The 2011/12 season have now reached its end. Maybe not as exciting or successful as the previous but just as eventful. High and lows, up and downs, and everything in between. No one could of predicted our season since it started right back in July with a trip to Radcliffe Borough. Many arrivals and departures have happened over this time, even manger John Coleman and assistant Jimmy Bell decided to leave the club in January. Andrew Procter, who played over 400 league games for Accrington, also saw a move elsewhere to nearby club Preston North End. The majority of Stanley fans would have taken a respectable 14th position in league 2 before the season, and I'm pleased to have finished far away from the drop zone. If we would have had a 20 goal a season striker and some luck, we could have been much closer to the playoffs. It has only been the transitional period between Coleman's departure that has really stopped us pushing near the top, from what I can remember; we were incredibly close to the top 7 and even broke into those places after the 4-3 win over Gills.
Next Season
I'm majorly excited for next season! Paul Cook seems to be taking charge very early and we already have some good players signed up. There's no doubt we will have the one of, if not the smallest budget in league 2 but I see no reason why we can't be fighting it out with the richer teams.
Roll on July.
Josh.
My Accrington Stanley Blog!
Sunday, 13 May 2012
Tuesday, 1 May 2012
Highlights of the Season!
As our season draws to a near end, this post will contain my personal highlights of the season!
1) Best game?
The game I find most rememberable is our home game against Gillingham, Coleman's departure left Richardson in charge as caretaker manager. A wonderful and thrilling game saw us lead comfortably 4-1 until a late Gill's comeback brought it back to 4-3. Luckily we managed to hold out and get the win, which lifted us into the play-offs for the first time this season.
2) Best Goal?
A tough one, even though I can't remember us scoring many screamers this season! My goal goes to Bryan Hughes for his chip shot from just outside the box against Morecambe (away, Boxing day). Wonderful skill and technique to beat the keeper, always great to beat Morecambe!
3) Favourite away game?
Has to be the 2-0 win against AFC Wimbledon, first time I've seen us win away from home! Wasn't the most interesting of games but 2 early goals meant that we took 3 points up north!
4) Worst game?
Since I was away for the 4-0 loss v Plymouth and didn't see the 5-1 disaster away at Bristol, my worst game this season has to be either the 4-1 FA cup defeat against Notts County or the miserable home game against Crewe Alexandra. Both lacked passion and very incredibly poor.
5) Player of the Season?
Peter Murphy in my opinion. Played in every position this season, and played very well! Always puts a shift in and has been excellent at centre-back in recent weeks. Great to hear he has signed a 2 year deal earlier today, can only get better!
6) From what I expected this season, did it match my expectations?
I thought this season would see us scrapping at the wrong end of the table with the departures of Ryan, Cisak, Jacobson etc. But again we easily defy the odds and finish in a very comfortable mid table position. A cup run would have been nice, but league is the priority.
7) This season out of 10?
8/10
1) Best game?
The game I find most rememberable is our home game against Gillingham, Coleman's departure left Richardson in charge as caretaker manager. A wonderful and thrilling game saw us lead comfortably 4-1 until a late Gill's comeback brought it back to 4-3. Luckily we managed to hold out and get the win, which lifted us into the play-offs for the first time this season.
2) Best Goal?
A tough one, even though I can't remember us scoring many screamers this season! My goal goes to Bryan Hughes for his chip shot from just outside the box against Morecambe (away, Boxing day). Wonderful skill and technique to beat the keeper, always great to beat Morecambe!
3) Favourite away game?
Has to be the 2-0 win against AFC Wimbledon, first time I've seen us win away from home! Wasn't the most interesting of games but 2 early goals meant that we took 3 points up north!
4) Worst game?
Since I was away for the 4-0 loss v Plymouth and didn't see the 5-1 disaster away at Bristol, my worst game this season has to be either the 4-1 FA cup defeat against Notts County or the miserable home game against Crewe Alexandra. Both lacked passion and very incredibly poor.
5) Player of the Season?
Peter Murphy in my opinion. Played in every position this season, and played very well! Always puts a shift in and has been excellent at centre-back in recent weeks. Great to hear he has signed a 2 year deal earlier today, can only get better!
