News Ticker
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- Notts County part company with Harry Kewell after just 14 games in charge
- Harry Kewell opens up on Kristian Dennis struggles at Notts County
- ARLukomski: Barnsley loss shows Notts County are on borrowed time
- Match Report: Notts County humbled in FA Cup by rampant Barnsley
- Harry Kewell: 'Jon Stead, Kane Hemmings likely to miss out in FA Cup Barnsley trip'
- For Club and Country: Southwell City FC, 1914-18
- Harry Kewell happy with how Notts County are progressing
- ARLukomski: Solihull Moors, Notts County are coming for you
- Match Report: Notts County once again disappoint in Oldham Athletic draw
- Harry Kewell previews Oldham Athletic clash and discusses Jon Stead fitness
Blogs
Loans, players in hindsight Notts could have possibly signed
Recruitment, recruitment, recruitment
Kewell's Dutch philosophy
Nolan managing an "unbalanced" side..budget misspent? Part 2
Round peg, round holes, square pegs, square holes, Hewitt fits neither
Nolan managing an "unbalanced" side..budget misspent?
How the poor start for Notts during the 2018-19 season has affected me
Looking ahead to the 2018/19 season for Notts County
New Year Resolution: Attend more Notts County away games in 2018
blog Little changes make a big difference
It's Never Dull...
A frustrating goalless draw at home to Luton followed, before we just about avoided FA Cup embarrassment to non-league opposition again, coming from 2 down to rescue a draw at Boreham Wood. There's a first time for everything, and that was the first time I've found myself watching a game from the toilet block door to stay out of the rain! An utterly calamitous 4-0 trouncing at Bloomfield Road put a slight dampener on what was an otherwise cracking weekend in Blackpool, before bottom side Newport came to the Lane and tore us a new one. Shaun Derry was then on hand to rub salt into the wounds 4 days later, before another masterclass in defensive ineptitude handed Barnet 3 points at The Hive, in a game where Notts should have been 3 to the good by the time Barnet got on the scoresheet. Some degree of pride was briefly restored in the FA Cup second round, as we fought back from 2 down to earn a deserved replay with league one Peterborough, but the losing run in the league was stretched to 6 games as we threw away the lead at Colchester. By this stage, the atmosphere was starting to turn toxic, not only against the manager and the players, but the owner. The clear chants from the crowd for Trew to leave at Colchester proved to be much closer to the mark than any of us imagined, as the following Monday Trew announced that he had agreed a deal with Alan Hardy to sell the club. This meant that the army of Notts fans who travelled to Peterborough the next evening for the FA Cup replay were in good spirits, and with the prize at stake being a trip to Chelsea, there was a cracking atmosphere in the away end. It wasn't to be as we were comfortably beaten on the night, but it was a fantastic evening in that away end. The optimism was short lived as two more home defeats over the Christmas and New Year period left us just one place above the relegation zone, and 4-0 humbling at Cambridge in the first game of 2017 signalled the end of the road for yet another manager. John Sheridan was relieved of his duties, but we were still yet to hit rock bottom. That would come with an embarrassing surrender to ten man Morecambe, making it an unwanted club record of 10 consecutive league defeats, during which we shipped just the 27 goals! But thankfully, things were about to change for the better. Alan Hardy officially completed his takeover of the club, and wasted no time in appointing Kevin Nolan as manager. Some wondered if we were in a position to be able to afford to gamble on another rookie manager, but it was obvious that he and Hardy had already struck up a strong relationship, and quite frankly, many of us thought "sod it he can't do any worse". A bumper crowd of over 11,300 descened onto the Lane for the pairs first game at the club, and Notts finally stopped the rot with a hard fought goalless draw against local rivals Mansfield Town, who's fans seemed more interested in setting off flares than watching the game. We never did find out if any lifeboats actually responded... The next home game finally brought us our first win in what felt like an eternity, and in typical Notts fashion, it came in the most dramatic way possible. For the most part we had been all over Crawley, but try as we might we just couldn't find that all important goal, and when Curtis Thomspon saw red midway through the second half, after all of the chances we'd missed, you couldn't help but feel that a sucker punch was inevitable. But if anything, the red seemed to galvanise Notts further, and the home fans roared them forwards. Sure enough, with just 15 minutes remaining Thierry Audel headed Notts into the lead. Just ffteen minutes to hold on for that long awaited victory. Crawley had created nothing all game, surely this was it? Well this being Notts there had to be a sting in the tail, and when James Collins let fy from some 30 yards and his effort flew in off the underside of the bar, everyone's heart sank. Just typical, we had been the better side and had been hit with the sucker punch. "Watch them nick it now" I remember thinking to myself. But once again, the setback only seemed to strengthen our resolve, and when Crawley's keeper spilled a shot, Forte was on hand to smash the rebound home, sparking scenes of utter delerium around Meadow Lane. Those five minutes of injury time were five of the longest minutes of my life, but the sheer release of emotion at that final whistle will live long in the memory. There were grown men in tears. Unless you suffered through those 14 weeks of hell since the last win, you can't even begin to understand just how much that win meant to us, and the way in which we won it made it even more special. Moments like that are why we stick with our clubs through thick and thin. The joy was short lived, as a frustrating defeat at Accrington Stanley (I'll let you say it...) followed, and set up a relegation 