Issue 7

BLACK & WHITE #7 - NOV ‘13 - £1

the Notts County fanzine

ALAN SHEEHAN AWAY DAYS LIVERPOOL AWAY

Potential skipper in the making?

Misery. Sheer misery.

How long ago does this feel now?

ALSO DEPRESSION POLAND BOUCAUD & HAYNES & MORE

INTRODUCTION

Sorry for the lengthy delay in getting issue 7 out. As awful excuses as they might be, the international breaks twice set us back when we’d wanted to release, and by then articles were already out of date by the time we had another home game.

game, and Dean’s take on a pretty rancid evening at Boundary Park in the JPT.

Of course, I’m typing this as Notts appear to possibly be on the cusp of a revival at sorts. The new management team of Shaun Derry and Greg Abbott have in their league games so far overseen a Then quite unusually for Notts, we sacked a rise in the workrate of the players at their disposal.

Narrow defeats at home to Wolves and away at manager! FANCY THAT! Shrewsbury were each as harsh as the other - the But anyway, here we are! And given the rank mess Shrews game in particular I felt we did enough to the season has been up until this point I decided this win the game. season we wouldn’t bother with the usual season so far pieces - because who really wants to relive the And then of course there was a rather decent night out in a post-apocalyptic Bradford where the new dross served up on the field so far? management team got their first points on the Not to say there haven’t been some good moments board. The performance may not have been one quite as accomplished as the games before, but - but they’re just very few and far between. the hard work put in by the side was there for all We obviously couldn’t go this issue without bringing to see - in fact had the ball fallen to anyone but up the League Cup game away at Liverpool Manny Smith in the closing stages, we’d have our (how long ago does that feel now?), but we’ve first away win of the season. also balanced it out with my view of a miserable afternoon at Sixfields Stadium for the Coventry City Brenford at home was more of what we’ve seen /blackwhitezine

@blackwhitezine

/thenottsblog

/thestu

WITH THANKS

CONTENTS

putting together A big thanks our interview - and as ever to our an even bigger columnists in this tip of the hat to latest issue: Adam Alan Sheehan Taylor, Graham himself for giving Farquharson, Luke Williamson, us a second chance at an interview Paul Smith, Dean Fido, Jacob given how quickly the Meadow Lane Daniel, Alan landscape had Combes, Ian changed!

McLaughlin, Ian Marsden, Drew Dennis and Sean And to end, thanks again to the man Mansfield. without whom this fanzine wouldn’t As usual thanks be happening must go to Ralph Richard Ogando!

Shepherd at the club for his help in

Introduction ............................................... 02

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Anatomy Of A Boo Boy ................................ 04 Off To The Land Of Bart ............................... 05 Depression In Football Alan

Sheehan

.............................. 06

interview

..........................

08

Scoring Own Goals Off The Field ....................... 10 The Day It Stopped Being Fun ................ 11 The

Yoann

Arquin

Dilemma

...............

12

In Defence Of Danny Haynes .................. 14 On The Buses ............................................ 15 How Not To Manage A Football Club ........... 16 Obituary: David Stoakes ............................. 17 Where Are They Now? ............................. 18 Aways Days: Millwall 91 .......................... 19 The Management Conundrum .................... 20 The Tale Of Liverpool Away ........................ 22 The Good, The Bad & The Disrespectful ...... 24 The

World

Of

Andre

Boucaud

............

26

Being A Yorkshire ‘pie ............................. 28 But On The Bright Side ........................... 30

DISCLAIMER

already though, defeat, but again, not without year. Of course, all whilst inexperienced youngsters being the better team for large parts of the game - Callum McGregor and Jack Grealish reap the weekly plaudits for their displays. particularly the first half.

That’s about as much of the season so far as I want And for that they’re written off. Labelled as kids.

Whatever happened to just judging a player once to cover really. they’ve put on the black and white? Imagine being You see this past Thursday (at the time of writing one of these lads, taking a huge risk coming to club this of course) we endured another transfer as adrift in their division as us and being written off deadline day - this time one specific to the Football with the ink barely dry on your new contract?

League, and players we can bring in on loan.

Do I think these signings are what we need? I’m I’ve ranted somewhat irrationally at the very unsure. But when you think of the experience that concept of transfer deadline days in the past. They Mark Fotheringham has brought in the majority of drive me insane to be honest. Supporters unable his appearances this season, it’s a risk I’d rather to think for themselves reach the conclusion that take. How many times have we bemoaned aging if they don’t sign anyone on the last day, if their journeymen walking through the Meadow Lane club doesn’t make it onto Sky Sports News, then gates and having our pants down? the preceding month’s transfer business means Shall we see what Chris Iwelumo is up to for nothing. instance? Such experience.

Yet this time, things were different - almost alarmingly so in fact! In contrast to deadline days For my sins I’m yet to miss a game this season, and of the past where a manager would announce they just as I began to consider the bonuses of a eight were hoping to add to their squads, Derry and bottles of cider en route to matches to numb the Abbott kept their cards close to the chest, revealing sadness, the players have started to give a toss. to not one member of the press their plans for the Why should a few loan signings who will only day. remain with us until January if they under-perform We ended the day with three new players added to be allowed to undo the good work that has started the squad, young guns Callum Ball (Derby County) to appear on the field? I’ll end my rant there, living as well as Charlton Athletic’s Bradley Jordan and in hope that by the time the next issue rolls around we’ll be a little bit closer to League One safety, as Morgan Fox. opposed to being rock bottom of the division as we Unfathomable. The last day to bring in players, currently are. and we’ve added three highly rated individuals to the squad. Yet people still complained. The very So anywhere, here goes issue 7! Apologies again same people who previously bemoaned a lack of for the absurd amount of time it took for me to put incoming talent, now took issue with the players it together but here’s hoping we have issue 8 out much sooner! coming in.

Where was the experience they asked - seemingly Enjoy! #TeamWestwell oblivious to some of the current squads most seasoned players being amongst our worst this

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Stuart Brothers

@BlackWhiteZine

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ANATOMY OF A BOO BOY

All clubs have them. Speak to any team’s supporters and it is generally easy to imagine the players whose names are greeted with an undercurrent of discontent when announced to the crowd, or at worst, howls of derision and abuse the likes of which rarely heard since the days of public hangings.

Williams, a jobbing defensive shirt filler of whom it is surprising that not only did he; a) maintain a fulltime career in the paid ranks into his thirties but; b) played international football (Cyprus, 1 cap) and, even more remarkably; c) managed to wed one of the more well-known Page 3 girls (if there is such a thing). Nevertheless his position as boo-boy was not one born out of jealously, for many it was his shameless pursuit of minor celebrity through public forums such as Twitter, which contrasted sharply with an apparent total disinterest in matters on the pitch.

Indeed in many ways Tom Williams represented all that is wrong with the modern game and serves as There are of course the obvious examples, players an excellent example to aspiring youngsters of values whose abilities simply aren’t up to scratch with best left alone. Also he was crap which didn’t help. the level they have found themselves plying their trade. Take Paul Bolland; a hard-working and honest Then there are those who have seemingly suffered footballer brought to the club during a brief period by dint of their longevity of service. Take the curious of forward looking optimism, who then became case of Neal Bishop, club captain, all-action box-tosynonymous with its regression back into the nether box midfielder, almost reminiscent of a lower league regions. Possessing a first touch better suited to Bryan Robson and a man who would likely jump into performing the role of the wall in the game wall-y, he a 50/50 challenge with an aircraft carrier were one sought to make up for what he lacked in finesse by to unwisely stray down the Trent. Despite all this carving a niche for himself applying the principles of and being the last remnant of those halcyon Munto anti-football to the opposition midfield. Unfortunately days, the age of Champions League pipe dreams as efforts to make football a non-contact sport began and phantom limousines at East Midlands Airport, to trickle down from above, his less than unique Bish increasingly found himself at the sharp end of brand of hustle, bustle and the occasional two-footed some forthright appraisals of his ability, the seeds of which were sown on an internet messageboard. lunge soon earned him the boo-boy tag.

Familiarity breeds contempt, players at this level are If some players are reviled on the basis of limited rarely the total package and the parting of the Red ability, others have dug their own grave by not making Sea which greets opposition midfielders this season the most of theirs’. Darren Caskey was undoubtedly is testament to the considerable skills Neal bought a fantastic footballer, blessed with magic wands on to the club. The discontent of a vocal minority was the end of each leg and levels of ability that kept then entrenched when Bishop committed a cardinal David Beckham out of the England under-18 team sin of the modern game in having the audacity to which won the 1993 Toulon international tournament. respond to his tormenters. Whilst not exactly biting Unfortunately if he did have skills to burn, this is the hand that feeds, footballers have zero right of precisely what he appeared intent on doing and there reply in these situations and subsequent ill-advised is nothing more frustrating to those of us with little to ranting on Twitter built on Shush-gate, ensuring speak of, than precious talent casually squandered. that arguably the best servant to the club of recent The irony in this case is that Darren remains involved seasons departed in acrimony. in football, despite showing a total disregard for the game in his heyday. He continued turning out Footballers, we are told, are professionals, therefore at non-league level well into his late 30s and was they should be capable of rising above the catcalls recently bought in by Gary Mills as assistant manager and doing the job they are paid handsomely to do. at Gateshead, his brother in law presumably doing Nevertheless it is difficult to imagine performing one’s too well with his burglar alarm business to relocate. own job whilst being goaded by an angry mob, unless How he must rue that wasted talent today; sat on the of course you are undertaking basic army training. In bench on a wet winter evening in the north east, a most cases the wave of public opinion can be briefly veritable feast of European Cup tales from yesteryear dammed, or at least slowed by a positive contribution replacing his favored diet of all you can eat Pizza Hut on the pitch. Rare goals by much maligned target men are celebrated without discrimination and buffets. perhaps sustained good performances may even be Ability aside, on rare occasions there are those players able to turn the tide (are you reading Mr Showunmi?). who are simply odious individuals; not in the sense Us fans, as one former manager was unwise enough that they can galvanise teammate and supporter to point out, are fickle, despite our protestations to alike in the face of opposition fan hostility, rather the contrary and, deep down, we all know it too. it is simply embarrassing to have them associated with the club. A recent example here would be Tom .

Teams at the top level generally maintain a single individual whom the manager persists with, despite all evidence to the contrary and much to the consternation of spectators.

Generally through unsuccessful signings at the upper echelons are swiftly granted the sanctity of ‘squad player’ status and then only exposed to public humiliation during an injury crisis. Notts have rarely had this luxury and watching them over the years, particularly during the all too numerous dark periods, it has often seemed that lining up with just a single boo-boy in the black and white stripes has been indicative of a decent side.

Adam Taylor

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ISSUE #7

OFF TO THE LAND OF BART

Following my trip to France last season, this year I headed over to Poland to watch a game.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the full Tifo and Pyro experience of an Ekstraklasa (the Polish Premier League) game but a friendly between Lechia Gdansk and Metallist Kharkiv, the reigning Ukrainian champions.

The game was played over the recent international weekend meaning that both teams were weakened as their internationals were playing for Poland, Ukraine and various other nations. Still, the game was arranged and was to be played at the PGE Arena in Gdansk.

with that one) but once inside I got what is best described as a vigorous body search from a burly security guard. Having cleared that hurdle, it was time to take my seat.

Only 2 stands were open for the game and I ended up at the top of the block behind a group be best described as Junior Ultras. Having sat down, I was surprised to see people walking in with beers to watch the game with. These were available at £1.50 and I have to admit to being surprised at beers being available during a game in Poland considering the reputation for trouble that exists there.

