Chippenham Town (H) 6/4/24

[middxsaint]

chippenhamtown.com/match-preview-st-albans-city-vs-chippenham-town-national-league-south-saturday-6th-april-2024/

[middxsaint]

Programme - free download - shame the fixtures & results page do not include the Herts Senior & Charity Cup games as they are first team fixtures too.

fanzone.stalbanscityfc.com/product/st-albans-city-v-chippenham-town-6th-april-2024/

[Boomer]

Line up this afternoon -

Johnson, James, Partington (c), Bowry, Brown, Banton, Rasulo, Blackman, Hutchinson, Jeffers, Akanbi.

Subs -

Burger, Francis-Clarke, Mensah, Smith, Wiltshire.

[Boomer]

Saints 0 Chippenham Town 1.

Amadi-Holloway 12.

[Boomer]

HT Saints 0 Chippenham Town 1.

[Boomer]

Burger on for Brown 61 mins.

[Boomer]

Memsah on for James 69 mins.

[Boomer]

Smith on for Bowry 76 mins.

[Boomer]

Att 1,671.

[Boomer]

FT Saint (0) 0 Chippenham Town (1) 1

10 league defeats at home this season, so far, tells its own story.

[sideshowbob]

That was awful, no pace in the side. Forwards backwards and sideways just like under noble. So easy to defend against.

[casper]

Jon Meakes post match interview

[citycentresaint]

Not good enough to go up sadly.

Too much focus on craft beer and chicken wings, the football seems to be an after thought.

[sideshowbob]

People will soon work out that it's more a social event than a football match, personally I would like to see some football played. Last few games have been dreadful. Dulwich seem to get large crowds without performing on the pitch, they don't seem to watch the game but stand around chatting with their backs to the game, munching their pie and chips, and drinking beer. Strange place.

[cityfan]

I’m not sure we can blame chicken & craft beer for the latest downturn in form. I don’t remember it being mentioned much when we were unbeaten in 11 or so games earlier in the season & looking good to make the playoffs, but as soon as results drop it’s back again. The owners have made some questionable decisions in their time but one thing I will never criticise them for is bringing numbers through the gate. Do we really want to go back to those days of averaging only a few hundred?

The football sadly seems to be petering out and we’ve hit a bad patch of form at just the wrong time. We’re too easy to play against as we constantly concede soft goals, usually early in the game, which allow oppositions to sit back. We struggle to break teams down and don’t move the ball quickly enough. Too many players seem to be almost lacking in confidence to get on the ball and try to dictate the game. The drop in form seems to have coincided with the loss of Hoddle in midfield who was excellent before being recalled.

Results today does still give us a very small chance but we’ll surely have to win every game which doesn’t look likely at the moment. In fairness to the manager he’s tried to go all out attack in recent games with some very attacking line ups, but it’s just not translated into goals & wins. It seems we’re more likely to be moving North than to the National, but Kidderminster losing today did make that hopefully less likely, although a reunion with Nobby looks like it could be on the cards, if he’s not sacked before!

[sideshowbob]

Going into the north division would cause a lot of financial damage to the club, a great part of the budget would go on travelling costs. Most of the players would leave, that's what happened to bishops stortford. They went up with a decent side, but players left when they were put in the north division. Today they lost 7-0 at south shields.

[cityfan]

It’ll certainly make things more difficult both on and off the field. Let’s hope Kidderminster join Oxford in dropping down from the National so we don’t get to find out!

[lagerman]

We just didn't have enough in the tank to break Chippenham down, they came and they done the job. We seem to have trouble breaking down teams that come to the Park and defend so resolutely, but it's something we've got to get on top of if we're to go anywhere.
There is the last play off place to play for and of course its still mathematically possible for us to make it, but l can't see us doing it now, are we just going to be also-rans for the foreseeable??
As for being switched to National League North? Well, l hope not, that'll cause us some serious issues.
We'll just have to hope that it all works out for us and we stay in NLS

[bob666]

Apr 6, 2024 20:46:12 GMT cityfan said:

I’m not sure we can blame chicken & craft beer for the latest downturn in form. I don’t remember it being mentioned much when we were unbeaten in 11 or so games earlier in the season & looking good to make the playoffs, but as soon as results drop it’s back again. The owners have made some questionable decisions in their time but one thing I will never criticise them for is bringing numbers through the gate. Do we really want to go back to those days of averaging only a few hundred?

The football sadly seems to be petering out and we’ve hit a bad patch of form at just the wrong time. We’re too easy to play against as we constantly concede soft goals, usually early in the game, which allow oppositions to sit back. We struggle to break teams down and don’t move the ball quickly enough. Too many players seem to be almost lacking in confidence to get on the ball and try to dictate the game. The drop in form seems to have coincided with the loss of Hoddle in midfield who was excellent before being recalled.

Results today does still give us a very small chance but we’ll surely have to win every game which doesn’t look likely at the moment. In fairness to the manager he’s tried to go all out attack in recent games with some very attacking line ups, but it’s just not translated into goals & wins. It seems we’re more likely to be moving North than to the National, but Kidderminster losing today did make that hopefully less likely, although a reunion with Nobby looks like it could be on the cards, if he’s not sacked before!

