Alex Titchiner Interview and Write up.

By Sam Heaney

Fleetwood Town Striker, Alex Titchiner made his full-debut for the club on Saturday in the League 2 fixture against York City.

The young forward had made six substitute appearances leading up to the York game.

‘It was a really nice feeling and I enjoyed it a lot! I’ve been patient, waiting to make an impact in a Town shirt. There are other aspects of my game that I’ve worked on such as going to the gym, trying to build myself physically whilst I’ve not been playing. Also working hard in training to prove myself.’

Town managed to create chances throughout the game with one falling to the 21-year-old in the second half.

‘My headed chance was tough to get on target; being beyond the near post made it hard to get the ball goal bound. Looking back at it I should have brought it down with my chest to make it easier to finish.’

Since Graham Alexander has taken over, Fleetwood remain unbeaten and have still yet to concede a goal at Highbury.

‘It’s always nice if the team keep a clean sheet; we’re looking really solid at the back.

‘We came in at half time unhappy with our performance, we set up to get a hold of the game and control it and to stop York creating chances. The system changed in the second half. We went with a striker down the middle and two wingers either side – we battled for the point at the end of the day.’

The manager has a lot of faith in his younger players which has given Titchiner the chance to play. Also, first year professional winger, Jamie Allen has made the first team bench recently.

‘When Graham came in it was a new slate for everyone. I always knew I was going to have to wait for my chance because I was signed as ‘one for the future’ which is fully understandable.’

‘I wasn’t too pleased with my performance in the first half, I thought I could have seen more of the ball and I gave it away too many times. Their left back gave me a good battle and I managed to hold him off and keep possession towards the end of the game which was an improvement.’
The Cod Army again turned out in their numbers supporting Fleetwood in the wet and wind.

‘They’re paying money to watch us, standing in the cold, singing players names and songs about the club. It’s all for them really, I’m a massive believer that we don’t just go onto the pitch for ourselves, we want to please the people watching – we need to give them something to cheer about. The support is really appreciated.’

Town are away to Port Vale on New Years’ Day having been defeated at home to them earlier on in the season.

‘To start again would be great. I think we owe them one after last time, we had control of the game but in the end they took their chances and finished us off.’

Mick Horsfall Interview

By Sam Heaney

Youth team coach - Mick Horsfall, very recently received his UEFA B level in coaching.

'It was hard work, I'm not going to lie. However, it was definitely worth it.‘There's a whole range of topics that goes into the coaching level. It isn't just related to the football side, on the pitch, but there's also nutrition, fitness, psychology etc... It is a very in depth procedure with tactics playing a part in it also! I really enjoyed it!’

Mick's coaching badge will without a doubt benefit Fleetwood Town's Youth Team.

'The players are not just looked at now as footballers. They're receiving information on the topics such as psychology and nutrition. The fitness levels will now improve because I'm a qualified fitness trainer due to getting the UEFA B.'

'I believe the players need the further information rather than just being good with a ball. Their knowledge and understanding will increase which will benefit all.'

The Youth Coach is always aiming high and pushing on.

'I will definitely be aiming higher. Already, myself and Steve Carlin (Youth Team Manager) are
lined up to do the UEFA A prep course - the highest level we can go. I start at the end of November.'

Fleetwood Town's Youth are well into their season. Competing in the league and the cup.

'Unfortunately, we were knocked out on penalties to Hartlepool. It was a difficult game that we could have won - that's the cup for you, anything can happen!'

'We had been practising our penalty taking prior to the match but the one missed penalty was the one that counted and saw the team knocked out of the cup.'

'In the league we've been a little hit and miss. The league table doesn't look great on our behalf but on terms of performances you could really say the lads have been outstanding at times. Mainly, we have just failed to capitalise on chances - if we took these and scored more goals our league position would be a lot different.'

There is of course, an academic side at Fleetwood in which has a big impact on the staff and the players.

'It's obvious all footballers want to play non-stop. The academic side will help the players a lot in the future; it's important they realise this because it can have a huge impact on their lives.'

Not everyone is the same age and it can be hard for players to bond and play together at first.

