Blarney

Magpie Weekly We're excited that we got an opportunity to spend a few minutes with Notts Co manager, Eddie Sirrel, today and ask him a few questions about how things are going after an incredible month of matches. I guess we should start there. How is the feeling at the club after sweeping the month with 6 straight wins, many in pretty exciting fashion. Eddie Sirrel Yeah, you could say that everybody is in pretty high spirits right now but we have to temper that you know. It's 6 games. It's the first month of a very long season. Now before anybody calls me out for being all down and out or whatever, I'll take the 6 wins every month. I'll take 5 wins every month. I am beyond happy for the players and the supporters but we all know it's just the beginning. You can't win the league the first month of the season... but on the other hand you certainly can do a lot to throw it away if you don't start out well. So we're on the right side of things at least. Magpie Weekly You had 3 straight matches where you scored 4 goals. You've scored 20 through 6 games now. in the pre-season you said you thought you were going to be okay on the offensive side of the ball, you felt your attack had the possibility to be special. Did you see this? Eddie Sirrel I'd love to say I did. Look, we brought in a couple of special players in Langstaff and Scott and they're absolutely living up to the billing right now. I'm over the moon with the possibilities this season when it comes to what we might do with the ball and how quickly we can put it in the net. But I don't want to put too much pressure on the lads. So far so good is what I'll say. But beyond that, the team effort has been outstanding. We're moving the ball, I believe we're first in overall possession and in conversion rate right now as well. Statistically we're looking very good. Magpie Weekly Since you brought them up. What a coup you pulled off. You brought in the reigning National League North Player of the Year and Mr. Golden Boot himself, McCauley Langstaff, over from Gateshead AND on top of that their 2nd leading scorer in Cedwyn Scott... and what a show they've put on so far for you. 8 goals in 6 matches from Langstaff and 5 from Scott. Could you ask for more? Eddie Sirrel No. I'm so proud of what they've done and I'm so excited that the Notts County supporters get to see this. Yes, it was a big get for the club. We had holes to fill and our scouting department did a great job -- Magpie Weekly Of which you were a part of in finding these guys. Eddie Sirrel Well I was a small part in evaluating them, yes, but overall the scouting department did a great job of identifying some guys we thought could fill some holes and then we went to work on determining who we thought best could do the job. As it turned out we found 2 guys from the same club. Magpie Weekly A club that earned promotion last season to the National League and now has to face you and their 2 ex-players twice this year. Eddie Sirrel That's football. Magpie Weekly Well it certainly has been an exciting start to the season, we truly appreciate you taking the time to talk to us. Eddie Sirrel Anytime. Come On You Pies!

August in Review Schedule It's very difficult to be much better than perfect for the month. But to do it in style where you score 20 goals in 6 matches.... not bad. Table We sit at the top but Oldham is right there with us with a perfect month as well. National League Team Stats Green everywhere you look. We're blitzing the league in goals scored, pass completion ratio and conversion rate. And we're 2nd in average possession. Not a bad start. National League Player Stats Langstaff leads the league in goals scored but Cedwyn is tied for 2nd and has the best overall average rating as well.

Match Six Nottinghamshire Live You almost gave this one away. Your side scored 2 quick goals within the first 25 minutes of the match, only to see Solihull score 2 nearing the end of the first half. In the 2nd half neither team could get anything going until Vincent put the winner in at the 90th minute. How big was that and how big is this win? Eddie Sirrel Couldn't be happier for Franky, it was a great goal and one we obviously needed. You think that after you put 2 in relatively early that maybe you're just going to cruise and then all of a sudden it's 2-1 and then 2-2 at the end of the half and momentum is all on their side. We really battled in the 2nd half, we had a lot of opportunities to score but just couldn't put it in. It really looked like it was going to end in a draw until Franky put that one in. Big goal. Big win.

Match Five

Match Four Magpie Weekly A huge win over a rival club. The supporters were behind you all the way in this one. Being from Nottingham and a County supporter I know you felt this was a big match as well but do you take anything special from the victory compared to a regular match? Eddie Sirrel In the scheme of things no one match is supposed to be any more important than another, unless of course it's a must win or a cup match or something like that. However, we all know rivalry matches hold a special meaning for the supporters. If we go out and lose to Torquay or Coventry or someone like that, it stings but the supporters are going to get over it a lot easier than they will losing to a Chesterfield or any other rival. So in that regard, yes, it's important and means more than just a reguilar match.

Match Three Nottingham Post You matched up today against a club that you took 2 players from during the off-season in Langstaff and Scott. Langstaff scored twice in the match and Scott put in one as well. How did they handle the pressure of facing their old club? Eddie Sirrel Well I'd say pretty well. Both had quality matches out there. Gateshead acquitted themselves well and gave us everything we could handle but we pulled through and that's all that matters. I'm very happy with how the club fought in this one.

Transfer News Tyreke Johnson and Jonathan Dinzeyi Signed BBC Nottingham You signed 2 new players this past week in Johnson and Dinzeyi. What was the thinking behind bringing them in and how will they fit at the club? Eddie Sirrel My thinking whenever we bring someone new in is are they going to help us win. With Johnson we felt he was a little bit of a better option on the left defensive side, nothing against Chicksen - he'll get his time as well - but we were pretty slim on the outside edges and needed a little more depth. Same thing with Dinny, we felt we were very weak in depth with our center-backs and needed desperately to bring in some more quality players. Both will get every opportunity to show us that they deserve starting status.

Match Two

Match One Nottinghamshire Live You got the win in your first match as a manager and your first match of the season. How are you feeling? Eddie Sirrel I'm happy for the boys. They've been working very hard in training. Preparation has been excellent. And then they went out on the pitch and executed everything we've been working hard on. You can't ask more as a manager. Nottinghamshire Live But for you personally, does this feel like any vindication for the naysayers? Eddie Sirrel (with a laugh) That would assume that I've given them any thought, and I haven't. I don't mean to be flippant, I care passionately about all our supporters, even those that have questioned if I'm the man for the job. But my job isn't to worry about them or their concerns, it's to get this team ready to play. I care about what my boys are thinking and how we're preparing and how they execute. I'm always going to be happier for them than I am any personal achievements that come my way.

Match One Preview Becky Blaire (Nottinghamshire Live) Eddie, this is your first match with Notts County and the first match of the season. Does a win or loss here matter, will it set the tone for how the rest of the season will go? Eddie Sirrel Hi, Becky. So the answer is yes and no. In the scheme of things one win or one loss, especially early in the season isn't going to make or break anything. You're not going to win everything because you win game one and you're not going to lose everything if you lose game one. Saying that, it's obviously better to win than lose and a win shows that all the hard work in the pre-season was worth it and that hopefully you're on the right track whereas a loss means that maybe something isn't right and it's back to the drawing board. Rick Riley (Nottingham Post) How are the nerves, Eddie? Eddie Sirrel Good, Rick. I know a lots been made about my age and lack of experience but it's not like this is all just brand new to me. I wasn't picked up off the streets and made manager and I'm so over my head that I might just drown my first match. Yeah there's been a lot that's different being in the front row so to speak rather than the back room obviously, but it's the same game I've known all my life. I've been around football players and football all my life -- short as some of you say it has been. I'm more excited right now than anything, honestly. Pre-season is done, it matters now what we do and what we show the home supporters when we go out there and take the pitch. I'm happy our first match is at home, honestly. Now we just have to perform the way I know we can.

These Games Don't Count! Pre-season is over I don't put much stock in pre-season records. I use it as a gauge for basically just ramping up for the real thing. We rotated a LOT and let almost all the first 11 have the last match off to get ready for the season. The one good thing is we made it out of the pre-season relatively unscathed with no real injuries to speak of.

Place Your Bets Season Predictions Final Table So the odds-makers have Wrexham on top with some stupidly ridiculous odds while Notts is comfortably sitting in 2nd place. Let's hope they're wrong or that we're finally good enough to break through in the playoffs. Player of the Year It's the Wrexham and Notts show as the bettors think that there's a good chance that one of two Wrexham players or one of three Notts Co players end up winning the title of Player of the Year. Personally I'd say it comes down to between Mullin and Langstaff depending on who puts the most in the back of the net unless someone like Jones or Rodrigues or some other dark-horse just does an outstanding job in some other category. Golden Boot On the Golden Boot side the bettors are on my side in thinking that Langstaff walks away with his 2nd straight Golden Boot award after winning it with Gateshead last year in the National League North.

