Aspiring journalist and D3D4 Stevenage correspondent Owen Rodbard takes a look at what 2018/19 could have in store for the Boro…
Last season was…
Eventful to say the least. We started the season with high hopes and promise. Even topping the table at one point, but the annual mid-season downturn in form led us to the bottom half of the table. Our problem was mainly defensive. Losing a lot points in the last 10 minutes became an expected problem with our squad. We were still playing good football, just struggling to put our chances away when we needed to. Unfortunately, this led to the sacking of popular manager Darren Sarll who had been in charge for about 2 seasons. However, this opened the door to our 4th manager in 4 seasons to take the reins. Many were rumoured, ex Boro captain Mark Roberts was fan favourite, however Dino Maamria (another ex-Stevenage player) was bookies favourite and true to odds, he arrived with optimism and an impressive first season in management with Nuneaton under his belt. His arrival prompted some excitement and after a few games in charge you could see how he wanted the team to play, but he didn’t have the right players to execute his plan and this confirmed our place in mid table obscurity for the end of the season.
This season will be different because…
Game plan and management style. Dino puts a lot of emphasis on his players being fit and being able to last the full 90, which seemed to be the cause of the last 10-minute curse from last season. Releasing some of the less important/disappointing squad players that didn’t have much of an impact and some that weren’t in Dino’s plans for next season was a big step to the overhaul of the squad that he wanted. What Dino wanted was simple; hunger, desire and the ability to move the ball quickly but also a mixture of experience and youth which can be seen in his transfer business. We have kept hold of Danny Newton (hopefully) who was easily our best player last season, and if he can continue playing in the same vain he will be up there as one of the top scorers in the division come May. If we can perform as we did at the end of last season and the new signings gel then Stevenage could be in for a very successful season.
This summer’s transfer business has been…
Promising. The sale of England U19s centre back Ben Wilmot and prolific striker Matt Godden to Watford and Peterborough reportedly added around £2 million to the club’s coffers which could have been used to bolster the squad massively. Instead we spent it on the stadium and an upgrade to facilites. Dino was asked who the best players in non-league to sign and he returned to his former side Nuneaton to acquire Luther Wildin along with adding experienced names like former Luton captain Scott Cuthbert, Michael Timlin, Jamal Campbell-Ryce and Boro legend Joel Byrom returning back to the Lamex. Along with these experience heads, we have added goalkeeper Paul Farman, ex-Tottenham winger Emmanuel Sonupe, James Ball from Stockport and Jonny Hunt from Mansfield. In the past day we have also added centre back and Ben Nugent and striker Alex Reid who will certainly be challenging for a spot in the starting 11. Overall the team has been improved and depth has been added to an already impressive team.
My expectation for the coming season is…
Top half and pushing for play offs would be most people’s initial expectation, but personally I believe that we can actually finish in the play offs. With the squad that we are building and the managerial team that has been introduced, I can expect a very successful season for us so do not be surprised if we’re pressurising the better teams in the league for the top 7 spot.
If my team were a food they’d be…
A burger. Solid in the middle, but sometimes the buns either side can be a bit soft and vulnerable.