Tuesday 22nd October

Barrow 2-3 Notts County
Cheltenham 0-2 Bradford City
Chesterfield 2-1 Colchester
Doncaster 3-0 Bromley
Fleetwood 2-2 Crewe
Gillingham 1-0 Newport
Harrogate 0-2 Port Vale
MK Dons 1-1 Accrington
Salford City 2-1 Swindon
Tranmere 2-1 Grimsby
Walsall 5-0 Carlisle
Wimbledon 2-0 Morecambe

League Table After Match day 12

Dancing - 232
Devon - 228
Maclad - 213
Spireitematt - 213
Amelia - 208
Lord Snoots - 200
St Charles - 188
SaltergateBorn - 186

Words fail me.

Tooley's Take on our website is the kindest take possible on a dire evening in Newport. We won 0-3 but it was an exercise in survival for those watching. The beautiful game this wasn't. The idiot goal stolen by Markanday after 40 seconds comforted us as we groaned that at least we were winning.

First, a confession, as I slowly decline towards dementia, I might occasionally refer to our Kenny-Everett-handed young keeper as Marshall. He's called Thompson I know, but my first crush was on Marshall Thompson, the lead in Daktari. Luckily he was more interested in Clarence the cross-eyed lion. But all these years on I can't stop accidentally calling our keeper Marshall. Quite soon my affections transferred to Patrick Macnee, Steed from The Avengers. I obviously went for the more mature man! Hopefully we can avoid signing any players whose names trigger "my befuddled brain" (a quote from Procul Harum) to rename them Macnee or Steed.

Bizarrely having watched us struggle last week against a man of only 6'5" Newport left 6'9" Kyle Hudlin sprawled on the bench. He finally shambled apologetically onto the pitch with the game two-thirds over, his body language shrinking him by several inches. He had chosen to curate his hair into two ill-formed non-matching antlers flopping unevenly against their elastic bands. His Auntie-Aleysha's shortie bedsocks were clearly designed to emphasise the abnormally long and spindly legs emerging unwillingly from aero-dynamically-unsustainably voluminous shorts.

Kyle won a couple of headers and hit a post with a cross desperately clawed away by our goalkeeper Daktari. Soon Grimes leapt into him to challenge for a header, leaving Hudlin grounded like a disassembled spider on the turf. That prompted Will Grigg to demonstrate that centre forwards need not leap high to score goals, cleverly adding two from an apparently somnolent position in the the six-yard box.

Newport's best player was undoubtedly Kamwa, whose focus was spot-on throughout, producing the odd snapshot and enlivening a rather passive attack with an entire album of tricks. The permanently argumentative Wildig eventually had to be substituted. Apparently he is to be confined to a telephone box to see whether he can manage to start an argument there.

Our best player was undoubtedly Ty Williams who chummed up with Araujo to handle everything half-heartedly thrown at them. Dobra performed as if choreographed by Dancing (willdoit) and was soon voted off by the audience.

It was a bad bad game and Newport will be well-advised to employ a dresser for Kyle Hudlin in future. Berry, glued to the bench, and Drummond and Hobson on loan must have wondered, but it is hard to argue with a 0-3. We did deserve to win and Newport certainly deserved to lose.

Last night I watched Exeter playing at Shrewsbury, the only EFL game happening in England. One of the Assistant Refs was a woman. She unfortunately made her presence obvious by missing a fairly glaring offside on Exeter's second goal and this set me wondering .........

Why was she on the line when every other Assistant in England would have been available? Why, to be judged any good, and probably to satisfy herself of her own capabilities, must be she measured in the male game?

Whilst all football is desperate for competent officials why, when there aren't anywhere near enough women within the women's game in management, coaching, and officiating roles is the standard for women that they are as good as men. And are men that good anyway?

I suppose I will be accused of being very Joey Barton if I suggest women should be populating and dominating their game and proving their worth in that sphere before being, or even wanting to be, judged against men. I imagine there are Shrewsbury fans muttering about women running the line, when in fact errors of judgement are common to all those thrust into that unenviable position. If human judgement were immaculate, would we spending our time watching VAR and ruling idiot lines on digital pitches?

Of course a woman can officiate in a men's game, but why should she need to prove it? What we've got at the moment is just another form of tokenism. I hope women don't fall for it. All it can do is hand women a second-class status as soon as they make a mistake. And "you're not fit to referee" is already one of the chants most commonly heard ........

I know we put the women's game back over half a century by banning them, but we can't make reparation by urging them to become us. The most we can do is assist them in any way they wish to develop their game. Even a gay man like me has noticed women are different. Celebrate it! Women are wonderful.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpqz0xvyp82o

The Duke of Edinburgh has formally dedicated a bridge to a Barnsley, Manchester United and England footballer who died in the Munich air disaster.

