Our tactic of passing the ball as often as possible without making significant progress proved to be very much to Walsall’s taste. They remained happy throughout judiciously to exert sufficient pressure, to keep us moving the ball to little or no effect, until we either exceeded the limits of our own ability, or they spotted an opportunity to intercept. They were bigger than us, younger than us, mostly faster than us and certainly better organised than us on the day. Our reward never looked likely to be more than nil, whereas their’s would be a function of how much they could disrupt us. Even our enthusiastic support, from a crowd heavy in over-rounded old blokes, unsuitably squeezed into imaginatively or historically sized football blue shirts, couldn’t raise a valid complaint. Individually and collectively the best team won.

Sometimes at football, even at a low level, you go on pitch with the best intentions and you can tell from the first minute that nothing is going to go right.

Performances:-

Boot – 6 – has been exonerated of all blame by a court in The Hague.

Gordon – 4- proved he could successfully locate his goalkeeper with a back pass from anywhere on the pitch, or up Kinder Scout. Succeeded in slowing several cautious attempts we made at forward motion.

McFadzean – 5 - solid to the point of wooden, displayed all the verve of a cigar-store Indian.

Palmer – 5 - offered a master class in the pointless Ray-Wilkins sideways pass as the game itself seemed largely to pass him by (sideways).

Mandeville – 5 – had more than a hand in both goals and his dead-ball radar was inclined to be on the blink. Nevertheless, he was one of the few attempting to prompt something creative.

Fleck – 1 – produced Shape – the blancmange beloved of the British Raj. Occupied space, used it to no effect, an entirely zero-carbon performance.

Metcalfe – 5 – worked, tried to use the ball and push forward, but produced several alarmingly wild passes. Attempted to prompt the team to attack, but once, when pursued by Okagbue, resembled David Attenborough attempting to outrun a cheetah.

Naylor – 6 – appeared to have located the opposition goal but unfortunately failed to pass on the co-ordinates to his colleagues. Tried, but on occasion looked overwhelmed by how badly things were going.

Colclough – 6 – illuminated the game like wonky fairy lights, flickering brightly, but more often off than on. Threatens danger, but also electrocution.

Grigg – 4- lacking service, he looked like a man expecting silver service, unhappily seated in a Transport Café.

Olakigbe – 2 – appeared beset by nerves, twice let the ball roll out of play under his foot, his control and involvement were almost non-existent. Check his dressing-room peg for a Fentanyl leak. Something was very wrong.

Dobra – 6- gave the crowd glimpses of what they wanted to see when sent on as sub’ but produced one awful pass that suggested he was still trying to regain his touch for Friday.

Sparkes – 3 – lacked any, didn’t ignite in his few minutes on pitch.

Duffy – 5 – a good cross and obvious enthusiasm may have won him a start on Friday.

Pepple – 5 – welcome attempt to counter Walsall physically. We desperately need that.

Jacobs – 4 – wore football shorts, didn’t get time for much else.

Cook – 4 – manager – achieved full beetroot early doors and maintained it throughout. Was clearly at a loss to effect any change, regularly turning to his support staff to confirm we hadn’t slid into a parallel universe.

Former Crawley Town assistant manger and interim head coach Louis Storey has been charged by the Football Association with abusing a supporter while making a reference to disability.

The alleged incident happened during the first half of Crawley's 3-1 League One defeat at Blackpool on Saturday, 22 February.

It is being treated as an "aggravated breach" of FA rules, a charge that does not come with a pre-determined sanction if proven.

The case, and any possible punishment, will be dealt with by an independent regulatory commission.

Storey was assistant manager at Crawley under Rob Elliot, who was appointed in October 2024. Both left National League club Gateshead to join the Red Devils.

The 31-year-old then had a brief spell as the club's interim head coach following Elliot's departure in March.

He left the Sussex club when Scott Lindsey, who was unable to prevent Crawley's relegation to League Two, returned to replace Elliot.

Storey has until Tuesday, 13 May to respond to the charge.

