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Kevin Nolan tells Notts County players to enjoy FA Cup meeting with Swansea City

Kevin Nolan has given his Notts County players one simple message ahead of their FA Cup fourth-round meeting with Swansea City - "enjoy it".
The Magpies have seen off Bristol Rovers, Oxford City and Brentford to reach round four, where they have been drawn with the Premier League strugglers.
Although Swansea have picked up form in recent weeks, including a shock win over Liverpool, Nolan is eager for the players to just make the most of the occasion.
“Enjoy it,” Nolan said at his press conference, as quoted by the Nottingham Post.
“When I was playing, and because the priority was the league, I was always left out of the squad.
“But these are the games that, when I look back, I would have loved to played in.
“These games don’t often come along. It’s once a year and it’s how far you can get in the competition.
“I want my lads to enjoy it from now until 5pm on Saturday. And whether we win, or lose, I know they will have given me everything to make sure they get into the next round.”
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Joe Jones

League Two news roundup: 18-25 January 2018

What's been happening in League Two over the last week?
Here is Pride of Nottingham's round-up of the biggest League Two news from the last seven days.
- Exeter City have signed forward Ryan Loft on loan from Tottenham Hotspur until the end of the season.
- Crewe Alexandra will be without leading scorers Chris Porter and Chris Dagnall for several weeks because of injury.
- The Railwaymen have also completed the loan signing of Carlisle United striker Shaun Miller on a deal until the end of the season.
- Mansfield Town leading goalscorer Danny Rose has signed a new deal which keeps him tied to the One Call Stadium outfit until the end of the 2019-20 season.
- Yeovil Town midfielder Otis Khan has been banned for five games for shoving the referee in Saturday's defeat to Chesterfield and will miss Friday's FA Cup tie against Manchester United.
- Colchester United have signed Millwall defender Paul Rooney on a deal until the end of the 2018-19 season for an undisclosed fee.
- Forest Green Rovers have signed West Bromwich Albion striker Tahvon Campbell on loan until the end of the season.
(Sources: BBC Sport and Sky Sports News)
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Joe Jones

Kevin Nolan sticks up for Ross Fitzsimons following red card against Crawley

Notts County manager Kevin Nolan has stuck up for goalkeeper Ross Fitzsimons following his red card in the 2-1 defeat to Crawley Town on Tuesday.
The 23-year-old was sent off in injury time for kicking out at Mark Connolly after claiming a corner, also giving away a penalty which Josh Payne converted.
“What I’ve said to Ross stays with us,” Nolan told the Nottingham Post.
“Ross has been absolutely fantastic for me since he joined the club, but he knows he has done wrong.
“I am not going to protect him, but what we will do is rally round him and make sure he learns from this mistake.
“He’s still a young boy and this is his first major run in a team in the league ever.
“He’s let a silly push rattle him and it’s cost him. He’s probably going to miss three games and it cost us a point.”
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Joe Jones

Match Reaction: Notts County 1-2 Crawley Town, Tuesday 23 January 2018

Notts County have fallen to a second League Two home defeat in a row after Crawley Town won 2-1 at Meadow Lane on Tuesday night.
Jimmy Smith scored in the 25th minute to give the Red Devils the lead but Jon Stead levelled from the penalty spot 13 minutes in the second half.
It looked as though the Magpies would claim a point but late drama saw Matty Virtue sent off before Ross Fitzsimons also saw red - and conceded a penalty - for kicking out at an opposition player.
Josh Payne went on to convert his stoppage-time spot kick for their first ever win at Meadow Lane and leave Notts at risk of slipping out of the automatic promotion places.
How did the Notts boss, players and fans react to the game's events? Here is a round-up of the post-match reaction.
Kevin Nolan on the result
"It's disappointing to lose the game but it's the first time we've lost successive games in the league this season, which shows how far we have come.
"It could have been a different game for us if we had put our chances away in the first 10-15 minutes. Over the last two games I think we have created more chances than I can remember here but not put them away.
"We've been hit with sucker punches and I have told the lads we need to manage the game in both ways and we haven't done that in the last two games as well as we have done in the past.
"To lose a goal from a throw-in, which was so basic from our point of view, is disappointing.
"I'm proud of these lads to be where they are at at this stage of the season. Nobody envisaged it. What I want the players to do is go back to what they were doing and be true to themselves - they'll be ok."
Kevin Nolan on Ross Fitzsimons
"Ross has been fantastic for me since he joined the club but he knows he has done wrong tonight.
"I'm not going to defend or condone what he did but what we will do is rally around him and ensure he learns from this.
"This is his first major run in a league team and he has been doing really well but tonight he has let a silly push rattle him and it has cost him a three-game suspension."
The Black and White Army
Chris: Well, that all went out the window. FA Cup seems a potential downer now, if we win Notts must re-focus! Otherwise the cup could be a distraction to the current mission, we didn't go top by being lucky. So, lets get things back to how they was and sign two players (ST/CB).
Kevin Hopcroft: We need to be realistic. Where we are in the league is still amazing. We are still second. We are still over achieving. Every team has a dip in form at some point. You cant win every game. I agree we need a new centre half as we are conceding too easy. We also need a young hungry forward who can feed off either stead or ameobi. But come on look where we have been for the last 4-5 years and get behind the team. Let us be the twelth man instead off slating the players, manager and whoever else. COYP!!!!!
David Skelding: If we want to win promotion we're going to need to find some composure from somewhere. What's the point in entering the pitch all hyped up if you're just going to gift a poor opposing team two ridiculously preventable goals and have two men sent off?
James Odell: We are just getting far too predictable and easy to play against. Meant to be 433 but its obviously 451 with stead left isolated. Huge gap between strikers and midfield, never around to picking up 2nd balls on the edge of the box. Squad has over achieved all season sadly getting found out now.
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Joe Jones