6 pointer at home to Cheltenham. It was a game of huge importance for both sides, but by now Nolan was really starting to stamp his mark on the side, and wth the embargo being lifted at the 11th hour, he was able to bring in some useful signings for the run-in, and in particular Jorge Grant and Shola Ameobi would prove invaluable. Notts beat Cheltenham 2-1, and the never say die attitude Noaln had instilled was emphasised days later when Richard Duffy and Jorge Grant struck in injury time to rescue a dramatic draw at home to Exeter. This set up yet another relegation 6 pointer in East London against Leyton Orient. It proved not to be one for the faint hearted! Normally games like that are tight and nervy, but this was anything but. Both sides seemed to decide that the best form of defence was attack. Jorge Grant gave Notts a 35th minute lead which they would just about hold onto into half time. It looked like Jon Stead had settled the nerves when he doubled the lead early in the second half, but in typical Notts fashion, we allowed Orient straight back into it a minute later, to set up 40 of the most nail biting minutes those of us in attendance would experience all season. Orient threw everything at us, and the defending at times was desperate. We were beginning to edge towards a massive victory, but then ten minutes from time Notts failed to clear their lines, and Mezague struck an absolute rocket into the roof of the net to lift the roof off of Brisbane Road. Other scores were against us at the time, and now we were just hoping to hang on for the point. But some great skill from Bola carved open the Orient defence, and he pulled it back for the unmarked Jon Stead on the edge of the box, and the veteren frontman cooly rifled the ball into the bottom corner to spark utter chaos in the away end. We just about held out for the 6 minutes of injury time, and secured one of our most important wins of the season, and what a game it was too! A slightly less exciting goalless draw with Yeovil followed, before another memorable away win, this time in deepest Devon at promotion chasing Plymouth, on a Tuesday night. Ultimately it was a goalkeeping howler that let Grant in for the decisive goal midway through the first half, though any of the 163 hardy souls in the away end that night would tell you Notts were genuinely the better side on the night, and Plymouth wouldn't have had much ground for complaint if we'd won 3-0. The young Forest star (as the local chip paper loves to point out) was having quite an impact, and he slammed home one of the goals of the season to seal a 2-1 win over Hartlepool in another six pointer at Meadow Lane. Quite a contrast in the home form since the arrival of Nolan. A batting 3-1 loss at league leaders Doncaste followed, but so good was the run we had been on that we now had an 8 point cushion over the bottom 2, neither of whom were showing any signs of dragging themselves out of it. Safety was all but confirmed over the weekend of the 18th and 19th of March. Results went our way on the Saturday, but when Mark Yeates saw red for a rash challenge early on at home to Barnet, it looked like we might be thankful for those results going our way. But under Noaln we're a different animal, and this team doesn't know when it's beaten. We limited Barnet to very few openings, and Matt Tootle's goal early in the second half gave us something to defend. A combination of Notts runing themelves into the ground, and Barnet being a bit toilet meant we held on for a massive 3 points that took us 11 clear of the drop zone. The pressure of the dogfight was now off to some extent and we were able to enjoy the run in. Shola Ameobi's goal was enough to earn 3 points in a rather uneventful game at Wycombe, before we put in arguably our best performance under Nolan when comfortably seeing off play-off chasing Colchester at Meadow Lane. Four straight wins were notched up with Jon Stead and Matt Tootle scoring in the last 5 minutes to seal a dramatic comeback win at Carlisle, before an entertaining, if somewhat frustrating draw at Crewe. But by now we were already starting to look to next season, and not even the unbeaten home run under Nolan coming to an end against Portsmouth on Easter Monday could wash away the feel good factor. The final home game of the season saw us sign off with a hard fought and scrappy win over Blackpool, and it just brought home how much things have changed in the last year. 12 months ago we lost 5-0 to Carlisle on the final day, and the club was in complete turmoil. Now we're revitalised, and everybody is looking forwards. The feel good factor is back in the club. Watching Notts has gone back to being fun again. It was actually nice to go into that final game at Newport and be in a position to just enjoy the day. It was a shame we lost but credit to Newport, what a way to survive. I'm just glad it didn't hold any relevance for us, as it was only a few months ago that we were starting to look at that game as a potential do or die game! It's been another topsy turvy season at Meadow Lane, but we've come through it. I know we've had more false dawns than we care to remember at Notts, so I say it with extreme caution, but there is genuine cause for quiet optimism. I really do think that Nolan could build something special here if given the right backing. It's obvious him and Hardy have a special bond, and that's crucial. Look what it did for Derek Pavis and Neil Warnock. We need to be patient though and give him time. And I mean proper time. Don't panic and go and get rid of him at the first sign of things not going according to plan. We've been through a frankly embarrassing number of managers over the last few years and look where it's got us. Now more than ever we need some stability, and I trust Nolan to take us forwards next season. I really don't think we're that far off challenging at the right end of this league. The gap between the top and the bottom isn't that great. We beat 5 of this season's top 7 this season, so we know we can compete with the big teams. We'll see what happens come August. But as with any Notts season, it sure as hell won't be dull!