The PGE Arena was built for Euro 2012 and is a modern stadium with a capacity of over 40,000. The outside of the stadium is clad in Amber (as Gdansk is known as the Capital of Amber) which added a distinctive touch to a ground that, inside, is like so many other 4 or 5 star UEFA stadia. The seats inside were multi-coloured too, in the same style that you see at Australian The PA system blasted out the standard musical fare and even the cricket grounds like the Gabba. game intro music was the same Pre match I decided to sample the as at Wolves 5 days beforehand wares of the Lechia version of the (although this did have a Polish Meadow Lane Sports Bar – T29 fella rapping over the top). As the which is named after the address players came out, the crowd around of the old Lechia ground. It was a me stood up and launched into a decent bar with the usual plasma Polish version of You’ll Never Walk screens but what set it apart were Alone which considering there were two huge murals painted on the only 10,000 in the ground was quite interior walls off the bar in green impressive. League games attract and white (Lechia colours). The crowds of around 17,000 so it’s not beer was quite pricey for Gdansk the most popular league going even though at £1.75 a pint (!) so after at standard ticket prices of £9 per a couple of pints, I headed into the ticket. ground.

The game itself wasn’t the best I had bought my ticket the day (to be expected for a friendly I before for the princely sum of £4 suppose) and Metallist were clearly – it was easy to get tickets for the the superior team at Championship game although I did need to show standard with Lechia at League 1 my passport at the ticket office for standard. Lechia nearly took an security purposes. Getting into the early lead but Metallist went ahead ground was easier than getting into on the half hour mark. What was Moulineux for the JPT (I struggled noticeable during the game though

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was how passionate the fans were, even for a friendly. My knowledge of Polish is pretty poor so I could not understand what was being sung but the tunes were the same as the ones over here. The Juniors at the front of the stand did their best to further encourage the crowd and there were clearly some leaders amongst them co-ordinating things.

Maybe we could do with this on The Kop! Metallist scored another goal just after half time and things livened up in the crowd. A scuffle broke out between some of the Juniors before a leader intervened to break it out and send the stewards on their way. Then, some other kids had the audacity to unveil a Lechia banner. The Juniors took exception to this and asked for the banner.

Said banner was not handed over so the Juniors marched over and tried to steal it. Again, this did not work so they then decided to wade in and start throwing punches. About 25 youths then had a scuffle before the Hi Vis jacket brigade moved in only to be turned back by the leader.

Net result, 1 stolen banner and no arrests. I can’t see that happening in this country somehow.

The game then petered out amidst multiple substitutions before Metallist notched a third just before full time. All that was left then was to get on the busiest tram ever back into Gdansk and to find a bar for some more Tyskie!

Graham Farquharson

@gfarquharson

ISSUE #7

DEPRESSION IN FOOTBALL

The first rule of writing, be it an article, a script or a book, is to have a plan. You should know where you are going with the piece. Have some structure in place. For the first time in as long as I can remember however, I have approached a piece with nothing planned but more a feeling from the heart of something that has struck a chord of late.

I have been reading a lot in recent months.

Some of which has filled the void of heading down to Meadow Lane on a fortnightly basis.

Two books in particular, that have fascinated me for different reasons, were read back-toback within a week of each other.

One told a story by a man who is adored, admired throughout the game and has an inner confidence in his own abilities that ensured he approached everything in a non-negotiable way. He measured himself in a much more complex and deeper way than just mere results, something which I found inspiring.

The other, about a man who in his early years had a desire to feel accepted and loved but spent much of his life searching for something he thought he needed to justify himself as a person. He would eventually learn that the harder he looked, the further away it became.

He eventually found some happiness as opposed to success. But it was only temporary.

Everything in his life seemed temporary. But in a very different way, the book of his life inspired me just as much.

The first, Pep Guardiola, is a name in modern football that is known above most others. The second, Robert Enke, probably only found himself known by the masses following a tragic turn of events that led him to end his life at the

age of just 32 due to suffering with depression.

Enke had lived with torment for much of his life but for years had never made it known publicly that he suffered with depression. With his depression came a lot of self doubt which would not be helped when he was left on the scrap heap by Barcelona after a poor display and a public criticism from Ronald de Boer who had been just as much to blame and appeared to see Enke as collateral damage for his own short comings. It was Robert Enke's Barcelona debut.

The story of Robert Enke was not just tragic though. It told a story of a man that was loving and caring and enjoyed looking after others and offering advice when needed. When Enke experienced better times, he was someone who would stand up for what was right and did not conform to the general image we have of high profile, well paid footballers.

For Robert, depression had a stigma attached.

Because of this, perhaps not enough people were fully aware of what he went through during his career. But with each page I turned I found myself learning more about myself and hopefully the book will indirectly ensure that Robert has helped people despite his passing.

I have suffered with depression for many years.

Officially, since 2009, when I was diagnosed as such. Looking back, it has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember though. Only a select few have ever known and, until now, that was the way I always wanted it to remain. You see I feel the stigma too.

It is a clichĂŠd saying, I know, that when you suffer a broken leg people can see it. When you suffer with a form of depression, the world can pass you by without anyone noticing. It wasn't until I started trying to undergo treatment for my condition that I realised there were others who suffered in silence. They also didn't feel strong enough to openly have the world within which they occupied know of the torments and pains they felt.

Unfortunately of late, depression has taken a firm hold of me after seemingly being under control for some time. I have started to feel

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BLACK & WHITE PAGE 6

less motivation for everyday tasks and a sense of anxiety about putting myself in certain situations. Work has become a real struggle.

Going down to Meadow Lane, something I've put off with each passing home game.

It is not that I don't want to go to see Notts.

More that I don't want to feel that overwhelming sense of being anxious whilst there. I can't put myself through an experience that I know, on the whole, will be a negative one. From poor performances to moaning fans, it all has an impact on my day, weekend, week and sometimes month.

That said, Notts could be top of the table and playing total football and I’d still be unable to put myself in a seat in the Pavis Stand as I feel at present. I just don’t feel comfortable enough within myself.

Robert Enke has taught me that dealing with depression is more about understanding your own limits with regards to the pressures you put yourself under on a daily basis. Until recently, I've never considered it in this way despite numerous different doctors and councillors talking things through with me.

However, in doing so, I've also started to look at football and life very differently too. I see the bile that people spout in anger. I see the abuse aimed at players, coaches, managers and owners. I just fail to see where the motivation comes from regardless of who’s “paying their wages”. Not just with Notts but across the board. I wonder how many fans stop for a second and remember that these guys are humans.

I am not saying we should hesitate with everything we say and the way we act in case someone suffers with depression or feels anxious. Far from it. I prefer to be treated just the same as someone who does not suffer. I just hope we all remember that they, like us, are human.

A common mistake people make, and it is a mistake, is that because of the vast sums some footballers earn, they are paid enough to take the abuse and deal with it accordingly. But just because someone is compensated well for their skills, it never should act as a justification for such things.

On Sunday 27th November 2011, I trudged away from a Sunday morning game to rumours on the side of the pitch that Gary Speed had passed away. The stories that would came out from on that fateful day, coupled with the

SEPT ‘13

chilling images of him featuring on Football Focus the day previous, left me rather numb for some time. However, following the tragic events, I did also begin to feel that the subject of depression was being broached much more than in years gone by. And for that, I felt some weight lifting from my shoulders, albeit only a little.

As I outlined at the start of this piece, I had neither a plan or an angle for this piece when I started writing. I did not make a contribution to the last Issue because I had started to distance myself from some games more than I’d have liked. Now, without seeing a game this season other than those that have been on the box, I feel my only area from which I can write about is these recent feelings and emotions.

If you have ever suffered with depression, or even if you know someone who has, I urge you to take a read of ‘A Life Too Short’ by Robert Reng, a man that knew Robert Enke well. I imagine it is eye opening to those that don’t understand depression whilst is certainly comforting, although tragic and sad too, for those that do understand it.

Each and every one of us has our own pressures in life. And with them come our limitations and breaking points. I believe it is worth considering this rather than putting too much time and effort into the negative side of being a football fan. One day you may no longer have football in your life as much as you’d wish; and then you may realise that you spent far too much time agonising and worrying instead of enjoying it for what it was.

Luke Williamson

@LukeWilliamson

BLACK & WHITE PAGE 7

ALAN SHEEHAN

In a typically honest interview exclusively for Black and White, Notts County’s longest-serving player Alan Sheehan spoke to Paul Smith about the past, present and future at Meadow Lane. Sheehan was speaking after the Magpies’ hard-fought 1-0 defeat at the hands of high-flying Wolves.

Alan, a much-improved performance against Wolves which for fans in some ways felt more like a victory in light of recent displays and results – is that something you share as a player?

It was probably a victory in itself to prove to the players and the fans, hold on a minute it can be done. There was a lot of doubt throughout the club regarding the results and the performances but I think this might have given the whole club a lift. We went up against the best team

in the division and put on a performance.

And as we speak Wolves do lead the League One table; are they the best team you have faced then this season?

Well they have got the biggest budget. There are a lot of good teams in this league, like Peterborough, but players-wise some of the Wolves team were in the Premier League two years ago so they probably are the best team - but we more than matched them.

Having seen such an improved performance, when their late winner went in it was so deflating for fans. Is it a similar feeling on the pitch as well?

That is the difficult part at the moment. When you have an embarrassing display like we had in the last half-hour at Oldham, losing 5-1 in the end was embarrassing, and you have conceded another three goals before that against Hartlepool – we are conceding far too many at the minute and that is the whole team.

We are not getting the rub of the green at times and Wolves’ goal came from a set-piece that just fell straight to their man in the box. You make your own luck in this game, but at this moment in time when goals go in it’s disheartening.

We need to stick together and say ‘hold on a minute; let’s dig this first win out’. I’m sure when we do we will be alright.

You mentioned the defensive record. Last season ours was one of the best in the league, and probably four out of the five players including the goalkeeper are in the team again this season, yet it’s gone full circle and it is now one of the worst records in the league. What has changed?

You are right, four or five of the players are still the same but if you look at the eleven players from last year we have lost a lot of key players. When you concede goals people look at the defence and the goalkeeper but if you break down the goals a lot have been individual mistakes throughout the team from defence, midfield and attack.

The first goal against Oldham was from a set-piece, the second was a penalty and then it goes from there. When we played against Hartlepool the first goal was another set-piece, the second was a rebound and so was the third.

I would not blame the defence entirely. We have to take responsibility for some of it because that is what we, as defenders, are judged on. But I think as a whole team we are conceding too many goals.

One thing that has remained consistent though

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ISSUE #7

has been your own performances. You must be pleased with your own form?

I like to think I am helping the team, even if I am not helping the team win at the moment. You can give out orders on the pitch and things like that but at the end of the day you can only do your own job. I’m not going to sit here and say ‘hold on, I’m doing my job, I’m alright’ because we are not winning as a team.

You might have a few individual performances that are good but collectively as a team we are not winning games and that is something we need to put right.

In light of Dean Leacock’s red card at Oldham, some fans have suggested you should be given the captain’s armband instead. What do you say to that?

It is a question I have been asked a number of times from fans but at the end of the day Dean Leacock is the captain. He is a top defender who has played in the Premier League. He has lots of experience and knows what you have to do to play in this division.

The Wolves game was Shaun Derry’s first home match as manager, and it seemed to transform the atmosphere. Even when we went behind the fans seemed to remain with the players. Is it fair to say that hasn’t always been the case?