Transfer News In We needed help in the back-field and Dinzeyi was available for free. He's a fringe player but has decent physical ability, severely lacking in the mental aspects of the game however. He is tall though with great jumping reach so hopefully he can be a bit of a brick wall in front of goal. We don't have much expectations for him but he's not costing us a lot regardless. Out O'Brien was old and virtually useless so getting something for him is better than nothing.

Magpie Weekly Greg James Eddie, can you comment on the rumors that Kyle Cameron has let the club know he'll be exploring options at the end of his contract? Eddie Sirrel That's the beauty of having a contract for both the players and the club. They get to decide what they want to do when it's over and we have that option as well. Just because he's said he wants to explore options doesn't mean he wants to leave Notts County, he's just expressing that he wants to look around and see what he sees. Greg James However, much like the rumored situation with Ruben Rodrigues that does seem to put pressure on you as a manager and a club on whether or not keeping that player around for the full season and just letting them go for nothing makes the most sense? Eddie Sirrel Everything is judged on it's own merits. We'll have those conversations with the player as it becomes necessary.

Nottingham Post July 8th, 2022 Ruben Rodrigues Transfer Drama Impacting Notts County? Rumors are that Ruben Rodrigues had no intention of renewing his contract with Notts County past this season. However, with new manager Eddie Sirrel taking charge the 2 sat down face-to-face and Sirrel convinced him to sign a new 2-year contract. Unfortunately Rodrigues' work permit application was denied, twice, which left the club with 2 options. They could either continue with the contract but be forced to find a loan partner to play Ruben until he could get his work permit approved or cancel the new contract. They ended up canceling the contract and this is where the drama starts. Allegedly, upon canceling the contract the club started making some calls and letting other clubs know that Rodrigues was being placed on the transfer market, which got back to Ruben and he is not happy about it. From our point of view it was alleged he wanted out in the first place, it's not the club's fault they can't re-sign him due to work permit restrictions. Granted, I realize that this is being taken out of his hands but the club has to do what's in their best interest and their best interest with a player that either won't re-sign or can't re-sign for some reason is not just to let them go for nothing. Now the obvious problem here is that they want to win this season and Rodrigues being there gives them a much better chance. But is winning more important than potentially getting some much needed cash that could be used elsewhere to acquire a player that will be around for more than 1 season? That's why those guys are in the positions they're in.... and I'm just sitting here writing about it. Rick Riley

A Tale of Two Tactics 4-3-3 Our first choice puts 3 up front with 1 striker and 2 wingers providing support. 2 in the middle to control the midfield and then a defensive-midfielder and 2 wing-backs on the outside. It leaves us with just 2 men on the back line though so it's a little risky if we don't control possession and the middle of the field. But it allows us to take advantage of our speed on the outside and potentially run past most opponents on either side of the pitch. 4-2-3-1 This formation is more standard and puts 4 players up front with 1 striker, 2 wingers and 1 center-attacker. It does vacate the middle of the field as we'd have 2 defensive-midfielders and 4 backs -- although Nemane and Chicksen would both be given the option of still running the ball up the pitch as needed. This is obviously more of an attacking tactic and would probably amount to the larger number of goals compared to the 4-3-3 but I worry about my lack of depth at the defensive-midfield position (and quality of players) and losing control of the ball in the midfield, leading to a much lesser possession time overall. Choices, choices, choices.

