Liam Drury: Return To The Top

Steve Howson has been released by South Shields on a free transfer after a season in which he has struggled to set the team and the fans alight under new, young manager Liam Drury.

"I think it was an amazing achievement for me, personally, to make it onto the Best Eleven Bench at Shields this season and it is something I will take from my time there" Howson said when asked about making the Shields TOTS.

"I was shocked when manager Liam Drury came up to me during training and said that he was planning on releasing me from the club but this season I feel that I haven't been able to contribute loads to the club's season and I respect Drury for his decision" Howson said.

Steve Howson signed from Seaham in January 2018 in what was seen as a desperate bid from Liam Drury to try and prevent South Shields from getting relegated. However, despite playing 16 league games, Shields have suffered relegation and Howson will now begin his latest adventure at a new club.

Good decision, if he hasn't contributed enough then it's better to find a replacement.

South Shields have today announced their pre-season friendlies in preparation for the 2018-2019 season by announcing their 4 friendlies to prepare them for hopefully a title/promotion race.

Shields seem to have been anticipating the friendly announcements for ages and it comes at no surprise that manager Liam Drury has accepted the friendlies with gratitude and joy toward the new season.

Marske are the team that has been announced as the first team to take on South Shields in the first friendly of the hugely-anticipated pre-season. Marske currently compete in the Northern D1, which is surely going to be a test.

The second pre-season game will see South Shields go up against Scottish side Stenhousemuir, who compete in the Ladrobes League 1. Shields will be hoping that game can pull in a major attendance to produce revenue ahead of the new season.

The third pre-season game will see South Shields go up against Morpeth at Craik Park. Morpeth currently compete in the Northern D1, which is set to help Liam Drury see how he can compete against even more higher opposition in preparation for the new Northern D2 season. However, Drury's new signings will need to be ready to prove their worth.

And finally, Drury has lined up the biggest friendly of all at Filtrona Park by managing to get the Hull City U21's to come to the suburb just outside of Newcastle. Drury will be hoping that Hull bring most of their first team down, so Drury is able to assess which players are capable of competing at a higher level.

It'll be an interesting pre-season for sure, I hope it will prove to be a fruitful one!

Northern D2 side South Shields have let right-mid Luke Durham, centre-mid Christian Millar and centre-back Craig Laight go in a move to make way for new signings.

Luke Durham has only been able to stay with Shields for a year, all served under Drury's watchful eye. Luke was able to establish himself mid-way through the season after Chris Feasey departed from the club. During his one and only season with Shields, Durham was able to make 28 appearances and scored 3 goals as the side got relegated.

The second player Shields had to let go of was Christian Millar. Millar has suffered his 2nd release from a club in two summers after being released by North Shields last summer. Millar joined South Shields last October to try and improve their season in the middle of the season, where they ended up relegated. Milar made 23 appearances and score 1 goal during his brief spell.

The last player to be released from Filtrona Park was central defender Craig Laight. The former Scunthorpe youth player joined Shields from Seaham in January to try and boost the defence however he was only able to make 5 appearances in his short spell.

I like these little updates you are doing because it seems so real.

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Despite it being a quiet pre-season in all due respect, I believe that it was one which I was cleanly able to evaluate each individual player from. We were strong defensively in most games, but were unable to grind out the neccesary result on some occassions. Midfield really looked like coming on a treat with the way they linked up with the strikers and the attackers led the line superbly when required. Here's how Pre-Season went:

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size=15](Friendly)14.7.2018-Marske 1(Home-Jackson 13) South Shields 2(Henderson 22,67) [/size]

Marske:Seary(Montgomery 72), Grant(Salkeid 68), Coulson(Reed 68), Hollingsworth(Mason 77), Coates(Williams 62)(Porter 83), Donnelly(Rooney 68), Stephenson(McCoy 77), Bott(Sweeney 77), Home-Jackson(Williams 72), Kelly, Owens(Downing 62).

