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Chris
The upcoming local derby between Notts County and Mansfield Town has been labelled by magpies boss Ricardo Moniz as having “No difference between Arsenal and Spurs” and in fact mentioned “This club is also big”.
Notts County have the foundation of having impressive performances under their belt, whilst Mansfield are yet to win within the 2015-16 season.
Pride of Nottingham has taken the time to put several questions to one of the most recognizable match day photographers Dan Westwell.
 
Firstly, could you please tell prideofnottingham.co.uk a little about yourself, such as how long you've been a Stags fan?
I've been a Stags fan for 30 years, since I moved up here from Peterborough when I was 11. I wanted to support my local team and that's where it started. My first game was against the Canadian national team, we won 3-0!
At the end of that season we went to Wembley in the Freight Rover Trophy and beat the favourites Bristol City on penalties who had Keith Curle and David Moyes playing for them. I thought I'd picked a winning team here but then the past 29 years have been a bit barren lol.
 
What are stand-out moments from last season and how have things changed within the pre-season?
There are no stand out moments from last season as it was a disaster. Had there not been 2 worse teams than us we would've gone back to that hell-hole again. We've got a lot to thank Tranmere & Cheltenham for.
This season can't be as bad as that (we hope!). Adam Murray has signed some good players and there was a lot of positivity surrounding the club in the summer, a bit like at Notts, we just need to see how these players gel & then try and find a winning formula as I can't remember the last time we did win a game.
 
Are you optimisic about your season ahead and what do you think of the squad assembled by Adam Murray?
Yes I am, if you can't be optimistic in August when can you be!? The squad is very impressive, he's mixed it up well with some old heads, some new heads and some youth, so if he can get the blend right then we'll have a good season.
 
Do you think having players like Craig Westcarr and Kristian Pearce will help you against Notts?
I hope so. I was at the Forest game in the cup when Westcarr scored for Notts and he ran along the main stand celebrating in front of the Forest fans. I don't think he would disrespect Notts like that, but if he does I'll be happy as it means he's scored!
 
Who do you think will the win the League Two title? More importantly where will Mansfield and Notts finish in your opinion?
I think you can't look beyond Portsmouth & Luton really, but I've had an outside bet on Cambridge as I think they've assembled a good team. Having said that, Notts have been really impressive in the 2 games I've seen so far this season and if they carry this on, then they will win the league.
I would love us both to go up, that would be awesome, especially if Forest got relegated! If I was forced to pick league positions I would go Notts 3rd and us 10th which I would take for sure with how we were last season.
 
As the clubs official away day photographer, does it make it more interesting to cover these types of local derby games?
It does at Field Mill because obviously I'm there doing the game for Notts yet it's at my 2nd home, so there's a strange feeling about it because I want both teams to win. Personally I want Stags to win because they are my team, but professionally I want Notts to win because it makes my photos better, if you can understand that? Like the pre season game last year when we hammered you ;-) the photos I was sending in were of fans looking fed up and not much action (especially goal action) so the pics weren't very good from a Notts angle (although my Stags mates loved them lol).
As for this game, I would've been going as a freelance not being paid and would just sit in one place and see what happened, but now I am doing it for the local Mansfield paper (CHAD) so I will be doing the Stags attack & Stags fans rather than anything Notts as the home photographer will be doing that.
 
What line-up would you feature against the Magpies? Who will be your key men?
Matt Green, if he is fit would be our main threat I would say. But you never know if Westcarr & Pearce play then you could have the curse of the returning player. I wouldn't like to guess at our line up as I don't think even Adam Murray knows what team he will pick.
 
Lastly, what do you think the score and scorers will be?
If you'd asked me this on Monday I would've gone for a Stags win. But having seen what Notts did to Huddersfield last night I am actually pretty damn scared of what could happen to us.
I wouldn't be shocked if Notts tanked us 4-0! We just have to hope that Notts continue their ill discipline and get an early sending off to give us a chance, but then they showed against Huddersfield that they can still see a game out with 10 men, away, at a Championship team. I just hope our good record against Notts helps us out, otherwise we could be in trouble. If you offered me a draw now I'd take it, a nice 2-2 like one of our favourite games when Iyseden Christie equalised 40 yards offside ;-)
 
Pride of Nottingham would like to thank Dan Westwell for taking the time to answer our questions, we wish him all the very best with his recent fund-raising efforts and fingers crossed he brings Notts the luck tonight! No, good luck Mansfield in this new season.
super_ram
After scoring both goals away at Huddersfield in the League Cup.
Liam Noble has acknowledged the help that Alan Smith has given him. He has been doing one on one training with the ex England midfielder.
He said "For the first goal, it was a great ball back from Kyle De Silva. I had to finish it off but it was all about the timing of the run."
"In the past few years I might not have made that run. I might have been lazy or stayed back in the middle."
 