Meet the Players **We have a few guys that can play multiiple positions so they may be listed under more than one heading** Front and Forward Langstaff is new this season having been brought over from Gateshead. He lead the National League North in goals last season, was named the Player of the Year and helped Gateshead secure promotion to the National League. Cedwyn Scott was Langstaff's teammate on the same Gateshead club and was brought over as well this season. Rodrigues has made 77 appearances for Notts Co the past 2 seasons and has scored 30 goals. Jodi Jones is a talented winger and is on loan from Oxford United for the season. Men in the Middle Matty Palmer signed with us last season and made 43 appearances. Bajrami is a talented defensive-midfielder or center-back who signed with Notts this season. Ed Francis is a 22-year old midfielder who has been with Notts Co for a seaon and made 32 appearances last year. Francis Vincent has also been with Notts Co for a year and made 23 appearances last season. John Bostock began his career at Crystal Palace but joined Notts Co this season after making 39 apperances for Doncaster last season. the Defensive line Aden Baldwin is another new face at Notts Co, signing a 2-year deal this season. Kyle Cameron has been with Notts Co for 1 season and made 27 appearances last year. Keepers of the Goal Archie Mair will be our man in goal for the majority of the season. He's here on loan from Norwich City. Private thoughts regarding the squad We have a very, very good attacking unit. Langstaff and Scott coming over from Gateshead is a nice get for the club. There's no reason to think that Langstaff can't challenge for his 2nd Golden Boot even with some of the other strikers in the league. Scott and Jones on the wing are going to be nice and Rodrigues as a center-attacking-midfielder is going to have his fair share of goals as well. We should have no problems up front. With 4 attackers we're most likely going to sit back and play with 2 defensive-midfielders rather than center-mids... which means that Palmer, Baj, Francis, Vincent and Bostock will split time there unless I move Baj to a center-back position which I may due to lack of depth there. It's an okay unit but nothing special. A lack of depth and talent hurts us in the back-field. We're just not real good at this position. It may be the first place I look on the transfer market to try and bring some new guys in. I haven't decided if I'm going to play with wing-backs yet and just have 2 center-backs with 2 defensive-mids as well, I'm still tinkering with the tactics and formation I want to go with. But unquestionable this is our weakest position. Mair is a quality keeper, especially at this level. Beyond him we have virtually nobody I'd want to play full time. Again, this might be a spot we look for help going forward. It's also worth nothing that we have nobody worth mentioning in our youth program -- which isn't a very good program to begin with and needs to be fixed. Mahovo is 17 and really not developing as we'd like and besides him the cupboard is very barren.

Club Vision 1. We have no intention of signing anybody over 30 2. Possession football is nice, attacking is more my style 3. I'd like to develop players to sell more than sign and deal 4. I'm pretty sure every club says work within the budget, some just have bigger budgets Five Year Plan 1. We do not want to reach the playoffs, we want to win the league 2. We want to be competitive everywhere 3. See #2 4. We plan on being promoted this season, not next but I guess a little leeway is nice 5. I'm glad back-to-back promotions is preferred rather than required 6. We'd like to be in League One in 3 seasons if at all possible 7. Becoming established is a goal Supporter Vision 1. Yes, attacking football, thank you supporters 2. Supporters have more wishes than the board does... yes we want automatic promotion as well 3. Yes we want to be competitive... against everyone 4. I hate Mansfield as much as you do... boooooo 5. Finishing #1 pretty much guarantees we finish above everyone

