Year summed up by lack of cutting edge
IF there was a game that summed up our season then Gloucester at home was it.
We needed a performance from the team that would deliver the three points and a defeat for either Chorley or Salford.
Chorley did their bit losing to Halifax, sadly we didn’t.
The obvious truths are we haven’t scored enough goals and we’ve drawn far too many games, any one of those games or missed opportunities would have placed us in the play-offs but we’ve lacked a cutting edge when it mattered and ended the season in eighth, one place higher than last season.
Gloucester, with nothing to play for, could have lay down and just gone through the motions but to be fair to them they played well and stuck to their game plan of stifling our mid-field, slowing the game down at the back and chasing any loose ball up front.
You could argue that they were the better side, they had more corners than us they hit the woodwork twice and Ben Hinchliffe was by far the busier keeper.
We started brightly and I thought it would be our day but as the game progressed it became more and more frustrating.
While several players had good games, Cartwright, Montrose, Brazel, Smalley and of course Danny Lloyd, others didn’t which meant as a team yet again we didn’t click.
The Edgeley Park crowd, yet again a league record, did their bit but to no avail and we’ll have to spend another season in the sixth tier of English football.
There’s much to think back on, that ridiculous own goal against Harrogate, the conceding of late goals at places like Alfreton and Tamworth, there’s six points dropped that would have made a difference.
On the positive side, we’ve been on a remarkable run, one league defeat in 23 games which include 11 draw, 6 of them at EP.
Do the maths, add all the what if’s and the answer comes out clearly that we weren’t just quite good enough.
So it’s season over and time to think of the future. Jim has already identified players to keep.
He’ll have identified the players he wants’ to get in and I’m sure he, along with Mike Flynn and Dave Conlon will turn this seasons disappointment into next season’s euphoria.
It only remains for me to say have a great, football free, summer and I hope to see you all again next preseason.