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Seagulls Road To Glory S02E03

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Hello! Welcome to episode number three of this save with Colwyn Bay.

We begin the episode with our match against Watford for the 2nd Round of the League Cup.

League Cup 2nd Round Leg 2

Colwyn Bay 2 – Watford 2

An apparent game under control after a 2-0 advantage in the first half, it turned into a question mark in the second as Watford levelled. Anyway, the Watford momentum just ended after they scored the second whilst we were trying to put the
game in our favour again. We couldn’t do it, but the draw was enough to carry us onto the next round .

Game 13

Colwyn Bay 1 – Luton Town 4

Lineup changes:

Tony Norman for Brian Thomas

Poor old Tony found himself in shambles in our worst match of the season so far. Our supporters couldn’t believe the shocking display of football in our own backyard. Thankfully Deniol scored the goal of honor but in the end it was an embarrassing loss.

Game 14

Wigan 1 – Colwyn Bay 5

Despite the shocking Saturday display, I’m keeping Norman in the starting 11, and I’m bringing Gabbiadini as he started to complain about a lack of playing time

Lineup changes:

Ricardo Gabbiadini for Glyn Hodges
Glyn Hodges for Kim Parrish

We quickly bounced back from the beating at home, and stomped our feet into Springfield Park with authority. An inspired Chris Pike was the greatest performer with a hat-trick, helped by Williams and Browning. The only downside is Gabbiadini’s injury.

Let’s see how much he’ll be out.

Game 15

Colwyn Bay 1 – Shrewsbury Town 2

4th loss and the most worrying bit is again at home! I feel that I need to tweak or change the formation when we play in our stadium, because we could foresee problems in the future. Despite being the superior team here and going into halftime with the lead, Shrewsbury started getting closer to our goal and they managed to score twice, leaving us stranded.

Windscreen Shield Groups

Burnley 2 – Colwyn Bay 2

We were the dominant team throughout the whole match but we weren’t able to turn that into more goals. Anyway, it’s still 3 points in the end and of course I’ll take them

The idea of tinkering with the formation is roaring my mind, therefore to execute it I will be needing one more defensive midfielder or a midfielder who is able to perform both offensive and defensive duties.

These two fit the bill:

Wrexham just doesn’t even consider our offer. Nogan, as a free agent will respond to our offer in a few days

Game 16

Bristol City 1 – Colwyn Bay 2

Pike woke up on the wrong side of the bed today regarding to his shooting form, but his repertoire focused on passing this time. He gave the two assists for Coughlin and Barnes goals. Three more to the bag.

Nogan answers my offer. Let’s see:

No no no, boy.

Game 17

Colchester United 1 – Colwyn Bay 2

Lineup changes:

Damien Felgate for Chris Pike

Despite not excelling in the accuracy department (4 shots on goal from 17 in total), we had enough power to hold our heads high in Layer Road. Rodosthenous pulled Colchester back but their effort wasn’t enough to take away the win from us.

Game 18

Colwyn Bay 0 – Watford  0

I had to make some slight changes to the formation here because Van Der Hauwe has to serve a three-match suspension due to reaching 21 disciplinary points. Damon Searle isn’t fully recovered yet and I’m not planning on risking him just yet. Therefore, we will be playing like this today:

Lineup changes:

Wayne Russell for Tony Norman
Chris Pike for Pat Van Der Hauwe
Carl Robinson for Mark Cross

Very lacklustre match. I have a feeling that if I had placed Graham at the start we could have at least scored as Felgate had a poor shooting day.

This late effort against Watford has prompted to try something new. To make it happen I will attempt to pick up an old friend. Mr. Jamie Day. I hope he’s up for the challenge again

That’s it for this update, folks

Join me again next saturday for a new episode on this series. Cheers 🙂

Bidaia Barakaldora S02E03

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Hello! Welcome to episode number 3 of this series with Barakaldo.

In this one, we will be covering the third round of Copa Del Rey and our next 5 matches from Primera Division.

Game 9

Barakaldo 3 – Racing Santander 2

The string of good performances continues to bring people to our stadium. This time 18732 fans congregated at Lasesarre to watch this match. Our rival Racing Santander was a hard challenge and they gave us a good run for our money. The starting goal by Garmendia was quickly shot down by a double of Alex and Islhat Faizulin. Even so, our guys didn’t throw away the towel, and Exposito with a screamer from the right side levelled the match. A few minutes later, Zamarripa tapped in a rebound from a Gurria shot, and we were up again. In the second half the action wasn’t as much as in the first one, and neither team managed to score any more. We have a match for Copa Del Rey against this same lot so I hope we have learned a few things in the way to repeat.

Copa Del Rey Third Round Leg 1

Barakaldo 2 – Racing Santander 0

Lineup changes:

Gorka Gonzalez for Iñaki Ibañez
Xabier Pantzeska for Oscar Alkorta as a sub

The fact that our match was in a Thursday didn’t impede that 100 fans more than our last attendance showed up at Lasesarre to witness this match. And we did repeat a fine performance. Bakero lead the charge against Racing, taking the most amount of shots and managing to net one in the 30th minute of the game with Gurria previously opening the game in the 21th minute. Oscar Garcia was the one who tried the most from Racing but he didn’t succeed as neither did anybody else from the team. We hold a good goal difference heading to leg 2 in El Sardinero.

