The September Blues

 It’s only the 15th September and after the last two games at York Road I think the last bit of my pre-season optimism has well and truly evaporated.

Following a great 3-0 win at Dover on Saturday 5th September we managed to throw away any momentum with two moments of stupidity from Jordan Ragguette and George Abbott on the following Tuesday reducing us to 9 men against Torquay. Ragguette went in hard and left his studs in the opposition player’s shin after just 10 minutes earning a straight red whilst Abbott got a second booking for a stupid pull near our box 2 minutes into the second half. We had played quite well with 10 men but attempting  to stem the Torquay tide with 9 men proved well beyond us as we went down 4-0. The performance was by no means as disastrous as the scoreline suggests but conceding 4 goals couldn't have helped with the team’s confidence, and leaving 9 men to chase shadows for 40 minutes will not assist with fitness either. 

Last Saturday then produced another unconvincing performance as we drew 2-2 with newly promoted Billericay. We started well and clearly looked the better team as Connor Hall put us 1-0 up inside 10 minutes. However, we then sat back and let Billericay back into the game, conceding the equaliser after 17 minutes. We were lucky to go into the break at 1-1 with Jordi Van Stappershoef making some excellent saves to keep us in the game. The second half started well and we took the lead with an excellent move after Josh Johnson brought the ball forward on a counter with real pace and purpose, playing in Owen Cochrane who put in a superb first time cross which was finished by Fin Welch with his first goal for the club. We continued to create chances with Welch putting in some excellent corners ( a rare treat to see a Magpies corner beat the first man or not go straight out of play) before he was inexplicably subbed after 64 minutes for the returning Matt Robinson. Whilst it was brilliant to see Robinson return (and oh how we’ve missed him) the removal of Welch signalled the end of Maidenhead’s attacking threat. We conceded a soft goal in the 74th minute after multiple players let their right winger run 40 yards up the pitch and square the ball to an unmarked Billericay player who put the ball past an increasingly immobile JVS who was clearly struggling with injury. Despite his injury JVS made some superb saves throughout the game which we would have surely lost without him as we held on to the draw. 

The last 7 days have not been good for Ryan Peters and his Magpies. There is a fair bit of discontent around York Road, with some online supporters even suggesting they would get rid of Peters. Now, personally, I find this talk ridiculous, some of these same fans would have sacked Alan Devonshire in our second season in the National League after any dip in form. It’s a long season and a huge amount can change from September until May, but I feel we’ve played enough games now to make some judgements on the squad and recruitment. 

 I’m trying not to be too negative but the imminent destruction of the world caused by AI, a future Reform Government destroying the last of the UK’s international credibility or a Trump instigated nuclear holocaust are all starting to feel more probable than a Magpies victory at York Road currently. 

It’s Going To Be A Long Season

Ok, I am failing at trying not to be too negative.

But the cold hard facts do not lie:

• Maidenhead United are currently 17th in the National League South. 
• We are yet to win a game at York Road this season, dropping points to multiple teams who will be finishing in the bottom half of the table.
• In the 9 games we have played, we have had 4 players sent off. 
• Van Stappershoef appears to be struggling with injury. His back up, Harvey Collins is also out with an injury. Our 3rd choice keeper is our Goalkeeping coach who has really played above Step 4 and whose physique makes Connor Hall look like Mr Universe. 
• Ragguette, our August Fans’ Player of the Month, is now suspended and also picked up an injury on Saturday. Our back up LWB is Owen Cochrane. Cochrane is naturally a RB. 
• Josh Coley, who I previously stated needs to have a good season if we hope to finish in the playoffs… is very much not having a good season so far.
• We’ve drawn Ebbsfleet in the second qualifying round of the FA Cup. 
• Slough won their first game of the season on Saturday.  

Things Can Only Get Better

Ok. Ok. Now I’ve got that out of my system I feel better. It’s only September and there are positives:

• Matt Robinson is back. Yes he’s going to need a bit of time to get back to match fitness, but his leadership will be vital to pick this team back up. 
• After a very ropey first game of the season JVS has been brilliant the last few games and Peters doesn’t seem too worried about his injury.
• Fin Welch scored his first goal of the season which can be a spring board for him and his season. If he can add final product to his game, he will be better than Josh Popoola and one of the most dangerous players in the division. 
• There is strength and depth across the centre of the pitch when we have a fully fit squad. David Mantle is an excellent addition at the back, Johnson and Christian N’Guessan are improving every game, Achuba’s suspension is nearly over and Robinson is back in the centre of midfield. There are multiple good options up front and the goals will come for them when the service improves. 
• I know N’Guessan continues to divide fans, but I thought he played very well on Saturday. He made a superb buccaneering forward run in the first half where he did everything right before he couldn’t quite finish it off. In that run alone I saw flashes of excellence that Ferdinand, Ferguson or Yearwood never produced. I also think Johnson had his best game for the club since his return, if he can stay fit he has the talent to get better with every game. 
• Connor Hall did very well on Saturday before he tired and was substituted. His movement is excellent and he is a real handful for defenders. He has scored a couple of goals in the limited minutes he’s played and he looks like he could be the poacher we need. Again, as his fitness and confidence improve, he will score goals at this level. 
• The results against Hemel and Dover away show this team does have something and we are now starting to score goals which was eluding us. 

I think we all need to remember we’re Maidenhead United and things are never easy for us. Whilst we continue to make frustrating mistakes I don’t think we are that far away from where we need to be and they are clearly playing for the shirt and the manager at present. Peters’ record last season shows he can manage at this level, he does know what he’s doing and I truly believe he will turn this season around. Will we make the playoffs, maybe not, but will we finish higher than our current position, of course we will. As the GMOSC blog has pointed out; would I accept a mid table finish and a FA Cup run… Of course I would! Maybe this year’s our year when we’ll make the second round proper of the FA Cup for the first time in a lifetime. 

Well it looks like my optimism and positivity is coming back so I’ll leave it before I start remembering our efforts in the cup competitions last season. Until next time, see you on The Bell End. Up The Mags.