Pre-Season 2012/2013:
Welcome back to another busy pre-season at Princes Park.
It is really good to be back. Last season finished on such a high and I know we have all be dying to get back and see what the future holds as we start life in the Blue Square Premier. The season ahead will be challenging to say the least, but a challenge that we are all looking forward to and will hopefully remember for a long time.
I am writing these notes in June while enjoying my last few days of freedom, so by the time this is actually printed me and the boys will have probably done about 500 laps of the golf course, 300 box to boxes and 250 shuttle runs.....hating the sight of Skip with his clipboard, Mose with his cones, and wishing we were back lying on a beach somewhere in the sun!! Although Champs and Danny Harris have probably spent the summer at altitude, training alongside some of Kenya’s finest marathon runners, and are loving every minute of the pain. And if chasing those two around wasn’t bad enough, the rest of us have also been cruelly robbed of knowing that we would always finish ahead of Youngy at anything remotely challenging.....but at least Hayesie is still here.
Looking ahead, we have got some great fixtures lined up with the likes of Arsenal, West Ham, Gillingham and Leyton Orient all visiting Princes Park. The players really enjoy being involved in these games each year as they provide us with a great opportunity to play against some real quality professional players. This will only help us when it comes to the new season, particularly this year when we will be facing full-time professionals week in and week out.
I hope you enjoy the games and are looking forward to August 11th as we go into what is a huge season for the club.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
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Tamworth:
Welcome to today’s game against Tamworth and our first game of the 2012/13 Blue Square Premier season.
Today marks the club’s return to the top flight of the non-league football pyramid after a long time away in the wilderness. Firstly, I would just like to recognise those select few individuals that have supported the club through the dark times and kept it alive over the years. Without each of you Dartford Football Club probably wouldn’t even exist today, let alone be in the position it is in. As a local lad, leading the team out today will be a very proud moment for myself, and I only think it right to give thanks and show our appreciation to those people who made this all possible.
In terms of the season ahead, each game is going to be a huge challenge for us. There are no easy games in this league and we will need to work hard and scrap for every point we pick up. The league is full of experienced full-time sides, many of which should really be in the Football League, and this just goes to show how far we have come in such a short space of time. Having said that, we are not here to simply make up the numbers. Our squad is built with players who are used to winning, and this doesn’t change no matter who the opposition is.
Today will be a bit of an eye opener as to what we can expect this year. Unlike previous seasons, I don’t expect everything to go our way, but I think it is vitally important that we all understand what the ultimate aim is this year and work towards it together. Hopefully there will be more highs than lows, but we are all in this together and your support is going to be needed week in and week out to see us through.
Thanks for your support and I hope you enjoy the season.
Bradders.
Dartford v Tamworth Sat 11 Aug 2012 FT 2-3 Att 1370
Woking v Dartford Tue 14 Aug 2012 FT 1-0 Att 1846
Macclesfield v Dartford Sat 18 Aug 2012 FT 2-0 Att 1420
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Kidderminster Harriers:
Welcome to today’s game against Kidderminster Harriers.
We are now two weeks and three games into the new season, and we are yet to pick up a point. It certainly has been a bit of an eye-opener to life at this level. Fair enough, I don’t think we have had the rub of the green at times, but ultimately we have caused all of our own problems and been punished for them. A mix of poor defending, lack of discipline and not being clinical in front of goal has cost us dearly in our opening three games, and in all honesty we should really be sitting on at least four points by now in my opinion. The performances as a whole have not been bad, but that is not much comfort at the moment. We have been taught a few tough lessons over the past couple of weeks, and we need to learn from them quickly.
Kidderminster are in a very similar position to us, which makes this a massive game for both clubs. We cannot afford to leave it too long before getting up and running, so three points today would be a massive confidence boost for everyone going into another big game at Cambridge on Monday. From what I have seen so far, nobody has torn us apart and we have more than matched the opposition in each game, but for whatever reason we have hit the self destruct button and have effectively beaten ourselves.
It is time to turn things around, cut out the silly mistakes and get some points on the board. We all understand what the aim is for this season, and I see no reason at all why that is not possible.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Kidderminster Sat 25 Aug 2012 FT 1-0 Att 1068
Cambridge v Dartford Mon 27 Aug 2012 FT 1-2 Att 2691
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Alfreton Town:
Welcome to today’s game against Alfreton Town.
We have finally got our first points on the board of the new season. It took a while to get up and running, but as I mentioned last week, it was only ever going to be a matter of time. Our performances in the opening three games deserved more, so it was nice to finally see our hard work paying off last weekend. There was a bit of pressure on us going into the Kidderminster game as both teams were pointless, so to get a win was a huge confidence boost. It would have been really disheartening to go another game without picking up a point, so it was a nice to put that monkey to bed and move onto the Cambridge game with three points in the bank.
To then go to Cambridge, one of the fancied teams in the league, and pick up another three points was an absolutely fantastic achievement. All of the boys put in a great shift, and although we rode our luck at times and absorbed a bit of pressure, we showed great team spirit and character to get the result. Overall, despite Marcus needing to pull off a couple of top class saves, they didn’t seem to hurt us much and I thought we were good value for the result. We were organised defensively and limited them to very few goal scoring opportunities, and I thought we ourselves looked dangerous on the counter attack. The support we received was brilliant too, so thank you to those who made the trip – a great effort.
