Off The Line Xmas Advent Calendar – Day #6

Brighton and Hove Albion – League One Champions 2010-11
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The 2009-10 season had seen Albion finish in mid-table, with manager Gus Poyet – who had joined the club in the November of that season – going forward to lead a push for promotion in the 2010-11 campaign. The summer saw the arrival of a number of new players, notably forward Ashley Barnes, midfielder Matt Sparrow and defenders Gordon Greer and Marcos Painter, with Kazenga Lua Lua joining on loan. Barring an inconsistent first month of the season for Poyet’s side that saw them lose away to Sheffield Wednesday, as well as dropping points against Rochdale, it was an otherwise strong start for the South Coast side as they laid down an early statement of intent near the top of the division. September and October would prove to be an impressive month as their qualities really came to the fore, with unbeaten months seeing them drop points in just three of the ten games – draws against Carlisle United, Tranmere Rovers and AFC Bournemouth. They really came into their own towards the middle of October, with confident away victories – 3-0 against Peterborough United and 4-0 against Charlton Athletic – providing early indication of their qualities going forward.

As they approached the later part of the year, Gus Poyet would have been pleased with his sides form throughout September and October, as the final two months of the year were to present their first real struggle of the campaign, with just one win in six games – a 3-0 home victory against Exeter City – seeing them just drop off the pace slightly. It was nevertheless a confident start for Poyet and his side as they looked to go for promotion, and they put to bed a somewhat underwhelming end to 2010 with a return to winning ways in the new year, with a 5-0 home thrashing of Leyton Orient on New Year’s Day followed up with a useful away win at St James’ Park against Exeter City. January in fact was to see only one defeat – a 1-0 away loss against AFC Bournemouth – who themselves had made a steady start to the campaign, as Poyet and his side looked firmly up the table.

February was likewise just to see just a single defeat, another 1-0 away defeat – this time at the hands of MK Dons – as their form continued to impress as they went strong in the push for promotion. A 0-0 away draw against Leyton Orient was to be followed up by three successive wins in which the Albion were to find their wings and in the process their shooting boots in front of goal, scoring four against Bristol Rovers, Hartlepool United and Plymouth Argyle. This was to spark an impressive run of form for Gus Poyet’s side, a spell in which they recorded the perfect month, winning all eight games in March to firmly tighten their grip on the promotion places to put them in the driving seat heading into the final two months of the season.

Brighton and Hove Albion were on the edge of putting the finishing touches on their promotion as they headed into April, with a draw against Rochdale and a 2-0 home win against Sheffield Wednesday seeing them prepare for Dagenham and Redbridge at home knowing that a win would seal their feat and a spot in the Championship. The game was the perfect display of their qualities, with Albion showing all their attacking prowess and battling qualities as they came from behind twice to win 4-3 and secure promotion. With promotion wrapped up, they then went on to beat Walsall four days later by a 3-1 scoreline to ensure they were the Champions. The remainder of April was to perhaps take some shine of their promotion, with Albion going the final four games of the season without a win, but given their strong position and otherwise brilliant campaign, it was enough for Gus Poyet’s side to see out the remainder of the campaign and hold on to their top spot to clinch the title.

Hemel Hempstead Town – Southern League Premier Champions 2013-14
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Hemel Hempstead Town had put in a good 2012-13 campaign, in which they reached the final of the play-offs, losing out in a penalty shootout after a 2-2 draw against Gosport Borough. As such, they headed into the 2013-14 campaign full of confidence, this time looking to go one better and get promoted. Their start was to provide them with just the optimism that they were looking for, with an opening day 2-0 away defeat against Hitchin Town doing little to dampen spirits after what was an otherwise faultless August, winning the remaining four matches to put themselves in early contention. We were to be provided with early indication of their attacking force, with dominant 3-0 victories over Banbury United and Burnham along with a scintillating home win against Corby Town, with Toomey and Parkes both scoring a brace as they romped to a 6-0 win.

September was to see no let up in their promising start and indeed their attacking exploits, with Hemel Hempstead Town again scoring six – this time in a 6-1 home win against Bedford Town – as they also ran out comfortable winners against Weymouth and Bashley, scoring seven goals in the process; seven was to be the number of the month, as they elsewhere recorded a 7-0 win against St Margaretsbury in the FA Cup. They would have to wait for late October for them to drop their next points of the season, with a 2-2 draw away to St Albans City following up home victories against Arlesey Town and Redditch United, with the later proving to be another exciting attacking display as they won 5-0.

November would see no slowing down of their efforts for promotion, with a 4-1 away defeat against St Neots Town and draws against Frome Town and Cambridge City doing little to dampen the spirits as an astonishing 10-0 victory against Bashley and 8-1 win against AFC Totton was to set the mood for an impressive December as they recorded an unbeaten month. Four straight 3-0 wins against Truro City, Bedford Town, Chippenham Town and Burnham were followed up with an entertaining 5-3 victory against Banbury United and a 2-0 away win against Corby Town heading into the new year.

January was to see a slight little wobble, with defeats against Bideford and Frome Town, but otherwise there was no let up in their attacking endeavors as 4-1 victories against Bideford and AFC Totton was followed up by yet another 4-1 victory in February – away to Stourbridge – while they added another 6-1 scoreline to their results. March proved to be a pivotal month for them as they put the finishing touches on their promotion, with a 1-0 defeat against Redditch United to start March firmly put behind them as they won five of the net six fixtures in the month, including entertaining victories (3-2 away to Arlesey Town and 4-3 at home to Stourbridge) as they looked to finish the campaign with aplomb. With the title now firmly in their possession, they were left to put the finishing touches on it as they entered April, with four straight clean sheets to open the month followed with a 4-0 away victory against Hungerford Town. Not even a 5-2 final day defeat against Biggleswade Town could put an end to their celebrations as a 2-1 home victory against Chesham United five days previous saw them break the 100-point mark.

Guess Who #6

We continue our Xmas Calendar Guess Who with a player that has played for Welshpool Town, and has been promoted a total of 5 times in their career to date. He also had a loan spell with Crewe Alexandra. Who do you think it could be?

Let us know by commenting on this post, or on either of our social media posts (Twitter or Instagram) and we will reveal the identity of the player in tomorrow’s edition. Happy guessing, and good luck!