"When you have one up front you've got to get someone on the edge of the box. I think you've got to credit Alan Smith to be fair. He works with me a lot in training about timing my runs to the edge of the box. He's been at the top level so I'm working with the best. He's improved my game a lot."
"The second goal I saw the keeper on the edge of the box. I've been working a lot on shooting in training. Alan says to me 'if you don't shoot you don't score'. I saw the keeper out of the corner of my eye and thought why not give it a go."
"I don't know if it's the best I've ever scored but it has to be up there. It's one of the best I've ever scored, yeah."
"I didn't realise their fans were clapping so I appreciate that. The goals are a bonus but the most important thing was getting through."
 
Premier league teams not involved in Europe come into the next round of the League cup and Liam would like to play his home town club Newcastle United and cited Bradford City's exploits last season as an example why Notts could also do well.
Looking forward to Friday nights game against Mansfield, he reflected on Tuesday nights game saying "We knew we needed to play better. Stevenage was good but it wasn't good enough. It lifts confidence. We wanted the season to start well with a big game coming up Friday. I hope we get a big turnout."
Canadian
Nervous Wreck; since the last time we met, we were all excited with the new players coming in. All in all, we've made close to 17 signings and we're looking to add a few more, especially in defence, Perhaps a RB and Solid Centre Back.
Do we take Pre-season with a pinch of salt, or do we look at it as to where we can improve? We have been given a test over the last couple of weeks.
First up was Alfreton Town, we went behind to a good goal from them.
Now last year we would have capitulated and lost the game. But not this time around, as it seems Ricardo Moniz had instilled some character to our line-up. Especially in the forward line, where we have been told, it's now time to get bums off seats and get people excited.
Now we move onto League opposition, Port Vale, Grimsby Town & Scunthorpe United. All Lost, so now we discus on PON where we went wrong, and according to the Majority of members on PON. We desperately need both a Strong Leader in the CB role, and also RB and the side seems quite disjointed in defence. This could also be due to our new goalkeeper in Scott Loach. I hope he learns well under Roy Carroll.
So if we can sort out the Defence, we should be alreet (alright) and you can see, we're definitely not lacking in creativity, according to the Comments on here and other Social Media sites, we just need to ball to manoeuvre another way and you get the feeling that we'll be cheering (hopefully more than sighing).
 
#Wheelbarrowpoints;
This is a Hashtag that is moving in an upward movement over here. So let me explain the Concept of #Wheelbarrowpoints. Back on May 9th V Tampa Bay Rowdies, at Landsdowne Place. One of our members, Stephane (Villa Fan) http://www.bytownboys.ca/ said he needed something to cart the Massive Bass Drum up the 1.5 Mile march, From the Pre match Pub to the Stadium. So another member, Andrew said he had a Wheelbarrow that we could store at the Pub.
When i got wind of this apparent agreement, I Went ballistic ha ha. I started posting the Wheelbarrow Song on their Twitter & FB feeds. Then when I went to the Bar on the 9th and I just let rip with the Wheelbarrow Song and as you have probably seen in the video, Hopefully you can see it; https://www.facebook.com/SBMAVFC/videos/10152891289676547/.
Now we are on an 11 game unbeaten run, and are 6 points clear at the top of the League. So as you can tell, singing the wheelbarrow song for the First time in almost 20 years, with other fans is very special, and now we do it every game. But obviously we change County" to Fury"
By the time I speak to you next time, we’ll flying up the league and the in the 2nd round of League Cup, with at least 20 goals to our name, then I fell out of bed.
Come on you Pies!
Come on you Fury!!
Joe Jones
Notts County and Mansfield Town have met 44 times over the years, the first fixture coming in October 1937, a 2-0 win for the Magpies in Division Three (South).
Out of the 44 games, Notts have the upper hand with 17 wins, 14 defeats, and 13 draws.
Between 1989 and 2001, the two sides met six times – and Notts won each time.
It’s not been quite so good for Notts in recent years though – we’ve won just twice in our last 10 meetings, with four defeats and four draws.
 
