Working My Way Up

So after a couple of months out of the managerial game I had landed myself another job. I had applied for around 10 openings and been interviewed for 3 all in the non-league realms of English football. My preferred role was Chester but they rejected me after being relegated from the Vanarama National League.

It was then Sutton who were my next option but they decided to go for a more experienced option in an attempt to push them up the rankings of English football. So that left me with my 3rd choice...

View attachment 119312Yes, I was off to Margate in the Conference South!

I would view this as a massive step up but after surviving their first season in the 6th tier of English football a late run of poor results including 6 losses on the bounce to end the season and just 2 wins in 15 games forced them to sack their previous manager.

I also managed to get them to agree to giving me a 2 year deal in order to give me more security as I look to improve as a manager. It is still an increased wage to what I was receiving in Ireland but I was originally offered a 1 year deal on £375 a week.

View attachment 119305So they comfortably survived by 11 points in the end but it was a disappointing finish after being on the edge of the play-off spots before that 15 games struggle at the end of the season. I think part of the struggle was down to this though...

View attachment 119301Now there is a decent amount of quality in that squad and a lot of potential however when you consider the fact they only had 19 players to use and 4 of those were on loan it is no wonder they struggled late on in the season.

I will aim to keep the bulk of the squad together. Moore has already accepted a deal which once confirmed will see his wages drop from £800 a week to £500 a week whilst Fanimo and Akindayini are contracted for another year so will only be allowed to leave if somebody matches my valuation.

There are obvious areas of improvement. Goalkeeper Alexander will be the only keeper in the senior squad when Tupper returns to his parent club and he isn't good enough. Defensively we need to bring in a lot of quality and quickly, especially at RB where our only 2 are currently on loan.

Midfield looks good with only Jamie Collins in on loan leaving us with 8 options who can all do a good job. The main issue is in central midfield were I will look to bring in some more depth to support the likes of Johnson, Donnelly and Moore. Out on the flanks though we look superb with our backups being capable of starting and our starters being capable of playing at a much higher level.

Then up front we have 3 options. Akindayini is the main man having 15 goals in 48 games but he could be set to depart with interest high in the young man. Buchanan and Thalassitis are then our only real options but with a combined 4 goals in 34 starts we need to add quality up top.

So there it is; I have a summer to mould the team into my liking and hopefully the chance to truly settle in and move forward with the conference south side. This could be seen as a true make or break chance in my career; here's hoping it goes well!​
 
So with a summer to bring the squad together I had my first pre-season in England. I had my aims and the big one was to go through pre-season winning all the winnable games; so how did I get on?

View attachment 119043
Margate 2-1 Deal
This was not good enough. We were poor for 80 minutes but then came alive in the final 10 minutes. We should have been walking this game and to only get a late 2-1 victory, especially down to a penalty, is not good enough.

Sittingbourne 0-2 Margate
Much better! We controlled the game but it took 75 minutes to break the dead lock. Loanee Fitzgerald was the man to do it as he struck a beautiful volley to get the lead. Thalassitis then doubled the lead in injury time to guarantee the win.

Margate 0-3 Birmingham
I set this fixture up purely to bring some money into the club and it did help. I never expected a win and after going 2-0 down in 10 minutes I expected a lot worse but it was actually a decent performance after the opening 10 minutes.

Chatham 2-1 Margate
I don't know whether the team were just tired from coming back into action or whether this was a knock on affect of the 3-0 loss to the Blues but the result was not good enough. We went 2-0 down and only just stayed in the game but the lack of creativity going forward is a big issue.

Margate 0-1 Cray
If the last result was not good enough then this one made me furious! We weren't even good enough to be in the game as our supposed "starting 11" were torn apart by a weak team. We created nothing and in all honesty have been dreadful in our last 3 games at the back.

Round Up
I expected 4 wins, we got 2. I could have dealt with 3 but this was not good enough. We were poor in our first game before a strong performance and I expected the form to continue past the Birmingham game from the Sittingbourne game but it hurt us a lot more than expected.

We seemed to lose all confidence, or interest, after that Blues game and I am just hoping that it doesn't drag through into the season as I look to get my first competitive win...​
 
So with the poor pre-season done lets take a look at the new boys that failed to bring the quality I expected in what I thought would be easy pre-season fixtures...

View attachment 119038Kissock was the first signing made. He was brought in with the hope of being the anchor in midfield we needed however the scouts were wrong and we have brought in another winger. He has the quality to play but with the depth we have there it could be a struggle to fit him in.

Then came the permanent transfer of Caprice. The RB had been key for us last season and with his loan and contract coming to an end we fought Woking to tie him down and won the battle to do so.