Game 10

Logroñes 1 – Barakaldo 2

A few needed changes as the match is on Saturday and there is little recovery time

Lineup changes:

Jose Angel Uribarrena for Oscar Gurria
Xabier Pantzeska for Jose Maria Bakero
Luis Fernando Dadie for Lamar Alexis
Roberto Martinez for Juan Zamarripa

An absolutely powerful display by Roberto Martinez, who took responsibility of the attacking display at Las Gaunas. He levelled the game after an unfortunate own goal by Garmendia, and kept on pushing Adolfo firmly. In one of those occasions he forced a ball which touched Nayim and ended in the back of the net. Logroñes didn’t retaliate in the rest of the game and we take the win.

Game 11

Barakaldo 3 – Tenerife 1

Time to even the playing time between the goalkeepers

Lineup changes:

Aitor Iru for Gorka Sangroniz

Jose Maria Bakero for Agustin Expósito

Roberto Martinez woke up in the right side of the bed this Saturday and boy he was on the rampage! Despite pulling one goal back courtesy of Domingos, Roberto quickly added a third and I saw the screen sign “Tenerife has gone defensive”. I was left wondering how much defensive had they gone, and I found out this:

Geez, first half against a recently promoted team. Is this really necessary?. During the rest of the game, they kept this formation until the 75th minute where they resorted to a standard 532 defensive and managed to get a shot on our net. We ended up with 10 shots on target, and 3 goals.

Copa Del Rey Third Round Leg 2

Racing Santander 1 – Barakaldo 0

Lineup changes:

Hector Victor Sanz for Dani Alonso

In El Sardinero, there was no display of magic and we are narrowly defeated. I made a couple of late changes in the hope of a calming goal, but it never materialized. What’s important though is that given the goal difference I’m through to the next round.

Game 12

Atletico Madrid 1 – Barakaldo 2

I’m honestly surprised with this result. If you take a look at Atletico Madrid’s names, a narrow defeat can be considered a good result (especially with two excellent free kick takers like Milinko Pantic and Juninho). Nevertheless, we complete a fantastic assault and leave the Colchoneros surprised when the referee signals the end of the match. The initial goal by Gallardo wasn’t a deterrent and Bakero levelled after a cross from Roberto Martinez before we reached half-time. In the second half we traded blows and with the clock running out, Bakero returned the favor to Roberto and with a splendid pass left him on a breakaway against Ceballos. Roberto wasn’t in a forgiving mood and the ball went through the net. The remaining 6 minutes was just holding on tightly and it’s 3 terrific points we are taking to our basque city.

Game 13

Barakaldo 2 – Sevilla 2

A little bit of a wobble here, as we’re the dominant team and we only managed to salvage a point from this meeting. Despite our best efforts we’re taken by surprise by Sevilla and the joy that was surrounding Lasesarre turns to faces of concern with two goals in the final five minutes of the first half.

Game 21

Athletic Bilbao 2 – Barakaldo 1

We push Athletic all the way in San Mames but our efforts weren’t enough. Tabuenka finish us off when the match had 20 minutes yet to end.

Before wrapping up this episode, let’s take a look at the standings as of now:

Looking good for the moment!

Now yes, we reached the end of episode number 3.

Tune in next week for a new episode. See ya 🙂

Seagulls Road To Glory S02E02

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Hello friends! Greetings and welcome to the second episode.

In this new update we will playing from matchday 7 to 12 in Division 2, and the first leg for the League Cup against Watford.

Game 7

Colwyn Bay 3 – Bournemouth 1

We will distribute a bit of the playing time for our goalkeepers, therefore Thomas will be starting this match

Lineup changes:

Brian Thomas for Wayne Russell

Gavin Maguire for Mark Wright

Bournemouth are nicely dispatched at home despite the first half was quite even for both teams. In the second half, we stepped on the throttle testing Glass hands until Browning found a way through and put a bow in the score.

Game 8

Bury 0 – Colwyn Bay 5

Lineup changes:

Mark Aizlewood for Pat Van Der Hauwe

The can of worms got opened in the second half, and we took advantage of a good display of accuracy of our players who managed to score 5 goals from their 5 shots on target.

Game 9

Colwny Bay 3 – Plymouth 1

I’ll keep on rotating the bench a little to avoid having unhappy lads

Lineup changes:

Glyn Hodges for Andy Legg
Damien Felgate for Deniol Graham

We pull out with a win in the late stages of the game. Our young lad Felgate makes a great debut by netting two goals, giving us the three points at home. Another key performace was Eric Young who had to play out of position substituting the injured Darren Davies.