Our last meeting was a win though, the Stags beaten 2-0 at Meadow Lane in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy just under a year ago.
The Stags were formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans, changing their name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910.
Mansfield won the Football League Trophy in 1987, in their first game at Wembley Stadium. After a 1–1 draw with Bristol City, they won the cup 5–4 in the deciding penalty shootout, thanks to Kevin Hitchcock saving two penalties.
That remains the only cup win in their history, though they did win the Division Four title in 1974-75, Division Three two seasons later, and the Conference in 2012-13.
 
Famous people from Mansfield include Olympic swimmer Rebecca Adlington, media presenter Richard Bacon, FA Cup-winning goalkeeper Steve Ogrizovic and award-winning fashion designer Elspeth Gibson.
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Mawouna Amevor will be serving the second of a three-match suspension after being sent off on the opening day at Stevenage. Gill Swerts is also out after being red carded in the League Cup game at Huddersfield.
There is a slight doubt over striker Jon Stead, who came off against the Terriers after hurting his back in a fall, and Liam Noble is also rumoured to be nursing an injury.
Mansfield, meanwhile, will be without Lee Collins due to a foot injury, the defender currently wearing a protective boot.
Striker Matt Green missed out the Stags’ League Cup defeat at Sheffield Wednesday through injury and is expected to be out at Meadow Lane.
Midfielder Matty Blair, out of contract at Field Mill, is reportedly making good progress from a serious knee injury and could sign a new deal.
super_ram
Notts County play hosts to Mansfield Town at Meadow Lane on Friday night.
Stags boss, Adam Murray says his team has enough to win at Notts.
He said "It will be a great test for us going into that environment against a good team but make no bones about it, we are a very good team ourselves and we are not going there to make the numbers up.. I am not going there to sit back and watch Notts County. We are going into a thunderous environment and I want us to play at tempo. They are going to know they are in a game."
He also referred to the number of players Notts had signed with some being from outside of England and commented on their quality having played at a higher level.
He added "But we've got no fear. We are going there for a local derby and we want to show them what we are about. We've got enough in our changing room to go there and beat them on Friday, so that's what we will set out to do."
After nearly being relegated last season Mansfield aim to be in the top half this season.
Murray said "We have some tough games coming up in which I think we will do well."
Notts have won both their games so far, both away, while Mansfield drew their League 2 opener 1-1 at home to Carlisle and lost 4-1 away at Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup.
Chris

The Match Officials

By Chris, in News,

Friday 14th August, Meadow Lane play hosts to local rivals Mansfield Town. The Stags have started the season off by clinching a draw at Field Mill to travelling Carlisle United. The final score finished 1-1, Benning having opened the account for Mansfield.
The Owls recently beat them 4-1 away from home in League Cup, yet the performances have left many questions for their own supporters.
With Friday now quickly approaching, we here at Pride of Nottingham will share who the match officials are.
 
The Match Officials for the game against Mansfield Town will be Tim Robinson, with his two assistants Jason Whiteley and Paul Hodskinson. The fourth official will be David Benton.
Due to the fact we are at the start of the season, it seems pointless to mention stats and so, I will include some details about the officials.
 
Match Officials
Referee; Tim Robinson
From – West Sussex
Tim's record seems to suggest that he can be quite trigger happy with his cards, mostly which are yellow. However, he was promoted to the rank of level 1 as a match official back in the summer of 2012. He has a wealth of experience within the lower leagues, which tends to suggest he isn't that bad at controlling games but all will tell as to how he handles a local derby between two fierce rivals.
 
Assistant Referee; Jason Whiteley
From – West Yorkshire
Jason is a assistant referee which all Notts County fans should be familiar with by now, last season he featured a few times within our 'Match Official' features and it leaves questions to ask about his ability from the sidelines.
 
Assistant Referee; Paul Hodkinson
From – Lancashire
Unfortunately there isn't much information on Paul, yet as stated above he comes from Lancashire and has officiated games mostly within the Conference and Non League divisions.
 
Fourth Official; David Benton
From – South Yorkshire
Do you have an opinion on the game? - Match Thread
Chris

League Two Preview

By Chris, in News,

Welcome back to the Pride of Nottingham’s League Preview, within this article you will find information on all the scheduled games planned for this weekend (including our own game on Friday night).
The key game for this round if we take Notts out of the equation, would no doubt be between the promotion candidates Plymouth and Portsmouth. With both teams eyeing up promotion, after putting last year’s campaign behind themselves.
We look forward to bringing you, your regular PON football fix.
 