Barnsley-born Tommy Taylor, who played during the 1950s and died aged 26, was widely regarded as one of the greatest strikers of his time.

Barnsley Council invited residents to submit name suggestions for the pedestrian bridge, which links Oakwell football ground with the town centre.

At a ceremony on Thursday, Prince Edward revealed a plaque at the Tommy Taylor Memorial Bridge's steps.

Mr Taylor was born in Smithies and worked at Wharncliffe Colliery as a teenager, playing for Smithies United, Barnsley and then Manchester United.

In March 1953, Manchester United manager Sir Matt Busby famously paid £1 to Barnsley’s tea lady Lily Wilby to avoid Taylor becoming the first £30,000 player.

At a ceremony on Thursday, Prince Edward was joined by about 100 people in Glass Works Square who watched the plaque unveiling.

Audrey Taylor, the footballer's sister-in-law, said: "It's important isn't it, that his name is going to live on now.

It was a short life he had, but now this will help him live on."

Former cricket umpire Dickie Bird OBE, who played football with Taylor while children, remembered the player's death leaving people "shocked and stunned".

"He was such a good player," he said.

"What would those Manchester United players have done in time if they’d have lived?

"They’d have broken all the records going."

The air crash, on 6 February 1958, happened on Manchester United's return from a European Cup tie in Belgrade.

Eight players, three club staff, eight journalists, two crew members and two passengers were killed.

Wombwell-born defender Mark Jones, who was among the 23 victims, was also remembered during Thursday’s unveiling.

Saddened to hear of the untimely death of Albion fan and one direction singer Liam Payne.
His music wasn’t bad but his choice of football club was impeccable.
Heart felt condolences and best wishes go out to his family and friends.

RIP Liam, go and entertain Jeff, Cryille and Laurie. Once a baggie always a baggie.

Hartlepool United have relieved manager Darren Sarll of his duties after just 15 games in charge.

The former Stevenage, Yeovil Town and Woking boss was appointed in April after the club decided not to extend Kevin Phillips' contract.

Sarll's final game saw Pools suffer a 3-1 FA Cup fourth qualifying-round replay defeat at National League North Brackley on Tuesday night, having drawn 1-1 at Victoria Park on Saturday.

Former Middlesbrough boss Lennie Lawrence will take over as interim manager with Pools sitting 16th in the National League, and the club's board promising a further update 'in due course', external.

Sarll left Yeovil to take over at Woking in March 2022 but despite leading the Cards to a fourth-placed finish in the National League in 2022-23, was sacked last November after a run of eight defeats in 10 games.

The 41-year-old made a positive start to this season, guiding Pools to seven points from their opening three games, all without conceding a goal.

However a run of six scoreless outings in a seven game stretch which earned just five points saw pressure mount, despite a dramatic come-from-behind win in his last league game in charge against Sutton.

Former Pools boss Phillips was unveiled as AFC Fylde manager last week.

Gateshead have appointed former player and coach Carl Magnay as their new manager.

The 35-year-old made more than 120 appearances as a player in two spells at the Tyneside club and later joined Rob Elliot's coaching staff.

Elliot left the National League club, along with his assistant Louis Storey and first-team coach Antony Sweeney, to take over at League One Crawley earlier this month.

"We are fully confident that Carl is the right person to continue the club's progression - just as he has done in his previous spells as a player and a coach," chairman Neil Pinkerton told the Gateshead website., external

Magnay has spent time coaching at MK Dons and Carlisle this season under former Heed manager Mike Williamson, having left Gateshead in the summer.

He will be assisted by former Brighton, Sunderland, Leeds and Nottingham Forest midfielder Liam Bridcutt, with whom he played at Chelsea at youth level.

Former Scotland international Bridcutt, 35, has been coaching in Newcastle's academy system after retiring from playing earlier this year.

As a player Magnay helped Gateshead earn promotion from National League North in 2022 - scoring the goal in a final day draw at Chorley which sealed the title.

He also appeared in the 2014 Conference Premier play-off final at Wembley and the 2023 FA Trophy Final, before being part of the coaching staff as the Heed won the FA Trophy at Wembley in May.

"We are delighted to confirm the appointments of Carl and Liam," Pinkerton added.

"It was hugely important to the board that the necessary time be taken to bring the right people to the club, and we appreciate our supporters patience over recent weeks.

"We look forward to seeing them get to work this week."

After picking up 17 points from their first seven matches this season, Elliot left the club fifth in the league with 23 points from 11 games.

Ben Clark has been in interim charge, beating Wealdstone 1-0 before losing 2-1 at Tamworth.

They face an FA Cup fourth qualifying-round replay at home to Hednesford on Tuesday.