SJNR's REVIEW OF THE 2002-03 SEASON
As with
everything else its always best to start at the beginning (unless you're a proctologist
where it's better to start at the end), so it's back to those heady and never
to be forgotten days of August 2002. Darius was Colourblind at top of the hit
parade and Burberry was the craze with the trendy youngsters around town.
First of all I have to start with a confession. It was my fault that we didn't
win the league. I jinxed it before the battle had even begun. You see I usually
go into every season not expecting much as I'm a natural born pessimist. Having
really low expectations means that no matter what happens, barring relegation,
you're never disappointed. It's almost like a sort of reverse psychology where
voicing the worst means the opposite is going to happen. But after the final
friendly game against Burnley the thought, albeit for one very brief moment,
entered my head that this may be our season. Immediately I returned to a more
natural state of pessimism believing that mid-table would be okay but the damage
had been done. Destiny was already tippexing out Mossley's name from the 'Big
Book Of Footballs Future League Champions' whilst, at the same time, sending
his friend round to the NWCL fixture secretary to become the voice in his head
that said, "letting Prescot play the majority of their games before anyone
else is a good thing."
It was some good results and performances in the pre-season friendlies that
brought about this millisecond of optimism. Now I know that you should never
read too much into these fixtures but the games against Stalybridge Celtic,
a 4-2 win, and strong Oldham and Burnley XI's, 1-0 and 0-0 respectively, showed
a Mossley side that had come on leaps and bounds from the one that finished
the previous season. The only defeat coming at the hands of Ashton United where
we relinquished our stranglehold on the Willow Wood Hospice Cup with our one
game dominance of the competition ended by a narrow 1-0 loss. So with a promising
pre-season under our belts we embarked into, what was at the time, the uncharted
waters of the 2002-2003 football season…
It's fair to say that by the middle of last October I don't believe that I was
alone in thinking that winning any silverware at the end of the season was an
unrealistic possibility. You'd have probably got longer odds on (insert a witty
simile of your own choosing here). Pre-season optimism was being slowly replaced
by a feeling that we were once again going down the path often trod by Mossley
teams in the past, the one that teams who fail to live up to their potential
amble down.
The opening week of the season had proved to be a taster of how the early stages
of the season would play out. A couple of good results and decent performances,
Newcastle (1-0) and Prescot (0-0), followed by a display at Skelmersdale (0-1)
that was the footballing equivalent of this years UK entry in the Eurovision
Song Contest - dull, flat, out of tune with one another, performing like it
was their first time at it and, more importantly, nil points. This sequence
was then played out continuously like some sporting Groundhog Day (though more
like a Groundhog 7-10 Days), with only the names of the opposition varying.
For every great string of results and performances the team put together, you
instinctively knew that there was an unmitigated disaster awaiting us in some
upcoming match. What made it worse, though atypically Mossley, was not only
were these defeats against some really poor quality opposition, e.g. Curzon,
but that we didn't deserve to win them at all. Apart from the Alsager (1-2)
game at home not once did we come away from a match feeling that we were unlucky
to have been beaten. All the hard work in getting great results in the matches
where we played potential title rivals, Clitheroe away (2-1) and Prescot (3-2)
was almost instantaneously being thrown away at other teams cannon fodder such
as Curzon and Warrington. While the defeats at Curzon (2-3) and Warrington (2-4)
were due to differing circumstances, e.g. losing Rob Hackney due to injury within
the opening ten minutes of the game, the feelings at the end of the game were
the same; one of glorious opportunities being urinated up a wall.
The two FA Cup games during this period are a perfect example of the Jekyll
and Hyde performances the team were putting in. The draw for the preliminary
round saw us travelling eastwards along the M62 to take on our former adversaries
from our NPL days and fellow victims of Terry Curran, Goole. At the time they
were top of the NECL so a tough game was expected especially as we were undergoing
an early season injury crisis. We needn't have worried though as the only fit
players we had pulled off a near comfortable 3-0 win. A fortnight later however
with the majority of the squad having returned to full fitness it was the complete
opposite. For this tie we had to face Workington for the first time since they
pipped us to the league title a few years earlier on the same ground. It would
be a chance of gaining a small amount of revenge and hopes were high as, although
a league higher, Workington were struggling to find any kind of form and found
themselves languishing around the foot of the table. Suffice to say that even
after going in 1-0 up at half time Mossley somehow conspired to let the poor
opposition score two goals and claim a place in the next round. Not only had
another erratic performance cost us a fair amount of prize money and the chance
of a good cup run, it had also deprived the club of a money making match against
a similarly struggling Stalybridge in the next round. A game that Workington
would go on to win convincingly after a replay. I can't imagine how the management
team felt about this inconsistency but as a supporter it was infuriating as
we just seemed to be going round in circles.
