Two men in the Championship... We're back!!!

[freddiw]

Maney can you have the result at the bottom,

 

[treva]

vs Bristol Rovers [A][Friendly]
My first huge test as manager at Bristol. The annual pre-season local derby against, to our fans, the worst club in the world. I needed to win. There was no doubt about it. If I didn't the fans would be on my back before the season had even started. I made just 2 changes from the good performance against Dunfermline, Vask? and Elliot being replaced by Orr and Betsy. I told the players that they had to do it for the club and the fans, but they already knew how big it was. For some of the guys that were new to the club didn't just realise how much of a big friendly it was. But as they got out on the pitch and saw the ground full they knew!

------------------------A.Basso-----------------------
B.Orr------L.Carey ?---J.McCombe---J.McAllister
S.Murray-----L.Johnson-----K.Betsy-----B.Wilson
--------------D.Byfield-----E.Showunmi----------

Subs: C.Weale, D.Noble, L.Fontaine, T.Vask?, I.Sproule, L.Trundle, M.Elliot & M.McIndoe

The annoying news I heard before the game was that Chris James had decided to play for Rovers rather than us, and that he would start today. To be fair I was rather gutted to hear that he decided to play League 1 football and not Championship, but at least we could show him what he was missing. I especially told the lads to stick tight and get stuck into him.

We threatened right from kick-off, Sproule having an early chance inside the 1st minute. Byfield and Showunmi caused them huge problems up top, and it was no surprise that on 22 minutes we got the breakthrough, Wilson tapping home a parried Byfield shot. Enoch Showunmi made it 2-nil after 39 mins, a mistake by their defender in the box left him with a simple finish. We went into half-time with the game in the bag. But our superb goalkeeper Adriano Basso let them back in it straight after the break. A back pass by Carey which Basso controlled poorly let them in to make it 2-1. But it was all over 11 minutes later, Showumni getting his 2nd of the game after some great link up play down the right hand side.

It stayed at 3-1 until the end, the fans giving off a huge roar with little Rovers fans left. A massive win, and a deserved one as well. 22 shots on goal with half of them hitting the target was the real plus side, although I would've liked a bit more possession (we had 50%). Showunmi and Byfield were great, and Brian Wilson showed that he should be in the starting XI with a fine performance down the left wing.

Bristol Rovers 1-3 Bristol City
Richard Walker '46 - Brian Wilson '22, Enoch Showumni '39 & '57​

 

[covlad-99]

yay! A win at last. And it would have been a tremendously bad one to lose too! Keep it up Trev and Maney. Really enjoying this.

 

[thesweepmaster]

I think you had no choice but to win that one Trev considering it's the local rivals, but you've come out with an easy win and no bad news from from it so good overall. Nice update btw mate!

 

[freddiw]

good win there lets just hope you kep your form

 

[treva]

Weekly Review

Well after our fine win at the Rovers, it was back to transfer market duty and training. After the news that Chris James had decided to turn down our offer, I decided I needed to look elsewhere. But first the news that Derby had snapped up another one of our youngsters, this time forward Jennison Myrie-Williams. The 19 year-old would not be featured in the 1st side this season, and so it was best to let him go on to a bigger club where he could develop. A fee of ?110k was decided, which meant we had even more money to spend after having nothing when I came in.

Malcolm Christie, ex-Middlesborough and Derby, was available as a free agent. I quickly sent him a contract offer of ?3,700 per week until the summer of 2009. He accepted our teams, which meant I had filled that last striker spot I wanted to. The 28 year-old knew that he would have to fight for his place, but competition up-front was what I wanted. To my surprise I then got an email from Ipswich Football Club enquiring about how much Trundle would be let go for. Ben knew we had just signed him for a record deal of ?1mil, so it was obvious he was having a little joke. I sent back an email saying that we wanted ?10mil for him, which was unsurprisingly turned down by Mr.Manning!

