Media Watch - Fleet Town

Exactly fifty points and every other team in the South and West Division separate ourselves and our opponents this weekend.

So on paper this should be an easy game?

Wrong.

Only last weekend Yate scored seven goals against Fleet without any in reply.
We managed to score six against Clevedon.

So the outcome should be inevitable?

Not really.

Fleet have not won in the last twenty-two league games and are bottom of the form table.

Surely it’s a foregone conclusion?

Afraid not.

A few words of caution - Two weeks ago title rivals Cirencester could only manage a 2-2 draw at home with bottom of the table Fleet!

Comments of player/manager Craig Davis after the Cirencester game, “Absolutely proud as punch today, going away to top of the league against a side flying and to put a performance like that in is so pleasing as a manager and I'm proud of the whole lot of the playing staff and yes its just a point but its a fantastic boost for us.

We defended well throughout against a very good attacking side who have been top for most of the season. Second half was quite simply a fantastic game of football and we were absolutely outstanding. We played with lots of attacking flair and carved out a load of chances, eventually scoring from Pat Cox. For the last 15 minutes they threw the kitchen sink at us that we managed to defend very well.

Chuffed with the display and good away point but we must build on it and I'm sure that we can”.

When they played us at The Causeway earlier in the season although we eventually won, we struggled to find a way past Ryan Pryce, their ‘keeper who was outstanding on the day with a Man of the Match rating, and we managed to score two goals in the second half slightly against the run of play.

As current top dogs in our Division every single team will be seeking to topple us and it would be a significant feather in their cap if rock-bottom Fleet can pull off an unexpected defeat of the high-flying Martyrs.

However, the odds will be stacked considerably against Fleet as they have only tasted one league victory so far this season – against North Leigh way back in August. However, this sequence will have to end eventually.

The only major doubts concern Ryan Charles who has a hand injury and Steve Williams who missed the Clevedon game with a calf strain, everyone else appears to be fully fit for this one.

Fingers crossed that the weather doesn’t intervene!

There is fierce competition for places in the current starting eleven with considerable strength in depth in the squad, when asked if he had any specific plans to keep everyone involved, Martyrs manager Garry Shephard told Wandering that “We have a very competitive squad at present and it’s certainly our best since Danny and I took charge. We are looking to be far more solid when we travel away and more expansive when we play at home. We will possibly consider different playing formations to suit the surface and opposition”.

This has certainly been the case since the New Year with four excellent performances at Penydarren Park, but the practicalities of implementing this philosophy will be put to the test with four away games scheduled to be played in February…….weather permitting.

Just as Paulton prepared in advance for their recent visit to Penydarren Park, the Martyrs are also training in the type of conditions that they will experience away from home. After the recent period of extremely wet weather Garry was asked how the players will react to the heavier surfaces when we travel to play away?

“Because it will be different to what the players are used to playing on the 3G at home, we have been training at Merthyr Saints ground the week preceding any away games so that we can get used to the heavy surface”.

Hopefully, this meticulous attention to detail will help the team adapt to the change in conditions and playing surfaces that they will experience over the next few weeks.

After the negative vote cast earlier this week against allowing clubs with a 3G playing surface to participate in the Skrill Conference, Garry was asked what type of feedback he had received from opposition managers about the 3G playing surface at Penydarren Park?

“Most of the managers that I’ve actually spoken to have said they certainly like the playing surface”.

Initial indications are that opposition sides that have visited Penydarren Park since October have marked the playing surface over 95 out of 100, with some clubs awarding the full 100 marks.

Merthyr Town hoping to make short work of Fleet Town after long journey
Wales On Line

MERTHYR Town face a 300-mile round trip for a top v bottom Calor Southern League match against Fleet Town in Hampshire on Saturday (3pm).

The Martyrs, six points clear at the top, take on a Fleet team who have earned only one win from 24 league games this season.

Former Cardiff City professional Craig Davis, who played for the Bluebirds between 1998 and 2001, is Fleet’s manager and he is under pressure after the Hampshire club were fortunate to avoid relegation from the Central Division last season. They were saved from the drop when another team withdrew from the competition, but they are now six points adrift at the bottom of the South and South West Division.

Merthyr are still unbeaten in 2014, but are keen to push on and make the most of the lead they have established, particularly with only one automatic promotion place available.

While joint managers Garry Shephard and Danny Carter take their team to face struggling hosts, promotion rivals Cirencester Town face a tough trip to play Paulton Rovers.

The Martyrs have been drawn at home against Tiverton Town in the Red Insure Cup quarter-finals and the ties will be played at the Cigg-e Stadium next Tuesday (7.45pm).

