at the end.

National League Team Stats

135 goals scored.

National League Player Stats

54 goals for Mr. Langstaff.  Mr. Football.  Mr. Player of the Year... better be.

Can't overlook what Cedwyn did.  He added 21 goals and 10 assists.  Incredible season.

Financials

Nice, profitable month.

[Blarney]

Congrats to Wrexham

Well deserved victory by Wrexham to earn their promotion to League Two

[Blarney]

Trophy Preview

BBC Radio Nottingham

You're here.  You're at Wembley.  Nerves?

Eddie Sirrel

It's Wembley, there are always going to be nerves.  Every player and manager in England dreams of playing here.

Nottinghamshire Live

You've had an incredible season, winning the league and earning promotion to League Two.  Does being here cap it off for the club or was the league enough for the season?

Eddie Sirrel

The league was our goal.  We wanted to win the league.  So everything beyond that is just icing on the cake, but it's a sweet cake.

Nottingham Post

Wrexham won the league playoffs and will be joining you in League Two next season as well.  You faced them twice this season, losing at home and getting a draw at the Racecourse.  Are you confident going into this match that you're going to get the win here?

Eddie Sirrel

We've had a draw and a loss against them so it would only seem fair we get the win today!  We always have confidence.  Always.  But there's no denying Wrexham is a top team.  We've had the extra time off to rest and get ready while they've been playing a couple of matches so they may be a little sharper than us, but also more tired.  We're ready.

Magpie Weekly

There are rumors of a new contract for Langstaff and Scott, can you comment on that?

Eddie Sirrel

Mac was our player of the season and Ced wasn't far behind that.  They are both a major part of why we won the league this season.  I think they've earned a better contract so now it's just up to me and the team to put something together and keep them here.  I'd do that for any player that I think has earned it... when we can.  We still have to work within the constraints of the club.  But the more we win, the more those constraints will become less strict.

[Blarney]

FA Trophy

The Double!

BBC Radio Nottingham

Congratulations on the win, Eddie.

Eddie Sirrel

Thank you, this was the players, it's all for the players.

BBC Radio Nottingham

Can you explain the emotions?  This was quite a match.

Eddie Sirrel

Give Wrexham credit.  They really pushed us.  As far as emotions... I don't know.  Up and down.  We thought we were going in at the half nil-nil but Mullin put that header in and it just took the wind out of us.  But hey, it's 1-0 down... nothing we haven't seen or fear.  I know the goal-scoring capabilities of this club so 1 goal wasn't going to destroy us.  Then we come out in the 2nd half and just can't get anything going and all of a sudden they put another in.  Now we're in the 60th minute... 30 minutes left in the match and we're down 2-0 and things just aren't going our way.  Wrexham's defense is just unbreakable.  But then something clicks... Mac gets around his marker and blasts one that their keeper just tips with his fingers and Baldwin is there and knocks the rebound in.  2-1 now.  Then just a few minutes later Mac gets another shot off and this one goes in just past the keeper.  Now it's 2-2 and it's a new game.  We get into added time and we're thinking we're going to be playing awhile longer.  But then we get the penalty shot.  Mac's going to put this in, game over.  Their keeper stops it... unbelievable.  But then somehow 2 minutes later Jodi gets around his man and puts one in the corner.  Just, I don't know.... just Hollywood.

Magpie Weekly

You kept Langstaff and Scott in for the whole match after hinting that maybe they'd only play part of it, what was the thinking?

Eddie Sirrel

We wanted to win.  In the end I wanted to give the boys something that they could take with them the rest of their lives.  If they never get back here again, they got here now and they won.  That's all.  I talked to both Mac and Ced and both wanted to play and both wanted to stay in.  Credit to them.  They knew what it meant.  Hey, first FA Trophy for Notts County as well.  First of a lot of things this season.  But this is just the start.  Just the start.

Nottinghamshire Live

Can you talk about Wrexham for a second.  Thoughts on their team and this competition.

Eddie Sirrel

Wrexham drove us all year long.  You know at the start, the first month at least, they were really slow coming out.  They were struggling but honestly I knew they'd be there at the end.  This could all be different if they had started out well... say like Oldham did and they were undefeated right along with us.  Oldham fell off but Wrexham just turned it on after the 2nd month.  They had a better record than we did down the stretch.  So they pushed us.  I was looking at the table to see where they were.  I was looking at the results to see what they did.  I told they boys they were right on our heels and that they couldn't turn it off.  So they pushed us.  They are an incredible club with 2 superb owners that really seem to care about that club, about that town... so credit to them.  I'm very happy they won the playoffs and will be in League Two with us.  That's going to give us another push next season as well.

Edited July 8 by Blarney

[Blarney]

Awards and Accolades

Manager of the Year

All credit to the boys on the pitch that made it possible.

Golden Boot

54 league goals.  What an unbelievable amount.  54 goals is also a National League single season record as well.

Player of the Season

Well deserved.  Absolutely well deserved.  If it wasn't for Langstaff, Cedwyn Scott might have won this given how good he was this season.

Vanarama National League Record High Points Scored

Also a new record for points scored in a season for Notts County.

Notts County Record Low Defeats

Amazing season.

Vanarama National League Scoring Record

Again, amazing season by Langstaff.

 

Edited July 9 by Blarney

[Blarney]

the Season in Review

The Final Table

2 teams over 100 points.  Congrats to Wrexham for advancing.

**It's funny how art sometimes simulates real life**

Competition Results

12 straight wins to start the season and 19 out of our first 21 matches.  That was the start we needed and what pushed us to the finish line.  Decent finish when we needed it as well with 11 wins, 4 draws and 1 loss in the final 16 matches to hold Wrexham off.

Transfers In

This is where we earn our jobs.  We didn't have a lot of money to spend for the season so we had to be smart... and I think we were very smart.

Macaulay Langstaff is a stud.  Cedwyn Scott was really nice on the wing.  Jonathan Dinzeyi - who was brought in looking like a backup - became arguably our best defender.  Bajrami was a beast as a defensive-midfielder.  Mair was a stopper in goal (and we have more news coming up about him.)  There was no way we won this season without these moves.

Transfers Out

We didn't make much money off guys we let go but every little bit helped.

Rodrigues wanted out, he got out.  Wootton was replaced by Langstaff - we're going to call that a huge plus.  Lacey, Brindley, Chicksen, Roberts just had no place on the club.  Cameron was a nice piece of our defense but like Rodrigues wanted out.

How We Lined Up

Our style of play probably (more than probably) left us open in the back at times for opponents that were able to get the ball over our heads but it also helped us control the middle a bit more and helped us push the ball up the pitch quickly which lead to our obscene amount of goals scored this season.

Whether we can continue this style in League Two.... that remains to be seen.

Teams Seasons Stats Rankings

Nearly 3 goals scored per game... crazy.  Just an outright blitz every match by my squad.  All in all our statistical rankings were very good.

End of Season Financials

This is one area where we definitely need to get better.  As a smaller club we rely on any extra source of revenue we can find... and we don't have Hollywood money or friends.  We need to get better sponsorships, win a bit more prize money in competitions and earn more merchandise sales to help our finances out.

Edited July 9 by Blarney

[Blarney]

Off-season Business

Langstaff Extended

The first thing we identified is we needed to extend Langstaff's contract.  We had him for another year but we didn't want to go this season without getting something done... and done quickly.  It's going to cost us a little... more than any other player on the roster, but we think he's worth it.  His agent actually asked for 6 but we settled on 5, so we're happy.

Scott Extended

We also wanted to extend Scott and got that done as well.  Scott and Langstaff last year combined for almost half our total goals scored.

Mair Signed

And the 3rd thing we wanted to do (and honestly maybe truly the most important) was get Mair.  He was here last season on loan but we wanted him signed.  It didn't really cost us as much as I thought it would either so we're very happy.

Bostock Out

Bostock told us he was going to explore options at the end of his contract.... which is like to me an automatic "put them on the transfer list"... so he's gone.

[Blarney]

New Contract

Nottingham Post

You put your signature on a new contract today despite having 1 year remaining on the old one.  Is this something you wanted to get done before the season started or was it something the club offered?

Eddie Sirrel

They offered it.  They wanted to show their support for what we did last season and get something done before this season started to show that we were all on the same page.  I happily accepted it and am overjoyed at the prospect of continuing what we've started here.

Nottinghamshire Live

There were some rumors of discontent last season with maybe the board's indedecision regarding spending money on upgrading facilities at the club.  Does that contract put your mind at east that maybe things will change this year?

Eddie Sirrel

There was no discontent.  I don't sign the checks.  My job is to do my job with what I have.  I'm going to offer suggestions on things that I think we need to do but it's the board's job to determine if the money is there or if it's something we can do.  But regardless, yes this contract is a step in the right direction with me, telling me that they're happy with what we've accomplished and that we all want to continue pulling in the same direction.

[Blarney]

Facilities Upgrade

First a new contract and now an upgrade to our youth facilities.