* Important Game – ** Key Game
Friday 14th August 2015
**Notts County v Mansfield – Kick Off 7:45pm – Score Prediction (3-1)
 
Saturday 15th August 2015
*Barnet v Wycombe – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-2)
Carlise v Cambridge – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-1)
Crawley v AFC Wimbledon – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-1)
Dagenham & Redbridge v Leyton Orient – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-1)
*Luton v Oxford – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-0)
Morecambe v Accrington – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-1)
Newport v Stevenage – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (1-1)
Northampton v Exeter – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (3-2)
**Plymouth v Portsmouth – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (2-1)
Yeovil v Bristol Rovers – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (3-1)
York v Hartlepool – Kick Off 3:00pm – Score Prediction (0-3)
My Stand-Out Games
Barnet v Wycombe
Notts County v Mansfield
Plymouth v Portsmouth
The ambitions of the Bee’s is clear for all to see, they firmly believe that they have a squad capable of achieving something within League two and this is echoed by their fans. Whereas Wycombe will be wanting to maintain their recent success, after finishing 4th place in last season’s campaign. On the day, either side could win – it’s that difficult to call but this should make it an interesting game.
A win for Barnet will see them move away from the relegation zone, into a comfortable upper mid table position. A Wycombe win, would see them potentially go top depending on the score line, but a draw would see both teams most likely to drop places.
After the recent cup success and opening away day, Notts will be eager to seal the points. Whereas the woe’s for Mansfield continue. This is another game too hard to call, however Stagg fans must not begrudge County’s positive start and really it’s for them to raise their own game. A win for Notts would see them retain a respectful top position, a draw would most likely result in a position in or around 6th place, whilst this could push Mansfield nearer to the relegation zone. A win for Mansfield would see them edge closer to a play-off place.
Plymouth and Portsmouth are two favourites for promotion, I think being at home is an advantage for Plymouth but Pompey have all to play for. A win for either side could see the winner potentially move to 1st place, a draw would keep them in or around the play-offs and a loss for either side would see them move to an upper mid table position.
 
Thoughts on Notts County vs. Mansfield
Both teams have built an interesting squad for the 2015/16 League Two campaign, with Mansfield signing players of a mixed class and of course Notts signing players mostly consisting of a decent level of European football.
With this being the nearest local derby for Notts, I think it’s a must win game for us. After the opening day away at Stevenage, Notts must really fancy their chances in scoring a few goals.
The overall head to head record shows Notts as favourites after winning 17, Mansfield have won 14 and 13 games have been drawn.
Three of the last five encounters have ended up with draws, with Notts winning the most recent within the JPT back in September 2014 and Mansfield winning the other in October 2007.
The bookies favourites must surely be Notts, yet as always you cannot write a side off. A local derby always ensures that teams want to acquire the rights for claiming the grudge match win, plus Mansfield can be quite a physical side, which will require Notts to be on top of their game. Whilst the Stags manager Adam Murray still learning his trade, the veteran and experienced Ricardo Moniz will have the game duly studied ahead of time to find the weaknesses within the Stags team.
Joe Jones
Notts County have thrown down the gauntlet to both League Two and the League Cup following a stunning 2-1 win over Championship outfit Huddersfield Town in Tuesday’s first round clash at the John Smith’s Stadium.
The Magpies were quickest off the starting blocks as opposition goalkeeper Joe Murphy was called into action early on, racing out of his goal to kick clear as Kyle Da Silva chased Liam Noble's pass, then saving a header from ex-Terrier Jon Stead.
Harry Bunn had the hosts’ first chance in the sixth minute when he let rip with a shot that Roy Carroll smartly palmed away for a corner.
 