A statement from the FA said: "It's alleged the former Crawley Town assistant manager breached FA Rule E3.1 by using abusive and/or insulting words towards a supporter during the first half.

"It's further alleged that this constitutes an "aggravated breach", which is defined in FA Rule E3.2, as it included a reference - whether express or implied - to disability."

Championship

Can't see beyond the Blunts other finalist will be Coventry as Sunderland have zero form at the moment

League 1

Tough to call this one, fancy Charlton impressed when we played them in the cup, Stockport other finalist

League 2

Chesterfield v Notts County a repeat of the epic Conference Final a couple of seasons ago winner Chesterfield basically on the point of having crept unnoticed into the play off spots on the last day of the season

Barnet's plans for their return to League Two next season have continued to take shape after they released their retained list.

The National League champions, who announced manager Dean Brennan's new three-year deal on Saturday, have confirmed experienced Ben Coker will leave the club along with fellow defenders Reece Hall-Johnson and Richard Nartey and midfielder Harry Chapman.

Barnet have taken up options to keep their two top scorers, 18-goal Callum Stead and midfielder Mark Shelton, who netted 12 times, plus midfield pair Anthony Hartigan and Zak Brunt.

New deals have been offered to Idris Kanu, plus defenders Danny Collinge and Adebola Oluwo.

And the club are in talks over fresh terms with goalkeeper Giosue Bellagambi, defender Jordan Cropper and midfielder Billy Clifford.

Defender Joe Kizzi, midfielder Jermaine Francis and attacker Finley Wilkinson are all available for transfer.

Meanwhile, on-loan goalkeeper Owen Evans and forward Dom Telford will return to parent clubs Cheltenham Town and Barrow.

In a message to those leaving after being part of his title-winning squad, manager Brennan said: "I'd like to thank you all for what you have achieved this season. 102 points is an incredible feat and you all played a part in getting there.

"You are all legends of the club and will always be welcome."

Kidderminster Harriers have sacked manager Phil Brown following the club's failure to win promotion back to the National League.

Harriers were beaten in the semi-finals of the play-offs by Chester on Sunday, after defeat on the final day of the regular season at Southport cost them the title.

They had been top of National League North on goal difference, from eventual champions Brackley Town, but their 2-1 loss cost them dear as they finished third.

Harriers chairman Richard Lane said, external missing out on an immediate return to top-level non-league football was "bitterly disappointing" adding "now is the right time to make changes before embarking our future campaign".

Former Hull City, Derby County and Southend boss Brown was brought in to try to save the club's National League status in January 2024 but could not prevent relegation to National North at the end of that season.

Brown's assistant at Aggborough, Neil McDonald, has also left the club.

Lane added that the search for a new manager "is already underway" and hopes to announce Brown's successor "soon".

Bristol Rovers have re-appointed Darrell Clarke as their manager following their relegation to League Two.

Rovers sacked head coach Inigo Calderon on Sunday, less than 24 hours after the end of a disappointing season that ended in a 4-1 thumping at Blackpool.

Clarke, 47, had four years in charge of Rovers between 2014-2018, a stint in which he brought them back into the English Football League (EFL) at the first attempt and then instantly won promotion to League One.

"It is difficult to put into words just how special it feels to come back to Bristol Rovers," Clarke said. "I am beyond proud to return and once again be here at this exceptional club.

"Even though the season just gone was undoubtedly a difficult one, the potential of this club remains incredibly high and, when the chance to return came up, I didn't have any hesitation.

"I am excited to get down to work during the off-season, prepare for the new campaign and step out at The Mem once again in front of the brilliant, passionate Gasheads.

"We will need each and every one of them with us in the season to come and I want to give them a team they can get behind and performances they can be proud of."

After leaving Rovers, Clarke subsequently managed at Walsall, Port Vale, Cheltenham and most recently Barnsley, who he left in March.

While at Vale he also won promotion from League Two via a play-off final win over Mansfield in 2022.

Director of football Ricky Martin said: "I am delighted to welcome Darrell back to Bristol Rovers.

"Following the review of our footballing operation we began our recruitment proceedings, and it quickly became clear to me that Darrell was the right person to take our first team forward. He has been our number one target throughout this process."