I guess all it takes is a little winning to open the pocketbook a wee bit.

[Blarney]

Transfer News

Baldwin Out

Green Out

Adebayo-Rowling Out

[Blarney]

Season Preview

Predicted Finishes

Well, the odds-makers like Wrexham at the top... and then 3 of the 4 relegated clubs from last season behind them.

As for Notts County.... we're picked to finish a respectable 10th place, which honestly if that were to happen I'd be pretty happy.

Player of the Season

They don't like any of our boys for the top player award, while Mullin is on that list.

Golden Boot

However, they do like Langstaff to take back-to-back-to-back Golden Boots - he did it with Gateshead in the National League North before coming to Notts last season and winning it again.  I'd love to see the 3-peat.  Scott is also on the list, somewhat surprisingly.

[Blarney]

Pre-Season Press Conference

Nottingham Post

Welcome to League Two, Eddie.  You open at home versus Swindon who are predicted to finish around mid-table much like your own club is.  Do you like opening at home and how important is it to get off to a good start like you did last season?

Eddie Sirrel

I love opening the season at home.  I absolutely want to kick off the season in front of our own supporters and hopefully get the win in that first match.  You know we started off strong last season and then had a bit of a dip in form mid-season so I'd say we just want to stay consistent throughout.  Competition is going to be different here than it was in the National League.  I think there's going to be a bit of a feeling out process as we find our footing.  I just want the boys to go out there and play how I know they can and not be overwhelmed by everything.  Just play our game.

Nottinghamshire Live

Speaking of your game, are there any changes to your tactical style or will we see much the same as we did last season?

Eddie Sirrel

I think the basic concept will remain the same.  We mixed things up a little last season, depending on personnel so there have been a few different things we've been working on in practice but I have a pretty good idea of what I think will work or won't.

Nottinghamshire Live

Still planning on a high tempo attack?

Eddie Sirrel

I like goals, what can I say.  In all seriousness, I'm a fan of pushing the ball and creating pressure on the defenders.  I want to force our opponent to react to what we're doing.

BBC Radio Nottingham

You have a few new faces on the club this season and a few from last season that are gone, notably Bostock, Baldwin and Cameron.  Can you talk about some of the changes?

Eddie Sirrel

Moving up the pyramid also means having to make some changes and shore up positions where you think maybe you lack depth or quality.  One of our definite weaknesses last season was depth so we needed to bring in a few more warm bodies - especially since we'll be playing more competitions this year and will want to give our starters a little more rest than we did last season.  We also wanted to bring in more quality youth that can grow along with the club as we hopefully continue to get better.  So we moved a few guys that were on the last year of their contract and we brought in a few to replace them... maybe 1 or 2 starters in the group that you might see out there on the pitch more often.  That's always tough, saying goodbye to players that meant so much to the club, but it's the nature of the beast.  You have to make changes to stay competitive.  But honestly we're going to have somewhat of the same look we did last year.  We're just looking for growth from some of our guys.

Magpie Weekly

Any predictions on the season?

Eddie Sirrel

Hard work.

             

Edited July 9 by Blarney

[Blarney]

Opening Formation

Not a big change, I think we're going to pull our defensive-midfielder and put him on the defensive line instead.  We left ourselves open a few times last season in the back when fast players were able to get past us so maybe just having 3 center-backs instead will solve that issue.  We're still going to play wide and push the ball up the pitch.  Our only changes to our starters from last season is Aljofree and Quamina, otherwise everyone remains the same.  Well I guess Jones was our right-winger last season - at least part time - but Austin saw plenty of starts as well so that's not really much of a change.

We definitely have more depth now so guys will get more rest when needed.

[Blarney]

Match One

Nottinghamshire Live

Big win to start the season.  The hat-trick from Langstaff must have been pleasing.

Eddie Sirrel

I have run out of superlatives to say about Mac, he is just... he's just.... we'll leave it at that.  Otherwise, yes, definitely better to win than lose but to start the season with a win is always nice.  Swindon gave us a match there in the 2nd half when we sort of fell off but we held on and that's what counts.

[Blarney]

Carabao Cup Preview

BBC Radio Nottingham

Big draw in your opener of the Carabao Cup when you match up against Championship side Luton.  Thoughts?

Eddie Sirrel

Yeah, it's going to be a tough match, we're not under any delusions here.  If nothing else we're happy to be home and in front of our supporters.

Nottingham Post

What do you think your chances are of coming away with a win?