I don't think that I'm telling anybody something they didn't already know when
I say that this stuttering form so early on in the season was to cost us the
chance of winning the league. Even the manager has admitted as much in some
of the forums. There were many ingredients that led to this 'cake of performance
paradox'. Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, we had a couple of people new
to the management side of the game. Very few take to it like a fat person to
cake and the learning curve is so incredibly steep it's near vertical. Therefore
mistakes are bound to be made, and the trouble with football is that mistakes
and lapses can become almost immediately apparent. The sign of a good manager
is one that can rectify them and learn from them and that is what we saw last
year.
The first problem and cause for concern became evident after the first week
of the season when with three games played we'd only scored one goal. Admittedly
those three games were against teams that were strong rivals for the league
championship, including Prescot who were most neutrals favourites, but the lack
of goal attempts was worrying for a team with lofty ambitions. Most supporters
knew before the very first match from previous experience that a forward line
containing Mike Wolstenholme was never going to fill the Supporters Clubs 'Sponsor
A Goal' scheme with money and, more importantly, win matches. Ally saw this,
and to his credit, didn't persevere with it in the vague hope that it would
come good as many of his predecessors had done. Instead, after the game against
Skelmersdale where our solitary attempt on goal was a header from 18 yards by
a centre-half, he went and signed a proven non-league goal scorer in Tony Carroll.
And an inspired signing it was!
The problem with chopping and changing and bringing in players to improve the
side is that you cannot have a settled team, one of the most important things
in football. When you look back on the list of players who came and went during
the first two months of the season you suddenly realise that we used a lot of
people because they were simply not or never going to be good enough. Fair enough,
you can blame the manager for signing bad players but it's easy to forget that
a lot of these players came with excellent reputations on the non-league circuit
and Impressive playing histories. In fact any manager would have signed them.
As I said not a few paragraphs ago, the difference is a good manager is one
that sees you can't just live off a reputation and cuts his losses. I'd rather
have a higher turnover of staff than a Japanese Kamikaze squadron than a settled
team with a squad of players who were simply not good enough and living off
former glories.
The players that left during the season did so for many different reasons. The
myth is that a lot did so because of reasons other than footballing ones but
in actuality the number who did were surprisingly few. In the following little
section I am going to use the word 'allegedly' rather liberally just to be on
the safe side. :)
The Nearly Men
The players who moved on because they were never going to hold down a regular
place in the side, only filling in when injuries or suspensions occurred.
In this category are Paul Barrow, Tony Gaffey, Mark Paver, David Wills, Eamonn
Kelly, Leon Grandison, etc. All good players but in need of regular first team
football. It is sad to see these types of players leave the club but the nature
of non-league football is that you can't maintain a large squad so they were
on their way.
The Onwards and Upwards Men
The players who had the opportunity to progress their careers on another level.
For the first time in a fair old while we had players who moved on to bigger
and better things. First to go was Neil Tolson, okay so he only had one game,
who moved to the Conference with Leigh RMI. He wasn't there long though before
he moved from club to club around the north like a footballing version of David
Carradine in Kung Fu. "Ahhh, gloundhopper", as nobody has been heard
to say.
Next to go was Tony Ellis who after turning down an approach from , once again,
Leigh RMI eventually retired from football and went to play for Hyde United,
where he also got the chance to start his management career as an assistant.
Star pupil though was Ciaran Kilheeney who no doubt escaped the clutches of
Leigh and signed for Exeter City.
The 'Mouths Slack In Disbelief' Men
The ones who were frankly not good enough.
Darren Wardle left after just over three years at the club where he had managed
a season's worth of appearances. This was in part due to battles with injuries
but battles with opposing players caused a lot of lost time through suspension.
I don't think many people were sad to see him leave and he, allegedly, had an
over inflated opinion of his worth as a footballer without ever showing it on
the pitch. It's sad because there is a good player inside him wanting to come,
the problem is that there is plenty of wrapping to get through before he does.
Last heard to be keeping the treatment table company at Witton Albion.