It was a brilliant atmosphere against Wolves; against the top of the league when we weren’t really expected to get that much. You saw eleven players out there playing for the shirt and putting their bodies on the line.

Possibly the fans did turn against us but when you see the results and the performances I can see where the fans are coming from. Hopefully the Wolves game will prove to be the time where everyone came together and realised we are all in it together and we have to do it together now.

How much was that change in the atmosphere against Wolves down to the new manager?

The manager and Greg (Abbott, Derry’s assistant) are still putting their stamp on things and still getting to know the club. We know he wants to play in the opposition’s half with a high tempo and to get the ball forward to the front man as quickly as we can. But we know we can’t just play like we did against Wolves when there is a good crowd in and against a big club. We have to continue to play like that now whoever we are against.

Derry obviously came in because Chris Kiwomya was sacked. When we last spoke after the 5-1 defeat at Leyton Orient you said how the players remained behind him despite the poor run. How did you feel when he was sacked?

Chris was a nice fellow who had a rough time off the pitch and anybody who comes through that you have to admire. He tried his best at the club but it didn’t really work out for him.

I suppose the players are to blame for that but fortunately we have 30-odd games to put that right and we have got to start straight away.

With the search for a new manager underway

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it was said that the board asked the players for their advice. You have let it be known in the past that another former manager Keith Curle was somebody you would have liked back at the club.

Was that ever a possibility do you think?

The players spoke to people upstairs about what we like in a manager and Keith Curle was a name that was brought up. A number of players admired him and it was a very sad time when he left. We were a few points outside the play-offs with a few games in hand and a lot of players felt like we were on the verge of something special.

A lot of players took Keith’s departure badly and unfortunately didn’t carry on their form – not through not trying but the winning form took a knock and we didn’t get into the play-offs. So Keith was a name that was brought up in meetings but Shaun Derry is the manager now and as the manager the players are a million per cent behind him. He has got big plans and like he has said it is up to us – we either get on board or we don’t.

What do you think is the minimum we need to achieve by say the turn of the year if we are to keep in touch with safety?

We need to win games; it’s as simple as that. I don’t know if the manager plans to bring in a few more players because some of the fans are not happy but we have got to win a few games. We have got to start being more difficult to beat. At the moment we are shipping too many goals. Perhaps at times we are being pretty with our passing but not really being ruthless enough.

How about your own future? You signed a new deal in the summer, do you see your stay here as being more long-term?

I signed a year’s contract in the summer and while I am here I will play. I think my standard of performance this year is what I was looking for even though it has been in a losing team. You have to keep your head down and I am happy to do that. I do love it here and I feel at home but of course everyone wants to be playing higher – and that is why I came to Notts County because I thought the club could do that.

I have good relationships here and it is now about getting a few wins together because you enjoy it more when you are winning games!

And finally, while I’ve got you there was a recent high-profile appointment for your country Republic of Ireland with Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane taking charge. What are your thoughts on that?

Roy Keane is a hero of mine and a legend in Ireland. It is absolutely brilliant for the country and it should be exciting times.

Have you given up on making the Ireland squad yourself?

You can never rule that out – it is a dream to play for the Ireland first team. But you need to be playing well and be in the right place at the right time.

Paul Smith

@PSmithyJourno

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SCORING OWN GOALS OFF THE FIELD

Never one to criticise our on-field play, I often feel that we are let down quite a lot by particular off-field antics that impact our club.

I made brief comment in the last issue about our Chairman’s humorous ventures into social media and the irritation this causes to certain fans when ‘definite’ deals that we are informed about fall through at the last minute. But an over-excitable, well-meaning, owner isn’t the focus of this article. Instead, it is directed to some of the more fundamental, yet comical, flaws I often see when visiting Meadow Lane.

For starters, tickets. Now as a season ticket holder I can arrive and walk straight into the ground, but what happens if I want to bring two non-Notts supporting friends, one under 21, and the other a 22 year old student, with me? We walk to the Lane bringing us Kop-side, yet instead of walking straight in, we’re required to head to the other side of the ground. Is this to get a special ‘bring a friend’ rate at the Ticket Office? No, it’s because normal gate staff aren’t given the responsibility of checking IDs for age; serving to increase queues, irritate fans, and cut down on money-spending time in the ground. Furthermore, the student, who’s paying for his Masters course and accommodation with no student loan suddenly has to pay full price to see a team he doesn’t support due to a lack of student tickets, when for a few pounds more, he could watch Championship football across the way.

Madness, he wont be coming back any time soon.

But it’s ok, whilst we’re at the ticket office we decide to have a pint in the sports bar. The bar is packed as usual, good for the club, but people are hesitant about ordering another pint because of the 10 minute queue at the bar. The majority of fans are drinking lager so no idea why these haven’t either a) been pre-poured, or b) being sold at a cheaper rate, in bottles by mobile sellers. “Yeah I’ll grab a couple off you love!”

So now we have our tickets, surely we walk straight in? You’d imagine so, but not always. In the past, gate staff have accused younger fans of trying to get in with a ticket too young for them (we already know they’re not trusted with ages) and also mis-printed tickets or malfunctioning season ticket, have resulted in fans being told there is “no game on today” and they need to re-queue for new tickets.

But now we’re in! Yes! Finally! We go to the bar to be charged £3 for a ½ pint of lager (but it’s ok because it’s in a bottle), and we watch as the server removes our lids to prevent any ruckus mid-game. I’m feeling healthy so on noticing the burger ingredients, I ask for just some salad items, offering to pay “whatever”.

They can’t do this for me because there’s no button.

Ok, I’ll eat after the game instead, you don’t need my money. We decide to head to our seats to soak in the pre-game ‘atmosphere’, knowing full well fans won’t be invited for a penalty shootout or crossbar challenge, but we’ll settle for watching the warm-up.

We’re playing Carlisle at home on a Tuesday night in the cold season and are shocked as we get into the stands to be told we have to sit in our designated

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seats. We simply laugh, take our seats, and wait for the 20,000 plus fans to flock Meadow Lane. They don’t. We have the usual 3,000 hardcore fans, which turn up week in week out, and a few extras. But why is this?

Well ignoring the fact that we’re not, if we’re honest, that big of an attraction on the pitch, I simply feel we don’t market ourselves in the right direction, to the right people. Firstly, each year, Nottingham is hit by an influx of students to the city, each supporting their own teams, but whom, I’d assume, would be gagging to watch some football, regardless of who they support. So if students can evidence they are just starting university this year, why not allow them in for a fiver for the first 6 games of the season?

They wouldn’t turn up otherwise and may even spend money on beer. We win a few matches, they might stay.

Secondly, Forest is just over the river and Mansfield and Derby are down the road, they have their own fan bases, yet many of them are our friends who only play alternate weeks to us. Surely a few may come if they ‘surrender their season ticket’ for a day for a cheaper rate. Just a thought.

During the game, the experience is often ruined by over-compensating stewards rushing over to tell us to sit down on health and safety grounds, when just minutes earlier they were stood talking to other supporters. Heaven forbid they ask their friends to sit down. We take back to our seats, wondering why the away fans are still allowed to stand and use flares, but we intend to enjoy the game regardless.

In our position, people need to be enticed not only to come, but given the incentive to stay. I personally feel that not enough is being done. We can’t change how we perform on the field, but we can do this off the field by increasing the match day experience, making it affordable for fans who wouldn’t dream of coming otherwise, and making it easier for loyal fans to enjoy their day, all at the same time not detracting from the investment that the hardcore fans provide to the club.

WELL DONE TO DEAN AND HIS TEAM ON CLIMBING MOUNT KILIMANJARO FROM ALL OF US AT BLACK & WHITE!

Dean Fido

@DFido1

ISSUE #7

THE DAY IT STOPPED BEING FUN

On the surface it seems that the title is quite a bizarre thing to say, having seen Notts rooted to the bottom four of the division for much of the season so far – but November 2nd’s trip to Sixfields for the Coventry City game was when many a Notts fan reached breaking point.

You see until that day, going to Notts games had at least been a laugh. No matter how dismal the football, off the pitch in the stands at least there was a feeling that the fans had kept eachother persevering.

But what Notts County FC served up against the temporarily-homed Coventry fell well short of what people should expect when they hand over their money for tickets.

Rewind to a few days before though and the differences were staggering. A hard fought 3-2 win earned by a set of players who knew they’d have to run through walls to earn their three points.

Even being pegged back to 3-2 so soon after scoring, we stood tall and weathered something almost resembling a storm. No one’s effort could be questioned.

performances in a season which promotion hopefuls. This was a continued to stoop lower, and dull, tedious game right up until Danny Haynes took flight and lower, and lower still. landed his boot into the head of Defeat a week before at home Jordan Clarke. An absurd foul, to Preston had given Notts fans fully deserving of the straight red in the large what they wanted card shown. Only Haynes could in the removal of Chris Kiwomya tell you for sure why he saw fit – a man sold down the river by to do what he did – frustration his players all too often. We’ve would be a safe bet however. It’s laid down and had our bellys obvious to all that his maiden tickled enough this season. season at Meadow Lane isn’t A 5-1 hammering at Leyton working out anything as like as Orient, Milton Keynes’ 3-1, not to he’d have hoped. I’m yet to see mention the back to back misery us this year play to his strengths, of Swindon Town and Gillingham. instead he’s left to feed on Few could question that Kiwomya scraps – and to his credit he’s had to go, yet not so many hold still managed to be our second the players as accountable as top scorer despite going missing for large periods of games. His they should in all of this. effort can’t be questioned, but I got the sense Coventry away will that doesn’t excuse his Sixfields have opened a few eyes however. recklessness.

Just four days later, and it’s no exaggeration to suggest that as much as half of the away supported had walked out on the team long before the final whistle. And who could really blame them? They were being subjected to yet another flaccid

A win in the previous game, and with Kiwomya gone, you would imagine there would be cause for at least a bit of half-hearted optimism in the stands. But it wasn’t long into the game before bickering would break out in the stands between supporters – surrounding Joss Labadie of all people. A player who at least tries (not a quality to be easily dismissed this season), yet too often falls short of the standard Notts should expect. But who does in-fighting among the fans really help?

The game itself was a drab affair.

Notts not looking the relegation fodder, nor C o v e n t r y looking like

SEPT ‘13

This acted as the game’s turning point essentially, we were never in the game after that. We’d offered little as it was, but it became rare to see a Notts player making forays into the Coventry City half.

Instead we were dished up three unanswered goals conceded by a team bereft of heart. What was worse about being bottom was that as a club we've been through harder times, but never with a starting XI which underperforms on a regular basis like this. We can live with mediocrity and all manner of things worse - but we should not be made to suffer fools wearing our badge with such carelessness. Yes we know this is just a job to them and Notts will always mean more to it’s fans – but show some pride in yourselves for crying out loud.

What example does this set to young pros such as Fabian Spiess, Curtis Thompson and Greg Tempest? Talent that has risen through the club’s youth team ranks, only to be surrounded by a set of uncaring wasters such as these?

Stuart Brothers

@blackwhitezine

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THE YOANN ARQUIN DILEMMA

The riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma that is the French-born Martinique international divides opinion like no other Notts County player I’ve known in my 20-odd years supporting the Magpies.

By the end of last season, there wasn’t a player whose contract had expired I wanted to leave Meadow Lane more. I had grown to dislike Arquin immensely - his poor attitude, inconsistency and sullen expression allied with an alarming lack of respect for the fans who pay his wages had me demanding his exit.

from his 47 appearances.