Watford have sacked head coach Tom Cleverley after the team failed to reach the Championship play-offs.

The Hornets finished 14th in the table after taking only one point from their last five games - a 1-1 season-ending draw with Sheffield Wednesday.

Former Manchester United, Everton and Watford midfielder Cleverley, capped 13 times by England, was appointed as interim boss in March 2024 following Valerien Ismael's departure.

He was then confirmed in the post on a permanent basis the following month.

The 35-year-old was in charge for 60 games in total, winning 20 and losing 26.

Sporting director Gian Luca Nani said: "The time has come for a change and to build on what we believe is a young and talented squad that will have benefited from the experience of the Championship this season.

"It has been a privilege to work closely with Tom; to understand how he sees the game and his enthusiasm for everything here. He deserves to be recognised for this and I'm sure he will have a bright future in the game."

The Hornets are now looking for their 10th permanent head coach since Nigel Pearson was sacked in the summer of 2020 with the club facing relegation from the Premier League.

Cleverley was the first head coach to remain in charge for an entire season since Javi Gracia in 2018-19.

He was unbeaten at home in his first 15 league games as boss, but results took a downturn following a 2-1 defeat by Cardiff on 29 December and they only took five points from the next nine matches.

Reports in Spain earlier this season claimed former Villarreal head coach Jose Rojo Martin, known as Pacheta, had been in talks with Watford to replace him.

In January, the club dismissed that as "pure speculation" and owner Gino Pozzo later said of Cleverley: "We are committed to support him and look forward to the challenges ahead together."

Speaking last week, Cleverley said that hopes of achieving a play-off place had been undermined by injuries, particularly among his forwards.

"There's no difference in the number of goals we've conceded from pre-January to post-January, but the amount of goals we've scored has dropped significantly," he said.

He promised to learn the lessons of the campaign and added: "We spent 10 weeks in the play-offs [places], we showed real positive signs before the turn of the year and I think we can clearly identify where and why we've run out of a bit of steam.

"We've got an incredibly young squad, the average age is boosted up by one or two individuals, but apart from that it's largely under 25 and the majority under 21 at the minute.

"The experiences they will have had this year - some bad ones - to really develop and ultimately improve from is one of the really exciting positives from this season."

No Watford manager or head coach has lasted an entire calendar year in the job since Malky Mackay in 2010.

Since being relegated from the Premier League in 2022, they have finished 11th, 15th and now 14th.

"There will be no further club comment until a new appointment has been made," a statement on the Hornets website said.

This is going to go down very badly with Watford fans. Tom Cleverley was a really popular head coach – probably the most popular since Javi Gracia who took the club to a Wembley FA Cup final - and supporters will be upset and angry.

Cleverley was a former player who first joined the club when he was a youngster on loan from Manchester United and then came back towards the end of his career. He then became academy manager at the club before his role as first-team head coach.

Watford were seen as possible relegation candidates this season but Cleverley had them in and around the play-offs all season before they drifted away.

He also had to go through a seriously awkward situation in January where his club had to reassure him he wasn't being sacked on the day of a game when reports in Spain suggested the club had a new man lined up.

The Watford board feel like it's the right time for change and can point to a poor run of form in the last four months. But Watford fans' favourite song this season has been about not caring about owner Gino Pozzo and only caring about Cleverley.

This news isn't going to help relations between the owner and supporters.

Group A

Minizin 22
Twerton 18
Zinman 10
A.A.A. 6
Amelia 5
Themaclad 3

Decent final week of the season by Group A but with no real jeopardy at stake there was just a few bragging rights to secure.  Minizin realised this and ended up top of the weekly table with his highest score of the season.  He got a spot on Gamball and backed that up with 2 more correct scores and a CR on the Bonus to end on 22 points.  Twerton also had a good week, finishing with a strong 18 points.  Zinman took it easy in 3rd with 10 points!!

AAA and Amelia both finished mirroring their season long struggles.  That leaves the Group A leader Themaclad, he was well and truly on his 2 week holiday before he has to be back for the final!!

