Career after the dream

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 242434
That picture above, that was me for the last 19 years, on the left. I have been a highly successful career and it was time to hang up the boots at 35.

Playing football was always my dream so when I was picked up by the Rushall Olympic youth system as an 8 year old I was estatic. Eventually I moved on though, at 14 I made my move to Aston Villa where I was in the reserve squad for a long time before being loaned out.

My first loan spell was with my childhood club, Walsall! I managed to make a few starts as a 16 year old with them but when I returned to Villa I was told that I was no longer needed and was released. Walsall then signed me up, they had liked what they had seen and decided to give me a contract on my 17th birthday.

The following season I featured a lot, I was a utility player. I could feature anywhere from full back, to central midfield, to winger, to striker so in that season I made 30 starts and managed 5 goals. The following season though I caught a big injury, I tore my ACL, in training and would miss the season but Walsall decided to offer me a new contract.

I ended up playing for the club for 5 years in all including the loan spell. At 21 years old though I had decided enough was enough but these were my stats:
16- Season 1: 6 starts, 0 goals, 0 assists- On loan from Aston Villa
17- Season 2: 30 starts, 5 goals, 2 assists
18- Season 3: No games, torn ACL in pre-season
19- Season 4: 20 games, 3 goals, 6 assists
20- Season 5: 40 games, 11 goals, 14 assists

My managers at Walsall had decided my best position was an attacking midfield role, sort of the "hole" player who sits behind the striker. My final season ended with the club and shortly after I turned 21. Although I loved the club they were bouncing around the lower leagues and I was ready to test myself.

And who else wanted me but... Aston Villa! They told me they made a mistake releasing me and were ready to bring me back and continue to develop me whilst featuring me in the side in the league. My time at Villa was short lived though as I lasted just 1 year before they sold me to Southampton who had finished 18th.

I would go on to play for Southampton in the premier league for 4 years as I helped them do well in the league. These were my stats for my time at Villa and Southampton:
21- Season 6: 3 starts, 1 goal, 1 assist
22- Season 7: 17 starts, 4 goals, 2 assists
23- Season 8: 26 starts, 10 goals, 6 assists
24- Season 9: 30 starts, 14 goals, 14 assists
25- Season 10: 34 starts, 17 goals, 10 assists

Southamptons managers decided to play me in the same role I did at Walsall where as Villa always saw me as a winger, I don't understand why though. I wasn't the quickest, I was good in tight spaces and I was a great finisher and passer.

At 26 I was now in my prime and I made my way to Old Trafford to play under Alex Ferguson. I knew I wouldn't get the same amount of playing time but I wanted to win things and I definitely did! In my first season I won the league, FA Cup and Champions league. I featured in both finals! I also spent the next season at united where I would win the league and intercontinental cup.

26- Season 11: 20 starts, 8 goals, 8 assists
27- Season 12: 30 starts, 20 goals, 4 assists

After this successful period I returned to Southampton where I would become a club legend as Manchester United decided I wasn't needed any more. I would stay until my 30th birthday which meant two more season with Southampton.
28- Season 13: 40 starts, 15 goals, 19 assists
29- Season 14: 28 starts, 5 goals, 22 assists

I decided then to make the move back to Walsall where I would finish out my career with the club I loved, with the club where I became a success. In my 16th season I tore the same ACL and decided to start looking at coaching qualifications before moving on with my career.
30- Season 15: 37 starts, 20 goals, 17 assists
31- Season 16: 5 starts, 4 goals, 3 assists
32- Season 17: 10 starts, 3 goals, 1 assist
33- Season 18: 13 starts, 1 goal, 4 assists
34- Season 19: 20 starts, 10 goals, 0 assists

I also had a very successful international career for England in which I managed 64 call ups scoring 22 goals!

Retirement
I decided to retire after damaging my ACL again in a training session after my 19th season had ended, I hadn't torn it but it would see me out for at least 6 months so I decided to go into management. I was a legend at Walsall and Southampton, I was loved by England fans and had success with Man United but the Villa season really was the only damp spot on my career.

All in all I had managed a career with total stats of 409 starts (473 including international caps), scoring 151 goals (173 including international goals) and 133 assists. Not too bad for somebody who started off with Rushall.