Shields:Rees(Greenwood 90), Bowskin, Cooke(Clarke 56), Hohn(Laight 90), McCann(Oakley 90), Durham(Thompson 90), Lingouba(Millar 90), Aspinall(Osborne 90), Cain, Henderson, Brown(Telfer 90).

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(Friendly)18.7.2018-South Shields 1(Lingouba pen 58) Stenhousemur 2(Watt 62, McLean 87)

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Clarke(Cooke 45)(Oakley 69), Hohn, McCann, Brown, Lingouba, Aspinall, Durham, Cain, Henderson.

Stenhousemur:Mullnery(Charlesworth 62), Ritchie, McWilliam, McGowan, Miller(Ross 45), Wallace, Hallam(McKay 69), Murray(Couser 79), Malcolm, Watson(McLean 48), Muir(Watt 48).

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(Friendly)21.7.2018-Morpeth 2(Berald 8, Smith 44) South Shields 1(Cain 59)

Morpeth:Ritson(Maher 71), Salmon(Wallace 71), Skelton(Lancaster 65), Saxton, Doherty, Winter(Mellor 56), Carr(Barlow 77), Barald(Kitchen 79), Harrison-Smith(Venios 45), Townsend(McIntosh 65), Smith(Gray 59).

Shields:Rees(Greenwood 90), Bowskin(Harvey 90), Cooke(Clarke 45)(Oakley 85), Hohn(Osborne 90), McCann(Legister 90), Thompson(Harris 51), Lingouba(Shandran 90), Aspinall(Myler 90), Cain(Lowrie 90), Henderson(Ironside 90), Brown(Muir 90).

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(Friendly)28.7.2018-South Shields 0 Hull U21's 2(Bowen 63, Britton 67)

Shields:Rees(Greenwood 90), Bowskin(Harvey 90), Clarke(Cooke 45)(Oakley 79), Hohn(Lowrie 90), McCann(Muir 90), Thompson(Ironside 45), Lingouba(Smith 90), Aspinall(Osborne 90), Cain(Legister 90), Henderson(Shandran 90), Brown(Ironside 90).

Hull:Steer, Rush, Askham(Doughty 90), Grant(Nicholson 73), Tymon, Hill(Britton 58), Dodoo(Friend 73), Butler(Bowen 58), Hyland(Dawson 64), Turner, Hunt(Hewitt 58).

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This lad has come on leaps and bounds since I first joined the club and I think this year is going to be his breakout one. In pre-season, we played teams a higher class than us, and Jordan performed by getting 2 goals and 1 assist so I have high hopes for the kid going into the new season.

So, the new season has begun here at Filtrona Park in Divison 2 and it's started really brightly in all circumstances considered. Players have been performing from the off and I am impressed at everyone who I have given games to as we try and launch a successful title challenge. And with everything going on here at the ground after arrivals and departures during the summer break, I believe squad harmony is now at a high with all of the deadwood having been cleared out. Here is how August seemed to pan out:

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(Northern League D2)11.8.2018-South Shields 2(Thompson pen 5, Cain 59) Team Northumbria 0

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Hohn, Clarke, McCann, Myler, Aspinall, Lingouba, Thompson, Cain, Telfer(Henderson 88).

Northumbria:Murphy, Bertram, Scarisbrick, Dexter, Pryce(Wringston 65), Kamara, Dodsworth, Morgan(Lowe 48), Burke, Reeves(Uzechukwa 59), Irving.

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(Northern League D2)14.8.2018-South Shields 0 Darlington RA 0

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke, Lingouba, Myler(Osborne 67), Aspinall, Cain, Telfer, Henderson(Brown 88)

Darlington:Purreall, Walton, Edmunds, Crumble, White, Blackmore(Wilson 57), Allen, Dean, McGuk(Gamble 45), May(Cunningham 45), Woodward.