Da Silva then fluffed a great chance to put the visitors ahead after 14 minutes when he fired well wide from Stanley Aborah's dinked pass.
Huddersfield enjoyed a good spell on the half-hour mark as Ishmael Miller had two attempts to open the scoring before Murray Wallace broke the deadlock on 35 minutes when he was left unmarked to head home from a corner.
It then took a timely block by Thierry Audel to deny Nahki Wells before Notts levelled things up through Noble.
De Silva got things underway as he fended off Martin Cranie, before sending a low cross to the edge of the box, where Noble took a touch and smashed beyond goalkeeper Joe Murphy into the corner.
As good as that strike was, it was nothing compared to his second, spotting the Terriers stopper off his line and smashing a truly wonderful lob from 35 yards out which glided delightfully into the net.
With Notts on the front foot, they succeeded in holding on and seeing the game out, although they made things difficult for themselves when Gill Swerts became the second Magpie to see red this season after being adjudged to have deliberately handled the ball.
Ricardo Moniz’s charges, though, held on valiantly until full time, when celebrations broke out as they claimed the scalp of a team two divisions above them and put themselves through to the second round of the cup, where Premier League teams are in the hat.
super_ram
Notts County's Northern Ireland international goalkeeper, Roy Carroll, has been handed the captain's armband by manager Ricardo Moniz.
Roy said "It was a couple of hours before the game when the gaffer named the team and said I would be captain. I am very proud and it was a great moment for me."
"It is the first time I have ever captained a football team and it's a great honour, but we are all captains really and we have to work hard, especially after what happened when we got relegated last season."
"We have to give more on the pitch. We have to battle and that's what we did in the second half. The boys came out with a clean sheet too, from the strikers to the defence it was a great performance."
 
Notts opened the scoring, courtesy of Curtis Thompson on 35 minutes with a great counter attack. Moving the ball quickly from defence to attack starting with a brilliant pass from Liam Noble to John Stead, who raced on before crossing to the back post for Thompson to put in the back of the net.
Describing the goal Roy said "It was a great goal. That's the way the manager wants us to break away and it was something like 5 seconds and it was a goal. We did that and we proved how quick we can go from defence."
Mauwana Amevor added a second goal in the 88th minute, giving Notts a great opening day away result.
 
You can read the full PON match report - Here.
Joe Jones
Notts County have played Huddersfield Town 33 times in their history, the first fixture coming in December 1913, when the Magpies coasted to a 3-0 victory.
Out of all the games, Notts have won 11 and lost 15, with seven draws.
Our last game against the Terriers was in January 2012, a League One game which ended in a 2-2 draw.
Notts haven’t beaten Huddersfield since March 2003, a 3-2 win in the old Second Division. Three defeats and the 2012 draw followed.
 
Huddersfield entered the Football League for the first time in 1910, just three years after their formation.
In 1926, it became the first English team to win three successive league titles – a feat that only three other clubs have been able to match.
Huddersfield Town also won the FA Cup in 1922 and have been runners-up on four other occasions.
During the club's heyday, on 27 February 1932 the club achieved a record attendance of 67,037 during their FA Cup 6th round tie against Arsenal at Leeds Road – this attendance has been bettered by only 13 other clubs in the history of the Football League.
 
The town of Huddersfield is known for its role in the Industrial Revolution and for being the birthplaces of rugby league, British Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson, and the international film star James Mason.
Huddersfield railway station is a Grade I listed building described by venerable poet and writer John Betjeman as 'the most splendid station façade in England' second only to St Pancras, London.
Iron Maiden immortalised the name of the town with a song called “Sheriff of Huddersfield”.
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Notts County defender Mawouna Amevor is suspended after being sent off in the 2-0 win over Stevenage.
Amevor's fellow defender Civard Sprockel came off injured at half-time so is a doubt, but Blair Adams is expected to be fit.
Huddersfield will be without Sean Scannell, Joe Lolley and James Vaughan as they are out with hamstring & shin injuries and concussion respectively.
Chris
As I began my journey to watch the opening fixture, I couldn’t help but feel excited. On the back of publishing a video, one in which I am very proud of. I found myself brimming with optimism towards the potential achievements Notts could make within the season ahead.
Upon starting my trip to Stevenage, I wondered what the formation would be and of course which defenders would be selected to play.
More importantly, I wondered what the current mood and thoughts were of the Notts County camp.
 
I set about my day fairly quietly, as I found my seat on the coach – I looked around, looking through the coach’s window and inside the coach itself. It didn’t feel much like an opening fixture for me, it felt very laid back and quite easy going.
The first thing I noticed was the eagerness of the fans to set about their own day, I felt quite proud when I noticed friends passing by with their family and friends, all sporting brand new shirts, for a brand new season.
See, I am often optimistic about games, after two difficult seasons and within the third year of running the Pride of Nottingham website, I felt completely at peace with the prospects ahead.
I genuinely felt at the time of relegation, that Notts would get things sorted and we would have a promising 2015/16 season.
 