All of a sudden we find ourselves in a much better position in the league. We may have already been written off by a few people, but we have proven to ourselves that we are a decent side and more than capable of competing at this level. Alfreton will be another tough test, make no mistake about that, but this is another real opportunity to put some more points on the board with the likes of Newport, Gateshead, Hereford and Wrexham coming up over the next couple of weeks. It is not going to be easy but it’s important we continue to win our home games to keep ourselves ticking over.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Alfreton Sat 1 Sep 2012 FT 5-1 Att 1145
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Newport County:
Welcome to tonight's game against Newport County.
It has been a very good couple of weeks for the club. To pick six points up over the bank holiday weekend was a great achievement, but what was really pleasing was to come back home and take three more points on Saturday. No disrespect at all to Alfreton, as all teams are tough in this league, but if we are to stay up we need to win those games. We now go into a run of four big games, and to do so with nine points in the bank is a bonus.
It was important not to lose focus on Saturday. It would have been easy for us to think we had made it after the Cambridge game, so to win so convincingly was great. Tonight is another big game against the team which are currently top. There is absolutely no pressure on us and we have nothing to fear so we will work hard again and try and get something out of the game. We have proven more than capable of competing at this level so we will be looking to pick up more points here.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders
Dartford v Newport Tue 4 Sep 2012 FT 2-1 Att 1446
Gateshead v Dartford Sat 8 Sep 2012 FT 2-0 Att 758
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Hereford United:
Welcome to today’s game against Hereford.
This is the first chance I have had to write since the Newport County game. It was a fantastic night for the club and a result that I am sure will live long in the memory. Nobody really gave us a chance against the team that were at the top of the table, but I think we showed what we are capable of if we defend properly and then take our chances at the other end. It has certainly been a very promising start to the season. I am sure if we had been offered 12 points from our opening eight games, we would have taken it, especially after losing our first three games.
Last Saturday’s defeat away to Gateshead shows that we can’t afford to get carried away. Gateshead were a decent side and it was the first time this season where I felt we really didn’t look like getting anything from the game. I am not sure of the reason for it, maybe a bit of tiredness after a big couple of weeks, but it showed how easily things can change. I thought we defended well for the opening half an hour and could have scored ourselves, but we let in a sloppy goal on the stroke of half time and then spent the rest of the game chasing. It is all well and good trying to keep solid defensively, but the quality we needed going forward just wasn’t there on Saturday and we paid the price. A big thank you to those who travelled up to Gateshead for the game – I know it was an early start and a long trip but we all really appreciated the support.
Today is going to be another massive test for us. Hereford were in the League Two last year and I am sure they will be looking to bounce straight back up this season. They suffered a heavy defeat last week and will want to put that right today and we need to get back to winning ways too. We are the home side, so we need to put last week behind us and get back on track as quickly as possible.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Hereford Sat 15 Sep 2012 FT 4-0 Att 1601
Wrexham v Dartford Sat 22 Sep 2012 FT 2-2 Att 3772
Braintree v Dartford Tue 25 Sep 2012 FT 0-2 Att 721
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Hyde:
Welcome to today’s game against Hyde.
We are on a great run of form coming into today’s game, having picked up an excellent point away to Wrexham last weekend and then putting in another good performance to take three points away from Braintree on Tuesday. However, I think it is vitally important that we put things into a little bit of perspective and keep in mind what our ultimate goals are this season and how easily things can change in football. Things are going well for us at the moment but there are certainly going to be some tough times ahead. Our main aim is to survive in this league and it is going to take a massive effort from everyone to achieve that, so we need to keep focused and continue to work hard to pick up points.
The performances away to both Wrexham and Braintree this week were very encouraging. We obviously need to continue with our good home form, but it is important we look to improve away from home too which is starting to happen. The whole team put in a great shift in both games and it is pleasing when your hard work pays off in the form of points, and four points was the least I think we deserved from the two performances.
Hyde are struggling a little bit coming into today’s game, but that does not make a blind bit off difference. League position doesn’t matter at all at this early stage and if we take our eye of the ball we will get punished. There is a long way to go yet this season and as soon as we start to think that points will come easy we will find ourselves in trouble. So it is important to recognise the reasons why we have been successful in the early part of this season and continue to do those things well.
Thanks for your support, especially those who travelled all the way to Wrexham last weekend and created such a great atmosphere.
Dartford v Hyde Sat 29 Sep 2012 FT 2-1 Att 1338
Grimsby v Dartford Sat 6 Oct 2012 FT 0-2 Att 4009
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AFC Telford:
Welcome to tonight's game against Telford.
It has been another great week for the club. By our own high standards the performance against Hyde was not very good but we still managed to pick up three points. As I have said before, I would much rather win ugly than lose pretty, and that is exactly what we managed to do so a job well done in my opinion. To then go up to Grimsby, another ex-league club, and win so convincingly was very special. Other than one or two shots they may have had, I think we completely dominated the game and thoroughly deserved the win. The support we got from the crowd was absolutely fantastic too so a big thank you to all those that travelled up. It was a great day out and one I am sure we will all remember.
Telford come here tonight after winning on Saturday and will be yet another tough test for us. As I keep saying, it is really important that we don't take our eye off the ball here and forget all the good things that are making us successful at the moment. We must continue to work hard because that is the very minimum it is going to take to keep us in this league. I don't want anyone to get too carried away with our current league position as there is a long way to go yet and things can change very easily.