Oh snap! I have Van Der Hauwe for now, so we are ok. If anything happens to him, I’d probably go hunting on the transfer market

League Cup 2nd Round Leg 1

Watford 0 – Colwyn Bay 1

Lineup changes:

Pat Van Der Hauwe for Darren Davies

Our momentum in the game lasted for about 35 minutes or so in the first half. The second half was just clinging on to the win until the whistle finally blew. I was unprepared for the three injuries and had to navigate the match as I could, including experimenting a bit with that little trick of placing your goalkeeper as a player and let the AI take the reign. And it worked, as Young was one of our top performers, firstly covering the left-back position and then as a temporary goalkeeper.

So now let’s see how much time will the injured players be out:

Williams’ injury means that I won’t have any defenders to sub in case of an injury. I pray that everyone will make it safely

Game 10

Colwyn Bay 2 – York 0

Major surgery in the team needed after all the injuries

Lineup changes:

Mark Wright for Damon Searle
Chris Pike for Demien Felgate
Eric Young for Mark Aizlewood

Anything to worry? Didn’t look like it! Pike and Coughlin put the game to rest in the first half. York timidly approached our goal in the second half with no success.

Injuries just don’t stop huh?

Marc Williams is thankfully already recovered, so he’ll be making the starting 11 in Maguire’s place

Game 11

Gillingham 2 – Colwyn Bay 6

Similar in vein as the Bury game, with a slow start which turned into an action-packed match in the second half. We absolutely obliterated Gillingham with a phenomenal display by Chris Pike and contributions from Browning, Wigg and Glyn Hodges.

Enough injuries? No such thing.

Game 12

Colwyn Bay 0 – Blackpool 1

Lineup changes:

Mark Aizlewood for Deniol Graham (as sub)

Made the right choice placing Aizlewood in the full squad as Young goes down injured pretty early in the game. Nevertheless, and despite our best efforts inconsistency was evident today and we weren’t able to score. Blackpool took advantage of that and did their job. The result: a 1-0 loss at home.

Before leaving, a quick glance at the standings:

Still at the top with Carlisle breathing down our necks and Shrewsbury a bit farther away. If we keep this production, we’ll surely gain a promotion spot

This match marks the end of this new episode folks.

Join me next Saturday for more on this series with Colwyn Bay. Cheers 🙂

Bidaia Barakaldora S02E02

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Greetings and welcome to this second episode of this save with Barakaldo.

Transfer deadline is just before the next game. We have no current bids at the moment and no offers for our players.

Let’s get straight into the action

Game 4

Betis 2 – Barakaldo 5

I’ll be honest here. By no means I was expecting this kind of performance from my boys. The 2-0 lead into halftime felt good but I thought we were headed for a very narrow win or even a draw. However, as we reached the 62th minute of the game, the screen tilts were still black and yellow and I was 5-0 up. Solskjaer and Cañas restored a little bit of faith to the remaining supporters in Benito Villamarin, but for them it was a very embarrassing loss against a newly promoted side.

Game 5

Barakaldo 0 – Barcelona 1

The good thing is playing early against the two biggest team in this división instead of having to meet them near the end where i may need the points to survive

With 100 fans more in the stadium than our match against Real Madrid, we endured the hard task of having a good match against Barcelona. Unluckily this wasn’t the case, and the score could have been even bigger if not for a wonderful performance by Gorka Sangroniz who stopped every shot taken at him but one. The worst outcome of the game though isn’t the result but the fact that I will miss one of my key players, Bakero. I hope that his injury isn’t very long

Phew. That’s good. I can definitely manage

Copa Del Rey Second Round Leg 1

Atletico Madrid B 1 – Barakaldo 3

Few days luckily was just 2 days, and Bakero returned with over 90% condition. I’m taking a gamble and I will play him in the next match.

It’s a comfortable win for Albacete. Despite an equaliser from Zamarripa we struggled to find the grip of the match and it was Albacete who created most of the chances in the match. Hopefully we can improve our away form as there is a notorious difference compared to how we do it at Lassesarre.

Game 6

Deportivo La Coruña 2 – Barakaldo 0

After being spoilt with these wonderful performances, we’re back to our usual form and we struggle to hold our own at Riazor. Deportivo controls us easily and win the match without a doubt. Sangroniz was responsible for holding off the score in just two goals against our net.

Let’s see how much Ipiña will be out.

Game 7

Barakaldo 1 – Sporting Gijon 0

We had to break a sweat here to defeat the bottom of the league. Even so, it was a fine match by our guys, especially in defense as they held Sporting to 3 just shots in the entire game, none of which hit the target. In the end and with the clock withering away, Roberto Martinez (who I had subbed in the 70th minute of the game) scored the lone goal and it’s three valuable points for us

Copa Del Rey Second Round Leg 2

Barakaldo 1 – Atletico Madrid B 0

Lineup changes:

Luis Eduardo Dadie for Pedro Matxon
Alexis Lamar for Iñaki Aldalur

It was a much closer battle than the first leg. The first 20 minutes of the game was all Atletico Madrid B. We started shyly to get closer to their goal, until we scored in the 26th minute of the game. From then on, it was all back and forth between the two teams until the match ended, with neither side able to make an impact on each other. We’re through again and we await for our rival to be determined.