'There are some characters in the team - a few jokers! The first year students are getting used to the sudden change from school and they've been really good. We have a great set of lads on board, all willing to work hard.'

'In order to improve, we want the players to start putting what the coaches are saying into action. Football is all about learning from mistakes; therefore it can be done right the next time. This helps everyone understand what does work and what doesn't.'

'There are some unbelievably talented lads in our set up. Not all players will make it as a pro but we're hoping that we take ¾ of them up to the First Team.'

Mick Horsfall plays a big part in the Youth set up with a continuous routine every week.

'On Monday, we tend to watch the fixture from Saturday on dvd and then do a bit of match analysis. We work on things that may have gone wrong in each game so we can rule out mistakes made.’

‘Tuesday is usually the day for fitness. It's a full day full of exercises. We usually go into training for a bit in the afternoon - it can get really busy.’

‘Wednesdays, we tend to have a solid training session in the morning. Then go to our fitness partners, the De Vere Hotel in Blackpool, and use their superb facilities.’

‘Thursday is our day off which is nice to we as coaches can recoup and plan things and the players get to rest.’

‘Friday is mainly preparing for the game on Saturday so there isn't really any time to rest when there's a game the next day!'

The team have a packed fixture list so the games come thick and fast.
'We recently lost 3-1 to Bury but we were able to take some positives from that game.We had a really good 45 minutes.'
'We are competing in another cup soon, against York. We don't know what they are like but we're expecting a good challenge!'

Shaun Beeley interview.

By Sam Heaney

 

Consistent full back, Shaun Beeley, reflected on Saturday’s narrow home defeat to Wycombe Wanderers – Town’s third reversalt of the season.

 

‘I thought we passed the ball well. However, we lost it in crucial areas. I don’t think we used the ball in the final third well enough.’

‘There were a few areas where we needed to get more shots on goal to test the opposition keeper.’

Home keeper, Scott Davies, claimed the Lifestyle Floors man of the match performance with a hatful of crucial saves that kept Town in the game throughout the afternoon.

‘Scott’s a tremendous keeper! We can always count on him but this shouldn’t always be the case, especially when we’re playing at home.’

The Cod Army didn’t have too much to shout about and Beeley admits that finding the back of the net would have added a fresh spark for everyone.

‘The fans are brilliant every game! We should have given them something to cheer about; A goal would have lifted everybody.’

‘We have a few things we need to tighten up on in training this week. As a team we’ll work hard to improve and make sure we are ready for next Saturday and another home game.’

Junior Brown Write up

By Sam Heaney

Junior Brown put in a man of the match performance for ten man Fleetwood Town as they battled to a 4-1 victory over Aldershot Town.
The left-back continued on the left of midfield and contributed two goals to secure Town’s first League win at Highbury.
Brown had scored his first of the afternoon when was forced back into defence. Left-back Dean Howell saw red for a handball on the line but Scott Davies saved Josh Payne’s effort.
‘I’m used to playing in a more defensive role because I came to the club as a left back. I was just happy to be on the pitch helping the team out and it feels good to put a positive performance in.’
‘It was a difficult game after going down to ten men so early on but it was a good performance and it was also nice to get on the scoresheet. The lads put in a great shift!’
Town’s opening goal came after a superb display of touch football around the Aldershot box before Brown found the bottom corner of the net.
‘We’ve been working on our play around the box in training and it happened to come together nicely in the match and I’m pleased it resulted in a goal.’
Aldershot equalised on 37 minutes but skipper Steve McNulty forced Town ahead just after the break.
‘McNulty’s header, which put us back in the lead, was fantastic. It was nice to cap off the game when I scored my second goal to make it 3-1.’
Town’s third goal came from good work between Brown and on loan Alex Marrow.
‘It’s good to be up and around the box, getting in my crosses and shots on goal. I like having a bit more freedom.’
The former England C defender has been involved in all four League games this season, including three starts.
‘There’s a great spirit in the team, they’re a great bunch of lads. We fight for each other on the pitch and hopefully we carry on putting in strong performances and then we will be able to compete for the league!’
The man of the match was given to Brown after his hard-working display throughout the game.
`The award is just a bonus. I’m more happy to get the 3 points and we need to carry on this form into the next fixture.’
Andy Mangan capped the victory with Towns 4th on 90 minutes. Aldershot also finshed the game with 10 men after Josh Payne was shown a second yellow card with 15 minutes remaining.