I had been out of the game for a week when I had got my first job offer in the year 2014. I was quite shocked, it would be a good start, good club with promising ambitions and a lot of possibilities. I didn't have much choice, I had to say yes, I was 35 coming out of a dream career which included 3 ACL injuries as well as many others (which really slowed down my career at points) and I couldn't sit around waiting.

I said yes and I was now the manager of...​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 242428
Yes Forest Green Rovers!

I was happy to start in the conference in order to try and settle into the management game because despite my qualifications and playing experience I knew I wasn't going to walk into a big job and be successful so I decided to settle in first.

I had earned myself a Continental C License whilst at Walsall which I would put to use here but also at the same time I was working with some youngsters in my final couple of seasons so I knew that was one of my strong points.

I was better with fitness coaching than I would've hoped to have to had been due to my injuries and coaching myself back up to fitness with the work of my previous physios and fitness coaches.

Coming here the expectations weren't too high and the players agreed with me and the board in saying that a top half finish would be good but in the back of my mind I would push for better.

We had a couple of good keepers working behind a strong back 4. The spine of the midfield would need some work whilst out wide we had some strong options and then up front we were strong with target man Jon Parkin.

There was a good set up but I brought in my own scouts and a couple of other members to fill some gaps in the backroom staff which would need fixing in order for us to be successful.

With a transfer budget of £10k and an extra £5k in my wage budget I was hopeful of doing well and exceeding my expectations of top half in the league, FA Cup 1st round and FA Trophy 4th round.​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 242397
Here I was, my first match day as a manager. I was quite shocked that it came close to the same suspense and excitement to getting ready to play in a game and this was only a game against my under 21's.

I had tried to spend the morning finding some players to bring in but it is tough without any scouts. I had found one player, Jake Nicholson I think his name was. Young midfielder, apparently good technically but struggles physically which is why he was released from Spurs. He left Wimbledon, apparently it was due to the contract they offered being poor but I said I'd give him £600 a week if he came.

I also noticed the state of the contract situation. A lot of good players going out of contract next summer so if all goes well I'll look into that later this year after Christmas.

I just asked my assistant manager to pick the team for this one. I would be giving everybody a chance over pre-season so it didn't matter who started now. I was without three players; Raccine (2-4 months), Sinclair (5 weeks) and Fleetwood (2 weeks) although none of them were important players anyway, just backups.

4-2-3-1 wide today, my favourite formation to play in as a player and the one I had most success with so I would stick with it to start with. I told the players to focus on fitness but also to learn the tactics over the week so hopefully they had picked it up a bit meaning we may see some attacking, possession football.

FGR v FGR Under 21's
We controlled the first 5 minutes, got a few chances and then on the 5 minute mark Parkin headed home a wonderful early cross from Jennings for 1-0!

The rest of the half was dead though, we had a couple of headed chances again from Parkin which were saved well and didn't give any chances up. Jennings continued to impress me out wide as left back. Marcus Kelly took a knock towards the end of the half but we went in 1-0 up.

I realised at half time we had a lack of depth anywhere other than the back 4 which could hurt us so I'd have to look at that. We only had 7 subs available with the injuries but today was everybodies chance to make a stand for themselves in my squad so I brought all 7 on.

We were too slow in our build up which was frustrating me, I told them quick passing flowing football but they seemed hesistant on the ball, maybe they'd learn with practice. About 15 minutes into the second half Parkin added a second after a Stokes cross went past everyone Guthrie worked his way round the box and played Parkin through to just tap it home, 2-0.

It was 3 for us and 3 for Parkin straight from the kickoff as a misplaced pass which was meant to go to the midfielder behind the centre spot ended up rolling out to a confused looking centre back who just tried to hoof it. It hit one of our attacking midfielders who then took it through and played it across a helpless keeper for another Parkin tap in.

They saw a late goal as they capitalised on an uninterested back 4 who were just waiting for the whistle which saw one of their wide men catch Stokes out at left back before playing it in to the box for a "Parkin-esque" tap in, 3-1.

FGR 3-1 FGR Under 21's

I was glad with what I saw especially from Jennings who was my man of the match and Parkin who scored a hat trick. I was a bit annoyed we lost concentration late on but it is first friendly so I'll let them off. It was also a good chance to look at some youth prospects.
​

 

[kmitchell96]

Rooney to FGR?!
View attachment 242383
My first scout had arrived, George Rooney, and before I could say hello he was raving about this youth prospect he had seen before who was now a free agent.

