Birmingham City 2013 Pre-season Review

I’ve forgone a holiday this summer so I could go to every one of our pre-season games thus far, although I didn’t make the one in Ireland. I thought it’d be a good idea to score each player who has featured significantly, analyse their performances, and speculate on their role for the season ahead.

Flying Start - Randolph

Darren Randolph- 8. Even though he’s not made relentless saves in the games he’s played, he’s only actually conceded 1 goal. And that was from a wrongly-awarded penalty for Hull. An excellent start, a steal from Clark’s point of view, and he’s a dead cert to be our number one keeper this season.

Colin Doyle- 2. I would unfortunately go this low for Doyle, a keeper I massively admire for his loyalty over the years. But romanticism aside, he just hasn’t been good enough. Conceded 10 goals from 315 minutes of football, and he’s looked shaky in goal. I never find myself trusting that he’ll save and hold onto a shot that comes in.

Paul Robinson- 6. Has been a real leader on the pitch, which is important for an otherwise young defence. Although he was beaten too easily at Shrewsbury, this had more to do with the organisation of our midfield, and he looked a lot more solid against Hull, which suggests his fitness is returning.

Dan Burn- 3. In 2 of the 3 games I’ve seen him play 90 minutes, he’s disappointed. His height, rather than enabling him to bully strikers in the air, has meant he’s been very susceptible to pacey attacks, and he’s lacked the agility to turn quickly. Not impressive so far.

Kyle Bartley- 7. Looks like a decent all-round defender, and doesn’t seem to have any particular weakness in terms of pace, height or reading of the game. The fact that he’s been fairly quiet in games, if anything, is a positive given his defensive role.

Shane Ferguson- 5. I’m pleased to have Ferguson back, and it’d be pretty harsh to analyse him on barely more than one game - but I’m going to anyway! Didn’t make much of a difference against Shrewsbury, and had in the main, a quiet game against Hull. He would get a 4, if it weren’t for his assist against Hull, and the fact that he’s only just come back.

Hardworking Hancox

Mitch Hancox- 8. If Ferguson got injured, I think Hancox would slot into the left wing-back role very well. He’s got bags of commitment, firm in the challenge, and has the stamina to get up and down the pitch. He’s already contributed a couple of assists at Swindon and Oxford, which highlights his ability to get forward.

Neal Eardley- 7. He’s at his best when we have an inside forward on the right, perhaps Chris Burke, because it creates more space for him than when he’s isolated on the flank. He doesn’t add much pace to our game, and he’s rarely played 90 minutes which isn’t the best indicator of his fitness, although his crossing ability is good.

Ryan Higgins- 6. This being slightly generous, seeing he’s only completed 87 minutes of football out of a possible 540. But in the little I’ve seen of him, I’ve been mildly impressed, he got a nice assist for Shinnie in his run-out at Swindon, and has good positioning skills for a young player.

Hayden Mullins- 6. He’s been played in a centre-back sweeper role, more than defensive midfield like last season, and his performances have been reasonable. He had a poor game against Oxford in which he seemed to be struggling for pace, but in other games that hasn’t been an issue. Interestingly, we’ve only conceded 1 goal in the time Hayden Mullins has featured.

Chris Burke- 5. It’s been a bitter-sweet pre-season for Burke. He’s put in some strong performances, was our best player at Swindon and scored a brilliant goal against Shrewsbury. But, Clark’s 3-5-2 system doesn’t accommodate the use of a winger, and the only ways we can keep Burke is by either converting him to a right wingback, or to an attacking midfielder. In both positions, we’ve already got enough depth, so I could quite easily see Burke being sold in January.

Wade Elliott- 7. Generally, he’s been a good deep-lying playmaker, and his experience has been key as ever. Always comfortable on the ball, never looks like giving it away, and ran the show for us against Swindon. The only problem with Elliott is that in a 3-5-2, having players with energy in midfield who track back a lot, is most important. I wouldn’t want to have both Elliott and Allan in midfield, as it lacks defensive protection, which was what part of the problem was at Shrewsbury.

Kobe Arthur- 6. His pre-season has started well, yet it’s gone off the boil a little since, perhaps partly due to the arrival of Scott Allan. Against Alfreton, he looked very confident, and ready to make his mark on the team, he scored a really well-taken goal as well against MK Dons on video. His performance at Swindon wasn’t quite as good, as he often ran into cul-de-sacs and didn’t play the simple pass often enough. With Shinnie, Burke and Allan in the advanced midfield role for this season, it may be best for Clark to look to loan Arthur out. Most League One clubs would consider taking him.

Ever Improving Reilly

Callum Reilly- 8. Perhaps a bit generous, I might not feel this way if he wasn’t a local Bluenose, but in my eyes Reilly has improved even more since last season. Last season, he was a ball winner who would use his sheer energy to support his teammates. In matches so far, he’s developed a certain intelligence to his games. He’s always offered himself as the man in space to pass short to, but he’s developed his long passing, and I think he’s onto an even better season.

Olly Lee- 6. I was definitely among the sceptics on this transfer when he was brought in, but after his performances thus far, I’m prepared to be swayed on him. He scored our first goal of pre-season at Alfreton, with a firmly struck shot, and put in a comfortable performance against Swindon. Contrary to my earlier claims that this was a bit of a ‘mates rates’ deal between Clark and his old friend Rob Lee (Olly’s dad), I now wonder if this could be one of Clark’s gems.

Andrew Shinnie- 8. And I’m convinced ‘Shinniesta’ is going to be another. His movement has been classy, he adds a real creative edge to our attacks. To be able to sign the man who has just won the Scottish Players’ Player of the Year award on a free transfer, presumably on very low wages, is an excellent piece of poaching from Clark. He already has 3 goals to his name, and has been one of our stand-out performance from pre-season. Watch this space.

Tom Adeyami- 5. Not hugely impressive, and an injury has perhaps set his progress back a little. He looks like a big, powerful player with a physical presence, which may help us control games. He put in an improved performance against Hull which provides brief encouragement.

Scott Allan- 7. I’ve liked the look of him so far, although with Burke and Shinnie already cable of playing behind the front man, his arrival may mean a lot less game time for Kobe Arthur. I’ve heard very good things about him from the Hawthorns, and he’s very good at dictating the tempo, and spraying passes out to the flanks whilst breaking forward.

Nikola Zigic- 1. His only performance from pre-season was 45 minutes at Alfreton, and that showing was horrendous. First, he was in acres of space and fired a shot over from the edge of the box first time, secondly, he rounded the keeper, charitably waited for the defence to get back into position, and lobbed the ball past the back post to no-one in particular. To cap it off, he did no chasing down or running all game. Nicklas Bendtner style, but without the finishing quality.