ARLukomski: Why have Notts County changed formation?

Why have we changed formation?
If someone could tell me why, it would be great.
But why? Why have we done this?
In the last two recent games, Kevin Nolan has experimented a bit and changed to a new formation, switching from 4-4-2 to 4-2-3-1 with three central midfielders including Noor Husin, Matty Virtue and Liam Noble. This means Jon Stead is up front on his own with Jorge Grant and Lewis Alessandra on the wings.
However, this recent change hasn’t worked as shown by successive 2-1 losses at home to Exeter and Crawley. Notts’ amazing home record has been worsened by this change in formation and the results that have followed.
By all means, this formation can work if you have the right players but this Notts team doesn’t.
First you need to have a pacey striker up front - Aguero for Man City for example and Conor Chaplin at Portsmouth.
Notts cannot play this formation with Jon Stead up front. He is too slow and too isolated. We have next to no threat up top when we play one striker. Defenders are quick to get the ball off him before he ever has a chance to bring the wingers into play.
Next, you need to have a good attacking midfielder to play behind the striker. Someone like Luke Berry. Notts have this in Liam Noble but refuse him to play instead placing Matty Virtue into the role of the No.10 when we can clearly see that he has the same properties of Ryan Yates.
We have rushed three new midfielders into the side who have not played with each other before and if we continue to play this formation, they will have to have time to gel. You can’t take that risk in a promotion race especially when Notts have only taken 26 points from their last 19 games. Notts have dropped so many points, that the gap to 4th is now minimal.
In both games, when we reverted back to 4-4-2, we immediately looked more of a threat going forward. Virtue showed in the short time he had in the 4-4-2 formation against Crawley and his performance at Lincoln, that he can easily slot into Yates’ role. Just because of Yates’ recall, doesn’t mean we have to introduce a whole new system. It really isn’t needed. You have got to play Hewitt alongside him in midfield because he is the legs of the team. Even when Notts are out on their feet, Hewitt is still running around causing the opposition problems. He doesn’t stop running. These two in a 4-4-2 formation would be fine.
Noor Husin looked a lot better suited to our normal formation at the weekend. He became the man pulling the strings when we went 4-4-2 against Exeter, only for him to be replaced. I would like to see Liam Walker start a few games because every time he has come off the bench, he has been quality.
We have abandoned tactics that have worked so well for us all season. Why abandon them now? It makes no sense whatsoever.
4-4-2 gave us structure and stability. It gave us a Notts side that scored goals and gave us a Notts side that stood in second place. A striker, a centre back and a backup winger was all that was  (and still is) needed and Notts would have been fine. But no, this is Notts and we love to bottle every good opportunity that comes our way.
I salute Charlie Slater for his questioning of Nolan’s tactics last night on the radio. I love Nolan for what he has done for this football club so far but we’ve got to go back to basics otherwise we won’t even finish in the play-offs, never mind the automatic promotion places.
I am begging that Nolan returns to the formation and the tactics that bought us so much success all season. Look at Brentford. We played 4-4-2 and beat a Championship team. A CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM.
Seriously, we have got to go back to 4-4-2 otherwise we can kiss goodbye to promotion.
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ARLukomski

ARLukomski's Match Vlog: Notts County 1-2 Crawley Town, Tuesday 23 January 2018

Notts County have fallen to a second League Two home defeat in a row after Crawley Town won 2-1 at Meadow Lane on Tuesday night.
Jimmy Smith scored in the 25th minute to give the Red Devils the lead but Jon Stead levelled from the penalty spot 13 minutes in the second half.
It looked as though the Magpies would claim a point but late drama saw Matty Virtue sent off before Ross Fitzsimons also saw red - and conceded a penalty - for kicking out at an opposition player.
Josh Payne went on to convert his stoppage-time spot kick for their first ever win at Meadow Lane.
Notts vlogger and Pride of Nottingham contributor ARLukomski discussed the fixture ahead of kickoff, gave his thoughts as the game went on, and talked about the performance and result after the final whistle.
Follow ARLukomski on his YouTube channel by clicking here.
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ARLukomski