"You alright boss, Craig Roddan. Released from Liverpool ranks earlier in the summer and is great for this level. Potentially a league 1/Championship player in the future and could make you some money in the future. He plays central midfield but can provide cover at full back and he'd be perfect for a defensive role"

It was interesting. He hadn't even properly introduced himself and he was pushing this player. I took a look at the reports he handed me and he was right, great potential, great at this level. He needed some work but with some good training and a bit of physical growth he could walk this league. I offered him what I thought was perfect at first but he didn't agree and seemed offended so in the end he is offered £900p/w with a £550k release clause.

He also told me about this prospect from Harrogate who he thinks would be great for the team.

"Also Lewis Turned from Harrogate. He is good physically, needs some work technically but could help out at right back especially with the rest of the back 4 being strong. He would cost, I enquired and they said around £25k"

I was impressed with this report as well, Rooney was doing brilliantly already! I offered Harrogate my full £10k budget now and an extra £20k when we get promoted for the kid. He would at least provide cover for the back 4 if not start at right back.

Then as I was flicking through the rest of his reports I noticed Louis Dodds. Great attacking midfielder currently at Port Vale and he was transfer listed. He had potential to be a top player and score a lot of goals for us from the wing or behind the striker so I sent an ambitious offer to them of £0. I wasn't hopeful at all, but it was ACCEPTED!

He then rang me up stating what he wanted, £1.5k a week with a 30% promotion wage rise. I said no to that but said 10% and £1k and you have a deal. He accepted.​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 242371
I had been rejected a few times in a row. Firstly one of the scouts I wanted opted to go to league 1 Gillingham which is fair enough.

Then I got an email saying no from Harrogate so I added £10k to the promotion pay out taking it to £10k now, £40k later.

Then I was told Wrexham were in for the kid Rooney raved about, Roddan. Hopefully he would choice here because he would be a key player for us no matter how we played as he could occupy the middle, defensive midfield or possibly even full back if needed.

Amongst all the rejection and bad news in my inbox though I got one great email. Louis Dodds had agreed to his deal and would be round this afternoon to finalise the small details. A great signing for the club and could help us win promotion.

FGR v Leyton Orient

I then had an friendly in the afternoon. Orient at home, Dodds was ready for his debut and would come straight in at AMR. Marwood would move into the central role then to make room for Dodds in his favoured position and Guthrie would get his chance to impress upfront whilst Parkin would be on the bench.

47 seconds! I wasn't expecting anything but fitness for this match and 47 seconds in we were 1-0 up. We had controlled it from the kick off, they tried long ball and we were winning the aerial battles and then we got it on the floor we managed to move it up quickly for Dodds, the debutant, to cross it in for Marwood to head home.

As expected they came back though and equalised through Simpson for 1-1. Then before I could blink it was 2-1 to them, Dagnall scoring a screamer from 30 yards out.

8 changes at half time with only Oliver, Dodds and Marwood remaining. About 20 minutes into the second half it was 3 as our back 4 missed the ball completely leaving Simpson with a 1 on 1 which he slid into the corner. A header from a free kick marked his hat trick to make it 4.

We continued to create, but ultimately waste chances which included Dodds dominating his wing, but they kept hitting us on the counter and threatening at the other end. It finished 4-1 though and it wasn't a shock as I expected to lose. We played well in patches, showed our threats, Dodds had a great debut and we continued to settle back into a routine before the season came.

​FGR 1-4 Leyton Orient
​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 242364
"Rooney, it looks like you'll be working on your own for a while" I had to ring him up to let him know as another scout rejected a deal here to go to a league club and he was calm about it.

"Yeah that is fine. Now we know that what are you wanting me to look for boss?"

I asked him to find some good players who could instantly make an impact on the first team but also who had loads of potential. I wanted to build for the future whilst I was here and hopefully he would find some great players.

"Alright boss, I'll go start that. Already have a couple of ideas in mind for who to look at. Maybe you should look to set up a trial day with the board since we have a one man scouting team, would take some pressure away from me"

It wasn't a bad idea so I went to the board. I wanted to ask about getting a senior affiliate anyway to bring in some quality players.