Tonight is another big opportunity to add more points to our tally and that is all that we are focused on right now.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v AFC Telford Tue 9 Oct 2012 FT 1-4 Att 1359
Barrow v Dartford Sat 13 Oct 2012 FT 0-0 Att 1278
FA Cup Fourth Round Qualifying
Forest Green Rovers v Dartford Sat 20 Oct 2012 FT 1-1 Att 891
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Forest Green Rovers – FA Cup
Welcome to tonight’s FA Cup replay against Forest Green Rovers.
I think a draw on Saturday was probably a fair result. They played some decent stuff in the first half and scored a good goal, although I can’t say they really caused us too many problems despite having a lot of possession. Our second half performance was much better and we rightfully got back in the game after a great finish from Jacob. We had a couple of chances to nick it later on too, but Louis was also forced into making a couple of great saves at the other end, so all in all there are no complaints about the result.
Forest Green are one of the fancied teams in our league and are one of the few teams above us in the table at the moment. As a promoted club coming into this season, I think to get a draw away from home shows how well we are doing. Having seen yesterday’s first round proper draw, it would be nice to get Port Vale back down here after the disappointment of two years ago. Many people will remember that game and how we could and probably should of beaten them in the home leg to get into the second round, although it was not to be. It would be nice to get the opportunity to have another go at them by winning tonight.
The support on Saturday was excellent as always, so thank you to those who travelled down. Hopefully we can finish the job tonight. We also host Mansfield at home in front of the TV cameras on Friday night, so I hope to see as many of you there as possible.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Forest Green Rovers Tue 23 Oct 2012 FT 1-4 Att 804
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Mansfield Town:
Welcome to tonight’s game against Mansfield Town.
It seems not so long ago that Dartford Football Club was busy dodging the dog turds on park pitches around Kent. But tonight shows just how far the club has come with a game live on television against an ex-Football League side while we sit in 6th position in the Conference Premier. There are a number people here tonight that will remember those dark days well, so I hope you all enjoy tonight as (hopefully) the first of many such occasions to come in the future.
Going back to Tuesday night, we were all bitterly disappointed to miss out on the opportunity to get into the first round of the FA Cup. Forest Green were a decent side but I felt we more than held our own for large periods of the game and had some chances ourselves. It was an ugly encounter, not helped by a referee that seemed to constantly have his whistle in his mouth and his cards in the air. But, to be fair, we were the masters of our own downfall in the end. Louis will hold his hand up to two mistakes, but he has nothing to prove to any of us. Everybody makes mistakes and unfortunately it was his turn on Tuesday. Louis is a fantastic goalkeeper and we are very lucky to have him at the club, and I am sure he will be back to his best tonight.
Lastly, I would like to bring to everyone’s attention that myself and all the players are taking part in “Movember” this year – growing dubious looking moustaches throughout the month of November to raise money for various cancer charities. There will be donation buckets dotted around the ground throughout all of our November home games, so any spare change you can afford to donate would be much appreciated. I have also set up a web page for online donations if you are interested:
www.mobro.co/DFCmovembermadness
Again, anything you can spare would be greatly appreciated. Hopefully we can raise some decent money for some worthy causes.....and all laugh at how stupid Danny Harris is going to look for a month.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Mansfield Town Fri 26 Oct 2012 FT 2-0 Att 1737
Dartford v Forest Green Tue 6 Nov 2012 FT 0-1 Att 915
Luton v Dartford Sat 10 Nov 2012 FT 0-2 Att 6567
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Southport:
Welcome to today’s game against Southport.
First of all, I would just like to thank the 500 of you that made the trip to Luton last weekend. The support we received throughout was absolutely fantastic and the noise was tremendous. To play at Kenilworth Road and in an atmosphere like that was a very special moment that I will always remember, so a big thank you to all the travelling supporters who made it such a great occasion. Again, we managed to prove that we can mix it with the big boys in this league – everyone put in a great shift and it just goes to show what a little bit of hard work and desire can achieve. Fair enough, we rode our luck at times but no team is going to go there and have it all their own way. It was another great performance, another three points and another step towards achieving our goals this season. I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.
Before we get too carried away, we face another tough test today against Southport. After such a high last weekend, we need to get ourselves grounded again quickly and focus on today. We went away to Grimsby a few weeks ago and then followed that up by getting bashed as home to Telford. We then beat Mansfield at home and followed that up by losing to Forest Green. It’s really important to stay focused on the job at hand and try and put another winning run together. Southport will be coming here looking for three points and so are we, so this looks set to be another good game.
A little update on our Movember campaign – as many of you will have noticed, there are some amazing staches flying about all in aid of a good cause. My favourite?? John Wallis by an absolute country mile.......followed by Danny Harris who looks like Inspector Clouseau’s gangly brother!! We managed to raise £40 when the buckets came around last week, so thank you to those who donated. The buckets will be coming around again today (for one final time) so please keep an eye out for them. Alternatively you can donate online at:
http://uk.movember.com/team/580965
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Southport Sat 17 Nov 2012 FT 2-2 Att 1506
FA Trophy Kingstonian v Dartford Sat 24 Nov 2012 FT 0-4 Att 508
Tamworth v Dartford Sat 1 Dec 2012 FT 3-2 Att 832
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Lincoln City:
Welcome to today's game against Lincoln City.