Kevin Nolan: 'Referee in Notts v Crawley game simply wasn't good enough'

Kevin Nolan has criticised referee Scott Oldham for his officiating in Notts County's 2-1 defeat to Crawley Town, insisting "he simply wasn't good enough".
Tuesday's rescheduled League Two game proved another forgettable evening for the Magpies as they ended the game pointless and down to nine men.
Matty Virtue was sent off for a second yellow card before Ross Fitzsimons lashed out at a Crawley player for a red card and a penalty which was converted by Harry Kewell's side.
“I was angry for all the wrong reasons,” Nolan told the Nottingham Post after the game.
“I was very disappointed to lose the game and when you look back, it’s the little decisions that referees get wrong are costing us at the minute.
“One of those was Matty Virtue’s yellow card. It’s not a yellow – everybody can see it.
“The lad has won the ball cleanly. Then for the second red, it’s a goal kick and not a corner.
“But listen I am not going to try to look after Ross Fitzsimons in this because we all take accountability for our own actions.
“It has cost us a point, but if it’s a goal kick then it doesn’t happen.
“But I’ve said to the lads that to suffer back to back defeats for the first time this season shows how far we have come.
“I am delighted with that. I don’t want to keep harping on about referees but he simply wasn’t good enough to referee this game.”
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Joe Jones

Match Report: Notts County crumble in late defeat to Crawley Town

Notts County have suffered a second League Two home defeat in the space of three days as Crawley Town emerged 2-1 winners at Meadow Lane on Tuesday night.
The Magpies' unbeaten league home run came to an end at the weekend as Exeter City won 2-1 and the Red Devils won by the same scoreline in a game which ended in rambunctious circumstances.
Kevin Nolan's side began brightly, forcing five corners in the first ten minutes, and nearly took the lead when Matty Virtue's shot was hacked off the line by Josh Lelan.
Lewis Alessandra then came just as close when Liam Noble's header came off an opposition defender and fell to the winger but his shot on the turn clipped the top of the bar on its way over.
The pendulum soon swung the other way, however, and Crawley enjoyed a bright spell before taking the lead on 25 minutes.
Lelan’s throw on the right was flicked on by Thomas Verheydt towards Jimmy Smith, who made the most of the space at his disposal to volley beyond Ross Fitzsimons and inside the right-hand post.
The first half ended with Notts on the back foot, save for Virtue heading a yard wide in stoppage time from Dan Jones’s cross.
The restart saw the hosts push forward in a bid to chase an equaliser and enjoyed several good chances as Grant volleyed wide of the post before Stead curled wide of the upright.
Eventually the equaliser came when Lelan was adjudged to have handled inside the area for a Notts penalty, which Stead dispatched low to the keeper's right.
Unfortunately, County's hopes of hanging on to a point were dashed in stoppage time when Virtue was shown a second yellow card before Fitzsimons, looking to send a claimed corner upfield, was blocked by Mark Connolly.
The Notts keeper lashed out and kicked the Crawley man, prompting the ref to not only send him off, but to award the visitors a penalty, which Josh Payne slotted home.
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Joe Jones

