Making a Manager - The Story

1

Welcome to Oxford City Football Club TV! We have re-branded our social media to take on a more modern approach and to be involved non-exhaustively with the fans of our football club; the most special fans in the world.

OCFCTV will take its form on the club's Facebook and Twitter pages, and will expand out to Youtube and Instagram accounts where we will relay every little detail of the football club's ongoing to the world. We will look to unite our community online and live under the same banner.

This channel will broadcast any and all news regarding the football club in a daily 'News Review' segment, as well as live broadcasts of any breaking news. There will be regular interviews with the players and staff of the football club and previews & reviews of all fixtures which the club is involved in. A debate show will also begin its production for the start of next season, and will comprise of the channel's new main broadcaster, Neville Longbottom, and special guests including fans and former players and staff.

Oxford City Football Club TV will kickoff on 1st April with a review of the month of March for the football club and an all-questions-answered interview with our gaffer Ryan Ferguson. Until then, COME ON CITY!

1

1

Lee Cox was our solitary signing of March. He immediately became our joint-top earner, with his wage of £300 p/w, but our exploits in the league & cup had put us in a financial position where we could easily avoid this. He added a completely new dimension to our team. He wouldn't be a guaranteed starter but what he had was a very good football brain. He could be a reliable player in difficult situations, particularly where we would need to hold out against the momentum of the game. A big wage, but could he prove to be a good signing?

Much better! In terms of league play, we were back to our free-scoring best (mostly). We put six past Hampton & Richmond, with Kabongo scoring a hat trick. Our former striker Matthew Paterson put two past us in this game, showing us what we were missing with him gone from the club. East Thurrock nearly sprung a surprise on us but Kabongo rescued a point for us with a late equaliser.

The big game in the league was against Dulwich Hamlet. We absolutely humiliated them. They were looking to do us in but a sensational second half performance from us put them in the dirt. Youngster Sam Pickles had been involved in the senior team following Akinjogbin's departure in January and Pickles bagged a sensational brace to help us on our way to a major victory in the title race.

We rounded off the month in the league with a victory over Chelmsford to give us a 3-1-0 record in the National League South during March. A much improved month in comparison to that abysmal month of February.

The FA Trophy was where the excitement was at. We put six past FC United of Manchester in the fourth round, with Kabongo scoring another hat trick. We blew them away to get to the semi finals. Stockport County stood in our way and the first leg looked to end in a 1-1 draw but Nosa Iyamu scored a 94th minute winner to give us an important advantage. We kept a rare clean sheet away from home as Kabongo Tshimanga scored to guarantee us a place in the final. Hoorah!

Kabongo Tshimanga was, once again, our star performer. A total of eight goals this month brought his tally for the season up to an incredible 40. The next target for him had to be 50, could he reach it?

The other teams had a game-in-hand over us last month and that game made all the difference at the end of this month. Despite us hammering Dulwich Hamlet, they had climbed to within one point of us. They were breathing down our necks and Torquay United were not too far behind either. A flawless run in our final five games was needed to ensure league success.

Our run in the FA Trophy had given our finances a further boost. We were in a position where we felt we could put a shortlist together ahead of the summer and know that we could offer reasonable wages, for once.

This was it. The league title was going to go down to the final month. We were in the lead but Dulwich Hamlet and Torquay United were in the hunt. With the FA Trophy final not until May, we could put our entire focus on the league for the month of April. Could we pull off what seemed to be the unlikely and win the title?

Oxford City have had an unpredicted league-topping season to date, with just four games remaining. A 3-1 victory over Hemel Hempstead epitomised what has been a free-scoring season for the table toppers, who have gone from strength-to-strength in what has been a memorable campaign.

When manager Ryan Ferguson arrived in the previous summer, nobody would have anticipated the revolution which he has brought about at Court Place Farm. The club's rise under the new man has been no coincidence. The Liverpool-born gaffer brought with him a style of free-flowing football reminiscent of Pep Guardiola's best teams, and a feel-good factor which has infected every corner of Oxford. The change has been as dramatic as it has been magnificent.

Oxford City's 3-1 victory over Hemel Hempstead has put them within breathing distance of the league title but Dulwich Hamlet have kept the gap to one point, as they put Chippenham Town to the sword. Torquay United were also well within the title race but a slip-up against Woking has all but ruled them out this year. Wealdstone are also mathematically still within a chance of winning the title, but it would take an absolute miracle for that to happen.

Of the four teams still within a mathematical chance of winning the title, Torquay United and Oxford City have the easiest run-ins based on the average position of opposition teams. Dulwich Hamlet have a slightly more challenging run-in, which is good news for Oxford City, while Wealdstone will have a rather challenging final set of games.

---

---

---

Oxford City will be hoping that they can extend the contract of their captain, Josh Ashby, beyond the end of the season. The twenty-two year old had joined permanently last summer and has scored thirteen goals, assisting nine, in all competitions as a box-to-box midfielder. It has been an unfamiliar goal scoring feeling for the midfielder, who hadn't scored a senior goal prior to this season.

Ashby is currently delaying any contract discussion as he evaluates any opportunities to join a club in a higher division. It is likely that, if Oxford City do earn promotion, he would consider a contract offer from his current club. He is an invaluable player for the squad and manager Ryan Ferguson has outlined his intentions to keep hold of his captain for as long as possible.

One player who has impressed in the last few months has been winger Sam Pickles. The seventeen year old joined the club in January following a successful trial and was initially playing in the club's youth team before promotion to the senior squad to replace the outgoing Adebambo Akinjogbin. Pickles has not looked back since.

Pickles made his debut for the club, and his debut in senior football, in a crunch match against Billericay Town. The former Bradford City youth player started the game and scored as Oxford City won. He has since made nine appearances for City, scoring a sensational five goals, including two against fellow title chasers Dulwich Hamlet, and assisting two more.

---

---

---

Ryan Ferguson:

---

"We've been great so far and it is a testament to our hard work every single that we are involved in the league title discussion at this end of the season. We've performed fantastically well and had some great moments to cherish. We deserve to be where we are now.

It'll all mean nothing in the end if we let our lead slip. We cannot afford to concede any ground to Dulwich Hamlet. They're right on our tails and we know they're capable of winning all four of their remaining fixtures. Only perfection will do for us. We need to ensure we do our bit to win the title, because it is in our own hands.

We're hoping to keep Josh (Ashby) at the club. His performances on the pitch have been outstanding, scoring some very important goals for us, and he's been a brilliant leader in the dressing room. The rest of the lads look up to him and he has set a standard for everybody to follow. I hope we can convince him to stay on at the club, he's one of the best players in England outside of the Football League.

I'm very proud of Sam (Pickles). We knew he had the potential to become a great player but we also didn't want to put him in the situation where we had to rely on him to start in some games. We lost Akinjogbin in January and fitness issues meant Sam had to come into the team and play his first ever senior games.

He's taken to senior football like a fish to water and his goal return has been phenomenal! He made his debut against Billericay Town, a team who should really be among the title challengers at this stage, and he scored an important goal for us. He's got five goals in nine games already which, for a winger, is beyond incredible. His double against Dulwich was very important for us and has helped to put us in the position we are now. He could go on to become a very good professional footballer in the future and we are happy to have him as a part of our football club."

1

1

1

The shortlist for the National League South Player of the Season award was today released, with the season's end coming quickly. The ten-man shortlist was dominated by Oxford City players, with the league leaders making up half of player choice.

Oxford City striker Kabongo Tshimanga is widely considered as the favourite to bag the award. The twenty-two year old striker has been in scintillating form this season, scoring 28 goals and assisting 7 more in just 35 appearances for City. With just three games remaining it is unlikely Kabongo will break the all-time goal scoring record in a single season set by Dave Tarpey in 2016-2017 (43), but he has the opportunity to become only the fifth player to reach the 30 goal mark since the league's formation in 2004. Tshimanga is the only player on the shortlist, surprisingly, to have been named as Player of the Month at any time this season. He won the award in October, when he scored a remarkable 8 goals in 4 appearances.

Oxford City captain Josh Ashby is also a strong contender for the award. The box-to-box midfielder has scored 12 times and assisted 7 more in a remarkable season that has seen him lead his side to within touching distance of securing the league title, as well as to the final of the FA Trophy and the third round of the FA Cup. Despite the ongoing speculation surrounding his future, Ashby's accomplishments on the pitch cannot be scrutinised.

