football rambles

 Telford United might be a famous old name in non-league football, but they have had a bleak few years and this was their first game at this level after winning promotion. King's Lynn were also in the doldrums at the start of Summer, but new investment and new players have led to a new sense of optimism around the club. From the offset, it looked like Lynn were going to push for goals while Telford were keen to defend, take things slow and attack when they had the chance. As I had hoped in preseason, they decided to start with Gold Omotayo and Michael Gyasi. In the opening encounters Lynn definitely had the best of it, with Gyasi putting the ball in the net and the impressive Joe Nyahwema hitting the cross bar with a fantastic effort. However, despite the constant pressure it was Telford who took the lead when Mathew Stenson converted a penalty for the visitors. The incident happened at the other end but it was given for a foul in the box. Lynn coach, James Rowe was apoplectic, but...

I couldn't be bothered to think of a witty headline for this, but it was a cracking match. We were joined by Beer Can and his friend, in fact I hardly ever seem to get down to the Shabby without guests in tow. I have predicted that Telford will shock a few Conference fans this season, most of whom seemed to have written them off before they had a chance to kick a ball after gaining promotion from the Conference North at the end of last season. However the Bucks have been scoring for fun in pre-season and I think they will pose more of a threat than the Conference big boys think they will pose. They certainly started off well enough at Cambridge on Tuesday night and could have easily been 3-0 up at the break if it wasn't for some impressive saves from Cambridge goalkeeper Danny Naisbitt, who was on tremendous form. A string of saves and double saves kept out the Telford onslaught with Sean Newton looking especially dangerous from set pieces. Cambridge on the other hand l...