Accrington Stanley, Who are they?

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Ian Rush once said that if you drink milk, you could play for Accrington Stanley. I took that dream but it was crushed by the boots and studs of a boy named Tommy Brown when I was on trial for the school team. My whole life up to that point was football and achieving the dream, but after that day, my life revolved around rehab and trying to get back into the game that I love. That dream never came true. I thought to myself that I could never get into management with no badges or playing experience other than school matches and kick-abouts in the park.

I got into Football Manager and got really good about it, this was my path back into the game, playing a simulator, winning trophies and guiding small teams to big success. Then one day on the BBC Sport website,

"ACCRINGTON STANLEY MANAGER JOHN COLEMAN SACKED"

"Accrington Stanley" I murmured to myself "Who are they?" And a smile beamed across my face. I quickly complied a CV and cheekily added my Football Manager achievements in the achievements section. I sent the letter off despite the odds being heavily weighted in every other candidates favour.

One day the phone rang, and it was my mate "Check your e-mails", I went to my computer and checked them, I was so ecstatic that I screamed and ran around the house.



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Maybe I couldn't play for Accrington Stanley, but I could manage them...
 

As soon as I took over, I knew it would be a challenge due to our extremely limited finances, and generally being a very small but overlooked club. I looked in the club finance books and this is what I saw.



With a projected balance of -905K at the end of the season, my pants turned brown and I started to think that I needed a bit more milk.


The next order of business was to look at the existing squad and looking for any needed changes. I was pleasantly surprised with the base of the squad with some good looking players in there.

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Some of the key players looked like Davis, Winnard, Procter and Bruna.

I created my tactic which I used in FM in my time out of the game to try and re-create my success.

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My trusty 4-1-4-1 DM formation may do a job here but I have to be optimistic going into my first few weeks of management.

My first ever transfer was Joe Ward on a free transfer from Chelmsford. Defiantly one for the future.

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I let my assistant take control of the pre-season friendlies and I dressed in a big overcoat and donned and fake mustache and glasses in order for my players not to recognize me in the crowd. We had a decent pre-season, with some fantastic performances.

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Should be ready for the start of the season now. Onwards and upwards
 
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AUGUST REVIEW

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After an encouraging pre-season, we entered the league fixtures with our heads held high, but wary that we are predicted to battle against relegation come the end of the season. We started off very well with a 2-0 win over Southend, who are a mid table/playoff team. We then went into our first cup match...

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I cant fault the boys after a match like that, it was just a case of them getting very lucky and playing some very good counter attacking football. But its just another sign to focus on the league this year.

We then followed the defeat up with a 4-0 demolition of Cheltenham, all 4 coming from James Gray. Then, we lost the next 2 games 4-2 and 2-1 against Shrewsbury and Luton respectively. Our next game gave us a big boost with a 2-0 win against Bury.

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Overall, I would say that we could have done slightly better this month, maily in the cup, but lady luck was not on our side. But we have proved a lot of people wrong in the league, winning 3 and loosing 2, picking up 9 points. We are looking very good just outside the playoff places.

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The squad is looking very good, with no major injuries to speak of. They are getting along very well at the minute too, leading to good results on the training field and in matches.

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My ankles, that I broke both of in the injury, are playing up, leading to me not being of any use at training. This is a bummer due to the limited staff and some of the senior players are having to help with training. But it is very disheartening to know that there are senior players able to run and me, a young 20 year old, needing crutches on a daily basis.

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Nice results, especially considering you're with Accrington Stanley :D
 
I would comment on later form but wouldn't want to spoil anything
 
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SEPTEMBER REVIEW

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After a good start to the season in August, I sat in my tiny office beaming thinking of the month that lay ahead, my focus was on the league but that didn't mean that I could have a cup run in the Johnston's Paint trophy, which was our next game. Going into the match on the back of a win I felt that my boys could do it against a mid table Morcambe team. We dominated all match but we couldn't get the ball in the back of their net. If the match was taken to extra time I could have easily seen a win. But as it was straight to penalties, it was nerve wracking. We crashed and burned, with Buxton missing our 5th penalty and giving the win to Morcambe.

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Our next match was a league match against a heavily favoured Tranmere side, but we managed to pull off a shock 1-0 win against them. "Roll on Wimbledon" I said to the boys after.

We again managed to pull off a good 2-0 win against the 1988 FA cup winners phoenix club. The boys looked in good form and were excited to play football unlike the 2013/14 season.

Our next match was against Oxford, we continued our unlikely form into this match and beat the boys in yellow 2-1. I could see my name in the papers "Rob Yiannakou named manager of the month"

But that dream took a hit in our next game against Northampton, with a heavy 2-0 loss, our first league loss in 5 matches.

The dream took a big tumble at the final hurdle, being on the wrong end of a 3-2 result against Plymouth Argyle.

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I was pleasantly surprised in September, looking back on it, with only 2 losses in the league and close enough a full strength squad out every match the future of this season is looking very promising, we currently occupy on of the playoff spots although it is very tight at the top

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Our squad is looking very good for us supposed "relegation contenders"

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OCTOBER REVIEW

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After a improved September, I thought that we could go from strength to strength and possibly occupy an automatic promotion place going into November. Six games lay ahead of us, most if not all of them winnable giving our current form in the league.

The first match put Mansfield up against us and from the off they scored a quick goal, followed by a second half penalty, making the score 2-0 after 68 minutes. Then Dean Winnard got a straight red for, in my opinion, a yellow card offence. The end of the match came and I was seething, and I got to the players with my rant.

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Our next match was against Dagenham and Redbridge, who were in a relegation battle, sitting in 21st in the table. Atkinson got sent off on 16 minutes after picking up two yellows, and as soon as he got off the pitch I took him to the dressing room, reducing a grown man to tears, after wiping my eyes (See what I did there?), I told him to stay in the dressing room. After some great defending, the daggers scored and I punched the dugout, bruising my knuckles. Full Time 1-0 Dagenham and Redbridge.

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The third match was against high fliers Stevenage, and I was dreading going into the match as I secretly knew that they would punish us, and punish us they did, 4-1 was the final score.

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The whole squad was dejected, none more so than me, I sat on my bed in my studio flat and started to wonder "Was it all too good to be true?"
Going into the match against Hartlepool, I thought of a team talk and delivered it well, and saw the results on the field, with Gray getting on the score sheet early on, but my happiness turned to anger minutes later as they pegged one back. And to be fair, a draw was a fair result. Our first point of the month, well overdue.

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The penultimate match of the month was against Newport in Wales, I delivered a great team talk and saw the boys put in a great shift, bagging all 3 points with a 3-1 win. It was great to get a win and we boozed all night, probably not the best decision I have ever made.

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When we got back from Wales, we were all hungover and tired, so I went straight into the drawing board and fell asleep. The boys were all in good mood and were joking about the women they pulled on the big night out.
This was all forgotten 90 minutes after the first whistle against Morcambe after they had argued among each other, forgetting how to play football. Final score 3-0 Morcambe.

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Managers Reaction​
Jesus, we played **** in October, picking up 4 points from a possible 18. And with the FA Cup against Chesterfield coming up, I'm dreading it. Next month has to be a major improvement in order to be back in contention for any chance of promotion to League 1 next season, but it wont be the end of the world if we dont get there this season.

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After dropping 12 points this month, I consider it a minor miracle that we are still only 2 points off of the playoff places.

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Also there has been a slight change in personel in the team, with Bruna dropping to the bench and Buxton sitting out for a few games.

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Doing well so far, keeping the club stabilised, keep it up!
 
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NOVEMBER REVIEW

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I don't sugarcoat my words so when I told the boys that they needed to improve or they'll have no club at the end of the season because they are playing so badly, they listened. Only 4 matches in November this season, so the way I was looking at it in the current form, it meant not as many points could be dropped.

Our first match was against League 1 team Chesterfield, so we were immediately underdogs. I went into a nervous dressing room and got the boys pumped up and 15 minutes later we were 1-0 up. But somewhere along the line, we crumbled, 1-1, and then 2-1 down. I felt robbed as we had better stats on them. This led me to quote Brian Clough in my post match interview "On paper, we played better, but unfortunately for us, the game was played on grass".

