The Crowing Cockerel

So here we are, 7 (possibly 9!) cup finals to determine our season. You would struggle to find a tougher run-in for any of the play-off chasers than ours. Nevertheless, I've decided its actually a good thing. Either we make it into the play-offs with confidence high following a string of good results against the top sides in the league, or we falter and our season ends with a damp squib finish seeing us in 7th/8th. As Cheshunt demonstrated last season, its crucial to go into the play-offs in form. It we make it now then we will have had to have taken points from the likes of Aveley, Stortford, Hornchurch etc. A very tough game against Herne Bay first up. About time things clicked into place! Go on Town!!

Can you really see us beating Stortford though? Certainly not on current form.

I don't think 72 points will be enough this year - and the predicted table agrees with me: https://www.footballwebpages.co.uk/isthmian-football-league-premier-division/league-table/predicted - suggests we'll finish 6th with 75 points and 77 points required to make the play-offs this season. Somehow we need to play out of our skins to make the play-offs now. At present I can't see it as we sit 18th in the form guide.

Nathan Smith now at Hashtag United with Percy (and scored 2 on debut!) as they cruise their way to the Isthmian Prem.

3 goals scored in the last 6 games (which includes the 2-0 Bognor win) tells the story with no Mo to bail us out this season. I think a 7th or 8th place finish is probably about right from what I've seen this season. I also think that should signal the end of AL's tenure as manager of the club. Lets see whether the manager (and his players) can prove me wrong.

FT 1-0 to Lewes. With 8 games remaining (- and some very very tough ones at that!) I reckon we'll be fortunate to bag one of the away play-off spots. Have the feeling that AL is going to have to do something very special to keep us in with a shout of the play-offs now. Will need to win against Casuals and Herne Bay (who are fighting for their lives). Then we have Hornchurch (who I'd say are now odds on for the title), Cray, Horsham, Haringey, Stortford, Aveley. Looks a very tough run-in. Call me a pessimist, but on current form I think we'll finish 7th or 8th.

An impressively one-sided set of 'highlights'. According to the footage we didn't cross the halfway line all game and yet somehow came out with a 1-1 in a 'tightly-contested' game!

4 out of 6 points so far. Without having seen the game, I'd've taken that before those two fixtures. Plus, we have only shipped 1 goal, so that's an improvement!

Ok, 3 points from the first seaside jaunt! 10 games left. Hastings Tuesday - another tough test. Any news on Jake's hamstring?

Its almost worth the squad making a week of it in Brighton! This may well be the defining week of our 22/23 season. Three very tough away fixtures against Bognor, Hastings and Lewes. Three defeats and we can ready ourselves for fixtures against the likes of Hashtag United in the Isthmian Prem next season. If we're still in a play-off spot at 5pm next Saturday, then we might just have a shot at promotion (with fixtures against Casuals and Herne Bay following). Lets hope the boys can hit something resembling top form and put the past few fixtures behind them!

We know from previous experience that if we changed the manager most - if not all - of the playing squad would also change. It would certainly be a gamble, but I'd like to think that we would now be quite an attractive job in the non-league pyramid.

Guess we can see the management's thinking in signing another 'target man'.🤦‍♂️

98 mins I won't be getting back. Half time was a blessed relief sandwiched in between something which was one of the worst investments of time and money I have ever made. Awful. Terrible. Clueless. The fact that the management decided to persevere with long balls for the entirety of the game tells me that they lack the courage to try to provide any kind of entertainment. It was painful. Playing at home, in a play-off position, and absolutely terrified to do anything other than squeeze the play and hit long, hopeful balls? The pitch is pretty good, and with players like Lyle Della Verde on it we know that we can spread the play and get crosses in from the touch line. With a run of tough away games ahead it feels as if the wheels are coming off, and we only have ourselves to blame.

Agreed, LS. Although I guess it could be worse - we could be under-achieving! I have to give the manager some credit for that. However he's not really pulling up any trees! My real hope is that the next manager is able to do more with the resources available - either coach players recruited within our budget to perform to a much higher level, or perhaps unearth a few hidden gems. A long FA Cup run might even push our player recruitment into a different financial bracket. I appreciate that we very nearly lost senior non-league football in the borough, and we've come a long way from that roped-off pitch at Goldsdown Road, but some of us are anxious to relive the glory days of an Enfield side at the very top of the non-league pyramid - and in my life time! So lets hope for some real ambition rather than stability and stagnation.

LS, I think its indicative of where we are as a club. We are making progress, but its just very slow progress. Thats part and parcel of our business model. We can't do what the likes of Bishops Stortford and Hornchurch are doing - attempting to buy their way into the National League. For example, BS have very recently signed Sam Deering who was plying his trade in the football league 18 months ago - I suspect he's being paid comparatively well. Meanwhile Hornchurch have recently shelled out a reported £40k on a striker Folkestone had (very sensibly) tied down to a 2-year contract. I can only grumble so much about our current inconsistencies. I have no idea whether any other manager could do any better than AL with our budget. Our reality is that we have to hope that we can make the play-offs. And then we need to get very lucky, twice, in order to get promoted. Assuming we continue to make progress then it will probably happen at some point in the future. Its just tough when we've been up against teams who can draft in loan signings from football league teams (Worthing) who can be real game-changers and (while not paupers) we're financially ham-strung.