Scouting Report: Notts County vs. Crawley Town, Tuesday 23 January 2018

Notts County have the opportunity to put their 2-1 defeat to Exeter City behind them with tonight's League Two home game against Crawley Town.
How have the Red Devils been doing in the league? Who are their key players? And how are they expected to play?
Pride of Nottingham's Chris takes a look in our latest Scouting Report.
Head to head
Notts County have played Crawley Town 11 times in their history.
The first fixture between the two was on 10 November 2012 at Meadow Lane, a League One meeting which finished 1-1.
Meanwhile the return fixture, played away on 9 March 2013, ended as a goalless draw.
The record stands at seven Notts wins, two Crawley wins, and two draws - all games took place either in League One or League Two.
Notts have won their last five games in a row agains Crawley, and seven of the last eight.
Run-down of their last six features
Saturday 23rd December – Accrington Stanley 2 Crawley Town 3
Tuesday 26th December – Crawley Town 0 Colchester United 2
Saturday 30th December – Crawley Town 1 Stevenage 0
Monday 1st January – Yeovil Town 1 Crawley 2
Saturday 13th January – Crawley Town 2 Barnet 0
Friday 19th January – Newport County 2 Crawley Town 1
The Players – Fact Sheet
Highest Goal Scorers: Jordan Roberts 7, Enzio Boldewijn 6, Jimmy Smith 5 and Ibrahim Meite 3.
Persistent Foulers: Jordan Roberts 7 yellow cards and 1 red card, Josh Yorwerth 5 yellow cards and 1 red card, Mark Randall 6 yellow cards and Jimmy Smith 3 yellow card and 1 card.
The Key Players
In midfield, Lewis Young is a versatile player who offers a lot of pace – the younger brother of Manchester United star Ashley Young will be a player which will be required to be marked tightly by the magpies defence.
Also, Jordan Roberts is a tall posing player who has added goals to his tally this season. The creative spark within Crawley’s midfield – he has the ability to switch from an out-wide area to convert nicely within the centre park.
Enzio Boldewijn is a threat up top and, on his day can really cause havoc in the oppositions defence.
Style of Play, Strengths, and Weaknesses
Crawley Town are a physical but slow building team that focuses on creating chances from out wide, and hitting the opposition when space opens up.
They tend to sit back in an effort to absorb the pressure, this allows them to get a good feel for the game, and ultimately understand their counterparts better.
Due to this, the Red Devils can largely but put on the back foot from good play and as a direct result it puts them in danger – defensively they roll the dice a fair bit and rely on luck to survive conceding.
On the ball, they like ot press deep and use aerial balls as a way to cause havoc – where pace can exploit their opposition they do show no signs of fearing taking a team on, and if losing being a goal or two down doesn’t deter them either.
They’re a decent League Two team, who have the foundations to cause any side within this league problems.
However, due to their style of play and inconsistent performances – they do make it an uphill task for themselves not only to remain in competition for any points but also when creating their own chances on goal.
It’s clear that Notts will have to think more about how to hold the ball, whilst protecting their creative players.
Frustration will also be something that Notts will have to keep in check, so it’s important that little niggles don’t become a larger concern as the game progresses – as both sides will be naturally guilty of making silly mistakes.
I would like to see Notts use the flanks, as a way to gain ground but also switch to the centre of the park using timed overlaps as a way to directly cut in behind the opposition.
More chances should naturally fall for both teams, however if Notts focus more on the ground and use their feet well – this will unlock the Crawley Town defence in my opinion.
Set pieces and free kicks from an heading position may be an area whereby Notts could exploit.
However, they shouldn’t be scared to have a shot from distance.
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Chris

Kevin Nolan: 'Managers should be given chance to make use of VAR'

Kevin Nolan has claimed that managers should be given power to use video assisted refereeing (VAR) to challenge major decisions.
At present, either the referee or the video assistant can make use of the system when there is a "clear and obvious error" involving goals, penalty awards, red cards, or mistaken identity.
Nolan, meanwhile, is proposing a system similar to tennis or cricket, and thinks both managers should be allowed one unsuccessful challenge per match.
"You won't have as many stops, possibly only two. Once you've got it wrong, as a manager you have to say 'right, keep schtum and trust the referee', the Notts County boss told BBC Sport.
"Give managers a flag to say we want something reviewing. That stops the game right away.
"What it [the review] will do is tell the referee that he got something that he's seen spot on and that will give him a confidence boost, or they will go 'fair enough you have seen something different, so let's have a look at it'.
"What VAR does is give us the opportunity to go to the screen if we need to.
"Say I think it is a penalty and the referee hasn't given it, I can put the flag up and say I want to look at the penalty.
Then if we go to the VAR and give the penalty, I keep my flag. If it's not, I lose it and then we have the discussion afterwards. That is the best way."
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Joe Jones

Kevin Nolan: 'No team has deserved to beat Notts County at home since Portsmouth last April'

Kevin Nolan has claimed that no team has deserved to beat Notts County at home in the league since Portsmouth last April.
The South Coast side won at Meadow Lane at the tail end of last season to secure promotion and, since then, the Magpies had remained unbeaten on their own turf in League Two.
However, Exeter City have now ended County's superb unbeaten league home record, winning 2-1 on Saturday.
Speaking ahead of Tuesday night's meeting with Crawley Town, Nolan says his side will look to bounce back, and couldn't help but feel bemused about losing the record.
“We are just looking for a reaction,” Nolan told the Nottingham Post.
“When we lost to Swindon, we followed that up with a really good performance against Port Vale just a couple of days later.
“For me, it does not matter we lost at home. It was a fantastic record that we held and hats off to the lads because we had some really good teams come here this year.
“Exeter were the team who ended the run, but I don’t think they deserved to win. In fact, I don’t think anybody has deserved to since we played Portsmouth last April.
“But I felt we did more than enough to get something out of the game at the weekend, and the only thing I didn’t think we didn’t do, is work the keeper enough. That’s what we have been working on over the last 48 hours or so.”
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Joe Jones