Green - A Goalscorer?

Matt Green- 7. The next Jonathan Hunt? A gamble from the lower leagues, but 3 goals from pre-season so far - in spite of an injury halfway through – suggests that Green is far from out of his depth at this level.

Lee Novak- another 7, another attacker to have scored 3 goals despite picking up an injury. He looks a very hardworking forward. It was a bit of grafting from him which created space for Shinnie’s goal at Alfeton, his two goals at Swindon were tap-ins but he had the work rate to get into those positions, and was deserving of his goals. Hopefully the injury won’t rule him out for long.

On a final note, I would like to say goodbye to Christian Benitez. He signed my programme once and smiled at me, seemed like a really nice, humble guy. Whilst he wasn’t the best finisher, his contribution to our 15-game invincible team was significant, because he never stopped running for the team and his pace was magnificent. 27 is too young for anyone to leave us, once the news dawned on me it genuinely brought a tear to my eye, and I can only feel for his loved ones.

RIP Chucho x

Swindon 0-3 Blues

Blues bagged a comfortable victory at the County Ground last night, Lee Novak and Chris Burke were particularly impressive, and we were decent value for our win.

Contrary to the 3-5-2 he had been operating in pre-season so far, Clark went for a 4-2-3-1. Novak as the workman up front, with Arthur and Burke making attacking runs on the flanks, and Shinnie breaking from midfield. My only worry with the system was potentially lack of protection, as both central midfielders, Lee and Elliott, like to get forward at times. Personally I would have picked Hayden Mullins over Olly Lee, just to provide some defensive discipline, giving the creative players more freedom.

We got off to a mixed start. The positive was that we defended as a team and didn't seem to have much difficulty winning the ball off Swindon, once they got into our half. The early negative was perhaps our passing being slightly off, I felt there were too many hopeful long balls, which Swindon were able to defend against.

An, in my eyes questionable tactic that developed, was Kyle Bartley's passing. Clark seemed to be instructing him to play high passes over to the left for Kobe Arthur. But Arthur, being only 17, was one of the smaller men on the field. Of the 10-15 times that Bartley did this, 2 or 3 times did he manage to pick out Arthur, he was often given too much to do to receive the ball. 

By far our most dangerous creative threat, was down the right flank through Chris Burke, and also Neal Eardley. The two combined very well, and look set to become one of the best right sides in the Championship. As well as tracking back consistently, Burke's pace caused constant fear in the Swindon defence, giving fullback Nathan Byrne a torrid time. 

The game had the feel of watching a training match. Only 1,433 fans in a stadium with a capacity of around 15,000, and very rarely did chants break out from either set of supporters, so you could easily hear thuds of the ball, and echoes of players shouting to one another. 

Hancox had a good game as well. He was always prepared to make forward runs of real intent, and he provided the extra width when Arthur cut inside. He played a well-timed looping cross to the far post, to which Burke couldn't quite connect, but also an accurate crossfield pass to the Scotsman, who couldn't activate Novak with his through ball.

Blues always looked in control of the game, with Wade Elliott pulling the strings in the centre. And on the rare moments that Swindon broke, Randolph looked unerringly solid in goal. It's worth remembering that he's yet to concede a goal for us, in 225 minutes of football so far. He held every shot Swindon had in the first half, although he wasn't severely tested.

On the half hour mark, came the best chance of the match. Shinnie latched onto Lee's through ball, and hit a low shot which was saved by Bedwell, he then tried to dink the ball over him on the rebound, but Bedwell pushed it away. 

After the best chance for Blues, came the best chance for Swindon. Luke Rooney was put through on goal, from a pass which looked offside, but it was Randolph's smart positioning which egged the shot wide of the post.

Just as the half threatened to finish goalless, Burke stepped up to the plate. Firstly, he turned Ward inside out and saw his narrow shot blocked by the feet of Bedwell, who had had a good game so far. But secondly, more of his magic down the right created an opening, and he squared the ball for Lee Novak to tap in, and give the Blues a lead 4 minutes before the interval.

Although he worked hard, Novak seemed to have had a fairly quiet game up until that point, yet the goal will have provided the confidence booster he needed to have the kind of game he did.

Having made 4 substitutions, Swindon came out of the blocks quickly in the second half, and called Randolph into action. The former Motherwell man made a couple of good saves early on, albeit from long range efforts, to preserve his 100% record in goal for us so far. 

Blues began to press for the second goal after Swindon had their few minutes of dominance. It was a neatly-timed through pass from Andrew Shinnie which set away Mitch Hancox on another explosive forward burst, and Hancox squared it to Novak who bagged his second tap-in of the game.

From then onwards, the game was only going in one direction. Some trademark hassling from Novak on the keeper gave Kobe Arthur a shot at goal with an empty net, but he just bent it wide. A cross from Higgins gave Novak the chance for his hat-trick with a close range header, but it was saved, and Bell missed the rebound, when it appeared easier to score.

It was Higgins again, who would play a part in our final goal. Having made a number of appearances this pre-season, the right-back looks set to become a key part of Clark's squad. He crossed the ball into the box, and Shinnie fired it into the corner first time, in clinical fashion, to round off an encouraging display. 

Blues now have 3 more friendly games before the start of the season. Next up is Oxford away on Saturday, but last night's success of the 4-2-3-1 system will certainly give Clark food for thought.

Randolph- 7. Had the answer every time he was tested, never looked like giving anything away. I'd tip him to become a solid keeper for us.

Eardley- 7. Was prepared to get forward and support Burke, yet was rarely caught out of position defensively.

Bartley- 6. His high balls to Arthur looked like more of a ploy from Clark which didn't pan out, than a fault of his. Didn't do much wrong all game.

Robinson- 6. Wasn't tested too much, but he was fairly useful in a sweeper role. Positional sense was strong.

Hancox- 7. Showed tremendous energy throughout the match, wanted to get forward. Could be worth a try in the wingback role if Clark goes 3-5-2 in future matches.

Elliott- 7. Helped us control the match with his composure on the ball, never looked like giving it away.

Lee- 6. Made one potentially costly error in the second half, but overall he was always offering himself as a spare man to pass to.

Burke- 8. Our main threat in the first half, had impressive pace to go past players considering how much he tracked back, got the assist for Novak.

Shinnie- 6. He took his goal well, but missed a couple of chances earlier in the game, and his passing wasn't the best.

Arthur- 5. A little too inconsistent, gave the ball away a bit too often, and didn't look so confident in the final third. 

Novak- 8. Worked very hard for the team in an Adam Rooney-esc way, hassled the defence and got himself into the right positions for the tap ins. 

