Review of the season... SEPTEMBER

Last updated : 09 May 2008 By Paul Smith and Gary Moss
Notts

The final full month of Steve Thompson's maligned tenure kicked off with another draw, the fourth successive in the league, as newboys Morecambe picked up a 1-1 draw at Meadow Lane.

Richard Butcher, who else?, came to Thompson's aid with just three minutes left on the clock to cancel out Michael Twiss' first half opener.
MacKenzie... Winning goal versus Daggers


Just two days later Notts were again in action, in the first round of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy, with Tim Sandercombe making his first and last appearance of the season as the Magpies tediously bowed out of the competition at the first hurdle once more, going down 1-0 to League One Leyton Orient.

A first league defeat followed with eventual champions MK Dons destroying Thompson's men at Stadium:MK, winning 3-0, but a first win of the season followed a week later as substitute Neil MacKenzie came up with the games only goal to defeat another league newcomer, Dagenham & Redbridge, at Meadow Lane.

Notts followed it up with some promise, picking up a good point at play-off chasing Rotherham through Spencer Weir-Daley's first for the club. The pacey frontman produced a stunning performance, giving Notts fans great hope, but he couldn't add a winning goal.

A week later a decent month was completed with an excellent 1-0 home win over Chesterfield who were in third at that time. Notts' first clean sheet of the season helped them on the way, with Stephen Hunt netting a first half winner with a fine diving header.

But the big news in September came off the pitch ad chairman Jeff Moore and
Wilkinson... Parting shot
director of football Howard Wilkinson stepped down, the latter complaining over not being able to work with the Supporters Trust.

Ironically then, Moore unveiled his visionary Blueprint that saw the club target Championship level football by 2012, armed with £5 million to do so.

John Armstrong-Holmes replaced him as chairman.

Media speculation was rife and suggested that former Hull City chairman Adam Pearson was ready to invest millions into the club.

He said: New chairman Armstrong-Holmes: "The Trust has not seen any proposal from Adam Pearson, you might have," (talking to reporter) "but I'm not aware of any such people who have seen a proposal at this football club. There is an old thing in football, Howard Wilkinson probably comes from the
Tann... Player of the month
old school where chairman are the major benefactors who whip hand in pockets to fund certain things. Managers are always wanting more money, the reality is we have limited means but it doesn't mean you can't progress."

Player of the month: Richard Butcher was again a candidate, as was Neil MacKenzie for hitting the seasons first winning goal. But defensively, Notts were much better and a lot of that was down to Adam Tann who put in a series of solid displays at centre half, nulifying the feeling of longing for the injured Mike Edwards.

Verdict: On-pitch matters are hard to talk about with the off-pitch shenanigans. Many claimed to have seen Pearson's proposal, yet the club vigorously denied such claims saying they never saw such a thing, yet they were increasingly on the lookout for investment. Incredibly then, they announce this Blueprint that would see Championship football in five years time, with £5 million to do it with. Where that came from who knows? But again it is another sense of false promise from a club who on the pitch, were only going backwards.

League position: 11th

League Two

September saw eventual league champions MK Dons take their place at the head of the league ladder with four wins from their five games.

The month started with a loss for the Dons, as they came out pointless in a five-goal thriller at Spotland. Summer signing Kevin Gallen netted a double
Ince... Started to motor
but a brace from Chris Dagnall and another from Adam Le Fondre was enough to lift Keith Hill's Dale out of the bottom two.

Defeat could have hit the Dons hard as they languished in a disappointing 12th spot.

But Paul Ince's men bounced back to win the next four games without conceding a single goal, including 3-0 drubbings of Notts County and Brentford in the process.

Midfield kingpin and club skipper Keith Andrews was the star of the show netting three for the month and spear-heading the Dons' dramatic transformation of fortunes.

Drissa Diallo claimed the most important goal of the season so far though, popping up a minute from time with the only goal of the game to condemn Darlington to their first defeat of the season. It saw the Quakers slide to second.

With tricky winger Lloyd Dyer in full flow and newly signed keeper Willy Gueret chalking up four clean sheets, we had a team to be beaten.

Barnet endured the month unbeaten with three wins and two draws on the way to 11 points, as they rose the ranks to ninth.

The Bees breached just one goal all month to help boss Paul Fairclough to a fantastic run.

Graham Turner's Hereford United emerged into the running too, sticking four past Bradford and three past Morecambe on route to three wins from five, to take them up to third in the table.

Trevor Benjamin scored four over the month for the Bulls as they turned a few heads, surely 'little Hereford' would not be up there come May?

Dagenham and Redbridge looked to have settled into their new surroundings in September, with eight points taking them up to a very respectable 18th spot in their first ever campaign at this level.

The month turned out to be a complete disaster for highly-fancied Lincoln
Dearden... Couldn't get going
City under the sewardship of John Schofield, who had taken the Imps to the play-off semi-finals just four months earlier.

A string of five consecutibve losses including defeat against fierce local rivals Grimbsy Town saw City plummet into the bottom two with just Mansfield Town below them.

Billy Dearden's men endured an equally horrendous month, adding just three points to their August total of one.

The Stags ended the second month of the term with still just one win to their name albeit a 4-2 home win against Stockport County in another League Two cracker.

Elsewhere, Rotherham, Brentford and Bradford, three of the four sides relegated from League One were struggling to adapt to life in the fourth tier.

While Chesterfield were up in fourth place with Jack Lester scoring three in as many games to inspire the Spireites to consecutive wins over Wycombe, Bury and Mansfield to begin the month.