Dreaming Big Down In Kent.

[mathllanber]

Dreaming Big Down In Kent

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Hi guys, this is my journey trying to build Ebbsfleet as one of the biggest clubs in England & possibly Europe. A great challenge where we start in the 6th tier of the English league, down in the Vanarama National League South. It's gonna take lots of time and patience but it's a challenge I'm looking forward to do & I'm hoping that people will read & enjoy it with me.

Pre-Season & Adding To The Squad

Having joined the club at the start of July, I had a good chat with the chairman and the assistant manager. We agreed that the main target was to win the league. We were favorites with the bookies as well so there was a bit of pressure to start the season off with.

With the assistant, Craig Madden, who joined the same day as me, we had a look at the squad and arranged a game vs the 23's to see what we had to work with. Craig has a wealth of experience with spells as manager & assistant manager & Fleetwood, Blackpool & Stockport so I had no problem listening to him & taking his thoughts into my head.

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A game we won with plenty of chances and restricted the u23's to only 3 shots and only 1 on target. After discussing with Craig, we went on to talk about the positions that need filling up before our 1st game of the season at home to Poole.

Pre-Season Results & Transfers

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3 wins out of 4 with the only defeat coming from English League 2 side Leyton Orient. We played brilliant vs Ipswich u23's which was a good start to the pre-season. Quality showed vs Leyton Orient as we lost 2-1. An OG was enough to defeat Leiston but a 1st clean sheet for us so wasn't that bad. We ended the pre-season with a 2-1 away win at Bognor Regis with 2 goals from start striker Aaron McLean.
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With just over a month to the 1st competitive game of the season, we started adding to the squad ready for the season to start. With Craig's contact all around England, we managed to secure the services of 7 players.

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Matthew George - 19 year old English LB who just left Premier League side Crystal Palace. Hopefully a great future in front of him.

Nana Owusu - 20 year old defender who can operate as a LB & RB. Nana was released by Championship club Reading. Very good signing and another with hopefully a big future in front of him.

Tom Bradley - 23 year old Welsh GK. Goes straight into the 1st team as the quality in him was seen straight away. Another good signing to this journey.

Afolabi Coker - What a signing Afolabi is, a number of clubs after him and we were lucky to secure his services. 20 year old Afolabi, who was on the books at Leeds & Norwich, can operate as a CB and I can see him a future captain at this club.

Rian Carroll - 21 year old Rean was out of the game for 2 years but wanted to come back into it. We gave him the chance he needed and hopefully he can flourish in the middle of the park for us.

Luke Williams - 21 year old Welsh left winger has come in as back up for us for the 1st season then we'll see what happens then.

Dino Fazlic - Dino a 24 year old Bosnian midfielder, joins us after a couple of spells at Halifax & Kiddiminster. Another extra midfielder which we need with the games we have of the season.

With a couple of experienced players already in the squad, we added a lot of youngsters to it. The mix we have now can hopefully be a big plus for us.

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Overall, a good pre-season. We reckon with the squad we have we can win the title in our 1st season with the club. A mix of youth and experience in the squad can hopefully lead us to the title and maybe a good cup run.

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[mathllanber]

Dreaming Big Down In Kent

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January 1st, 2017

New Years Day 2017, my assistant and I reviewed the 1st 6 months of our managerial career at Ebbsfleet. What a 6 months it has been, a huge credit to the staff & of course the squad.

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August

A fantastic start as we collect 18 points from a possible 21, the only defeat coming from Hemel Hempstead. 19 goals scored as well with 3 clean sheets in among those 6 wins. We finished the month on top and I also picked up the manager of the month award. We also added to the squad as striker Lateef Elford-Alliyu joined the squad. Lateef was brought in on a free after spending last season with League 1 side Coventry City.

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September

An undefeated month in where we picked up 13 points out of a possible 15 and defeated Eastbourne Boro in the 2nd qualifying round of the FA Cup. 3 clean sheets once again in the month and with only 3 goals conceded. Another month in where I received the manager of the month award. A huge thanks to the staff and players for the efforts. We end the month 5 points clear at the top.

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October

Our great run keeps on going through October. Won 3/4 in the league and managed to reach the 1st round of the FA Cup with a 4-2 away win at Potters Bar and a 5-2 home win vs Gloucester in a replay after a 1-1 draw at Gloucester. We ended the month with a another signing, Aleksandar Gogic. A 21 year old American goalkeeper. Although Tom Bradley had a solid start in goal for us, the reports we had for Aleksandar were unbelievable. That was clear to see the 1st time he played and from October on he was our #1. We opened the gap to 9 points at the top of the table so overall a another positive month. Congratulations to Hungerford manager Bobby Wilkinson who picked up the manager of the month for October.

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November

Good month in terms of league form, winning all 3 games with 9 scored and 3 conceded. A fantastic away performance vs Plymouth in the 1st round of the FA Cup but wasn't enough to secure a 2nd round place. We managed to defeat Margate AET in the 3rd qualifying round of the FA Trophy to put us in the 1st round proper. 11 points clear at the top of the table. Very impressed with only 18 goals conceded in 19 games, the squad looking very very good. Another month where I picked up the manager of the month award. A big thanks once again to my staff and players.

