Non League to Football League - The Shildon Journey

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mark1reeve

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Please bear with me as this is my first career story.

Looking to take Shildon from the Northern League to the Football League

Shildon appoint Andrew Saxonby as manager

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29 year old Sunday league journeyman Andrew Saxonby has been appointed Shildon manager. Injury cut short Saxonby's Sunday league career and he has stated it's his ambition to help Shildon reach the big time. The main aim is promotion and hopefully get the board to agree to make us professional.

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Saxonby has got his hands full, as Shildon are predicted by the media to finish as champions of the Ebac Northern League.

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Wasting no time, Saxonby decided to make some transfers to improve and aging Shildon squad. It's dog eat dog when signing players at this level as most are non-contract terms only.

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The pick of the bunch is 20 year old Tom Berwick who can play anywhere across the midfield. He had been without a club since his release from Clitheroe. One of Shildon's only contracted players it was a real coup by Saxonby to bring him on board.

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Cover was needed in most positions, the best of the rest are Kevin Masirika - a centre back who started his career at Rochdale and 20 year old striker Ryan Humphreys who started at Blackburn before dropping into non-league.


I will aim to post updates monthly of the results.​​​
 
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Not many of the new signings had appeared by the time pre-season came around, so Shildon suffered with the results. Apart from the 4-1 drubbing at the hands of Spennymoor, Saxonby was reasonably happy and could see his plans coming to fruition by the time they played AFC Fylde.

Unfortunately for Saxonby, the visit of Whitley Bay on the opening day of the season destroyed any morale he'd managed to build up. Speaking to the Shildon Gazette after the game, he told reporters that the players had had a dressing down after the game.

Reporter: "Andrew, how would you describe that performance today"
Saxonby: "It was a ****** disgrace, I've told the players in that dressing room that they are all playing for their places, we've given those fans false hope with the results in friendlies. They've been told in no uncertain terms that was unacceptable"

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The team were hauled in for training on the Sunday morning as punishment and were put through a gruelling session. Some players questioned the methods of Saxonby, one calling him "a dinosaur, nobody uses these old school methods any more"

Whatever the players thought at the time, the next game, away at Morpeth gave them a chance to prove themselves. A thumping 4-1 win had the 15 away fans in raptures. A confident performance against Durham and a hard fought win in the FA Cup preliminary round against Horley finished August off.

Player of the month was Tom Berwick with 3 goals and 2 assists from his 4 games. Ben Wood chipped in with 3 goals including a brace against Morpeth.

Currently sitting in 3rd place in the league, the early pace setters are Norton & Stockton Ancients and Shildon will have to work hard to keep up with them.

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The reward for beating Horley was £1.92k, the prize money in the lower leagues is so poor but this could help Saxonby bring in some new players on a wage.

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Coming in the next update - Septembers results​​
 
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September was a busy month for Shildon, mainly due to their cup exploits. The month started poorly with a league defeat to West Allotment - it was a game we dominated but finishing was poor, something that would be synonymous with the entire month.


A hard fought victory over Chesham Reserves followed in the FA Vase 1st Qualifying Round, with Shildon receiving £600 prize money.

Two victories in the league sandwiched the FA Cup Preliminary Round victory against Kendal - a game which should have been won by a much more comfortable margin. Andrew Saxonby has initially targeted the league as his main focus but form has been erratic at best so a decent cup run might be the new focus while building a team capable of challenging for the title next season.

The reward for beating Kendal was a massive local derby against Darlington 1883 in the 1st Qualifying Round. Darlington are 2 tiers above Shildon and were the overwhelming favourites going into that game.



Before the Darlington game, Shildon had to travel to Marske in a tricky looking league game. Having dominated the game without scoring, Saxonby was furious when the referee when he awarded a contentious last minute penalty which ended up being the winner.



Hardly the ideal preparation going into the Darlington match but it didn't seem to matter, the players must have had some extra motivation as it was a derby but they produced the performance of their lives. Despite going behind in the 1st minute, Shildon managed to not only hold their own, but dominate the remainder of the match and ran out comfortable 3-1 winners - a staggering result for the club and a record attendance of 1,253 saw the game.



It's worth noting the match winner, Keanu Sibson, was a greyed out player that Saxonby offered a contract to.