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Our first league match of the month pitched us up against Carlisle. I knew a win was vital. But unfortunatly, lady luck was not on our side this night, as we went down 2-1 with 2 penalties conceded in 5 minutes, again I felt hard done by as I felt we played much better than them.

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Second league match of the month saw us host Cambridge. My hands were shaking, not only because of the cold weather, but the fact that we had to hold on to a 1-0 lead for 89 minutes. But we managed to hold out for an overdue win, also picking us up the first points of the month.

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I was praying that Gornell would score as he had no goals to his name so far this season. And my wish came true as he got 2 in our last match of the month, with McCartan bagging one in a nice 3-1 win over Exeter at home. 2 wins from 2 is a blessing given our form in the last few months.

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Managers Reaction
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Overall, a successful month, only dropping 3 points from a possible 9. That being said we out of a big money maker in the form of the FA Cup. This means that we are out of all cup competitions, which I knew that none of them were on the cards but it would have been nice to have a cup run. But we will probably have 50K coming in from a transfer clause.

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Next month we have Portsmouth, Wycombe, York, and Burton Albion, I see them all as winnable fixtures and am hoping to come out of the month with 12 points.

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The squad is now established and we have a set starting 11 and subs. One or two rotations being used too.

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The league is looking good too, with the likelihood of us beating the drop becoming higher and higher every week.

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View attachment 247622DECEMBER REVIEW
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After a successful end to November, I thought that we could better ourselves and win 3 out of the 4 games in December, I was looking at the league table but didn’t fancy our chances against a strong looking Burton Albion side, who were sitting 3rd in the table, and given our poor performances against good teams. First we had to get through Portsmouth at Fratton Park.
I went into the match optimistic that my boys could do it considering that they were only above us by one place in the table. I don’t know what happened, but we managed to get a goal through Gornell. Then Bruna got his first goals of the season with a brace. We held out despite a pressing Portsmouth and 12,000 fans to get all 3 points and a 3-0 win.
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Our next game was against Wycombe, a team now below us by only one place. Again I felt optimistic about the game, it was end to end and we had a goal disallowed in the 82nd minute with the score at 0-0. But there was a foul in a box, and we got a penalty in the 86th minute. Naismith buried it and we won 1-0.

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The third game of the month was supposedly the easiest, going up against York, who were 22nd in the table. I thought we were going to breeze through it but we got held to a 1-0 win. 3 wins from 3 and we haven’t conceded in 5 games.

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Our last game was the big one against Burton, win this and we go on 40 points and stay in the playoff places for at least another two weeks. After another post 80th minute goal disallowed, we were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw, a point was good but I wanted all three. 6 games without conceding.

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Managers reaction​

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A great, great month, picking up 13 points out of a possible 15 and going up to 6th in the league. The future is looking bright with our next fixtures being Exeter, Bury, Tranmere, and Wimbledon. At the end of next month I may also be secured a playoff place.

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The squad is looking in good form too.

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Our league position is looking very strong as well.

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MANAGER OF THE MONTH AWARD

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It only took me a few months but I have managed to win the manager of the month award for December, first of many hopefully. I will also be looking to go on a coaching course when the club finances have cleared up, but for the minute that isn't possible.

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View attachment 247414JANUARY REVIEW ​

After a great month and winning the manager of the month in December, I was thinking that we could repeat the form and go the month unbeaten again. I looked at the fixtures and saw that we had very hard month coming up, but I knew we had the talent and the team to win the games.
First game of the month was Exeter, we beat them 3-0 earlier in the season and they were not doing well in the league. I knew something could go wrong, and it did, we scored in the 55th minute only to be pegged back in the 79th. We couldn’t get another goal and drew the match 1-1. The point was good but I thought we could have got all three.

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Our next match was against high-fliers Bury, a match I knew that would be tough. Something went wrong and we went down to a 2-0 loss. We dropped down to 11th in the table and I knew that our luck would have to change to get a playoff place.