As my coach approached a resting station for all the travelling Black & White army, I setup my camera. I wanted to do the community proud, not just those who visit and take part on the website, but my friends and fans in general.
I felt quite nervous heading off into the service station, the first picture I took, I somewhat rushed but it actually turned out okay in my opinion.
I walked around a little, then I decided to speak to a couple of fans I didn’t know. They told me about their thoughts, so I asked them what they felt the score would be – in fact everyone I spoke to, I did the exact same thing. I wanted to gauge opinions, as I do enjoy hearing other fans thoughts.
After speaking to about 7 other people, I bumped into a friend called Mattie and we discussed Notts to some extent.
It was at this stage, I realised nobody had mentioned anything remotely negative and it was all quite promising, as I feel we do deserve a good year after the past two campaigns. I spoke with Andy Black regarding the Italian Magpies. If any of my Italian friends are read this, We are very much looking forward to your return, I think this year you will be treated to some exciting football.
Once at the ground, I was talking and taking photos – Again, I must note how fans felt – The only concern I heard came from the possibility we may concede within the first 10 minutes and what the possible defensive line-up would be.
It wasn’t long after, I started to notice familiar faces. It was quite overwhelming, as many fans acknowledged the contributions I had made last season and some even praised my recent video. I am delighted that it’s been so well received, as it took a tremendous amount of planning and editing. I could be cheesy at this stage by quoting a Brian Adams song but I won’t.
 
At this stage, I briefly want to mention the atmosphere, it was spot on and amazing. I felt the fans truly gave Notts credit and encouraged what we witnessed, however much of which comes from the players and manager Ricardo Moniz, but I believe it helped.
So, into the actual game – I was very impressed even within the opening minutes. Notts looked very keen to attack, yet when Stevenage did come at us, we defended quite comfortably. I believe this allowed our squad to settle and find more time on the ball. When Stevenage looked threatening, it came from one player, Dipo Akinyemi, he looked to be very fast and keen to get onto their chances.
The way we moved the ball around, it was a joy to watch. It wasn’t always ‘perfect’ but I was impressed by the level of quality within our passes.
Each phase looked very creative, with no lack of ideas and some of the faster movement would have no doubt been appreciated within the Championship – I felt it was that good at times. The only thing I can nit pick with at this stage, was the fact I felt Jon Stead was pretty isolated but boy did he cover his ground well.
It did make me feel we need a striker partner for him, potentially a striker who has pace and an eye for goal himself.
The pass which lead to our opening goal, came from Jon Stead, it was a very well placed pass and excellently executed. The finish by Curtis Thompson, nothing short of sublime and he must feel delighted with having scored his first senior goal for the club.
 
Stevenage didn’t lack their own chances, at half time I told everyone who spoke to me ‘we need another goal, it will settle it’ and I felt my prediction at 2-1 to us may be the correct score.
As the second half got underway, Stevenage had a couple of chances whereby they could have gone level but not from any lack of defending. Thiery Audel did very well on his debut, in fact every player contributed very nicely.
It was good to see Liam Noble leading by example, he really has taken the new signings as his chance to forge his space and Stanley Aborah is an absolute joy to watch, yet I must add he needs to keep his hands and arms to himself, whilst of course being careful of his challenges but what an excellent player.
I didn’t actually realise our second came within the 88th minute. I only realised this after reading the PON match report, though it’s a shame that Mawouna Amevor received his red card, yet I wouldn’t be disheartened by it.
All in all, I can see what Moniz is doing and I believe the latter part of the pre-season allowed him to reach his final decision on tactics. The final score 2-0, Notts clinching an away win and we all went home happy – for me it feels like we have turned a corner.
super_ram

League Two Round-Up

By super_ram, in News,

A great start to the 2015/16 season for Notts with a 2–0 away victory at Stevenage, with goals from Curtis Thompson and Mawouna Amevor, though the result was slightly marred by the latter's sending off. The result is exactly what Notts must have been hoping for, with a difficult opening game all is positive.
With Notts County now looking ahead to their next league game, we here at the Pride of Nottingham take the time to look at this weekends fixtures and results.
 
League Two Results
AFC Wimbledon 0–2 Plymouth
Accrington 1–1 Luton
Bristol Rovers 0–1 Northampton
Cambridge 3–0 Newport
Exeter 3–2 Yeovil
Hartlepool 2–0 Morecambe
Leyton Orient 2–0 Barnet
Mansfield 1–1 Carlisle
Oxford 1–1 Crawley
Portsmouth 3–0 Dagenham and Redbridge
Stevenage 0–2 Notts County
Wycombe Wanderers 3–0 York
There were 6 home wins, 3 away wins and 3 draws.
 