Eddie Sirrel

I'm not really thinking about a win or making any predictions here.  The fact is Luton is a much bigger club than we are and nobody in their right mind is picking us to win this thing.  Now wait, wait... before the supporters get all upset.  That doesn't mean we're not in that mindset, we're not going in to lose.  But I think more importantly is this is a test.  I'm not big on moral victories but this is one of those times where we want to be competitive.  We want to see how we match up against a club 2 steps up from us.  We are going out there with everything we have but a loss here certainly isn't a loss in my books, as long as we make a good showing of it.

Magpie Weekly

So we can assume that you're going out there full force then, nobody is getting rest in this one?

Eddie Sirrel

We have a couple of guys nicked up so it'll be touch and go for them to make the start but otherwise no, we're coming to play.

Edited July 10 by Blarney

[Blarney]

Carabao Cup

BBC Radio Nottingham

So now that the match is over... disappointment or happiness?

Eddie Sirrel

I talked about this before the match.  What I wanted to see was us go out there and show we belonged.  Show we could hang with a club 2 steps ahead of us and we did that.  So there's nothing but happiness on my side.  The lads went out there and gave the performance of a lifetime.  We nearly had them too, but we truly fought.  That's what I wanted to see.  Hey, credit Luton they did what they were supposed to do but I can't imagine they're nearly as excited about the result as I am.  They're a Championship club and we gave them all they wanted.  Not taking anything away from them, they won... but I'm happy.

[Blarney]

Match Two

Magpie Weely

Your old friends at Wrexham back for more.  Can't imagine you're entirely happy with this?

Eddie Sirrel

I saw some good things and some not so good but that's all part of the process.  I don't like losing to Wrexham but then again I don't like losing ot anybody, so there's that.

[Blarney]

Match Three

Nottingham Post

A nice little bounce-back from the loss to Wrexham.  I imagine you're somewhat pleased with this result?

Eddie Sirrel

Rochdale is a very good club so yeah I'll take this for now.  We are learning who we are in this league currently, so having a match like this is good for us.  We just need to continue the good and keep working on improving the things that aren't going right.

[Blarney]

Injury Report

Not what we wanted to see... but I guess it could be worse.

[Blarney]

August in Review

Schedule

1-1-1 in the league, guess it could be worse.  We lost our first round match in the Carabao Cup which was to be expected.

Table

It's obviously early but we're sitting mid-table.  Again.. could be worse.  Wrexham is actually below us even though they beat us.

League Two Team Stats

Scoring goals again... unfortunately we're also allowing too many, which I had hoped we'd solved.

League Two Player Stats

Langstaff in the mix for league leaders in goals scored... but he's going to be out a few weeks now.  Thankfully we have a very nice, young backup that I have complete faith in.

Financials

Finances are secure for now.

[Blarney]

Match Four

[Blarney]

Papa Johns

BBC Radio Nottingham

Big win, Eddie, over a Leage One club.  2nd match this season against a club up the pyramid from you and you've played well against both so far.  Does this show that what you're doing is working?

Eddie Sirrel

We're very happy with the result but we can't just rest now and assume that the job is done.

[Blarney]

Match Five

Magpie Weekly

I have to ask.  Is this a match you look at and are satisfied with the result or considering your statistical domination wondering how you didn't put more in the net against a club that was down 2 men at one point?

Eddie Sirrel

Whenever you put up 23 shots you expect you're going to put a couple in and we didn't so that's something we need to work on.  Credit to them for stacking the box and keeping us out though.  We were definitely putting pressure on them we just couldn't find a way around their defense.  In the end we got the win though and that's what counts.

Edited July 10 by Blarney

[Blarney]

Match Six

[Blarney]

Match Seven

[Blarney]

Match Eight

[Blarney]

September in Review

Schedule

Nice bounce-back month.  3 league wins, a draw and a loss that we shouldn't have lost but it happens.

Table

3rd place on the table!

League Two Team Stats

League Two Player Stats

The youngster Jaden Williams leading the league in goals scored.

Financials

 

[Blarney]

Match Nine

[Blarney]

Match Ten

[Blarney]

Match Eleven

Eddie Sirrel

Disappointing loss.  We just didn't take our chances and at times looked absolutely lost out there.  Not taking anything away from a good Walsall club but we know we can do better.  We at least should have given them a good game and we really didn't.

[Blarney]

Match Twelve

[Blarney]

Match Thirteen

Magpie Weekly

AFC Wimbledrom came into this match having only won 3 league games all season and yet outplayed your club from start to finish.  If it wasn't for a late goal they may have had a clean sheet against you.  I know you're going to credit them but isn't this a match that you should be winning more times than not?

