County League - Animo et Fide
Forum Discussion
Completely forgot there was such a thing as an EFL Trophy..., that suddenly increases the appeal of doing a L1 or L2 team. A trophy is a trophy and third time is the charm - Stockport lost the two finals it has competed in up until this point.
@Danimal5981 wrote:Completely forgot there was such a thing as an EFL Trophy..., that suddenly increases the appeal of doing a L1 or L2 team. A trophy is a trophy and third time is the charm - Stockport lost the two finals it has competed in up until this point.
Yes, apparently so. Hadn't checked up on this myself, as it's also a tournament that I happen to forget about. To be fair, there ARE also a lot of domestic cups in England. I'm not sure I fully understand why they don't just have the FA Cup and that's it. I think there are two domestic cups in France, but other countries only have one, don't they? DfB-pokal, Copa del Rey, Coppa Italia. I'm not sure, but I find it a bit redundant to make the clubs play two, let alone three cups. Especially when complaining about a schedule with little room for recovery.
Yes, runner-ups in 1992 and 1993, hopefully I can make a push for a title here. Could be fun. And even if I miss it this season and win a promotion, I should have another go from a League One position.
- @JustinCase0110 @Danimal5981
Quick bit of history.
Obviously, as the oldest cup competition in the world, the FA Cup is the real deal. It saddens me how it's being relegated so much following pressure from the Premier League. Players used to really value appearing in the final, let alone winning it, and it's sad to see it relegated to such lowly status.
The Football League Cup (as it was originally known; currently the Carabao Cup) was started in season 1960-61 by the...er...Football League as a competitor to the FA Cup, which is of course the possession of the Football Association. A number of top teams did not compete in the competition at the start, which meant that, for a while, the lower division teams stood a chance of winning it. That's why early winners were teams like Swindon Town and Norwich City - Norwich normally residing in the third tier at that time. 'Big' teams only really took notice of it when the winners got access to European football, and only then when that access became the Europa League. Unlike the FA Cup, which still has rounds at weekends, it has always been 'midweek' rounds for this cup. It is only open to football league sides - the 92 teams - whereas the FA Cup is open to all teams in England, including non-league.
The EFL Trophy is much younger (created in the 1980s); created to provide a bit of extra incentive for lower division sides to actually have a chance at winning something. In recent years, they've also opened it up to the academy sides of the bigger teams, although I believe that such teams do not qualify out of the groups. I could be wrong about that, but at the very least, none of the academy sides have ever won it.
So, the Carabao Cup (as currently is) was an attempt by the Football League to compete with the FA, and the EFL Trophy is only aimed at lower-division clubs. That's why there are three domestic cup competitions in England, not including the other two - the non-league FA Trophy and FA Vase, which are only open to non-league clubs.
In this country, we like our cup competitions... 🙂 - @JustinCase0110
8-0. Wow. And five for Fletcher. You've really got into the groove in this division, now. Promotion I reckon, possibly even top spot at the end.
County's biggest ever league win was 13-0 at home to Halifax Town in 1934, so you've some way to go to beat that.
You couldn't make it a double over the Fylde pair, though, with only a draw against the "senior club" in that area - the Tangerines.
Interesting that you're going for a 2-year loan. Let's see when or whether Burnley recall him...
@CO88LER5 wrote:
8-0. Wow. And five for Fletcher. You've really got into the groove in this division, now. Promotion I reckon, possibly even top spot at the end.
County's biggest ever league win was 13-0 at home to Halifax Town in 1934, so you've some way to go to beat that.
You couldn't make it a double over the Fylde pair, though, with only a draw against the "senior club" in that area - the Tangerines.
Interesting that you're going for a 2-year loan. Let's see when or whether Burnley recall him...Yes, certainly a groove there. 7 consecutive wins in the league, so it's the best run of form so far in this save. Ending it in style with that 8-0 win. Not sure I'm going to beat the 13-0 win though, that one seems hard to break.
I know Burnley recalling this player is a huge possibility. But if I start him in most games, then perhaps I'll be allowed to keep him around for the duration of the loan. It's bad news for my other left winger, Odin Bailey. But he hasn't been that profilic this season, so he can't really complain about reinforcements arriving in his position.
- @JustinCase0110 Leko seems to have the most goal involvements, with 9 scored and 12 assists. Quite the key player.
Powell and Olaofe are doing well in that area, too. Yes, that's true. Leko and Olaofe are also sharing/rotating the same position, a RF role next to the more stationary number 9 role, often played by Fletcher or Wootton. So they rarely play together, and I think it goes to show that I get a lot of goal contributions from that specific position.
nine games; eight wins, one draw (since last time I responded). It's going on wheels!...
@Danimal5981 wrote:nine games; eight wins, one draw (since last time I responded). It's going on wheels!...
Yes indeed. I'm also getting increasingly restless in this 4th tier. With 46 league games and all the cup games on top of it, I'm getting to a point, where I can't wait to get up in a superior league. I suppose that's the downside of me wanting to start slowly, preferring not to win promotion in the first season.
- @JustinCase0110 16 points clear of 4th: it's looking good.
Getting £2.3 million for a league 2 player is really good, too. I think they were in the second tier when they made their record purchases and sales.
It's a new-found financial confidence that 4 of their biggest purchases have been in 2024 and 2025... - Yes, I believe so too. But this club should also be confident, now they're (almost) certainly going to play in a superior tier next season. And with our experiences in the domestic cups, I see no reason to think that it's going to be a struggle up there. It's a bit early days, but back to back promotions is on the table, as I see it. Or perhaps it's just my recent 8-0, 6-0 and 7-0 wins that are talking and pushing my confidence beyond repair...
- @JustinCase0110 Tough sixth round match to come, against Villa.
Flying in the league - very good indeed.
Nice Duncan Edwards reference. Possibly would have been the greatest player - ever.
@CO88LER5 wrote:
Tough sixth round match to come, against Villa.
Flying in the league - very good indeed.
Nice Duncan Edwards reference. Possibly would have been the greatest player - ever.Yes, he could've been. But sadly we'll never know.
A huge part of me really wish the crash hadn't happened, and the world could have seen what this team - and this player in particular - could have accomplished. However, the crash and the myths are somehow also what separates Man United from so many other clubs. The way they rose from the ashes, and the way they've continued to honor the legacy of those players by continuing to put their trust in youth.
So perhaps the club wouldn't be the same if not for the crash. And perhaps the emotional attachment from fans wouldn't be the same. So maybe things happen for a reason. Still, I would very much like to be able to look into a crystal ball and see how the club and the players would have performed, if the crash hadn't happened.
- @JustinCase0110
Mega result against Newport. Sometimes they just go that way.
Hard luck against Villa, but not surprising really. It's funny how ex-players pop up so often, and in the 'baddie' role.
League One next season. Looks like you're going up as champions, too.
How strange, the way the game is treating Palace...