All's well that ends well
Pompey defeat left me looking forward to next season
Goodbye 'Notts-Joe'
Same Old Notts
In John Sheridan we have a no nonsense, old school manager, and I really had hoped that we had at least seen the last of these spineless surrenders. We can all take losing. In fact as Notts fans we’re almost immune to it, but its the manner in which you lose that matters, and these last two games have been nothing short of a disgrace and an embarrassment to this proud club, that would have had the two legends immortalised on Meadow Lane turning in their graves. Frankly, there should be a tear in the eye of both men as they look on at what their club has become.
This is why you can never get too excited as a Notts fan. No matter how well things seem to be going, disaster is always lurking just around the corner. Tell me, is it really just a mere coincidence that things have begun going **** up on the field just as speculation about the sale of the club rears its ugly head yet again?
I’ll be honest, I spent quite a few years defending Ray Trew, but to be honest the whole Jamie Fullarton saga was the final straw. The way he’s treating the supporters with utter contempt and refusing to give us any real information at all is sickening. It’s our club, and we have a right to know what’s going on. I really think a fans forum is needed. Ray Trew needs to look the paying punters in the eye and tell us honestly what the position of the club is; i.e. are we still for sale or not. If he tells us he’s had enough and wants out as soon as possible – fine. Quite frankly the feeling will be mutual among the majority of supporters. If he’s staying, then he needs to outline his plan for the future. Right now, we’re on a slippery slope out of the very league we helped establish, and as much as it really doesn’t bear thinking about, it’s a genuine concern. If we went out, I really doubt we’d ever come back.
I think most fans can agree that a change of ownership and direction is badly needed. Call me boring, but personally I don’t want another overseas consortium of millionaires coming in promising us the world and making totally unrealistic promises. We’ve been there, and we’ve seen countless other clubs go there, and it never ends happily ever after. All’s I want is someone who understands the club, who values the supporters, and who can give us that badly needed new lease of life. We don’t expect the world, we just want a competitive team on the pitch that we can be proud of, that will put bums on seats, and most of all – make supporting Notts fun again.
Right now we have a fan base which seems to dwindle further by the week, and those that remain grow more and more disillusioned by the week. The attendances at Meadow Lane have dropped even lower than what they were in the Trust years pre Munto when we were struggling just to survive in league 2. We all know how this place can be absolutely bouncing when we have something to get behind. You don’t even have to be winning titles for that. Just think back to the Great escape of 2014. The whole club was galvanised, and the supporters virtually pulled the team over the line themselves.
Right now, going to Meadow Lane is a depressing experience. The stands are sparsely populated, and there’s a feeling of doom and gloom even before kick off. This isn’t helped by our frankly unacceptable home form, which has seen us win just 15 out of our last 53 home league games. That’s downright pathetic, and totally unacceptable at any level.
Where we go from here, I really don’t know. On the pitch this season, I still think that if we can find some consistency we can do well this season. The players have proved that they are capable of digging in and grinding out results this season, which makes the last two games all the more difficult to stomach, and harder to understand.
But whatever happens, this club is suffering a very slow and painful death. We’re crying out for a new lease of life, which doesn’t appear to be forthcoming. So I guess we’ll just carry on struggling to compete in this league, merely going through the motions. It’s a sad and difficult time to be a Notts fan, and many lifelong fans have lost patience.
Me? Well I’m stupid, so despite calling the team every name under the sun on Saturday evening, come 3pm next Saturday I’ll still be at Barnet trying to convince myself that today is the day everything finally comes good.
Few of us have chosen our teams, we have merely been presented with them. And so as they slip from second division to the third, and from third division to fourth; as they sell their best players and replace them with journeymen looking for one last pay cheque before retirement; as they lump the ball for the seven hundredth time towards a 6 foot centre forward who somehow never wins a header; we simply curse, go home, worry for a week, then come back and do it all again. But that’s the life of a football fan isn’t it? You can change jobs, homes, partners, cars, virtually anything. But you’re football team – you’re stuck with them.