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(Northern League D2)18.8.2018-Esh Winning 0 South Shields 2(Brown 37, Telfer 65)

Esh:Jackson, Riley, Martin, Ingram, Burgess, Walker(Kyle 51), Alderman, Waddington, Gwyne(Beaverstock 45), Leather, Ferguson(Rudge 57).

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke, Lingouba, Myler, Aspinall, Cain, Telfer(Ironside 68), Brown.

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(Northern League D2)25.8.2018-South Shields 2(Brown 4, Thompson 72) Crook 1(McDaid 63)

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke, Lingouba, Myler, Aspinall, Cain, Telfer(Thompson 65), Brown.
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Crook:Chambers, Albinson, Kitchen, Wearmouth(Conray 56), Mowbray, Hodgson, Lamb(McDaid 45), Logan(Bower 61), Goodwin, Battersby, Bell.

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(Mileson Memorial League Cup)South Shields 2(Brown 69,76) Alnwick 0

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke(McCann 72), Lingouba, Aspinall, Myler, Cain, Telfer(Ironside 72), Brown.

Alnwick:Holloway, Watkins, Chigozie, Pearson(Smithson 45), Joyce(Jones 51), Nichols, Moore(Greatorez 61), Smith, Putnam, Spencer, Crittenden.

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The table, for me, couldn't look better at this point of the season. We are currently lying 2nd in the league, sat on an impressive 10 points after the first 4 games of the season. Guisborough are the team we are so desperately trying to chase for that league title at the moment and it is proving to be a tough task when it comes down to the wire due to Guisborough's knowledge of this league. I am hoping that as time progresses throughout the season, that I am able to gain supreme knowledge of this league and to know it's ins and outs come April/May time as it could well come useful knowledge depending on whether we are able to power onto the next league or stay in this league, which is dreaded by all here.

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Player Of The Month-Max Brown

Max is the lucky player to recieve my Player Of The Month for August. The youngster has managed to bag himself 4 goals during the month and an impressive average rating of 7.61 and he has been the spearhead of my attacking force so far this season. Hopefully he can now push on and get more goals next month.

With a month-and-a-half gone over at Filtrona Park, we decided it was time to speak to star striker Adam Telfer on how he was settling in to South Shields in an exclusive club interview.

So, how are you today Adam?

I'm on cloud nine right now, yourself?

I'm feeling the same myself, thanks. Now, Adam, you have obviously grown up here in the North of England so who was your first love in football?

Tough question, bud. I've obviously grown up watching football since I was a boy, since I was around 7 or 8 probably. As a kid, I supported Newcastle and I was lucky enough to actually have a training session with Alan Shearer before he retired. But really, I think my first actual love was with Workington. I grew up through their academy, I broke into their first team when I was 20-21 so that club is probably the reason I have a football career now, to be honest.

The fans have recently been speaking out about your superb form since signing here, but how do you feel about your form so far during this current season?

I'm definately happy at how I've hit the ground running. I managed to score 9 goals for Workington in 3 years and here I've already got 6 in less than 2 months. Obviously I've got to thank players like Max [Brown] and Brad [Aspinall] for the passes they've been supplying me with.

What is your key to success?

Every player who playes well across all the divisons in football from the Premier League to Level 23 in England is obviously enjoying their football and that is what I'm doing. But whenever I am on the pitch, I'm always told to imagine my opponents on the floor.

On the floor?!

Yeah, on the floor. The gaffer tells it to all the lads. It's something his youth coach used to tell him. Apparently, it makes the opposition seem as if they are weaker than us, less powerful and maybe this has been our trick to success this season.

Very interesting! So on to Liam Drury-how much has he helped you?

He's helped me a lot in my gameplay. Being a former striker during his career, he knows how to help the strikers and wingers the most in my opinion. During the training sessions, he takes me aside most times with Gareth Rees or Liam Greenwood and teaches me to finish confidentl.