We then continued to add depth in the middle of the park. Gabsi is a creative young midfielder who has the quality to create chances from nothing and that is what we needed. Fitzgerald is a bit of a mixed midfielder who can play in many roles but I couldn't reject the chance to bring him in on loan without having to pay wages.

We then fixed one of the big issues we had in the squad; our keeper situation. McDermott and Keto were brought in within 24 hours of eachother and will battle out for the number 1 spot in net. Keto has the clear advantage in quality but struggled to perform to it in pre-season whilst McDermott made his claim for the starting spot. Keto will take the field in our opening game but he is at risk of losing it quickly if he doesn't perform.

Then we focused on fixing 2 areas; striker and defensive midfielder. Gregory comes in on loan from newly formed affiliate Preston and has the quality to bag goals for us this year despite being just 17 years old. Pattie was a very late signing but similarly to Gregory has the quality to add the goals this year.

The other sigining was of Isaac Maynard who will be the back up option in the CDM role should we use it. He is a good young talent with a lot of potential and this is his chance to prove he still has the ability to forge himself a career.

There was only one outgoing and that was of right sided player Bryan. We just didn't require him so I agreed to let him go. I have tried to offload many more as we are over the wage budget and with many players in the U21's on upwards of £500 a week I tried to force them out of the club but they seem reluctant; to be fair I would be if I was being paid £500 a week to do nothing!​
 
View attachment 119034
NOT GOOD ENOUGH!!!

I was absolutely fuming after this game as a squad of very much capable players, who had done okay in pre-season, allowed the hosts to just walk all over them. We played our best 11 and we just didn't do anything well enough.

The average rating of our back 4 was 5.9; midfield was 5.8 and if it wasn't for Gregory being superb when introduced the supposedly "league 2 quality striker" Akindayini would have represented the strikers with a rating of just 6.2!

If we put in another performance like this before the transfer window shuts I won't be scared to pull the trigger and offload the likes of Akindayini and Fanimo who were beyond dreadful despite being our "best players". I have already looked at getting rid of Akindayini as he hadn't impressed in pre-season and the only thing that stopped me was the thought of what he could do for us in the league.

My career continues to start of poorly as I now have 22 games to my name without a win despite my best trying. Hopefully this game isn't a sign of things to come and we can push forward from it and improve massively.
​
 
Played 23
Lost 20
Drawn 2
WON 1!!!!

View attachment 119027FINALLY!!!

I couldn't believe it after seeing Weston-super-Mare tear apart their opposition on the opening day but we ground out a win. We dominated the opening half an hour with Akindayini proving his worth to the club with his first of the season.

Weston-super-Mare, a team I have a soft spot for, then came back into the game and it was a back and forth affair for the rest of the game. In all honesty it came down to one thing...

7Shots6
1Shots on Target0

Yeah, we had the only shot on target of the game. However poor we were in front of goal though Weston matched us. The thing I am happy with though is that we created chances as our attacking players bounced back from a poor run to end pre-season and begin the league campaign.

We have the quality and today showed it but I can see a lot of games this season coming down to the confidence the squad have. After seeing the effect of the one loss to Birmingham it could be a big issue heading into the thick of the season as one big result could break us.​
 
So after gaining my first career win I thought I would look into the tactic that had allowed us to do so...
View attachment 119026So there it is. The team that won me my first competitive game.

Originally the plan was to play a counter attacking 4-1-2-3 for the season and try use the quality we have down the flanks to feed the ball into target man Akindayini. That was proven not to work in pre-season and against Maidenhead so I made the switch to this.

The aim of this tactic is to control the ball. Move the ball around, pressure the opponent, exploit the flanks and make the most of a quick passing game. And it worked. I had initially thought to play just a standard 4-4-2 but when assessing who was ready for the Tuesday night tie I opted to switch a few things round and I think this is what I will do throughout the season.

Whichever tactic I use the best thing to do is to alter it to fit what the players are best at doing. If I had played the tactic I wanted to the exact point then Johnson would be further forward, the two wingers further back and Akindiyini would be a poacher, not a target man. But I opted to play to players strengths and with the part time nature of the club this will be done a lot to match the fitness levels of the squad; rotation in players will be matched in rotation in roles.

Oh and another thing you may have noticed... I dropped Keto. Nobody is conceding 5 goals in any of my teams and keeping their place in the side; McDermott performed well and will keep his role until I am forced to put Keto back in.​
 
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So two more games have passed since my initial managerial win and it has been a tough couple of fixtures...

View attachment 118891The hardest result I have had to take as a manager. We dominated the game and deserved all 3 points, or at least a point but the last minute free kick saw Eastbourne take the points. We had issues marking Romain who tore us apart on his way to a hat-trick but we definitely deserved something from a superb game.