View attachment 242361
Wow... they said no to both things. I started with the affiliate I wanted and they told me there was no possible benefit from doing such a thing as it would cost too much to search for one and wouldn't aid us enough in the league in order to make it worth while. I mean we had 7 affiliate clubs below us, why couldn't we add one?!

Then I said that since I couldn't bring in players that way I'd like a trial day to look at some free talent and again they said that it wasn't plausible financially and that it wouldn't help the squad. I mean come on, I have to get players some way and you aren't helping at all!​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 912349
Today Forest Green Rovers have completed the capture of former Tottenham Hotspur prospect Jake Nicholson.

The central midfielder is the Rovers second signing of the summer after Dodds was announced last week.

Nicholson will have to fight for his place by all accounts as he will be trying to break into a central midfielder role.

When asked manager, Mitchell, said "He is a great capture and is a brilliant young talent. It hasn't worked for him elsewhere but he can be a brilliant player here. He has some work to do physically to get up to a decent standard of fitness but he is a good technical midfielder who can pass the ball around brilliantly.

Nicholson is rumoured to be on wages around £600 per week with the club until 2017.

View attachment 242359​

 

[kmitchell96]

England Trial Day
View attachment 242356
This is exactly what we needed. Without our own individual trial days and any chance of affiliates being made we struggling to find signings so me and Rooney went to watch the games. There were a few players we were interested in:

Tom Bender
Young defender who can play left or centre. With talks dying between us and Harrogate for Turned I offered the youngster a £350 a week, 1 year deal.

Jack Rudge
19 year old central midfielder who would provide cover. Rooney was impressed so went into contract talks. Couldn't come to a conclusion though and decided to part ways.

James Rowe
Second option at central midfield. He wanted more but was a better player now than Rudge so he signed a 2 year £1000 per week deal with the club.

Jake Fowler
Winger or striker, great prospect who could rotate for places. Offered him a great deal but he wanted £1.5k a week with a appearance bonus of £500! I said no and told him he was asking for too much.

Jamie Wooton
One player very few people cared about today but I paid particular attention to the 19 year old striker. Could be a brilliant cheap signing on a 2 year £350 a week deal.​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 242220
My next game. After 1 win and 1 loss I was ready to start getting plans into place for myself and the team. The 4-2-3-1 was working well and we are slowly improving.

FGR v Wycombe
We did brilliantly in the first half taking a James Norwood goal into half time to stay 1-0 up. The second half was tighter, and more lively, after an open but boring first half. I made all the changes to test all players out.

They made it 1-1 after 57 minutes against some good defending but poor keeping with Russell being misplaced and leaving a large target open for Peter Murphy. Matt McClure then made it 2-1 in the 89th minute and everybody thought it'd be a second loss on the bounce.

But then from a brilliant free kick we managed to equalise in the 91st minute. Luke Oliver did brilliantly to find himself some room before reaching high with a header which he hit against the floor to make it awkward for the Wycombe keeper who couldn't stop the shot.

FGR 2-2 Wycombe

It was a good game. Tactically we were improving and the players were settling in. Hopefully this time next week we would have a larger squad to select from for our next friendly against Yeovil.​

 

[kmitchell96]

Injuries, rejections and signings
View attachment 912732
The week started off poorly. One of our key centre backs was injured and expected to be out for anything up to a month.

Danny Coles - Twisted Knee - Out 2-3 Weeks

We were then greeted with some good news in that Jamie Wooton, one of the strikers from the England trial day had signed up for us after turning down clubs elsewhere.

Jamie Wooton - 3 year - £350 p/w

Then was the news of another signing, Tom Bender. He was a central or left side defender from the England trial game. He would be a good back up at least if not more.

Tom Bender - 2 year - £350 p/w

Then was the awful news. Jon Parkin, our best player and key striker who I was hoping could fire us to promotion, injured.

Jon Parkin - Sports Hernia - 5-6 weeks

And it just kept piling up...

Sam Wedgbury - Twisted Ankle - 4 weeks
Chris Stokes - Thigh Strain - 2-3 weeks

We were then rejected by Rowe who opted to go to Dagenham and Redbridge despite being on half the wage I offered him.

The final news to come through before the end of the week was the odds for the upcoming season. We were expected to finish 9th at odds of 40-1 to win the title.​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 242204
The next friendly, Yeovil at home this time.

