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Added Friday May 30th 2008
At last some news and enlightening news at that. Click here for the full announcement which, despite being full of all too familiar jargon redolent of mission statements all over the world, contains the following:
"The highlight of 2008 has been the mergence (sic) of talented players, however our wage bill is a little unsustainable and without players compromising on their contracts this will mean some players will leave the club and some agreements will not be renewed."
What to make of that? It's certainly the first time the club have admitted that what happened last season was unsustainable and possibly goes some way to explaining one or two rumours of late (maybe the mysterious case of the vanishing David Perpetuinin?) However, if this is the case then at least the club are taking steps to address the situation. Problems arise in football (and everywhere else) when money that isn't there is still spent. We should be thankful there appears to be some financial sense at The Grove.
It seems certain there will be departures this summer. One certainty of signing players with no ties to Halesowen Town is that they will leave if they can earn more elsewhere and, in all honesty, I wouldn't blame them if they did.
However, other stuff announced looks good. It makes a lot of sense for the club to be trying to develop a higher profile in the local community and build the fan base. Developing a sustainable youth programme can only be positive as well.
The next few months should be interesting!
Added Thursday May 29th 2008
 It's not every day Halesowen Town are on Midlands Today. Especially not in a story about prisoners of war, Moscow Dynamo, Russian princesses and the Bolsheviks. I wasn't paying much attention until I saw the horrible 'Brummie Professor' Carl Chinn dispensing hot air on the terraces at The Grove. It seems a prisoner of war (Robert Brasil I think his name was) had some terrific adventures in First World War Russia and then played for the Yeltz after he returned home. In a stunning revelation Nick Owen announced that he himself has played at The Grove (as has the sports presenter on Midlands Today and Suzanne Verdi's grand-dad. Is it a requirement to get a job at the BBC?)
Added Wednesday May 28th 2008
Cancel the extra suntan cream and put those swimming trunks away! Weston Super Mare have been reprieved and will not be adding their seaside glamour to next season's Southern League. The mighty Yeltz will have to make do with a trip to Cambridge City who have been relegated instead due to their failure to tart their ground up to the required standard. It's like being promised Sophia Loren and being delivered Valerie Singleton. Or something.
Added Wednesday May 28th 2008
And still we wait...Now I'm not particularly bothered about it and I don't think there are any suspicious motives behind the failure of the club to announce the new chairman or any details of the new owner(s), but the continual waiting serves only to encourage the naysayers and doom-mongers to create more mischief. An awful lot can be achieved in seven months so you would have thought a press-release wouldn't be out of the question.
In a related point the club's official site has been pretty poor lately as well. I'm still waiting for news of Mark Danks' signing which has been announced everywhere but the home of Halesowen Town FC! I know the site's administrator has called it a day but surely someone at the club can work the internet?
Added Sunday May 25th 2008
 I was going to write something about Team Bath but now I'm not. They replied to my Freedom of Information Act request but quite frankly it's meaningless. They've claimed that the costs involved in running Team Bath FC are difficult to quantify because they are just one of seven University teams and the costs are all tied into each of them. Apparently they cannot give details about Team Bath's management's wages as they are responsible for all of the teams. Really? How much time do you reckon Andy Tillson and Ged Roddy spent on the failing off side trap of the women's second XI? Anyway, I knew they were making it up when they tried to claim the income from the football activities of the University were £150,000. My mind is still boggling at that one. On a day where I've read Sean Canham waxing lyrical about how he got to practice 300 finishes a day (whilst the players he plays against were all out at work) I've finally had enough. I still think it's a bloody expensive way of producing our next generation of PE teachers but I'm casting Team Bath adrift. They are nothing to me...
Added Sunday 25th May 2008
Morell Maison has spoken of the sides he expects to challenge Halesowen Town in their quest for the Southern League title next season. Morell said: "I expect strong opposition from Farnborough under Francis Vines and I expect Chippenham, Hemel and Brackley to do well - Hitchin could be the dark horses." Read more here.
No mention of Amblecote there then...