The prize money increased drastically, to £3k for the win over Darlington - if nothing else, this is having a positive effect on the finances of the club as they now have a healthy bank balance for this level.

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The final game in a hectic September saw Shildon welcome Sunderland RCA to Dean Street. It was an anti-climax for the club as they succumbed to a 1-0 defeat leaving them in 8th place. Saxonby has got some serious work to do to appease the chairman who has made it clear that he wants the championship.



Player of the month for Shildon was: Ryan Humphreys who scored 3 goals and got 1 assist from his 7 games with an average rating of 7.1, Keanu Sibson was young player of the month as he scored 2 goals and got 1 assist from 6 games with an average rating of 7.5


In the next update - October's results​
 
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October started with the FA Vase as Shildon welcomed Sidlesham and could only manage a disappointing 1-1 draw which resulted in a replay, Shildon comfortably winning that 3-0.

Shildon faced another difficult draw in the FA Cup Qualifying, arguably a harder task than the Darlington game, and it showed. Tonbridge were just too good for Shildon and ran out 5-0 winners, even though Shildon saw more of the ball.

Five league games followed this cup game, a 3-0 win against Jarrow, a 3-0 win against Bedlington and a 2-0 defeat to Norton & Stockton which halted the league progress.

Injuries to key players Mark Doninger and Alando Lewis made squad selection for the Newton Aycliffe game tricky, but a convincing 5-0 win with five different scorers made happy reading.


Ryan Humphreys has repaid the faith shown in him by Saxonby with his goals and he netted his 8th of the season in the 2-0 against Newcastle Benfield. The FA Vase 1st Round was next as Shildon travelled to Verwood in a game that should have been fairly comfortable. Shildon did take the lead but couldn't hold on to it and finished the game in a 2-1 reverse, more poor finishing was evident in this game.

The player of the month was Ryan Humphreys who scored 7 and made 4 more in his 9 games.


The end of the month sees Shildon sitting in 4th place in the league, well poised for an attack at the title.

Next update - November's results



 
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Out of all the cups, Shildon had just the 4 games in November, all in the league. Looking to push up from 4th in the league, they had a solid month collecting 10 points from a possible 12.



First up was West Auckland at Dean Street, a comfortable 3-1 win which saw Keanu Sibson score a brace in the opening 5 minutes and Ryan Humphreys making the result safe with his 9th league goal.


A trip to North Shields was next on the agenda for Saxonby and his team. As has been the norm this season, Shildon dominated the ball but found themselves 1-0 down at half time. Saxonby read the riot act at half time, making the team know they must improve. Watched by a paltry attendance of just 3 people, Shildon rallied in the second half with goals coming from Humphreys and Scott McGrory.


For the second week running, Shildon were forced to come from behind to collect 3 points, this time against Bishop Auckland. Fans of Shildon were delighted to see midfielder Ben Wood back in the squad following his return from injury and Saxonby brought him in to the fold with 65 minutes on the clock. His impact took less than 7 minutes and his goal proved the catalyst for Shildon to go on and win 2-1. Three wins on the bounce saw Shildon rise to the top of the Ebac Northern League for the first time this season.

Before the Penrith game, Andrew Saxonby made a forray into the loan market, poaching striker Amar Purewal from local rivals Darlington to provide some competition and back up for Ryan Humphreys.



Looking to make it 4 wins out of 4, Saxonby approached the Penrith game full of confidence, and that seemed well placed as Scott McGrory scored after 5 minutes, dominating the ball, Humphreys had several chances to make it 2-0 but was having an off day infront of goal. Shildon were made to pay when Brad Walker equalised for Penrith and it was 1-1 going into half time. New signing Purewal was introduced on the hour mark but never managed to make a great impact and the game fizzled out, finishing 1-1.



After a good month in the league, Shildon moved up to 3rd but Andrew Saxonby will be disappointed to surrender top spot after the Penrith game.



Player of the month was right back Ben Shawcross who managed 2 assists from 4 games with an average rating of 7.4


In the next update, December's results
 
December started with the visit of Washington and a chance for Shildon to keep pressure on teams at the top. The result made the game look more comfortable than it was. Andrew Saxonby was furious with Kevin Masirika getting sent off with the score at 2-1, it didn't make any difference to the overall result as a Humphreys brace was enough to secure a 3-1 victory. Masirika was subsequently fined by Saxonby, mainly for the stupidity of receiving two yellow cards in less than 90 seconds.