It's getting a bit Yate now for Fleet
Get Hampshire On Line

Fleet Town's pain-staking season took another nosedive on Saturday as they were hit for seven by high-flying Yate Town.

Player-boss Craig Davis was left to rue a cruel twist in the weather with his side battling against the elements in a torrid first half, leading to a ten-minute delay in proceedings, while contrasting conditions in the second hindered any chance of a fightback.

Despite huge hailstones and large puddles forming on the pitch, the match continued as one of only two in the South & West to survive the downpour – and three quickfire goals soon dampened the spirits by the break.

But, typically, when the players came out after the break there was not one breath of wind and a rampant Yate side added four more goals to complete the rout. It all added up to another disappointing day for the Fleet boss.

“It was a very tough day for us,” Davis said. “We had an under-strength side and what certainly didn't help us was an absolute gale force wind and hailstones driving straight at our goal for the whole of the first half. We were fantastic though for 40 minutes, and played some great stuff. But I'm sure the stoppage didn’t help our concentration and they scored three goals in five minutes before half-time leaving the lads wind swept and shell-shocked after playing so well. Unbelievably we came out for the second half and there was barely a breath of wind in our favour. I can’t really ask much more from the lads, and we won’t give up trying.”

It doesn’t get any easier for Davis, however, as next up is the visit of league leaders Merthyr Town, on Saturday, before mid-table Cinderford Town are down at Calthorpe Park on Tuesday night.

Pitch update posted on Fleet Town twitter stream last night:

Fleet Town @FCFleetTown 11 hrs
Pitch extremely wet all over but bottom end is really badly boggy and has puddles in goal mouth. Dry weather needed @MerthyrTownFC

Fleet Town @FCFleetTown 11 hrs
The lads have strapped their tin hats and body armour on ready for Saturdays visit of league leaders Merthyr #ftfc

Interesting comments from Cirencester manager about our advantage due to the secret weapon at PP!
The press still insist on calling it a plastic pitch.

Cirencester Town risk being cast afrift in Southern League Division One South and West title race
Gloucestershire Echo

CIRENCESTER Town risk being cast adrift in the race for top spot in Calor League Division One South and West – without being able to play a game.

The Centurions rose to the top of the division before Christmas after an outstanding run of 12 wins in 13 games, and then the weather had a say. Since a thrilling 3-2 victory against Evesham United on December 21 the Centurions have played just two games as incessant rain and waterlogged pitches have ruled.

The Centurions are scheduled to travel to Somerset to face Paulton Rovers on Saturday, although with a miserable forecast the game is already in doubt.

Title rivals Merthyr Town have been hit with no such troubles, playing – and winning – four games on the trot to race six points clear at the top of the table thanks to a secret weapon. The Martyrs use a 3G synthetic pitch at their Penydarren Park home making waterlogged pitches and postponements a thing of the past.

Frustrated at his side’s weather-enforced inactivity, Cirencester boss Brian Hughes admitted that Merthyr had an advantage in the title race because of their plastic pitch.

“It’s clearly an advantage for Merthyr to get games on while others are struggling and from what I hear about them they have adapted their game to play on it. We’ve not been there yet this season so we haven’t had the experience of it. But from speaking to other managers it is different to play on, and they’re used to it and are using it to their advantage. It’s allowing them to get games in while all of the other clubs are unable to play and it’s really frustrating for us to watch them pulling away at the top of the table.”

The artificial pitch debate in non-League football rose to prominence in the past week after the Football Conference clubs rejected a bid to allow member clubs to use 3G surfaces. Premier League and Football League rules already prevent the use of artificial pitches meaning Merthyr can rise no higher than the Southern League Premier in the pyramid.

Add in the prohibitive cost of installing 3G surfaces – Merthyr’s cost £500,000 – and Hughes believes that clubs will just have to grin and bear the frustration of weather-enforced postponements.

“Financially it’s not possible for us to spend the money and laying an artificial pitch and that would be the case throughout non-League football. It’s not the case that you can choose to have a break either, because this time last year the weather was fine, and then we had snow in March – it’s impossible to predict. There is no easy way round it at the moment. It’s just one of those things that we have to get on with. In my 10 or so years with Cirencester I’ve never known anything like this spell of rain, you just have to chalk it off as one of those things.”