Eddie Sirrel

I think "more times than not" is the operative phrase in there but yes I am going to credit Wimbledon for coming into our home with outstanding preperation and obviously a plan on how to stop us.  We definitely were not at our best, which has happened a few times this season already.  But let's not forget this is a step up from the competition in the National League and we're still finding our footing.  Last season was probably too easy as far as how we sort of ran over the league at times with the obvious exception of Wrexham - not meaning any offense to any other clubs obviously.  But the reality is that generally football isn't that easy.  We're learning that this season as we grow and hopefully continue to get better.

[Blarney]

October in Review

Schedule

Can't complain.  3 wins in league with 2 losses.  It'll keep us up if we keep going that way.

Table

In fact we're still up at the top end of the table.... but only 3 points clear of being mid-table.  That's how tight things are right now.

League Two Team Stats

Somehow we're still tops in the league in goals scored, which surprises me because I don't really feel like we're scoring a lot.  Maybe that's just due to what we did last season.  We're certainly letting too many in based on our very average goal difference currently.

League Two Player Stats

Langstaff is struggling... granted he was out 3 matches but Jaden Williams has been incredible.  Truthfully I've already turned down 2 transfer requests for Langstaff but if Williams continues and Langstaff continues to "struggle" then I may have to reconsider and just cash in while I can.

**In real life he left after signing a big contract with Notts as well -- after he said he wouldn't -- so we'll see what happens**

Financials

We need to start making some money.

 

[Blarney]

Papa Johns

Northern Section

Accidentally forgot to post this from last month... but here's our win versus Leicester U21's.  It was absolute domination.

It also secured us to the next round.

Edited July 12 by Blarney

[Blarney]

Match Fourteen

[Blarney]

Match Fifteen

[Blarney]

FA Cup

First Round

BBC Radio Nottingham

Nice win to advance.  How long do you think you can last in this competition after going out so early last season?

Eddie Sirrel

I feel like I'm being set up to give the perfect cliche answer but we're taking it one match at a time.  We went out too early last season so we're definitely focused on trying to be more competitive this season.

[Blarney]

Papa Johns

Northern Section

Nottingham Post

You had already punched your ticket to the next round given your earlier 2 victories but you really finished off this round in style with a huge win against Rochdale.  Was this some sort of statement match?

Eddie Sirrel

No.  No statement needed to be made.  We just went out and played our style of football and it all came together today.  Either way we're very happy to be advancing.

[Blarney]

Match Sixteen

[Blarney]

Match Seventeen

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Match Eighteen

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Match Nineteen

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Match Twenty

[Blarney]

November in Review

Schedule

Another successful month with 4 wins, 2 draws and a loss in league play and we won both our match in the FA and Papa Johns tournaments.

Table

We're in playoff contention and we're starting to see some separation from those that are competitive and those that aren't this season.

League Two Team Stats

We're still scoring goals but we're allowing them as well... and we're not near the top in any other category that we'd like to be at the top of.  Still... you score you win.  Usually.

League Two Player Stats

We lost Jaden to injury for 4-6 weeks but he still leads the league in goals scored.  Langstaff is up there also but is being played too much due to lack of depth with Jaden hurt.  I need to get some players some rest.

Financials

 

[Blarney]

Portsmouth Preview

Nottinghamshire Live

You're facing Portsmouth tomorrow in the 2nd round of the FA Cup.  They are currently mid-table in League One.  What do you feel the chances are of Notts coming away with a win here?

Eddie Sirrel

Well we don't count ourselves out ever do we?  You'll never know how good you are if you're not challenging yourself and obviously Portsmouth will be a good challenge.  We'll go out there and play our own game like we always do and we'll see what happens.  I predict a good match.

[Blarney]

FA Cup

2nd Round

BBC Radio Nottingham

Big win for your side.  Did the match play out as you expected?

Eddie Sirrel

I predicted it was going to be a good match and I think it was.  We went out and played our game, didn't let them push us around and got the result we wanted.  I can't ask for much more.  We're very happy to be moving on.

[Blarney]

Papa Johns

2nd Round

Nottingham Post

That's back-to-back wins versus League One clubs... first in the FA Cup and now in the Papa Johns tourney against Crewe.  You must be flying pretty high right now.

Eddie Sirrel

It really shows our quality doesn't it.  I'm so proud of the boys.  They've really put it all out there the last couple of matches.  And the fact is both these matches were at home in front of our supporters so that made it extra special.