The result against Washington moved Shildon up to 2nd in the league, behind Consett who were next up, Saxonby and his team travelled to Chester le Street for the game confident of securing a positive result and possibly returning to the top of the league. Consett had a striker in form, Michael Mackay had scored 11 league goals before today. The first half was a horror show from Shildon and they were lucky to be only 3-0 behind. Saxonby blew his stack at half time in the hope his team could produce an unlikely comeback. Unfortunately for him, things got worse, two more Consett goals and a Carl Jones red card compounded a miserable day. The only highlight was Amar Purewal's first Shildon goal.


Saxonby had some work to do before Shildon welcomed Dunston to Dean Street as the players were clearly devastated by the Consett result. For 60 minutes however, it looked like what he'd done in training had had no effect as Dunston were 1-0 ahead and not being troubled. A substitution made the difference and Ben Wood entered the fray, having an immediate impact by playing a part in the equaliser, Mark Hudson getting it. Wood wasn't finished yet and he produced a superb finish into the top corner in the 3rd minute of stoppage time to win the game for Shildon.


The Boxing Day fixture was a real festive treat, if not a nerve jangling affair for the Shildon fans. The visitors were Guisborough, who despite being mid table, boasted the leagues top scorer in Steven Snaith. Shildon came out the blocks flying and were 2-0 up within fifteen minutes courtesy of goals from Sibson and Wood. A lack of concentration allowed Guisborough back into it and the lively Luke Bythway halved the deficit. Shildon rallied again and took a 2 goal lead into the break as Humphreys scored his 13th league goal. The second half was 8 minutes old when Bythway struck again, this time from 30 yards. Tom Berwick scored his first goal of the day soon after to make it 4-2. Snaith wasn't going to be kept quite all afternoon however and he made it 4-3 with half an hour left to play. Both sides had chances but the final word went to Berwick who made it 5-3 in stoppage time.


Owing mainly to the positive end to the month, Shildon find themselves in 2nd position, just two points behind Consett. Saxonby was pleased with the teams overall performance in December but said he won't allow any more slips like the Consett game.

Player of the month was Tom Berwick who scored 3 and set up a further 4 in his 4 games.



Next update - January's results and the mid season review
 
January saw the league season move into it's second half. Shildon started the new year badly, an away defeat to high-flying Whitley Bay. Manager Andrew Saxonby disappointed as his team squandered a lead with 10 minutes to play.


A good win at home to Morpeth followed with an Amar Purewal penalty and a Ben Wood strike.


The inconsistent month continued away to Durham when Shildon succumbed to a 2-1 defeat. It was yet another away game that Shildon dominated but for one reason or another couldn't find a second goal.

The next two league games saw Shildon pick up 6 points, scoring 7 along the way. First up was a home game against West Allotment - Shildon reversing the defeat they suffered earlier in the season. Finally in January, Shildon travelled to Seaham and played superbly in the first half to go in 4-0 up. It stayed that way until the end - goals coming from Tom Berwick (2), Mark Doninger and Ryan Humphreys.

Midway through the season, Shildon can be fairly happy. Andrew Saxonby has stated that he is looking to improve the away form and hopefully he can push for the title and promotion from the Ebac Northern League. Saxonby has navigated his way through his first managerial position with a 64% win ratio.

Saxonby has been looking to secure a place on a coaching course but due to the poor financial situation his request was denied by the board. Whilst Shildon had a decent cup run, now they are out of both cups the bank balance has taken a hit. Projections look quite poor for the next 3 season so winning the league has got to be a big priority.

With 16 games of the season remaining, Shildon find themselves in 3rd position, 3 points behind leaders Consett, with a strong goal differnce in their favour, Saxonby is fairly confident he can maintain the title push.