Game 8

Valladolid 1 – Barakaldo 2

As i anticipated before, a tough affair. Usually when playing any second division or a newly promoted against Valladolid their brand of 3-3-1-3 pummels through our side. The first 30 minutes was a familiar scene as they pounced and Sangroniz made his best to prevent them from scoring. We arrived at halftime with a last minute goal courtesy of Bakero. A swift header after a corner kick. Peternac levelled the match at the restart but Zamarripa put us up again 3 minutes later. With just 15 minutes to end the game, Dadie committed a harsh foul and was sent off, therefore raising a question mark about what the final result would be. We fought tooth and nail and despite my anxiety the score remained unchanged. Huge away win!

Before leaving, I’ll show you the standings as of now:

So far, so good. We’re 7 points of clear of the relegation battle

That brings this episode to a close.

See you next week where we will cover from matchday 14 to 20. Agur and Aupa Barakaldo! See ya friends 🙂

Seagulls Road To Glory S02E01

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Hi everyone! Welcome back to a Season 2 with Colwyn Bay.

This is the squad we are starting in 1998

As you may notice, the only player we’ve acquired so far is Glyn Hodges.

We’re on the lookout for another attacking midfielder to add depth to this squad.

My target in mind is this young lad:

And we managed to get him. Welcome to Colwyn Bay, Kit!

Good!
I feel like we are well covered in every position so the idea for now is just replacing those players who leave the club.

Time flies by and we reached August. The first match of the season is edging closer, so it’s time to get ready for our first match.

I’m planning to keep my 4231 direct version that gave me good results in the past year.

Now yes, GAME ON!

Game 1:

Oldham Athletic 0 – Colwyn Bay 1

We rode our luck in this one quite a lot. Oldham had the edge throughout the entire game even though finishing was not one of their strongest points. On the other hand, we struggled to get a grip of the game and Evans made the best use of the only chance we had. Anyway, happy to get started with a win.

League Cup 1st Round, Leg 1

Colwyn Bay 3 – Crystal Palace 1

Honestly, I cringed when I saw this on the fixture. Palace has gone down to D1 but if you take a look at their names they’re still a respectable side.
Little did I know that our boys liked the challenge and gave their 100% in this match. A 2-0 lead at halftime seemed inspiring enough and Palace never seemed to wake up from the grinding. We stayed on top for a comfortable 3-1 win in the end.

Game 3

Colwyn Bay 3 vs Millwall 0

Lineup changes:

Richard Barnes for Mark Cross

Really pleased with this performance. A fantastic start saw us carrying a 2-0 lead at half-time. We really grew into the game and it’s a fully deserved win.

League Cup 1st Round, Leg 2

Crystal Palace 0 – Colwyn Bay 0

What is this nonsense? Somebody shoot the ball, dammit!

After the first half fiasco, things improved in the second half with Crystal Palace playing a tad better than us but neither side was able to break the score. Therefore, we’re through to the next round!

David last strings of good performances has caught the eye of West Ham United, who make an offer for him:

Of course my idea isn’t selling him, but given his Big Club Release clause there isn’t much we can do

19 goals in 25 matches with Colwyn Bay, well done young lad!. Hope for the best. Maybe our paths will cross again

Time to look for a replacement:

Very nice looking prospect. Hopefully he demands a fair salary.

Meanwhile, our next game is up!

Game 3

Chesterfield 3 – Colwyn Bay 5

Lineup changes:

Chris Pike for David Evans

Hell broke loose at the closing stages of the game in what seemed to be a calmly paced match. The second half saw us provide a lot of action towards Massie’s goal, and the score ends up in a 5-3 win with Deniol Graham banging in a hat trick.

Pike was out of the game with an injury, so let’s see how much he’ll be out…

Game 4

Colwyn Bay 2 – Preston 1

Lineup changes:

Deniol Graham for Chris Pike
Kit Parrish in the bench

The final result doesn’t quite match how superior we were to the Preston side. Anyway, 3 more points in the bag for us. Happy!

Nice! Welcome to the Seagulls, Damien

Game 5

Colwyn Bay 0 – Carlisle 1

Evenly matched game but unfortunately Graham wasn’t up for the task this day. Roberts from a corner kick managed to score the lone goal for Carlisle and it’s a bitter defeat at our own home.

Game 6

Burnley 1– Colwyn Bay 2

We will distribute a bit of the playing time for our goalkeepers, therefore Thomas will be starting this match

Lineup changes:

Brian Thomas for Wayne Russell

The start couldn’t have been better as our first attack in the game ends up in a goal by Graham. In the 37th minute of the game, Browning breaks down the wing and pulls the ball back to Deniol who fires it home into the bottom corner and we lead 2-0 at halftime. Towards the end of the match Smith escapes in a counter attacking move and sends it to the back of the net to bring Burnley closer. The next 5 minutes they had two more occasions to tie the game, but they both went wide, and we take a valuable win.

