Accrington Web - 2014 Prediction League; Game 9 v Northampton Town (away)

Northampton Town

Accrington Stanley

2014/15 Prediction League – Game 9; v Northampton (away)

It wouldn’t be unfair to call them our bogey team (well, one of them); since they were relegated (2008/9) we’ve met 10 times ……………and it isn’t so much that we’ve lost 6, drawn 2 and won just 2 of those games that I mind; it’s the fact that we’ve actually only scored in three of the ten games ……….. Our wins were 2-1 (2011/12) and 3-1 the season before; we’ve had two goalless draws, and lost 1-0 twice (last season’s two meetings under James Beattie), 2-0 and 4-2 the year before (under Leam and/or Cook), and 3-0 and 4-0 in 2009/10 – the last time, according to some, when we had a decent manager. Well, if it were me, I’d rather have an aggregate score of 0-2 than 2-6; but I’d certainly prefer 2-6 to 0-7 …………So who’s the Daddy now? ;) And we’ve never even managed to score at their place! :o

2012/13 they lost out in the Playoffs; last season you’d have thought they were managed by Harry Houdini (actually, during the business end of the season, it was ex-Oxford manager Chris Wilder) ………..From “dead and buried”, he took 28 points from their last 18 games, won four of his last 6 (including beating us 1-0 at Fortress ScoreFirst), and kept them up by 3 points and a worse GD than anyone else …………I wonder if he fancies a new challenge? :D

At the moment they’re fifth – above Shrewsbury on goals scored, and above Southend and Cheltenham on goal difference. Their record is 4 wins (1-0 against Exeter and Mansfield at home, 2-0 at the Daggers, and a very healthy 5-1 thrashing of Hartlepool, who are going to have another long hard winter :rolleyes:(unlike us, if you believe some folk! :eek:), two draws and two losses; they’ve 13 scored and eight conceded, and 14 points ………They are, though, sadly out of the League Cup, losing 0-3 at the Cherries, having seen off Wolves (away) 3-2 in Round One ………….16 goals in 10 games overall.

Players came and went; four left for non-League homes, including JJ Hooper (why can’t parents give kids actual names, instead of postcodes? :):)) who now plies his trade at Havant. Or Waterlooville. Or maybe both. :p:pDefender Joe Widdowson joined Bury, Gary Deegan went to Southend, and striker Alex Nicholls went on loan to Exeter; “released” included much-travelled striker Alan Connell (who also fancied the joys of Conference (South), so plays for Waterlooville. Or Havant. Or whoever the hell ………, and Mathias Kouo-Doumbe, once of Plymouth, Hibs and MK Dons, and now of the Job Centre.

They ProperSigned four; Burton’s 29 year-old CB Zander Diamond arrived; so did Barnsley, Port Vale and Chesterfield striker Marc Richards (32), for a second spell at Sixfields; “professional journeyman footballer” John-Joe O’Toole" (25) – ex Watford and Colchester – exercised his “Get Out of Relegation Free” card, and left Brizzle Rovers after their spectacular cock-up of getting relegated on the last day of the season :D; and MF Lawson D’Ath (19) – who played for Yeovil, Cheltenham, Exeter and Dagenham whilst on the books at Reading (for whom he didn’t play) – completed the full set. :confused::confused:

They also did some business in the loan markets; Swansea defender Daniel Alfei; Evan Horwood from Tranmere; Port Vale winger Kaid Mohammed (23); Spurs’ 21 year-old GK Jordan Archer; MF Joel Byrom (28), who started in non-league, moved to Stevenage (which is nearly the same thing), then joined PNE (which is definitely the same thing) :D; defender Ryan Cresswell (26, Fleetwood via Bury, Rotherham and Southend); and Leicester’s Ryan Watson.

Leading scorers are Marc Richards with 7; Lawson D’Ath has 4, Kaid Mohammed has 3, and strikers Ivan Toney (of whom I’ve never heard) and Emile Sinclair (who must be in his early 70s ;)) have one each.

And so we have a new Manager. Well, an old Manager back again. And he needs to make a pretty quick impression, otherwise someone I know will be calling for his head ………Get a shift on, Coley – after today, based on previous form, you’ve got nine games left before the Honeymoon’s over.

Deadline for guesses – sorry, predictions – is scheduled kick-off time, which is 3.00pm on Saturday 20th September. Seriously, we need to re-open some daylight (although I think Carlisle, Exeter and Hartlepool have got troubles just around the corner), and to break so many hoodoos today would be A Good Thing. And we certainly owe them a thrashing of their own; the Bounders!

Good luck to everyone ………………….Keep the Faith …………… and thanks for playing!

:alright: