Ollerton Town FC 2018 Review

Ollerton Town head into 2019 in 16th place of the Northern Counties East League Division One after seven points from their last three games has seen the side put a bit of daylight between them and the relegation zone.
After surviving their second season at step six in May this year, Dave Winter’s side are still battling every week to try and pick up as many points as possible with FA Cup football the current target for the Walesby Lane outfit.
In a similar position this time last year, January started well for Ollerton who obtained four points from their three league fixtures whilst also edging out local rivals Clipstone in a thrilling 4-3 League Cup win.
February began with a win against FC Bolsover but only one point from the next twelve kept Ollerton down there. March proved to be much more rewarding as the Town got two wins from their three games.
April was a very busy month as the season neared it’s close and Ollerton’s squad soon became fully stretched. A 1-0 win over Armthorpe Welfare started the month but it was unfortunately followed by four defeats. Ollerton’s 2017-2018 league campaign ended with an impressive 3-2 victory over Selby Town and four days later, Ollerton made the quarter final of the League Cup with 4-2 extra time win over Grimsby Borough.
Ollerton’s last game of the season was that quarter final against Premier Division outfit Handsworth Parramore and the Town did themselves proud with a battling performance, though they were ultimately beaten 2-1.
Jordan Wildey, who spent last season as first team coach at the club, left in the summer to join Evo Stik side Pontefract Colleries whilst the club was also busy on the transfer front, several players joining, and also leaving, over the close season.
The club also announced an exciting sponsorship deal with local company Fast Frame which saw their Walesby Lane home renamed ‘The Fast Frame’.
This season started with seven fixtures crammed into August and it was a month of mixed results. The club got their first win of the season, a 1-0 win over Harworth Colliery, whilst also recording two 1-1 draws. There was three league defeats before the month ended with a League Cup win over East Yorkshire Carnegie.
September began with a 1-0 win over New Mills in the FA Vase before a run of five defeats in all competitions that stretched into October. Ollerton then picked themselves up and went without defeat for their next five fixtures, a stand-out result being a 3-2 victory away at rivals Shirebrook Town thanks to a last minute goal.
November saw three points from a possible twelve which saw Ollerton hovering above the drop and a defeat to Parkgate on the 1st December kept them there before fantastic victories away to Grimsby Borough and Emley, plus a draw away at Glasshoughton, saw the Town pull away going into the New Year.
Football is very much a team game but a stand-out performer for Ollerton this year has been striker Gavin King. Eleven goals from the last eleven games of the previous campaign saw the forward end with twenty-nine goals to his name. This season King has gone on to surpass those achievements however and has found the back of the net twenty-four times so far, meaning he has scored forty times for Ollerton in this calendar year.
A recurring problem for The Town has been their inability to get a consistent team out on a regular basis. With everyone available, Ollerton have at their disposal a mix of talented, experienced players as well as group of exciting youngsters who can give anyone in the league a game. Ollerton’s league fixtures for the second half of the season look somewhat favourable compared to the last few months and they will be hoping this mix of experience and youth can guide them further up the table.

Updated 07:10 - 30 Aug 2019 by Liam Kent