View attachment 118887And the issue comes back...

A tough loss to Eastbourne was backed up by a dreadful performance. Hemel were just as bad in the opening 45 minutes but after the break they had their plan; hoof it into the box for Taaffe to get his head on it. Fair to them it worked but on a day I was hoping for a bounce back performance I got nothing.​
 
enjoying this. really not going well but I'm sure you'll turn it around
 
TheBattman said:
enjoying this. really not going well but I'm sure you'll turn it around
Click to expand...

Cheers mate hopefully things improve as we head further into the season. Finding it really tough to get things going at the moment but still enjoying the save
 
We now sit at the 10 game mark for the league campaign and we have a mixed batch of results. Let's go through the last 6 games to catch us up...

View attachment 118828A really tough result to take as we made the best of our chances and kept a good team at bay but a late deflected shot somehow found it's way into the net to deny us of our 2nd win of the season.

View attachment 118824Another good performance and another tough result to take. We struggled to make the most of our chances and probably should have had a 2 or 3 goal lead before Bognor got their equaliser.

View attachment 118818A good attacking side just controlled the game in the whole. We had a few chances but couldn't keep Wilson at bay as he hit a brace against us. We weren't poor but we really didn't do enough to challenge.

View attachment 118816We played absolutely fantastically against a very strong side. Boreham haven't had the start they would have hoped for this season and we came so close to continuing that as we hit the post 3 times in a game where the Wood converted their only shot of the game.

View attachment 118814We deserved all 3 points in a game where we completely controlled the play. We were so stubborn defensively that I felt we could've played any team and kept a clean sheet. We also created going forward but Oxford's keeper was in superb form to deny our front line from breaking the deadlock.

View attachment 118813What a performance by the lads. I won't deny the fact that the visitors, currently chasing the top spot, dominated the tie but we were superb defensively for the 3rd game on the bounce. Gosport were frustrated throughout and then we took advantage of it in the final 10 minutes by piling forward and Buchanan got his 2nd of the season in our 2nd win.

View attachment 118811So the table doesn't make for pleasant reading as we have the target of a top half finish to fight fro but the board aren't pulling any triggers yet as the performances are pleasing. We improved defensively game by game as I continue to tweak the tactics and find our best 11.

Going forward we very rarely fail to create chances, the issue is converting them. We do need to improve still but to end the opening 10 games with 9 points is pleasing considering we have a new manager, new assistant manager, new squad and new regime.

We can continue to push forward and if we can string some results together in our next run of games then I see no reason we can't pull ourselves into the top half as we sit just 5 points off of the top 11 and 7 off of the play-off spots.

One other point I'd like to make is the fact that in 10 games here I have 9 points; in 21 games for Cabinteely I had 2. I am definitely developing as a manager and finding my footing in the managerial world. I know I have been improving but it is nice to have the results to show it. I just hope that I can do enough to meet the expectations set by the Margate board and give back to the club who gave me my second chance.​
 

View attachment 118793Again it was a tough loss to deal with as we were completely in the game. The tie was very back and forth but St. Albans have two clinical strikers and it was one of them in Morias who opened the scoring. We had some very good chances but some good keeping kept us from levelling the game.

And as I thought we were continuing to move forward and improve I received this...

View attachment 118790Now I thought this was harsh. The knew when they hired me that this would be a project that would take some time and I have made that clear throughout so when they had the meeting to discuss my future after 1 game I wasn't happy about it.

I replied to them saying as much and they agreed it was stupid to have had the meeting but also said I needed to pick up a result in our next game, a cup game against Met Police, in order for me to keep my job...​
 
So with my job and possibly career potentially on the line we had what should be a simple task of beating off the Met Police in the FA Cup 2nd Round Qualifiers.

View attachment 118783And simple it was!

If there is any doubt that we have been performing it will have been put to rest in this game. We controlled the opening half an hour but it took some tactical switches to really start to threaten the Met Police goal. I decided to instruct the team to move the ball quicker and be more attacking and to hit the early crosses and it worked.

In the 36th minute a beautiful ball across from Moore saw Kissock volley home the opener before Akindayini got our second after being played through by Gregory early in the 2nd half. Kissock then provided Gregory twice in the second half for the youngster, on loan from Preston, to tally up his 5th and 6th goals of the season.

We truly controlled the game and Met never looked like threatening but this fixture should definitely have cleared some doubt from the minds of those above me in my position at the club.