FGR v Yeovil
We started well with earning a couple of corners against the league 1 outfit. Marwood converted one of this as he reached back to get his head to the ball which looped over the Yeovil keeper. 1-0!

Then Pipe won the ball and played a perfect ball over to Fleetwood who had just returned from injury. He took it to the edge of the pitch where he played the ball in to Kelly who was waiting to knock it down for Frear who slotted it past the keeper for 2-0!

Bender was brilliant in his first game at centre back but in the 21st minute he was faced with the challenge of defending 3 players as they counter attacked and Jennings was up attacking. He managed to win the ball but then was quickly closed down and panicked, they won the ball played it through for Ugwu who scored, 2-1.

Marwood continued to threaten as he crossed a ball in from the right which Fleetwood tucked away to restore the 2 goal lead. 3-1 FGR!

At half time I told them they were playing brilliantly. All 3 of my attacking midfielders had scored and the two new players had a decent debut. I made 7 subs as both debut players came off and the players who were most tired came off.

Charlie Clough came off on the hour with an injury and with nobody else on the bench we had to play out the game with 10 men for half an hour. Instead I dropped Kamdjo back to centre back and player with only 1 central midfielder.

Yeovil scored in the 82nd minute. They had been more threatening in the second half but they had struggled to break us down but they managed to push the ball through the back 4 for Morgan to tap home. 3-2.

We held on for the final 10 minutes despite being a man down and both teams created chances with us forcing a brilliant double save out of the opposition's keeper but they couldn't break us down.

FGR 3-2 Yeovil

We defended brilliantly today. They only got goals from tired players and nervous debut players. We continued to press their back 4 throughout the game with a great few chances in the second half which forced great defending or goalkeeping.

And then after the game I looked at some great news from the owner in my emails. Craig Roddan, the former Liverpool youngster who had been raved about by Rooney had signed up! This was despite offers from Wrexham, Accrington, Kidderminster, Bristol Rovers and Southend!

​Craig Roddan - 3 year - £1.2k p/w
​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 912783
Really?! Another injury?

Head Physio had rang me up about the injury Guthrie had got in training. Said he could be out for 2 weeks meaning he could miss the start of the season.

Kurtis Guthrie - Gashed Upper Leg - 11 days-2weeks

That was now 7 injured players, 3 more than anybody else in the league. It wouldn't help going into the season, especially with fitness, 7 players who when they would return would take another week or so to get back into a playing state.

Guthrie is also the second striker to get injured meaning we now only had Jamie Wooton and Stuart Fleetwood to start the season rather than Parkin and Guthrie. We did have some attacking midfielders who could play up top but it would weaken our midfield. We didn't have much left in the budget either so maybe I'd need to look at asking about it.

View attachment 242189
Again?! Turned down for a third time in the board room. I only asked for another grand, maybe two but they refused again. Telling me that we simply do not have the money to put into wages anymore and what I was on now was the absolute maximum.

The worst thing was that they wouldn't even let me look at the finances claiming I hadn't been at the club for long enough for them to trust me with it. I asked them to let me take a look to see if there was anything that could be done. They refused and told me that if I asked anymore it would put us in an awkward position.
​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 241942
FGR v Bristol City
I wasn't expecting anything from this game, in my opinion they were a championship quality team. One last run out before the league starts next season and hopefully we can get through it without any injuries.

8 minutes in they were 1-0 up; a ball over the top fell straight into Agards feet for him to knock it past our keeper, Arnold.

We created a few chances after that with Bristol City really struggling to stop us getting shots off. But they then scored, Douglas received the ball after we defended the corner they had brilliantly, but he hit it brilliantly to make it 2-0.

We then pressed again, some lovely quick passing lead to it going outwide for Norwood to cross it in. He played it low and drilled it across into the feet of Dodds who scored brilliantly into the top corner.

The second half saw no chances for either side as both teams had chances but were focusing on keeping fit for the near start to the season and the game finished 2-1.

I was happy with the results. We created chances and defended well against a top team and managed to play brilliant quick passing football which lead to our goal. We did well in front of goal forcing a few saves and also were strong at the back stopping a strong Bristol front line.