Stat Attack: Notts County vs. Crawley Town, Tuesday 23 January 2018

Head to head
Notts County have played Crawley Town 11 times in their history.
The first fixture between the two was on 10 November 2012 at Meadow Lane, a League One meeting which finished 1-1.
Meanwhile the return fixture, played away on 9 March 2013, ended as a goalless draw.
The record stands at seven Notts wins, two Crawley wins, and two draws - all games took place either in League One or League Two.
Notts have won their last five games in a row agains Crawley, and seven of the last eight.
Stats
Notts have only won two of their last eight games, drawing four and losing two.
Despite still sitting second in League Two, the chasing pack are now just a few points behind.
Accrington Stanley and Exeter City now have the possibility to leapfrog the Magpies with their game in hand.
Crawley, meanwhile, have won six of their last 10, allaying their early-season relegation fears.
Harry Kewell's side went into last weekend's game on the back of a three-match winning run but lost 2-1 at Newport County on Friday night.
History
Crawley Town have been a non-league side for the majority of their history.
In the 2010s, when Notts were struggling to survive in the old Second Division, Crawley had just been promoted from the Southern Football League.
Crawley have won plenty of silverware in their history, though the majority of it is amateur-based.
This changed when they won the Conference National title in 2011 and the League Two title just a year later.
2010-11 was a record-breaking season not just for Crawley, but also for the Conference.
The West Sussex club broke the points total in one season (105) and tie with other teams for most wins in one season (31), fewest defeats (3), and highest goal difference (+63).
Because of this season, alongside the funds they had to buy players and an unlikeable manager (Steve Evans), they were known as “the Manchester United of non-league football”.
The town of Crawley is known for being close - just three miles in fact - to Gatwick Airport, the world's busiest single-runway international airport.
Famous people who have links to Crawley include Australian footballer Kevin Muscat (born in Crawley), Gareth Southgate (attended the town's Hazelwick School), English rock band The Cure (formed in Crawley, several of its members attended St Wilfrid's RC School) and Gorillaz lead singer 2D (a fictional character, his back story claims he grew up in the town).
Team news
Shaun Brisley was taken off against Exeter City and Kevin Nolan says the defender has a haematoma and will not be risked against Crawley.
Richard Duffy was back in training on Monday, while Matt Tootle sat it out, but both players could potentially play a role in Tuesday night's game.
Crawley team news to follow.
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Joe Jones

Shaun Brisley to miss Crawley Town game, confirms Kevin Nolan

Kevin Nolan has confirmed that Shaun Brisley will not be risked in Notts County's midweek League Two game with Crawley Town.
The 27-year-old, one of the club's most consistent performers this season, was forced off late on in Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Exeter City due to a dead leg.
Although Richard Duffy is back in training after missing the weekend game at Meadow Lane, the Magpies boss admits that the team "cannot afford" to be without Brisley for more than two games.
“I am disappointed because he has a knock on his leg and he has a bit of a haematoma,” Nolan told the Nottingham Post.
“He feels good within himself, and Tuesday may come a bit too soon for him. We won’t risk him anyway because he’s got to be 100 per cent if he plays.
“If he misses one or two games then that’s fair enough, but we cannot afford it to be any longer. We are just giving him as much time as we possibly can.”
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Joe Jones

Former Notts County star Alan Judge considering loan move away from Brentford

Alan Judge has admitted that he will seek a loan move away from Brentford this month if he's not involved in Saturday's Championship game against Norwich City.
The former Notts County winger had been out of action for nearly two years with a compound leg fracture but made his first-team comeback in the FA Cup third-round defeat against his former club.
However, Judge did not feature in the Bees squad for the subsequent two games against Bolton and Reading, and speaking to the Sunday Times, he expressed his frustrations at being overlooked.
“This is probably the hardest part,” Judge said in an interview reprinted by Get West London. “It’s massively frustrating. You are just there waiting, but the team is doing well, I totally understand that.
“I feel I am good enough to be involved, and I think I have shown that. I need minutes and the only way I can get them is by the manager putting me on the pitch. You don’t want to be told to be patient anymore.
“I’m not one to make a fuss, but if by the end of January I am not playing I will need to go on loan. Hopefully people will remember what I did two years ago and think ‘he’s worth taking a punt on’.”
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Joe Jones

Liam Noble: 'Crawley Town midweek game perfect for Notts County to conjure up reaction'

Liam Noble has stressed that Notts County need a reaction in Tuesday night's fixture against Crawley Town following their weekend loss to Exeter City.
The Magpies' proud unbeaten league home record, which stood since April 2017, came to an end on Saturday as goals from Jake Taylor and Jayden Stockley gave the visitors a 2-1 win.
Notts are in action again in midweek, the fixture having been rescheduled due to their FA Cup progress, and Noble says it works out well to have the chance to bounce back straight away.
“We were disappointed to lose the home record the way we did and it would have been a long week if we didn't have this game,” Noble told the official Notts website.
“We need a reaction from everyone and I'm sure we will get it. There are 18 games left and there will be a lot of twists and turns to go along the way.
“You're always going to get two or three weeks where you look at the scores after a defeat and everyone around you has won but there's no point looking at it or worrying until there are a few games left because it will keep changing.
“Teams will continue to take points off one another and plenty of them still have to play each other too. We just need to keep going because we have the squad to bounce back.”
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Joe Jones