6) From what I expected this season, did it match my expectations?
I thought this season would see us scrapping at the wrong end of the table with the departures of Ryan, Cisak, Jacobson etc. But again we easily defy the odds and finish in a very comfortable mid table position. A cup run would have been nice, but league is the priority.
7) This season out of 10?
8/10
Monday, 9 April 2012
Stanley send Hereford home unhappy.
Two second half goals by Grant and Amond clinched the points for Stanley, who recorded their first back to back home wins of the Cook era. A first which saw a impressive Stanley side dominate and had several chances to put the game to bed before the half way stage. These chances included hitting the woodwork and Amond having a 1 on 1 chance with their keeper. The second half saw stanley open the scoring within 90 seconds, Grant curling the ball past Hereford keeper Cornell to snatch his 2nd goal since the start of his loan from Scunthorpe. Ten minutes later Hereford won a free-kick around 20 yards out. Will Evans' shot took a huge deflection which wrong-footed Ian Dunbavin to put Hereford right back in the game. With the time ticking and both teams looking tired it looked as though the game would finish a draw until a late surge of pressure from the home side. Toto Nisala's cross found Padraig Amond who headed home with 5 minutes to go.
8 - Dunbavin - Didn't have too much to do but did well when called upon. A harsh deflection for Hereford's goal meant that he could do little to stop it.
8 - McIntyre - A good solid performance in which he supported the left wing and covered well at the back.
9 - Murphy - My MOM. Controlled the back 4 and made several key tackles and headers.
9- Toto (Nisala) - Strong performance and did incredibly well against Hereford's 'beefed' striker.
8 - Lindfield - Played well again. Another player who did what was asked and more.
8- Liddle and Joyce - Did very good in a midfield role. Played the ball about well and also closed the gaps at the back.
8- Barnett and Devitt - Used the wings and caused Hereford many problems, both looked up for it today.
9- Grant- Nice finish for the first goal and made mince meat of the Bulls defence.
9- Amond - A top striker, could of scored an hat-trick on another day.
Hereford team rating - 5/10
Looked a poor side in all honesty. Started quite well but never looked like scoring after the first 25 minutes. Their goal from the free-kick took a deflection giving the keeper no chance. Didn't deserve to go home with anything but so nearly did. After today's result they now find themselves bottom of the table and 3 points adrift from safety. I doubt Stanley will be making the trip to Edgar Street next season unless today's performance was just a blip, but their league position doesn't suggest that.
Stats:
Accrington Stanley Hereford United
Goals 2 1
Possession 64% 36%
Shots 19 7
Shots on Target 9 2
Corners 6 11
Fouls 6 6
8 - Dunbavin - Didn't have too much to do but did well when called upon. A harsh deflection for Hereford's goal meant that he could do little to stop it.
8 - McIntyre - A good solid performance in which he supported the left wing and covered well at the back.
9 - Murphy - My MOM. Controlled the back 4 and made several key tackles and headers.
9- Toto (Nisala) - Strong performance and did incredibly well against Hereford's 'beefed' striker.
8 - Lindfield - Played well again. Another player who did what was asked and more.
8- Liddle and Joyce - Did very good in a midfield role. Played the ball about well and also closed the gaps at the back.
8- Barnett and Devitt - Used the wings and caused Hereford many problems, both looked up for it today.
9- Grant- Nice finish for the first goal and made mince meat of the Bulls defence.
9- Amond - A top striker, could of scored an hat-trick on another day.
Hereford team rating - 5/10
Looked a poor side in all honesty. Started quite well but never looked like scoring after the first 25 minutes. Their goal from the free-kick took a deflection giving the keeper no chance. Didn't deserve to go home with anything but so nearly did. After today's result they now find themselves bottom of the table and 3 points adrift from safety. I doubt Stanley will be making the trip to Edgar Street next season unless today's performance was just a blip, but their league position doesn't suggest that.
