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Post by darlo1 on Apr 19, 2024 9:27:15 GMT
Yes I know it's not a game to enthuse your fans after the way it's panned out and it may look a bit sad that a few hundred of us will still be in celebratory mood. But from where we were under the disastrous short reign of Gowling it's been an astonishing escape for us to win 10 out of the last 14 games.
Watson has performed a minor miracle and will be going all out to finish on a high. In his interview after signing a 2 year deal he is also very complimentary about your club, your manager and the people behind the scenes.
Our amazing feat in surviving after looking buried has brought renewed confidence about next season and our annual Boost The Budget. The extra mini one we ran that raised £32,000 was instrumental in our survival allowing Watson the scope for four new key players that helped make the difference.
Of course our major handicap remains... no ground of our own with no sign of one on the horizon at present but still a committed bunch of fans hoping somehow to progress.
Looking forward to Saturday and I know you maybe don't want to hear it but we'll have smiles on our faces (maybe partly because of a stint in Telford's)😀
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Post by deesideblue1 on Apr 19, 2024 9:44:39 GMT
Yes I know it's not a game to enthuse your fans after the way it's panned out and it may look a bit sad that a few hundred of us will still be in celebratory mood. But from where we were under the disastrous short reign of Gowling it's been an astonishing escape for us to win 10 out of the last 14 games. Watson has performed a minor miracle and will be going all out to finish on a high. In his interview after signing a 2 year deal he is also very complimentary about your club, your manager and the people behind the scenes. Our amazing feat in surviving after looking buried has brought renewed confidence about next season and our annual Boost The Budget. The extra mini one we ran that raised £32,000 was instrumental in our survival allowing Watson the scope for four new key players that helped make the difference. Of course our major handicap remains... no ground of our own with no sign of one on the horizon at present but still a committed bunch of fans hoping somehow to progress. Looking forward to Saturday and I know you maybe don't want to hear it but we'll have smiles on our faces (maybe partly because of a stint in Telford's)😀 Some of our fans put Watson in a higher regard than what he really achieved, probably because he was a PREMIER LEAGUE footballer and not a YOUTH TEAM COACH WHO’S NEVER PLAYED. You know. He done a decent enough job for us but the 2 loan players Apter and Dackers propped us up, more than Watson being the tactical genius some on here say he is.
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Darlo
Apr 19, 2024 10:08:35 GMT
Post by Si on Apr 19, 2024 10:08:35 GMT
Watson had some decent contacts and knew how to set a team up. No doubt he'd have gone on to do well here. Wouldn't wish to compare him to Calum, who on the whole has done a pretty good job so far and is still learning.
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Post by miltongraham on Apr 19, 2024 11:17:19 GMT
We spoke with Watson after a game and he turned out to be a very approachable guy with a clear vision of what was required in the next season . The big stumbling block was that he would have to move his family down from the north east and so there was a cost to that of which the club were fully aware so we know how that turned out. £32.000 for four players at Darlo sound money well spent for survival unlike our recruitment. Anyway well done Darlo who have faced many problems like ourselves.
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Darlo
Apr 19, 2024 11:23:00 GMT
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Post by yoshimitsu on Apr 19, 2024 11:23:00 GMT
Really hope we can end with a win to have at least a little something to celebrate at the end of what has been a disappointing season overall.
So in that mood I’m going to say we’ll win 2-1.
A good natured incursion onto the pitch after also.
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Post by RonD on Apr 19, 2024 11:29:43 GMT
Steve Watson done a hell of a job. Great to see Darlo have sold 400+ tickets.
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 7:50:42 GMT
Post by Harry Lime on Apr 20, 2024 7:50:42 GMT
This could either have the feel of a pre-season friendly, or it could be a really entertaining open game.
I'd expect both managers to give the odd younger fringe players some game time. Surely Daly and Heywood will both get a run out today.
I'll go an optimistic 2-2. Goals from Burke and Daly.