Kevin Nolan pleased with performance of Notts County "team in transition" against Exeter City

Kevin Nolan has described Notts County as "a team in transition" and praised each of the home debutants in Saturday's League Two encounter with Exeter City.
The returning Liam Noble was drafted into the starting XI, as were youngsters Matty Virtue and Noor Husin, in a side which had to be rejigged due to the absence of Richard Duffy and Matt Tootle.
Nolan says he was happy with how the new players performed, and felt towards the end of the match that the Magpies played some of the best football during his reign so far, despite the 2-1 defeat.
"This is a team in transition with different types of players coming in who are finding their feet in the team," Nolan told the Nottingham Post.
"We gave three home debuts today and I thought they all did terrifically well. I'm delighted with that and it's another positive for us.
"We played some wonderful stuff, some of the best under my tenure, but we didn't have the cutting edge at the end."
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Joe Jones

Meet the Fans: Notts County 1-2 Exeter City, Saturday 20 January 2018

Notts County's superb unbeaten league home run has come to an end as Exeter City ran out 2-1 winners in Saturday's encounter at Meadow Lane.
The high-flying Grecians, who are in the promotion mix, took the lead after just seven minutes through Jake Taylor.
Jayden Stockley then doubled the visitors' lead just before half time as the Magpies struggled to click with several new players in the XI and in the absence of Matt Tootle and Richard Duffy.
Jon Stead pulled a goal back for the hosts with a second-half penalty, won after Shola Ameobi was hauled down in the box, but sadly Notts could not go on to find an equaliser.
Pride of Nottingham was at the game and interviewed a number of County fans prior to kickoff.
Questions asked include how Alan Hardy and Kevin Nolan have done in their first 12 months, whether Matty Virtue will be a good replacement for Ryan Yates and whether they are happy with the transfer business conducted so far.
Check out what the Black and White Army had to say in our latest episode of Meet the Fans!
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Joe Jones

Match Reaction: Notts County 1-2 Exeter City, Saturday 20 January 2018

Notts County lost their unbeaten home league record as Exeter City secured a 2-1 victory at Meadow Lane.
First-half goals from Jake Taylor and Jayden Stockley gave the promotion-chasing Grecians a two-goal advantage.
Although Jon Stead scored a penalty, the Magpies could not go on to find an equaliser
The result means that Notts have tasted their first defeat in the league in front of their own fans since Portsmouth won last April.
What was the reaction from the Notts boss, players and fans following the draw? Here is a collection of the best post-match reaction.
Kevin Nolan
“It was a disappointing afternoon and it always is when you lose a game. But I thought the lads’ reaction in the second half was absolutely fantastic.
“I thought we totally outplayed Exeter, and while we created lots of opportunities, the ball just didn’t seem to fall for us or we didn’t work the keeper well enough.
“I just thought the response was better all round because in the first half we showed them a little bit too much respect.
“But I did feel that the free-kick which led to the first goal shouldn’t have been given and when a team scores off the back of it shows how big those decisions are.
“I discussed that at the end with the referee because little decisions are just as important.
“It was the same for their second goal. Their lad can’t win the ball without going through Jorge Grant.
“There is a ref and a lineman there and I am bewildered as to why the free-kick wasn’t given.
“But these are the decisions they have to get right even though I thought the referee had a decent game.”
Liam Noble
“I was disappointed to not get something out of the game, but going 2-0 down in the first half wasn’t good enough.
“We showed a good reaction in the second half but we can’t put ourselves in that position.
“We just fell short and we didn’t pick up enough second balls.
“But it was nice to be back out there and it would have been better had we got the result we had wanted.”
Jorge Grant
 