Before leaving, a quick look at the standings so far:

So that’s it for this episode, folks.

Tune in next week for episode number 2 of this second season with Colwyn Bay. See ya 🙂

Bidaia Barakaldora S02E01

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Welcome back, everyone! We have been promoted to Primera Division and we will be facing the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona and so on this season.
The main goal for this season is avoiding relegation at all costs while adhiring to our strict policy of Basque-born only players.

Let’s start with the transfer activity in this off-season

TRANSFER NEWS:

Their contracts have ran out and I attempt to capitalize on that.

Unfortunately, no luck and they both turn me down

Let’s keep it going then

Born in Bilbao, Vizcaya. Played for Athletic Bilbao, Zaragoza, Lleida and Amurrio.

Born in Equatorial Guinea. He joined Real Sociedad B as a youth, therefore he qualifies as an eligible player

OK. Moving on then.

A few days later these lads are released from Real Sociedad. Highly unlikely that their free agency goes unnoticed as they’re top notch players, but we’ll bid anyway.

Well, at least we tried.

SIGNINGS:

As you can see, he’s the regen of Eugenio Bustingorri, a product from the Osasuna’s youth team who played most of his career in Osasuna with brief spells in Atletico Madrid and Izarra. Looks like a good option to have as a left defensive midfielder.

This fella is the regen of Patxi Salinas, so it’s definitely a no-brainer to go all in for him given he’s free

We got him. Good!

The good news is that no one has left the club so the squad is intact.

As money is a bit thin due to my prize being spent on building new seats I organized a couple of home friendlies to collect some fundings.

Friendly 1

OK test against a non-league team. Good goal difference

Friendly 2

This one was a proper test. Bastia are a Ligue 1 team and definitely higher in quality than Murcia. Despite being an even match, we only managed to score through Calle whilst they finished us off in the second half

Friendly 3

This match however there wasn’t a big display of football on our side. We only managed one on shot on target to their seven. The final score is a flattering one, though spectators leave Lasesarre with a look of concern in our eyes. Is the season going to be this hard?

The season begins with a Copa Del Rey match, and the wheel of fortune gave us no other than Celta de Vigo.  It’s a very good opportunity to avenge the early exit of past year. If you don’t remember what happened back then, let me refresh your memory. I wasn’t able to find left full-back at the moment of the match and I had to resort playing a left midfielder in that slot, using a 2332 tactic. I lost that match 3-0 and I won 4-2 at home, therefore if it hadn’t been for that mishap I firmly believe I would have progressed further.

Copa Del Rey 1st Round Leg 1:

Celta 2 – Barakaldo 1

The difference in this game was Celta taking their chances and us fluffing ours. Uribarrena’s provisional draw was very short-lived as Bruno Caires scored just one minute later and thwarted our opportunity to leave Balaídos with a 1-1. Nevertheless I have high hopes for leg 2 in Lasesarre so I don’t think the playoff is totally lost.

Game 1

Valencia 3 – Barakaldo 2

Welcome to Primera Division Valencia said to us. A penalty committed by Zubizarreta in the 7th minute of the game was converted into a goal by Uribarrena. However, just as Valencia kicked off the ball, a smart play ended up in Albelda’s feet and he put the ball into Iru’s net. From then on, Valencia went into a high charge against our goal which paid their dividend when Albelda with a header scored again in the 39th minute. Fernando added a third goal in the 51th minute but Bakero brought us closer with a header after a corner kick. Unfortunately after Bakero’s goal there wasn’t much action from our side and Valencia kept their foot on the throttle with Iru doing his best.

Game 2

Barakaldo 1 – Real Madrid 1

Is there a better match to start your season at home than against the almighty Real Madrid?

18500 spectators out of the 19.000 available came up to Lasesarre to enjoy this match. We ended up collecting a very nice point in front of our crowd and against players of the calibre of Redondo, Roberto Carlos and Suker. Through thick and thin, I trust in our formation and we’re keeping it.

Copa Del Rey 1st Round Leg 2:

Barakaldo 2 – Celta 0

The first victory of the season and when it mattered! Well done boys. Just early in the game, a cross from Bakero went to Zamarripa, whose shot was blocked by Dutruel and Xabier showed up to tap it into the net. Then, just two minutes later Josema was sent off and Celta were forced to retreat for a while, which led to our team push forward until half-time. Zamarripa placed the finishing touch in the 59th minute of the game and despite trying at the late stages, they fell into their knees. We’re through to the next round!

Game 3

Barakaldo 3 – Hercules 0

We showed Hercules no mercy and we make light work of them in the early stages. In the second half, there were some brief moments of action from Hercules, with Maestri blasting a penalty wide in the 56th minute. Our supporters go home happy with the display of football by our guys.

This match wraps up our first episode of this new season with Barakaldo.

Tune in next week where we will cover the 5 next matches from Primera Division and also the second round from Copa Del Rey. See ya friends 🙂

Seagulls Road To Glory S01E09

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Did you make it here? Welcome folks! This is the last episode of our first season with Colwyn Bay.