talkSport radio the Ralphie and Chris show Ralphie So Chris we usually spend most of our time talking Premier League or other Football League topics here but today, for at least a few minutes we're going to discuss the new Notts County managerial hire, Eddie Sirrel. Chris That name seems familiar, Ralphie, where have I heard it before. Ralphie Well Chris, maybe you've heard it because Jimmy Sirrel used to manage Notts County, in fact one would say he's a legendary manager from years past. Chris Ah, yes, that's correct and does this Jimmy Sirrel happen to be related? Ralphie You'd be correct. He is his grandson. Chris Grandson, well that's something isn't it. What sort of experience does this Eddie Sirrel have? Ralphie That would be.... none, Chris. At least as a coach or manager. Supposedly he's an analytics guy, worked in the backroom for the club for a few years doing charts and graphs. Chris Quite the leap wouldn't you say, Ralphie? How old is he? Ralphie He'd be 24-years old, Chris. Chris That's pretty young. So no managerial experience and he's 24-years old. How are the supporters taking this news? I know how I'd feel about it. Ralphie According to the local press it's a somewhat mixed reaction. There are some older supporters that remember the name Jimmy Sirrel quite well and I guess the name carries some weight. Expectations are that if Eddie is half the manager that Jimmy was then supporters are willing to give him a shot. Others aren't quite sure, obviously. He's very young and with no experience he's really being throw into it isn't he? Chris Yeah, okay, so enough playing around, we've had our fun. I had heard about this, rumors were flying around a couple of weeks ago regarding his name and I was curious so I've been paying attention to the things said. He was just introduced to the local media yesterday and by all accounts he represented himself quite well. Granted a lot of that is to be expected, it's coach-speech, which we all know and just love. But even the local media said he made a good impact, seemed to have a good head on his shoulders and the fact is he is Notts County through and through. On top of that a good point was made by the owner, Chris Reedtz, that this is a club that's not even in the Football League right now and have been in the National League for 3 seasons, making the playoffs each year but failing to earn promotion. Are we so desperate to knock someone down that we aren't even willing to give the kid a chance to prove that he does belong? I would hope not. Ralphie No, I actually agree, somewhat. I don't want to knock the kid down. I don't want to see anyone fail... or at least most people. But on the other hand, this is football and it's fair game to question moves being made by a club you follow. Granted, I don't follow Notts County and I don't think you do either, but local fans, absolutely. Fair game in my book to ask questions or have doubts if you don't agree with something. But... if you are a supporter the last thing you want is to see the kid fail and your club fail with him. Still doesn't mean you can't think it's a bad hire, if you think it's a bad hire. Chris Agreed. It should be an interesting season if you're a supporter of the Magpies. As I said, 3 years outside the Football League, 3 years in the playoffs in the toughest tier of English Football to escape. It's got to be rough on their supporters so I wish them luck. Watching what the kid can do might make an interesting season of football for Notts County. Ralphie It's a story we'll probably follow along with, definitely, but for now... back to Manchester City's latest move......