So, what are your opinions on the club then Adam?

It's a very homely club to be at. The first day I came in to sign my contract, the first thing Liam did after me signing was shake my hand and show me around the club. He told me where everything was. Then we went for training. He introduced me to all the players, told them to not be too rough with me and they were as gentle as anything. Now, the facilities. They aren't the best. They are ok, but they aren't the best. They could do with improving but the club manages to get along fine with minimum things so the facilities can stay as long as the club are happy.

Ok, well that covers everything Adam. Thank you for you time and we wish you the best of luck for the future.

Thank you. It's very much appreciated.

The 16th of September 2018 may become an iconic date in the memory of the South Shields Supporters Trust now as they have managed to buy South Shields from former owner and chairman Gary Crutwell.

The change has come about after the Shields Supporters decided that it was time for a change at the club and decided that they wanted to take the club forward to the next level themselves, with local investor Thomas Handley becoming the new chairman of the club.

When speaking to BBC Radio Newcastle, Handley said "I have always wanted to own this fascinating club. And now my time has come. The Supporters' Trust approached me, knowing that I had money and that I was a massive fan of this club, and asked if I could help them get their feet under the table here at the club. But obviously that came with a price. I would have to be chairman if I helped them. And so they let me. And here we are. The owners of South Shields. My first idea for the club is to get them onto a sound financial footing. The club is debt-ridden and I intend to fix that while there is still time.,Thank you for letting me on air".

When quizzed on his thoughts of the fans taking over, Drury responded with "I believe it is an amazing thing that the fans care so much about this club to take it over and try to sort out our problems. I like the fact that I will now be working for the fans and as long as the whole fanbase like me, there is always a chance of me keeping my job here at South Shields and I have no intention whatsoever of leaving now that the fans have taken charge".

When asked on what he thought of the fans taking over, former chairman Crutwell responded with "The fans made me an offer that I couldn't possibly refuse. I loved the club and the whole atmosphere around it. Talks for the takeover have been going on since pre-season and despite that stopping Drury from doing his work properly towards the end of the transfer window, I have pleased he managed to do his work early and get the core of the squad together before the transfer embargo could affect the plans for his squad. I am a huge fan of what the club have been doing and I am pleased they can go in the right direction now. Hopefully the debt will be cleared and I can enjoy the South Shields football as a fan now".

So with no plans to remove Drury from his role at the moment, the young manager can breathe safely for the time being as the fans begin to try and work things out at the club. Can the debt be cleared? Only time will tell.

September

With the recent and history-defining moment in the history of South Shields this month as the fans took over, our form seemed to decline after the takeover as it started to affect the players' mentality. After the takeover toward the end of September, we failed to win 1 out of 3 games to see our unbeaten run in the league come to an end. We unfortanately got knocked out of the FA Vase in the 1st Qualifying Round to end our cup hopes there, Here's how August panned out;

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Fixtures

(Northern League D2)1.9.2018-South Shields 1(Brown 10) Easington Colliery 0

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Hohn, Cooke, Clarke, Myler, Aspinall, Lingouba, Cain, Brown, Telfer(Ironside 71).

Easington:Benjamin, McDonnell, Dudill, Lewis, McCarthy, Tinkler, Parsons, Morris, Morton(Buzzeo 49), Potton(Blake 59), Wallace(Seward 45).

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(Northern League D2)5.9.2018-Billingham Syn 0 South Shields 4(Aspinall 1, Telfer 13 30, Brown 47)

Syn:Constable, McAllister, Williams, Pepper, Wiley(Omand 48), Murfins(Rowley 48), Hillerby, Chapin(Morris 53), Mason, Ede, Lloyd.

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Hohn, Cooke, Clarke, Lingouba, Myler, Aspinall, Cain, Telfer(Ironside 76), Brown.