By Gabriel Sutton

Swindon vs. Blues preview

Blues travel to League One side Swindon Town tonight, as we enter the second part of pre-season. We've now got 4 games in the space of 10 days, before the start of the season in August. Certainly in the next 3 games, I would expect Clark to use a lot of squad rotation to give players that extra chance to prove their worth to the team. It'll be interesting to see who shines tonight.

About Swindon

Swindon have had a successful last couple of seasons. They were surprisingly relegated from League One in bottom place 2010-11, but were promoted back there as League Two champions the following campaign, under Paolo Di Canio. Their first season back saw them just miss out on a play-off final place, losing narrowly to Brentford. And this pre-season has seen them attain some mixed results. Firstly, they beat their mini-rivals, Swindon Supermarine 3-1, but 10 days later they lost 2-0 away to Forest Green. Last night, my research tells me they fielded a strong team against Gareth Bale and Tottenham Hotspur, and managed to get a 1-1 draw. However, if they play us a day later, it's fair to predict they'll play a second string team.

Starting XI

The team news this week is that Darren Ambrose and Nikola Zigic are out for a week due to groin and back strains respectively. Adeyami and Green are doubts, but will be fully fit for Oxford if they don't travel tonight.

It's difficult to predict what team Clark will go with, because I think he'll use a lot of substitutions to keep the team fresh and give different players a chance. I think he'll stick with the 3 at the back system he's used so far. Randolph in goal, and a back 3 of Bartley, Burn and Robinson, although Robinson might be taken off at half time for his fitness. Wingbacks in Eardley and Hancox, as it's reportedly unlikely that we'll sign Davis on a transfer now. Midfield would be Elliott and Reilly playing in a deeper, slightly defensive minded role.

The interesting bit is our attacking options, as Lee Novak is our only fully fit striker. If I was Clark, I would be tempted to try a 'Christmas Tree' system. I'd go with two inside forwards in Chris Burke and Kobe Arthur, cutting in from the right and left, to make runs in behind Novak. This could be particularly effective because Novak likes to track back and help the midfield. There's a chance that Swindon's defence won't know whether to go with him or not, and either Burke or Arthur can make attacking runs into the space. 

Seeing as he's not gone on loan and the U21 squad haven't got a game in the next few days, and due to our lack of forwards, I would tip youth product Reece Hales for a place on the bench. I could also see second half run-outs for Fry, Mullins, Higgins and Lee, if they don't start.

My Prediction

For this game, the likelihood is that Swindon will play a very weakened team to the one that drew with Tottenham last night. Either that, or the whole team will be very tired from that match. Therefore I'd hope that we can come away from the game with a win, despite the shortage of strikers. I'll go with 2-0 to Blues.

By Gabriel Sutton

The Blues Academy: how do they do it?

Jordan Mutch. Jack Butland. Nathan Redmond. Yes, all of which we’ve let go for a fraction of their worth, causing depressing fantasies of what might have been. But the other similarity is that they’ve all come through the Blues academy. In fact, on the 22nd December 2012, no fewer than 7 academy graduates featured in our match against Burnley. It’s certainly fair to say that in our perilous financial situation, our brilliant academy has been the saving grace, producing so much talent.

So what’s the secret behind our academy? How do they do it? I went to visit Wast Hills to meet up with the manager, Kristjaan Speakman, and discuss the method behind the magic…

“You’ve been Blues academy manager for 2 and a half years now, how would you rate your time in charge?”

“I think it’s certainly work in progress as ever, there’s been a lot of changes with the format and structure of the development within England with the introduction of the EGLP some 18 months ago. So really my time coming into this role has coincided with that, and I on a personal level, have been very pleased with the direction it’s gone, I’ve had fantastic support from the club, from the manager here, and ultimately we as a group have been successful in bringing through one or two players. That’s not just my time in the last 2 and a half years, but that’s the people and the staff who have worked at this football club, I have been fortunate enough to be here for the last 7 years for the likes of your Nathans and your Jacks, seeing them come in and then go through, and unfortunately leave as well.”

“And last season, the academy finished 7th and reached the 5th round of the FA Youth Cup, how did you feel that season went?”

For us, the league format is a vehicle for us to try and produce the players, we would very rarely on any given Saturday be playing our best team. It’s a development programme, you’ve only got to look at last seasons’ games when we’ve got schoolboys playing who are 2 or 3 years younger than the average age of that team. So for us, we do want to treat the games with the respect they deserve in terms of trying to win the games, but sometimes with the teams we put out, we’re putting ourselves at a slight disadvantage, maybe due to the size and the structure of the team compared to the opposition. So it’s very difficult to gauge success based on the league format, because if you’re going down that route you’ll be picking the older, stronger, more physically and tactically and technically developed players, but for us, if they’re competent enough they should already be playing for the U21s. You’ll see players playing within our academy programme, we had last year a boy Josh Martin who an U14 and he made 6 appearances in the U18 team. If you’re playing players like that, no disrespect to that lad, you’re not going to compete as well as someone who’s 18 years of age playing against him. For us, the success is the output at the end, it’s players getting professional contracts, players featuring within the manager’s squad, and ultimately, players being in the team and then second of all, assets for the football club who are potentially worth some money.”

“So it’s a lot more of a squad game than senior football, and a case of giving everyone a chance?”

“I wouldn’t say it’s giving everyone a chance. There has to be a fairness across the floor because we’ve had to go with around 22 players, so all them players had been selected for a reason. So yes there’s a need to be able to progress them, but ultimately we’re looking for the ones who can go on to be in the manager’s squad that’s why we invest in the academy programme. We’re looking for players who can go into the first team, but within that, not all players need the same things. Some will need to play in the U18s, some will need to be in the U21s, some will be at the level they should be knocking at the manager’s door. So it’s a case of having a programme for each one of those players, the games programme at the end of the training week, is their opportunity to try and test themselves in the work they’ve been given. Obviously, as they go through the continuum and they get older, they have to be able to perform in those games, as they would in the first team.”

“You mentioned the success of Butland and Redmond, do you think that seeing them break into the first team inspires the academy lads to step up their game?”