I am writing this just after the defeat to Tamworth, and obviously we are all bitterly disappointed with the result. I will be the first to admit that we did not play particularly well on the day, but to go ahead twice in the game and not even manage to get a point is disappointing. Tamworth are a good side and put us under pressure throughout but we still had a number of very good chances which we didn't take. No arguments with the first penaly decision and Bonner's sending off - it was an instincive reaction and unfortunately it meant we played the rest of the game with 10 men which made things very difficult. However, I thought the second penalty decision was very soft and it came at a time where Tamworth seemed to be running out of ideas about how to break us down. Drawing level gave them an extra boost and unfortuntely for us they found a late winner. Without the second penalty, I think we would have won the game. But that's football.
With regard to the ugly scenes at the end of the game, let's just hope the powers that be see the video and the appropriate Tamworth player is punished for his actions. I would like to apologise to any supporters that were effected by this after the game and it just shows how one player's antics can cause such a ridiculous situation. He knows what he did, and as far as I am concerned he is a disgrace to himself, his club and the game of football. Unfortunately I dare say there will be disciplinary action taken against both clubs now and for something that should never of happened. All I can say is that I am just glad we do not have anyone like that at our club.
Today we face a very good Lincoln side who are doing well in both the league and cup competitions. After watching today's FA Cup draw, its inevitable that they will have one eye on the replay with Mansfield on Tuesday night but regardless this is going to be yet another very tough game. Our home form has not been great all season and its time we started showing more of what we are about at home and winning games. And depending on how Tuesday's trip to Nuneaton goes, this could be a vitally important game for us.
As always, thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Nuneaton v Dartford Tue 4 Dec 2012 FT 1-0 Att 651
Dartford v Lincoln Sat 8 Dec 2012 FT 2-4 Att 1466
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Tonbridge Angels – FA Trophy:
Welcome to today’s FA Trophy tie against Tonbridge Angels.
It seems a bit strange to be writing this after having such a poor week in terms of results. It certainly seems a long while since we lost our opening three games of the season and I can’t remember many times over my four years at the club where we have lost three in a row. Having said that, I don’t feel that we have been completely outplayed by anyone – our downfall has been largely our own doing. Other than the Tamworth game, where I felt we were a bit unlucky, we have suffered through collective poor play and both ends of the pitch. We have missed great chances in front of goal, and then made too many basic errors in our own penalty area to concede goals. And that is unlike us.
To be four down at half time against Lincoln on Saturday was an embarrassment and that is a feeling I have only had on a couple of occasions throughout my career. To concede four goals in a week from set pieces is not right, but we have spent time looking at what went wrong and hopefully this will be sorted out now. Our second half performance was encouraging, but let’s be honest, we cannot expect for everything to go our way this season and we knew there were going to be tough times ahead. We have been punished for our mistakes this week, but it is down to us to work hard and change things around.
Things certainly don’t get any easier with the visit on Tonbridge today. Both clubs know all about each other after playing so often over the years and these games are always tough. We have tended to come out on top in recent years, but Tonbridge will probably think this is a good time to be playing us with the week we have had. It’s time for us to show a bit of character and bounce back with a good performance and a win today. The FA Trophy is a great competition and both teams will want to go through to the next round, so this should be a great game.
I understand that you will all be disappointed with the recent run of results, but nobody is more upset than me, the management and the team. We need everyone pulling in the same direction and hopefully our fortunes will change.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Tonbridge Angels Sat 15 Dec 2012 FT 3-0 Att 926
Kidderminster v Dartford Sat 22 Dec 2012 FT 5-1 Att 1779
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Ebbsfleet:
Welcome to today's game against Ebbsfleet.
Firstly, I hope everyone had a nice Christmas. There isn't much time to rest though with some big games coming up during this busy period, with two against our old rivals Ebbsfleet. These are always really enjoyable games for everyone involved - the chance for one team to take the bragging rights from their neighbours, but I think everyone will agree that it's nice that both teams can now meet in the Conference Premier for the first time.
I am writing this well in advance just after our win in the FA Trophy against Tonbridge. It was nice to get back to winning ways after such a disappointing week. As players, losing three games in a row is not nice, but I think it shows our character to come back and win so convincingly yesterday despite being against lower league opposition. I don't usually single anyone out but I thought Jacob Erskine was absolutely unstoppable yesterday. He has been brilliant for us all season and is a key part of our success so far this year, and yesterday he was totally unplayable no matter what standard you are playing at.
We play Kidderminster next weekend, who have been on an amazing run since starting the season so badly. It will be a very tough game but hopefully we can come away with some sort of result to get our league form back on track going into the busy Christmas period.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Ebbsfleet Wed 26 Dec 2012 FT 3-1 Att 3116
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Cambridge United:
Welcome to today’s game against Cambridge United.
Again, I am writing this well in advance so I can’t comment on our previous two games against Kidderminster and Ebbsfleet. We desperately need to get our league form back on track, so I can only hope that we will have managed pick up a couple of good results in these two games to carry us nicely into the New Year.
Looking back on the first half of the season, I think we should all be pretty pleased with our achievements so far. We came into this year as one of the favourite teams to get relegated and hopefully we have managed to prove a few people wrong and caused a few upsets along the way. Having said that, nothing has been achieved yet and there is still a long way to go. We have seen how strange this league can be, and you can easily go on a winning or losing run and all of a sudden things can look very different. Our ultimate goal remains to consolidate our position in this league, and we are well on track to doing this. However, it is going to take a massive effort from everyone over the course of the next four months to make sure this is a successful season for Dartford Football Club, and I can only hope that the second half of the season goes as well as the first.
