This below is the View that is in the programme for the Shildon game, but not many people have seen that…
Bear in mind it was written on Thursday night/Friday morning. Hope you enjoy and hopefully we will be back at some time. I will try and post something to the website every now and then anyway. Be lucky.
This weekend we have two Northern League teams playing in the first leg of the semi finals of the FA Vase, both favourites in their respective ties and with every chance of getting through to give us another all Northern League Final and a fun day out at Wembley. But when will that final be? Or even, when will the second legs of the semis be played? My guess is August.
The news this morning, Friday, that coronavirus Covid-19 has reached the Premier League with both Arsenal and Chelsea reporting cases, and with football in Ireland, France, Span and others already in shut down, makes it seem inevitable that we will have to go down the same path, with professional games being postponed or played behind closed doors, and sooner rather than later. It maybe that those games and clubs at levels where they can be confident of not attracting more than 500 spectators will be allowed to continue, or maybe not, but big games in non league stadia and a Wembley Final? Nobody wants to play behind closed doors and it makes little sense anyway, financial or sporting, so if things are postponed for a few weeks then where is the leeway to fit games in? Like I say, August…
All a bit gloomy I admit, but it makes me feel gloomy. Enjoy today’s game anyway, I wonder when the next will be? Wednesday night as planned? Maybe, maybe.
Anyway, how are things on the pitch for us down at little old RCA? It’s panning out to be not a great season, but with some decent results over the last few games, assuming we get to play them, we could make it a top ten or even top eight finish, which, given the loss of players to injuries and disruption for other reasons, would be not a bad effort. The win up at Whitley Bay was very good in not great conditions, and we have some promising young players around the place. It looks to me like a classic transitional year, and hopefully we can build on the very decent squad we have and start again refreshed next season.
Although I do wonder why it seems to be a never ending rule with RCA to be better away from home than down at LGV Park and the slope, which you would think would help us.
Anyway, get this season over with a win or two, and then crack on for next year.
Which might be exactly what our friends over at the SoL will be doing, apart from the very decent squad bit. The last few games have put a good few holes in their balloon. I watched the game at Bristol Rovers on the telly and it was abysmal, and however basically competent the manager is, and I think he is, he has the charisma of a wet weekend in Skegness, and more I’m portably very few players.
Talk about lacking inspiration.
And to make matters worse for the hard core faithful at the SoL, unless I am very much mistaken, old potato head over on the dark side has the beginnings of a good side, if he can persuade moneybags Mike to loosen the purse strings a little bit. But again, I wonder when they will get to play their FA Cup game?
And finally, my old mates Atleti, consistently the best bets in Eurpean football, did for the scousers during the week, defending for 90% of the time and attacking the rest, which was enough. They are some outfit and Simeoni is some manager, rebuilds every season and keeps them competitive no matter what. Probably the best move Trippier has ever made heading off to Madrid, old Diego can improve any defender, and I look forward to seeing how defensively improved he is in an England shirt, assuming he gets picked again.
That ends the good news story…