Two games later and what do we know?

If a week is along time in politics it can be an epoch at Latimer Park.  From being drenched but happy in Wellingborough on Saturday after beating the Cobblers on the quickest penalty shoot-out in history (yes, it was THAT wet....) we were well and truly slapped in the face with "Deja Vu" by Barwell.

The only Poppies shirt to win headers in the first half

Above is a link to footage of my first ever, shortly followed by my second ever header at a Poppies match in over 35-years of attending matches.  Twice in one game after three and a half decades of waiting.  I have now headed the ball exactly twice more in a Poppies shirt than Nathan Koo Boothe and Oliver Thorne put together.  If you have a strange desire to see a fat bloke unconvincingly head a football, check out the footage between 8.30 and 9.15 minutes.

The new players all seemed to gel quite well.  Not sure of the names of any of them.  Blond one probably called Lyndon?  If previous pre-seasons have taught us nothing else, they have taught us not to get too attached to players who wear the Poppies red during July!  And our second half performance was most encouraging.

Paul White ruined a perfectly fine penalty save by asking me, whilst sheltering under my umbrella (ella, ella) as Brett strode forward, whether this could be the match winning penalty!  I confirmed it was.....pay attention Paul!  You can't very well run around like a headless, celebrating chicken if you don't know the score!

The inevitable bump was served up a few days later when Barwell, making the most of a very benign Latimer Park surface beat us at a canter.  It was a disappointing performance and result very much in keeping with the first couple of months home form last season: -

• Game starts off very even
• Then the opposition score
• Then they score again
• Then they add another, just for the fun of it
• Then Rene gets himself sent off

So, Rene will sit out yet another pointless Poppies ban as the Management need to come up with a Plan B for home games.  Perhaps a plan that doesn't involves heavy defeats?  Just a thought.  Marcus, you can use this plan if you want it.