Leading scorers:

Ryan Humphreys - 19
Tom Berwick - 13
Ben Wood - 9
Keanu Sibson - 7
Mark Doninger - 5

​Next update - February's results
 
Shildon went into February on a two game winning streak and they kept that up at home to Marske. The result was close but the game was anything but. A well worked goal finished off by Ben Wood in the 34th minute was enough to secure 3 points but Marske only had one shot and that was off target. Another 4 yellow cards given in this game means Shildon now have clozse to 50 for the season.


Next up for Shildon was a 100 mile round trip to Ashington, probably their longest journey. Whether this made any difference to the game is difficult to say but Shildon started very slowly. The disciplinary issues mounted as Scott Lowe received a straight red card for a horrendous two footed tackle in the 38th minute. Mark Doninger did, however, settle the nerves with a goal two minutes later. Ashington started to make the extra man show just after half time and equalised just before the hour. Parity didn't last long for them as Ben Wood put Shildon back in front and Tom Berwick made the game safe in the 88th minute. Final Score: Ashington 1-3 Shildon


Shildon faced Norton & Stockton Ancients on 20th February, the Shildon players were keen to get revenge for the defeat earlier in the season and that's what they did. Ben Wood scored for the 3rd game running right on the stroke of half time and Ryan Humphreys broke his mini goal drought with his 20th goal of the season with 20 minutes remaining. Norton couldn't mount a fightback and it stayed 2-0, Shildon's winning run now stretching to 5 games.


Now sitting at the top of the league with a 2 point cushion, Shildon travelled to Sunderland RCA in the final game of February. Sunderland came out on top at Dean Street earlier in the season so again, Shildon were seeking revenge. Unfortunately it wasn't to be, a game in which Shildon played poorly saw them lose 1-0, however, the game did seem to be heading for a draw but poor marking from a corner saw David Pounder score in stoppage time.


A look at the league table shows Shildon sitting in 2nd, just one point behind Durham and two points ahead of Consett. Despite having comfortably the best home record in the league, Shildon have a woeful away record and will hope that won't scupper their chances of the title.

​Next update - March's results
 
March started with two very winnable games but Shildon only managed to get 2 points from a possible 6. Against Jarrow the bad finishing curse seemed to strike again. Neither team managed a goal in a 0-0 bore draw. In the away game to Bedlington the same thing appeared to be happening until David Brady opened the scoring for the home team. Humphreys scored two minutes later to equalise.

Five days before the Newton Aycliffe match, assistant manager Wayne Sutton informed me he was leaving to sign for Rushall. Saxonby was stunned, he'd given Sutton his break in coaching. A new assistant was needed and Saxonby plumped for Gary Holloway - again offering someone their first coaching position. Shildon did receive nearly £5k compensation for losing Sutton.


Holloway had only joined up with the squad the day of the Aycliffe game so couldn't train the players. The game was another nervy affair for Shildon. The first half went to plan, goals from Chris Emms and Tom Berwick putting Shildon 2 infront. Aycliffe did score in the second half but Shildon held on to win 2-1.


The month ended with the visit of Newcastle Benfield. Chris Emms continued his good form with another goal and an assist for Ryan Humphreys. More chances came and went and Saxonby is becoming frustrated that his team can't really put any teams to the sword.


Durham and Consett kept up their good form so the table was the same as February, Shildon sitting in 2nd position behind Durham. A difficult run in for Shildon including the return fixture against Consett means they will require a slip up by Durham if they want the title and promotion.


March saw Shildon's youth intake arrive. None of them are world beaters at this level but they are of a good Northern League standard already.



Attacking midfielder Kevin Miller stood out for Saxonby, only 15 years old he looks like he could be a first team player for years to come. Saxonby has said he will retrain Miller as a deep lying forward and as a result he terminated Purewal's loan from Darlington.


Centre back Ross Hudson was the other youth candidate that stood out in the game against Shildon's under 18's


​Next update - April's results
 
A good start to April saw Shildon defeat West Auckland in a very lively game, man of the match was Tom Berwick who scored a magnificent hat trick including a 92nd minute winner. The Shildon bench celebrated when the ball went in as they had heard Durham slipped up and Shildon returned to the top of the league.