We were rewarded with a 3rd Qualifying Round tie against Southern League Premier Division side Basingstoke at home, a game we should win to push us to the brink of a big draw in the FA Cup first round.​
 
It's been a busy and frustrating time since the Met Police game as I hit the 20 game mark in charge of Margate...

View attachment 118418A frustrating result as we fail to control one man who continually punished us. We couldn't control Ofori-Acheampong and despite a good performance on the rest of the pitch we come away empty handed.

View attachment 118417We were just poor against a better side. Gregory continues to be a bright spot when we hand in poor performances. It's worrying that most of our goals are coming from 2 men.

View attachment 118416A poor result in the FA Cup qualifier to take it to a replay. The visitors controlled the opening 45 minutes before we dominated the second half but just couldn't find the goal.

View attachment 118415So no FA Cup run as we go out on penalties. We should've won and were unlucky against a keeper who was just unbelievable and going into the penalty shoot out he was always going to come out on top.

View attachment 118414A completely unfair result as Dorchester score a last second goal to steal a point. We dominated but once again fail to punish teams with our chances.

View attachment 118413My worst managerial performance as we were completely walked over by an average side. Maidenhead got the extra goal but they have done it to many teams this season...

View attachment 118412Finally a game where we punish teams! Gregory got the goals but it was a superb performance from all as a play-off chasing side were dominated in all aspects. We controlled the game and scored at the right times to get all the points.

View attachment 118411BACK TO BACK WINS! It was a deserved 3 points as we once again controlled the game but for once we managed to seal the win late on rather than giving points away. We were the better team on the day and Akindayini broke his goalless streak.

View attachment 118410So with one loss in 4 league games we seem to be turning the corner, especially with back to back wins. The league position isn't great but we are working up the table and improving quickly. Gregory has been superb now sitting with 12 goals.​
 
So after climbing up the league rankings, sort of, I looked to build on the success, again sort of, that I was beginning to gain...

View attachment 117695So we couldn't continue the strong form as a dominant first half from Gloucester put the game to far out of our reach. We were better in the 2nd half but failed to make our chances count.

View attachment 117694So it was into the cup next and it was a walk over win for us with 4 goals in the opening 16 minutes winning the game. Dorking got a late goal but after the opening 16 minutes our players seemed to just control play.

View attachment 117693Tactical changes changed the game. Wealdstone were the better team but after the hour mark we managed to turn it around thanks to some tactical switches.

View attachment 117692Back into the cup and my best win yet. We just controlled the entire 90 minutes and 3 goalscorers plus an own goal gave us a massive 6-1 win and a big confidence boost making it 3 wins on the trot.

View attachment 117691A dominant performance for Welling as we fail to capitalise on the confidence boost. Welling just defended their lines well and forced us to push up before hitting on the break with some pacey wingers.

View attachment 117689And just like that they want to discuss my future. The meeting leads to an agreement that I must gather 9 points in 5 games otherwise my job is gone....

View attachment 117690Such an unfair result against a superb team but the progress is shown from my 1st game when we lost 5-1.

View attachment 117686A huge win as we bounce back from a tough defeat. The sending off definitely helped but we were unlucky not to have broken the lead earlier on in the fixture.

View attachment 117685A very even game where the hosts provided clinical finishing to edge it. With 2 games left I require 2 wins otherwise my time at Margate is over...

View attachment 117684A huge win with a stroke of luck. A draw was probably a fair result but the own goal straight after their equaliser gave me hope heading into what could be my final game at Margate, or as a manager...

View attachment 117682In the end I fall one win short. We weren't poor but Hemel took the lead and then just sat back on it. We came close to equalising hitting the post quickly in succession but as we pushed for 2 goals they got the final one to kill the game off.

View attachment 117681So it ends after 30 games. It was a much better time in charge of Margate but in the end the slow start set me back too much as our inconsistent form lead to me struggling to climb out of the relegation battle.

I have definitely improved and will be looking to jump straight into a new job but it could be tough to find one with my record.​
 
So after a disappointing sacking by Margate I had to look to jump straight back onto my feet and continue the progression I have made in my career. It took about a month but that was down to delaying the offer to see about other possible alternatives...

View attachment 117676So at the end of January I am brought in to manage 2nd placed Welsh Premier side Bangor City. I had pushed the offer off for a couple of weeks after being interviewed by Conference side York and Scottish side Annan but in the end opted to sign for the Welsh side.

View attachment 117675I see a drop in wage but I do think this is a step up. Bangor are expected to be challenging for the title but have struggled this season. The division is ranked higher than the Conference South and will be a bigger challenge.

View attachment 117674And this goes to show how tough it is. Just 3 losses in the league all season as well as 1 cup loss and the previous manager was sacked. It won't be easy to keep the board happy with TNS dominating the league but I know the challenge I am stepping into.