Upcoming fixtures
Tuesday 11th August 2015
Capital One Cup – First Round
Huddersfield Town v Notts County - KO 19:45
Friday 14th August 2015
League Two
Notts County v Mansfield Town - KO 19:45
 
League Two Update
Portsmouth lived up to their promotion expectations by beating Dagenham and Redbridge 3–0 at home.
Cambridge United and Wycombe Wanderers also secured 3–0 home victories beating Newport and York respectively.
Leyton Orient, another team expected to fair well in League 2, also got off to a winning start beating Barnsley 2–0 at home.
Oxford and Luton, two more favourites for promotion, had to settle for 1–1 draws respectively at home to Crawley and away at Accrington.
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Notts, after one game lie 6th place in League two on 3 points and separated by goal difference along with Cambridge, Portsmouth, Wycombe, Hartlepool, Leyton Orient, Plymouth, Exeter and Northampton.
A Capital One fixture away at Huddersfield is next up for Notts on Tuesday and then on Friday, the small matter of a local Derby at Meadow Lane against Mansfield who drew 1–1 at home against Crawley last saturday.
Only 45 more league games to go now, can Notts do it?
Joe Jones
Notts County got their League Two campaign to a near-perfect start with a 2-0 win away at a tricky and feisty Stevenage side in a game marred only by the late sending-off of Mawouna Amevor.
The visitors had the edge in the opening quarter of an hour, though opposition forward Dipo Akinyemi came close with a goal-bound shot which deflected over.
From the same period of pressure, the teenager was unmarked two yards out and somehow missed, while just after the half-hour mark Brett Williams fired straight at Roy Carroll.
This proved the catalyst for a deadly counter-attack that saw Liam Noble maraud down Boro's exposed left side before passing to Jon Stead.
The ex-Bradford man then cut the ball back across the box, where Curtis Thompson was on hand to slice home at the far post and send the visiting fans barmy.
 
Notts looked the most likely to notch up another goal as Chris Day was forced to save at his near post from Julian Jenner shortly after the restart.
Kyle De Silva also went close with a stinging volley which drew another excellent save from the opposition keeper, before Stead curled a shot just wide of the far post on the spin.
Stevenage twice went close through Tom Hitchcock, while Williams also threatened, but Notts could have doubled their lead on 75 minutes when Thierry Audel’s powerful header was kept out by Day.
 
It felt at times like Notts were riding their luck but luckily they killed the game off in the final few minutes of normal time as a long-range shot from Stead was stopped low by Day, before Amevor tucked in the rebound.
In injury-time, a scuffle between Hitchcock and Amevor saw red cards for both, while Mark Hughes struck the bar with a 20-yard shot moments later, but the move was declared offside as Notts saw the game out and celebrated all three points.
The result sees the Magpies end their first matchday in sixth place - it's a great start from Ricardo Moniz's charges, who put in a great display and were rewarded with three points and a clean sheet.
 
(Credit to Dan Westwell for the article image)
Joe Jones
Notts County and Stevenage have only ever met seven times, the first meeting coming on 17 September 2011 at Broadhall Way (known as the Lamex Stadium). The result on that day was 2-0 to the Magpies.
Our head-to-head record is pretty simple: three wins for Notts, four wins for Stevenage. We have never in our history drawn against Stevenage.
Stevenage have only been in existence since 1976 - manager Teddy Sheringham is a whole ten years older than the club itself.
Much like Doctor Who, there have been numerous incarnations of the club that stretch back over a century. A club called Stevenage FC was formed in 1894, but they soon adopted the name Stevenage Town.
In 1951 the club were founder members of the Delphian League. In 1956 they merged with Stevenage Rangers to form Stevenage FC, before reverting to Stevenage Town four years later.
They had some success in the Southern League but folded in 1967, after which Stevenage Athletic were created in their place a year later. This incarnation again knocked about in the Southern League but went bankrupt in 1976.
This brings us to Stevenage Borough, formed shortly after Athletic's demise, and this time they managed to prosper and work their way up the leagues until finally reaching the Football League in 2010, at which point they took the whole thing full circle by dropping the Borough from their name and becoming Stevenage FC.
Despite their relatively short history, Stevenage have won a number of trophies and competitions, including two FA Trophy cups in 2007 and 2009.
 