Added Friday 23rd May 2008
Morell Maison has signed Halesowen Town's first new player of the pre-season. Mark Danks who had a brief spell at the Yeltz at the end of 2002/03 has signed a two year contract at The Grove. Click here for Morell talking about the signing to the Birmingham Mail and here for Mark's Halesowen career details.
Added Tuesday 20th May 2008
 Is there a possibility of the Yeltz being moved up north to the Unibond? Nuneaton Borough chairman Ian Neale has spoken of the possibility of his team being relegated to the Southern League should they enter administration this week. You don't need to be Carol Vorderman to work out that twenty-three teams in a league doesn't fit so there has been idle speculation that this could lead to either us or Stourbridge moving up north to accomodate them. Sounds like madness to me - Nuneaton is further north than either Halesowen or Stourbridge so surely it would make more sense to just move them into the Unibond and leave Vauxhall Motors thanking their lucky stars in Conference North? But, as King's Lynn can attest, sense doesn't always play much of a part in these decisions. Personally I'd much rather be in the Unibond mixing it with the gritty northeners but I can't see it happening.
Added Sunday 18th May 2008
It is gratifying to see that King's Lynn's manager Keith Webb is no fan of Ken Turner either. Webb, speaking of the Southern League's failure to adopt a reasonable approach to the play-off fiasco, told NonLeague Today: "Their stance appeared to be 'we're running the league, so tough', when surely they should be officiating for the benefit of the clubs".
Webb was also dismissive of our Ken's "we lived in hovels, died of scurvy before breakfast but still played eight games of football in the afternoon and did we complain?" routine. The King's Lynn boss unimpressed the chairman's flippant remarks about clubs playing in the past on Christmas and Boxing Day pointed out: "The big difference is that those matches didn't directly determine whether a club went up or not," he said. "Also there was an even playing field, as each side had exactly the same schedule."
Well said Keith, I hope you never want to get involved in football adminstration though. You make too much sense.
Added Thursday 15th May 2008
The line-ups for next season have been finalised - for a full list click here. I am unsure of the position regarding Cambridge City's appeal so I suppose they could still take the place of Weston Super Mare. You've got more chance of finding the sea in Cambridge.
Added Thursday 15th May 2008
Say it's not so! Bright Golden Haze's player of the year Jay Denny is rumoured to be a target for Steve 'Mr Black Country' Bull's Stafford Rangers. Nick Amos is also apparently on Bully's wanted list. Will the lure of the largest timber framed house in the country and the glamour of Conference North football take them from us? Time will tell...
Added Thursday 15th May 2008
The first pre-season friendlies have been announced. Steve Bull's Stafford Rangers come to The Grove on Wednesday July 16th, as do a full-strength Walsall on Friday 25th and then Halesowen Town's feeder club Kettering arrive on Tuesday 29th. All games kick-off at 7.45pm. All future fixtures will be added here.
Added Monday 12th May 2008
After yesterday's posts I should clarify that Ken Turner, I am sure, is not, in the true definition of the word, an idiot. However judging by his remarks (assuming they were correctly reported) he is not particularly sensitive to the very real difficulties faced by those clubs forced to play on Thursday and Saturday in the play-offs. And in refusing to consider the possibility for change next year he is definitely open to accusations of short-sightedness. However, whilst I will still bear the grudge, I will speak it of it no more. Possibly.
Added Sunday 11th May 2008
Inspired by Ken Turner I have set up the brightgoldenhaze idiot (see above Ken, I don't really think you are a true 'idiot' - it's just a name) list. It is short at the moment but it can only get bigger. Come and see the early chart.
Added Sunday 11th May 2088
 Now we know that we are being run by morons. Southern League chairman, Ken Turner, has responded to Morell Maison's legitimate complaints about the handling of the play-offs (for full story click here) by spouting a load of 'worse in my day' illogical drivel. Turner said: "Tiredness? For goodness sake...Clubs used to play matches on Christmas Day and Boxing Day." Yes Ken, they did, but how is that the same as making one team play twice in forty hours whilst their opponents have four days off? Turner rounded off his marvellous rant by stating "The clubs concerned would not be complaining if they were successful. When I was in club football, we played seven games in the last fourteen days of a season and never whinged about it even though we missed out on promotion." The sooner we're out of this league the better...