“Definitely. If you’re 10-15 years of age, you don’t have the experience the staff have got or anyone in the wider public, to be able to see or plot the progress of players that are currently playing at the highest level. For them it’s very difficult because they constantly come up against obstacles whether it’s their own development, their own physical maturation, being able to get in the team, all these different things, how do you get to be a first team player in the manager’s team? So, one thing when I came back in 2006, one of my criticisms would have been at the time is those young players didn’t have any players who had gone through the academy and been a real success at first team level. There was one or two dotted around that had come in at different times, but I think it’s much easier for the coaching staff to identify the players now Jack Butland, Nathan Redmond, because a lot of the players here are aware of those players, know them, and have an affinity. It’s an ability for us to be able to say: ‘this is what that player’s done’, ‘this is how this player did it’, ‘don’t worry about that, because that happened to him’. They can see the plot get through and ultimately, through the academy programme, they can get into the first team and be very successful.”

“Do you think that academy players are easier or harder to motivate than senior players?”

I don’t think there’s any difference within the motivation, I think the motivation comes from the individuals. I’m sure if you went round and you did a research project with first team managers and you’d discuss with them in terms of motivating a player then hopefully, the process of getting to the first team whether it’s for our academy or the manager’s bought somebody in, the motivation of that player in: ‘is he a winner?’, ‘does he want to win?’, and that belief and desire to be the best player he can possibly be, I think that would be in all processes. I think part of what we’re doing, we would have the same issue as any manager, you’ll have personalities that are easier to motivate and there’ll be personalities that, that’s an area they need to try and improve upon. But maybe that’ll be one of the factors if they don’t progress through the ranks.

“And when players don’t make it at Birmingham City, I imagine one of the hardest parts of the job is telling a player that they’re no longer wanted. What sort of approach do you take? Do you tend to take a line of sympathy or professionalism?”

Which age group are you talking about?

“I meant generally, say U16s?”

The under 16 bracket is probably the worst bracket, because with those players, you’ve got potentially the boys who could have been at the academy for 8 years. You’ve seen them grow up, you’ve had interaction with parents and the family over a long period of time, then it boils down to the academy programme making a decision on whether that player has got the potential to make it to the first team, and obviously we could then be offering them a two year scholarship. That for me, is one of the darkest days in the calender because if you are giving that person some negative news, then obviously they’re not going to potentially be that happy with it, and like anybody, we’ve all been 16 years of age, if you were getting that sort of news at 16, it could be quite crushing. We think we deal with it in the best possible manner. From an academy perspective and from a personal perspective, I’m quite comfortable in providing that negative information if it is a no, if I know in my heart of hearts that that boy has been given every opportunity. I won’t have them eating, regardless of whether different members of staff feel that the player is a yes or a no, until I feel there’s a criteria that that boy had had every opportunity to provide the data and the information and the stats and the observation to us to say he’s a yes or a no. Ultimately it’s down to a discussion with myself, the player and the parents, in the way that the bad news has to be delivered. I think as long as you set out the process as how it’s going to happen, so people know what the decision making process is, when it’s going to happen, and how it’ll take place. 99.9% of the time the conversations are very amicable, and there’s a support network to try and set players up with other clubs or organisations and education pathways to make sure that they progress through. The Birmingham City Academy experience should be a good experience. It should be a good experience if you’re a Jack Butland and you get sold for a multi-million pound deal, and it should be a good experience even if unfortunately you only get to 16 and you don’t make it. There’s lots of other avenues to take, there’s lots of players who have got a no at 16 and have gone onto be professional players.”

“At U18 level, how much emphasis in training is placed on the physical development of players, and how much on ball control and technique?”

“Our programme is heavily emphasized on technique and being able to handle the ball, so the passing and receiving, and all the components you would sum up within that. The physical side of the game you can’t get away from, the Championship, Premier League level is a massive aspect of whether a player can perform or not. So from a physical perspective there’s a lot of work goes on to try and make sure the boy is going to be physically ready, it goes back to what we spoke about earlier with all the boys at different stages, so it’s making sure they’re getting what they need at their stage. We’ll have a 16 year old on the scholarship programme who’ll be built like a 14 year old, but we’ll also have a 16 year old who might be built like an 18 year old. There’s quite a big disparity between the two, so there’s a number of prehab, weights, strength, conditioning programmes that go on, individual exercising, and within the training programme, there’s a warm up, and physical development work. Warm ups within every session, obviously that has to be tailored to the periodisation of the season, so at the minute we’re heavily into physical exertion and making sure the boys are fit and healthy to be able to last the rigours of a 40-odd week season, and then obviously as we go through the season it’s a case of just topping that up but we’ve got the GPS, and heart rate monitors and everything that you would want from a first class organisation, so that we keep our eye on that to make sure the boys are where they need to be, which is no different to the first team level.”

“What do you tend to look for when assessing the potential of a player?”

In terms of what we’re looking for at Birmingham City we’ve been quite clear with our documentation and our philosophy going forward, in the type of player that we’re looking for. Our programme is heavily based on being able to handle the ball, and we’re constantly looking for players and to develop players who are able to handle the ball, ideally we’re looking to develop Premier League footballers. We’re very much hopeful that our first team will get back into the Premier League, at which point, we’ll have to produce Premier League footballers. The players that have come through the academy into the first team have gone on to play for Premier League clubs, so hopefully we’re pretty much on course with that. It would boil down to where the player is at what stage, and the higher up he goes, can he handle that level of football. It’s all very well talking about training and playing and practising, but sooner rather than later, certainly between 18 and 21, you’ve got to be able to handle the first team environment. That’s the training environment to start off with, then the games environment, it becomes about performance.

“You talk about the possibility of producing Premier League players, if the first team gets us back up into the top flight. But do you not think that partly because we’re now a Championship club, and partly because of the financial situation, that that has benefited the academy in some ways? 

Yeah definitely. There’s lots of clubs that have been through or are in a similar situation to ourselves, I think it just goes to highlight the benefit that academy programmes are for clubs, sometimes that can get overlooked. On the broader scale it’s because the opportunity to go and get the ready-made product is there, but for this football club over the last 18 months, we’ve not been in a position to go out and it’s provided an opportunity for a young player here or there to catch the manager’s eye. The great thing about our club is that the manager has seen that and he’s taken these players and you’ve only got to see last season, there were a number of occassions when he’s picked the younger players over the senior players who have got umpteen appearances in the football league. I don’t think that’s ever changed, I think there’ll be a number of players that have a fantastic career at the football club who will have only got in at the start because someone got injured. That’s sometimes how our environment operates. I think with our new U21s group we’ve got, and the way that’s designed, it gives a platform for some players to play every week between 18 and 21, the manager here watches every single home game of the U21s, so everybody has an opportunity to catch the manager’s eye, and ultimately it’s his decision who he picks.”

“You mentioned that he’s picked a lot of the youth players ahead of the more seasoned professionals, who have arguably done at least as well. Do you think the importance of having a strong academy is underrated in football generally?”