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December

Only 4 games in December but once again another brilliant one. 3/3 wins in the league and a 4-2 away win vs Hemel Hempstead in the 1st round of the FA Trophy. Another 2 signings were added to the squad and 2 brilliant ones in my opinion. Both players taking a step down from the Vanarama Conference. Mark Carrington from Wrexham who can play RB & CM and Marcus Kelly who can play all over the park, mainly on the left side. A big boost to the boys with the experience they'll be bringing in. Again, another manager of the month picked up. All down to the staff and squad once again.

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Another bonus for month, I was told Afolabi Coker & Nana Owusu were performing above expectations in training. Fantastic news as they are both young and willing to learn from my staff.

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6 month review

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We entered January with a 17 point lead at the top, absolutely brilliant. With an average 2.45 goals per game and 0.86 goals conceded per game, I couldn't have asked more from the squad. Our target was to win the league but they've been absolutely tremendous for me and my staff. With the way we are playing we can easily go on a good run in the FA Trophy. Hopefully the next 6 months will be as successful as the first 6.

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[mathllanber]

Dreaming Big Down In Kent

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January

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A fantastic start to 2017 as we manage to win 5 games out of 6 in the league with 3 clean sheets and managed to defeat Vanarama Conference side Chester 3-2 aet in the 2nd round of the FA Trophy. Before losing 3-1 away to Poole, we won 12 games in a row which according to my assistant was a record for the club. Another great achievement for us. February 1st and we were 24 points clear at the top of the table, outstanding. Again, thanks to the players & staff, I picked up the manager of the month award.

February

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Another month I'm happy with. We won 66% of the league games but I was impressed with the squad as we reached the semi-final of the FA Trophy with a 1-0 win at home to Stalybridge & dominated Bromley by winning 4-1. Transfer wise, the month was very good as we signed Liam Agnew, a CM from Boston Utd in which I believe will be a huge signing for the squad. We also secured a loan deal for Joe Pigott from Cambridge until the end of the season as Aaron McLean & Charlie Sheringham were struggling with injuries.

March

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My best month by a long shot since I've joined! We managed to reach the final of the FA Trophy with a 7-4 agg win over 2 legs vs Dartford but the best was that the target we set at the start of the season was completed, WIN THE LEAGUE! The league was won in the last game of the month at home vs Weston-super-Mare as winger Anthony Cook scored two for us. A fantastic achievement as we clinch the title with six games left. Another manager of the month award was picked up, my sixth of the season. The best month ever was topped off with
being offered a new contract and of course I accepted straight away.

April

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The last six games of the season we tried to give a lot of the squad a couple of games to impress us and so they did. 100% win rate with 14 goals & 6 conceded. What a season it's been for us. As I was expecting, I picked up the manager of the month award again. Our star striker and possibly our best signing Lateef Elford-Alliyu picked up the player of the month award for April with 5 goals in 5 games.

May

With the FA Trophy not happening until the 20th of May, we arranged a friendly vs the u23s in which we won 4-3. Ideal for players to keep there match fitness high for the final.

FA Trophy Final

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DOUBLE SECURED

Out season season and we won the double, over the moon! We started very poorly in the final as we conceded a stupid penalty just before the 20 minutes in which they scored. Sam Deering scored before HT to make my team-talk a whole lot easier going into the break. We dominated the 2nd half and our pressure was enough to score with the last kick of th game, Sean Shields scoring a corker to win it. WHAT A DAY!

2016/17 Table, Stats & Awards

Table

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36 wins out of 42 is outstanding. I was told the 36 wins in one season and the total points tally of 110 was a new league record, brilliant! Chelmsford, Hungerford, St Albans & Maidenhead were the 4 teams that secured the play-off places. Chelmsford managed to win the final 3-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw after aet against Hungerford. The 3 teams that were relegated as you can see were Weston-super-Mare, Margate & Poole.

Stats

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With 41% of the votes, winger Anthony Cook won the fan player of the year. A deserving award to a player who also made a difference in the games and saved us a couple of times. With 25% of the votes, Lateef Elfored-Alliyu come 2nd in the votes and was voted young player of the season. A mention to Aaron McLean who came 3rd on the list, a fantastic player with over 25 goals for the season.


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Lateef Elford-Alliyu was bought in on a free at the start of the season but what a season he's had. He finished the season as the club top scorer with 33 goals and picked up the most man of the match awards with 9. Another mention for McLean as he finished with and outstanding 20 assist for the season, amazing. A great season for CM Stuart Lewis but disappointed with the fact he picked up 17 yellow cards & 2 red cards. An area of the game he has to improve if he wants to stay in the starting 11.

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Congratulations to Chelmsford manager who picked up the manager of the year award. A bit disappointed that I didn't manage to get it but that's how it goes.

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I had a chat with chairman DR Abdulla Al-Humaidi and he told me that he injected just under 700k into the club just after the end of the season to help with the finances. He also told me after this that he'd be very kind with the transfer & the wage budget for the 2017/18 season which is a big boost for me and the staff.

We look forward to the season ahead after a fantastic 1st season!

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[millebraun9sex]

Well done, very unorthodox formation!

 

[Bullardinho]

Superb start mate, well done! I spent some time at Ebbsfleet (then Gravesend & Northfleet) as a kid so I will be following for sure!