Today will be another very tough game against one of the top teams in this division, regardless of position in the league. I am sure they will be looking for a reaction after we managed to beat them earlier in the year, and we certainly want to end the year on a high. So this will hopefully be a good entertaining game between two good teams. This will be our third game in a week and there will be some tired bodies out there, but we will put a shift in and hopefully come out with a result.
I would just like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your continued support. Our support, both home and away, has been absolutely brilliant once again and has spurred us on to some memorable results so far this year. I am sure there will be more to come and I look forward to what 2013 brings.
Bradders.
Dartford v Cambridge Sat 29 Dec 2012 FT 1-1 Att 1716
Ebbsfleet v Dartford Tue 1 Jan 2013 FT 2-2 Att 2242
Alfreton v Dartford Sat 5 Jan 2013 FT 3-2 Att 522
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Bromley:
Welcome to today’s FA Trophy tie against Bromley.
Firstly, a very happy New Year to everyone. I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year and are looking forward to the second half of the season. 2012 was certainly a year to remember for all involved with Dartford Football Club and I can only hope that 2013 brings more success.
It has obviously been a very busy past couple of weeks for us. Having lost badly at Kidderminster, it was so important that we picked ourselves up going into the busy Christmas period. To beat Ebbsfleet on Boxing Day and then manage to take a good point from Cambridge a few days later was fantastic. Unfortunately we ran out of steam a little bit on New Year’s Day and although Ebbsfleet fully deserved at least a point, to concede with almost the last kick of the game after being two goals up was disappointing. But to put things in perspective, we picked up five more points over the period and moved that little bit closer to safety, which we should be please with.
Last weekend’s trip to Alfreton was just as disappointing. To score two goals away from home and not get anything from the game is not acceptable at this level. We are certainly being punished for our mistakes at the moment, but I think we are generally making it too easy for teams to score against us and we need to become harder to beat. I consider it effectively five points dropped from winning positions in our last two league games and that is something that needs to change quickly.
Today will be another tough game against a good side. I can only remind everyone of how we felt last season when we lost to Wealdstone at this stage of the competition who then went on to a narrow semi-final defeat. Bromley also beat us in the final qualifying round of the FA Cup last season so no other motivation is really needed. Let’s hope for a good performance and a place in the hat on Monday.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Bromley Sat 12 Jan 2013 FT
4-2 Att 1305
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Macclesfield:
Welcome to tonight's game against Macclesfield.
The win on Saturday against Bromley saw us reach the last eight of the FA Trophy, which is a great achievement. We are now just three games away from a potential Wembley appearance so I will be keeping a keen eye on the draw tomorrow and looking forward to the 26th January when the quarter final will be played. There are some top teams left in the competition but we have nothing to fear from any of them as we have already seen this season. Let's just keep out fingers crossed for a home draw.
The performance against Bromley was by no means anything to write home about but we were very clinical in front of goal and scored at the right times. Bromley were a decent side and did not make it easy for us, but I thought the boys put in a very professional performance, particularly in the second half. Dominic Green has come in and had an immediate impact with a great performance and two good goals. I think he gives us a whole new dimension in midfield with his ability to hold and carry the ball forward which takes the pressure off us defensively. Hopefully he will be the first of a few new faces we will see in the coming weeks as tiredness, injury and suspensions start to kick in to our already small squad.
Tonight will obviously be a very tough game. I remember losing to Macclesfield earlier in the season and really feeling (for the first time) the difference in class between this league and the lower leagues we have come from. They were very sharp and punished us for every little mistake we made whether it was giving the ball away cheaply or not taking our own chances in front of goal. We have come a long way since then, but the past month or so has been really tough. It's time to dig in, push on and pick up some more points to move us closer to safety. Hopefully we can do that tonight.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Macclesfield Tue 15 Jan 2013 FT 2-0 Att 821
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Braintree:
Welcome to tonight's game against Braintree.
With the game against Hereford being called off on Saturday due to the snow, I can't say I am too optimistic for this game to go ahead. If anything the weather has got worse today, so it doesn't look good. Having said that a few of the games that did go ahead yesterday went our way with the likes of Barrow picking up a surprising win at Newport, and Forest Green also losing. Just goes to show, once again, what can happen in this league. The cancellations also mean that some of the teams around us have got even more of a fixture backlog which might play into our hands.
The result against Macclesfield last Tuesday night was a great achievement for everyone involved. I mentioned in my notes prior to that game that Macclesfield were one of the first teams to really show us what a step up we had taken from previous years. Watching from the bench, I thought they played some decent stuff but we defended excellently as a team and looked dangerous on the break. It was much more like how we were performing earlier in the season and I thought we thoroughly deserved it. It was also nice to make that leap over the 40 points mark which seems to have taken a while to come about.
I am keeping my fingers crossed for this game but it seems more likely that this will now be played later in the season. We managed to pick up a good win against Braintree at their place and I am hoping for a repeat of the same performance.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Hereford v Dartford Sat 19 Jan 2013 (POSTPONED)
Dartford v Braintree Tue 22 Jan 2013 (POSTPONED)
Halifax Town v Dartford Wed 30 Jan 2013 FT 1-1 Att 921
Mansfield v Dartford Sat 2 Feb 2013 FT 5-0 Att 2598
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Halifax:
Welcome to tonight’s FA Trophy replay against Halifax.