Stats:
Accrington Stanley Hereford United
Goals 2 1
Possession 64% 36%
Shots 19 7
Shots on Target 9 2
Corners 6 11
Fouls 6 6
Monday, 19 March 2012
Player Ratings for Northampton Game
Nicholls - 6 Not too much to do but did struggle with crosses, to blame their goal on him would be harsh. Hes only young and needs time.
Mclntyre - 7 Had a tough time dealing with a very quick winger but did quite well. Massive improvement since the beginning of the season.
Nisala - 7 Stayed solid and did his job effectively.
Kiernan - 7 Good debut for the player. Similar to Nisala in they both did a good shift in the centre of defence
Coid - 8 Really good performance from Coid. You can see his experience and has certainly made RB his own.
Joyce and Barnett - 7 Both did well in defencive midfield roles. Both players are filling in the gap left by Procter's departure.
Grant-7 Did have many opportunity's to impress on his return. Hopefully he can score a few goals before he returns to scunthorpe
Murphy - 7 Played okay. Linked up well with Devitt in the first half and caused Northampton a number of problems.
Devitt - 9 My MOM. Kept going the whole game and put 110% effort in. Scored a great goal and even though he may make the odd wrong decision, he always looks up for it. Top quality player.
Amond - 8 Despite his size and playing a lone striker role, he plays it magnificently. His effort and determination is second to none and is a really good player.
Rating system.
4= Doesn't deserve to wear the shirt.
5=Poor
6=Not bad
7=Okay
8=Good Performance
9=Stand out player
10= Better than Messi
Mclntyre - 7 Had a tough time dealing with a very quick winger but did quite well. Massive improvement since the beginning of the season.
Nisala - 7 Stayed solid and did his job effectively.
Kiernan - 7 Good debut for the player. Similar to Nisala in they both did a good shift in the centre of defence
Coid - 8 Really good performance from Coid. You can see his experience and has certainly made RB his own.
Joyce and Barnett - 7 Both did well in defencive midfield roles. Both players are filling in the gap left by Procter's departure.
Grant-7 Did have many opportunity's to impress on his return. Hopefully he can score a few goals before he returns to scunthorpe
Murphy - 7 Played okay. Linked up well with Devitt in the first half and caused Northampton a number of problems.
Devitt - 9 My MOM. Kept going the whole game and put 110% effort in. Scored a great goal and even though he may make the odd wrong decision, he always looks up for it. Top quality player.
Amond - 8 Despite his size and playing a lone striker role, he plays it magnificently. His effort and determination is second to none and is a really good player.
Rating system.
4= Doesn't deserve to wear the shirt.
5=Poor
6=Not bad
7=Okay
8=Good Performance
9=Stand out player
10= Better than Messi
Thursday, 15 March 2012
Murdoch leaves
Sean Murdoch has officially left Accrington Stanley by mutual consent. The Scottish goalkeeper struggled to gain the no.1 spot over Dunbavin and with the arrival of young keeper lee Nicholls (on loan from Wigan) he had drifted to 3rd choice keeper. Due to this it isn't surprising that Murdoch wanted to leave and is probably a good outcome for both sides.
My opinion of Murdoch wasn't great to be honest. He was a decent shot stopper but his positioning at times was poor. Due to his low amount of appearances I think that most people only remember his good points and not his bad. Dunbavin has been known to make mistakes, he's not perfect, but he looks more settled and took his oppertunity. Murdoch has had very few chances to impress but both managers (Coleman and Cook) have looked past him. If they don't think he's good enough then thats that.
My opinion of Murdoch wasn't great to be honest. He was a decent shot stopper but his positioning at times was poor. Due to his low amount of appearances I think that most people only remember his good points and not his bad. Dunbavin has been known to make mistakes, he's not perfect, but he looks more settled and took his oppertunity. Murdoch has had very few chances to impress but both managers (Coleman and Cook) have looked past him. If they don't think he's good enough then thats that.
Monday, 12 March 2012
Stanley just can't cook up a win..
Paul Cooks wait for a win drags on as Stanley drew 2-2 against Southend. The day could have been much worse for Stanley though, with Padraig Amond scoring at the death to give Accrington another well-earned point.