So why was it then that come the middle of the summer, as fans fretted over whether the likes of Joss Labadie and Alan Sheehan would renew their contracts, I found myself fearing Arquin would join Alan Judge, Neal Bishop and Jeff Hughes out of the door? Only a few weeks before I was desperate for It reached a nadir on a personal level at Griffin Park him to move on. after Notts had slumped to a 2-1 defeat against promotion-chasing Brentford, with Arquin by that Most prominently it was our lack of any kind of point in the season typically lacklustre. He had strikers that concerned me most, as by this point scored just twice in 25 League One games by then neither Danny Haynes nor Adam Coombes had as under Keith Curle and then Chris Kiwomya the signed, while Enoch Showunmi was far from the Magpies’ play-off challenge waned. reformed talisman we saw in the first few weeks of the new season prior to his untimely injury.

I dislike fans condemning their own players verbally within earshot of the subject, feeling it only ever So, to my surprise, I was a tad relieved when he does more harm than good, but as the disconsolate signed on. And the reason is obvious – he is without Arquin trudged past the bottom tier terrace behind question a talented boy. And that is why he is so the goal where earlier in the day Bartosz Bialkowski frustrating. gifted the Bees the lead with a howler of an error, I couldn’t help become what I dislike. I had to give His arrival in the summer of 2012 was far from the striker a piece of my mind. heralded as Curle snapped him up – apparently on the recommendation of chief scout Matt Alexander I forget entirely what I said, but clearly it wasn’t – from a Hereford United side who had been pleasant, and I got the riposte from Arquin I relegated into non-league with Arquin spending the probably deserved – a complete look of contempt. majority of the season on the Edgar Street bench.

In fairness, I expected little more. He finished the season with nine goals, two of them in the FA Cup , Then he went and produced THAT miss against

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ISSUE #7

Bradford City in the first round of the Capital One Cup – stupidly brought forward to be the season’s He disappointed on opening day at Sheffield United, first competitive fixture. Don’t remember it? Find it though like most he was hardly helped by Gary on YouTube.

Liddle’s very early dismissal. He then missed out in the Carling Cup win over Fleetwood as Showunmi But suddenly in tandem with his mate, the now stole the show. departed Francois Zoko, Arquin exploded into life.

A petulant sending off aside, he was unplayable on Forced to settle for a substitutes’ role next time out his Notts league debut in the thrilling 2-1 win at against Peterborough, Arquin came on to net a late Crewe, scoring a very well-taken goal. consolation. But the manner of that goal left fans baffled by this enigma once more.

He returned from suspension to blitz the Shrewsbury defence to gift-wrap a Lee Hughes With Haynes nominated as the club’s penalty taker, winner in a thoroughly entertaining 3-2 home win Arquin refused to give him the ball after winning a - his power, poise and pace a delight to see as he late spot kick with Notts 4-1 adrift. scarpered down the left-wing before delivering a peach of a cross for Hughes to swivel and score.

It came to light Haynes was keen to mark the game in memory of a late member of his family, while his He was back on the goal trail with a brace in a 3-0 goals are worth money to charity this term thanks win over Portsmouth three games later - but above to a generous sponsor. But Arquin demanded he all he looked like a player. Strong, pacey, skilful and take the spot kick, and promptly scored. with an end product. He was exciting anywhere across the forward line.

Of course sentiment plays little part in the game, and there is no telling Arquin knew Haynes’ So where did it go wrong? Approaching Christmas situation, but the fact Haynes was then the club’s he couldn’t buy a goal, and spent a bit of time on penalty taker (though after his howler at Swindon, the bench as Notts’ form as a team dipped. And probably no longer) immediately shows a lack of it appears he may well have been one of those respect for a team-mate, while his ‘ssshing’ of most affected by Curle’s sacking as several of the the Kop was disdainful – the game was already squad lost their heart and fight after the popular convincingly lost by then. ex-Mansfield boss was moved aside for Kiwomya.

So it had once more come full circle with Arquin, There were sporadic moments of greatness still who at 25 years old is approaching a nadir of from Arquin – the goal of the season at Rotherham, his own – an age where peak form is said to be a sweetly struck volley in the FA Cup, and a approaching. An age when he should be maturing. stunning cross in the 2-0 win at Pompey for Jeff Hughes to break a tense deadlock against the crisis Soon though we were once again treated to the club late on. best of him. A great header at the far post grabbing a point from the bench at Walsall, with another But even those moments were met with frustration. header wrongfully disallowed at the death which The lack of respect towards his own fans was would have earned our first three points of the already telling as he paraded the name on the season. back of his shirt with disdain and produced his now familiarly depressing celebration of ‘ssshing’ his Restored to the starting line-up against Stevenage own supporters. though he was painfully anonymous, only to resurface with some aplomb during that Capital Of course football fans are notoriously fickle – One Cup tie at Liverpool. A goal and a quite brilliant myself included. And his attitude could be forgiven assist as he bamboozled international stars such if he brought greater consistency to his game. And as Daniel Agger and Kolo Toure to tee up Coombes that is what we all hope he can do this season. and force extra-time against Steven Gerrard and company had fans lapping him up once more.

Last January Neil Warnock, then boss of Leeds United, made an attempt to sign Arquin and But by the following Saturday, his now familiar was prepared to pay a fee for his services. Notts inconsistency reared its head again, as he lacked rejected it. That is because the club know what is appetite, quality and composure on his own up top inside him. in League One against Rotherham.

And so came pre-season, a belated one for Arquin following his international appearances in the Gold Cup over the summer. But what a return – two simply stunning goals to earn encouraging draws with Rayo Vallecano and Ipswich Town. It appeared we once again had a striker on our hands.

As the season has progressed, as a team it has been scarce of positivity. Arquin has got much worse… an important goal in a home win over Oldham aside.

Fans were boisterous about the hopes of his twin partnership with Haynes.

@PSmithyJourno

SEPT ‘13

What an enigma! Will the real Yoann Arquin please stand up?

Paul Smith

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IN DEFENCE OF DANNY HAYNES

The date is July 11th 2013. In London, some eco-warriors have shimmied their way up the shiny glass exterior of the Shard, their eyes blinded by the late afternoon apricot sun, whilst somewhere in the Midlands Ray Trew is sat at a keyboard, bringing news to the rabid wolves of the NCM messageboard.

A signing is imminent but, crucially, this is a striker that people may actually have heard of, someone at whom we may not baulk when perusing their Wikipedia pages, hence the transformation of Trew into Lincolnshire's answer to Agathangelos. The curtain comes down and stood there is Danny Haynes, one of Chris Kiwomya's former pupils at Ipswich, but whereas many of those now litter the corridors at Meadow Lane, popping up from behind pot plants and looming refractively through the water cooler, Haynes has a track record.

Fans of his former club, Charlton, mourn his departure as one that was perhaps only necessitated by the niggling injuries that had blighted his spell at the Valley, but told us that 'if he was fit' then Notts had found themselves a Championship standard striker.

But he is fit and, thus far, the evidence is not of a man whose ability should be seeing him

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smashing in countless goals Meadow Lane. The results are, as without even stopping to think the Daily Mail would probably say, alarming. about it.

Now, I know you've all made your minds up and think that this is where it ends. Another expensive mistake and the sequel to the Ben Burgess disaster movie. Put those gavels down for a minute, though, and at least give Haynes a chance in a team that doesn't seem to be set up to systematically destroy him as a footballer.

Now, the list of mistakes that Chris Kiwomya made reads like Wayne Rooney's GCSEs, but most of them were at least understandable – the misuse of Haynes, however, has been utterly bizarre. In preparation for this article, mostly to construct the illusion of being a real journalist, I did a bit of research by watching some clips of Haynes' goals for his previous clubs on youtube, before comparing this to the service that he has been given during his brief time at

His success at Charlton came through being partnered by Yann Kermogant, the French target man who has been riding along the river of Leicester fans' tears to become the perfect foil for a number of successful strikers at the Valley, including Haynes and Bradley WrightPhillips. Whilst Notts don't have someone quite as well-rounded as Kermogant, Stevenage loanee Marcus Haber has at least shown enough to suggest that he can be competent as a League One target man, winning the majority of aerial challenges and linking play effectively.

The biggest problem for Kiwomya, though, was that neither are capable of being lone strikers – Haber lacks the mobility and the goal threat, whilst Haynes is thoroughly incapable of holding up the ball and bringing others

ISSUE #7

into play. For a man who seemed to like playing one upfront, Kiwomya lacked a genuine lone striker, the closest being Yoann Arquin, a kind of tinman player with the basic shell of the perfect centre forward but who is yet to receive the heart.

pulp by the opposition midfield.

The midfield is another issue – with the usually favoured duo of Mark Fotheringham and Joss Labadie unable to provide the through balls on which Haynes has previously craved, the two being jacks of all trades yet shit at all of them. It is imperative that Andre Boucaud is restored to the starting line-up on a permanent basis and given the freedom to create, whilst Notts probably must accept that eretheral loanee Jack Grealish will probably have to be demoted to impact sub, such is his requirement to drift through space like a wellquaffered asteroid.

To find the solution to their star man's struggles, then, Notts must throw the Picasso and the Munch on the fire, rebuilding themselves with the inspiration of cave paintings. Getting the best out of Haynes and Haber must involve playing them together, something that has criminally only happened once – at Milton Keynes, where Haynes was deployed as an ineffective winger in a game where Notts were ground into a There are deeper issues that may

negate the impact of a strike force that is being used properly – it is unlikely to stop Notts' defence retaining the structural integrity of one of the obstacles on the short-lived but brilliantly surreal BBC gameshow Hole in the Wall, but right now Notts are not getting anywhere near the best out of a striker who, however fleetingly, has shown plenty of Championship-level potential in his career.

In a relegation battle, Haynes could be akin to a royal flush, if Shaun Derry can get his pot odds calculated and deploy him with the kind of logic that his predecessor was never quite able to grasp.

Jacob Daniel

ON THE BUSES

@NottsCountyMad

With the club recently taking control of the Notts County Supporters Club, it’s new fleet of buses supplied by Ausden Clarke were out in force for the League Cup second round tie at Liverpool. Each bus is christened with the name of a Notts County player. Having spoken closely with supporters who travelled on them, we got the inside line on how they performed!

1 Bartosz Bialkowski Controlled perfectly for the duration of the journey despite some concerns it might all go pear shaped at some point.

2 Muzzy Dumbuya Got there unbelievably fast! (courtesy of Matt Dunn) 3 Alan Sheehan Got off to a great start, but towards the end of the journey it crashed into the Bartosz Bialkowski bus (Matt Taylor).

Unconfirmed rumours suggested the wheels on the right hand side went untouched also.

4 Gary Liddle Didn’t miss a journey 5 Manny Smith Went largely unused for long periods but will hopefully be used more for future trips.

6 Dean Leacock Despite a fantastic

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first runout with the club, it’s return to action this year was clouded by something unsightly on the top of it’s bonnet!

9 Enoch Showunmi Passengers could only comment on the size of the machinery under the bonnet.

10 Danny Haynes constantly.

11 David permanently.

Bell

Broke Broke

down down

16 Joss Labadie Got to where it needed to be, but apparently it performed much better when it had been lent out last year.