This is a massive game for both clubs. The opportunity to reach a semi-final of any competition does not come along very often, and I think it’s important we all recognise this fact. A two-legged semi-final against Grimsby could go either way, so we have a fantastic chance of not only reaching Wembley but also to win this competition. This is not a day to let pass without a fight – it’s a massive occasion and a fantastic opportunity, so anything less than a win tonight is not acceptable. Halifax will be thinking the exact same thing, and judging by their performance against us last week, they are more than capable of beating us if we do not rise to the occasion. I usually do not put this much emphasis on a game, but as you grow older you realise how seldom these opportunities come along. We need to grab it with both hands.
I want to briefly touch on the Mansfield game on Saturday. The 5-0 score line just shows how ruthless the BSBP is – we have had the better of the game in the first half and missed probably three or four glorious opportunities to score in the second. On the other hand, Mansfield defended strongly and took their chances at almost every opportunity. That is the difference. We got punished for our own mistakes at both ends of the pitch, but I don’t think we should get downhearted as things could have been very different on another day.
Lastly I would just like to thank all those supporters who have travelled the country with us over the past couple of weeks. You have put in some serious miles to support us and have not had much to cheer about along the way. Hopefully a good performance and a win tonight will make up for it and take us another step closer towards something special.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Halifax Town Wed 6 Feb 2013 FT
3-2 Att 805
Lincoln v Dartford Sat 9 Feb 2013 FT 2-1 Att 1789
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Luton Town:
Welcome to tonight's game against Luton Town.
We are coming off the back of a disappointing result on Saturday away to Lincoln. We conceded a poor early goal, which seems to be turning into a bit of a trend at the moment, and then struggled to break them down after they were reduced to 10 men. It is always difficult when a team sits men behind the ball and defends, but we just didn't have enough quality to turn things around. What was more disappointing was that we managed to draw level and then gave the point away cheaply. Don't get me wrong, I think the referee made two poor decisions - one for the free kick in the first place and then the resulting penalty, but nevertheless we didn't deal with the situation properly and were punished.
We all knew coming into this season that there was going to be highs and lows. Our early season form was great, but in reality we all knew that we were going to have to scrap and fight to stay in this league. That hasn't changed. Yes, things gave not been so great over the past couple of months, but we are lucky to have right people at this football club that will battle and do the hard work necessary to make sure we are still in the conference premier next season. This management team and similar group of players have been together for a number of years now and I have absolutely no doubt that we will still achieve what we set out to do when we all came back for preseason in July.
Tonight we host one of the favourites to gain promotion this season, and rightly so. Luton are a big club, with a big support and some great players. But, in the end it is just another game of football and there is no reason why we cannot repeat what we managed to achieve at Kenilworth Road earlier in the season. We will be out there again fighting hard to get a result and trying our best to move us that little bit closer to safety.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Luton Town Tue 12 Feb 2013 FT 1-0 Att 1802
FA Trophy Semi Final First Leg -
Grimsby v Dartford Sat 16 Feb 2013 FT 3-0 Att 3573
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Grimsby Town (FA Trophy):
Welcome to today’s FA Trophy tie against Grimsby Town.
To concede three goals last Saturday has undeniably left us with a mountain to climb today in order to reach the final. In my opinion, at 1-0 down with 10 minutes left, both teams seemed relatively happy to take that score line into the second leg. However, Marcus unfortunately made a mistake for the second goal which gifted them the upper hand. Marcus is by far the best keeper I have seen this season and has earned so many points all by himself, so I really feel for him. Outfield players can often get away with mistakes but keepers don’t have that luxury. Regardless of the nature of the second goal, there is absolutely no way we should have been naïve enough to concede a third. That showed some inexperience on our part and we were punished for not being focused enough to see the game out.
I can honestly say that I have ever been more disappointed walking off a football pitch in my life as I was last week. There were a few sleepless nights afterwards, but it’s important to realise that we still have another opportunity here. We have beaten teams by more than three goals this year already, so we just have to focus and hope and believe that miracles can happen.
Thanks to all of those that made the long trip up to Grimsby last week. The support was, as always, excellent. Today is a massive task, but just maybe we can produce something a bit special.
Bradders.
Dartford v Grimsby Sat 23 Feb 2013 FT 0-0 Att 2153
Southport v Dartford Sat 2 Mar 2013 FT 2-2 Att 823
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Stockport County:
Welcome to tonight's game against Stockport County.
After the disappointment of going out of the FA Trophy last weekend it's important that we don't lose focus. We need to make sure we finish the season strongly and maintain our league position. We have got a very busy month ahead and we need to pick up points on a regular basis to make sure we do not slip down the table. Looking upwards, there are plenty of points left to play for so I see no reason why we can't put a run together and push on.
Of course we are all disappointed with the Trophy exit. In truth, a crazy last 8 minutes in the away leg cost us dearly and we just were not good enough to get it back last week. We had some decent chances but they managed to throw a body part in front of everything. I thought Grimsby were excellent defensively and if they defend like that every week it's not hard to see why they are at the top of the league. Something for us to aspire to as a team.