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(FA Vase 1st Qual. Round)8.9.2018-Heaton Stannington 1(Liddle 26) South Shields 0

Heaton:Galer, Whitley, Norman(Connor 45), Rickman, Betts, Smyth(Evans 45), Clarke, Garner(Hutton 58), Pearson, Shephard, Liddle.

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke, Myler, Aspinall, Lingouba, Cain, Brown, Telfer.

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(Northern League D2)11.9.2016-South Shields 0 Tow Law 0

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke, Myler, Aspinall, Lingouba, Cain, Brown, Telfer.

Law: Pryce, Every, Mason, Grainger, Bishop, Groves, Mason(Procter 65), Stewart(Newton 45), Cullen, Chandler(Foden 56), Edridge.

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(Northern League D2)15.9.2018-Heaton Stannington 0 South Shields 5(Cain 53 85, Telfer 57 68 72)

Heaton:Galer, Whitley(Connor 45), Newman(Garner 60), Betts, Pearson, Smyth, Hutton, Wearsmith(Anderson 60), Clarke, Shephard, Liddle.

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn(McCann 68), Clarke, Myler, Lingouba, Aspinall, Cain, Brown, Telfer.

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(Northern League D2)22.9.2018-South Shields 2(Telfer 61 86) Hebburn 0

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke, Lingouba, Myler(Osborne 61), Aspinall(Thompson 87), Cain, Telfer, Brown.

Hebburn:Fenwick, Webb(Baxendale 58), Richards, Clayton(Berry 61), Archer, Turner, Maguire(Ellis 45), Chapman, Stepforth, Webb, Higgins.

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(Northern League D2)26.9.2018-Birtley Town 0 South Shields 3(Telfer 16, pen 25, pen 54)

Town:White, Hughes, Green, Doran(Robson 54), Thomas, Chambers, Sammons, Burton, Oliver(Bradord 51), Elliot, McGoldrick(Turner 45).

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn, Clarke, Lingouba(Thompson 87), Myler, Aspinall, Cain, Telfer, Brown.

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(Northern League D2)29.9.2018-Whickham 1(Parkes 28) South Shields 0

Whickham:Hamilton, Buckley, Armstrong, Leonard, Henderson, Barrett, Wyke(Murray 45)(Jackson 56), Chandler, Hall, Parkes, Adams(Afful 61).

Shields:Rees, Bowskin, Cooke, Hohn(McCann 88), Clarke, Lingouba, Aspinall, Myler(Osborne 88), Cain, Telfer(Henderson 88), Brown.

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League Table

So the second month of the season has eventually come to an end and we are sitting pretty at the top of the table with 26 points from 11 games which is an impressive total by my standards, meaning that we have only missed out on 7 points so far this campaign. Obviously, I intend to build on this superb 2-point lead we have at the top of the table and to try and pull away even further for Guisborough, who look like being the only team battling us this season for the coveted Northern League Divison 2 Title at the moment.

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Player Of The Month-Adam Telfer

Adam Telfer is the only player I think who deservedly gets the Player Of The Month award for September. Yes, there were players like Max Brown and Harry Cain who came close but couldn't challenge my star striker. The 23 year-old striker, who recently signed for us, managed to bag himself an INCREDIBLE 10 goals and popped up with 1 assist during the 8 games we played during the month. This kid is something special and if he weren't playing for us, I'm confident he would be playing for an 8th tier side at least.

October

So we are finally at the end of the long slog of a month which is October. At least I think October is a long slog. Probably because there was 31 days of inconsistency amongst every single player in my South Shields squad. October has probably been one of the toughest months I have endured as a football manager, and I had to manage Aston Villa for 6 longs months as well. With the fans' truly having got behind the club now with the recent takeover, hopefully things will take off on the pitch before January at least. Here's how October panned out:

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Fixtures

(Northern League D2)2.10.2018-Washington 1(Lowther 66) South Shields 1(Brown 48)

Starting XI:Gareth Rees, Jack Bowskin, Jordan Cooke, Adam Hohn, Tom Clarke, Cesaire Lingouba, Brad Aspinall, Sean Myler, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer, Max Brown.