The next bit of news, that came a day before our game with Barnet, was that Jerel Ifil had accepted our contract offer, and he was set to sign from Swindon for ?50k. Another centre back to add to our solid set of defenders that we already had. Competition was what I wanted and it looked certain to happen during this season. With the leaving of 2 scouts, and then a 3rd to Norwich, I signed two more. Adam Hinds and Declan Miller replaced Peter Johnson who left giving us ?40k in compensation. The final transfer news before our game with Barnet was that my ?10k offer for Yoon Sock-Young had been accepted from South Korean side Kwangyang Jechul High School. The 17 year-old had been announced as a future star of South Korean football, and so I sent my scout out to take a look at him. He came back with good reports so I made an offer for him, but I guess a work permit could be a problem.

Overall a good week in the transfer market. Next up was an away day at Barnet.

Malcolm Christie: The new man up-front​

 

[covlad-99]

Ah yes, I remember Christie from a few years back. Nice little signing, its great for a Championship club to get a player with Premier League experience. Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink at Cardiff and Nick Barmby at Hull would be a couple if examples.
Nice work Trev. Come on Maney! Lets hear some Town stuff

 

[Manly]

Not a game to remember, in all honesty. I'm not sure what I am more disappointed with, the lack of goals, or the number of times we conceded possession easily. Yes, we had 13 shots, and yes, we hit the woodwork 3 times, but against stronger opposition, we will be severely punished. Alex Bruce was booked for the 2nd game running, and I told him in the dressing room that if he gets to 10 for the season, he will be fined. It also reminded me to tell the boys that any bookings for dissent would be fined a week's wages.

Anyway, Fraiz, Danny and youngster Liam Barratt hit the woodwork, each shot coming off of the underside of the bar, and sometimes you wonder, "is it going to be one of those days?". It half was and half wasn't, and although we will need to perform better against Stoke on the 11th.
Danny Haynes bagged another pre-season goal, and he also picked up the MoM award, with a match rating of 8

HT: 0-0
FT: 0-1
​

What's been going on in Ipswich?​

The question should probably read "what hasn't been going on in Ipswich?", players have been released, players have been sold, links have been formed, and offers have been made for those at other clubs.

Outs:
Sylvain Legwinski was told he had no future at the Club with the emergence of Ed Upson and Liam Trotter.
David Wright was sold to Hull for ?230k, and Fabian Wilnis was unhappy at this news. I reminded him who is boss, and he asked to be placed on the Transfer-List. I accepted, but also took the step to release him. A shame, after so long at the Club, but I needed to show the boys that I wouldn't be bullied around, despite my age.
Ins:
Martin Wilkinson from Barnsley. Martin was replacement to the recently-departed Romeo Zondervan, and immediately I sent him and the other scouts to scout (more or less) every player in Europe.
Per Weirauch confirmed his deal with Ipswich, and he joins with a torn groin muscle, or the back end of one at least.
I also declared my interest in William Vainqueur, who was currently on the books at Nantes. Will is in the same mould as Owen Garvan, and I can see him being a star of the future.
After lengthy negotiations with Jack, I agreed a deal with Bristol to bring young James Wilson, who can really fulfil his potential at my Club. There was also a buy-back clause in the deal, which was the real stumbling block in the talks.
It was also our aim to re-sign Ian Westlake from Leeds. He was in the reserves there, and to be fair, I could only see him playing every once in a while, but his sheer enthusiasm for the game could be crucial within the squad.
As part of our new link with Villa, Eric Lichaj was sent on a season-long loan from their youngters' side, and the young centre-back will slot nicely into the gap left with Wright's and Wilnis' departures.

 

[covlad-99]

Surprised about Legwinski, but fair enough. getting rid of the deadwood. Not too sure about the others, except you told me about Vainquer, so he must be half decent

Lovely to see such an in-depth update.

Great work the both of view, loads of superb stories going on and I sincerely ope all of them carry on. Long live our stories.

KUTAW

 

[thesweepmaster]

A very lucky win against Wycombe for you there maney. You have made a few good signing but maybe you should have kept Legwinski for his experience, it would have been vital at the end of the season.