I am writing this before Saturday's trip to Southport so hopefully we can bring a result back from there to set us up nicely for tonight, and before the return of the TV cameras when we host Wrexham on Friday evening.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Stockport Tue 5 Mar 2013 FT 1-1 Att 757
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Wrexham:
Welcome to tonight’s game against Wrexham.
After two tough games already this week, we are back in action again. It was a long trip up to Southport on Saturday and they were a big physical side so there was not much pretty football played. To lose the lead twice was disappointing but as they seemed intent on playing the long ball and battling for possession, I thought we did well to match them and it was a hard fought and well-earned point.
On Tuesday night, contrary to league position I thought Stockport were one of the best footballing sides we have played this year. We were poor in the first half admittedly, but had them on the ropes for long periods in the second half, so a draw was probably a fair result.
I heard a few grumblings from the side on Tuesday night, but I think a bit of perspective is needed. Fair enough we did not play at all well in the first half but I thought our second half performance was excellent. Trust me, a point gained in this league is never a bad result and although we would love to win every game that is not realistic. In reality, we are a small part-time outfit in a tough league full of well financed professional teams, and we are more than holding our own - something I think we should all be proud of. We have moved two points closer to safety this week and sit in 11th place in the table – a position a lot of other teams would love to be in. Nobody is more disappointed than me when we do not win or play well (both on a personal level and as a team), but let’s not lose sight of what we are trying to achieve here. We are all in this together.
Tonight we welcome back the TV cameras to Princes Park and we can only hope for a repeat of the performance and result we got the last time they were here. Wrexham are one of the biggest clubs and best teams in this division, so we have our work cut out for us. But, as we have seen already this season, we can be more than a match for anyone on our day. We thoroughly deserved the point we got away to Wrexham earlier in the season, so I see no reason why we can’t get something out of this game.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Wrexham Fri 8 Mar 2013 - Match postponed - waterlogged pitch
Dartford v Wrexham Sat 9 Mar 2013 FT 2-1 Att 815 (No TV cameras)
Dartford v Braintree Tue 12 Mar 2013 - Match postponed - Partly frozen pitch
Hyde v Dartford Sat 16 Mar 2013 FT 3-0 Att 475
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Barrow:
Welcome tonight's game against Barrow.
There is not much I can say about Saturday's game at Hyde. It was probably our poorest performance of the season. We didn't defend well, allowed them far too much space in our final third, and then offered little to nothing in attack. We have been on the receiving end of a few beatings this year, but I can honestly only remember a couple of times where we really didn't deserve anything from the game - and Saturday was definitely one of them. We could still be out there now and wouldn't have scored.
We have, for whatever reason, been pretty inconsistent all season. It reminds we of our first season in the Confence South, where our performances and results varied all year. But that is what this league is all about - every team can beat another on the day, there are no runaway leaders and it's all very tight at the bottom. There is no excuse for that performance on Saturday, but there is no point of dwelling on it now. The games are coming thick and fast and we have an opportunity to put a few things right tonight.
Barrow are down there scrapping for their lives and will look at our result on Saturday and believe they can do the same. It's up to us to come up with a response and put a few things right tonight.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Barrow Tue 19 Mar 2013 FT 0-1 Att 908
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Gateshead:
Welcome to today’s game against Gateshead.
It has been a tough week. There is a very fine line between winning and losing in football and we saw that again on Tuesday night against Barrow – a game of little quality that, in the end, was decided by a single goal from the penalty spot. I am not here to make excuses, but looking at the game stats afterwards both teams had a similar level of possession, shots on/off target and corners etc, but the game hasn’t ended in a draw. The tale of the tape has come down to a few inconsistent refereeing decisions. That is not an excuse and it does not hide the fact that we didn’t really create much in the final third, but ultimately it was the difference between one point and no points. And that is what really matters at the end of the day.
I can understand people being upset with the result, and nobody is more upset that us. We all work incredibly hard for this football club and when that doesn’t pay off with results, it hurts. Since I have been at this club, we have been a team that has been successful because of hard work, guts and endeavour. We showed plenty of that on Tuesday night but at this level of football a lot more quality is needed. The absolute truth of the matter is that we perhaps do not have the level of quality that is needed to win games on a consistent basis in this division. On a personal level, I would run through brick walls for this club…..but maybe work rate, heart and effort is just not enough anymore. Like me, this team is filled with lads who give absolutely everything they have on the pitch, but only a select few have the quality on the ball to change games. That’s the difference.
We have 10 games left this season. Each and every one will be a tough test, but my ultimate aim is to help this club be a BSP team again next year. We will do that by doing what we have always done - working hard. For many of us, that is all we can do. Hopefully that’s enough to get us safe and for the club to move forward in future.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Gateshead Sat 23 Mar 2013 FT
3-0 Att 1020
Hereford v Dartford Tue 26 Mar 2013 FT 1-0 Att 662
Newport v Dartford Sat 30 Mar 2013 FT 0-0 Att 2111
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Woking:
Welcome to today’s game against Woking.
I am writing this just after our win against Gateshead. It was great to get back to winning ways after what was a tough week with two defeats to Hyde and Barrow. The result was pleasing, not only because it took us over the 50 point mark (which was our aim at the start of the season) but I also enjoyed the manner of the victory. We have come unstuck a few times this season because we have not taken our chances in front of goal and then conceded late goals to lose games, but this time we managed to win the battle over the first 60 odd minutes and then showed that little bit of quality in front of goal which has been missing at times. I remember going up to Gateshead a few years ago in the FA Trophy and thinking that was a massive game for us as a club, so it is nice to be at the same level and winning those games now.