Match Review - Nottingham Forest

By Sam Heaney

The first competitive game of the season, in the Capital One Cup at home to Nottingham Forest, was always going to be a tough game.

After speaking to people from a Forest perspective it was a decent starting line-up with a very strong bench equipped with Premiership experience.

In the first half I thought we were the better team and I was disappointed in the away sides performance for a Championship club. We held onto possession well without too much pressure. I thought it looked like it could be a fairly comfortable win.

Forest came out in full force second half and put us under a lot of pressure early on. We held on until just before the hour but then Reid’s cross found Blackstock in the box who punished Town after scoring the rebound from his initial header.

In the end Forest were too strong and we are out of the Capital One Cup. However, I am not too disappointed because we are now ready for the league campaign and I look at it as one less distraction. My Man of the Match was Dean Howell. I must admit I wasn’t a massive fan when he first joined Fleetwood but he had a solid game at left back and helped keep us in the game throughout.

Torquay are next, I can see us doing very well in the league this season… League 1 here we come?!…

Match Review - Oldham Athletic

By Sam Heaney

I’m glad this was only a friendly. Of course, It’s all about getting players match-fit again after their pre-season breaks and also for the new signings to bond/gel with the rest of the squad.

Once we were 3-0 down I did start to panic. I can cope with conceding three goals in a friendly but anymore is too much. Personally I thought we defended poorly resulting in Oldham taking full advantage and scoring their three. Playing 4-4-2 evidently did not work in the first half because I felt McGuire and Fowler were out-run in midfield.

The second half seemed like a completely different game. Substitutions were made which helped to pack the midfield stopping Oldham from bossing the game. This enabled us to get in their faces  which then meant we could move further up the pitch into an attacking style of play. Bringing Nicholson on was a good move by Micky Mellon in my opinion as I felt his experience paid off overall in the half.

My Man of the Match, Andy Mangan, popped up with a diving header which found the back of the net from a Dean Howell cross. I was so happy for him because I felt all his hard work deserved some sort of reward, and he got that.

All in all it was not the best of performances from Town but after the second half I am optimistic for the next game against Tranmere Rovers.

Dale Frith Interview

By Sam Heaney

There has been a plenty of pitch maintenance taking place at Highbury since the end of last season under the experienced hands of Head Groundsman, Dale Frith.

It has been a lengthy procedure in order to make sure that the pitch can stay ever-impressive throughout Fleetwood Town’s first season in the Football League:
‘Following the end of last season, I weed-killed the old pitch off to make sure that it killed off any vegetation that was present to make sure the surface was ready for the new pitch. The top layer of the pitch was stripped off then we had a full new drainage system put into place. After that, 200 tonnes of sand was added to the surface before it was then cultivated and dozered to level everything out. It has now been reconsolidated and seeded! I’ve decided to change the grass seed too.’
The first pre-season game is rapidly approaching and the pitch has to be ready on time not only for the game to go ahead but it could affect future games.
‘I am very pleased with the current state of the pitch!’, says Dale, ‘Despite the difficult weather conditions it has come on really well. Just by looking at the colour of the grass I can tell it’s ready and the pitch is thickening out nicely.’
Dale manages to keep the playing surface at Highbury in tip-top condition throughout the season no matter what conditions he comes up against.
‘Ideally from the seeding point you want it to be wet, it’s even better when there is some warmth! Perhaps a little more sunshine would have been good but the rain has definitely helped! Now I just need to get the pitch marked out and then cut – it’s about getting a fine medium between the two.’
The Head Groundsman doesn’t just love his pitch but the football side too. Town start the season with two high profile back-to-back home games, against Nottingham Forest in the Capital One Cup and Torquay United in the n-power League 2.
‘I am very confident about next season considering the signings that the club have made and the way the club strides forward. I’m sure we will do well and attract more and more fans!’