Unfortunately Lee Blackshaw made his debut at the same time as Rob Matthews
so anything he did in that game would be overshadowed by the others performance.
He came with glowing praise from many at Ashton United but his only other appearance
ended in a toe curling-ly embarrassing way when he was substituted 15 minutes
after coming on himself in the Vase match at Salford when he seemed to have
the complete opposite of the Midas touch. I do feel sorry for him and I hope
he goes on to better things somewhere else.
Leon Mills arrived from Droylsden with glowing references and a reputation as
a powerhouse. The truth did have 'house' in it but it was preceded by 'built
like a brick sh…', you know the rest. His main asset seemed to be the
hope that opposing players would tire themselves out running around him such
was his… er…, being kind, girth. Possibly the least fit footballer
I have seen at Mossley in a long time and he lasted only two games before disappearing
elsewhere. Probably to a pie shop.
Like Mills, Nigel Evans had a wonderful reputation in Tameside football circles
having played for most of the teams in the area. Unfortunately the Nigel Evans
that turned up at Mossley was a shadow of the player who had terrified defences
in leagues higher than the NWCL. It may have been down to rustiness, a lack
of match fitness but he rarely looked likely to perform his role of putting
the ball into the back of the net. With time and a regular starting place he
may have got his sharpness back but time was something Mossley didn't have if
they wanted to keep up with the pacesetters at the top of the league, so he
departed to pastures new as well. Fortunately for us though he did manage to
score once. It may have been in the awful defeat at Curzon but without it we
wouldn't have made it to 100 for in a season.
So thank Evans for his little goal.
The 'Allegedly' Men (Not in an Alan Partridge Bangkok Chickboy Type Allegedly
Men Way)
The players who left through 'alleged' differences with the management. Stars
in their own eyes.
Sammy Harris was the first to leave after spitting his dummy out at being substituted
in the cup match at Goole. Supporters shrugged their shoulders and promptly
forgot him. Last seen skulking back to Hyde whom he had left not weeks earlier
to join us.
Next up was John Foster who allegedly left cursing the manager. While we missed
having a right back who would belt up the wing his departure meant Robert Trees
could drop back to his more favoured right back role after stinking the place
out with some of his early season midfield performances. What we lacked in attacking
options from the loss of Foster we made up with somebody in the role who was
committed to the club. Until May anyway.
Of all the departures the one that upset the fans the most was Matty Taylor's.
Along with Rob Hackney he was our best performer in the early stages of the
season, often providing the only attacking option on the team. It came as a
shock though to suddenly find out that he had been given his marching orders
from the club because he was a disruptive influence in the dressing room. As
a supporter he certainly didn't seem the type of person who would cause trouble
but we're not privy to what goes on in the dressing room, certainly the rest
of the team didn't seem too upset to see him go. Of all the players who left
this season I think Matty was the one we missed the most and it's a shame that
it didn't work out. He reportedly went back to his former club Hyde, before
moving temporarily to one of the Atherton teams and then onto Trafford to join
up with his old mentor Mike McKenzie and other Mossley old boys John Foster
and…Ryan Hevicon.
At the time I thought the departure of Hevicon would be a great loss to the
team but the passage of time has made my opinion change to "probably for
the best that he went." There's no denying that when he was good he very,
very good but when he was bad… you know the rest. Even though he scored
a goal every 2 games his work rate at times made Darrell Dicken's off day efforts
look like those of an overworked junior doctor. He will probably be remembered
at Mossley for the away game at Curzon. Not for being dragged off the pitch
by the manager for lack of effort and leaving us with only 10 men on the pitch
but for his haircut. Allegedly, that word again, he had decided to cut his own
hair but given up part way through leaving him looking like one of Jack Nicholson's
fellow inmates from One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. Fortunately for him though,
and the club, an American Indian threw a chair through a window allowing him
to escape to Hyde United.
Ask yourself this question. Playing wise are we better off now or would we have
been better if we'd kept a lot of the aforementioned players? Personally I think
we are. If you looked at the squad at the end of the season at Bury and the
presentation night, even as far back as December, it was obvious that there
was a real team spirit at the club. Compare it to Benny Phillips last few seasons
in charge when it was transparent on the pitch that some players didn't like
one another one bit! Ally and Jason should be congratulated for engendering
this spirit with the team and hopefully it will continue next season.
As ineffective as he was for Mossley Nigel Evans certainly didn't deserve the
treatment he got off Esh Winning in the First Round Proper of the FA Vase
SJNR