Reserves review 2016/17

Life for a Reserve team manager is seldom an easy one so Jake Stone has every right to feel pleased with his first season in management. Having seen his career cruelly curtailed by injury at a young age the former Northampton Spencer midfielder took the chance offered to him and recruited former teammates Curtis Avery (also ruled out for the season pre and post operation) and then Lee Haines joining him after a few games.
I didn’t start too well. Goalless draws at Peterborough Northern Star and Whitworth at home sandwiched a 4-1 defeat at early pacesetters Desborough Town, veteran striker Paul Pickering the only man on target in the first three games, but victory came at the next attempt as goals from Ashley Clamp and Gez McGowan saw them home 2-1 against Bugbrooke St Michaels.
The KO Cup was next and a 3-0 floodlit home win over Irchester United with Pickering (who also had two ruled out for offside that night), a worldy from Clamp and an own goal from Murray easing the Cooks through. Thrapston Town at home followed and it was all guns blazing as midfielder Harry Chipchase netted four in a 7-2 win, Joe Shanley, with youth teamers Ryan Brittain and Tom Hollis also on target. Rothwell Corinthians held us to a 1-1 draw at Compton Park with Clamp again finding the net, before a midweek game at Newport Pagnell Town saw us bow out of the KO Cup to a more experienced outfit who struck twice without reply.
Combination side Brixworth All Saints away was a tricky tie in the NFA Junior Cup, but we kept our cool and returned 3-1 victors with Jacob Cox bagging a brace and one more from Clamp. A Clamp double saw us defeat PNS at home, then he hit two more at Thrapston, but we had to settle for a point in a 3-3 draw, Reece Sweeney the other man on target.
The Clamp show rolled on and both he and Cox hit hattricks as we destroyed Blackstones 7-1 at Brafield Road, but we were to lose this after the Stamford side pulled their side out late in the season. Irchester away was a tight one, but goals from Shanley and Brittain saw us edge home 2-1, then ON Chenecks were defeated 3-1 under the Compton Park lights with the game being over by half-time with Shanley, Lewis Galpin and Clamp all on target. Former Cooks Reserve manager Charlie Wixon pulled one back late on for Chenecks.
Harborough Town away saw another 3-1 win with Cox, Galpin and Sean Nicholson on the score-sheet, then Bourne Town were seen off 4-1 with Shanley, Galpin, Jonny Shakespeare and Chipchase spreading the goals out between them in the village.
ON Chenecks away was the next challenge in the County Cup, but despite leading 4-1 at one stage, the home side fought back to win 5-4. Two from Nicholson, one from Galpin and a Chris Doran own goal counting for the Cooks. This was followed by a disappointing 0-1 reverse at Bugbrooke and Newport inflicted a third straight defeat on our young side when they triumphed 4-3 at our place. Liam Stone, Nicholson and Sweeney the men on target for us.
The run of defeats proved to be character building as we went on to win our next four games. Eynesbury Rovers away 3-1 (McGowan, Nicholson, Cox), Potton United home 2-0 (Osbourne, O’Reilly), Irchester United home 3-1 (O’Reilly, Chipchase, Sweeney) and Bourne Town home 2-0 with Elliott O’Reilly grabbing both.
The one real blot on the season was to follow as they were thrashed 5-1 at Olney Town with Elliott Bartley’s goal the only bright-spot on a dismal day, but again the lads gave Jake the response he required as they set off on a five-game winning streak and seven unbeaten. Eyensbury were beaten 4-1 at home with Nicholson getting two and one apiece for Galpin and Charlie Hynam before the double was also completed over Blackstones as Chipchase, Sweeney and O’Reilly saw them off 3-1 on their own patch. As mentioned before this result was to be wiped out shortly after with although this cost us four goals on Desborough, it wouldn’t affect our end of season placings as they also completed the double over the Stamford based side. A first half strike from Hynam saw off Raunds Town at home and the following weekend we completed a quick-fire double as two goals from Jack Bartley saw us edge home 2-1 at Kiln Park. Galpin netted the only goal of the game as Cogenhoe saw off visiting Harborough Town to make it five on the spin as we moved above Desborough into second spot and with an outside chance of catching by now runaway leaders Lutterworth Athletic.
We went two goals up at Newport Pagnell Town in a midweek game thanks to strikes from Nathan Burrows and Ryan Ansell, but they fought back well in the second half and we had to settle for a point in a 2-2 draw, but it was straight back to winning ways the following Saturday with a great performance at inform Potton United as we recorded a well-deserved 2-0 win. Jake Cayton gave us the lead just before the break and Shanley got a goal his performance richly deserved to seal the points in the second half, but if anything, the score-line flattered our hosts that day.
The trip to Whitworth probably ended our title hopes as they ended our impressive run by coming from behind to beat us 2-1. Burrows our man on target, but second place was still in our hands if we won our last three games, however two of these were against by now champions Lutterworth. The away game was up first and we held them to a goalless draw, before Joe Shanley netted twice as we saw them off 3-2 at home, with O’Reilly also on target.
Unfortunately second place slipped from our grasp as we were held to a 1-1 draw under the Compton Park lights by Olney Town who had grabbed the lead with a great finish from Ian Lindop just before the break. A superb volley from Lewis Galpin levelled things up, but we needed a win and try as we might, we couldn’t find a way through their well organised defence a second time. Our season was to end at Rothwell Corinthians and all we could do was win and hope Desborough didn’t the following weekend. We certainly did our bit with Dan Stevenson, Cayton, Ansell and Shanley all finding the target in an amazing first half as we romped to a 4-0 win at Sargeants Lawn, but then all we could do was wait. Desborough had to beat mid-table Bugbrooke St Michaels at home to leapfrog us into second spot and they did…just. The Badgers pushed them all the way but Ar Tarn held their nerve and ran out 4-3 winners on the final day of the season.
Third spot, a great achievement for Jake Stone in his first season in management and one to be applauded with the largely young squad he used and a great platform to build from, but he must keep finding these gems as I’m sure Tom is hovering waiting to take the best of them for the first team. As I say it’s hard to be a reserve team gaffer, while success on the field is great for the club, the real achievements I guess are getting players through to the first team.