There will be a 9.00am pitch inspection at Fleet tomorrow

Describing our magnificent playing surface as being 'plastic pitch' is an absolute Neanderthal comment...and probably the result of the politics of envy...lots of people worked very hard to get that surface laid and even more people from within our club had the foresight and bravery to take the opportunity with both hands...such uninformed comments do not serve the cause of Non League football....there is an old saying that if you throw enough mud some eventually will stick...perhaps that is why their pitches are so problematic...the Luddites couldn't stop progress...man has improved on nature...thanks to science we are blessed with a full uninterrupted home football programme, a much reduced fixture pile up and a facility for the wider community of Merthyr Tydfil....yes the artificial surface costs money but a lot of the clubs in our leagues are from more affluent areas ...they could borrow the money from the landed gentry or on a Mastercard credit card facility......to moan about a rival club taking the time and effort to improve their lot should be applauded not chastised...fortunately our Trust played a masterstroke ....the future is 3G ....for everything else there's ' plastic' .....Boz

And remember it wasn't just the club's Board on their own who decided to go ahead with the installation of the pitch - it was due to a (large) majority vote by the members of the Society.

Heavy Rain on Friday now casts doubt on leaders visit.
Fleet v Merthyr - Pitch Inspection Planned

Heavy Rain falling on Friday Afternoon has undone the good work of a short dry spell this week and has cast a shadow of doubt on having the pitch playable on Saturday for the visit of league leaders Merthyr Town to Fleet.
An early Pitch Inspection has been arranged for 9AM on Saturday to save Merthyr setting off on a wasted journey

From fleet website

Unlikely to be on.If pitch is unplayable at 9am then game will have to be postponed. They won't risk saying it may be drier later because if the match referee calls it off later, Fleet will have to pay Merthyr's travel bill for the re-arranged game.

Boz, the word "plastic" was used by the newspaper, not Cirencester.
And I believe Cirencester train in that big hangar next to their ground- there is a 3G pitch there, I understand!!!

Thanks Tim there was no suggestion it was of Roman origin...Neanderthal man predates them ...it was clearly marked as being a piece from a newspaper...the standard of reporting has gone down since the old guard retired...as u know all too well...nowadays magazines like crossword monthly sell more than local newspapers ....but the only crossword I have is with people that criticise people who try and improve things...yet won't do anything themselves...very frustrating...to make a slight about a plastic pitch when their own pitches are unplayable is not very fair and an insult to the movers and shakers who make things happen...unpaid too I might add...Boz

Agreed! Newspapers have just cut staff to the bone and then appeal to readers to send in their own stories!! The Guardian could in a couple of years just be online and no print edition.
And a decline in journalists only means that the public never get to hear of half the things which are happening in their town/city/country..
Clubs are now saying we have an advantage with our 3G pitch but then we have to adapt to heavy wet grounds when away. And if we have away games postponed, it means we have more midweek matches to play away in Feb, March and April, which is no advantage. If game off tomorrow, a trip to Fleet on a Tuesday could mean some players not available.

Tim Drummond wrote:Clubs are now  saying we have an advantage with our 3G pitch but then we have to adapt to heavy wet grounds when away. And if we have away games postponed, it means we have more midweek matches to play away in Feb, March and April, which is no advantage. If game off tomorrow, a trip to Fleet on a Tuesday could mean some players not available.

It may be advantageous to us to have a few consecutive away games as it will acclimatise the players to playing on grass. I agree that work commitments may get in the way of players being available, particularly for games such as Fleet away but for closer venues such as Shortwood & Evesham that may not be a problem as the team normally train on a Tuesday so they should be able to make those fairly close away fixtures. With the squad Shep & Carts have assembled we should be able to cope.

Most grounds are now long past saturation point and with a high water table, it will probably need at least a week of dry weather before we see any significant reduction in the number of games that are currently being postponed.

The forecast is for further periods of low pressure sweeping in from the Atlantic until at least mid-February.

Because of their current mid-week fixtures the earliest that we could now play the Fleet game will probably be sometime in March and that may give the playing surfaces some time to improve (if it stops raining long enough!) that will suit our playing style.

For those clubs who are already playing catch up with re-arranged games in midweek I think that it will get worse before it gets any better.

There has been so much rain for six weeks or more that I wonder if Merthyr's 3G pitch would have been playable yesterday!

Well I hope after the Guildford game at home Saturday the rain relents to enable the 3 away games we have to round off February ( Taunton, Wimborne & Shortwood )

Someone mentioned yesterday that of the 31 days in January it rained on 29, I can't remember the 2 days it never !!

Tim....we can always ' flood' the midfield....there may be a Health And Safety issue ...will have to have Willo on lifeguard duty on 'Kerry Morgan' watch if the water gets too high....Boz