For a new feature I am to reflect on a past season of choice & im going to begjb with the reserves season of 2012/13. A season that was to end up with t-shirts at the presentation celebrating "Stratton Ressies A unique season in so many ways , that we started so flat yet came back so strong to finish a then club record high for reserves of 5th in div 4. My biggest memory of this campaign is the trip to Beccles Town Res, a defeat would take us into the relegation zone. We had to get a result. This was late November & I remember my team talk like it was yesterday, I knew the only way to win this was to get the very best from our senior players, we'd been on a bad run, we were quiet in the warm/up & I rounded on Anton & Jonny in a longer than normal pre-match talk, questioning their desire now they were fathers, had they gone soft? My plan worked perfectly, I saw the fists clench before I'd even finished my talk, the passion was back & we all dug in to get a hard earned 3-2 win, the scoreline flattering the visitors. We were 2-0 up & cruising. It was also Ricky's debut in goal, a decision I should've made earlier having gone through several keepers after Brownbridges hasty exit had left us with a sudden void in goal 1/4 of the way in to the season. This was Matt Nichols first season with the club as a 17 year old forward he made his mark with a hat-trick in a very enjoyable 6-0 win away at Hemsby where we enjoyed a remarkable post match feast laid out on pool tables. A 1-1 draw at St Andrews saw a young Rhys Logan open his goal scoring account. We came within 2 minutes of a major shock nearly beating Gt Yarmouth Res in their back yard in the junior cup, a dan ringer goal looked set to give us victory with Dan Folkard immense but a handball against Jonny saw a penalty awarded & thus a replay the following week which we were unfortunate to lose 0-1.
This then triggered the run that saw us plunge towards the foot of the table, four straight defeats. Then that huge Beccles win triggered a run of 1 defeat in 11 games. These were good times & the mix of youth & experience was almost perfect. David Robinson was influential on the park too & James Prestons extraordinary running made us a fit unit. A 4-0 win on the road at redgrave was particularly sweet, Jonny scoring a pen on his birthday . Then there was the iconic win over then league leaders south Walsham in the snow. Rhys ran the game even in treacherous conditions & this was to see him then selected regularly for first team after this. We still had time to beat CEYMS away with young Ringer & Folkard performing with huge maturity. The fact Folkard played 19 times in the campaign and never matched that level of commitment since is a scource of frustration. Matt finished with 22 goals, the biggest impact a forward had made in the reserves at this level & Mossy who forged a good rapport with Nichols netted 17. Only 2 players played every game, Jonny Saunders and perhaps surprisingly his CB partner Jordan Shaw. Saunders experience in cajoling Shaw through knocks and man managing him was invaluable To jordan & the team. Jimmy T & Terry Green both played in 95 % of games. It was the first season since promotion from div 5 we hadn't struggled & in hindsight without the Brownbridge exit we could have pushed towards promotion in the end 8 points short of going up but from hoping to finish mid table this was the trigger season for 2 very successful seasons that followed cuminating in the promotion season to div 3 in 2014/15. There is a photo taken after our final home game in the changing room with beer cans lofted, great picture, great group, great season.