I think it has been. You’ve only got to look at the development of the EGLP over the last 2 years, to identify that clubs recognize the importance of the academy because they’ve all voted to put this in place. Custodians of the club must have understood the importance of the academy, and within that, some have understood that it’s not been paid as much attention as it perhaps should be. There’s a number of clubs up and down the country who have been advocates of academys because of their academy system, and they reap the rewards of that. They’ve reaped the rewards in terms of players playing in their team, or sold players on. We would like to think at the current time, with the way that football has gone and the development of the training ground, the staffing structure that we’ve got in place, the first team manager that’s here, that we would be one of the best places to be at the minute if you were a young player, if you want to get into first team football. But ultimately, they have to be good enough. It’s all very well saying you’ve got the academy programme, the manager wants to pick young players, but those young players have to be good enough, it’s not a free ride. If they’re not good enough then the manager has to look elsewhere, our job is to try and make sure the manager hasn’t got to look elsewhere. Across the board, all positions are looking at a squad he’s going to have to bring in players to compliment, hopefully, what you’ve got. But there should be a base of young players that are home grown, you’ve only got to see the affiliation that brings with the fans, with your Mitch Hancox, your Callums and your Nathans of this world who are Birmingham people, you’ve only got to watch training at the top with the first team squad there’s more than a handful of local boys, playing in and around that hopefully, one or two more can break into the first team.”

By Gabriel Sutton

My thanks to Kristjaan Speakman for the interview, and to the academy administrator, Lyndon Tomlinson, for making this happen.

Blues Pre-season: End of Part One

So far, Blues played 3 matches in the space of 5 days to kickstart pre-season. Whilst the 4-1 defeat to MK Dons behind closed doors has put a minor dampener on our preparations, I still think we can be fairly pleased with our start. The first part of pre-season was always going to be about getting fitness levels up, and 3 games in the space of 5 days was a tough task to maintain levels of performances.

After the Alfreton game, I was gutted I couldn’t go to Ireland for Shamrock, which we won 4-0. By all accounts a good all round performance, and a goal for each of the strikers bar Asante, and also Callum Reilly. I’ve seen the highlights, and our passing game was very encouraging.

We built up play from the back, the presence of the wingbacks created that extra space for our midfield players, and the finishes from Novak, Zigic and Green were all well-placed. And, whilst there was an element of fortune to Reilly’s goal, there was also an element of inevitability about it. The passing in the build-up to that goal looked very confident and the team looked as though they felt the goal would have always gone in, as Reilly didn’t even celebrate.

A very strong performance from so early in pre-season, and I’m happy to forget about the MK Dons match because of it. That defeat came as our 3rd game in 5 days, which was going to be tough on the legs, after the performance against Shamrock. The positive was Kobe Arthur’s goal, which was incredibly well-placed. His performance against Alfreton was very exciting, so I think he’ll be a big part of our team next season.

In other news, Akwasi Asante has moved back to Shewsbury on a month’s youth loan deal. With forwards Zigic, Novak and Green in the squad, I don’t mind seeing Asante dropping down a division to gain more first team football. Hopefully he can start to score goals for Shrewsbury to build his confidence. He put in a hardworking performance against Alfreton a week ago, but would probably be secondary choice to the other strikers in our squad.

There’s also been rumours of us bringing Shane Ferguson back on loan. If Clark could pull this off, it would be something of a masterstroke. Ferguson made a great impact on the team last season, because we went on a great run of form just as the Newcastle man came into the side. But he would come in even more useful this time around, particularly with his versatility. If Clark is looking to keep this wingback system in place, Ferguson’s ability to play left midfield and left back would fit our system perfectly, should Clark decide not to take on trialist Liam Davis.

Having hopefully got the squad up to full fitness, this is the time when players will look to fight for their places. We have four more games to go until the season opener, and spaces in the team appear very much up for grabs. The hard work now starts in earnest.

By Gabriel Sutton

Alfreton 1-3 Blues

The Blues performance was one of basic adequacy, far more than perfection, at the Impact Arena this afternoon. Whilst we were always in control of the game, we lacked ingenuity and urgency in our play, which suggests the players will need time to get back to full fitness.

It must be said, the atmosphere at the game was very quiet. In my interview with reporter Ashley Wilkinson, he said his belief that there was much to enjoy about non-league football. Admittedly this was only one game, but it severely lacked in the pride and passion of league football. Without being disrespectful, most Alfreton fans looked like either elderly men, or families who couldn’t support Nottingham Forest! I was hoping for one-on-one opposing fan banter, but there was none of that, Alfreton fans didn’t even sing for the entire match.

As speculated he might, Clark used a fluid 3-5-2 formation, although he billed the friendly as more about fitness than tactics. He fielded 2 different teams for each half, with the Shamrock game on Monday in mind. Unfortunately a few of the latest signings – Adeyami, Bartley, Burn, Green – were deemed unavailable to play for fitness reasons, but they’ll be good to go for the Ireland tour.

After a persistent piece of work from Akwasi Asante, Zigic stood on the edge of the box, and fired the ball over, to the sound of ironic cheers from the Blues fans. The fans had a strange attitude to Zigic. In the early stages chanting his name, yet also singing: ‘Zigic for chairman’, referring to his ludicrous wages. I don’t understand why instead of ignoring Zigic, fans seem to mindlessly support him and treat his spoiling of the club as some joke. Doesn’t make sense to me.

Alfreton punished the miss, by finding an early flaw in our wingback tactic. Mitch Hancox was found isolated in the left back area, allowing a ball to be played across the box for their forward to take advantage of the confusion, and prod home at the back post. This flexible system may work for us if we can get the fitness in the team right, as it has for Hull and Watford. But it will mean our 3-man defence will need much time to settle into a working unit, and dedicate a lot of their training programme to improve upon defensive positioning and organisation.

A disappointing start, but Blues controlled the game from that point onwards, with Kobe Arthur often at centre of things. His link-up play was integral to our attack, and his work rate frequently brought our wing-backs into play. It was a very nice piece of deceptive skill from Arthur which freed up Neal Eardley on the right to swing in a cross, Asante’s effort was blocked, but the ball fell nicely for Ollie Lee to time his run accordingly and hammer the ball into the roof of the net. 1-1, and more songs of ironic humour from the Blues following, this time: “We’re gunna win the league”

Although the ball broke rather kindly for him, it was a convincing finish from Lee, who I’d had my doubts about. Partly because of his dad’s connections with Clark, I questioned the signing of Ollie Lee given his lack of experience, and still do to an extent, but I’m willing to give him a chance after that.