North Shields came to Dean Street on the 9th April and Shildon were ruthless in their display. Goals came from Emms, Wood & Humphreys before a late Shields consolation made the final score 3-1


The good run of form for Shildon saw Saxonby offered a new 1 year deal. There was to be no negotiation on the wage so he stays on £350 p/w


The next 3 games saw Shildon travel to Bishop Auckland, welcome Penrith and then travel to Washington. These games yielded just 3 points and Shildon only held on to top spot courtesy of Durham only winning 1 of their 5 games in April.


​Next update - season finale
 
The runs ins show that Durham have the slightly easier one, by virtue of being at home for their final two games. Shildon will fancy their chances of beating Consett who have been on a poor run themselves.


7th May - Gameweek 40


Ashington 1-2 Durham
Goals from Cameron Wilson and Ryan Noble give Durham victory

Shildon 0-0 Consett
A stalemate sees Shildon surrender top spot

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14th May - Gameweek 41

Durham 1-1 Norton & Stockon Ancients
Durham had the lead here but let it slip and it finished 1-1

Dunston 0-0 Shildon
What a time for the goals to dry up. Another stalemate. Must win next week and hope Durham don't

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28th May - Gameweek 42

Guisborough 1-4 Shildon
A superb performance from Shildon, they've done everything they had to do here.

Durham 2-2 Sunderland RCA
Durham throw away a 2-0 lead, amazingly and drop down to 2nd place


PROMOTION

Unbelievable scenes at King George V Ground as Shildon players, staff and fans celebrate the championship and promotion.

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​Next update - End of Season Awards
 
Captain Mark Doninger was the comprehensive winner at the clubs end of season award ceremony. Tom Berwick was second with Chris Emms in third.

Keanu Sibson won goal of the season for his solo goal against West Auckland.

Tom Berwick was voted by the fans as signing of the season and he also collected the young player of the season award.


Match of the season was the 5-0 win against Newton Aycliffe while the moment to forget was the 5-1 drubbing at the hands of Consett.

The board seem to have my back at the minute, not sure how they'll feel if we struggle next season.


We averaged attendances of just 166 at home this season (4% of the ground capacity) so as a result finances are very tight. I did approach the board with the hope of getting on a coaching course but got the inevitable answer regarding finances. It's going to be difficult to attract players with so little money.


June 2016

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I started making plans to update the squad early by bringing in 7 players on a trial so I could have a look at them. After the season, defensive midfielder Danny Richmond informed me he would be retiring - he'd been a solid player for me this season but he is 34 so realistically wouldn't have played many games anyway. To replace him I brought in Eddie Hague - who at 24, still has time to improve. Central midfielder Mark Hudson also retired.


I will update the other signings (if there are any) and pre season results in the next update.
 
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Having already brought in Eddie Hague, contracts were offered to 12 players who I thought would improve the squad and provide ample backup in most positions. I never expected to get them all but the frustration of lower league football reared it's ugly head again. Players I thought would definitely signed ended up staying with their clubs or signing for teams lower than me. It makes some sense seeing as how not many players actually command a wage.

As well as Hague, two other midfielders were brought in, Matthew Purcell - a two footed winger with decent pace and should cause problems for full backs & James Earl who can play anywhere across the midfield. Defensive cover was signed in the shape of Sean Connor who can play right back and centre back. The fifth signing was Michael Bird - signed from South Shields, and while he's 32 he has good natural fitness and also plenty of experience.


The main plan with friendlies was to try and claw back some revenue for the club so games at home to Bournemouth, Arsenal u21's and Bolton were arranged. Several other games against opposition in our league or a similar standard were also arranged. Shildon had 9 friendlies in all. Against the bigger teams it was about fitness and not being disgraced and then look to win against the smaller teams.


Bournemouth actually played a near full strength team and although they played us off the park, I was happy that we restricted them to just 4 goals while also scoring one of our own. A good win against Farsley followed that and then it was Arsenal u21's. Amazingly, the board decided that we should have played much better - something I strongly disagreed with, my main aim was not to be too heavily beaten. 3 more confidence boosting wins came against teams in and around our level before we played the final "strong team" of pre season. We actually took the lead against Bolton and lead 1-0 at half time but fitness and quality told in the second half as they eventually won 3-1. The final two games saw Shildon get two wins and things are looking good before the season opener against Prescot.


The media are predicting us to finish 14th but I am aiming for for one of the play off spots.
 
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