Sat 16th Nov 2002!

Sat 16th Nov 2002!

After our defeat @ Farnborough Town it was bad enough hearing Railway had won @ Slough to make it to the 2nd proper of the cup!
But what did rub salt into the wounds was hearing they had over a 100 more fans on the day supporting them than we took to Farnborough!
We new they had a few there because we saw some of them travelling back up the motorway!
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I thought the 300 Town fans was a good turnout @ Farnborough but how the hell did the less senior side with lower crowds mobilize over 400 fans to support them!
The key to it was their junior set up
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They put subsidised coaches on for all their junior players & their families to get to Slough!
I don’t think Town even had a reserve side that season never mind a junior set up & there was no chance Bill would have organised subsidised coaches!
When you look at how things are now it’s hard to believe over 700 fans travelled from Harrogate down south that day!
It emphasis though how important building links with the local community to boost your support is going to be when results pick up on the pitch!

I have my doubts about whether we get to the stage of 700 fans attending Wetherby Road again. We are subjected to a manager who hasnt got a clue, who is tactically incompetent and cannot motivate his team. His players dont even listen to him when he is barking instructions from the touchline.

Subsidised coaches will never happen for the foreseeable future. First and foremost, things have to improve on the pitch. Then when the results and league position improve, the fans will gradually come back. When the fans come back and start pushing the attendances up, and bringing more money into the club, then maybe the club will act on the coach suggestions.

People are quite quick to point out that the improved links to the community will help the club along, but the results on the pitch have to improve, first and foremost.

The Under 19s would perform a lot better than Harrogate 1st team at the moment. At least they would be proud to wear the shirt and to play in front of the fans.

Instead of blaming injuries and bringing players in, give some of the U19s a chance to prove themselves.

Only 10 games left means you can’t gamble on youth! You need experienced players to get you out of the mire!
Once you are safe you can try a few then!
Otherwise any promising youngsters will have to leave & join another club if they want the chance to play in the Blue Square North next season!

From what I have seen this season, apart from the odd few fixtures, we would be better served by the youth than the experienced heads. The team hasnt performed consistently all season, and I dont think our experienced heads have the bottle for a relegation scrap.

And to add, if we were relegated, maybe it would be time to blood the youngsters and give them their chance. If they move on to better things, so be it. That's life.