FC Boro

The Stevenage Borough Blog

Stevenage 2-0 Kidderminster

Posted by sgmboro on 06/12/2009

Boro bounced back after defeat in midweek with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Kidderminster Harriers. It wasn’t the best game or performance, but Stevenage fought hard in difficult conditions to grind out the victory. Kidderminster were a shadow of the team that visited Broadhall Way last season, although they did start the game better than the hosts. Graham Westley made a few changes to the team that started against Ebbsfleet with Mark Roberts and Yemi Odubade missing out due to injury, or because a move to Peterborough has been set up for January? Michael Bostwick also missed the game because of suspension.

Kidderminster set up in a 4-5-1 formation, clearly looking to get a point. Damien Spencer and Chris McPhee were supporting Robbie Matthews, who played on his own up front. Gavin Caines was partnered by former Wolves trainee Martin Riley at the back. It was the visitors that looked more likely to take the lead early on and midfielder David McDermott went close when he ran at the Boro backline before firing over. Minutes later Damien Spencer had another chance for Kiddy when he shot from just outside the box, but hit the bar. Stevenage looked like they were still finding their feet after Tuesday’s defeat.

As the game went on, Boro began to get more dominant. Kidderminster rarely threatened Chris Day in the Boro goal and the midfield of Bridges and Murphy were breaking up any moves forward from Harriers. Stevenage created some chances of their own with Charlie Griffin missing a few opportunites including a glancing header that hit the post. Boro did get the breakthrough though before half-time when John Ashton flicked the ball into the net from a free-kick. I don’t think we particularly deserved to be in the lead at half-time as the away side had arguably the better chances to be ahead.

After the second half collapse on Tuesday night, I’m sure that GW and his staff would have told the players at half-time that the job wasn’t finished and it certainly looked that way when Mitchell Cole fired in the second goal on 47 minutes. David Bridges put a good ball through for Cole to volley home. Fair play to Mitchell Cole for his performance yesterday. I think he would admit himself that he hasn’t been on form this season and his commitment has been questioned, but he played well yesterday and took his goal superbly. Maybe he should give Griffin some lessons in how to finish?

The second goal seem to kill off any hope that Mark Yates and his side had of taking home a point back to Worcestershire. The second half was a bit of a scrappy affair with neither team making many clear cut chances. I don’t remember either keeper having to make a save after the Cole goal. Kiddy brought on Ryan Charles as they looked to push for an equaliser, but he was reduced to long range efforts which failed to trouble Day. GW sent on Peter Vincenti, Joel Byrom and Eddie Odhiambo late on as they secured another three points at home. Next up is Ebbsfleet, again, this time in the FA Trophy.

 

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Kidderminster Preview

Posted by sgmboro on 03/12/2009

After the disappointment of losing against Ebbsfleet United on Tuesday night, Boro are back in action this weekend when Kidderminster Harriers are the visitors to Broadhall Way. Stevenage will be looking to bounce back with a win after a woeful second half performance at Stonebridge Road saw Graham Westley’s side lose their first league game since August. The night didn’t get any better for Boro when leaders Oxford beat Crawley 2-1 thanks to a 95th minute James Constable strike. It leaves us 5 points behind the U’s in the table, having played a game more.

Yemi Odubade is expected to recover in time from the knock he got against Ebbsfleet which forced him to be replaced by Mitchell Cole at half time. GW will be praying that Yemi is available for the game because the striker has just been getting into form for us. Another bonus if Yemi does get passed fit is that Cole will probably miss out. Michael Bostwick does miss the game due to picking up his 5th yellow card of the season on Tuesday night. I’d expect GW to bring back John Ashton into defence and play Murphy, Bridges and Byrom in midfield.

Kidderminster lie in 9th place at the moment after a run of 3 games without a win, but have pulled of some credible results so far this season, beating Oxford, Kettering and Mansfield. Consistency remains to be the problem for Mark Yates and his squad. After beating Oxford and Kettering, Kiddy scraped a draw against Wrexham before being beaten at home by AFC Wimbledon. That was followed up by a 0-0 draw at Aggborough on Tuesday night against Tamworth. Scoring goals seems to be a bit of a problem at Kidderminster and that hasn’t been helped with the departure of ’star’ striker Matt Barnes-Homer recently. Barnes-Homer has joined Luton Town until January and has left a big hole for Yates to fill.