And the same goes with Liam Davis. He’s at the peak of his career, and has only ever played in the lower leagues, with very poor assist stats for a wide midfielder. I’m not wholly swayed on him, and would still take Shane Ferguson instead in a heartbeat, but Davis did have an encouraging game. His commitment and energy was definitely there, and he had the confidence to nutmeg his opponent in one move, so I’m happy to reserve my view.

The new, younger players approached the game with a certain swagger, which was enjoyable to watch.  Every time they attempted a delicate flick, or an ambitious pass, they didn’t always have the experience to execute it, but they always seemed to believe it could be done. There was an outward confidence about them in that season. For me, that’s a sign of significant potential.

Another Zigic moment came, as he rounded the keeper and the goal was at his mercy. But instead of slotting it in, he seemed to wait until the defence got back into position, before chipping it to the back post for no-one in particular. I was getting myself a can of pop when we scored our second goal, an o.g. from Eardley’s cross just before half-time, to give us the lead.

At half-time, the entire team was swapped. I theorized that this would work in our favour, as we’d have a new group of fresh faces on the field, whereas Alfreton only made intermittent changes. Hopefully we’d overpower them in the second half and end up winning at a canter.

We did score early, as Novak grafted down the left hand side to create space for Shinnie, who hit a light shot, which deflected off an Alfreton defender to wrongfoot the keeper. 3-1.

But this was as good as it got for us. The likes of Reilly, Ambrose and Burke didn’t break into the penalty area as often as they might have done, although I would put much of this down to fitness. Shinnie’s movement was classy, he created a point-blank header for himself. Though he perhaps should have scored it, few players would have had the cunningness to create the chance in the first place. In fact, Shinnie’s all round performance today has led to fans dubbing him “Shinniesta”! That might just catch on.

The game seemed to peter out in the final stages, so much so that the fans began chanting about Darren Randolph, shouting his name and singing: “Darren, do a gambol”!

But the game itself became a little dour. Alfreton never looked like threatening us, and in a way that encouraged the semi-laziness in our play for the final minutes. There were quite a few misplaced passes, that players weren’t prepared to run for, which they might been in different circumstances. Mentally, a lot of the players seemed to be waiting for the whistle.

But it’s difficult to be enforcefully critical of the team. We got a win, in the sunshine, and the game was always going to be about getting the players towards the standard fitness levels. The team is obviously a long way off where we’ll aim to be come August fitness wise, but this is inevitable. We’re up, we’re running, and prepared for the tour of Ireland in the coming days.

FIRST HALF TEAM:

Doyle- 5. Not at fault for goal, had little else to test him.

Kalenda- 4. Injured early on, could have covered our right-hand post better for Alfreton goal.

Robinson- 5. Difficult to see, his defending was at other end.

Hancox- 5. Wingback system exposed Hancox for goal, hard to blame him for that.

Eardley- 7. Decent work rate, put crosses in for both goals. May provide us with width.

Elliott- 6. Though rarely had direct impact, his experience was important, at the heart of our play.

Lee- 7. Took goal with aplomb, otherwise played short, neat passes. I could be swayed by him.

Davis- 7. Similarly, I doubted his track record, but was impressed. Looked confident and strong on the ball.

Arthur- 7. A good performance. Provided us with moments of flair, made some lovely touches, looked to be heavily involved in advanced moves.

Asante- 6. Prepared to run at defence, pace and power was effective in places. His swift closing down improved our control of the game, yet lacked the cleverness in movement to create a chance for himself.

Zigic- 1. Dreadful performance, two very scoreable opportunities of which neither he hit, abysmal work rate.

SECOND HALF TEAM:

Randolph- 5. Don’t recall him having a save to make.

Spector- 7. Looked pretty solid, seemed to win every ball, never gave anything away.

Mullins- 6. Slotted in at centre-back reasonably well, but wasn’t tested much.

Fry- 6. As above, but Fry can take more in morale due to first Blues appearance.

Higgins- 7. Didn’t put a foot wrong, held ground defensively, was prepared to make adventurous runs where possible.

Reilly- 6. Seems to have added a directness to his passing style, which has led to the occassional stray ball. His work ethic was good though, and he often helped out in the open full-back areas.

Ambrose- 4. A pretty quiet game I thought. Failed to convert having almost rounded the keeper, hit a very poor free-kick.

Bell- 4. Came across slightly clumsy, his timing of tackles left a little to be desired, seemed overly focused on solo-effort.

Shinnie- 7. An element of fortune to his goal, but his movement was clever.

Novak- 5. Can’t fault his willingness to track back and involve himself in play, but he wasn’t found in the box enough. I doubt his goalscoring ability.

By Gabriel Sutton

Alfreton vs Blues Preview

It’s here. The Blues are finally back after 8 long weeks in waiting. We now embark on what should be an interesting pre-season, in terms of which youth players will be given a chance, and Clark’s tactical plans. We begin with a trip to non-league Alfreton Town on Saturday. Whilst a comprehensive victory would be enjoyable, the priority must lie with fitness and performance levels.

Alfreton? Who are they?

Managed for the last 6 years by Nicky Law, Alfreton are a recently-promoted Conference team, who finished 13th last season. In some ways they are facing similar kinds of financial difficulties to ourselves, but scaled down. They’ve been forced to go with much youth in their team, they’ve had to let a number of players leave on a free this summer, leaving them with a squad of just 16. In an attempt to cut costs, they’ve recently reverted to a part-time status, after two years full-time, so a difficult season may lie ahead for them. In July 2011 however, they beat a Sheffield Wednesday XI, of practically academy players 14-0 in a friendly! It’s a good job we haven’t got many kids in our team, eh?

The line-ups

I have no idea which team Alfreton will field for this one – Ashley Wilkinson in the interview predicted many trialists – so I wouldn’t want to guess. I reckon Clark’s approach will be to pick a team with the Shamrock Rovers game in mind. He may give some players 45 minutes each, and rest a couple of the first teamers in favour of giving the kids an opportunity to prove themselves. It’s important he gives everyone an equal chance, so I think he’ll use this game and the two in Ireland as assessment time, before starting to hone his team.

Because we haven’t got a left winger at the moment, I think he may start with a flexible 5-3-2 formation. My guess at the XI is:

Doyle; Eardley, Fry, Robinson, Burn, Amari’i Bell; Adeyami, Elliott, Reilly; Novak, Green

I think he’ll give Doyle a full game and play Randolph against Shamrock. He’ll take off Robinson at half-time, and put on Chris Burke to convert to a 4-2-3-1, perhaps put Kobe Arthur on for a midfielder and stick him out wide. I’d then take off the striker that had performed best out of Novak and Green, so they can play a part in the Shamrock game, and give Andrew Shinnie a run-out in the hole. I’d want to save Zigic and Kyle Bartley in preparation for the match on Monday. Whilst I don’t think Clark will play entirely a team of kids, I do think he’ll risk bringing a relatively weakened team.