We have five matches remaining, and we’ve already secured a place in the playoffs. There’s a good chance to win the division.

Game 42

Colwyn Bay 1 – Scarborough 0

A very dull match which we find a breakthrough in the 73th minute of the game, after I subbed in Deniol Graham for Chris Pike.

Game 43

Notts County 2 – Colwyn Bay 3

Chris Pike gets us up and running very early and Notts County equalise through Battersby. Andy Johnson quickly stifles them and put us 2-1 up at the break. The start of the second half was very shaky, as Robson pips us down and brings the game to a draw. Andy Johnson strikes again in the 60th minute, Notts County has a disallowed goal soon after, and we end up taking a nice win at the Meadow Lane.

Game 44

Mansfield Town 0 – Colwyn Bay 4

Lineup changes:

Marc Williams for Mark Aizlewood
Dayfdd Owen for Pat Van Der Hauwe

We fly out of the traps in the first half as we find the lead early and then Day, Coughlin and Johnson proceeded to add theirselves into the scoresheet. I mean, what better way to start a match than being 4-0 up before hitting the 30th minute mark? From then on, we were a mix between “cruise control” and a few more chances on Ian Bowling’s goal.

Game 45

Colwyn Bay 4 – Cambridge United 0

Cambridge Utd absolutely nowhere to be seen in this match aside from a lone shot at the closing stages of the game. We showed them what we had in store, and in the end it’s a pretty comfortable win much to the delight of the spectators that showed up at The Drill Field.

INJURY NEWS:

Game 46

Rotherham United 0 – Colwyn Bay 4

Lineup changes:

Wayne Russell for Brian Thomas
Pat Van Der Hauwe for Marc Williams
Ricardo Gabbiadini for Andy Legg

Well, I wonder what has happened with this team? It’s the third 4-0 win in a row. After a calm start which saw us go 1-0 up at halftime, Evans broke free and scored twice and Jamie Day contributed as well. Our hounding didn’t stop there though. The boys kept at it with the score remaining unchanged. A good way to end the season

FINAL STANDINGS:

EUROPEAN WINNERS:

ENGLISH WINNERS:

PLAYER AWARDS:

Goals scored:

Man Of The Match Awards:

Goal Assists:

Average Ratings:

FIXTURE RECAP:

TRANSFER NEWS IN THE OFF-SEASON:

Glyn Hodges after his first rejection, chose to be part of our club. Welcome Glyn!

As i had some cash, i decided to make Dayfdd Owen an offer to sign him to a contract with our club but he refused (it’s all good though, we need to build our reputation still)

Jamie as expected was called back by Arsenal. Thank you for your services. You’ve done a terrific job for this club.

WORLD NEWS:

The World Cup was won by Argentina.

We went over the July 15th deadline to find out who had won the awards.

So with this we reached the end of this last episode of the first season. Getting promoted to Division 2 and having won the Windscreen Shield is a very good effort

I hope you enjoyed this journey so far . I’ll be back soon with the start of the second season. See ya 🙂

Bidaia Barakaldora S01E06

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Getxo! Welcome to our last episode for the season with Barakaldo

Game 36

Numancia 0 – Barakaldo 4

A fantastic display in Numancia’s territory. We lead early as Roberto Martinez and Xabier give us a 2-0 lead with just 10 minutes on the clock. 20 minutes later, Roberto Martinez scores after a corner kick taken by Ipiña. Every time we go forward it looks like we are going to score, even though we just lead 3-0 at half time. Gijon start the second half well and they enjoy a brief period of boldness in which they attempt a couple of shots on our goal. Nevertheless, Uribarrena crushed any hopes when he scores the 4th goal in Los Pajaritos, and they immediately retreat to defensive schemes until the clock runs out.

Game 37

Barakaldo 1 – Osasuna 1

We throw away 2 points in this affair though I find a bright spark in the game as Roberto scores again and seems to be making the most of this new opportunity I gave him. The first half didn’t see much action aside from the goals from each team, and in the second we limited their advances through Dadie and Bakero. We had a good chance of winning in the last ball of the game but we weren’t lucky this time.

Game 38

Levante 1 – Barakaldo 1

Next up in the league are Hercules, another one of the promoted sides, and they sit rock bottom of the table, so it’s a chance to get some more points on the board. Our only change is Histilloles in for Arregui. It’s a lacklustre first half with no shots on target from either side. The second half is much the same and despite a shuffle around up front, we can’t find a breakthrough in this dull affair and we’re back to 10th in the table.

Game 39

Barakaldo 2 – Lleida 3

Lleida get their revenge for the Camp D’Esports loss in the first round. We have a goal disallowed in the 6th minute of the game. Gurria quickly makes up for it, only for Navarro to equalise reaching the 30th minute mark. It’s 1-1 at half time and we’ve been by far the better side. We have a few more chances in the second half but it’s Lleida who scores first through Veretennikov. After 5 minutes we get punished for our woeful finishing when Veretennikov strikes again. In the 89th minute of the game, Bakero puts a question mark on the final result after he scored but despite having the last ball in a corner kick, Raúl denies us twice and they take the win.
Despite the loss Las Palmas, Logroñes and Xerez are also losing points which is why we still hold hope to finish in the top 4 and get promoted.