Last season saw both sides compete with each other for the last remaining play-off spot in the Blue Square Premier. Kidderminster looked to have the upper hand after beating Boro 4-2 at Aggborough in a game that was determined by Darren Murphy’s stupid sending off. Although Boro looked like they had blown their chance of a play-off place with that defeat, they made up for it a little over two weeks later when they beat Kiddy 3-1 at Broadhall Way with goals coming from Steve Morison and Lee Boylan (2). Boro generally have a good record at home against Kidderminster, losing only 2 of the last 7 at Broadhall Way.

Saturday’s game will not be an easy one. Kidderminster have some very good players with the likes of Daryl Knights, Damien Spencer and Chris McPhee in their squad. They’re not as strong this season as they have been in previous years and they do miss both Matthew Barnes-Homer and Justin Richards, but they’re still a side that can beat anyone in this division on their day so Boro will have to be wary. However, I think we’ll carry on our good home form and put Tuesday’s performance behind us with a good win. The Ebbsfleet game was a blip and if we can bounce back on Saturday then there is no reason why we still can’t challenge Oxford for the top spot in the Conference.

Stevenage Squad

Ashley Bayes, Chris Day, Scott Laird, Ronnie Henry, Jon Ashton, Mark Roberts, Mark Albrighton, Eddie Odhiambo, Michael Bostwick, Darren Murphy, Stacy Long, David Bridges, Andy Drury, Joel Byrom, Mitchell Cole, Yemi Odubade, Lee Boylan, Charlie Griffin, Chris Beardsley, Peter Vincenti

Prediction: Boro 2-1 Kidderminster

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Boro miss big opportunity to go top

Posted by sgmboro on 01/12/2009

Two goals from Stefan Bailey were enough to give Ebbsfleet the win against Boro tonight. Graham Westley’s side took the lead thanks to Yemi Odubade’s 21st minute strike and went into the break 1-0 up and looking on course to go top of the Conference table with Oxford losing at Crawley. However, former QPR midfielder Bailey popped up twice within 6 second half minutes to condemn Boro to their first defeat since August. It leaves Boro 5 points away from Oxford, who still have a game in hand.

Oxford, who had a chance to restore their 5 point lead, won away against Crawley Town. Thomas Pinault’s 17th minute strike looked to be enough to earn Steve Evans’s side all 3 points, but Adam Chapman hit a 83rd minute equaliser to save the U’s. Oxford then won it late on when James Constable scored. After 45 minutes it looked like it was going to be Boro’s night, but the second half couldn’t of gone worse for the Hertfordshire side as their lead was reversed and Oxford got a late winner. To add insult to injury, Michael Bostwick was booked late on and will now miss Saturday’s game against Kidderminster.

Graham Westley named arguably his strongest team available to him. Darren Murphy returned to the midfield alongside Joel Byrom and Michael Bostwick, while Ronnie Henry moved to right back. Charlie Griffin partnered Yemi Odubade in attack. Stacy Long returned to the squad to make the bench against his former club. Ebbsfleet welcomed back captain Darius Charles after his suspension. Boro were the better team in the first half, but again failed to turn the possession into goals. David Bridges, Charlie Griffin and Andy Drury were all guilty of missing opportunities before Yemi Odubade fired Boro into the lead. Yemi ran the show in the first half, but was then replaced by Mitchell Cole at half time.

Ebbsfleet were a different team in the second half. They got at Boro straight from the kick-off and had equalised within minutes of the restart when Stefan Bailey scored from close range. It sounded like Boro were shocked from the equaliser and they didn’t get hold of the game after the home side’s goal. Inevitably, Ebbsfleet added a second not long after when Bailey again finished from close range after a Peter Holmes free-kick. Within 5 minutes, Boro had gone from 1 point clear at the top of the Blue Square Premier to 2 points behind again. Westley brought on both Chris Beardsley and Stacy Long to try and push for an equaliser, but they couldn’t break through the Ebbsfleet defence and were beaten for the first time since a 2-1 defeat against Oxford in August.