20 Jamal Campbell-Ryce After much confusion, the bus made it to Anfield. However after a couple of turns near the near the stadium it went backwards down a blind alley and crashed. (Scott Porter)

13 Francois Zoko Went missing.

22 Mark Fotheringham After a most impressive test drive, it’s journey was amongst the most insufferable!

14 Adam Coombes No one knew it was even there until it really mattered.

28 Andre Boucaud No matter all fancy gadgets on-board, it remained highly under-rated.

15 Yoann Arquin Despite some outrageous manouvres on the roads, the top speed of 5mph annoyed a lot of paying customers.

35 Kevin Pilkington It got there.

After about 40 years on the road though it surely doesn't have much longer left on the road!

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HOW NOT TO MANAGE A FOOTBALL CLUB

Since I first became a Notts County fan some 60 years ago, there have been no fewer than 42 managerial regimes. Let me make matters worse: in the last 20 years of that period (i.e.

1993-2013) there have been 23 managerial changes, including three re-appointments of bosses who had failed to convince of their ineptitude the first time round. Without bothering to substantiate my facts, I am convinced that no other professional league club has such a chequered history as Notts in the area of management.

Surely it is not mere coincidence that we have bounced around the football league with more relegations and promotions than any other club since the war years? (This being cited as the main factor in declaring Magpies fans as supporters of the country’s most frustrating club). Where we are today cannot be unrelated to poor decisions taken over the past 60 years with regard to team managers. Sadly, no lessons appear to have been learned because the same fickle behaviour characterises the attitude of both board and fans today.

was appointed with the intention of putting more emphasis on Notts developing its own young talent.

To say that Chris’s appointment was underwhelming for the majority of fans hits the nail on the head.

Ridiculous demands were being made for the reinstatement of Neil Warnock or the return of Steve Cotterill. Just who do we think we are?

Because we have an illustrious history – the oldest pro club in the world, etc. – does not entitle us to punch above our weight in the manager market.

At the time we were ranked approximately 60th in the English league ladder and hardly awash with Only a fool would argue for the retention of a cash. Kiwomya was a sensible appointment within failing manager or one who has lost the confidence an appropriate expectation framework. of the playing staff, but even here not everything is clear cut. All managers run into tough times The question now is: has the board got the patience whereby injuries or bad luck can induce a lengthy and integrity to hold on to and support him? The losing spell, but just how long should the fans early signs are good in that he is now surrounded and board allow a manager to go on failing? This by a management team which, on paper, looks was the question Notts faced recently with Keith capable and progressive. But then, the same could Curle. Initially, an unpopular appointment (largely have been said for Keith Curle’s appointment, but because of an unconvincing spell at the Stags) when Curle was fired the entire cohort crumbled.

Curle seemed at first to energise the players and Will the same happen if Chris Kiwomya hits a bad lifted the club into play-off contenders. Indeed, the patch; does everyone have to pack their bags? miss was so narrow that Curle’s set-up convinced most that the club would be serious promotion Early signs have not been good. Just one point from the first three games this season has been seen contenders the following season. by some ‘fans’ as an inadequate start and a sure The rumblings about Curle’s appointment had sign that Notts are in for a struggle this season. almost disappeared over the horizon by the time But we really must not go down that road again.

Notts got off to a flyer for the 2012-13 season. He Changing the manager did work when Martin Allen was the man for the job and suddenly looked like a was recruited to right the wrongs of Ince’s regime, long-term appointment. Not so. County’s progress but even that proved only to be a short term fix. stalled before Christmas and ‘Hartlepool away’ became Keith’s swansong. He was gone in the blink The managers who in recent times were appointed of an eye or was that the click of a text message? at a time of crisis and went on to reap rewards can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

What seemed to come through from the dressing We start with Cotterill who righted the Munto room to us, the uninformed fans, was that many of nightmare and then trawl back to 1997-99 when the players were not happy at Curle’s dismissal. This Sam Allardyce manned the wheel following Murphy was not the position of many of the fans, however; and Thompson. (It should be remembered that he they wanted a shiny new toy for their plan pen. The hardly made a dream start). Neil Warnock undid run of defeats under Curle had started to resemble much of John Barnwell’s damage and Mick Walker the worst days of ‘Charlie’ (Ian McParland). The restored order after Warnock’s regime went breasts names of many mouth-watering prospects were skyward. But there you have it. Between then and issuing forth from supporters lips, but this time the the late fifties, the only salvation at hand was the board resisted a knee-jerk reaction and plumped for three reigns of King Jimmy. He cleared up after Billy Gray, Ron Fenton and Larry Lloyd and Ritchie something more considered and less sensational.

Barker respectively.

Chris Kiwomya was appointed at first on a caretaker basis and eventually as the new head of Five times Notts looked across the Trent for the a management team. An ex-Ipswich and Arsenal right man for the job and six times finished up with man, Kiwomya was previously manager of the egg on face. Larry Lloyd and John Barnwell were development squad, so it made sense that he surely the worst of the bunch, but Jack Burkitt,

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ISSUE #7

Billy Gray and Ian MacParland hardly added to their go’ is the prevalent attitude to the figure who is second only to the chairman in his importance at CV’s. the club.

Picking a good manager is never easy for no one can predict that the chemistry between the new The single change of manager that made the most man and the squad he inherits will be right. It is difference in my memory was way back in 1957. comparable with a new teacher at school being George Poyser had stumbled on an awful run that faced by a tough class who know the ropes and left Notts at the bottom of the second division by have been at the place considerably longer than the Christmas without a prayer. Scotsman Frank Hill was appointed and the effect was dramatic and fresh incumbent. immediate. Notts hammered table-topping Stoke Self-confidence that has been generated by a at home 5-0 and never looked back, accumulating successful playing career and clear qualities of enough points to defy the drop against all leadership are the prime qualities any board should expectations. be looking for in a new gaffer. Once the successful candidate has been chosen, the board must support The difference in the players was observable: through thick and thin. This involves keeping a they talked more, they passed more and they weather eye on how things are progressing and played with a smile, something they had not done not simply leaving the new manager to his own for months under Poyser. Just what is the magic devices. My own impression is that this follow-up ingredient that induces such a change is a secret has consistently been the aspect that managers at known only to the most successful managers.

Meadow Lane have lacked.

It seems that it is in the DNA of board and supporters of Notts County that ‘easy come easy

Alan Combes

OBITUARY

On August 15th, just short of his three score years and ten, David ‘Lord Magwales’ Stoakes died of cancer and robbed the world of one of the greatest Pies supporters. Although he had been exiled in Wales since retiring from his days as a journalist, David’s heart was never far from Nottingham.

Born a West Bridgford boy in the war years, he lived off the London Road until the family moved to Bramcote when Dave was 11. He followed his dad in opting for Notts rather than Rushcliffe Rovers, latching onto the Tommy Lawton era. Fellow Pie Ian McLaughlin, one of Dave’s childhood mates, remembers attending the Chelsea and York FA Cup ties at Meadow Lane, watched in total by 90,000 fans. Both lads were lifted on to the pitch by their fathers and a lifetime friendship was cemented.

When MAD was born, Dave was one of the early joiners, seeing in it an opportunity to keep in touch with his beloved Magpies which his poor mobility (due to a stroke) had deprived him of. Eventually he assumed the persona of a demented member of the nobility who was closeted in his extensive Welsh estate, pouring scorn on the lower classes and their limited intelligence. In real life, Stoakesy was a liberal but never made it clear whether that was with a capital letter or not.

that a monorail was on its way to Meadow Lane. Whenever we spoke about it on the phone, his anger would often terminate in a coughing fit.

Stoakesy leaves a wife, Helen, and (I believe) four grown-up children as well as a football club that he desperately longed to see back in the old Second Division (i.e. now called the Championship). But it was his humour and his capacity for friendship that made Stoakesy such a revered figure. When visiting the MAD board he hated some of the anger and nastiness that was expressed by one Notts fan to another. He firmly believed we should save our venom for the opposition and one of them in particular.

One TV show he loved was Eggheads and he tried to get together a team of Pies in the hope that we could win a bit of money for the club, (this was pre-Munto). Sadly it never got off the ground largely due to Dave’s poor health, but with enough PiesDave was a journalist through and based questions in the format we As Ian McLaughlin said “Dave through. He worked extensively on could have smashed Kevin and his Stoakes created the character of Lord MagWales and he became a the Yorkshire Ripper case and was crew no sweat. legend in Dave’s own lifetime. That present the night the police got their man. I had long chats with Maybe it was his reporter’s nose, is tribute enough.” him about his days working (mostly but Stoakesy was never taken in by for the Express) and he freely the Munto scam from Day One. It admitted that none of the names just made him sad to see so many now emerging from Operation Yew credulous Notts fans being taken for a ride and actually believing Tree was a shock to him.

Ian remembers ‘Stoakesy’ joining in two-day cricket matches (yes, Stoakesy was quite a cricket fan too) in the neighbourhood as well as 30-a-side non-stop footy festivals.

Alan Combes Ian McLaughlin

SEPT ‘13

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WHERE ARE THEY2012 NOW? /13 EDITION

The Summer clearout came and went with much disruption to what Chris Kiwomya hoped would the basis of his squad for the following season. Of the eight new contracts offered to those set to leave, only XXX decided to renew and extend their Meadow Lane careers.

Without question, the headline departure was that of Alan Judge, who (unsurprisingly) it was decided would be leaving Notts before thought had even put towards a new contract. Having made no effort to hide his dismay at the constant managerial changes during his time in Nottingham, it was somewhat strange to see him roll back up at Blackburn Rovers - a side who last season went through four different first team managers!

Offered a new deal, yet walking away was Jeff Hughes. A Marmite player in every sense of the word, his transfer to League Two Fleetwood Town raised plenty of eyebrows. The obvious conclusion was that this was money-related - he and Ray Trew insisted it was family-guided.

Neal Bishop, had his contract terminated by mutual consent. He was there left with an anxious few weeks before Blackpool finally bothered to offer the mardy swine a (lengthy!) five month contract.

Safe to say he hasn’t won many ‘Pool fans over so far. You’d be a brave man to say we haven’t needed his steel in midfield this season however.

It was a shame to see Julian Kelly not be given a chance of another year at the club, but ultimately his injury record went against him - and who can complain with the addition of Mustapha Dumbuya in his place? Either way, Kels rolled up at Mansfield Town for a trial, got roundly slated by their fans and hasn’t been seen since. He deserves better.

Hamza Bencherif, whilst of questionable quality at least never lacked effort. That’s about as high as the praise generally gets you’ll find from

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fans at Notts - but it’s a quality that Kiwomya’s County have sorely lacked at times already this year. Hamza made the move to Plymouth at the beginning of September, and netted a goal in his debut for the club in the JPT at Cheltenham.

Last year’s fourth in line goalkeeper Liam Mitchell left Meadow Lane more known for gobbing at anyone within his reach whilst on loan at Tamworth a few years back than anything he did on the field for Notts. He ended the season on loan back there, yet ended this Summer having signed for League Two returnees Mansfield Town.

Having made his first team bow two seasons ago under Martin Allen, there might have been high hopes for Jake Wholey. Despite appearing on the first team fringes under Chris Kiwomya though, a new deal was not forthcoming. He found himself playing for Swedish Third Division outfit Ange IF - if my Swedish was any good I’d be able to tell you if it was full time or on trial! Ex-Notts youth teamer Lewis “Meatball” Whitely is out there with him also.

With players like Manny Smith and Haydn Hollis (for three years, remember) on the books, Krystian Pearce had seen himself fall way back to fifth choice centre-back. Having been told upon his release that Notts would see what health the budget was in later in the Summer, he instead made the switch to League Two Torquay United on the advice of Joss Labadie who himself spent time their last season.