344 Themaclad - Qualifies for the Final
319 Twerton - Playoffs
311 Minizin - Playoffs
307 Zinman - Playoffs
236 Amelia
229 A.A.A.

So the ultimate bragging rights go to Themaclad, who not only won Group A in a canter but also scored the most points between the two groups.  Twerton held onto the runner-up spot.  Minizin wins the bragging rights of the Zins, by overtaking Senior (or should that be larger??) in the final week to take the last Group A podium spot!!  Of course the top 4 all make the playoffs so there are still more bragging rights to be had!!

Cheers
SCO


Group B

Derby          12
BaggieOne    9
SCO              8
Stairs            8
BBB              8
Lady Jane      7
Snooty          6

In many ways it wasn't exactly the dramatic final week that we sometimes see (who can possibly forget Beefy blowing a 20* point lead on the final day some years ago) but as we will see later, there was one last minute twist thanks to the gamball. As usual the bonus ball proved problematic - nobody got it right - but in total contrast to last week we had a full house with the scoreball.

The final week sees Derby on top of the table as the only player to hit double figures. He only scored on 3 games but got two of them spot-on, including the gamball. BaggieOne takes 2nd place with 4 correct results, 2 correct scores but a miss on the gamball. 3 players are tied together on 8 points (Stairs "interesting' predictions saw no correct scores but a decent overall return), Lady Jane is a point further back with Snooty in the final place.

A short write-up this week as I want to get the scores out early given that the first play-off fixture is on Friday.

So on to the final table with a late twist.

303 SCO - Qualifies for the final
293 Derby - Playoffs
290 Lady Jane
267 Stairs
256 BBB
244 Snooty
239 BaggieOne

And that twist sees Derby snatch 2nd place from Lady Jane to secure the final play-off position thanks to a 9 point swing on the gamball. Having led Group B for so long Lady J suffered a collapse WBA would have been proud of to lose out in the final week.

Zin

We will post some season stats in a separate thread.

For the benefit of Twerton, Minizin, Zinman and Derby, the 4 to make the play-offs, here are the fixtures:

Friday:
Gamball
Coventry - Sunderland

Others:
Ipswich - Brentford
Wolves - Brighton
Bournemouth - Villa
Newcastle - Chelsea
Man U - West Ham
Spurs - Crystal Palace
Liverpool - Arsenal
Wycombe - Charlton
Chesterfield - Walsall

Top 2 qualify for the finals. Ties will be decided by:
1. Most correct scores - if still level
2. Most correct results - if still level
3. The oldest player goes through- if still level
4. Highest points total in the regular season

Regular season's points in case of scenario 3:

Twerton - 319
Minizin - 311
Zinman - 307
Derby - 293

Well I thought I'd start this thread with the retained list that's just been announced. Any thoughts on who you think should've been offered new terms. Any thoughts on who should be gotten rid of, even if they are under contract?

https://www.htafc.com/news/2025/may/05/2...confirmed/


2024/25 RETAINED LIST IN SUMMARY
Released:

Jonathan Hogg
Danny Ward
Tom Lees
Matty Pearson
Ollie Turton
Josh Ruffels
Josh Koroma
Scott High
Loick Ayina
Anthony Gregory
Danny Isaac
Donnell Garrick
Oliver Riva
Zak Abbott
Fope Deru
Cian Philpott
Conor Falls
Michael Stone

Retired:

Chris Maxwell

Ongoing discussions regarding new contract:

Neo Eccleston

Returning to parent club following loan:

Tawanda Chirewa
Joe Hodge
Nigel Lonwijk
Callum Marshall

First Team squad under contract in 2025/26 (in order of total minutes played):

Lee Nicholls
Sorba Thomas
David Kasumu
Ben Wiles
Brodie Spencer
Jacob Chapman
Lasse Sorensen
Herbie Kane
Antony Evans
Bojan Radulovic
Mickel Miller
Radinio Balker
Dion Charles
Ruben Roosken
Rhys Healey
Joe Taylor
Freddie Ladapo
Tom Iorpenda