The results tonight are a big blow to Boro’s title hopes, but they’re not over by any means. I’m still sure that Oxford will drop points as the season goes on and the main thing is making sure we are in a position to profit from any slip up they do have. We have the nucleus of a very good side at the moment, but I still think are missing a proven goalscorer. Griffin has done ok, but isn’t consistent enough. His performances in the last two games sums up his season so far. Hero Saturday against Salisbury, but back to the villain tonight after missing too many chances. Chris Beardsley is also not going to get you enough goals in a season. I would like us to strengthen this one area in January as the rest of the team is fine at the moment.  Next up Kidderminster at home and we need a good response.

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A year unbeaten at home

Posted by sgmboro on 30/11/2009

It was a year ago yesterday that Stevenage were last beat at Broadhall Way in the league. That 2-1 defeat by Wrexham now feels like a very long time ago and the team has come a long way since then.

Boro could find themselves top of the Blue Square Premier tomorrow night if they win away at Ebbsfleet and Oxford lose against Crawley at the Broadfield Stadium. Stevenage could still go to the summit of the non league if they win by a big margin and Oxford only draw. It’s another important game for Westley’s men, who have passed every test that has been thrown at them so far this season. Another solid away win at Salisbury followed a ‘professional’ performance against Chester. At the moment, Stevenage are grinding out hard fought wins, without particularly playing well, but are are getting their rewards for being hard to beat and organised.

Below is the team’s record in the league, both home and away, since that home defeat on the 29th November 2008.

Played: 47
Won: 28
Drew: 16
Lost: 3
Points: 100 out of a possible 141

As you can see that kind of form is title winning form. If you take away the extra game in the above table and 3 points, we would of still won the BSP last season by 9 points. Burton won the league with 88 last season. It’s a superb record since the end of November last year and the management team and players deserve a huge amount of credit for that. The fact we have only lost 3 games in that time is a record that not even some of the ‘top’ clubs in Europe can match.

Tomorrow night’s game against Ebbsfleet will not be an easy one. Although the Kent side are struggling at the bottom of the league, they have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks and that was rewarded on Saturday when they beat Mansfield 2-1 at Stonebridge Road. Goals from Magno Vieira and Peter Holmes were enough to earn Liam Daish’s side all 3 points. Stevenage’s last meeting against Ebbsfleet saw us run out comfortable 3-0 winners in what was our first win of the season. Lawrie Wilson was the man of the match on that particular night.

It’s unknown what Westley will do with his team tomorrow night considering he has changed it a lot in recent weeks to good effect. I’m not sure that playing Ronnie Henry in midfield is the best option though. If it was me, I would put Ronnie in to right back and play Ashton and Roberts in the middle of the defence. Joel Byrom impressed in the ‘hole’ on Saturday and I think that’s his best position, so I would be tempted to play him behind Yemi and Griffin with Bostwick, Murphy and Bridges making up the midfield.

Ebbsfleet will make it difficult for us and we shouldn’t under estimate them. Although I think we will win the game, it might be another close encounter that will be decided by the 1 goal. I’m always confident that we will score, due to the amount of chances that we create and as long as we keep it tight again at the back then I expect to come back to Hertfordshire with 3 very important points. A repeat of the last two away results would be very welcome.

Stevenage Squad

Ashley Bayes, Chris Day, Scott Laird, Ronnie Henry, Jon Ashton, Mark Roberts, Mark Albrighton, Eddie Odhiambo, Michael Bostwick, Stacy Long, David Bridges, Andy Drury, Joel Byrom, Mitchell Cole, Yemi Odubade, Lee Boylan, Charlie Griffin, Chris Beardsley, Peter Vincenti

Prediction: Ebbsfleet 0-1 Boro

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Griffin scores only goal as Boro close the gap

Posted by sgmboro on 29/11/2009

Stevenage carried on their unbeaten run in the Blue Square Premier as they recorded a 1-0 win away at Salisbury City thanks to a Charlie Griffin strike just before half-time. Boro are now just 2 points away from Oxford United, who were held at home against Barrow today in the FA Cup 2nd round. Oxford’s draw now means that their game against Hayes & Yeading will have to be re-arranged and the U’s will have to make the long journey to Barrow instead on a Tuesday night.