Stuart Brothers

@BlackWhiteZine

ISSUE #7

AWAY DAYS: MILLWALL AWAY 1991

I’d heard all the stories, Id read all the stories and headlines, those who had been before all warned me and suffice to say, I was bricking it before I went on the Junior Magpies bus, on 'Regs Tours' (god rest his soul) to Millwall for a crucial game against one of our play-off challengers.

It wasn't the match itself I was bothered about, we were in the middle of that famous seven successive victories that took us to 4th and the playoffs, no, it was the fact we were due to be playing f o o t b a l l against the Junior Lions beforehand and then head to Cold Blow Lane, The Den for the game and be in amongst their support.

We left Nottingham around 7am ish so we could get down to South East London in time to play football.

When we got there, we we were taken to a leisure centre and we played some 5-a-side against their juniors. From my memory, I remember my team won their game, the under 15s which was good, I got a couple of goals too, standard, and a good time was had by all. Then after we had got changed, we were told the Millwall Juniors are coming on our bus to be taken to the Den with us. And so we made that journey, and there seemed an uneasy atmosphere on the bus, made more so when you are such a small 14 year old geek surrounded by London kids who seemed far more grown up than us - kids as young as 8 and upwards chanting 'You're going home in a London ambulance' suffice to say, I think I needed new underwear!

So we all had a bit to eat in their junior club room and then the best news I had heard all day, we could go in the away end if we wished, rather than sit with the Millwall juniors in their family stand.

That was a no-brainer and so we all headed to the away end and joined the massed ranks of Neil Warnock’s black and white army, ready for a huge six-pointer. The game proved to be a tactical masterstroke

by Warnock as we nullified their attack, which included Teddy Sherringham and took the lead just before half time from a Phil Turner corner who played it

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short to Dean Thomas. He stopped the ball dead almost for Turner who put the cross in and Dean Yates powered in a fantastic diving header from about six yards out that was in, the minute it hit his head, an excellent goal. Then after having a few chances, a long through ball from the back was pounced upon by big Dave Regis, who outsprinted the home defense and drew the keeper out before planting the ball under him and in the bottom corner of the net And then he celebrated in front of their fans! We were going ape in that away end as a second successive promotion was in our grasp and we could catch Sheffield Wednesday in 3rd place.

Millwall got a consolation goal but the three points were ours all day long. What I do remember from the game though, is whenever I looked across to the Millwall fans, some of them were actually stood facing us constantly, as in not just looking over at us like most fans do at some time in a game, but like they were there to watch and intimidate us rather than be there for the game. Seemed very strange and truly unnerving as well, but we belted out our songs and our Wheelbarrow was heard loud and proud - all while some home fans were putting their fingers across their throats while looking at us! I guess some of that explains why we were kept behind for around half an hour after the game, ive never been kept behind like that at a game either before or since, but we walked round the ground to our bus and singing our songs, the police told us to be quiet if we wanted to get out safe!

Eventually, after what seemed an eternity we got on the bus safe and we went on a tour of the London sights before heading back to Nottingham with plenty of memories but most importantly, three points in the bag and we weren't going home in a London ambulance!

Ian Marsden

@IanMarsden76

ISSUE #7

THE MANAGEMENT CONDUNDRUM

Every team needs a manager - that is an established fact of football. Football management is a difficult and stressful profession, and gets more so the higher you go up the footballing pyramid. You can go from hero to zero in an instant - and fans who are chanting your name can in a split second be spitting feathers, and it’s all your fault.

It’s not a position for the faint hearted, we all know managing a team isn’t easy, especially Notts County, where fan/board patience wears thin particularly quickly. It’s not easy to find a good manager as there is plenty of dross around, we just can’t find a good one – why is that? Is it really as hard as all that, and in Sean Derry, have we finally found the right man?

decent applications and Sean Derry is proof of that.

I doubt we’ll be paying him peanuts - I don’t think he’ll have given up a playing career at a higher level for chicken feed, though how influenced he was by his love for the club is another matter.

I think a lot of the blame must come down to the Chairmen in charge. As I’ve stated, I don’t think we’re scraping the barrel for managers, so it must come down to the selection process of the Chairman. It amazes me that Ray Trew is as bad at selecting managers as he is after his business success comes in the field of recruitment! This is a gentleman who has amassed a small fortune in making shrewd decisions on candidates based on their CV and appropriate attributes for a position, yet has so far appointed Craig Short, Paul Ince, Keith Curle, Chris Kiwomya and now Sean Derry (as well as Carl “Mr How to Make Friends and Influence People” Heggs.)

Since Sam Allardyce left the club to go to Bolton in acrimonious circumstances in 1999, Notts have had 18 managers. That is over one manager a season, which is absolutely ridiculous! The way I see it, there are several different reasons behind this extraordinary statistic. Firstly, we haven’t been blessed with particularly patient chairmen – Derek Pavis wasn’t afraid to wield the axe; during the administration era, managers were chopped and changed on a regular basis, Munto got through four managers in one season and Ray Trew has a particularly itchy trigger finger, with Chris Kiwoyma the latest to be dispatched in favour of the latest To give Mr Trew credit, he did appoint Steve lamb to the slaughter incumbent, Notts’ own Sean Cotterill, but failure to keep hold of him has cost us dear. Looking back, Martin Allen was also the Derry. right man for the job and would have taken us To be fair, we don’t appoint decent managers to forward given time. He knew how to motivate bring being with! We’ve been ‘blessed’ in the past 15 a club together with his personality alone, and the years with such ‘managers’ as Gary Brazil, Gary squad played for him, but following his rumoured Mills, Gudjon Thordarson, Steve Thompson, Paul meltdown, dismissal was, sadly, the only option.

Ince, Carl Heggs and Keith Curle. Names to conjure The club was in a brilliant position to kick on with indeed! To have employed any of that lot at after winning League Two. We were attracting all beggars belief, yet we’ve had them all in living good crowds, fans were feeling good and most memory, and in “Thommo’s” case, we employed importantly we had momentum. Unfortunately that seems to have been systematically destroyed him twice! by the board through a series of dire managerial Clearly, our dodgy finances haven’t helped. Notts appointments. I am not party to the selection have never had oodles of cash (no matter what process so can’t comment on the interviews and Munto claimed), and bar that wonderful season the like, but it does appear that selection hinges when Ben Davies plonked the ball on Lee Hughes’ on picking names out of a hat, blindfolded whilst head with wonderful regularity, and Luke Rodgers riding a bucking bronco. Mr Trew appears to have was terrorising defenders all over the country, completely disregarded form and experience from we’ve not had the resources to progress the club his criteria, especially when it came to Short, Curle on the field to a decent level. I won’t dwell on the and Kiwomya. amount of garbage we’ve seen served up, though if I mentioned the names Ali Gibb, Brian O’Callaghan First off, we got Craig Short - Notts needed an and Matt Gill, it will no doubt send shivers down the experienced manager to use the momentum and the promotion winning squad we had at our spine of your average Notts fan. disposal. Instead, we employed a manager whose Unlike several hysterical NCM posters, I don’t only experience was in the Hungarian league and believe for a minute that Notts’ record of sacking proceeded to allow him to blow a large budget on managers makes us an unattractive proposition. the likes of John Spicer and Ben Burgess. Say no Despite the club’s unenviable reputation for change, more. He was swiftly sacked, and we moved on to a job at League One level is not to be sniffed at, Paul Ince, whose main tactic consisted on shooting especially in this economic climate. Managers are on sight. Despite bringing his wonderkid son to the always going to want jobs – we may not attract the club, he presided over a club record nine defeats in Jose Mourinho’s of this world, but we’ll always get a row and his services were dispensed with.

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ISSUE #7

The responsibility of the failure to build a suitable squad ultimately must fall down to Kiwomya, and now it’s up to Sean Derry to sort it out. We simply must spend money in January to strengthen the midfield – if I ever see a Notts team with a central midfield pairing of Fotheringham and Labadie, I may jump off the roof of the Kop. We have about as much backbone as your average blancmange, and about as much creativity as your average German car manufacturer. Things have to change and fast At time of writing, we sit bottom of League One, or else we’ll be down as sure as you can say “Trip with a meagre 10 points. We’ve been turned over to Accrington, anyone?” more times than your average duvet, with skill, fight and application in short supply. Liverpool Mr Trew is a good man and has the best interests of away doesn’t count – as good a night as that was, the club at heart, but he has to take responsibility the League is our bread and butter and we’ve been for the predicament we are in. It wasn’t Chris absolutely dreadful. We’ve lost key midfielders in Kiwomya’s fault that this was his first job and he Neal Bishop, Alan Judge and Jeff Hughes, and they didn’t have the experience/nasty streak required just haven’t been replaced. We’ve signed David to manage this bunch - he’d have been crazy to Bell and Danny Haynes, who on their day are both not take the job. The fault lies with the board who matchwinners – however they’re held together by make these awful decisions repeatedly. Hopefully, sticky tape and string, and spend more time out the in the appointment of Sean Derry, the board has made the right decision. Though we’ve lost his first team than in it. three games in charge, the match with Wolves at Without those two and with injuries to other key least showed we were prepared to fight for the players, we look worryingly short of quality – bar cause, which is a trait that has been sadly missing Callum McGregor (and he’s not ours’!) We can’t (especially against Oldham – but we won’t talk keep clean sheets, we can’t create and we can’t about that). score. We also seem to lack personality – we don’t have Lee Hughes that the fans can rally behind. I Good luck Sean – I think you’ll need it, but if anyone still feel last season’s squad was the most unlikable can do it, you can. one we’ve had in living memory and there is no link between the players and the fans. They’re Sean Derry’s Black and White Army! just a bunch of individuals earning a living and not playing for the shirt, and I think that’s hugely sad. @DrewNotts Prior to Keith Curle’s appointment, he had a wellpublicised system of initial success followed by dismal failure, but we appointed him anyway, and the inevitable happened – NEXT! Moving to our previous manager, I can’t name a fan I know that thought Chris Kiwomya was the man for the job either, and so it proved, and now we have another inexperienced man at the helm, albeit one who really does have “Black and White blood”.

Drew Dennis

SEPT ‘13

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THE TALE OF LIVERPOOL AWAY

To start this piece, I will make a confession in that I like Liverpool, I love the city, and I like the football club. I’m not one of those who hates scousers with no reason to, so as soon as the draw was made my head was swimming with ideas of how to get there, how to get the tickets and who I was going with.

I was on cloud nine. Between 81 to 84, I was too young to go to away games and then in 92, I couldn’t afford it and it was on a school night! For the first time in my life Notts were going to be at Anfield and by hook or by crook, I was going ot be there as well!

Walking round my office excitedly like a kid at Christmas, the Leeds fans around me weren’t too bothered, although a hint of jealousy came through as they got Donny away! I asked a few if they wanted to come with us and a couple said maybe, but one said yes and then said he’d drive! Absolutely awesome!

so not far for her to travel. We had a great day and got on the tele when Arquin scored the equaliser! Then to top off a great day Jo said she could go to Liverpool but she would definitely prefer to be in the Liverpool end!

Reading stuff on social media it did seem the Notts end was selling out sharpish and I had contemplated the Liverpool end when the draw was made just to make sure that I was there no matter what!

Liverpool tickets go on general sale on the Monday so id attempt to get them then! Then on the train back to Leeds I was chatting to this family of Walsall fans who live up here in West Yorkshire and it was so awesome to tell them my next game was “Just Liverpool away” - such a warm glow! Those Walsall fans were great to be fair and travel everywhere it seems from Bingley to follow their team, they also said we were the best team they had seen at the Bescot... hmm!

