Northampton Town's big night out

To Liverpool supporters, even the most respectful, this week’s encounter with Northampton Town is perhaps just a fairly uninspiring home cup tie with lower-league fodder. To Cobblers fans, it is a rare luxurious break from the monotonous grind of League Two. Haydon Spenceley gives an insight into the mood among the Northampton support ahead of their most high-profile match for years.

So, tomorrow night (or, more than likely by the time you read this tonight, yesterday, the day before yesterday or one day last week) my team, Northampton Town, will find themselves stepping out on to the turf of Anfield to face Liverpool in a Carling Cup Third Round tie.

Unquestionably a plum tie, probably among the most interesting of the round, and inexplicably overlooked for TV coverage (we could have done with the money, just like every other team below 8th in the Premier League) the game is an all-too-rare opportunity for I, and circa 5,000 other Cobblers fans, to see our boys pit their wits against one of English football’s greats.

Liverpool will, I state with almost complete certainty, win, and win handsomely. Northampton Town and their fans, both ardent and fair-weather, may well return to the Midlands with their tails between their legs on the back of a severe hiding.

Even so, I should be excited, no? Or at least more excited than I feel on the eve of the big event.

You see, Town have done exceptionally to reach round three, having already dispatched Brighton at home (I shall enjoy the memory of a perplexed Gus Poyet watching his team as they were cut to shreds by our bunch of mediocre misfits for a long time) and away to Championship Reading, in both games playing our best football of the season.

As such, the players and staff, as well as their bank manager, richly deserve the opportunity afforded to them by tomorrow’s game. The trouble is, in virtually every other game this season, the heights reached in the league cup have seemed but a distant mirage.

One league win, against a very poor Southend side, several uninspiring, backs-to-the-wall draws, and a couple of chagrin-inducing defeats away to Torquay and Shrewsbury, as well as a senseless drubbing at Hartlepool, in the laughably-regional JPT, have been our lot so far.

In those games, regular watchers have been able to pick out the following tidbits of information about our merry band of blokes (call it a scouting report):

1. We actually aren’t all that good
2. We have so few defenders that, at Shrewsbury, a converted left winger, and a converted centre forward started together at centre half. The latter, Seb Harris, on debut, was substituted before half time. This was shoddy man management, but a decent football decision. It precipitated today’s signing of Ben Tozer from Newcastle. But will he stop Torres/Kuyt/N’Gog/Pacheco or whoever else is played up front tomorrow?Well, okay, probably Fernando is the only one who we should be truly worried about, but the lack of defensive, well, quality, is somewhat worrying, and will be our undoing over the course of the league season. Liam Davis’ recent conversion to left back has been a success story, and his runs from deep might pose some problems, if only he could do something at the end of them.
3. In midfield, we are over-stocked with strong, hard-working players, except they don’t work hard. Isn’t hard-working just a shorthand version of average? Thought so. Anyway, despite all the evidence pointing to our best bet being to play three in the centre, this only happens every so often.Shockingly, we often play better in this formation. More shockingly still, there is no guarantee that this will mean that the tactic will be employed the following week. As with much of League Two, the need for the ability to pass appears to have been overlooked by those scouting our players, apart from Kevin Thornton, who passes beautifully, as well as creating set-pieces, and enjoying games where he does not have to tackle or be tackled. On that basis, I have high hopes for him to outplay Gerrard tomorrow.
4. With Michael Jacobs looking alternately like Pele and a rabbit in headlights in his first-full season, but showing the potential which will see him in the Championship at least before too long, and Billy McKay on the wings, and the recently signed Leon Mckenzie up top, we have decent options (or at least better than they were a couple of weeks ago). In the unlikely event of us actually getting the ball, there is enough creativity and firepower there to spring a surprise.

If I sound defeatist, even disparaging, it is because that’s how the start to the season has made me feel. Northampton are a team on a budget, for whom a tie such as Liverpool away may well, as Ian Sampson, our novice manager has stated recently, be a once in a lifetime experience.

For this reason I will go gladly and proudly up north. However, after a strong period during the middle of the last decade, a combination of short-sightedness on the part of the local government to deny progress to redevelopment, a couple of poor managerial appointments (including, possibly, the current one) and a spot of necessary financial belt-tightening has seen us drop from a very decent League One side 3 years ago, featuring several players now plying their trade in Leagues above ours, to being a very average League Two side, in a very average League Two.

Whatever the result tomorrow, as I arrive at Anfield, I will savour the moment and try and take in every last drop of it. It may very well be a long time before my team is there again.

Can League Two produce another Martin O'Neil?

With the news of Martin O’Neill’s resignation as manager of Aston Villa still smouldering as it burns off the presses, one of the summer’s more surprising managerial developments has come to pass. While Villa are obviously outside the scope of this august publication, a comment made by Richard Bevan of the LMA has caught my attention. Bevan is quoted as follows in relation to O’Neill’s departure:

“He is a great example to all aspiring managers, having built the foundations in non-league football to then go on to successfully manage at the highest level in the game.”