Substitutes:Liam Greenwood, Courtney McCann(On for Hohn, 68), Mark Osborne, Jordan Henderson, Lee Thompson.

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(Northern League D2)6.10.2018-South Shields 1(Telfer 45+1) Ryton & Crawcrook Albion 0

Starting XI:Gareth Rees, Jack Bowskin, Adam Hohn, Tom Clarke, Jordan Cooke, Sean Myler, Brad Aspinall, Cesaire Lingouba, Max Brown, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer.

Substitutes:Liam Greenwood, Courtney McCann, Lee Thompson(On for Bowskin, 89), Jordan Henderson, Matt Draper.

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(Northern League D2)13.10.2018-Alnwick 1(Spencer 2) South Shields 1(Telfer 31)

Starting XI:Gareth Rees, Jack Bowskin, Adam Hohn, Jordan Cooke, Tom Clarke, Sean Myler, Cesaire Lingouba, Brad Aspinall, Max Brown, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer.

Substitutes:Tom Taylor, Matt Draper, Mark Osborne, Jordan Henderson, Courtney McCann.

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(Mileson Memorial League Cup 1st Round)17.10.2018-Norton & Stockton Ancients 2(Smalley 69,116) South Shields 1(Roberts OG 13)

Starting XI:Gareth Rees, Jack Bowskin, Adam Hohn, Jordan Cooke, Tom Clarke, Sean Myler, Cesaire Lingouba, Brad Aspinall, Max Brown, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer.

Substitutes:Tom Taylor, Matt Draper, Mark Osborne, Jordan Henderson(On for Telfer, 77), Courtney McCann.

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(Northern League D2)20.10.2018-South Shields 1(Thompson 77) Northallerton 1(Campbell 29)

Starting XI:Tom Taylor, Jack Bowskin, Adam Hohn, Jordan Cooke, Tom Clarke, Sean Myler, Brad Aspinall, Cesaire Lingouba, Lee Thompson, Harry Cain, Max Brown.

Substitutes:Gareth Rees, Matt Draper(On for Hohn, 77), Mark Osborne(On for Aspinall, 77), Jordan Henderson, Courtney McCann.

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(Northern League D2)27.10.2018-Stokesley 1(Cummings 88) South Shields 3(Hohn 41, Cain 49, Thompson pen 54)

Starting XI:Tom Taylor, Jack Bowskin, Jordan Cooke, Adam Hohn, Tom Clarke,Sean Myler, Cesaire Lingouba, Brad Aspinall, Max Brown, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer.

Substitutes:Gareth Rees, Matt Draper, Mark Osborne, Jordan Henderson, Lee Thompson(On for Bowskin, 43).

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League Table

We are still sitting pretty at the top of the Northern League Divison 2 table after 3 months of enjoyable, continuous football with my squad. I'm looking forward to the upcoming Christmas period with Darcy and Holly at home as a non-league manager still but, until then, I have to concentrate on solidating our position at top spot in the league for now.

I know that the last few months have been far too inconsistent for my liking as our nearest rivals, Washington, are level on points with us now after 16 games. This is all because we couldn't put games to bed and because Washington could. Next month could be crucial in the title race because we need points from somewhere and I won't rest until we pull clear.

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Player Of The Month-Max Brown

With Adam Telfer struggling for form during this month, I left it down to Max Brown, my South Shields wonderkid, to try and show why he should be the one leading the line, either alone or with Telfer, and he came up trumps. Despite not scoring as many goals as Telfer did during the month, he certainly tried to create them by setting up 3 goals and by knocking one in himself to claim the POTM for October.