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 8:47:48 GMT
via mobile
Post by proudblue on Apr 20, 2024 8:47:48 GMT
Yes I know it's not a game to enthuse your fans after the way it's panned out and it may look a bit sad that a few hundred of us will still be in celebratory mood. But from where we were under the disastrous short reign of Gowling it's been an astonishing escape for us to win 10 out of the last 14 games. Watson has performed a minor miracle and will be going all out to finish on a high. In his interview after signing a 2 year deal he is also very complimentary about your club, your manager and the people behind the scenes. Our amazing feat in surviving after looking buried has brought renewed confidence about next season and our annual Boost The Budget. The extra mini one we ran that raised £32,000 was instrumental in our survival allowing Watson the scope for four new key players that helped make the difference. Of course our major handicap remains... no ground of our own with no sign of one on the horizon at present but still a committed bunch of fans hoping somehow to progress. Looking forward to Saturday and I know you maybe don't want to hear it but we'll have smiles on our faces (maybe partly because of a stint in Telford's)😀 Some of our fans put Watson in a higher regard than what he really achieved, probably because he was a PREMIER LEAGUE footballer and not a YOUTH TEAM COACH WHO’S NEVER PLAYED. You know. He done a decent enough job for us but the 2 loan players Apter and Dackers propped us up, more than Watson being the tactical genius some on here say he is. Yes I’d say there are some rather selective memories about Watson’s time here. He inherited a bit of a mess, but there must have been at least half a dozen away games under him when we conceded three or more goals and I recall seeing somebody compare him to Bignot when we lost about five in a row around February time. But we ultimately ended the season well with a series of clean sheets and he got us moving in the right direction. As has been said, he seemed to have a decent eye for a player and good contacts and has shown at Darlo what he can achieve.
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 9:33:53 GMT
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Post by jamieablock on Apr 20, 2024 9:33:53 GMT
Some of our fans put Watson in a higher regard than what he really achieved, probably because he was a PREMIER LEAGUE footballer and not a YOUTH TEAM COACH WHO’S NEVER PLAYED. You know. He done a decent enough job for us but the 2 loan players Apter and Dackers propped us up, more than Watson being the tactical genius some on here say he is. Yes I’d say there are some rather selective memories about Watson’s time here. He inherited a bit of a mess, but there must have been at least half a dozen away games under him when we conceded three or more goals and I recall seeing somebody compare him to Bignot when we lost about five in a row around February time. But we ultimately ended the season well with a series of clean sheets and he got us moving in the right direction. As has been said, he seemed to have a decent eye for a player and good contacts and has shown at Darlo what he can achieve. He was shit. Didn’t interact with the fans and didn’t crack one smile
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 10:09:57 GMT
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Post by Rio Doherty on Apr 20, 2024 10:09:57 GMT
Now that our very slim hopes of the play-offs are officially over, it would be nice to see us try out some different tactics and formations today, with a view to next season. Most of our home performances have been disappointing so far this year, so perhaps we should play more expansively to see whether that may work. I’d also give the likes of Reece Daly and Ollie Heywood game time as well to see where they are in their development. The former in particular deserves another chance to shine.
I know it was very unlikely we’d make the top seven, but I was still really gutted about our result against Brackley Town last weekend. For the first 20 minutes we played very well, and took a deserved lead courtesy of a clinical Ben Tollitt strike. Somehow, we shot up to sixth at one point, and there was plenty of hope among the away end, as a few teams around us were slipping up. For some reason, we put our foot off the gas, and fell apart by conceding a further three goals. It was disappointing and a shame to see the game pan out in the way it did, however the result at Brackley hasn’t defined our season - it’s the string of home games we’ve thrown away that has!
Darlington confirmed safety last week with a 3-1 win over relegation-threatened Farsley Celtic, so just like ourselves, they have very little to play for now. Former Seals Manager Steve Watson has performed miracles for The Quakers, since he was appointed as their boss last New Year’s Eve. Darlo were eight points adrift when Watto took over, and have spent 39 matchdays inside the bottom four this season, however he’s transformed the side to now be five points clear of the drop, having won 12 of his 21 games in charge. I have a lot of time for Steve after his spell here, so I’m hoping he’ll get a warm welcome back this afternoon. Watson did a decent job for us in limited and difficult circumstances. It took him time to recover us from the awful start we made to the 2021-22 season, and there were bumps on the road in his first three months in charge. However, Watson had a very good eye for a player, as some of his signings, such as Rob Apter, Wyll Stanway, Marcus Dackers, and Matt Sargent all helped us avoid being sucked into a relegation battle. We ended that season with four clean sheets out of five, plus he brought the best out of Harrison Burke, Darren Stephenson, and Matty Williams. Steve’s a nice bloke, too, so I’ll always hold him in high regard and give him credit. He put in solid foundations for Calum McIntyre to build on, who’s doing a good job in spite of a disappointing season at present.