Wednesday, 7 March 2012
Thursday Round-up
2 draws in the last two games has ended Paul Cook's losing streak and also put stanley an edge closer away from relegation this season.
3/3/2012 - Port Vale (H)
Saturday's game against cash strapped Port Vale was a scrappy affair with the stanley team going 1-0 down in the 28th minute to a mistake by goalkeeper nicholls, on loan from wigan athletic. On the stroke of half time Coid's long range effort fell to Amond who manged to smash the ball over the line to end Paul Cooks long wait without a goal. The second half proved to be similar to the first, with Port Vale scoring again in the 56th minute only to be cancelled out by a strike from substitute Will Hatfield who had only been on the pitch 3 minutes to end Accrington's 4 game losing run.
I thought the Port Vale game showed good spirit by the team and the point felt like a win to me. The only problem I thought was the team struggled to dominate in midfield. Maybe the loss of Proccy is showing? His height and Passion certainly influenced and helped the other players and I think we're missing a battler in centre midfield to get the ball down and break up the opposition. I also think that Charlie Barnett is more effective on the wings than in a more defencive midfield role, at one moment in the game Barnett nearly created a goal on the left flank with Amond header flicked over the bar by the Vale keeper.
6/3/2012 - Bradford City (A)
Will Hatfield saved Stanley again as a substitute scoring in the 1st minute of added time to give Accrington another point against Bradford. A first half entailed a balanced and evenly sided game with both sides testing the oppositions keeper, but neither did prevail. Unfortunately for Stanley 5 minutes in to the second half the yorkshire side took the lead with Nahki Wells scoring his 7th league goal of the season, despite this Accrington kept battling hard and in the 91st minute luck turned their way. Luke Joyce's long corner found Hatfield at the far post and volleyed it pass the line.
Overall
Two battling performances this week would have settled the team and pleased Paul and assistant Leam Richardson especially with the amount of injures to key players such as Winnard, Hessey, Hughes and Craney. The playoff situation is still mathematically possible but I think that's very unlikely now. looking at the recent performances a mid-table finish awaits us, which I'll happily take now.
Paul Cooks red and white army!
J
3/3/2012 - Port Vale (H)
Saturday's game against cash strapped Port Vale was a scrappy affair with the stanley team going 1-0 down in the 28th minute to a mistake by goalkeeper nicholls, on loan from wigan athletic. On the stroke of half time Coid's long range effort fell to Amond who manged to smash the ball over the line to end Paul Cooks long wait without a goal. The second half proved to be similar to the first, with Port Vale scoring again in the 56th minute only to be cancelled out by a strike from substitute Will Hatfield who had only been on the pitch 3 minutes to end Accrington's 4 game losing run.
I thought the Port Vale game showed good spirit by the team and the point felt like a win to me. The only problem I thought was the team struggled to dominate in midfield. Maybe the loss of Proccy is showing? His height and Passion certainly influenced and helped the other players and I think we're missing a battler in centre midfield to get the ball down and break up the opposition. I also think that Charlie Barnett is more effective on the wings than in a more defencive midfield role, at one moment in the game Barnett nearly created a goal on the left flank with Amond header flicked over the bar by the Vale keeper.
6/3/2012 - Bradford City (A)
Will Hatfield saved Stanley again as a substitute scoring in the 1st minute of added time to give Accrington another point against Bradford. A first half entailed a balanced and evenly sided game with both sides testing the oppositions keeper, but neither did prevail. Unfortunately for Stanley 5 minutes in to the second half the yorkshire side took the lead with Nahki Wells scoring his 7th league goal of the season, despite this Accrington kept battling hard and in the 91st minute luck turned their way. Luke Joyce's long corner found Hatfield at the far post and volleyed it pass the line.
Overall
Two battling performances this week would have settled the team and pleased Paul and assistant Leam Richardson especially with the amount of injures to key players such as Winnard, Hessey, Hughes and Craney. The playoff situation is still mathematically possible but I think that's very unlikely now. looking at the recent performances a mid-table finish awaits us, which I'll happily take now.
Paul Cooks red and white army!
J
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