We now go into another difficult week with away trips to both Hereford and Newport before this game today. Hopefully we can pick up some more points from those two games to move us forward. Woking have enjoyed an equally successful first season in the BSP and both clubs look to have all-but secured their places in the league for next season - a great achievement for both clubs.
Our record against them has not been great over recent games, but I think we perhaps deserved more from those games than we got. Looking back, we played well but lost 1-0 away to them last season, and then played well again earlier this year but spent the majority of the game with 10 men and then lost to what was a very dubious penalty decision late on. Hopefully our fortunes can change today and we can be on the winning side.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Woking Mon 1 Apr 2013 FT 4-1 Att 1407
AFC Telford v Dartford Sat 6 Apr 2013 FT 0-2 Att 1375
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Grimsby Town:
Welcome to tonight's game against Grimsby Town.
Despite the cliche, football really is a funny old game. After we lost to Barrow a couple of weeks ago, I honestly had a "shall I just give up football" moment. Then, all of a sudden, two weeks later we have picked up 10 more points and sit in 9th position in the BSP. I am sure all of us would have taken that at the beginning of the season and it just shows how quickly things can change and how unpredictable this league is.
The result on Easter Monday against Woking was especially pleasing. We have come close to beating them in our recent meetings but things have gone against us, so it was great to finally put one over on them. Plus we moved ahead of them in the league, which was an added bonus. Moving on to Saturday, we finally managed to get that elusive away win. It was a long time coming. It was a difficult situation with Telford already being relegated but we went there with a good attitude and put in a professional performance.
We have five tough games left this season, starting tonight. Grimsby have been one of the best teams in the league all season and look to have already secured a play off spot, but hopefully we can put in another good performance to get something from the game. The opportunity is there for us to finish the season strongly and be the highest placed part-time team in the country. That would be a fantastic achievement for us, so there is still all to play for to make this season even more special.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Grimsby Tue 9 Apr 2013 FT 1-2 Att 1201
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Braintree: (notes sent: 10 March 2013 19:45)
Welcome to tonight's game against Braintree.
To get three points against Wrexham on Saturday was a fantastic achievement. Our record against the so called "bigger clubs" this season has been outstanding and Wrexham are just another one to add to the list. I thought we were excellent all afternoon and thoroughly deserved the three points for pure hard work and endeavour. Wrexham are an excellent side and will certainly be challenging for the title, but we matched them in all areas and even outplayed them for much of the second half. Another performance to be proud of.
A special mention should go to the ground staff who worked absolute miracles to get the pitch in anything close to a playable condition after all the rain that fell on Friday. For those that were not here, the pitch was almost completely underwater on Friday night and I was amazed to see the change on Saturday morning. So a big thank you must go to everyone who worked so hard to get the game on.
We now sit on 49 points, close to our initial 50 point target which was set back at the start of the season. We have an opportunity tonight to reach that target with a good amount of games to spare. Although this is a great achievement, I really don't want this season to peter out. I want to finish as high as possible and to make this season a true success. On the other hand, we really don't want to be involved in dog fight at the other end of the table so there is plenty still to play for. With that in mind, we need to produce the same level of performance tonight as we did on Saturday and continue our unbeaten run.
Thanks for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Braintree Thu 11 Apr 2013 FT 0-0 Att 1050
Stockport v Dartford Sat 13 Apr 2013 FT 0-1 Att 6113
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Nuneaton:
Welcome to today’s game against Nuneaton.
We have come to the final day of the season, and what a successful one it has been. I am writing this before our trip to Forest Green, but depending on that result we could have a great chance of finishing both in the top half of the BSP and maybe even as the top semi-professional team in the country. With many people having us down as certain relegation candidates at the start of the year, this is an achievement that everyone associated with Dartford F.C. should be extremely proud of.
The goal at the start of the season was to try and consolidate our position in this league. With so many massive professional clubs around us it was always going to be tough, but to have pulled off so many excellent results along the way to teams like Mansfield, Kidderminster, Wrexham, Grimsby, Luton, Newport, Hereford, Macclesfield and so on is almost unbelievable. To have done this with a small squad of 16/17 part-time players is an even more impressive achievement. The team spirit and togetherness shown over the course of the year has been exceptional. As I have said before, we might not have the most talented squad in the league but I can guarantee that no other team has more desire or willingness to win than us and I think that has shown in our performances.
It has been a gruelling season, and by far the toughest I have ever had. Those of you who have travelled the country with us this year will testify to that. There have admittedly been some low points along the way, but hopefully the good times have shone through and have made the early starts, late nights, long journeys, time and money spent all worth it. Your support both home and away has been absolutely fantastic once again. You are all an absolute credit to this club and to this league, and I would like to thank you on behalf of myself, the players and staff for your commitment.
I am not sure what the future holds. We have a fantastic squad of players here, every one of which have given their all both this season and over previous years to help make this club a success story. It is only natural that some of us will not feature in a Dartford shirt again, but it is important for this club to move forwards and improve, and I can only hope to see as many of us back next year as possible to help make that happen.
Have a great summer and thanks once again for your support.
Bradders.
Dartford v Nuneaton Sat 20 Apr 2013 FT 0-1 Att 1884
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