​FGR 1-2 Bristol City
​

 

[kmitchell96]

Pre-season Review & Season Preview
View attachment 241658
Pre-season Review
Honestly I think pre-season went well. We picked up a few good results; only losing 2-1 to Bristol, beating Yeovil and drawing with Wycombe were all very good results. The win against the reserves was nice as well to see everybody step out and start fighting for places.

The only result I am annoyed about is the Orient game, losing 4-1 was harsh. We played alright but they continuously broke through and we lacked the fitness to keep up in the end. I wouldn't have minded a 2-1 loss, maybe 3-1 but I think the 4 goals showed that some of the players just gave up after going 3 down.

Fitness wise it could be better. Going into the season we are going to have 7 players out injured as well as another 2 who the coaches think are severely lacking fitness. We need to get that sorted quickly before we get into the thick of the season. I don't want to start badly because of fitness.

Tactically we have done alright. I would have liked to have picked things up a little quicker but they are starting to really settle into the systems and seem ready to play them. It is frustrating that they have picked up one of the backup tactics quicker than what will be the starting tactic.

In terms of transfers I am not 100% done, I would like to bring in another player or two if we can. I think picking up Dodds on a freebie from Port Vale was a brilliant move and I am glad I spotted him amongst almost 200 reports from Rooney. Talking about Rooney, I'm also glad I got the man he was raving about so much. He looked good in the game time he did get and has been good in training, hopefully he can make a stance for himself as one of the leagues best players.

Season Preview
Looking ahead to the season I am quietly confident. We are expected to finish top half, that is easily doable if we can pick up fitness. I think we need a good start, starting with the game against Southport this weekend. If we can pick up a few early wins we can go on to push higher up the table.

In terms of my goals I want to make the play-offs. We have a great squad and a lot of young players who can develop and just get better. The media has us to finish 9th but I don't think a top 5 finish is that farfetched.

In terms of key players I think Wedgbury and Parkin are the obvious answers, they both will be key. I also think our attacking midfielders; Dodds, Marwood and Norwood will have a great year and help us. But my dark horse for the key player is James Jennings, the 26 year old left back was absolutely brilliant in pre-season and hopefully he can fight of competition from a developing Stokes and possibly even Bender.

In terms of the squad I am happy. I wouldn't mind bringing in some more cover but we have a good team. We also have a great mix of youth and experience which will hopefully help in the push for the playoffs.

In terms of positions I think Barnet, Bristol and Grimsby will be fighting out for the top spot. From there I think Halifax, Eastleigh, Gateshead, Torquay will be the key contenders for the other 2 playoff spots outside of those top 3 teams. I think we could easily make a push but in all honesty I would be happy with a top 8 finish, just being close to the playoffs.​

 

[kmitchell96]

Late Additions
View attachment 241391
With the season coming soon I felt we needed something and I knew what we needed. I went to Rooney and asked if he could find a suitable central midfielder for us who was a good young player with potential.

"Boss, we don't even need to question that. We both know who we need, Jack Rudge. He was brilliant at the trial days, showed a lot of potential, good physically and okay technically."

He was right, when we had talked after the trial day though the 19 year old, former Manchester United player was asking in the region of £3000 per week. I rang him up and talked to him about his situation, he was still out of work and he was desperate to find a club.

After the first set of talks we had agreed to £800 per week with a few clauses and bonuses throw in there. But as we got closer to the season I noticed a lot of other clubs making their move on trying to sign the young midfielder.

League 2 Cheltenham were probably the favourites to get him but when I spoke to him he said he hadn't heard anything from them despite the rumours. Bristol Rovers had launched a bid and with them being tied at the top for title favourites he may see it as a more luxurious option.

So I rang him back up and explained how I felt the original contract didn't do him justice and bumped it up to £1k a week and added a couple more bonuses and clauses.

I'd also sent a couple of loan bids out for a full back option from Brighton and another midfield option from Hartlepool. Rooney reckoned both were great options for this level and the parent clubs didn't expect any wages or expenses to be paid so I offered to take both.

Before any replies came through from the loan options or Rudge though I had my first game to play.​

 

[kmitchell96]

Southport v Forest Green Rovers
View attachment 241379
First game day, my first chance to make a real mark in front of my new fans. Feedback I had heard from pre-season was great with many of the fans praising me for the loss to Bristol City. This was my first away game though, my first real test.