The Black and White Army - PON Forum
Chris:
I have to say, I fell Notts performed very poorly yesterday.
The first half wasn't very good at all, we committed players to far up the field and nobody bar Dan Jones had the pace to track back. Stead shouldn't have been playing on his own up front, though why does he insist on dropping to his knees as soon as he gets the ball? Yes, sometimes there was force and pushing but he never draws the foul to a convincing point for me.
Our midfield seemed very capable but sluggish to drive forward anything remotely creative.
Second half I felt Notts played some great stuff, yet we never looked likely to score and we just have this habit of trying to force the play - we need an Alan Judge type player that isn't afraid to shoot from distance. Go on Kevin, get Noble and some of the others to practice this - even Grant seemed woeful!
The referee didn't help but we should play beyond this, we just seemed to allow his poor handling to be bigger than it should.
Exeter I felt was very poor also, they used school boy diversion tactics and frequently cheated. I noticed several incidents which went unpunished, from a two footed challenge to one of their players hitting out at Virtue (for no reason).
At the end of the day we was poor and, I struggle to suggest we deserved anything from it.
United Pie:
With that loss yesterday my nerves are starting to rattle exester are starting to have a late serge. That loss now puts us in danger of the casing pack closing in on us Accrington are a game in a hand and can now go second with a win we need to hold our nerve and play like we have been doing. Cause loosing games like yesterday day dose not get you promoted.
Liampie:
fans near me kept going on about us missing yates but i think even he would have struggled yesterday.
we started poorly and it became a game of chasing them after the early goal for exeter. i think the better team won tbh, we did not create enough clear chances and for that reason i am disappointed. i think they scored from their first two shots on target! standards are slipping nolan.
ARLukomski:
I feel like we are gonna bottle this if we keep going the way we are. Nolan got it completely wrong yesterday. If it ain’t broken, don’t try and fix it. No idea why we went with 4-2-3-1 when it’s untried, untested and unproven with this team. Why change a formation that’s been working all season. Hunt plays everyone on for the first goal. Second one is a woeful pass by Virtue. Husin was bought off when he was doing well. Noble and Walker looked quality in the centre of midfield yesterday.  Hewitt is not a centre back, we desperately need to sign some cover. Early in the second half, four good balls were put into the box with nobody’s on the end of them, showing again why we so badly need a striker. Alessandra missed a sitter at the back post. Ameobi won the penalty then afterwards didn’t look bothered. The problem is yesterday’s selection was caused by injuries and again we have no strength in depth. Luton can have injuries and replace them players with players who are just as good. Tootle is ill and we replace him with a grandfather clock.
The Black and White Army - Social media
Peter Walker: Still In a better place than last January! Either we play Jonathan Forte or we get a striker in not another midfield player
Steve Brewer: Didn't play bad. Ref had a hand in both of their goals although it was bad defending and the goalie should have stoppe d
Stuart Anderson: 1st half was awful, why the hell we started 1 up top beggers belief!! 2nd started ok but we dominated when we bought a 2nd striker on! We need a pacey striker who knows where the net Is!! I thought Noble was very good today.
Adrian Wheatley: If today dont make them look for defenders then nothing will nothing on the bench for central defence and let the only option leave for free?
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Joe Jones

Match Highlights: Notts County 1-2 Exeter City, Saturday 20 January 2018

Notts County's superb unbeaten league home run has come to an end as Exeter City ran out 2-1 winners in Saturday's encounter at Meadow Lane.
The high-flying Grecians, who are in the promotion mix, took the lead after just seven minutes through Jake Taylor.
Jayden Stockley then doubled the visitors' lead just before half time as the disjointed Magpies struggled to cope against their opponents.
Jon Stead pulled a goal back for Notts with a second-half penalty, won after Shola Ameobi was hauled down in the box, but sadly the hosts could not go on to find an equaliser.
Should you wish to see them, here are the official Notts YouTube highlights from the game.
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Joe Jones

