T PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS

NEVILLE WIGGLESWORTH

HIDING AT THEIR HANDS AS PER LAST SEASON AND, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE AT LEAST, IT WAS A WARMER THAN IS USUALLY THE CASE WHEN TRAVEL TO THE EAST COAST.

ONCE AGAIN CONSISTENCY IS THE WORD OF THE MOMENT AFTER LAST WEEK’S PERFORMANCES AGAINST SHEFFIELD AND CLEETHORPES TOWN AND THIS MUST SURELY BE THE CONUNDRUM THAT OUR MANAGEMENT TEAM NEED TO ADDRESS IN THE REMAINING THREE GAMES OF WHAT HAS BEEN A LONG SEASON. WE’VE BEEN ‘ON THE FRINGES’ AT BOTH ENDS OF THE TABLE. AT ONE TIME WE WERE LOOKING AT THE POSSIBILITY OF MAKING THE END OF SEASON PROMOTION PLAY-OFFS BUT CURRENTLY WE ARE NOT ENTIRELY SAFE FROM DROPPING INTO THE RELEGATION PLAY-OFFS, I THINK WE’VE DONE ENOUGH TO AVOID THAT POSSIBILITY BUT IT’S NEVER OVER UNTIL THE FAT LADY SINGS AS I THINK THE SAYING GOES SO A COUPLE OF MORE POINTS AT LEAST WILL ALLOW US ALL TO BREATHE A LITTLE MORE EASILY.

AT SHEFFIELD IN MIDWEEK WE WERE WELL WORTH THE THREE POINTS IN MY OPINION AND PLAYED SOME OF OUR BEST FOOTBALL FOR QUITE SOME WHILE WHEREAS AT CLEETHORPES WE FAILED TO EXPLOIT THE VAST OPEN SPACES OF THEIR PLAYING AREA WITH TOO MANY PASSES GOING ASTRAY AND WE SUFFERED THE CONSEQUENCES. THE COUPLE OF POSITIVES IS THAT WE DIDN’T SUFFER THE IGNOMINY OF A 7 –

BOTH THESE GAMES THERE WERE EYECATCHING DISPLAYS BY OUR ON LOAN GOALKEEPER PAUL COOPER WHO WAS OUTSTANDING IN BOTH MATCHES AND HIS AGILITY BETWEEN THE POSTS WHEN HE MADE A WHOLE STRING OF TELLING SAVES CLEARLY SHOWED WHY BARNSLEY HAVE SO MUCH FAITH IN HIM. HOPEFULLY HE WILL CONTINUE IN HIS RICH VEIN OF FORM AS LONG AS WE’VE GOT HIM AND FROM HEREON I’M SURE WE WILL BE WATCHING HIS PROGRESS WITH INTEREST IN THE SEASONS TO COME. WE WISH PAUL ALL THE BEST IN THE FUTURE WHEN HE RETURNS TO BARNSLEY HIS PARENT CLUB.

THIS AFTERNOON’S VISITORS ARE OUR NEAR NEIGHBOURS BRIGHOUSE TOWN WHERE THE OUTCOMES OF MATCHES PLAYED ARE JUST ABOUT EVENLY SPLIT. OF THE SEVEN LEAGUE MEETINGS TO DATE THERE HAVE BEEN 3 OSSETT WINS, 3 BRIGHOUSE WINS AND 1 GAME DRAWN. HOPEFULLY THOUGH THIS AFTERNOON WE CAN REPLICATE THE ATTENDANCES HERE AT INGFIELD WHICH STAND AT 618, 461 AND 739 RESPECTIVELY. AS THINGS STAND PRIOR TO KICK OFF BOTH SIDES HAVE 42 POINTS AND THE BRIGHOUSE GOAL DIFFERENCE IS SUPERIOR BY JUST THE ONE GOAL THOUGH THEY DO HAVE A GAME IN HAND OF US. THE POINTS AT STAKE