First Team Squad

Could someone confirm the squad and their likely positions please?

According to the website it's:

Crook
Ainge
Parker
Turner
Burrell
Kerry
Leesley
Emmett
Knowles

Also....When are the fixtures going to be put on the website?

Thanks

Yes not too clever is it. I mean how long does it take to type in a few names. And. I don't think Crook plays for us anymore. Come on guys, fully professional club now. Get the website sorted.

Agree about the first team squad on the website.

The fixtures however are on the site though. Up to date apart from no result for the Shaw Lane game on Friday.

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Rename our squad Belshaw Ainge and the 14 dwarfs, god knows how we'll cope when york turn up throwing and hoofing the ball into the box for rankine and Parkin!

Yes, bizarre isn't it? I almost burst out laughing when the subMurray came on (looked a decent player, mind).Even smaller than Josh! Comical really. There are some big lads in our league as well.

After tonight not sure we need a first team ! Joking, I think. Thought the 7 and 11 we're excellent, Gooda has to stay surely. Day has pace but too wasteful. Thoughts anybody?

Thought the whole game was a waste of time against a very poor Ossett team.Saw no future players for the 1st team.We put out another team of midgets.
We really do need some taller players to compete in our league. I'll bet Neil Aspin who was there last night wondered why he bothered to watch a bunch of Northern Counties east players wasting everybody's time.
Let's hope Saturday's game at home proves me wrong.

Only 1 pre season game left I think, in other previous seasons you could of picked our starting 11 for the 1st game of the season by now, this year every game has been a mish mash of players so far no chance to forge any partnerships, I can only see Belshaw Fallowfield Falkingham Knowles Thompson and Ainge ( up top a bit of a worry) as starters, I don't know our strongest CB pairing looks like we could be starting the season with Burrell at the back and maybe emmett in CM with Falkingham? Surely it would of made sense knowing Agnew and Kerry weren't available start of the season to have played Burrell and falkingham together for plenty of mins in CM and get a understanding with each other the same with whoever our CB's are going to be Kennedy? Middleton? Gooda? To develop a understanding with Belshaw.
But we all know by now SW has different ways of doing things to the norm.

Interesting to see saturdays 11, surely something released this week about which trialists have earned a deal? 4 weeks off full time training and a bit of game time is ample imo to gauge who we want to keep, can't go into the last pre season game before the serious stuff starts with trialists still in the team?

I thought a couple of the trialist played well yesterday but the worrying thing for me is mainly how small in height our squad is going to be! when we play the likes of York they're going to score for fun against us with Parkin up-front.

After what you've all seen so far what would be your starting 11 for the first game of the season against Nuneaton? I'm sure Simon will play his starting 11 on Saturday against Gateshead but what are your thoughts?

My starting 11 would be:
                                    Belshaw
Fallowfield         Kennedy            Middleton         O'Hanlon(if fit)

Thewlis             Falkingham         Burrell             Leesley

                         Knowles           Ainge

I'm unsure whether that team would challenge towards the top end of the table but I feel it's the strongest we can field at present in my eyes. Emmett has impressed me at times during pre-season so is unlucky not to make my starting 11 but I just don't want to see us play such a small central midfield pairing. Falkingham has got to start as he has been top class in every game he's played.

I'm sure people will have different opinions to me though but at this stage I'm worried seeing other teams in the league strengthen.

Parker in for possibly unfit ohanlon
Burrell in at c/half.for Kennedy.
Thompson in at right side of midfield.

Wonder if Knowles is fit he's been used sparingly.
Thewliss up front with Ainge or Knowles.
Prefer Ainge at c/half though.
Don't really like what i see at the moment its men against boys in the size department.

GK   Belshaw
RB   Fallowfield
CB.  Middleton
CB.  Ainge
LB.  O'Hanlon
RM  Thompson ( I'd give him liesence to roam as fallowfield gets up and down so well)
CM. Falkingham
CM. Burrell
LM. Leesley
CF. Thewliss
CF. Knowles

Subs
Hallwood
Kennedy
Emmett
Worall  ( if he signs, did mention a trial at donny)
Mcintosh ( if we sign him)

Pretty harsh on emmett but will make a useful impact player coming on early season while teams fitness isn't 100%.

Leaves

Parker
Day
Swain
Agnew
Kerry

All to come back in,  would be pleased to sign Gooda and Mcintosh and see how we get on and reassess what we need xmas time.

Agree the height thing is an issue, could be in a for a nasty shock when the real thing starts, less than 2 weeks now. chip's team looks pretty good. The absence of Thomson worries me a bit (although he hasn't quite been the dominant force I thought he might be, but only two games means little). I personally wouldn't play Ainge up front but Simon certainly will

My team would be:

Belshaw/Fallowfield/Ainge/Middleton/O'Hanlon/Falkingham/Emmett/Thomson/Burrell/Thewlis/Knowles

Won't happen tho' as I say.

Subs: Hallwood, Kennedy, Leesley (tough to leave him out altho' I'm sure he will start against Nuneaton), Parker, Day (reluctantly, as he really isn't ready).

The real problem here is the thinness of our striking options. If Ainge doesn't repeat last year's heroics (and I personally doubt he will), Day not really yet up to it, it places a massive burden on Knowles (never really played a full season for us) and Thewlis (who I have been impressed with so far). As I have said (again and again!) the big disappointment for me has been the failure to sign another striker. Apparently we went for Boyes, but when that failed why not go for someome else? We must have the money!

Interesting days ahead. Looking forward to Saturday, might give us a better idea of where we stand.

Thanks Top Cat. I hadn't really seen Worrall before (that I can recall), and I was impressed with him last night, and I had forgotten about McIntosh, have not seen him yet, I hoped he would play last night. Yes Gooda looked good (!) last night, hope the injury not serious. Probably too late for the three ex-Leeds trialists (all small guys!) to get a place, but I thought they looked OK.

Got to say I forgot about Thomson. I personally can't understand why we keep playing him on the right side of midfield when he's always played just behind the number 9 in a number 10 role. He would have to start somewhere though I'd of thought.

I too worry about Ainge not being able to replicate last season but he does add a bit of height to the team which is needed and a different option upfront.

Will be interesting to see what Simon does on Saturday as I'm sure it'll be the team that will start against Nuneaton too.

Reference many of the views expressed about the need to sign a proven goalscorer, I wonder what degree of thought was maybe given to trying to attract Damien Reeves when he left Alty, he being one of the most prolific strikers at our level in recent years?

Reeves finished at conf north level. That's why he's dropped down a level.

Need another striker though, in my view, quite badly. Knowles is surely not going to get through a season, and zI fear that Ainge won't repeat last year's feat. Worry.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing.

On the subject of strikers, paulstreet in particular might be interested to know that Spennymoor Town have made Graeme Armstrong available for 'loan or permanent transfer'.

Yeah, noticed that.

At last! I hope Simon is on the phone. I know he is 'getting on a bit' but surely worth considering. All our loan strikers are a bit on the young and lightweight side. An experienced 'old head' like Graeme would be a real boost. And it would make me happy!

All our squad have to be full time & I think Graham had a decent job as a teacher so will unlikely to want to pack that in!
It’s January transfer window signings? Or loan deals for us now!!!!!