So how many of the current crop of managers in the lower echelons of the English domestic game have the potential, or ambition, or even the wherewithal, to achieve what O’Neill has, in making himself one of the bastions of club management in this country over the last two decades?

Clough but not enough

Many have, in recent times, attempted similar career trajectories as that followed by the bespectacled Northern Irishman. Perhaps the best contemporary example is Nigel Clough, currently bedding down at Derby having worked wonders at Burton Albion, in a similar fashion to O’Neill’s opening gambit at Wycombe in the early nineties.

Whereas Clough junior will more than likely remain forever in the shadow of his father, who managed O’Neill at Nottingham Forest, the work he is quietly undertaking at Pride Park gives rise to the thought that he may well make the step up to the Premier League one day. He may in fact be able to do so with real confidence, based on experiences at the sharp end of English football.

However, for every Clough, there’s a Tony Adams. For every Lee Clark, there’s a Steve Claridge. So, what of those operating in League Two these days?

The stalwarts

League Two managers at the start of the 2010/11 season can broadly be split in to three categories. Residing in the first, men such as Sammy McIlroy at Morecambe, the evergreen Dario Gradi at Crewe, Graham Turner, having swapped Hereford for Shrewsbury, Bradford’s Peter Taylor, Ronnie Moore of Rotherham, newly-promoted Stevenage’s Graham Westley and John Coleman, boss at Accrington.

These managers have years of experience, wily nous gleaned from many years at all levels of the English game. All, to one extent or another, offer fine examples for young up and comers to follow, particularly in the case of Coleman, Gradi and McIlroy in how to operate on a budget tighter than last year’s funkiest jeans.

These are not men that clubs higher up the ladder will turn to when looking to fill forthcoming vacancies, but their wisdom will ensure that their teams are as organised and effective as they conceivably can be this season.

The pretenders

In category two, we locate a plethora of middling men, some of whom may make the step up to League One or the Championship, but who, in the main, will more than likely be plying their trade in the bottom two divisions for a while yet.

Any number of names could find it’s way in to this list, but I would surmise that Ian Sampson at Northampton, Bury’s Alan Knill, Mark Stimson at Barnet, Chris Wilder of Oxford, Burton boss Paul Peschisolido and Paul Simpson, newly installed at Stockport, as well as a good few others, could find themselves wandering around the lower leagues, without ever really making that big step up.

Many of these managers have had a crack at the big leagues before, without distinction, dropping down to refresh and renew their careers for another stab at glory, while men such as Sampson and Knill are men dedicated to their clubs and largely loved by their supporters for their passion and loyalty.

Don’t be surprised if any of the bright, young-ish managers here lead a successful promotion campaign this season and are mentioned when one of the Seventy Two’s leading lights has a dip in form and needs a managerial makeover. All of these managers are capable men, with the acumen needed to build and sustain a successful squad, but few of them have the proven ability to manage big names or budgets and it would be a surprise if many of them ever get the opportunity to try.

Buckle knuckles down

Finally, we reach the final in our arbitrary trio of categories: those who, it appears, have all that might be required to make the step up, following in O’Neill’s footsteps.

The first suggestion is Paul Buckle, who, in his quietly unassuming and efficient way has transformed the fortunes of unfashionable Torquay United, turning them in to a team with the winning habit, and a pleasingly attractive and yet functional way of maximising players of limited but focused abilities in to a genuine outside bet for promotion this season.

Buckle ruthlessly reshaped his squad in January, jettisoning popular players such as Chris Hargreaves and Tim Sills, in favour of younger, more energetic and pacy players such as Chris Zebroski. The results reaped both in the final third of last season and at the start of this one indicate a manager who knows how to work within his limits, encourage and mould individuals into a team, and work astutely enough tactically to win plenty of games.

It would be a surprise if Buckle is not plying his trade at a higher level before too long. Whether he has it in him to make it all the way to the top six of the English game might well be another matter, but he certainly appears to be League Two’s best chance at this moment in time.

Names in the frame

Others, such as Micky Adams at Port Vale, and John Sheridan at Chesterfield are rebuilding their careers successfully, and can be expected to progress, whether with their current employers or at pastures new, over the coming seasons.

Neither of these men have the potential of Buckle, but Adams’ work at Vale Park last season, morphing a poor side into genuine promotion contenders, beggared belief. Sheridan too moulded a decent side at Saltergate, and with the new ground factor this year, Chesterfield can be expected to be there or thereabouts at the end of the season.

If either attain promotion this year, expect covetous glances from chairmen in the lower reaches of the Championship.

Gillingham’s genius

Finally, we come to Andy Hessenthaler, newly reacquainted with the Priestfield faithful at Gillingham after a wondrously victorious time in the non-league at Dover, where his charges achieved promotion after promotion.

The way Hessenthaler and his chairman, Paul Scally, have gone about re-tooling the Gills’ squad for this season makes them strong favourites for promotion, and with Hessenthaler at the helm, this is doubly so. Well-liked and talented, he is a man with a winning mentality, momentum, and the will for success which was so crucial to Martin O’Neill’s early successes at Adams Park.

