Matt Bullard's Managerial Career

Liking this mate! A really good start, will be following! that Chelsea link could be huge! Loftus-Cheek is a class act.
 
SaintMotbot said:
Liking this mate! A really good start, will be following! that Chelsea link could be huge! Loftus-Cheek is a class act.
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Cheers buddy! It made a massive difference to our squad, especially if we can make it to the Championship one day and attract even more of their reserve/under 21's! Thanks for the follow!
 
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November

Results

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Slightly disappointed to get knocked out of the first round of the FA Cup to fellow League One team Preston. That disappointment was soon forgotten as we won 3 league matches in a row and managed to gain 9 points out of a possible 12. Klasnic has already bagged his first goal in just his second appearance and Kiwomya's performances also seem to be on the up after a terrific match winning brace against Bradford. Great month which ended with the club chairman offering me a contract extension, things are finally starting to look good after a shaky start to my career at Priestfield.


League Table

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New Contract

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December

Results

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Despite the slip up to Colchester on Boxing Day, I am absolutely delighted with the run we have put together heading into the new year, with five league wins in a row before that loss. A particular highlight has been the blossoming partnership between Alex Kiwomya and Ivan Klasnic, the combination of Ivan’s experience and Alex’s blistering pace has been lethal and Ivan’s introduction to the team has clearly brought the best out of the young Chelsea loanee, as Kiwomya now has four goals in his last five appearances. Morale is now extremely high after three very good wins this month including the 3-0 mauling of top side Bristol City, I believe we can now go into the New Year starting to look up the table rather than downwards.


League Table

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Manager of the Month

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It may not be first place award but with how the season started I will take any accolade I can get my hands on.


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January

Results

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Our great form has continued well into the new year with another superb set of results in January, I can really see the team growing in confidence and we are sharply becoming one of the best teams in League One. Captain Doug Loft has inspired the team this month with an average rating of 7.56, 2 assists and 3 goals in 5 games from the left midfield position. The pick of the games being the 3-1 convincing win away from home at Vale where we controlled the game from start to finish. We are picking up some exciting form as we quietly go about our business moving into the play-off spots.


League Table

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Award

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Bettered my position by one place this month, hopefully I can do the same and win first place in February.



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January

Results

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We kicked off February with a tough match against second place Sheffield United, which saw us take the lead twice before eventually succumbing to defeat, we definitely deserved more but in the end they just had that extra bit of quality. We then followed that up with a bore draw against lowly Peterborough before three superb back-to-back wins, a run that see us score twelve goals, four in each. The Kiwomya/Klasnic partnership was once again in full force and they ripped teams apart in February, they managed an impressive 10 goals in 5 matches between them in, six of those going to Alex including a terrific hat-trick against MK Dons, earning him the League One Player of the Month award for his efforts. I am really hoping that their form can continue as we look to continue our push for promotion.


League Table

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Awards

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March

Results

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Whilst there are plenty of positives to take from March, we have now extended our unbeaten run to make it nine without losing, Kiwomya and Klasnic both continuing their impressive form with another three goals a piece and also we have managed to maintain our playoff spot. The main disappointment this month has the be that in each of the four draws, we was leading before eventually conceding late on, including extra time goals at both Bristol City and Colchester. We are still in the hunt for a play off spot and I just hope we can continue to push on and secure a place.


League Table

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Youth Intake

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A pretty disappointing youth intake with 15 year old Joe Cartwright below being the best of the bunch.

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that's much better there in the league.. the 4 consecutive draws a wee bit disappointing, but overall, you've turned things around!
 
xtremeRED said:
that's much better there in the league.. the 4 consecutive draws a wee bit disappointing, but overall, you've turned things around!
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Cheers buddy. I know but luckily everyone around was achieving similar results. Definitely turned it around, not bad for a team tipped for relegation :)
 
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April-May

Results

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We definitely started to show signs of fatigue come the end of the season, my options for rotation were limited and our the majority of the first team’s form was so good I didn’t want to drop anyone. Taking that into consideration we had a good end to the season, despite the poor back-to-back losses to Orient and Bradford, we bounced back and achieved 10 points of the last 15, securing our place in the play offs with 4 games remaining. I am absolutely delighted to have achieved a top 6 place as we were destined for drop before the season started. The team have done so well and I am happy no matter what the results I the play off’s.


League Table

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Play Off Draw

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This will be a difficult test across the two ties. The last match between us ended in a 1-1 draw and I am expecting both legs to be equally as tight.


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Play-Off Semi Finals

First Leg

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An extremely tight game in the first leg as expected. Both teams had plenty of chances but in truth the finishing was poor. We was missing a few key players in the likes of Musonda and Klasnic, so all in all I was happy. My only disappointment would be the penalty given away by Charlie Taylor in the last 30 seconds of the game, a needless foul when we had plenty of cover in the box, making our job that little bit more difficult for the second leg.



Second Leg

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A superb home leg result to seal our place at Wembley for the Play-Off Finals! We were terrific today from start to finish, defending stoutly, winning all the key battles in midfield and finishing our chances well. I felt like we could of one this game by four or five as Alex Kiwomya terrorised their defence with his blistering pace. Delighted to be in the Final and the we are one step closer to back to back promotions.​
 
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League One Play Off Final

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We did it! we have made it back up into the Championship with a great win against a good Yeovil side. We fully deserved our win on the balance of play even though it wasn't without a few scares along the way. Klasnic and Kiwomya were outstanding yet again and as their partnership terrorised Yeovil's defence, both grabbing a goal a piece. A superb win and I couldn't be happier with our promotion and our season as a whole!

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End Of Season
Awards and Review


League One Player of the Year Award

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Alex has been revelation this season and fully deserves his award. His goal tally reached 21 in the league, making him joint second top scorer. He only had 7 goals come 31st December but the introduction of Klasnic really seemed to help his game as their partnership developed. Alex has just signed a new long term deal with his parent club Chelsea, I am hoping to be able to bring him back through an affiliate loan next season.


League One Manager of the Year Award

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I am extremely proud of our achievements as a team this season, to pick up the Manager of the Season award is purely a bonus.



Top 5 Players

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Board Review

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Pre-Season

Friendlies

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A standard preseason, winning against the easier opposition and losing to the big teams, although to be fair we very much held our own for the majority of the 90 minutes against the Gunners. In general I was very pleased with what I saw but much work is still needed if we are going to hold our own with the likes of Swansea, Burnley and Hull, we also needed to add a LOT of new players to the squad if we have any hope of staying up.


Transfers

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No major transfers going out but plenty coming in, sixteen to be exact. Each player coming in will improve the squad in one way or another but the signings I am most pleased with have to be Issy Brown and Lewis Baker from Chelsea and then Ignasi Miquel on loan from Norwich. I am hoping to be able to keep a few players in the squad from last season as to not disrupt the harmony of the squad.


Season Odds

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Klasnic Re-Signs

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After his retirement at the end of last season, I decided that the least I could do was offer Ivan the opportunity to stay at the club as a coach to which he gratefully accepted.

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August

Results

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A very tough start to the new season with our campaign kicking off against the league favorites Swansea, the gulf in class was clear to see and despite taking the lead three times, in the end we just couldn't hold them off. Our exit from the CO Cup was disappointing but expected as Norwich were once again too strong an opponent for us, despite our brave display. I was bitterly disappointed with the losses to Boro and Bristol, but a gutsy display against 2nd place Derby to earn a draw and the very good win against Brentford to finish off the month just shows that with a few tweaks and some small improvements, we have it in us to stay in this league.


League Table

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Bullard Leaves Gills

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It is mid October and with only 1 win and 7 losses since the beginning of September, I decided it was time for me to step down. We have been leaking goals at an average of over three a game and our performances have been abysmal. I feel I may have lost the dressing room and I don't think there was any more I could do for the club. I wish them all the best and will keep my eye on them as my career develops. I just hope I can find a new challenge sooner rather than later.


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Bullard Joins Blues

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Whilst I had received several offers for my services the past couple of months, most of which were for League One sides, it was Birmingham who were the stand out offer for me. I did have an invite to interview for managerial roles at both Blackpool and Bolton, but given their poor league and financial position, I didn’t fancy taking a sideward step. Birmingham are currently sitting 12th place in the league and I feel have the potential to push even further up the table.


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Club Overview

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Upcoming Fixtures

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I couldn't have taken over at a more difficult time, with three matches against tough opposition in the space of a week before the turn of the New Year, this will be a good test of what this squad is capable of.


Key Players

Demarai Gray

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Gray has a bright future ahead of him and I will be trying my hardest to ensure he stays at the club. With great a pace, acceleration, natural fitness and dribbling, Demarai will be a key player in our attack down the left side.


Darren Randolph

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Darren was identified as the squads key player in the chief scouts introductory report and I can see why, he shows all the right attributes to be a very good keeper and is certainly one of the best in the league.


Neil Brock

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At the age of 16, Neil has already made his first team debut as well as scoring his first goal. He shows some fantastic attributes for such a young lad and I will be keeping a close eye on him and giving him an opportunity whenever possible

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