Boro again proved that they can win the hard way yesterday afternoon. The away record has been very impressive this season and is a big reason why they are in the position they are in now. I just wish we had won a few of them draw’s at the beginning of the campaign. The Hayes & Yeading game comes to mind. If we were playing that fixture now, I’d be very confident of going there and winning comfortably, but back in August we struggled to even get a point. However, the confidence is now high at the club and at the moment we don’t look like we can get beat in this league. We had a similar run last season and we’ll need to keep it going this if we are to be in the mix come the end of April.

“I thought we were good value for the lead at half-time. The boys were solid and strong and organised. They gave nothing away and built possession patiently. Over the 90 minutes I thought we deserved the three points.” Westley on a hard fought win away from home

Yesterday’s win keeps the pressure right on Oxford, who are known for crumbling in the past. When they first came down into the BSP, they led the league for a while before they were eventually overtaken by Dagenham, who in the end won promotion to League 2. Oxford are a good side and I think who ever finishes above them, will win the league. It will be interesting to see how they react now though after hitting a bit of a rough patch. So far in November, United have won 2 and lost 1 of the 3 league games they’ve played. They’ve also only scored 3 goals in the league all month.

Graham Westley’s side have another away game on Tuesday night when they travel to Ebbsfleet United, who are struggling at the bottom of the Blue Square Premier. The Kent side have suffered massively this season, due to a lack of investment in the squad and are only 1 place above rock bottom Chester. Although it looks like a straight forward away win, going to Stonebridge Road is never easy as Boro know only too well from last August’s performance.

Away from the league and Kettering held Leeds United to a 1-1 draw in the FA Cup and were then drawn Manchester United at Old Trafford if the Third Round, if they win the replay. It’s a great draw for the club, who’s future has been thrown into doubt this week after rumours surfaced that chairman Imraan Ladaak was about to sell up due to problems over the Rockingham Road ‘Stadium’. Other teams from the Blue Square Premier to make it into round 3 were Forest Green who now have a tie against Notts County and York City, who have been rewarded with an away trip to Stoke City after they beat Cambridge United 2-1 at the Abbey Stadium. Port Vale, who beat Boro in the 1st round, were knocked out of the competition after losing 1-0 to Huddersfield at home.

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Salisbury Preview

Posted by sgmboro on 27/11/2009

Boro travel down to Salisbury this weekend as they continue their pursuit of top spot in the Blue Square Premier. With leaders Oxford playing in the FA Cup against Barrow tomorrow afternoon, Stevenage have the perfect opportunity to close the gap ahead of the midweek fixtures in the Blue Square Premier. We travel to lowly Ebbsfleet on Tuesday night, while the U’s face a difficult trip away at Crawley. All things going well, Boro could be top by the 2nd December!

It wasn’t that long ago that we played Salisbury at Broadhall Way. Nick Holmes brought his side to Hertfordshire on the 17th October, where he saw his side comfortably beaten 3-1 with one of his former players, Charlie Griffin getting on the scoresheet for Boro. Mark Roberts opened the scoring that day before substitute Chris Flood equalised. Griffin restored Boro’s lead before Chris Beardsley sealed the three points late on with a good finish just minutes after coming on as a substitute.

Salisbury have only won 1 game in the league since their defeat against Boro. Rushden beat them 3-1 at the Raymond McEnhill Stadium last Saturday and that was followed up in midweek by a 2-0 defeat away against Crawley. After looking into their results so far this season it looks like City seem to be quite suseptable to conceding late goals. The Rushden game last weekend was 0-0 until the 79th minute when Paul Terry put Diamonds ahead. A further brace from Aaron O’Connor either side of a Darrell Clarke strike were enough to give Rushden the 3 points. 