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The third game was against Tranmere, a must win match, but a winnable match at that. After going down 1-0, our luck changed when they had a man sent off in the 19th minute. McCartan got a goal back and an own goal by Fon Williams gave us a 2-1 win. We were propelled back to the playoff places and looked in a good position again.
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The penultimate game of the month saw us travel to Wimbledon and we dominated the game, winning 3-1, with their goal coming from a penalty.

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The last match of the month, we played Northampton, I knew it was going to be a hard match that was a winnable fixture. We got dominated for 90 minutes. Our only shot on target went in and our defence was solid, we only drew 1-1. I felt we were so lucky to get a point from this match.
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Managers Reaction​
January wasn’t as good as December, but I feel like it was slightly successful. 8 points from a possible 15, so 53% of points picked up.

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The starting 11 is mostly the same for all the games, and everyone is looking like they are getting along well.

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The league is still looking promising and the playoffs are a real possibility

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We also signed Jerome Sinclair from Liverpool on loan to the end of the season, so looks to be a good signing.

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I also got a new contract that runs until 2019, hopefully enough time to get one or two promotions.

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View attachment 247133FEBRUARY REVIEW​

After a good January, I looked forward to a successful month. We all knew that this was an important month. But we had some hard fixtures, including Southend and Oxford.
Our first match was against Plymouth, a winnable game, but it didn’t go to plan, with Reid grabbing a brace for Plymouth and Atkinson getting one for us. We went down to a 2-1 loss with me effing and jeffing on the side lines. I gave all the players a bollocking in the sheds after.
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The next league game was against Oxford, a challenging game and we had to get a point from the game to stand a chance of the playoffs this year. The game was a bore draw but I felt like we were lucky to get a draw out of this one.
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The middle of the month took us to Southend for another big match in our season. I screwed my pep talk up and it showed on the field, as we went down to a 2-1 loss, and in hindsight we deserved to win, but we needed a change in our fortunes as we hadn’t won in the month yet.
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Our next match was against Cheltenham, a must win game. I didn’t bother with a pep talk given how badly the last one went. But our fortunes looked to be changing as Mingoia got a goal in the 10th minute and we held out for the win.
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Last match of the month and another must win against a struggling Luton side, so we went into the match with confidence knowing we could win. And after another dominating performance, Mingoia got a goal in the 82nd minute, we won 1-0.

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MANAGERS REACTION​

Not the best month of the year but we picked up 7 points out of a possible 15, only 47%. But the results did reflect the performances.
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The squad is looking as good as always again. Everyone is on high morale and we can go into March with confidence.
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Were still flying higher than anyone expected us to, occupying 6th, but it is extremely tight at the top.

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View attachment 247031MARCH REVIEW​

It’s March now, so getting close to squeaky *** time in the season. I predict if we can pick up at least 78 points we can go for 3rd, as I don’t want to go through the playoffs, but at the minute at least, it is looking like we might have to.

The first match of the month was against an extremely strong Shrewsbury side. We went 2-0 up very surprisingly. But then they got one back just before half time. 2-1 up at half time. I don’t know, but something changed at half time, Mangan got a 4 minute hat trick for Shrewsbury making it 4-2, and from there, we lost all motivation and were lucky not to concede more. But this was a low point in my management career.
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Also we got a youth intake, these are the players I felt are good enough to stay on for at least a few seasons, our HoYD is going to retire at the end of the season so we will have to look for a good replacement.

The second match was against Portsmouth, who we beat 3-0 earlier in the season at Fratton Park, but we couldn’t replicate that same form, drawing 1-1, but picking up an important point.

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Burton was next, and we had to stop them from getting 3 points or we would have been screwed promotion-wise. We managed to pull a late goal back to level the match at 1-1. Another point that I will take.

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Next came the matches that I knew we could easily win. We had Wycombe next and we were high on confidence going into the game. We shut them down all match and managed to get an important 3-0 win.

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Next was York, who were bottom and doomed for relegation into the conference. We laboured to a 1-0 win with only 2 shots on target all match, they did well to keep us at bay.