November

This month, we started the penultimate month of 2018 with a poor loss against our title rivals Guisborough in a game we dominated but couldn't put away our clear-cut chances. We were then able to crush bottom of the league Ryhope away from home as they needed points against us to get away from relegation whereas we needed points to hang onto the top. However, we picked up two draws that weren't needed with 1-1 draws against Chester-Le-Street and Billingham Town.

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Fixtures

(Northern League D2)3.11.2018-South Shields 0 Guisborough 2(Davison 23, Dow 54)

Starting XI:Tom Taylor, Josh Meade, Jordan Cooke, Adam Hohn, Tom Clarke, Cesaire Lingouba, Brad Aspinall, Sean Myler, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer, Max Brown.

Substitutes:Gareth Rees, Matt Draper(On for Cooke, 80), Mark Osborne(On for Myler, 80), Lee Thompson(On for Telfer, 80), Courtney McCann.

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(Northern League D2)10.11.2018-Ryhope CW 1(White 5) South Shields 3(Brown 10, Clarke 60, Telfer 69)

Starting XI:Tom Taylor, Josh Meade, Adam Hohn, Tom Clarke, Ryan Serrant, Cesaire Lingouba, Brad Aspinall, Sean Myler, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer, Max Brown.

Substitutes:Gareth Rees, Matt Draper, Lee Thompson(On for Telfer, 70), Jordan Henderson, Jordan Cooke.

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[b(Northern League D2)17.11.2018-South Shields 1(Brown 71) Chester-Le-Street 1(Clarke 43)

Starting XI:Tom Taylor, Josh Meade, Adam Hohn, Tom Clarke, Ryan Serrant, Cesaire Lingouba, Sean Myler, Brad Aspinall, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer, Max Brown.

Substitutes:Gareth Rees, Matt Draper, Lee Thompson(On for Myler, 71), Jordan Henderson(On for Telfer, 71), Jordan Cooke.

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(Northern League D2)24.11.2018-Billingham Town 1(Sykes 71) South Shields 1(Brown 85)

Starting XI:Tom Taylor, Josh Meade, Matt Draper, Tom Clarke, Ryan Serrant, Sean Myler, Brad Aspinall, Jake Smith, Cesaire Lingouba, Harry Cain, Adam Telfer.

Substitutes:Gareth Rees, Jordan Cooke(On for Clarke, 78), Lee Thompson(On for Smith, 78), Max Brown(On for Telfer, 78), Adam Hohn.

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League Table

This is the first month in a long time that we haven't ended up as top of the league at the end of the month. Because my team still struggle against the top teams in the league, it has ultimately cost us top spot as we head into December with Washington leapforgging us into top spot. Now we sit a tough 4 points off Washington with 40 points after 20 games played, so that is an average 2 points per game. If we are to get to the Northern League Divison 1 again for next season, then we need to cut the inconsistency out of the team and to push forward.

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Player Of The Month-Max Brown

Max Brown recieves my Player Of The Month for November because of his abillity to turn games around in a heartbeat. He scored 2 goals to rescue us a point in both our games toward the end of the month and he grabbed the equaliser to set us on our way against Ryhope, as well as grabbing 1 assist in the same game.

Drury To Look At Youth Academy

A source within the South Shields camp has recently told us that young manager Liam Drury is set to look toward the South Shields Youth Academy for more faces to promote into his first-team squad.

It has become a well-known fact around Newcastle that South Shields have consistently been able to breed and nurture their youth products into the youth team over recent years. With players like Jordan Henderson, Liam Greenwood and Mark Osbornecoming through the academy, it is thought Drury has made a wise choice on looking toward the Academy again.

With the transfer window only a month away, and with Shields on a limited budget, Drury has decided to use his experience of youth to push for the league title with his side.

When asked about his options, Drury responded with "Obviously the U18's haven't done the best this season but I've seen some players during training that have caught my eye and I want to give them their best shot at having a football career at South Shields, rather than letting decent youngsters go".