My prediction

Considering that the chances are Clark won’t play his best XI, and Alfreton will be keen to test themselves against a Championship club, I reckon a narrow win for us. This is our first match of pre-season, and I don’t think the players will be at their best, so it may be a disappointingly tight affair. I’ll go with a 2-1 win for us, Green and Elliott to get on the scoresheet, but I’m not expecting fireworks for the first game back.

By Gabriel Sutton

@_thescore

3 more in at St Andrews

In the last 24 hours, Blues have confirmed the loans of defenders Kyle Bartley and Dan Burn, and the signing of Mansfield striker Matt Green on a 2-year contract. In addition, we are giving a trial to wingers Liam Davies and Paddy McCourt, and right-back Mark Little. Our third transfer today is our tenth this summer, as Clark's transfer activity seems to be nearing completion. Personally, I'm relatively pleased with all the signings.

Bargain Bartley

Kyle Bartley looks like a bargain. He was snapped up by Arsenal - notorious for spotting potential in youth - at the age of 16. He gained a lot of first experience at Championship level playing for Sheffield United, and for Rangers in the SPL. Now 22, I think he'll have developed physically to the standard needed for a centre back.

We've also brought in Dan Burn on loan from Fulham, who spent last season at Yeovil Town. Burn was signed by Fulham from Darlington a couple of years ago, and although he's yet to make an appearance for the Cottagers, the 6'7 man was part of the Yeovil team which earned promotion last season.

Burn signs

Neither of these defenders have a particularly strong track record, in terms of the 'goals against' tally in the teams they've played for. However, I will remain optimistic about their chances at Blues. We might have attempted to bring in a more experienced player to replace Davies, but as well as older players commanding the bigger wages we can't afford, they also lack pace. We already have an experienced head at the back in Paul Robinson, and if he was coupled with another player that lacks pace, we would make ourselves quite vulnerable to through balls.

If Bartley and Burn are competing for a place at the back, we can develop a stopper/cover partnership at the back. Bartley or Burn can use their athleticism to dominate the box and throw themselves at aerial balls, whilst Robinson can use his excellent reading of the game to sit deep, sweep up loose balls and organize the defence. It could be the perfect partnership.

Green - replacement for King?

We've also signed Matt Green on a free transfer, after what must have been a successful trial. He has scored a respectable 54 goals in 87 games at non-league level, although at 26, he's not necessarily ahead of his development peak. If he is to become a success at Championship level, this is his best chance. 

McCourt to sign?

The good thing about this signing is that it may point towards the confirmed departure of Marlon King. Reportedly on around £15k a week, equivalent to almost £800k a year, it's essential we get him off the wage bill. If he can have his cartilage cleaned this summer, perhaps one of the richer League 1 clubs in need of a goalscorer will come in for him. Green on the other hand, coming from non-league, will consider £1k a week as big money.

We're also looking at wingers Paddy McCourt and Liam Davies, and right-back Mark Little, who are all on a trial. From what I've heard, McCourt has fitness issues, but he was apparently a fans favourite at Celtic. Now a free agent, he is also considering a contract offer from American side San Jose Earthquakes, who finished lower midtable in the overall MLS 2013 (MLS is similar quality league to the SPL).

Liam Davis was taken on by Fulham as a kid, and according to reports, is an energetic player who can also play at left-back. However, his stats since he joined Oxford United leave much to be desired. In 62 games, he's only had 3 goals and 5 assists, and only 1 of each in 21 games last season. This record is actually very poor, and he's at the age of 26, which should be the peak for a winger. I'm surprised Clark has decided to trial Davis - even if he impressed at the trial, he hasn't shown enough consistency over 2 years to merit a move here. 

Little point having him

Once Nathan Redmond's imminent transfer is confirmed, I would be more inclined to give Kobe Arthur a run in the team. That is, unless McCourt is prepared to take a wage of about £3k a week, and improve his condition. I can't help but feel that parting with some ground in our wage structure for a more phyiscally developed and experienced winger, would actually be standing in the way of the progress of Kobe Arthur. Arthur is a rare player with the potential to become an asset at the club, and I'd like to see Clark devote him a run in the team.

Mark Little is on trial, yet apparently Clark isn't looking to sign him, just keeping him fit until he finds a club. Personally I feel minorly annoyed with Clark for doing so, if this is the case. Whilst Little training with the club won't cost us anything, it's still our coaches' time that can be used working with the players we actually have at our disposal. And even if in the case that Clark was looking to buy, I'd say it would be poor prioritizing. With Neal Eardley in the squad, and Spector, Packwood and Higgins all capable of playing right-back, signing another would be unnecessary.

However, I would praise Clark's judgement in bringing in the likes of Kyle Bartley and Dan Burn on loan. I'm prepared to reserve judgement on Green, and would be content to see McCourt sign on a free if he was on a low wage, but I believe the trialing of Liam Davis and Mark Little will ultimately be a waste of time.

By Gabriel Sutton

The Alfreton View

It’s our first pre-season game of the summer on Saturday, and I’m starting a regular feature where I interview a supporter of our next opponents. This week, is Ashley Wilkinson, who is an Alfreton Town reporter for BBC Derby Sport. You can follow Ashley on Twitter: @WilkinsonAshley Here, he talks about Alfreton’s transfer activity so far, the excitement of non-league football, and gives us tips on where to go for a pre-match drink.

You were promoted to the Conference National in 2011, and got your highest ever position last season, finishing 13th. It’s been a good couple of years for you, hasn’t it?

It certainly has. I’ve only covered Alfreton Town for the last six months or so but as a local lad, I’ve followed the side’s progress throughout and I’d be inclined to agree with you. On a shoestring budget, even for Conference sides, Nicky Law has assembled a squad that, last season, was just two points away from finishing in the top half of the Conference.

That was only the Reds’ second ever season as a full-time club and now, with the Chairman announcing that the club are going to be reverting to part-time status once more to save money, Law will have his budget cut and is going to face a battle to keep the club moving forward. In the last game of the season, Law told me staying in the division would be difficult but, as we’ve seen over the last two years, Alfreton have a very hungry young squad capable of playing good football at this level.

There hasn’t just been league success, either. The Reds reached the second round of the FA Cup last year and hosted Leyton Orient at the Impact Arena in front of the ESPN cameras. The Reds lost 4-2 but actually led through top scorer Paul Clayton at one stage and were ultimately unlucky to lose.