 

[treva]

Just gunna run through these two games quickly

Tuesday 24th July, 2007

vs Barnet [A][Friendly]

A very easy away win from the boys. A six-nil thrashing, which was no less than I expected against a poor Blue Square premier side. Darren Byfield grabbed himself a couple, looking a threat at all times with all his four shots on target. Louis Carey and Enoch Showunmi got 1 a piece, but it was the performance of new signing Malcolm Christie that really pleased me. A man of the match performance with two cracking goals. After a really rewarding game against rivals Bristol Rovers, it was good to continue the form into an easy result down in London. Jerel Ifil also made an appearance from the substitute bench.

Barnet 0-6 Bristol City
Darren Byfield '7 & '20, Louis Carey '39, Malcolm Christie '56 & '70, Enoch Showunmi '90

------------------------

Friday 27th July, 2007

vs Swansea [A][Friendly]

Well what was felt as the hardest game of pre-season became the easiest. A six-nil drubbing for the 2nd time in succession showed that we were ready for the up-and-coming Championship season. Swansea put up little fight for a side who are expected to do well in League 1 this season. Lee Trundle came back to the Liberty Stadium, this time wearing a Bristol City shirt, although only played the last 10 minutes. Christie and Showunmi got one whilst Sproule and Byfield netted two to give us a comprehensive win in Wales. The travel over the Severn Bridge and into Wales was a pleasant one, a sign that this season our attacking presence could be huge. That's now 13 unanswered goals starting from our 3rd against Rovers. Just Derry City up next and then we have Wolves, who have been tipped as challengers for the title, first up in the Championship.

Swansea 0-6 Bristol City
Malcolm Christie '30, Darren Byfield '35 & '74, Ivan Sproule '48 & '60, Enoch Showunmi '59

------------------------

Monday 30th July, 2007

vs Derry City [A][Friendly]

The final game of our pre-season was an away trip to Northern Ireland. We played Derry City of the Irish Football League, in what I was hoping to be another simple win. It was not to be the case. We had come down to earth with a bang after our three brilliant wins against Rovers, Barnet and Swansea. They played well to be fair to them, but we were poor by our standards. We gave them far too much of the ball and too much time when they got that ball, which resulted in the final possession table showing that they had 54% of it. They also were allowed far too many shots. We may have had more, but 16 shots gave them a big chance to score a couple, which they did. Our good finishing deserted us as we had half of our 20 shots off target.

We took an early lead through Lee Johnson, who finished well from the edge of the area after Sproule made a great run down the right hand side. But they soon went level and then 2-1 up as we let our guard down before half time. The 1st goal a sloppy front post header from a corner when it should have been covered. The 2nd a header that somehow alluded two of our defenders and ended up with their striker tapping home past Basso. Lee Trundle pulled it back on 51 minutes with some great passing along the back of their defence. Apart from our goals we were very average, and it was a worrying site to see with just 12 days until our first Championship encounter against Wolves.

Derry City 2-2 Bristol City
Barry Wallace '39, Paul McManus '44 - Lee Johnson '12, Lee Trundle '51​

 

[w3lshrugby]

Very very nice work so far you two. Loving it! I hope to see this story go on forever. I have one question though, how do you do well on FM, I always seem to get sacked within 8 months

 

[treva]

Who said we do well You'll have to wait and see until we can give you tips. Covlad is the man to ask on doing well!

 

[Manly]

​

I laughed when I heard the name of the stadium we were playing at, and it turns out that the guy who was chairman at the time almost single-handedly pushed the stadium through.

Having looked at the fixtures we had pre-season, this was the game I highlighted for the strikers to have a bit of shooting practise. How wrong I was. Bjorn Runstrom and Jonny Walters put us two up inside half an hour and 6-0 was most definitely on the cards. However their centre-back Joe Davis pulled one back. Fair enough, we'll kick on and score bags more goals, I'm sure of it.
Ciaran Leach scored the equaliser, and the last goal of the game. I was angry to say the least, and the boys knew about it after the game. No-one had stood up and taken the game by the scruff of the neck. In goal, new-boy Neil Alexander had another poor game, just about scraping a 6, and I told him that it should be Shane in goal, rather than him. He seemed disappointed by this, but knuckled down in training, and proved to me that he should line up in the game all the boys wanted to: Roma.