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Last up was Newport County, and if the boys won, we would secure a playoff spot for at least two more games. But this game was not crucial. But alas, we dominated the match and were winning 2-0 until Goulding scored an own goal making it 2-1 in the 92nd minute. We held out for the three points, a big three points.

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MANAGERS REACTION​

A bad start to the month but we finished very strongly, winning the last 3 matches. We picked up 11 points out of a possible 18, so a very strong finish.

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Our first eleven is looking very strong and everyone is doing their jobs as they should be.

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2 points away from 3rd, and looking like we have secured a playoff place with the form we are in.

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View attachment 246934APRIL REVIEW​

After a good end to March, I was tense but looking forward to April. I told the team that this was the most important month of the season and for a few of them, their careers. They all seemed to agree with me. We had a long matches in April and one match in May.

Our first match was against Morecambe, so after my pep talk about this being the most important month, the boys headed out onto the field and played their hearts out, winning 2-0 after 2 Kai Naismith penalties.

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Our next match was against Carlisle, Grey bagged a brace and Proctor got sent off on 68th minute but we held out for a 2-0 win.

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Cambridge was next up for us and I expected a win from the players, I felt like 3 points would be great for us in the league but despite us dominating the game, it took a James Grey 90th minute equalizer for us to get anything out of the game. Full time 1-1.

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Our fourth game of the moth was against Hartlepool, a slightly struggling team, so a win was hoped for. After 2 first half goals, we went into the break 2-0 down, and despite a Mingoia goal, it was too little too late and we went down 2-1. Our first loss of the month.

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Our hardest match of the month was against Stevenage, which I would have been happy with a draw. Luckily enough we won 2-1 with Mingoia getting the winning goal in the 43rd minute and we got all three points. A very good result for us.
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The last match of the month and the second last game of the season was against Dagenham and Redbridge. I couldn’t stress to the boys how important that this match was, if we win we go 3rd. It took 51 minutes to get ahead but Mingoia got the goal and we held out for the win 1-0. We are now 3rd in the table with one match to go.

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Managers reaction​

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A great month really pushes us towards automatic promotion and a win will send us up to league 1.

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The players are looking forward to the last match of the season and they will have great morale no matter what happens at the end of the season and the start of next season.

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The league is looking fantastic and the chances of us getting automatic promotion are in our favour due to our superior goal difference.

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View attachment 242694FINAL GAME OF THE SEASON
MAY UPDATE​

Our final game of the season was a must win game, we could draw the match but we would have to pray that Southend didn’t win. But Southend were playing Morecambe, a team that they were expected to beat well. We were playing Mansfield Town, a team that we were beaten 2-0 by earlier in the season. I gave a short and inspirational team talk and we headed out on the pitch.

15:00 – Kick off (0-0)

15:40 – JAMES GRAY GOAL 1-0 TO ACCRINGTON STANLEY (1-0)

15:40 – The score at Southend is still 0-0 so as it stands, Accrington are going up

15:45 – Half time (1-0) and the Southend match stays at 0-0

16:00 – Second half begins

16:26 – PIERO MINGOIA SCORES A GREAT GOAL FOR ACCRINGTON TO MAKE IT 2-0 TO ACCRINGTON
16:26 – THERES BEEN A GOAL AT THE GLOBE ARENA. A GOAL FOR MORCAMBE, 1-0 THANKS TO JAMES REDSHAW

16:45 – Two minutes of added time at the Southend match to be played, and two minutes to be played at Accrington

16:47 – FULL TIME AND ACCRINGTON HAVE CLINCHED AUTOMATIC PROMOTION ON THE LAST DAY OF THE SEASON. GREAT SCENES HERE AT THE CROWN GROUND AND THE FANS ARE STORMING THE FIELD.

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We done it. The team that were predicted to finish 21st finished in 3rd and were going to be playing in League 1 next season.

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We also had some nice financial rewards from the season, pushing our finances back into the black.

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I was watching Sky Sports News and the league 2 manager of the year winner popped up at the bottom of the screen. I'D WON IT! I was in shock as I didn't concentrate on it, I was all about getting Accrington promoted.

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The fixtures for the season

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Our best eleven.

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