WEEKLY BULLETIN – 5TH APRIL
FIXTURE
- Saturday 6th April Away to Leiston League kick-off 3.00pm. Coach leaves at 10.30am.
- There is no midweek fixture.
MANAGER’S NOTES WITH BRETT DONNELLY
It was a tough week last week. I can’t tell you had glad I am that it is over. League leaders on Friday followed by the newly relegated Berkhamsted on Monday. Both hard games for completely different reasons. The Needham game which I was unavailable for due to disciplinary issues was one I didn’t want to lose heavily even if we did lose. I hoped for a point but sadly the quality and consistency of Needham shone through in the end. We made changes toward the end with Monday’s game in mind.
Monday was a huge game for us. With Berko going down Saturday, we knew the pressure was off them. I stuck the pressure firmly on our boys. It was a must win. No getting away from it. I thought we did ok first half with no real quality going forward. Second half we had the look of a team determined not to lose, but more importantly one that wanted to win.
A well worked goal for Finn settled the nerves. The game was just meandering along to a simple 1-0 win until the referee decided to ignore all the rules and allow them to score a goal! Now my disciplinary record is horrific but no one in the ground thought it should have stood. I wanted answers, none came, I got booked and the world carries on as usual. This is my issue with officiating. A huge mistake that could have cost us. It could have had a huge effect on us for the rest of the season if we didn’t find that winner late on. There would have been no ramifications for the officials involved. Just an “oh well, our mistake”.
Monday’s game did show me that there is a resilience in this squad. That decision for Berkos goal could have wiped us out. But the boys got off the canvas and found the knockout punch we needed. Thank the Lord!!!
So off to Leiston on Saturday with a light squad due to injuries but with a lot of confidence taken from the last week. It will be another tough game against a very good footballing side. We will be hoping to add to our points tally and keep the gap from the relegation spot. 7 clear with 4 to go, it is better but not done yet. Hopefully a little nearer come 5pm Saturday.
Brett Donnelly
EDDIE McLOUGHLIN
I have interviewed our new assistant manager Eddie McLoughlin so supporters can get an insight in to his playing and coaching career. The article will be available on our social media outlets shortly.
HERTS SENIOR CUP FINAL
On Tuesday 9th April we host the Herts Senior Cup final between St Albans and Berkhamsted kick=off 7.45pm. Admission prices are £10 for adults and £5 for concessions (over65 and under 18). You can only pay on the gate—no advance tickets are available.
LUTON TOWN UNDER 21’S AT TOP FIELD
Also on Tuesday 9th April Luton Town Under 21’s host Notts County Under 21’s at Top Field kick-off 1.00pm. You can buy tickets online or pay at the gate on the day. Prices are £5 adults, £3 concessions, £1 under 13’s. Over 80’s are free.
ANOTHER BUMPER ATTENDANCE
Many thanks again to everybody who came to Top Field on Good Friday. A bumper attendance of 792 was achieved with very few Needham Market fans present. It means our average league attendance is now 588 putting us in 8th position in the central division attendance table behind Halesowen, AFC Telford, Kettering, Bromsgrove, Stourbridge, Stratford and Redditch.
There was also an excellent away following at Berkhamsted on Monday when there must have been more than 100 Hitchin supporters. Thanks again for such great support.
ACADEMY UPDATE
There is no report this week as there has been no college due to the Easter holiday.
HTWFC UPDATE BY CALLUM ELLIS
‘As the Easter break comes to an end we look towards the closing part of the season. Our Firsts play against the Canaries for their final meet of the season this Sunday. Kick off is 14:00 at St Christophers School, Barrington Road, Hitchin.
As we start entering the closing period of the season, we start building for the new season. So we start by recruiting volunteers to help the day to day running of the club, obtaining grants, coaching, and managing our teams. We have a couple of vacancy positions so please view our website for current up to date vacancies. https://www.hitchintownwomenfc.co.uk
BY ROY IZZARD