Eddie meets the media June 2022 Jake Lowe (press officer) Welcome ladies and gentlemen, I am Jake Lowe and I am the new press officer for Notts County FC. I want to welcome you all here today, and quite the gathering we have, to introduce our newest manager, Eddie Sirrel. However, first, our Chairman, Christoffer Reedtz would like to say a few words. Christoffer Reedtz (Chairman, Notts County FC) Thank you, Jake. Thank you ladies and gentlemen for coming today. I won't take up much of your time since today isn't about me but a new direction for the club. As I'm sure everyone knows my brother and I purchased Notts County in the summer of 2019, a year after they fell from the Football League and into the National League. We have spent the last 3 seasons toiling away in the National League, failing in each attempt to get past the playoffs -- even though we made the playoffs each season. After this last season in which we finished 5th on the table and then were defeated in the quarter final of the playoffs by Grimsby Town, Alexander and I sat down with Ian Burchnall and decided we needed to make a change. We wish Ian the very best in whatever he chooses to do in the future but we felt the direction of the club wasn't one that met with our expectations. My brother and I started our other company, Football Radar, about 13 years ago and one thing we've learned over the years about this game we love is it not only takes passion to both play and manage but it also takes intellect and hard work. I am a statistician at heart. Statistics are everything to me. While I appreciate the history of the game and the heart of the players and sometimes just trusting your gut when it comes to how something is done... show me the numbers that support that. We have come so far and have learned so much about what it takes to be a good footballer. Analytics are just starting to catch up to this sport and we want to be at the forefront of that movement. We want someone leading the club that believes that as well, which is why - in part - we have chosen young Eddie Sirrel to be our next manager. First and foremost Eddie has a passion for this club that is unmatched, certainly if we went outside the family and found another manager from somewhere else he wouldn't bleed black and white as Eddie has told us he does. Second, when we purchased Notts County we started a new analytics department that worked with the scouting department and player development and Eddie was the first internal hire we made for that position after interviewing him back then. He was previously working in the scouting department, doing player analysis. He did all this while attending Loughborough University and studying Sports Management and Science. And third is the obvious one, he's the grandson of Notts County's legendary manager, Jimmy Sirrel. Football is in his blood. Now, I'm going to tackle the obvious question first and then I'm going to let Eddie speak. Yes we know he's young and yes we know he's inexperienced inasmuch as he's never held a football manager's position, let alone any position where he's taught players on the pitch. What Eddie knows is what we know. He's been knee-deep in analytics and player analysis for 6 years with this club. He grew up watching the game as most kids do but he did it with a legendary coach by his side, teaching him to see things that most other kids would never notice. When we first interviewed him for our analytics department almost 3 years ago we were blown away by the depth of knowledge he had regarding this game... but even more than that the passion he had for analytics and how he thought it would shape the game. No, before the question is asked, he's not a computer... he even said that sometimes you just have to go with what feels right when you look in a players eyes and we agree with that. Analytics doesn't replace heart. What Eddie is is whip-smart, talented, passionate, loyal, compassionate, Nottingham to his core. So, yes, he's young and yes he'll probably make mistakes... but right now this club is in the 5th tier and hasn't found a way to get past the playoffs for 3 seasons. This doesn't reflect on Eddie but there's no way we're finding a Premier League coach that wants to come down to the National League and manage this club right now. What we wanted was someone fresh. Someone with new ideas. Someone the supporters could rally behind because he's just like them. And someone the players could believe in because he knows who they are. That someone is Eddie Sirrel. Eddie Sirrel (manager) Thank you, Mr. Reedtz. Thank you ladies and gentlemen for coming. First I just want to say "wow." This is, this is just truly incredible, it's one helluva feeling. I'd love to sit up here and say this is what I've always dreamed of or I knew one day I'd be up here but that's not entirely true. I always envisioned myself as a backroom sort of guy with a keyboard in my hands and a coupe of monitors in front of me as I poured over videos and analytics. Now before I get misquoted and make it seem like I don't want the job I wouldn't have accepted it otherwise, I just mean that I'm the kid that's always just sort of been... the geek. Not that there's anything wrong with that for anybody else that feels that way. I'm just not much of a football player, unfortunately. I'm not very athletic at all, honestly. That was not my calling. My father always taught me that sometimes it didn't matter what you wanted in life, it's what you earned that mattered most. So even though I wanted to play football very early on - shocking I know - it wasn't what I was going to earn because that just wasn't me. What was me was books and learning. But football was still in my blood so Grandpa Jimmy would sit me in front of the television and we'd watch football and he'd ask me questions all match long about what I saw, different tactics, moves that were made -- or not made -- and what he might do differently were he still coaching. From that I grew to love analytics. I buried my head in player stats and sabermetrics. I spent hours researching players and tactics. I hired on part time with Notts County when I was 18 in their scouting department. I looked at film, poured over stats, put together information on the players that our scouts brought to us. I did this while I attended one of the best universities in the world to learn as much as I could about the sport we all love so much. I wanted to be better at what I did. I wanted to learn from the best and brightest. Grandpa Jimmy started me on this journey and a part of me wanted to show him what I could do. Obviously I have spent a lot of time around this club. Grandpa Jimmy was a big ambassador for the club and spent a lot of time at the grounds. I was fortunate enough to be able to join him pretty often. When Mr. Reedtz said I bled black and