If both sides still had something to play for, we could’ve been looking at a crowd of over 4,000 for this one, but as nothing’s riding on it now, I reckon our home attendance will be around the 2,000 mark. Darlington have sold over 400 tickets, so hats off to them. I’ll miss my Chester FC fix a hell of a lot during the close-season, so despite it being a poor campaign, I’m still looking forward to today and will make the most of it. Despite what’s happened, it’d still be nice if we all stayed behind after the game to give Calum McIntyre and our lads a strong sendoff. We’ll see some of our players wear a Chester shirt for one last time, which’ll be emotional even though we don’t know for sure who’ll be leaving, so they deserve a strong backing in appreciation of their efforts. Let’s get behind the boys one last time this season, before a pivotal Summer both on and off the pitch.
Score - Chester FC (Burke, Peers) 2-0 Darlington.
Attendance - 2,561 (440 Darlington).
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 10:37:14 GMT
Post by inthestand on Apr 20, 2024 10:37:14 GMT
Think this 0-0..2,250
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 10:44:48 GMT
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Post by luckyblue on Apr 20, 2024 10:44:48 GMT
Will be a draw today. ( the score, not the game itself).
Most likely outcome that I can see is 1-1.
Burke for us in his final game , before a six figure transfer to a League one club.🤞
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 11:49:06 GMT
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Post by Lobster on Apr 20, 2024 11:49:06 GMT
Suppose it's hard to care, but any thoughts on how the playoffs and relegation places will go?
I think Curzon and South Shields will make it by winning their games, with Boston missing out by failing to beat Hereford. At the bottom, I think it may be Blyth who go with a defeat to Brackley, leaving Farsley just needing a point at home to Buxton to survive. From a selfish point of view, that would mean four long away trips gone for us next season with Bishops Stortford, Gloucester and Banbury already relegated, but Blyth seem like the kind of "proper" non-league club it's hard to have anything but respect for.
Probably a draw for us. I was never sure Watson was the answer for us but he had a good eye for a player, being the first to give Burke a chance, and he left us in decent shape at the end of last season.
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 12:05:10 GMT
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Post by Lon on Apr 20, 2024 12:05:10 GMT
0-0. 2023 there
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 12:24:53 GMT
Post by noddy on Apr 20, 2024 12:24:53 GMT
Darlo been scoring plenty recently, we haven't so can only see another defeat. We will score today, but can only see a 1-2 or 1-3 defeat. Don't care, glad to see the back of this season and hopefully a better balanced squad for the 24/25 season to follow.
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 12:32:18 GMT
Post by weareblues on Apr 20, 2024 12:32:18 GMT
Yes I’d say there are some rather selective memories about Watson’s time here. He inherited a bit of a mess, but there must have been at least half a dozen away games under him when we conceded three or more goals and I recall seeing somebody compare him to Bignot when we lost about five in a row around February time. But we ultimately ended the season well with a series of clean sheets and he got us moving in the right direction. As has been said, he seemed to have a decent eye for a player and good contacts and has shown at Darlo what he can achieve. He was shit. Didn’t interact with the fans and didn’t crack one smile Bought crates of beer to hand out of his own money to say thank you to fans at Brackley game
Decent guy & a decent manager too
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 12:50:07 GMT
via mobile
Post by dmcnally on Apr 20, 2024 12:50:07 GMT
Chester 1-1 Darlington. Tollitt, Asante for them obviously
2,175 with 406 away
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 13:25:01 GMT
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Post by waggoner on Apr 20, 2024 13:25:01 GMT
Darlo been scoring plenty recently, we haven't so can only see another defeat. We will score today, but can only see a 1-2 or 1-3 defeat. Don't care, glad to see the back of this season and hopefully a better balanced squad for the 24/25 season to follow. I hate putting this but I cannot see us winning this sadly I think 0-2 not that it makes any difference anyway
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 13:46:42 GMT
via mobile
Post by borussiachester on Apr 20, 2024 13:46:42 GMT
Yes I know it's not a game to enthuse your fans after the way it's panned out and it may look a bit sad that a few hundred of us will still be in celebratory mood. But from where we were under the disastrous short reign of Gowling it's been an astonishing escape for us to win 10 out of the last 14 games. Watson has performed a minor miracle and will be going all out to finish on a high. In his interview after signing a 2 year deal he is also very complimentary about your club, your manager and the people behind the scenes. Our amazing feat in surviving after looking buried has brought renewed confidence about next season and our annual Boost The Budget. The extra mini one we ran that raised £32,000 was instrumental in our survival allowing Watson the scope for four new key players that helped make the difference. Of course our major handicap remains... no ground of our own with no sign of one on the horizon at present but still a committed bunch of fans hoping somehow to progress. Looking forward to Saturday and I know you maybe don't want to hear it but we'll have smiles on our faces (maybe partly because of a stint in Telford's)😀 Hope you lads enjoy your day - at least as much as you’re able to when you’ve paid £19 to watch a game down an industrial estate! Pleased that you’ve stayed up - always like seeing fellow ‘proper’, fan-owned sides doing well, and you always tend to bring a good atmosphere both home and away. Just a shame that your ground situation means a trip to Darlo isn’t as good an away day as it ought to be. Pleased for Watson, too - a good manager and good bloke. His tenure here might not live long in the memory, but I do wonder if we would’ve been as successful last season were it not for some of the foundations he put in place (blooding Burke in the first team, overseeing an improvement in Weeks’ form, and the strong end to the season that lifted much of the negativity that had previously festered). Think you’ve earned your right to have a bit of a party; as for us, I imagine the overriding emotions will be relief that the season’s over and regret that it hasn’t amounted to more for us. The result obviously doesn’t really matter, but I’d like to see us at least put in a decent performance and play some decent football to avoid ending things on a complete bum note. I’ll go with 1-1, with our goal coming from Thomas.