Added Thursday 8th May 2008
 In the name of footballing justice I have made my first timid footsteps into the murky world of investigative 'journalism'. In a move not in any way related to the sense of injustice mentioned below I have made it my mission to find out exactly how Team Bath are funded. I should let it go, after all it's not our problem any more but I need to know. My first step was to email Bath University under the Freedom of Information Act and demand answers. They have ignored me so far. I won't be denied. Any response will be published on the site. We might not have to play them anymore but we can at least find out just how un-level the playing field really is.
Added Thursday 8th May 2008
Five days on and the disappointment is starting to fade a little bit. The sense of injustice burns on but I still believe promotion to the Conference North or South (I'm getting sick of typing that) is merely postponed for a year.
News from the club re-inforces that belief. Firstly, Eldon may not be swapping the Stourbridge Road for the sun of Cyprus after all. My sad news from Monday appears to be premature as Eldon himself is hopeful of staying with the Yeltz. Secondly, we are not skint! Thirdly, Morell is staying! Forthly (?), so is Dean Brennan! Look at the Halesowen News (or look at my newspage) website for more.
Added Monday 5th May 2008
A review of the season is now available here.
Added Monday 5th May 2008
Although unconfirmed by the club yet it appears from stories elsewhere that Eldon Maquemba has left to join Olympiakos Nicosia. It's a small consolation but it appears that he would have been going regardless of the outcome of Saturday's game.
He started 24 games for the Yeltz with 4 substitute appearances and scored 12 goals. Despite the short stay he leaves us with many memories including the equaliser at Cirencester where his celebrations showed he actually cared about the club and the goal of the season against Chippenham. Eldon - we'll always have Chippenham...
Added Sunday 4th May 2008
So it wasn't to be. It felt like a 110 metre hurdle race where they put extra hurdles in our lane and allowed Team Bath a gentle stroll to the line. The physical and mental efforts involved in getting past Chippenham and playing on Thursday night took their toll and Halesowen were a shattered side by the final whistle yesterday. The full time players, er sorry, students of Team Bath had been resting since Wednesday and it told in the end. Whoever took the decision to structure the playoffs in this way needs to ask themselves some questions. Why the rush? What's wrong with playing the semi-finals and final on consecutive Saturdays?
But we still came so close. Losing to a last minute goal to Team Bath is difficult to take. We won't have to play them again next season and for that we can be thankful. They might be in a higher division but we're a proper football club that a lot of people in Halesowen (and beyond) care deeply about. Nobody in Bath gives a toss about Team Bath. Good riddance to them.
There's been a lot to be happy about after this season and much to look forward to. Morell Maison will benefit from having a full season and next time round we will be champions. It's written in the stars!
Added Friday 2nd May 2008
Eldon Maquemba's wonder-strike put the Yeltz into tomorrow's play-off final against Team Bath after a hard fought victory over Chippenham last night. Halesowen overcame not just their opponents but also the referee who proved Tuesday's penalty fiasco was no fluke when he failed to spot common assault on Dennis Pearce in the build up to Chippenham's goal. It proved not to matter this time though as Dean Brennan equalised from the spot shortly afterwards after Maquemba had been fouled by Ross Adams (who the bungling official did manage to send off) and then Maquemba delivered the knock out blow.
Justice finally done then but it will mean nothing if the students aren't sent the same way tomorrow. Is there a footballing god (other than Eldon Maquemba)?
Added Thursday 1st May 2008
 Chippenham's Kye(?) Holly failed his audition for Mastermind by owning up to the handball incident on Tuesday night before having a pop at referee C.J Martin. The Wiltshire Gazette reports Holly thus:"I should have gone but I didn't mean to do it." he joked. "It was a reaction and a slight touch, although it was my best save ever. Luckily the referee messed up and didn't know who did it." Hopefully the referee will be on the look out for a cheat with a stupid name tonight...
Holly's chess partner (possibly), the aptly named David Pratt, has got in on the act by claiming that Chippenham would have won Tuesday's game "comfortably" were it not for the abandonment. Word from The Grove is that Mr Pratt's comments will be on the Yeltz dressing room wall this evening.
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