white that's not a lie, that's in my blood. This, this club is my family. Watching them fall from the Football League was something that I never dreamed could happen even though for years we've sort of bounced back and forth between the 3rd and 4th tiers, I just never thought it could get this bad. We're Notts County. Our name will forever be etched in the history books regarding this sport. No, we've never really been at the top of the game but we still have a history to be proud of. And that's what I want to get back to. I want to make our players proud again. I want to make Grandpa Jimmy - who's somewhere watching from a better place - proud again. But most importantly I want to make our supporters proud again. You're mad. I get that. I'm mad too. Not at the players, they're out there giving it everything they have, every match. But I'm mad at what we've become.... what we've allowed. And I intend to turn that anger into passion in myself, the players, the management team, the backroom staff... everybody associated with this football club. And if you don't have that passion, if you don't believe that we deserve to be back in the Football League, if you don't see that we are better than this.... there's the door, don't let it hit you on the way out. I can't think of anything else to say other than that at the moment but I know there will be questions, so let's get started. Rick Riley (Nottingham Post) Hello, Eddie, Rick Riley, Nottingham Post. So forgive me for starting out this way and I know Christoffer talked about it a little bit, but what do you have to say to those that think you're too young or not ready for this job. What do you think you bring to the table that makes you ready? Eddie Sirrel So yes, I know I'm young and maybe I don't deserve this opportunity right now. If you all want to think that or write that, you go ahead. Maybe I don't. You're not going to get me up here saying I knew this was going to happen or I'm ready for it or I deserve it, that's just not me. What I do know about me is I'm not afraid. I know who I am. I know what this club means to me. I know what I bring to the table and I think that's why I did get the job. You won't out-work me. You won't out-think me. You won't see me quit. You won't see me put up with quitters. So maybe I have some things to learn when it comes to managing, and that's not really a maybe, it's I do have some things to learn. But those things I don't see inhibiting me from going out there and doing what's required to build this club up and get us back to where we want to me. I have faith in that ability in myself. Rob Glazer (BBC Nottingham) Hello, Eddie. Rob Glazer, BBC Nottingham. So as sort of a follow-up to that, where do you see the club? Are you going to predict Premier League in the future as others have done here recently? Eddie Sirrel *laughs* No, I'm not Ryan Reynolds. Look, good for them but he's an owner. If Mr. Reedtz wants to sit here and talk Premier League that's awesome, we all want to be there but that's not the plan right now. It might be the plan for the future but that's not the plan right now. We're in the National League.... we have to take baby steps before the Premier League is even in our eyesight. So let's concentrate on the here-and-now and then worry about what comes next when we come to the next. Short term plans right now are to get better on the pitch, work together as a club to do the right things - all the time, and then win this league. That's our goal. We don't want another playoff. We've been there and done that for 3 straight seasons. Not that I don't have faith that we can win in the playoffs but wouldn't it be better to not have to? Gregory James (Magpie Weekly) Welcome to the club, Eddie. Greg James from Magpie Weekly. What can you tell us about the players? Are you expecting any big changes this season? Also, what can the supporters expect from your play-style? Eddie Sirrel Hi, Greg, I read your stuff every week. You provide some good insight and I love some of the interviews you do. The players love your support. Anyway, your questions. What can I tell you about the players beyond they love playing for this club and this town. The support is crazy, especially for a National League club. But that's not really what you're asking. So I've been around a lot of these guys since they joined the club and I can tell you I love each and every one of them but one thing a manager has to do is separate personal feelings from the business... and this is a business. They all know when I put on that hat and walk in that door that whatever I feel about them as a person, no matter how good a person they are, it's the results that matter and if you're not producing then something has to change. But right now I'm not prepared to suggest that anybody is coming or leaving... we actually have been working on some things the last couple of weeks since I learned I got the job. One good thing is that's what I was already involved in anyway so I have a leg up on guys we've been looking at and we do have a couple that we're looking at working deals on to get here. As far as what the supporters can expect; we are going to attack. I think it's what we know anyway and I'm not going to take that away from the lads. Besides I like my football to be exciting. I'm not a big fan of just sitting back and kicking the ball back and forth and waiting for something to open up, I want to take it to our opponent and make them react to us. So we're going to push the ball up and we're going to get it in the box and we're going to make our opponents stop us. Jake Lowe (Press Officer) We have time for one more. Rick Riley (Nottingham Post) Eddie if you could sum up your managerial philosophy in just a few words, what would those words be? Eddie Sirrel I'm going to take the easy way out here and say something my grandfather used to say and told me growing up. Football is simple. Don't make it hard. Put the best players on the pitch and let them do what they do. I paraphrased that a little to make it a little more mine but that's what he said when he was a manager and what he taught me growing up. I love tactics. I love sabermetrics. I love analytics. But when it comes down to it you have to see the passion in a player, you have to know their heart. You have to know who wants it more. So no matter what tactic you throw out there as a manager, if you don't have the players to perform it's all just noise. Give me the best players and just let them play. That almost sounds like you don't need managers and in some cases you might not. Our job isn't to go out there on the pitch and do what the players do, that's their job. My job is to put them in their best positions to perform. To give them the tools they need to succeed. So that's my philosophy. Jake Lowe (Press Officer) Thank you, everyone.