When quizzed on who the players were that Drury was interested in, Drury commented "I feel that the first team is in need of another striker. Somebody who can take the burden off of Max [Brown] and Adam [Telfer]. I have invited Steve Muir down to train with the first team from the U18's and he has impressed me so I feel he could perform and do a job for the first team so expect to see him involved over the next few weeks".

Muir has only been kicking a ball around the South Shields training pitches for 7 months after joining back in March with the Youth Candidates. Over his Shields career, he has scored 6 goals in 30 games out of a possible 40 he could have played but Muir has shown that he could be a good link between attack and midfield.

When asked who would help settle Muir into the first time, Drury responded with "This morning, I have asked Lee Thompson to help tutor Steve and try to get him up to our standard of football. Steve is still young but with Lee's help, he can achieve this easily".

It is also thought that Drury has taken a liking to the U18 midfield partnership Shaun Smith and Brendon Legister. Drury insists that if the pair stick together when their time in the first team rolls around, then the pair could go far in their career and Drury is debating whether the pair could come in use over the Christmas period or maybe be sent away on loan come January.

9th December 2018

I strode through Filtrona Park to reach the South Shields changing rooms. I entered briskly to find the U18's waiting for me along with manager Chris Andrews and coach Fejiri Acheampong. "Right boys. I'm here today to make you the best you can be. When we get onto the pitch, I want the wingers and midfielders to move to the right half with Chris and Fejiri. I then want the defenders and strikers with me" I said.

We then walked out onto the training pitches, laughing and joking. "Also, I've got some of the first team down to help us out. You've got Adam Telfer, Cesaire Lingouba and Harry Cain helping you both out whereas I've got Lee Thompson, Adam Hohn and Ryan Serrant" I explained. As we got onto the pitch, both of the U18 keepers, Rhys Carter and Elliot Grant, approached us. "Where do you want us?" Elliot asked. "Rhys can come with us and you can go with Liam, Elliot" Chris said demandingly and I trotted over to my group who were stood by the far goal with Lee, Adam and Ryan.

In my group, it consisted of Phil White, Jermaine Harvey, Andy Martin, Rees Lowrie, Oliver Oakley, Jon Imbert, Ellis Antoine and Steve Muir. In the other group was Shaun Smith, David Harris, Lee Shandran, Brendon Legister, Dan Hartrick and Joel Joyce.

I roll a set of footballs onto each wing before turning to face the boys again. "Right. This drill is plain and simple. Me and Lee are going to cross in from either side and I want Steve, Adam, Phil, Andy and Oliver to try and score past Elliot. Whereas I want Jermaine, Rees, Jon, Ellis and Ryan to be defending. Got it lads?" I instructed. "Yes gaffer" they all said in chorus and I told them to all get in position before I strode off to the left wing and Less jogged over to the right.

As I watched the boys tussle in the area, I watched Lee prepare to cross as I did the same. "Left" I shouted before swinging the ball into the area. The cross was driven in and Steve got a nick on the ball with his boot but Elliot palmed aside. I was happy with Steve's attempt.

"Right" I shouted and Lee whipped a delicious ball in. Oliver rose above Ryan but he was backpeddling and his head came safely out to me. "Right" I shouted again and Lee's whipped, low cross was cleverly flicked in by Steve, which went in through a tiny nick off of Adam Hohn's boot.

After trying these for around half an hour, we all came together for both of the teams to play a game between eachother with my group against the other group. I stood on the touchline, instructing my team along and trying to point them in the right direction. It was hard being the first team manager as well because of myself desperately trying to look at the players from the other side as well.

I was particulary impressed with Brendon Legister's performance in the centre of midfield for his time during the training game. There was this particular incident when Lee Thompson was surging down the right and when the youngster went in on the oldest player at the club, I was sure Lee would win. But Brendon came out with the ball. It shows he wasn't scared of battling with the big boys. I walked off the training pitches a very happy man at finally seeing Brendon in action and I'm sure if he continues like he can, he may be in my first team squad before long.