My best friend is a Liverpool fan so I asked her if she wanted to go, and although she said she would love to she didn’t think she could due to work and finance etc. So my mate from work had said he was driving, I still checked trains if he had decided not to bother and last train back to Leeds from Liverpool was around 11 - but with hindsight I was glad I got a lift and not train, I’d have been a little nervous in getting from So over that weekend it was decided we were definitely going Anfield to Lime Street in time! to Anfield and we were going Before Liverpool I’d planned in the Liverpool end! I got the to go to Walsall with my best tickets and we were in The Kop, friend, she lives in Kidderminster with the goal to our left as we

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were looking just behind all the flags they had at the start, some of which were truly amazing! The tickets arrived on the Thursday and my Notts Liverpool half and half scarf arrived on the Saturday, and so the day had arrived, and I was so pumped and excited, with just an 8-3.30pm shift to get through at work!

How I got through the day I will never know and I do believe my productivity that day was at an all time low! But 3.30pm arrived and ive never logged off as quick as that! Me and rick got to his car and we were on our way, shooting down the M62 in all kinds of different weather, and in no time at all we had hit Liverpool.

We had to navigate our way round the City to reach Jo at her hotel which was on the beautiful Liverpool waterfront, and then we made our way to Anfield! We parked up at a school just down the road and we walked up to the ground!

I had been before, back in 2009 when me and Jo had done the tour of the ground. That was amazing but to see my team play here? Words cant describe what I was feeling! We saw some Notts

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fans walking round and then we went in the club shop where Rick bought himself last seasons away shirt for £10, bargain!

So we decided to go in and see for ourselves what it was like and it literally took our breath away, was an awesome sight! It never really sunk in until later that I was in the Kop, one of the most iconic football stands in the world! We were all giddy really and having a great time and watching the ground filling up and hearing the Notts fans in great voice.

quality they had and bemoaning their lack of finishing. But then the second half and although we never really tested Mignolet in their goal we put the under some pressure and with Callum McGregor running his heart out, we seemed to take more of a foothold in the game.

The first goal was a surprise when it came, although how Smith got that much free room I’ll never know and Arquin will always finish those off! But you could sense the second goal was coming. The Liverpool fans were praising our team and when Liddle threw a dummy to set off on the run that started the move, he got a nice round of applause, not knowing that within 5 seconds of that, Arquin crossed and Coombes finished off so coolly to equalise!

That’s when it hit me that I was in the Liverpool end. This was going to be amazing - when the teams came out and then suddenly I heard that song and one of the most incredible football moments in my whole life holding my half and half scarf aloft, along with quite a few Was such a great moment and Liverpool fans who had that scarf believe me I was jumping up and down inside, but kept it cool, a as well. lot cooler than I dreamt possible!

The emotion took over, such an amazing moment, to be in Was so proud of the team and the Liverpool Kop, singing You’ll the fans were an absolute credit.

Never Walk Alone holding a scarf bearing my clubs name, shivers Extra time happened and my down the spine and goosebumps eyes nearly popped out their all over, I’ll never ever forget socket when McGregor got pushed down for the penalty that moment. appeal. Then merely a minute So onto the game and I later, Sturridge squeezed his shot won’t bore you all with all the past Bart and agonisingly crept details, you all saw it! From my over the line to make it 3-2. The viewpoint, we were lucky to only relief was immense in the stand be 2-0 down at half time and the around me as Notts were getting Liverpool fans were purring at the praised for the standard of our

SEPT ‘13

football as well as our heart.

One moment again that will live with me forever, I had heard that they do it, but the whole of the Kop applauded Bart when he came out for the second half, who was good enough to applaud them back. I thought that was amazing, but even better than that?? Yep, you might not have heard it at the Notts end, but the Kop did spring into a chorus of ‘We Hate Nottingham F****t’ and I gave it full belt, now that was just awesome!

So in the end, we lost 4-2 but came out with such a lot of credit. I met up with one of my old uni mates who is a Liverpool fan but works at Everton on their website! He was happy they had won but knew they had been in a game and it did seem the general consensus of opinion around after the game.

So we got back to the car and dropped Jo off at her hotel and then we zipped into a Maccie D’s drive in on the waterfront before heading back across the M62 and back home in Leeds before 1am.

I was absolutely shattered the day after at work but no regrets at all, I was glad I had gone and it was such an amazing experience of being in the Kop as well and most definitely a few moments will stick with me forever and a day.

Ian Marsden

@9_moore

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THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE DISRESPECTFUL

November 14th. Ok, so we were all a little disappointed that we weren’t able to defeat Hartlepool and keep our FA cup hopes alive in a competition that had proved to be quite fruitful in the past. But it was fine. Derry had only been in the job a couple of days. We couldn’t expect miracles. So with that said, we made plans for the midweek journey to Oldham.

THE GOOD

Now the group of lads I attend games with are fantastic. We know that we’re having an off-season, but at least we have a laugh. We pick each other up, and generally agree on all things Notts - though admittedly, friendships were tested after our gruelling journey to Covhampton only a couple of weeks earlier.

We made plans during the previous week and set off from Nottingham mid-afternoon armed with copious amounts of car-beers, a new away day mix-CD, and discount vouchers for the Toby Carvery just 2 minutes down the road from the ground. It’s little away day rituals like this that we all love. As usual, we spent the entire journey putting the world of Notts to rights, choosing our preferred starting 11, and debating whether Notts could finalise the signing of Freeman on loan from Derby in time for kick-off. A little tip-off told us that he might feature, and a surprise meeting with Jim Rodwell during a brief service break confirmed that this was to be the case - bumping our spirits and renewing our faith of a possible 2013/14 cup run after falling at both Liverpool and Hartlepool.

occurrence in this season’s Notts County squad. But with this said, the away fans were not worried when Tarkowski netted home their equaliser on the 30th minute. The home crowd remained silent and the away fans backed their rockbottom team. But then the match turned.

Yoann Arquin, a player with known talent but who tends to use it sparingly decided to defend an attack on goal with a blatant push inside of the box, in front of the match official. An unnecessary and costly penalty kick was given, and Philliskirk calmly put away his first of the night. Notts were behind on the half-time whistle and the Notts faithful were riled, but there was still a notion that we could get something from this game.

Disappointingly from the offset of the second-half whistle, Notts were being pushed around. A through-ball on the left wing forced the team to press backwards with pace, leading to Dean Leacock being involved in an off the ball incident to which the referee was late reacting to. It was a red.

Although Notts manage to weather the storm for the next ten minutes, Philliskirk was involved again with an assist for Dayton putting the home team 3-1 up on the 67th, before We finally got our evening feed, opting for king-size meals, roles were reciprocated with Philliskirk grabbing his second which would subsequently void our vouchers, and met some of the night. The away fans were silenced. of the locals who assured us that we were going to be in for a good game. We ate and drank up, making our way to THE DISRESPECTFUL the ground and joining the remaining 142 Notts fans in the Notts County are in a relegation battle. Every point needs to away end, some of us being let in for half price by a turnstile be thought for, and every game needs to be contested. Too operator somehow knowing that this would be one of the many times this season players have let the manager and few highlights of the night. the fans down, and now is the time when they need to turn The teams marched onto the pitch, Jack Grealish surprised us in the starting line-up after previously thought to be away on international duty, and within 13 minutes, Murray had greeted the travelling fans to their opening goal - putting the home team on the back foot.

this around and fight for us, and themselves.

So with this being said, the calm away following were seemingly disgusted at what would follow in the 85th minute of the game. At 4-1 down, away from home, against a team they had beaten just weeks before back at the Lane, Freeman was hacked down by a dangerous and high tackle from Bove. The referee was clearly seen to run over to the THE BAD Now the team on offer was what we expected. A team void of player with a red card brandished in his hand before being players away on international duties, with certain individuals interrupted by senior Notts players tackling the problem playing out of position; though this was becoming a regular themselves. Sheehan, Smith, Bell, and Labadie were clearly seen to start a ruckus with a selection of the home players resulting in further fury to the travelling cohort. The best-case scenario these players would receive a yellow card, the worst, reds; for a challenge being dealt with appropriately by the match officials, in a matter they did not have to get involved in.

Maybe a Captain on the pitch would have prevented this. The players were greeted only with chorus’ of “You’re not fit to wear the shirt” and “Derry - sack the lot” prior to conceding a 5th on the final minute of added time. Some booed the players off the pitch, and rightly so, but I just waited to applaud JCR, a shining star in the match. We left, silent.

Do these players have what’s in them for the next five months to keep us up? I am currently doubting it. I know that Derry is the man to try, but he needs support, and players who are willing.

Dean Fido

@DFido1

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ISSUE #7

SEPT ‘13

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THE WORLD OF ANDRE BOUCAUD

A couple of weeks ago, in Surrey light that certainly wasn't bad enough for a game of murder in the dark, England retained the Ashes with a 3-0 series win over the old enemy from Down Under.

The leading wicket taker over the five matches was Nottinghamshire spinner Graeme Swann, a man who had been underappreciated and ignored by the cricketing community and written off as a competent county off spinner for Northamptonshire and Notts until making his test debut after Monty Panesar's meltdown (that one to do with cricket, rather than pissing on doormen) in late 2008 - with Swann at the age of 29. It was a triumph for the little guy and a victory for those talented folk who just aren't getting the appreciation they deserve - as was Biffy Clyro's triumphant headline set at the Reading festival.

The Scottish rockers had plugged away for years, releasing four brilliant albums to plenty of acclaim and a cult following but few waves in the wider world until breaking through into the big time and ending up being massacred by a non-descript decrator in a stupid hat whose name you can't remember any more on the X-Factor.

Now, I know I haven't actually mentioned football yet, but there is a point to these bizarre musings and that point is Notts' forgotten man of midfield.

Andre Boucaud is a man of contradictions, born in Enfield but a Trinidad & Tobago international, having made most of his living as a classy, technical central midfielder in the one league that simply doesn't tolerate classy, technical central midfielders and having cost Notts a small transfer fee in a squad of free transfers and bosmans.

Boucaud, then, is much like Swann - his career post-Peterborough has taken in Kettering Town, York City and Luton Town before Notts handed him his second chance to make an impact in league football. Where Swann's renaissance was aided by an England set-up that began to build things around him, tailoring pitches that would offer him maximum impact, Notts have increasingly stifled their rough diamond, failing to create the environment in which Boucaud to have the impact that his talent can offer.

Last season, Boucaud was the surprise of the early months, bursting into life to the surprise of almost everyone in attendance with a superb performance in an August win over Hartlepool United at Meadow Lane that was played in an epic rain storm.

Cementing his place in the side, Boucaud became a main stay of Curle's team which shot towards the top of the league - helping the side to retain possession and working the ball into dangerous areas, something which was particularly central to the side's long unbeaten run away from Meadow Lane. Boucaud's pass completion rate was vital to

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a midfield containing the technically questionable Neal Bishop, ambitious Alan Judge and wasteful Jamal Campbell-Ryce and the boy from North London was often the only cog working as the rest of Notts' machine fell apart during disappointing results at Meadow Lane. The much-peddled myth of his performances having wained following the deterioration of the weather and pitches and the signing of a permanent contract were simply that it was simply a case that the team's performances deteriorated, making Boucaud look as though he was playing simple, accurate passes to players going nowhere and unable to turn them into forward-thinking moves.

In fact, considering that the Meadow Lane pitch looked as though it'd been brutally attacked by an axe-wielding maniac come Halloween, the fact that Boucaud was able to maintain such a high pass completion rate was nothing short of a miracle.