Josh Ashby's midfield partner Rob Sinclair was also among the contenders. The midfield maestro has played a key role as a deep lying playmaker for City, and has also chipped in with 4 goals and 7 assists. While he has not been involved too often in either box, his link-up play has been pivotal to Oxford City's success and he has been recognised for his intelligent play.

Oxford City's right fullback Luke Ruddick was nominated for the award too. Despite suffering from a number of injuries throughout the season, Ruddick has amassed a respectable 8 assists as his creativity from the wide areas has helped Oxford City throughout the season.

---

---

---

Kris Owens was the final Oxford City player to make the cut. Owens' breakthrough has been a remarkable one. He began the campaign as backup to Ben Jefford but forced his way into Ryan Ferguson's plans with a string of impressive performances. He has since been rewarded with a nomination for the Player of the Season award.

Dulwich Hamlet are represented by midfielder Ryan Burge. The all-action industrious midfield veteran has played a major part in Dulwich's success this season, combing attacking and defensive duties well, as his side has mounted an impressive title charge. His intelligence on the pitch has seen him labelled as the brains of Dulwich, and his performances have been nothing short of top class.

Chippenham Town's Spanish sensation Jesús Cruz has also been included in the discussion for the award. The young winger, formerly of Brentford's and Watford's youth sides, has delighted fans in his first season in senior football. Jesús loves a good cross, and his electrifying pace has seen him terrorise defenders. With 7 goals and 13 assists to his name, could Jesús become the chosen one?

---

---

---

Torquay United's American trooper Sebastien Des Pres was a certainty for a nomination. The twenty year old midfielder has been a hard worker in Torquay's midfield and has been a contributor to their attacking efforts with 2 goals and 7 assists to date.

Billericay Town's on-loan winger Marcus Harness has been a real hand full this season and has earned the right to be among the contenders. On loan from Burton Albion, Harness has assisted 10 goals and scored 4 more in his quest for the Player of the Season award.

The final nomination was Chelmsford City's Chris Whelpdale. At thirty-two years of age Whelpdale is the oldest of the nominated players and the veteran winger has used his experience to his advantage. 12 goals and 10 assists has marked a fabulous season, and has made Whelpdale the most likely to challenge Kabongo Tshimanga for the award.

1

1

1

It wasn't the flawless run we had hoped for. We started well with a strong showing against Hemel. We relied on goals in the second half to win the game but I was willing to take any kind of win. Concord Rangers were our next victim as we tore them a new one at their place. Nosa Iyamu was key as he inspired us to a 5-2 win to set the tone.

Then the troubles began, and boy were they frustrating. We were 3-0 up vs Slough Town with twenty minutes to go. Nothing could go wrong, right? WRONG! They scored three unanswered goals, including a 93rd minute equaliser, to humiliate us in front of our own fans. Points dropped, and this form continued into the next game. Bath City took the lead from a contentious penalty in the second half and, despite us equalising, we couldn't find a way to win the game.

We were lucky that Dulwich Hamlet also dropped points on those match days and we ended our league campaign on a high with a big victory over Dartford at home. Kabongo Tshimanga epitomised his outstanding campaign with a hat trick in this fixture.

Nosa Iyamu was our one consistent player in our final month of league action. The Nigerian-English winger scored three and assisted three as he helped us to some big victories. Iyamu had been playing on the right wing for the majority of the season but I had moved him to the left to accommodate for Sam Pickles, and Iyamu made the shift without any backlash in performance. Iyamu was a very bright prospect for us and had become a key player with his outstanding end product.

Well, we did it! Dulwich Hamlet had an absolute travesty in their final three games, claiming just one point, which allowed us to win by a clear five. We finished the season with a league-high 102 goals, becoming only the second team in the history of the competition to reach the 100 mark. The tally was some way of Grays Athletic's record of 118 goals in the 2014-2015 season, but I'm not too disappointed by our tally!

A slight drop off from the previous month but with an FA Trophy final on the horizon, we were not too worried about our balance. We knew it would rise significantly. We were hoping for some good sponsorship deals to boost our finances, and we were confident that we could increase our wage spend over the coming months without jeopardising our finances.

Just the one game left, and it was the small matter of the FA Trophy final. The game was to be played at Wembley, of all places, and our opposition was to be Chesterfield. They had just finished second in the National League and were looking for promotion to the Football League via the playoffs. The odds were against us but since when have they ever not been?

1