Game 40

Barakaldo 3 – Leganes 2

It’s Saturday and we’re on it again at Lasesarre, this time against Leganes.

Gurria scores early before the 10th minute mark and aided by Mesas being sent off, Gurria strikes again in the 24th minute of the game. Staliunas attempt to regain control is quickly neglected by a potent header of Bakero, putting off the fire in their veins (at least for the first half). In the second half it’s just a cruise control kind of match. The peace is broken when in the 70th minute Staliunas adds a second to Leganes’ tally. However, there wasn’t really much danger beyond that and we take the win, highly celebrated by the fans congregated in Lasesarre.

Sit tight Juan. You will be not moved now. This complaint about the asking price is because at the start of January, I saw the WNT icon and Numancia was interested in picking him up. Therefore, I changed his asking price to 1.4 million and eventually Numancia’s offer just vanished into thin air

Game 41

Elche 1 – Barakaldo 2

A bit of a struggle to win this one. With 20 minutes to go, I decided to shake up the tree a little to find the elusive victory. Eventually we made it, Zamarripa rose up to the task and the team heads home happily after collecting a massive 3 points.

As you see from these pictures, this next matchday is absolutely crucial. Alaves is fighting to avoid relegation and their only possible choice is to win. On the other side, we’re fighting to be directly promoted to Primera Division, and our best bet would be winning to avoid depending of our rival’s results.

Game 42

Barakaldo 3 – Alaves 0

The time of truth has arrived. Can we get directly promoted or will we have to wait another year?

Yes! We’ve done it! I honestly thought that Alaves would have more resolve as they were fighting to avoid relegation, but soon it became clear to us why they were in that spot.

Unfortunately for Alaves, this means relegation to non-league and their board took actions swiftly.

FINAL STANDINGS:

FULL FIXTURE RECAP:

WORLD CUP:

ANNUAL AWARDS:

In a very weird twist of fate, Joachim Low decided to coach Extremadura after getting sacked from Stuttgart

FFS! I’m going to Primera Division almost in banktrupcy

BARAKALDO’S PLAYER OF THE SEASON AND GOAL SCORER OF THE SEASON **

And so my friends, it’s to bring this episode to an end. Hope you enjoyed this first season with us.

See you soon with a new season in Primera Division. Aupa Barakaldo!

  • Footnote here: I forgot to screenshot the average ratings, goals scored, goal assists and man of the match awards that’s why I’m only showing the player of the season and top goal scorer

Seagulls Road To Glory S01E08

/ mardukowens / Deja un comentario

Welcome to episode number 8 of this save with Colwyn Bay.

In this new episode, we will be covering matchday 36 to 42, and the Windscreen Shield final.

Game 36

Colwyn Bay 4 – Shrewsbury Town 1

Every sign was pointing to a draw or a narrow win given the absurd amount of shots that were going off-target. Jamie Day made a beautiful return scoring a goal, and from then on the can of worms opened up. The team started pummeling in, and two goals were added to the scoresheet, courtesy of Rowlands and Evans.

Game 37

Cardiff City 0 – Colwyn Bay 3

We had more shots on target than Barnet but their efficiency was the key for them taking the game. Dale was by far our best player in a sea of average performances

Game 38

Leyton Orient 3 – Colwyn Bay 3

Lineup changes:

Marc Williams for Mark Aizlewood
Dayfdd Owen for Pat Van Der Hauwe

Leyton Orient gave us a bloody good game. 2-0 down, Evans quickly put us in contention and we went to halftime only trailing by one. In the last 20 minutes of the game, action started to reach its peak. A good assist by Jamie Day saw Evans levelling the match in the 76th minute of the game. Leyton got the advantage back thanks to a free kick which landed on Inglethorpe’s head and Rowlands equalised just two minutes afterwards. At the last minute, Jamie Day could have given us the win, but an offside infringement neglected his goal.

The transfer deadline is right around the corner, and as I saw Celtic signing Robert Page, it made me think to try and take advantage and sign a few bodies which are on the transfer list. My budget is currently sitting at 1.5 million pounds, thanks to gate receipts and a few sales so it may be good time to go splashing some cash.

I’m going for these two:

Other than low pace and passing attributes, this guy is fantastic.

How did we do?

Welcome to Colwyn Bay, Andy!

Ahhh well at least we tried. I’ll keep him on the shortlist because I intended to have a go at him next year.

Game 39

Colwyn Bay 4 – Lincoln City 1

We showed Lincoln City what we had in store, and deflated them pretty quickly. 2-0 up by halftime, we added 2 more before reaching the middle point in the 2nd half. Godfrey’s goal was just a statistic for the books, as it was their only attacking move on the night.