Whether he has what it takes to go all the way in the managerial game will more than likely be a mixture of talent, good fortune, and being in the right place at the right time, but of all the twenty-four managers in League Two at the start of this potentially fascinating campaign, Hessenthaler is the one with the credentials and history most similar to O’Neill’s. It will be interesting to see if the football gods smile upon him as they have the now ex-Villa boss.

While the premise of this article may appear somewhat far-fetched, the idea that either Paul Buckle or Andy Hessenthaler, particularly, may follow Martin O’Neill to the top of the game in England isn’t as preposterous as all that.

After all, when Wycombe were promoted to the league back in 1991, who would have thought that, nineteen years later, we would be talking in this way about their manager? Sure, a lot has changed since then, and the dispiriting lack of quality in English managers and coaches has led to a surfeit of opportunity for the best on offer to rise to the top, but it is not impossible.

As Richard Bevan said this afternoon, it is only to be hoped that managers in League Two see Martin O’Neill as a shining example to aspire to follow rather than the exception to the rule.

Class of 2010 ready for League One challenge

Notts County

The last twelve months in the life of Notts County have been nothing if not tumultuous. While none of us need to read (or write) another rundown of all the events which transpired during the 2009/2010 season at Meadow Lane, it is probably fair to suggest that, given all that did occur last season, the club, their new chairman Ray Trew, new manager Craig Short and supporters are more than likely quite glad to be gearing up for an assault on Npower League One. But what of their chances?

It has to be said that, of all of the teams promoted from League Two last season, Notts have prepared most impressively for life in their new surroundings. The Magpies have strengthened well, it seems, in every area of the team.

Goalkeeper Rob Burch comes in from Lincoln, the highly impressive signings of Liam Chilvers, Krystian Pearce and Jon Harley will solidify the back four, John Spicer adds some creativity in the middle of the park and the bearded beanpole Ben Burgess adds to the already well-stocked squad. It seems fair to see Notts as better than outsiders for promotion.

One of the key questions for Magpies fans is how former fans’ favourite Craig Short will settle in as manager, having finished his brief tenure at Ferencvaros. Some decent pre-season results and sensible shaping of his squad suggest that the good times may well continue to roll at Meadow Lane, with or without the millions initially promised through the ill-fated Munto Finance deal.

One thing’s for sure, it is unlikely to be boring.

It's been too quiet

I haven't posted here for ages. I've been busy. Working, writing about music, football, God, disability, writing music, and getting ready to make a record in Nashville (and one in Southampton too). So it's been pretty hectic. Also, with getting accepted to train for ordination as a minister in the Church of England (mad, I know) there's been some changes in life!

Anyways, thought I'd better post a few things I've written recently, so the following posts are my most recent published work. Enjoy. I'll be reviewing some brilliant new records here soon too...

John Herrick Reviews my new album

John Herrick is a new author with an exceptional debut novel, "From The Dead" which is hands down my favourite book of the year (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dead-John-Herrick/dp/0982147015/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1292526805&sr=8-2-spell) I was given the pleasure and privilege of reviewing the book back in the summer, and you can see what I thought of it here (http://www.tollbooth.org/2010/books/herrick.html) Hint, I liked it...


Anyway, time went by, and John and I got into intermittent communication via email. I sent him my new record Heart Strings, and he wrote back with the following beautiful words about it. I am touched and honoured that somoene "got it" - here they are!

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Some of the most intriguing modern worship music has come from Great Britain. You can add Heart Strings, the new album from Haydon Spenceley, to that list.

Heart Strings’s title reflects the album’s focus: man to God, God to man. In each track, Spenceley’s lyrics delve past man’s artificial layers and offer a glimpse into the love and longing of a relationship with the Lord.

Spenceley takes an experimental approach, infusing chilling vocals with rich layers of electronic instrumentation. Picture the intersection of Coldplay and Owl City. From the subdued passion of “Crying” to the fiery, guitar-driven chorus of “Save My Day,” Heart Strings is the sort of album that reveals fresh nuances with repeated listens.

Spenceley takes his time. He releases short lyrical bursts from the depths of his soul, then allows those words to soak into his listeners as the instrumentation washes over them. For me, it struck images of a man floating in the middle of the Atlantic at midnight, with nowhere to focus but heavenward. It contains the intimacy and desperation of a heart that craves God.

Among the album’s highlights:

“Life in Me” contrasts man’s limitations with God’s infinite grace. The song’s honesty puts a bittersweet ache in your heart.

Spenceley takes an intriguing turn with “Crying,” a thought-provoking commentary on discord that can occur between branches of Christianity—as seen through the eyes of God Himself.

But I must say, Heart Strings’s gem is found in its title track, where an upbeat bounce climaxes with an irresistible chorus.

Heartfelt. Genuine. Stirring. Without apology, Haydon Spenceley’s Heart Strings cuts to the core of human existence and exposes the beauty of man’s desperation for the Savior.