“They have got a lot of energy and a lot of brightness about them. They have a good tactician in Tommy Widdrington and they are a dangerous outfit, no doubt about it.” Westley on Salisbury

Although I agree with Westley’s view that Salisbury are a good side, you wouldn’t of guessed it looking at the BSP table at the moment. City are currently in 18th position with 20 points to their name, 24 behind us. Salisbury were just outside the play-offs before they played us in October, coming off the back of a 5 match unbeaten run, but since the defeat against Boro they have won just the 1 game against Eastbourne. They will be hoping for a repeat of this at the weekend.

“It’s a chance to win three points, and that is where our focus is. We are enjoying putting some distance between us and the chasing pack and we want to make sure we are in the main event come the turn of the year.” Westley’s view on keeping in the race for the title

Stevenage go into the game in good form. They are still unbeaten in the league since August and have won their last 3 league games on the bounce, scoring 8 goals in the process. Graham Westley has a few decisions to make with regards to his selection. With a relatively injury free squad at the moment, most of his decisions will be based on form. Darren Murphy misses out due to suspension, so I expect David Bridges to return alongside Byrom and Bostwick in a 3 man midfield. I think Charlie Griffin will also come back in to the side in the place of Chris Beardsley while I expect Yemi & Andy Drury to retain their places.

It is a potentially tricky game and a repeat of last season’s result would be nice, although I would like Griffin’s goals to be for us this time. I think we will win the game if we play to our best, which will put a bit of pressure on Oxford when they go to Crawley on Tuesday night. We’ve been very solid away from home this season, picking up a lot of 1-0 wins or 1-1 draws. With Salisbury tending to tire late on in games then Mitchell Cole and Yemi Odubade could be vital for us at the weekend and I think if we use them wisely they could be the matchwinners.

Stevenage Squad

Ashley Bayes, Chris Day, Scott Laird, Ronnie Henry, Jon Ashton, Mark Roberts, Mark Albrighton, Eddie Odhiambo, Michael Bostwick, Stacy Long, David Bridges, Andy Drury, Joel Byrom, Mitchell Cole, Yemi Odubade, Lee Boylan, Charlie Griffin, Chris Beardsley, Peter Vincenti

Prediction: Salisbury 0-1 Boro

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Is the Trophy worth it?

Posted by sgmboro on 26/11/2009

Boro winning the FA Trophy in MayMonday morning saw Stevenage drawn a home tie against Ebbsfleet United in the 1st round proper of this season’s FA Trophy. Boro may be the current holders of the FA Trophy, but questions are being seriously raised whether it’s worth the club trying to win it again this year. Boro have won the Trophy in two of the last 3 seasons and were the first team to win a final at the newly rebuilt Wembley Stadium. With the club currently in 2nd place in the Blue Square Premier table, 5 points away from leaders Oxford United, the Cup competitions do seem to be less of a priority this season as the club looks to win promotion to the football league at the 16th attempt.

In the FA Cup, Stevenage progressed to the 1st round before they were knocked out by Port Vale after a replay. Boro had beaten Conference South side Chelmsford in the qualifying round thanks to a late Peter Vincenti winner. In all 3 games that we played in the Cup, we fielded a strong side. Obviously a club like ourselves can’t be considered as serious contenders for the FA Cup, but it’s well known that the Cup can help boost the finances of a small non league club due to the prize money and possible TV revenue a Cup tie can attract. The FA Trophy is similar is some aspects, although the TV coverage is not like the FA Cup, the prize money is still quite substantial at this level.

There are obviously arguements for and against a run in the Trophy this season. If Boro were to go the whole way again this season without any replays, that would create another 6 games on top of the first round tie against Ebbsfleet in a couple of weeks time. As we know from last season’s experience, these games usually take the place of any Blue Sqaure Premier fixtures that were previously scheduled and the league fixtures get re-arranged for a midweek later in the season. Going out of the Trophy early would allow Boro’s fixture list not to get congested. There would just be the league to focus on and the squad would have time to rest and recover in between games.

However, the run in the Trophy obviously didn’t harm Boro’s pursuit of a play-off spot last season as Graham Westley’s side finished the 2008/2009 campaign as the form side in the division. If anything, Westley’s side carried their winning momentum from the league into the Trophy and progression into the final built confidence going into the last few weeks as the club pushed for that play-off place. Confidence plays a very important part in football, especially at this level and I think that Boro’s run in the Trophy last season helped them finish in the play-offs.