We have a tough task of gaining on them but I have already looked at some big signings which would bring us closer to their quality when they come in.​
 
The results below are from before I was hired and cover the previous managers reign and it shows how tough it will be after seeing him be sacked after superb form like this...
​
View attachment 117673View attachment 117670
Just 4 losses all season including a loss to top side TNS and a loss in the unimportant "theWord Cup" and he was sacked. It certainly won't be easy but I have a lot of motivation and a squad capable of doing well.
​
 
So here I was in Wales with the second best team in the country. Not too bad considering I had just been sacked by a Conference South side but I had just 24 hours to prepare myself for my first game. We had a cup game to prepare for in a tournament we were expected to reach the final in.

View attachment 117666So it was a hard fought game and we deserved the win in the 90 minutes but it went to extra time and penalties. We were superb and the referee added 1 minute on, 92nd minute they equalise.

We went to penalties after neither side could muster up the energy to create any decent chances to get the win and it wasn't an easy penalty shoot out. The original set of penalties finished at 3-3 sending it to sudden death where we claimed a 8-7 win from the spot kicks to advance to the Quarter Finals.

View attachment 117665So my improvement is obvious as I win my 51st game. I'll continue to push forward in Wales and hopefully get my first awards or trophies in this season.​
 
So like I said there were 4 signings coming into the club as I tried to pull us closer to league leaders TNS...

View attachment 117663Menagh is the first as I looked to add some depth on the left wing. The 23 year old comes in from 3rd place Airbus on a free and will be key when we look to stretch play. With good crossing, dribbling, acceleration, pace and natural fitness he could be fantastic but his 5 rated stamina could cause issues.

View attachment 117662Another winger comes in in Ryan Broom. The 20 year old signs on a free from Aberystwyth where he has been key all season. Simlarly to Menagh he has key attributes in good areas but with better Stamina. He could be key on the right should we require wide play.

View attachment 117660Graham is next and the defensive midfielder fills a gap we didn't really have filled. He is unlikely to ever start but will be a good backup player and offers something we don't have in a defensive midfielder. At just 17 he was cheap and has a ton of potential which he could easily fulfil for Bangor.

View attachment 117658Finally is striker Tony Gray. In for free from 3rd place Airbus the striker is the 3rd top scorer in the division. 12 goals in 22 games isn't bad and hopefully he can continue his clinical finishing as a backup striker to Branco with Boundford and Smith not being as good as first thought.​
 
So with the players in place, the motivation and goals made clear let's look at the tactics that will hopefully help us meet our goals...

View attachment 117649Our main tactic as we have a squad of central midfielders and strikers who have been scoring for fun. We will look to get the fullbacks up the pitch and keep the ball in the middle as we make the most of 3 quality strikers. Simple instructions as we look to make the most out of the quality we possess rather than trying to complicate things.

View attachment 117648Very similar story but get the ball out wide. We have strong wingers with the additions of Broom and Menagh but this tactic will likely be used most late on in games when teams are tired. Stretch play, make the oppositions defence do a lot more running and exploit tired players. Again it's a simple set of instructions as we have the quality to outplay teams.
​
 
So here I am before my first league game and I don't know how to feel about it. We have the quality to do well but this is the first true test of my managerial skills. Am I capable or have the failed times at Cabinteely and Margate been down to me?

Firstly I'd just like to show the climb. I find it amazing that after 21 winless games at Cabinteely and being sacked by relegation threatened Margate I have made this rise but...

View attachment 117560Just a year ago I was managing in the Irish First Division which has dropped 2 places in the rankings but still is worse than where I am now. After rising into the 129th ranked division of the Conference South and being sacked I now reside in the Dafabet Welsh Premier League. A mighty 117th ranked division and 1* reputation.

But anyway back to the game. My first league game is against Airbus and after taking 2 of their key players off of them I knew they would be coming for the revenge...

View attachment 117559But they didn't get it as I make it 2 wins from 2 for Bangor. We opened up the scoring in the first half as former Airbus man Gray got the assist for Smith to make it 1-0. Airbus then came back into the game though but the idea of bringing wingers on worked.

Once again it was a former Airbus man with the assist as Jamie Menagh played the ball across the box to another new boy in Broom who tapped home to double our lead. Airbus then piled on the pressure but we defended strongly and only allowed what would turn out to be a consolation goal late on.

And our next game you ask? TNS! I don't expect anything from it after the last time we faced them and got battered 4-1 but I'd like to keep it closer than that. I have added a lot of quality to what was already here and see no reason we can't keep competitive with the league leaders.​
 
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