I not suggesting we want to go back to averaging 600 or so but its not unreasonable to expect the football to improve as revenues increase. If match day income more than doubles than the playing budget and standard of on-field performance should also improve. Our league position is roughly the same as it was before the upturn in attendance. Ultimately that is on the owners either they have increased the playing budget in line with increased revenue or they messed up the managerial appointments so that increased spending is not being translated into results. The issue people have with beer and chicken is not a hostility to increasing revenue but a frustration that increased revenue has not led to improved results. Ultimately I care far less about attendance figures that results, the former is only important in that it should generate the resources to improve the latter. It's a fair question as to why that is not happening.

One thing that struck me about some our recent defeats is that the teams we losing to hardly look like world beaters. Yeovil are too good for this level but other than that the league much of a muchness. A few shewed acquisitions and we could have been competing for second place.

[bob666]

Apr 6, 2024 20:57:31 GMT sideshowbob said:

Going into the north division would cause a lot of financial damage to the club, a great part of the budget would go on travelling costs. Most of the players would leave, that's what happened to bishops stortford. They went up with a decent side, but players left when they were put in the north division. Today they lost 7-0 at south shields.

While a bad thing. I think that is a but alarmist. Our attendances are more than 3 times that of Bishop Stortford. With the expansion of food/drink sales, commercial revenue I don't travel costs will cripple the club. Players leaving may be more of a issue.

[cityfan]

My guess would be that it’s more a case of the club now losing less money & thus reducing the amount of money the owners are needing to put in to cover the losses of the football club? I think it was mentioned at the fans forum that the owners have had to put in less money this season as the club makes more money from attendances & match day sales. However without seeing the clubs finances it’s hard to know.

As we’ve seen from the likes of Havant, Dartford & Eastbourne this season a big budget doesn’t necessarily translate into improved league performance. It’s certainly disappointing if we don’t reach the playoffs given our position 7 or 8 games ago. Our season has been one of really good & then really bad runs of form with very little in between.

[supersonic]

Awful game. Keeping the ball didn’t seem to be in the game plan. Really really tedious game.

[bob666]

Apr 7, 2024 9:37:41 GMT cityfan said:

My guess would be that it’s more a case of the club now losing less money & thus reducing the amount of money the owners are needing to put in to cover the losses of the football club? I think it was mentioned at the fans forum that the owners have had to put in less money this season as the club makes more money from attendances & match day sales. However without seeing the clubs finances it’s hard to know.

As we’ve seen from the likes of Havant, Dartford & Eastbourne this season a big budget doesn’t necessarily translate into improved league performance. It’s certainly disappointing if we don’t reach the playoffs given our position 7 or 8 games ago. Our season has been one of really good & then really bad runs of form with very little in between.

Your probably right about the club losing less money but this does change my basic point. Almost every football club lat every level losses money, look at debates around FFP at the moment. You buy one becaus of ego, it can be useful to promote other business, at a higher level the prosect of asset appreitation and at least in the case of St Albans the dream of a very lucrative stadium relocation (its a bit like buying a lottery ticket in that regard). If, for arguments stake, we were losing £100000 before and we increased revenue by £90000 I think its not unreasonable to expect half of that it go on reducing the defict and half on strenghtening the team. Of course you can waste money but the strong correlation between spending and performance at every level of football. The top 3 in the premiership have wage bills among the top 5. The bottom 3 also have the 3 lowest wage bils. Money does not guarantee success but it's very hard to succeed without it. My argument that if you the right person running recuirtment and a good coach more money will mean success. I not suggesting we have the worst owners in football or that personal attacks are acceptable but you seem to go oppoiste exterme of broaching no criticism whatsoever. Its one thing to romanticize the past but there also no need for a panglossian view of the present. What you say about inconsistent season have basically been the story of our entire time in National League South, nothing has changed. It should have.

[cityfan]

I don’t disagree with anything you’re saying at all, just trying to see both sides. I always felt in light of the FA Cup run and televised games a few years back, & the fact we were in a strong league position at the time, should have seen an increase in the playing budget at the time.

We were within 90 minutes of promotion last season, but it was telling to see a number of our better players move on elsewhere no doubt for financial gain as we aren’t able to compete. Losing your best players every season never helps to build and puts you on the back foot from the start of the season. You’d hope with the increase in attendances would lead to a more competitive playing budget & also see some investment in the playing surface which has been poor again this season.

[saintsfan8]

Apr 6, 2024 19:05:09 GMT sideshowbob said:

People will soon work out that it's more a social event than a football match, personally I would like to see some football played. Last few games have been dreadful. Dulwich seem to get large crowds without performing on the pitch, they don't seem to watch the game but stand around chatting with their backs to the game, munching their pie and chips, and drinking beer. Strange place.

I am so tired of hearing this point about people not watching the game. If someone has paid 250 for a season ticket or even just 16.50 for a game and the football is as turgid as it has been then why can't they take the opportunity to have a beer and a chat. No one is losing from this, the club makes money from them.

[citycentresaint]

I don't believe the owners want to go up.

I don't imagine our attendances would be much higher in the Conference National, whereas the budget would need to increase.

Is easier to drift along in the Conference South, focusing on craft beer and chicken wings.

[middxsaint]

[middxsaint]

Apr 7, 2024 16:15:09 GMT citycentresaint said:

I don't believe the owners want to go up.

I don't imagine our attendances would be much higher in the Conference National, whereas the budget would need to increase.

Is easier to drift along in the Conference South, focusing on craft beer and chicken wings.

Admission prices would go up bringing in more money if the attendances stay the same.   This season Barnet is £22, Solihull Moors charge either £21 or £17 depending on who they are playing, Hartlepool United is £20.