A New Beginning **Sidenote** Actually in our little fantasy world Luke Williams (the traitor) was never hired by Notts County. Eddie has replaced Ian Burchnall who was sacked after the 2021/22 season.

Let's talk about Notts County Founded in 1862 The oldest professional association football club in the world (might be disputed but we don't care) A founding member of the Football League in 1888 They have played their home games at Meadow Lane since 1910 Were in Division One in 1991 but were relegated and therefor missed being an inaugural member of the Premier League Have never played in the Premier League -- it's been pretty much all downhill since 1991 Won the FA Cup in 1893 -- runners-up one other time previous to that -- and have only made it to the quarter finals 6 times since Spent 131 seasons in the Football League until they were relegated to the National League after the 2018/19 season Have spent the previous 3 seasons (our story starts in 2022) in the National League -- having made the playoffs each of the previous 3 years and summarily losing each time Have not been above the 3rd tier of the pyramid since the 1995 Arguably (not really arguably) their most famous manager was the charismatic scottsman Jimmy Sirrel who managed the club 3 separate times and famously said upon his first appointment as manager that if you asked any kid what they knew about Notts County, they'd say they were the oldest football club in the world but that they were going to know a lot more about them by the time he finished. And he was right as he took over the club in 1969 and immediately earned them promotion from the 4th Division to 3rd just 2 seasons later. And then just 2 more seasons passed before being promoted again. Unfortunately, Jimmy left Notts after the 1974 season after a couple of respectable finishes in the 2nd Division. However, the story doesn't end there as Jimmy came back to the club in 1977 as the club was struggling in the 2nd Division and facing the probability of relegation. In just 3 seasons Jimmy took them back to top flight football for the first time since 1926. After that season Jimmy "semi-retired" and stayed on at Notts as Generral Manager while a new manager was brought in. That only lasted a couple of years as the club once again began to struggle and had fallen back to the 2nd Division and then were facing another relegation just a year later so Jimmy was made manager once again. Unfortunately, it was too late for even Jimmy to save the club again and they were relegated to the 3rd Division following the 1984 season. Jimmy stayed with the club for 2 more years with respectable finishes but couldn't find the magic once more to earn them promotion. He retired for good after the 1986 season. However, with the foundation he laid during those 2 years back in charge Notts County did finally win promotion to the 2nd Division just a few years later and then another promotion back to Division 1 the year after that. Unfortunately, as we said, that only lasted the one season and they were relegated following the 1991 season missing out on the Premier League... and it's been a downward spiral pretty much ever since.

Right, so let's set the mood. First off I want to apologize because I will not be creating a "new" save this time around. Well, I think I mean more I will not be creating an original story, the save will be new. I'm going to go back to my last story I did with Notts and use the same manager that I used then because I liked him and I liked his story and rather than try to come up with something diffrerent.... I'm just going to steal my own idea and continue using it. For those that have followed along with me on my many journeys you know one thing I like to do is inject some form of reality in my stories. Not that I think the stories could be real because we all know that most of what we write is.... not reality. And most likely never would be. Some unknown 24-year old isn't going to meet the owner of a football club in a pub somewhere and be hired 2 days later as the new manager for said football club. That's.... Disney level imagination right there. But that 24-year old being connected to the club in some way or having worked for the owner at some point in one of their other businesses at least weaves reality into the story. In my eyes it's what brings it together when I'm writing. As I've said before, I don't say any of that to suggest that's the only way to do it.... or even the right way to do it. Many stories on this page are just "here's the manager and here we go" and they're just follow along on the journey and see how this club does. That's awesome as well if that's what makes you tick. I've read many that are excellent stories that way. I have read others that are just filled with stats and charts and graphs and information overload because that's how that person tells their story... and that's awesome also. It's WAY more work than I have the time or patience for but it's interesting to see their take and all the time they put into telling their stories. And even though I'm an info geek in real life, I can't write that way in my stories. But that's okay, it works for them and I enjoy reading them. My stories tend to be about the writing. So we're going to start anew with our new gaffer for Notts County -- in a rewrite of a story I did before. And hopefully I don't get fired again or worse.....

I predict you'll have a better season than the odds-makers imagine you will. You've been incrememently improving over the past few years and I suspect that trend will continue. Best of luck this season.

Cheers, my friend. I am good now. I will try to continue that way. I have continued to check in on your progress with your save every week or so even though I did not comment while "off" the board. You are an inspiration on this forum and a guiding light for anybody wanting to do their own save.