The previous season, Peter Taylor’s Stevenage were knocked out of the FA Trophy at the first attempt by Dorchester. Boro were the holders that season as well having won the final the previous May against Kidderminster. Taylor obviously thought it was a distraction from the league and wanted out of it as soon as possible, but it didn’t help the team at all, in fact his team went backwards after their early exit going down from 2nd in the league to 6th, and outside the play-off places.

In my opinion, I think Boro could go all the way again in the Trophy this season, if they take it seriously. At the moment I think ourselves and Oxford are probably the best teams in non league football and it will take a lot for another team to knock us out. There are other teams like Luton, Rushden, York and Cambridge that will also be confident of going far in the competition.

Although I understand the idea of keeping the ‘winning feeling’ going by progressing in the Trophy, I think we would benefit more in the league by going out early from all competitions and just concentrating on the Conference. I think we have a really good chance of promotion with this team and keeping them fit and focused will help us towards the end of the season when the games come thick and fast. I would much rather win promotion to the football league than have another trip to Wembley. Winning the Trophy last season was great, but the real prize was lost a few days before that when the team collpased at the Abbey Stadium. Hopefully this season will be different.

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Boro defeat Chester in lacklustre display

Posted by sgmboro on 25/11/2009

It wasn’t the best match you will ever see down at Broadhall Way, but we did enough to secure the three points against a poor Chester side. Westley named a similar team to what started on Saturday against Forest Green, with Mitchell Cole, David Bridges and Charlie Griffin again left out. Chester named Nick Chadwick up front alongside former Cambridge United striker Mark Beesley. Former Doncaster defender Tim Ryan captained the side.

The first half was a fairly boring spectacle. Both sides didn’t create much going forward, although I felt Boro played some nice stuff in the first half without ever looking threatening going forward. The pace of Yemi Odubade on the flanks was an outlet the team tried to exploit, but to Chester’s credit they handled him quite well this evening. Chris Beardsley again was disappointing up front. He didn’t seem to win much in the air and lost possession of the ball too often. Ryan had him in his pocket for the majority of the match.

It was the visitors who had the first serious effort on goal, when Sean Kelly connected to a free-kick, but his effort hit the post and was cleared away. It would of been harsh on Boro, who were looking comfortable up until then. The two teams continued to cancel each other out as the half went on, but Boro got the decisive opening goal when Yemi Odubade volleyed in from 10 yards. It was a good finish from the former Oxford man, who has impressed in recent weeks. For me, Yemi was man of the match tonight because of his work rate alone. He chased everything down and got back to defend when he had to. His goal was his reward for a good night’s work.

Graham Westley made one of the strangest tactical decisions at half time. Lee Boylan was replaced by John Ashton. Ashton moved to right back while Ronnie Henry came in centre midfield. I didn’t understand the decision at all as just the one change had totally disrupted the Stevenage side. There were only about 4 players on the field in the same position as they started. Chester couldn’t take advantage of this though and the second half was much like the first. Chester didn’t really ever threaten Chris Day’s goal and Boro didn’t create many chances. The game was fairly scrappy and the wet and windy weather wasn’t helping the standard of football either.

David Bridges came on after an hour to replace Darren Murphy, who again was stupidly booked earlier in the half. Murphy has got to get these silly bookings out of his game sooner rather than later. I don’t mind him as a player because I think he gives the midfield a more physical presence which is needed in some games. Bridges came on and within 5 minutes Boro had doubled their lead. Mark Roberts finished well after the visitors had failed to clear Andy Drury’s corner. Game over.

The game petered out after Roberts’ goal and Boro went on to win the game with relative ease.  It’s a good win especially as Oxford did what we did at the weekend and beat Forest Green at The New Lawn. 5 points remains the gap, with the leaders in the FA Cup this coming weekend. If we beat Salisbury we will go to within 2 points of Wilder’s side, although they will have the game in hand. Boro’s win tonight also puts us now 4 points clear of 3rd place York who have played 1 game more than ourselves and with Kettering being beaten at home again tonight, they are now 6 points away from us.

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