Line Up
Arnold would start in goal behind a back line of Jennings, Bender, Clough and Pipe. Bender keeps his spot on the grounds that Cole isn't full fit after returning from injury.

The midfield 5 is made up of Roddan and Kamdjo in the central roles with Norwood, Dodds and Marwood playing in the attacking roles. Fleetwood gets the nod ahead of Wooton up front with Parkin and Guthrie still out injured.

Russell, Coles, Kelly, Frear and Wooton make up the bench.

Match
After dominating the first 20 minutes and only being denied by some great keeping Southport really got lucky. A shot from 40 yards out which looked more like a long pass deflected off of one of their midfielders and as Arnold went left the ball swerved and went right.

Southport 1-0 FGR

5 minutes into the second half Pipe crossed brilliantly from the half way line with Fleetwood's diving header hitting the post. It then bounced back to Norwood who hit it towards the bottom corner only for their keeper who was brilliant to knock it against the post.

BOOM! 1-1! A brilliant counter attack whilst they had all but 3 players up saw us passing the ball around quickly and making perfect passes. Kamdjo eventually was given the ball by Marwood and looked ready to play the shot before slowly sliding it through into the path of Fleetwood who hit it past a confused keeper.

Southport 1-1 FGR

On the hour I had to replace a few tired players. Roddan who had a mixed debut would be replaced by Kelly, Bender who was playing well was replaced as he was taking a lot of knocks so Coles came on and then finally Dodds, who was poor, came off for Frear.

GET IN! Another counter attack saw Fleetwood this time play through Kamdjo who perfectly hit it first time into the corner. 2-1!

Southport 1-2 FGR

We held onto the lead despite them throwing everything forward and trying to do anything they can to break through the back 4. We sat back and comfortably dealt with any pressure to hold on for the win.

Review
It was a great comeback. A few players showed they weren't quite ready. Roddan seemed to be lacking fitness still whilst Bender was poor and would lose out for Tuesdays game if Coles was ready.

Jennings and Pipe were both poor defensively and going forward. Jennings seemed to be a key player in pre-season but just performed awfully today although he did improve in the second half after getting a first half rating of 5.1.

Kamdjo gets man of the match as he gets the assist for the first and the goal for the second. He also did brilliantly defensively and seemed to be involved in every threatening move we had today.

Southport 1-2 Forest Green Rovers​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 914676
Sky sports understands that former Manchester United prospect Jack Rudge, who spent last season on loan with Torquay has signed a 2 year deal for Forest Green Rovers in the conference.

Rudge was a wanted player after his release from the Red Devils and he reportedly received offers from a number of clubs including conference title favourites Bristol Rovers, Torquay and Cheltenham.

His contract is said to expire in the summer of 2016 and he will be on a wage rumoured to be around £1000 per week.

The 19 year old will look to be a key player in Mitchell's plans to push for promotion with the Green Army.

This is the Rovers 6th signing of the season with Mitchell reportedly eyeing up loan moves for Rob Hunt and Jordan Richards from Brighton and Hartlepool, respectively.

View attachment 241370​

 

[kmitchell96]

View attachment 241368
Forest Green Rovers are pleased to announce the loan signing of 19 year old Rob Hunt from Brighton and Hove Albion.

The 19 year old will be joining the squad for the season as Mitchell's 7th signing of the season. This adds to an already deep pool of full backs at the club.

However when asked Mitchell made the following statement:

"The 19 year old shows a lot of quality and will make a few key appearances. He will continue to push both Pipe and Jennings for their spots as they look to hold on by being the best options at the moment. With the addition though they will now have no room for complacency as they will have a number of players fighting for their place."

He was then asked by a member of the media what he saw in Hunt in order to make the move:

"Rob has a great number of skills. Technically he needs to improve in some areas but physically he is brilliant for this level. He also has a great work rate and looks to get forward a lot which with his speed he can return back quickly to help defend."​

 

[kmitchell96]

Forest Green Rovers v Chester
View attachment 241364
My second game in charge came against Chester, who were expected to make a mid table finish this season. However they managed a surprise performance to start the season by beating Barnet.

