History 3 of 3

3. History 3


2000-Present
The 2001-2002 season saw the return of Aston playing in the Witney and District League. They were entered into Division 2. They were entered into Divison 2 and not 4, as the League thought Aston would romp the lower divisions. The team finished in sixth position, winning 9 of 22 league games. The team was managed by Darrell "Sargeant Bilko" Timms. Aston reached the final of The Junior Challenge Cup, loosing the final 2-0 to North Leigh B. Top scorer was Pete Saunders with 17 in 28 apps and goalkeeper Craig Paris swept the player awards.

2002-2003
Aston finished 8th in Division 1 after promotion by default the previous season. Aston won 8 out of 24 games. Jeff Spicer started as manager, only to quit halfway through handing the reins to Mark Smith. The season ended in disappointment after a bright start. This was Dan Isherwood's inaugral season, winning the player's player award. Chris Poulsom won manager's player of the season. Jason Garner finished top scorer with 36 in 26 apps. A young Aston team ran out of steam in the final of the Freeland 6-a-side.

2003-2004
This season saw the return of a reserve team at Cote Road, on the back of a Robert Maxwellesque promise of a team from Emo. Jeff Spicer was back in the First team hotseat, after a 5 month sulk. Adam Caswell took charge of the reserves. 40 players eventually played in this team. The first team finished 5th in Division 1. They also reached the semi final of The Junior Shield for the first time in their history. The reserve team finished a creditable 7th in Division 3. Emo's promise of a team turned out to be him and the ghost of Frank Strachan. Jason Garner top scored with 18 in 19 apps. Dan Long and Mark Smith shared The Manager's player award and Dan Long won the Player's Player award. Reserves awards:- Chris Poulsom Manager's Player, Tom Rees won Player's Player in his first season.

2004-2005
Jeff Spicer took the helm again, only to throw in the towel in January after a disappointing defeat to Duck Reserves. Chris Poulsom took over. Aston finished 3rd winning 14 of 24 games after a strong finish to the season. This saw Aston seal promotion to the Premier Division. Matty Smith excelled in his debut season. Aston won the Junior Challenge Cup final beating Carterton 1-0 in the final via a penalty from talisman Ross Fleming. Ross Fleming scored 22 in 25 apps. Ross Fleming won the Manager's player award and Gareth "Mr Vain" Cook won Player's player. The Reserve team led by Simon Isherwood finished bottom of Division 2 after an unwanted promotion the previous season.

2005-2006
This season marked Chris Poulsom's first full season in a tough looking Premier Division. The Lions did not win a league game until November, losing seven of the first eight. The first victory came in Dan Walker's debut, where he netted a hat trick. Aston were predicted to finish bottom, yet finished a respectable eighth. Chris really cared about his players and knew every detail about them (apart from the infamous "Lads you all know Paul simon." "No Chris, it's Simon Poole." One game of note saw a famous victory for Aston. The Lions beat title challengers Carterton 5-4 with a backline of Spicer-Poulsom-Moloney-Fudge. The defensive line up brought raucous laughter from the other players. Benji Sundblad won players' player and finished top scorer in his debut season aged 17. Matt Smith won Manager's player. The Reserves, managed by Pipsqueak Isherwood, finished ninth in division three. Kristian Green got manager's player and the rotund Joe Coutts got player's player in a cash for votes scandal.

2006-2007
This was a disastrous season for the Firsts, finishing rock bottom of the Premier Division with 2 wins out of 24. The less said the better! The world's most miserable man (Chris Allinson)was a mainstay at the back. After scoring 12 in 15 games B.Sundblad broke his ankle. Tom Madden and Paul Herbert lit up the goalscoring charts in Division 3 with 42 between them. The Reserves finished fifth out of 14. Again led by "The Squirt" Isherwood.

2007-2008
This was Adam "The Boat" Caswells first season in charge of The First Team. It also saw local brothers Joe and Ryan Hewer play for the team their Grandfather and father represented. Aston finished sixth out of 11 winning eight from twenty. The most significant result was a 5-3 away win against Kingham. Eddie Brooks providing an exhibition in dogged front play. (Summer training at the Shaun Goater school of excellence.) This season saw Martin Limmer add a Tomtom to his Christmas list, after a mix up in Steeple Aston. Phil Caswell and Ryan Hewer secured the players' player award and Eddie Brooks scooped the manager's player in what turned out to be his farewell season. The Reserves finished 7th out of 10 with 5 wins in 18 games. Matty Brown won manager's player and Tim Green was awarded Manager's player from Simon "Shrimp" Isherwood.

2008-2009
Aston narrowly missed out on promotion after a poor finish to the season. They picked up 2 points from the last 5 games. This was in contrast to the start of the season, where Aston had a 100% record for the first 5 games. Timmy Magic made his first team debut (to be closer to Martin) scoring a wonder goal leaving him an exhausted wreck. The morale improved at Cote Road, helped by the ghostly presence of Pascal Chimbonda. The defence excelled this season, conceding just 26 goals in 20 games. The best in the division, with Tom Rees, Rob Dudley and Ranny Rifford putting in some stoic performances in their rudimentary first team season. Martin Limmer won both awards sharing the players' player award with Tom Rees. Martin was rewarded with trophies, prestige and a arse-ripping wedgie. The Reserves finished in 6th position in Division 3. Burly Joe Coutts took the managerial reins from "The Runt" Isherwood. Joe Moloney won Manger's player and Tim Green won players' player.

2009-2010
This proved to be Adam "Burger" Caswell's final season in charge in a disappointing campaign. His resignation was brought on by a run of 8 defeats in his final 11 league games after another promising start to the season. The Lions finished 8th out of 12. This was Johnny Betts and Graham Barclay's first seasons at the club. Ryan Hewer bagged 17 goals in 23 games, 8 of which were penalties, 3 direct from corners and 4 direct from free kicks. An unusually hot day in Chipping Norton saw the first occasion a human turned to a sun burnt prune. Dan Isherwood was literally roasted in two ways playing at full back. Joe Coutts led the Reserves to 8th in Division 3. The Yellows' highlight was wearing the infamous WI kit.