The Lamex Stadium holds 6722 people, 3142 of which can be seated. To put it into perspective, three full houses at Stevenage could fit into the Meadow Lane stands with 45 seats to spare.
The highest attendance recorded at the stadium was 8040 for a match against Newcastle United in the FA Cup fourth round on 25 January 1998. A temporary stand was erected behind the away end to increase the stadium capacity to 8100, enough to satisfy FA requirements.
Two films were set in and around Stevenage, Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush and Boston Kickout. Spy Game was partly filmed in Stevenage but set in Washington DC.
A number of famous sporting figures were born in Stevenage, the most notable of which are Lewis Hamilton, Jack Wilshere, Ashley Young, Ian Poulter, Kevin Phillips and Jason Shackell.
---
Teddy Sheringham takes charge of Stevenage for the first time in competitive action against Notts County with few injury concerns.
Striker Brett Williams, defenders Mark Hughes and Fraser Franks, plus midfielder Steven Schumacher could all make their competitive debuts.
Striker Ben Kennedy, however, is a long-term absentee following an operation on a hip problem, while midfielder Chris Whelpdale is also out for a lengthy period with a groin injury.
Notts, meanwhile, travel to Hertfordshire without several first-team players.
Midfielder Rob Milsom, one of 18 summer signings, is nursing a knee problem while striker Ronan Murray and defender Taylor McKenzie are also sidelined through injury.
Transfer-listed duo Nicky Wroe and Will Hayhurst are not expected to be involved.
Left-back Blair Adams is striving to be fit after missing the final pre-season friendly fixture against Scunthorpe United.
Joe Jones
Tomorrow, Saturday 1st August 2015, English football history will be made.
The FA Women’s Cup final is being played at the iconic Wembley Stadium for the first time in its history.
It’s set to be the biggest in the competition's history, with more than 26,000 tickets already sold.
Neither Notts County nor Chelsea, the two teams contesting it, have ever won the showpiece of the women’s game in its 44-year history.
And of course, given England’s wonderful showing at the World Cup, interest in the women’s game on these shores has never been greater.
So great was the Lionesses’ impact in Canada that the final will now be shown on BBC One instead of BBC Two as previously planned.
 
For anyone who’s forgot exactly what England’s campaign contained, let’s go through a checklist:
- Opening day defeat in the group stage? Check.
- The team rallying round and claiming two victories in the subsequent matches to qualify? Check.
- Defeating a strong nation in the round of 16 and getting people to think 'we may be on to something'? Check.
- Knocking out the hosts in the quarters and getting further than ever before? Check.
- A heartbreaking defeat at the death which has created a valiant yet unlucky and heartbroken hero which everyone rallies round to show support? Check.
- Beating Germany, one of the best sides in the world, by means of a penalty scored by a player who has overcome adversity the likes of which most people would have never experienced, and with a stunning redemptive performance by the previous round's hard done by player to secure World Cup medals and get further than any England side barring the 1966 winners? Check.
 
England's class of 2015 effectively played out the perfect World Cup campaign, which contained hope, skill, passion, heartbreak and redemption.
The last time I can think of an England football team that delivered anything close to the above was in 1996, or at a push, 2002. And if you want to remember the last time England actually got their hands on some medals, you have to go back 49 years, to… you guessed it, 1966.
 
Needless to say, tomorrow’s game is going to be a very, VERY big deal.
And Ray Trew’s decision to invest heavily in the women’s team at Notts County appears to have paid dividends.
Myself, I cannot believe that I’m going to Wembley to watch my team represented on the biggest domestic stage of all, at the home of football. It’s absolutely incredible.
It promises to be a wonderful day, and this is even before taking into consideration the fact that Notts could be bringing the first major piece of silverware to our city since 1990, when the noisy neighbours brought home the League Cup.
No matter what happens, it’s going to be an amazing occasion, but if Laura Bassett, whose indomitable narrative during the World Cup was just as powerful as that which befell Paul Gascoigne on the Stadio Delle Alpi pitch 25 years, ends up lifting the trophy for the Lady Pies, it’ll be sensational beyond words.
Lady Pies, I’d like to wish you all the best. We at Pride of Nottingham will be in the stands supporting you every step of the way, come rain or shine. You’ve made the city proud and, as one of the teams which play in the Women’s Super League and have contributed so many players to the Lionesses class of 2015, you’ve made the entire country proud.
COME ON YOU PIES!!!

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Pride of Nottingham is an independent fansite devoted to Notts County, the world’s oldest professional football club. Created in 2013, it has served as a source of Magpie news, features, match previews, reports, analysis and interviews for more than three years.

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