Line Up
A few changes would be made due to low fitness. A number of last weeks starters would be dropped to the bench but the biggest name to drop is Kamdjo who won the game for us previously. Wooton would get his first start whilst Frear would come in at AML. Coles would also return at centre back instead of Clough who was tired.

Match
It was a poor first half with us having the only real chance as Dodds forced a great double save from close up. We went into half time knowing one goal would probably give us the win but we needed to make sure we continued to press but stay tight at the back. Chester were awful in the first half which made me wonder how they beat Barnet.

10 minutes into the second half Wooton won the ball in the middle of the pitch. It looked like nothing would happen as Chester had just kept everybody at the back since half time which made it seem like they were playing for a point. But Wooton ran with the ball to the edge of the box where he played it across to Dodds who hit the post but Wooton got to the ball first and tapped it past a helpless keeper.

FGR 1-0 Chester

Rudge, Coles and Dodds would all come off soon after as they all looked knackered. Kamdjo, Clough and Norwood would all replace.

We then gave away a silly free kick on the very edge of the box which saw us go back to level as they were pressing more.

We continued to create fantastic chances late on as we continued to play fantastic quick pass and move football. However we couldn't beat their keeper, Worsnop, who was in brilliant form as he made 10 saves in the final 10 minutes.

Review
We probably should've claimed the 3 points but they sat back and played well defensively. We were unlucky not to score a winner late on but we faced another fantastic keeper. Fitness is going to be a big problem moving forwards if it doesn't improve and we are definitely missing Parkin who would've finished a couple of chances today with ease which Wooton, who played well, couldn't.

Chester had 1 shot all game which they converted which shows how brilliant they were at the back. However man of the match goes to Wooton who continually won the ball and created chances as well as picking up his first goal for the club.

The draw sees us drop from 6th to 8th place.​

 

[kmitchell96]

Forest Green Rovers v Alfreton
View attachment 241311
It had been a good start and I had been in touch with a few of my old managers, Dean Smith from Walsall told me that he wished I had stayed to work with the backroom staff but I needed to go into management, coaching wasn't giving me the same thrill as playing.

I'd also been getting good feedback from fans and board members. They were impressed with the way I was playing and some of my signings. Talking about signings I had managed to bring in another loanee this week; Jordan Richards, he is seen as a right back by Hartlepool but he plays central midfield which I see as his best role with his physicality.

Line Ups
Injuries were still piled up as well as fitness concerns so I had to switch things around again a bit:
Arnold; Pipe-Coles-Clough-Jennings; Roddan-Kamdjo; Marwood-Dodds-Norwood; Fleetwood

Hunt would feature on the bench whilst Richards wasn't fit enough yet as he had been featuring for Hartlepool due to their injury troubles. Guthrie could return but he wasn't fit enough yet so I'd give him a bit more time to recover.

Match
30 minutes in it was back and forth with neither side really having a clear cut chance to take the lead. We were both moving the ball well and making chances but we lacked the final deadly ball to create decent chances. In the 32nd minute though Norwood was taken down despite being off the ball, somehow there was no booking but we had the penalty. Which Dodds took and scored, 1-0!

FGR 1-0 Alfreton

On the brink of half time one of their players, a midfielder I think made a stupid challenge diving in from behind and swinging his legs round with both feet off the ground! I was furious but he was sent off immediately, what made it worse is the fact he tried to argue it!!!

At half time it was no shock that I would then have to sub Fleetwood off. He had taken a big knock from that challenge which saw their player sent off and despite him trying to argue he was fine I took him off for Wooton.

Roddan went off on the hour for Rudge, with Jennings also being subbed for Hunt who would get his first match. This was just after Clough made a silly pass back to the keeper which was just awful and almost saw them equalise if it wasn't for a triple save.

The game finished 1-0 though as the players seemed happy to sit on the lead, we came closest with just seconds left as we forced a double save from a corner.

Review
We played well today; the back 4 had their strongest game as we kept a clean sheet. I am a bit concerned about the fact our key attacking players Marwood and Norwood don't seem to be showing up, they were brilliant in pre-season and now they seem useless on the pitch.

Coles gets man of the match as he was just brilliant. Despite improved performances across the back 4 the full backs and Clough kept making mistakes leaving Cole to clean up when he should have been.

I'm also concerned that if they had 11 men we would've lost as they were better even after the dismissal. However a win is a win and we now sit in 5th place.​