Tactical Talk: Notts County 1-2 Exeter City, Saturday 20 January 2018

Notts County's superb unbeaten league home run has come to an end as Exeter City ran out 2-1 winners in Saturday's encounter at Meadow Lane.
The high-flying Grecians, who are in the promotion mix, took the lead after just seven minutes through Jake Taylor.
Jayden Stockley then doubled the visitors' lead just before half time as the Magpies struggled to click with several new players in the XI and in the absence of Matt Tootle and Richard Duffy.
Jon Stead pulled a goal back for the hosts with a second-half penalty, won after Shola Ameobi was hauled down in the box, but sadly Notts could not go on to find an equaliser.
How did the game pan out? Pride of Nottingham's Chris takes a look with this weekend's Tactical Talk.
Was the result fair?
It’s very hard to say it the result was fair or not, I feel a draw may have been deserved but ultimately I do acknowledge that Notts were poor yesterday – likewise I feel Exeter equally unimpressed but we massively lack any real quality on goal.
How did Notts play?
For me we seemed too focused on attacking, rather than retaining the ball – we frequently gave it away very cheaply and the whole way we played made it very difficult to match the speed/creativity which Exeter did process.
In the second half things did change, we held the ball and knocked it around – yet we never drawn Exeter’s player out or made space available. We tended to waste chances by trying to force the play, and only until Shola Ameobi came on did we look like a team able to get through the oppositions defence – simply we played a game of two halves. 
How did Exeter play?
They played okay, at times quite exciting but for some reason they always insisted on doing something which wasn’t really required. I considered them to be a very good team coming into the game, yet I feel their schoolboy tactics and efforts to cheat really became unimpressive. When they focused on playing ‘football’ they looked a useful side but I think they’d have struggled to score if Notts had performed better and had noticed what they were doing.
Did our tactics work out?
Not very well in the first half. In midfield, we had too many new faces, this really meant that Notts had to have a little more creativity on the ball and we never really saw this until the second half. We focused on attacking more than we did retaining the ball or even defending – it was clear a few minutes in that Exeter would push us due to how far we seemed to be playing up the pitch. Second half Notts played better, yet at no point was it really enough – it highlighted exactly why we need a striker and a defender as outlined in my January transfer window article (please link)
How did the referee perform?
I felt he was poor, yet his decisions seemed more ‘blinded’ than negligent – I do feel he favoured Exeter, who’s players seemed to get away with everything but really he’s the standard of your typical League Two referee and I feel Notts should be smarter to this.
Who do we play next?
Crawley Town – another test in terms of the physical side of the game. They won’t be pushed off the ball or bullied and they will pressure us for the ball. We need to be stronger and more creative, as I feel these are points to be claimed.
How should we play them?
Notts need to be focused defensively, we can’t play too far up the field and if Nicky Hunt starts – he needs to be told to only go forward when we can afford his absence.
In midfield I think we need to be calmer, more patient with our build-up play and attempt to draw the opposition out – as against Exeter we seemed to pack the centre of the park and this really limited the space that we could have exploited.
With Crawley being your typical ‘physical’ League Two team, we need to be mindful about giving them any sort of space on the pitch.
Whilst we lack pace at the back, wise positional play would give the magpies advantage and I think any attacks should be phased and risk assessed for being caught out.
I’d like to see us use Jorge Grant and Liam Noble as a way to draw the opposition out, these played apart from each other would give us a means to break the Red Devils down and to allow some ‘creativity’ to get started.
Really, Notts should look to thrive under possession-based football and look to be more dynamic with awareness going forward.
Pressure the opposition defence, use link-up play to support the attacks and just pass the ball into space whereby this may release someone goal side – it’s not exactly difficult but if we give Crawley an inch they will take a mile.
Exeter fan views (from Exeweb)
Billy the Fish: The first half we took the game to them and was as complete a performance from City as I have seen in a long while. The second half County came out entirely differently and looked like promotion candidates, dangerous in attack but strangely vulnerable to our counter attacks. Lee Holmes looked out of sorts and Jordan Tillson is obviously just filling a position until the big boys are back. He works hard and gets his challenges in but today he was like a rabbit in the headlights whenever he found himself with the ball at his feet. All the others impressed, TAH rode his luck at times but otherwise every one them can be proud of themselves. I couldn't see the incident which saw Troy penalised and booked for the penalty but it came from a free kick awarded in front of us and the linesman and for which there was no discernable infringement. One of many strange refereeing decisions which infuriated both sets of fans. Great three points and a great day out.
Red Bill: Just watched the goals, what a great goal the second was. Fantastic ball from Harley and a great finish from Stockley. I feel making the most of Harley, who i hope has done a lot to silence his critics with some terrific peformances lately, could be key to a serious promotion push.
Andrew P Long: We went too defensive after going two up. Instead of trying to prevent them scoring we should've gone for their throat. If we had done that we'd have won more easily and comprehensively, say 1-4, and RHK was cheated out of more than a grand etc.
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Chris

Faces of PON: Notts County 1-2 Exeter City, Saturday 20 January 2018

Notts County's impressive unbeaten league home run in League Two has unfortunately come to an end at the hands of Exeter City.
The visitors raced into the lead at Meadow Lane after just eight minutes through Jake Taylor's tap-in.
Jayden Stockley, the Grecians' top scorer, then struck the decisive second just before half-time.
Jon Stead scored a second-half penalty after Shola Ameobi was hauled down in the box but the Magpies couldn't find an equaliser and so it ended 2-1.
Pride of Nottingham was at the Lane to watch the action unfold and took plenty of photos of the Notts fans.
Have a look through our gallery in this week's Faces of PON, published on our Facebook page, and don't forget to tag yourself and your loved ones!

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Chris

ARLukomski's Match Vlog: Notts County 1-2 Exeter City, Saturday 20 January 2018

Notts County's superb unbeaten league home run has come to an end as Exeter City ran out 2-1 winners in Saturday's encounter at Meadow Lane.
The high-flying Grecians, who are in the promotion mix, took the lead after just seven minutes through Jake Taylor.
Jayden Stockley then doubled the visitors' lead just before half time as the Magpies struggled to click with several new players in the XI and in the absence of Matt Tootle and Richard Duffy.
Jon Stead pulled a goal back for the hosts with a second-half penalty, won after Shola Ameobi was hauled down in the box, but sadly Notts could not go on to find an equaliser.
Notts vlogger and Pride of Nottingham contributor ARLukomski discussed the fixture ahead of kickoff, gave his thoughts as the game went on, and talked about the performance and result after the final whistle.
Follow ARLukomski on his YouTube channel by clicking here.
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ARLukomski

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