Knows what it takes - Law

Your manager, Nicky Law, has been in charge for 6 years now. How do you rate him as a manager, and what impact has stability had on your club’s success?

Nicky is vastly experienced and knows exactly what you need at this level to succeed; he is hampered only by his lack of budget. When Nicky came in six years ago the club was middling in the Conference North and, after a 16th-placed finish and two play-off campaigns, he took the Reds to stage 1 as champions.

Any manager, chairman or director will tell you that what a club ideally needs is stability (unless that director is Shebby Singh). Law (and his assistant, Russ O’Neill) have worked wonders in getting the club to stage 1 of non-league football and then to  keep them there on, again, a shoestring budget, and hopefully he will remain at the club for a while yet.

Last season, your defensive record wasn’t great. What impact do you hope the signing of centre-back Michael Wylde will have?

Wylde has a vast amount of experience at this level with Tamworth and Cambridge United, and is a solid signing for Alfreton following the losses of Theo Streete and Leigh Franks.

A lot was made of Alfreton’s defensive record last season but a lot of that, for me, was due to not having a settled, consistent backline. Injuries at key times to key players often meant emergency loan signings coming in, and when you sign a player on an emergency loan it tends to be one out of match practice. So it takes a while for them, and the backline, to settle.

I certainly think Alfreton’s new-look defence, with one or two more potential signings, is looking solid. Bradley Wood, a right-back, has just signed on a free from Grimsby Town and Wylde looks like a good strong partner for captain Darran Kempson. The Reds’ highly-rated left-back Conor Franklin has also signed a new deal which is good news.

If Wylde and Kempson can get a run of 10, 20 games at centre-half together, I think Alfreton will reap the rewards.

A grafter - Clayton

How pleased are you that 17-goal top scorer, Paul Clayton, has signed a new contract?

Delighted, as are several fans, understandably. Clayton is a real fan favourite and you can never accuse him of a lack of effort. He’s honest, wears his heart on his sleeve and goes in for every header (winning a good number, too). His positioning sometimes leaves something to be desired, and it’s not unusual to see Nicky Law screaming at him to get back into position, but at the end of the day 17 goals at a mid-table side isn’t to be sniffed at.

On the flip side, 5 players have been released to cut costs. Any of them you’re sad to see leave?

Not necessarily released. As far as I’ve been told each of the players who have left Alfreton so far were offered new deals, but due to the budget cuts they chose to ply their trade elsewhere.

Leigh Franks, Anton Brown and Ashley Worsfold have all left for Conference North side Harrogate Town (who are building quite the squad as they aim to push into the playoffs next year). Brown is a physical midfield battler who was a key part of the first XI, so I’d say I was most disappointed to see him leave (though there are rumours that by the weekend Law will have announced the signing of a new midfielder).

Worsfold and Franks were two promising talents but evidently, each have decided to play elsewhere. Both signings have been replaced, with Kristian Ramsey-Dickson signed in place of Worsfold up front and Wylde covering the loss of Franks.

Theo Streete will be missed, not the most technically gifted of players but still a competent defender at this level (evidenced by his move to recently-promoted Nuneaton Town). The departure of goalkeeper Phil Barnes represents a problem, as he was Alfreton’s de facto number 1 until Sunderland youngster Jordan Pickford came in on loan toward the end of last season. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Law go for a young goalkeeper on a season-long loan as a replacement.

What would you say to those who argue non-league football doesn’t have the same atmosphere and excitement as elite football?

The football may not be as technically astute nor as ego-driven, but there is plenty (and I do mean plenty) to enjoy about non-league football. Let me give you an example, my second game covering Alfreton Town was a home game against Gateshead. The Reds were 2-0 down for 77 minutes, had hit the woodwork various times and looked like losing a game they should have been winning.

On 78 minutes, Ben Tomlinson headed one in at the back post to make it 2-1. On 80 minutes, Steven Hewitt smashed one home and it was 2-2. The Reds kept pushing and smashed a few more shots against the woodwork, before Gateshead’s Liam Hatch got sent off for an elbow in injury time. From there, the Reds kept endeavouring until the finally bundled one home in the 95th minute through Scott Boden, snatching three points in just 15 minutes.

If that game had been in the Premier League, Sky Sports News would have been showing highlights through the week. Games like that happen most weeks at non-league. Excitement and unpredictability are certainly more commonplace than they are in the more elite leagues.

You came very close to reaching the third round of the FA Cup last season, losing to Leyton Orient on TV. As a lower league follower, do you feel the FA Cup holds the same prestige as it did years ago?

Personally, yes. The FA Cup is still one of the best events on the calendar each year, diminished somewhat by the ridiculous (thankfully now reversed) decision to stage it BEFORE the end of the Premier League season. Alfreton’s cup run, beating promotion hopefuls Wrexham before playing so well against Leyton Orient, was proof of that.

There’s no better feeling than timing your lunch break accordingly to get a stream of the third round draw on a cold afternoon in January running, is there? Every fan of every club is excited for that third round draw, I only wish Alfreton could have scored a few more of those chances against Orient…an away trip to Championship (and now of course, Premiership) Hull City.

What would make a good season for you 13/14?

Nicky Law said to me after the final game, having told me about the budgets for next season, that the aim was to stay in this division and keep hold of the squad he has as best he can. By and large, Law has done that, keeping hold of some of the club’s most valuable assets (Franklin, Josh Law and England C international Dan Bradley have all signed new deals) whilst bringing in some experienced heads. For me, a good season  would be another campaign of consolidation, repeating last year’s 13th-placed finish in a much tougher league may just be out of reach.

The Victoria

For Birmingham fans making the trip up to your place, where would you recommend for a pre-match drink?

There’s a BP station right next to the ground that does Lucozade at 2 for £2! In all seriousness, for obvious reasons I’ve not been to the pub before covering a game, though from what I understand the pubs nearby are friendly to away fans as long as the away fans are friendly. The Alfreton Town Supporters’ Club, which is right outside the main stand (opposite the away end) is usually open to away fans.

I’d recommend straying slightly away from the ground and toward Nottingham Road (big main road that North Street is just off), where there is a pub serving real ale called the Victoria. Sky Sports, big screen, etc.. I hear plenty of good things about the Victoria, certainly.

And finally, your prediction for the game…

Without knowing exactly who’ll play for Alfreton (expect many trialists!) it’s difficult to say. I’d probably go for a Birmingham win, 3-2, with Paul Clayton and Josh Law scoring for the Reds. But don’t bring a weakened XI, or else you might get the Sheffield Wednesday treatment………. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/14363245

By Gabriel Sutton

My thanks to Ashley Wilkinson for his answers.