HT: 1-2
FT: 2-2
Goalscorers: Runstrom, Walters
MoM: Ciaran Leach (Salisbury)

----------------------------------

The biggest game of the pre-season:

​

The guys picked were:

• 
  [*]Neil Alexander
  [*]Alex Bruce
  [*]Matt Richards
  [*]Tommy Smith
  [*]Jason De Vos
  [*]Ian Westlake
  [*]Ed Upson
  [*]Owen Garvan
  [*]Per Weirauch
  [*]Rob van Boekel
  [*]Fraizer Campbell

and not a single one of them needed any motivation. Every single one of those guys was psyched, and knew what was required of them.
It seemed recently re-signed Ian Westlake was a bit too psyched, and he was sent off after only 3 minutes for a very late, dangerous challenge. And it was all uphill from then on in. I said to Jack who had attended the game, and was in the Directors' Box with me that I'd be "happy if it finished less than 0-4". Sure enough, the boys defended well, and we lost only 3-0. Matt Richards put in his worst performance yet, and I told him that a bad performance at Stoke would be his last game for the Club. He scored an own goal, too.

Ah well, it's the League that counts, and games to open were:

1. Stoke City @ The Britannia Stadium
2. Bristol Rovers (Carling Cup) @ Portman Road
3. Crystal Palace @ Portman Road
4. Bristol City @ Ashton Gate

For obvious reasons, Bristol City was the game I was most excited about.

Ins, outs and injuries..Well, mainly ins and outs really...​

Since the Stoke game (report later), many things have happened on the transfer front. Matt Richards was released after a succession of poor performances, and I was convinced that he wasn't going to fit into my plans. Our parent club, Aston Villa, snagged Tony Humes, my Youth Coach, so I had to sign a replacement. Steven Robeerts, a 41 year-old Belgian, fit the bill, and he signed a three-year deal. This would be a good opportunity for him to advance his coaching skills, and obviously he was a decent replacement to Tony.
Derby County ended their interest in Shane Supple, after they couldn't offer the ?250k I wanted for him. There is no way I am letting the lad go for any less than that, and Sunderland also weren't prepared to pay the required amount. Sunderland, it seemed, wanted to poach 3 of my youngsters. Roy Keane made enquiries about Shane, Jaime Peters, and Danny Haynes. I was really quite keen to keep them all, and so made their asking prices ?250k for Jaime and Shane, and ?500k for Danny.
Out of favour Juan Carlos Carrizo was a target, currently on the books at PSV, and after much negotiating, we brokered a deal which would allow me to offer him a contract. My scouts had raved about him, which is why I kept persisting with the deal.
Another lad they recommended was David Norris, and I shamefully admit I declared my interest in him to try and unsettle him before making an offer.
I was also linked with John Spicer, who said that he would be interested in joining us, and, having scouted him, I made an offer.
It was announced by the ticket office that we had sold 13099 season tickets, which was a pretty nice figure, and I hoped that good on-field performances will sell more next season.
Sunderland youngster Martyn Waghorne rejected the chance to join us, which is understandable, given he would be dropping a division.
I made a cheeky enquiry for Rob Hulse at Sheffield United, but I think the move will have to wait until he has recovered from his broken leg. Will Vainqueur failed his medical at the Club, but I will be making another offer when he is back and fighting fit.
Ian Westlake has been banned by the F.A. meaning he will return before the big game at Ashton Gate in a couple of weeks' time.​

 

[covlad-99]

As Maney has abandoned my story, I am only going to comment on Trev's fabulous work. A superb 6-0 win has put you in exactly the right frame of mind for the league. Come on trev!