This season, however, Boucaud has been marginalised, with Chris Kiwomya preferring the so far truly hopeless pairing of Mark Fotheringham and Joss Labadie. Seemingly preferred for their defensive cover and work rate (charging around like a demented rhino), the loss of Boucaud has been obvious, blindingly so, as if you'd immediately

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been relieved of your capillaries. His only league appearance was in the opening day defeat at Bramall Lane, where he was comfortably Notts' best outfield player, something that seems to have passed everyone by - including Chris Kiwomya who dropped him for the following week's visit of Peterborough, a game where a Notts midfield that had been compact and useful with the ball under the circumstances crumbled despite having a full compliment of players. Having been somewhat hung out to dry by Kiwomya's decision to revert to a two-man central midfield pairing of Boucaud and Labadie after the red card at Sheffield United, Boucaud fought gamely against both the tide of Blades pressure and his partner's propensity for charging recklessly out of position with a mixture of intelligent defensive position and the ability to recycle the ball to try and gain Notts some sort of foothold in the game. It was no coincidence that almost every loose ball would end up at his feet, and it is simply unreasonable to try and blame Boucaud for his teammate's inability to follow his lead and retain the ball with a simple pass themselves. This ability to recycle the loose ball was again in evidence at Anfield where Boucaud saw more of the ball than any other player on the pitch during the twenty minute spell towards the end of normal time and beginning of extra time that Notts were able to dominate and control.

That it seemed to be Boucaud who found himself a casualty of the opening night defeat was bizarre, but symptomatic of the lack of appreciation that the Trinidadian from Enfield seems to have at the club. I think that some of this can be traced back to his roots - cast aside by (the currently unemployed) Paul Buckle at Luton Town, no one was too delighted when Keith Curle brought in a 'non-league reject' on trial and then a six-month loan deal. More had been convinced by the time Notts paid a small fee to make the move permanent in January, but far from all had been won over.

That he struggled at Luton is no surprise, however - the Conference is no place for talented, deep midfielders, many of whom have been swallowed up and spat about by the imposing if limited sides you find at that level. Very few central midfielders find themselves noticed at that level, with teams filling their side with workmanlike central midfielders and ball-winners whilst relying on creativity to come from pace on the flanks. Indeed, another has slipped through the net in James Rowe who moved up two levels to Tranmere Rovers following a successful trial that came after he was released by Forest Green Rovers in the summer like Boucaud, he had become a victim of his sleight frame and the insistence of other teams on kicking him from Braintree to Barrow. Had Boucaud arrived at Meadow Lane as a young midfielder released by a Premier League club, I have little doubt that far more would be promoting him as the classy, cultured product of a new way of thinking in English football. The irony, of course, is that this is what

SEPT ‘13

he once was - interesting Arsenal as a youngster at Reading and catching the eye with his natural ability from a deep midfield position. That it all went so wrong is one of Boucaud's many mysteries, but playing under Barry Fry at Peterborough probably had something to do with it.

Flashes have continued to show themselves in Boucaud's career, even in the Conference. His early form at Kettering persuaded Paul Lambert to take him for a brief season at Wycombe Wanderers, whilst he was named man of the match by all parties following the Poppies' FA Cup tie with Fulham that followed them eliminating Notts in the second round.

This ability to shine on a bigger stage than League One was again displayed by Boucaud in Notts' brave Capital One Cup defeat at Liverpool, where his introduction as a late second half substitute created Notts' longest period of possession and concerted pressure of the entire cup tie. Indeed, on three occasions he picked up the ball and sprayed a marvellous cross-field pass to either Curtis Thompson or Adam Coombes on the wings, showing a level of creativity that has been lacking in the Notts side of late. Marcus Law even made Boucaud captain during his successful period with ill-fated Kettering, pouring cold water on those ideas of him lacking initiative and determination.

The defeats to Peterborough and Stevenage at Meadow Lane and disappointing first hour at Walsall were more a result of Notts' problems in the central of midfield than anything else, making the continued exclusion of Boucaud even more of a mystery. In a system that seems to suit him, with two central midfielders asked to sit and not make any real effort to get ahead of the ball, he would certainly offer far more in terms of ball retention and getting the ball to the attacking midfielders effectively than either Fotheringham or Boucaud, whilst losing little in defensive cover with such a thing having been completely absent thus far. A midfielder with the ability to dictate a match and maintain a fantastically high level ball retention from deep areas is a rare thing in League One and, if Kiwomya is able to construct a side around it, Notts will find themselves in a far better position.

There is only real Darren Potter of Milton Keynes, Jack Payne of Peterborough United and Jonathan Douglas of Brentford who are capable of similar in the division at the minute and all three are seen as integral parts of their team's units, whilst their sides are regarded as some of the most attractive, attacking sides in the Football League.

By Notts failing to do the same, they are missing out on a huge opportunity. As did Matt Cardle when he released nowt after winning the X-Factor, by the way.

Jacob Daniel

@NottsCountyMad

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BEING A YORKSHIRE ‘PIE

Leeds. West Yorkshire. The home of a club that is mostly loathed by football fans, but a reputation that they thrive on and whether you like them or not, they are a huge club and in Brian McDermott, they have a manager who can get them back to where their fans believe they belong.

The city is also the home of this Notts County fan, and being a Notts fan away from Nottingham is both awesome and horrible in equal measure!

For a start, getting to home games costs a lot more than it does from Wilford and so having to pick and choose the games I can get to is almost like a military operation seeing as a return on the train is now around the £21 mark. And as I can't drive, seeking favours from her indoors if she can drive me to games! But then on the flip side, the times I do get to see the mighty Magpies are special and it is true that absence makes the heart grow fonder!

There are Notts fans dotted all over this green and pleasant land and from even further afield so this is for them,and how we follow the club from afar. How Twitter, Facebook and Magpie Player become our lifelines for information about signings, action and news updates.

Social media has become the best thing but also the worst thing for Notts fans. To read some of the comments after a game on Facebook should carry a health warning, especially after a defeat. It’s like some Notts fans lose the ability of having any common sense when it comes to their comments, and the same for Twitter as well. Although what gets me is how people can tweet or comment during a game? My phone isnt seen till half and full time - I’ve paid to watch the game, not be on my phone! Just me and my opinion though - each to their own and all that!

But following Notts on their websites and the Post as well means you get to know the score pretty much straight away and a lot quicker than the Sky Sports app!

With a wedding to plan and pay for I only saw three games last season and as said, it made it that much more special when I saw them. Meeting up with friends I don't see often makes those trips all the more special, proper days out, and with my family having weekends away coinciding with an away game, means we are spending time together and that's all good.

Then wherever we are on a Saturday afternoon, between 3 and 4.45, Soccer Saturday with Jeff, Magpie Player with Uncle Colin and if we are out, our phones are almost our best friends as they tell us of the latest scores and of near misses and goals as they go My kids are being taught in in - and the reaction when we the ways of Notts County, both are in Team Magpies and my score is just amazing! daughter Paige loves going to I’ve been in the middle of games wearing her shirt!

Hull Fair and done a leap of delight as Notts went 2-1 up There was a time when I was at Chesterfield a couple of younger around 97-04, when I seasons back, not bothered pretty much went to every game home and away. It was very who saw and heard me!

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rare I missed a game around that time. Exeter away on a Tuesday night, Torquay away the week before Christmas and plenty more besides including successive trips to Plymouth to see us lose 3-0. So to live away from Nottingham and not go to every game was something i’ve had to get used to - but I have done and it’s fine, and the games I get to this season will be special trips with friends and/or family, starting with Walsall away and then Liverpool away and a few more besides between now and May. If money was no object I’d be at most games but I don't mind picking and choosing the games I go to. Football is extremely expensive these days and unfortunately Notts are no exception when you throw in train fare, match tickets, programme and something to eat - I'm not getting any change from £50!

But I go as often as I can and as I say, to meet up with my friends or spend weekends away with my family makes it a treat and the football itself isn't as important as the whole day itself and growing up to realise there are more important things in life than football.

Yes Notts mean the world to me but unlike my younger days, they aren't my be all and end all but the days I see them are awesome and I can’t wait to see my next game,so from this faraway fan, id like to dedicate this to all the other Notts fans all over the world, and a mighty You ‘Pies to you all!

Ian Marsden

@IanMarsden76

ISSUE #7

Wishing both Notts County FC and Black & White all the best and hoping both the fanzine and Shaun Derry’s Notts take us all the way to extra time and penalties this year!

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LuSam

Photography -Wedding-Portraiture-Nature-Architecture07446 118177 facebook.com/lusamphotography I also sell framed photos of the Meadow Lane Stadium, with 10% discount for Notts Co. fans (just quote Black&White when ordering)

BUT ON THE BRIGHT SIDE...

There’s a lot of doom and gloom around the Lane right now, but I have no idea why. There are plenty of reasons to be cheerful, and I’m glad to help everyone continue the long-standing tradition of optimism among Notts fans.

Firstly is the long-overdue installation of a versatile manager – no offence to Kiwomya et al, but none of our managers in recent times could pull off both the flowing, Rapunzel-esque locks of his days in Leeds and a moustache that wouldn’t look out of place in a Doritos advert. Add in his graceful transition into the Greying Professional Footballers Club and you know the chairman has finally backed the right man in Shaun Derry - even if Greg Abbott can really only pull off geek chic with “those” glasses.

Given his own penchant for spectacles, necessary or otherwise, you might expect Yoann Arquin to be less than useful to the club on the pitch.

Oh, how wrong could you be?

striker who is so good he doesn’t off the pitch development of the club, with a media team who even need to speak English. haven't yet risen to any of the Even if there’s ever any need Facebook, erm, personalities that to rough it up a bit, at least we frequent the pages. have anti-stereotypical Canadian Marcus Haber on the team – and Off the pitch, the owner is a tall, I’m sure we can all agree it’s a not hideously disfigured man with positive for the players that he’s an excellent grasp of the English language – he’s not Forest’s not on the opposing team. owner, basically – and seems Or down a dark alleyway at night. genuinely invested in the club’s success.

Dean Leacock, despite having one of the worst hairstyles I’ve I’ve only ever spoken to him ever seen on a central defender, once but he was a nice enough at least doesn’t have Adam chap, and he never once baited Coombes’, which is by far the Panorama into following him worst. Notts County – perpetually out into the Middle East. Rather breaking the misconceptions of than Formula One teams he’s assembled a top flight team footballers being stylish. with England internationals As was proven in the Johnstone’s throughout, and he must be a Paint Trophy a few weeks ago we sensible man as he dismisses have the blueprint for success in bank guarantees worth vast any penalty shootout – a German amounts of money purely based goalkeeper – and I’m sure on the fact that the paper is more compared to “German” Mesut Ozil expensive. I may be looking at and “German” Lewis Holtby I’m this the wrong way, but at the sure half the squad could qualify end of the day I'm sure we can all for Merkel’s finest. I am certain agree - at least we don't have to that were we still in any knockout listen to Billy Davies' post match competitions, we’d have at least interviews. a small chance of winning them.

As the average League 1 fan watches miserable squads who try hard every week, we are treated to players with such excesses in talent they don’t even NEED to try! It’s like watching Nicholas Anelka in his prime!

What more could we want? I have no interest in watching the beautiful game ruined by Graham Westley’s finest when I can see fifteen hopeful flicks a game by a The big one, of course, is the

BLACK & WHITE PAGE 30

Sean Mansfield

@_smansfield

ISSUE #7

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