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 13:49:14 GMT
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Post by martinblue47 on Apr 20, 2024 13:49:14 GMT
Chester. 3 Darlo. 2 2963
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Post by bonecrusher on Apr 20, 2024 14:50:59 GMT
It's the usual boring bollocks.
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Post by sammychester on Apr 20, 2024 14:53:28 GMT
Zzzzz
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 15:59:03 GMT
via mobile
Post by jamieablock on Apr 20, 2024 15:59:03 GMT
He was shit. Didn’t interact with the fans and didn’t crack one smile Bought crates of beer to hand out of his own money to say thank you to fans at Brackley game
Decent guy & a decent manager too
So he give you a can of warm Carling and he’s a good bloke? Could tell from the beginning he didn’t want to be here
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Post by billyw on Apr 20, 2024 15:59:48 GMT
It's the usual boring bollocks. Can’t even entertain in a nothing match. Unfortunately Calllum is not going to change and that’s a worry.
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 16:00:45 GMT
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Post by agl on Apr 20, 2024 16:00:45 GMT
Could have predicted 0. That's five in a row at home. Is that a club record?
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 16:03:30 GMT
Post by sammychester on Apr 20, 2024 16:03:30 GMT
That team is useless. What a let down of a season
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Post by agl on Apr 20, 2024 16:03:51 GMT
Bought crates of beer to hand out of his own money to say thank you to fans at Brackley game
Decent guy & a decent manager too
So he give you a can of warm Carling and he’s a good bloke? Could tell from the beginning he didn’t want to be here You said he didn't interact with fans. The poster is saying he did by buying beer. What more do you want? It's football management, not stand up comedy.
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Bacon
New Member
Posts: 17
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Darlo
Apr 20, 2024 16:22:11 GMT
via mobile
Post by Bacon on Apr 20, 2024 16:22:11 GMT
Yes I’d say there are some rather selective memories about Watson’s time here. He inherited a bit of a mess, but there must have been at least half a dozen away games under him when we conceded three or more goals and I recall seeing somebody compare him to Bignot when we lost about five in a row around February time. But we ultimately ended the season well with a series of clean sheets and he got us moving in the right direction. As has been said, he seemed to have a decent eye for a player and good contacts and has shown at Darlo what he can achieve. He was shit. Didn’t interact with the fans and didn’t crack one smile The bloke steadied the ship
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Post by yoshimitsu on Apr 20, 2024 16:26:35 GMT
Yes I’d say there are some rather selective memories about Watson’s time here. He inherited a bit of a mess, but there must have been at least half a dozen away games under him when we conceded three or more goals and I recall seeing somebody compare him to Bignot when we lost about five in a row around February time. But we ultimately ended the season well with a series of clean sheets and he got us moving in the right direction. As has been said, he seemed to have a decent eye for a player and good contacts and has shown at Darlo what he can achieve. He was shit. Didn’t interact with the fans and didn’t crack one smile I forgot that management ability depends upon fan interaction and how happy someone looks. Thank you for putting this right.
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Post by agl on Apr 20, 2024 16:30:50 GMT
He was shit. Didn’t interact with the fans and didn’t crack one smile I forgot that management ability depends upon fan interaction and how happy someone looks. Thank you for putting this right. Yeah, that Alex Ferguson was a right miserable sod.
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