Game 40

Macclesfield Town 1 – Colwyn Bay 3

Norman has played enough matches so far, so it’s time to return my usual goalkeepers between the sticks

Lineup changes:

Brian Thomas for Tony Norman

After an uninspiring first half where Macclesfield set the tone of the match, we went into the second half with much more resolve, and we managed to overturn the score. Two by Deniol Graham and one from Williams after a corner kick, to ensure a win

Windscreen Shield Final

Colwyn Bay 2 – Southend United 1

Under the flashing lights of Wembley, we’ll attempt to pick the Windscreen Shield title. Are the lads up for it?

Get in there! They put me through the wringer but nevertheless, we’ve done it? As the clock was winding down, Wigg appeared after a cross from Jamie Day and it meant we were going to extra-time. I subbed in Graham for Chris Pike, who had a subpar game and boy, DID he deliver! Just a few minutes into the extra-time, a pass from Coughlin was shot by Deniol who smashed it through the net, to the delight of our supporters who had gone to Wembley. 

And just two days afterwards, more good news!

Well done boys! Now let’s go get that division title

INJURY NEWS:

Game 41

Colwyn Bay 1 – Barnet 3

Just like in their first meeting with us, they clocked us out and we didn’t play a good match in front of our crowd. It ain’t that bad though, as Hartlepool collected two draws in their last two matches and they’re still one point behind us.

So that’s everything for today, folks

I’d like to invite you to the final episode of this first season, which I will be posting on saturday. See ya 🙂

Bidaia Barakaldora S01E05

/ mardukowens / Deja un comentario

Welcome to a new episode of this save with Barakaldo.
In this one, we will be covering from matchday 29 to 35.

INJURY NEWS

Game 29

Barakaldo 1 – Xerez 1

Ibañez needs some playing time so it’s time to bring him in

Lineup changes:

Iñaki Ibañez for Dani Alonso

Agustin Exposito for Xabier Pantzeska

Bit a mixed feeling here. We could have well lost it because Xerez had a bunch of chances and even a goal nullified, but also the last 5 minutes of the match were absolutely ours, and Zamarripa got unlucky to add a second goal to the score and also his tally.

Oh dear! That’s the end of the season for him.

Game 30

Toledo 2 – Barakaldo 1

Lineup changes:

Luis Garmendia for Dani Barroso

Well we failed miserably here. 3 minutes in Eduardo hit us with a volley which couldn’t be stopped by Sangroniz. After a bunch of missed shots, finally at the end of the first half we picked up a goal. Corner kick taken by Gorka was headed by Zamarripa, Villavilla parries it and the ball falls to Expósito’s feet who doesn’t hesistate and we go 1-1 into halftime. In the second half we had about 4 shots on goal which we dutifully neglected by Toledo’s defense and Villavilla. 10 minutes from the end of the match, Edu capitalizes on a wrong backpass from Dadie, and we couldn’t do anything else to prevent the defeat.

Game 31

Barakaldo 2 – Hercules 1

Surprisingly, against the current leader of Segunda Division we had a very good game in which we dominated many passages in it and Hercules had very little reaction. Gorka scored one goal before leaving due to an injury at the restart of the second half. Ibañez added a second after much harassment of Mari’s goalkeeping area. Visnjic tried to restore some dignity to Hercules but immediately after the goal, we went swarming all over them again. 2-1 and 3 valuable points to continue in the promotion conversation

Game 32

Eibar 1 – Barakaldo 2

Lineup changes:

Domingo Larrainzar for Pedro Maria Matxon

Another 3 valuable points collected at Ipurua. The start couldn’t have been better as our first attack ended with a goal from Zamarripa. After the 15th minute mark there was a shy attempt by Eibar of trying to gain some ground. We quickly put the fire out when in the 27th Zamarripa scored his second. In the second half, Eibar went decisively for a comeback, switching their 532 for a 433 with Long Ball. It payed off at the closing stages of the game when Eres scored and brought the game closer. However, after scoring they went defensive again and didn’t go near our goal until the clock ran out

Game 33

Barakaldo 2 – Extremadura 2

Zamarripa heads us ahead from a corner inside 20 minutes, and we go into halftime holding a narrow lead. Exposito doubles our lead just past half an hour. The visitors hit back twice and manage to level the match by the 74th minute of the game. This leaves me with a bitter taste in our mouth as we could’ve easily won the match and we are losing three valuable points.

Game 34

Atletico Madrid B 2 – Barakaldo 4

Time to give Roberto Martinez a new opportunity. Hope he delivers

Lineup changes:

Roberto Martinez for Juan Zamarripa

Despite offering serious resistance and refusing to let us blow them away early doors, we managed to break Atletico Madrid. After having Garitano sent off, it opened the door to more of our attacking chances, and Roberto Martinez rose to the challenge by scoring two.

Game 35

Barakaldo 1 – Villarreal 1

Roberto again! Well done, man! He saved us from a potential disaster at Lasesarre. Villarreal didn’t exactly do much and as you may witness from this picture, they kicked our players a lot. However, their effort was enough to take a point away from us.

After this match, we reached the end of episode number 5.

Stay tuned for our next and final episode of the first season with Barakaldo, which will be released next week. See ya 🙂