Evening all,
Well it only seems like yesterday that Yeovil defeated Brentford to close the 2012-13 League One season - well 56 days to be exact. But already the ball has started rolling for the beginning of the new 2013-14 League One season.
And as part of my build up for a new season where I will be covering as many of the Gillingham games as I physically can, I have recruited fans from all 24 clubs from League One and get their options for their clubs as the new season starts on August the 3rd.
Today we begin with two clubs who are new to the division after relegation and promotion from the league above and below League One. I'm talking about Bradford City and Peterborough United:
BRADFORD CITY
PETERBOROUGH UNITED
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Over the next few days, more fans from clubs in League One will be given their chance to speak out on the new season which begins soon.
To be continued...
And as part of my build up for a new season where I will be covering as many of the Gillingham games as I physically can, I have recruited fans from all 24 clubs from League One and get their options for their clubs as the new season starts on August the 3rd.
Today we begin with two clubs who are new to the division after relegation and promotion from the league above and below League One. I'm talking about Bradford City and Peterborough United:
BRADFORD CITY
Name: Matthew Parsons
Occupation away from
supporting your club:
Student
How long have you been a
supporter of Bradford City and how did you start supporting them?
4 Years. I started supporting them
because they ran a promotion in the 2010-2011 seasons where you could go watch
them against Stockport County for only £1 and I’ve been going to the odd game
in the 2011-2012 season, then I bought a flexi card in the 2012-2013 season
where it was only £50 and you paid half price on the gate.
Let’s get this ball rolling:
What would be your Dream
season?
If we got a place in the league 1
play-offs
And what will make it a
Nightmare season for you?
If Nahki Wells left in the January
transfer window, or Gary Jones or one of our star players go a season ending injury.
Our own fans think our
team is…
Great because most of our team are
young, except Gary Jones who’s aged 36
Other teams’ fans think
our team is…
OK
The new season:
How has Pre-Season been
for you this time around?
Can’t wait until the 1st
pre-season friendly as we have a few games against sides from Yorkshire including Doncaster Rovers which will be a great test to our squad.
Have you got the right
manager and how popular is he?
I think we have got the right
manager as he has good tactics and he is an experienced manager as he has been
a manager for a number of years. And he is very popular because at every home
game we have a chant about him and it goes Parkinson’s Bradford Army……
Are there any new
signings that you are excited about?
We haven’t made any signings yet but
we are talking to players and we are waiting to hear from them as most of them
are on holiday.
Name the player that you
would happily drive to his next club (and
pay for the taxi as well)...
N/A
Name an opposition
player you despise...
Clayton Donaldson from Brentford,
He’s a Bradford lad but most city fans don’t like him. He played against us in
the FA Cup in the 2012/2013 season.
Name an opposition
player you would love to have at your club?
Dave Kitson from Sheffield United, as
he’s been released from them
If I was to visit your
club on an away trip this season, name one thing I must do in your town? (Can
be anything, football-related or otherwise... from visiting a famous sight, to
making sure you don’t park your car somewhere, to find a certain drink in a pub
or a nice place to eat)
Visit the Bradford City fire memorial which is at Valley
Parade, behind the Co-Op stand.
Onto other important matters:
After a League Cup Final
appearance and a Playoff Final win, how important is it that you keep the
momentum at the club for the new season?
Keep the same squad or maybe let 1
or 2 players leave who are surplus to requirements. And give long-term
contracts to Carl McHugh, Nahki Wells, James Meredith, Kyel Reid, Zavon Hines,
Nathan Doyle, Stephen Darby, and Jon McLaughlin.
How does it feel to be
back in League One for the first time since 2007?
Great to be back into League 1
because there’s some good away ground I want to visit like Wolves, Coventry and
Sheffield United. And hopefully there will be a big crowd when they visit
Valley Parade which will mean more money for the club because there’s a large
attendance.
Nakhi Wells turned down
a move to a Championship side this summer, is it a good move for him to stay at
Bradford?
Yes it’s good because he’s a young
lad as he’s only 22. He’s still developing and he has 2 more years to go on his
contract. If he does leave it will be at the end of the 2013/2014 season and
hopefully we will get more money for him. And he’s a fans favourite.
And now onto the really important stuff:
Who do you think will be
the top 6 at the end of the season?
1. Wolves
2. Sheffield United
3. Peterborough
4. Coventry
5. Bristol City
6. Bradford City
Who do you think will go
down to League 2?
Oldham, Stevenage, Tranmere, Walsall
And finally, in all
honesty, where do you think you will finish this season?
6th or 7th or
8th but in the top 10
PETERBOROUGH UNITED
Name: Kelly Green
Occupation away from
supporting your club: Student
How long have you been a
supporter of Peterborough and how did you start supporting them?
I begged my Dad to take me
along 14 years ago, and have been following home and away ever since.
Let’s get this ball rolling:
What would be your Dream
season?
Winning the league. We
haven’t been crowned chapions of any league since 1974 so I’d love to see us
lifting the trophy at London Road on the last day of the season.
And what will make it a
Nightmare season for you?
I think anything but
promotion will be a disaster. No disrespect to any teams at this level but now
we’ve experienced the high life of the Championship we want to head straight back there. Luckily
we’ve only lost Dwight Gayle from last season as the squad have been promised
we’ll bounce straight back up, but many players have made it clear that if that
doesn’t happen they’ll walk – which will only result in a downwards spiral for
Peterborough United.
Our own fans think our team
is…
Creating history. No Posh
team has ever been as successful as the one that Darragh MacAnthony and Darren
Ferguson have created, and it keeps getting stronger and stronger. Be it the
players we sign or the results we pull off, things are on the up and there’s
real potential to transform the side into a successful Championship side.
Other teams’ fans think our
team is…
Tin pot. Everyone thinks
we’re playing out of our depth, but we’ve proved with our dogged determination
that we deserve to be a successful side.
The new season:
How has Pre-Season been for
you this time around?
What’s surprised fans the
most is the amount of players who have showed real potential in pre-season,
particularly forgotten transfer listed players like Danny Kearns and Nicky
Ajose. Then there’s a fresh batch of youth products who have come onto the
scene determined to battle for a place in the squad. On paper we have two
strong starting 11’s so it’s all looks very promising. And of course results
mean nothing, but if you’re going to look at them you’ll see we’re better than
a relegated Premier League side but worse than a promoted Conference side.
Have you got the right
manager and how popular is he?
For this level yes. Darren
Ferguson has taken us out of League One twice at the first time of asking so
there’s great expectation that he will do it again. Most importantly Ferguson
has found a system that works for him and sticks to it, buying unknown gems and
developing them into stars, something that fans, and players alike, respect him
for.
Are there any new signings
that you are excited about?
At the time of writing this
we’ve only signed Jack Payne, but he is definitely someone to get excited
about. Payne arrived at the club on loan from Gillingham in January and impressed
from the off. Although that now means there’s plenty of pressure on him to be a
success again this season.
Name the player that you
would happily drive to his next club (and pay for the taxi as well)...
Tyrone Barnett. I feel
horrible saying it but to me this guy is useless and no one wants him here, not
even the chairman. This is someone we reportedly spent over £1million on, our
record signing, and in return we’ve had 14 appearances and one goal.
Name an opposition player
you despise...
Sam Baldock. Posh fans have
hated Baldock since he turned us down claiming a move to Peterborough ‘didn’t
excite him’ now he loves to wind us up every time we face him. He’s one of
those cocky players you just want to smack.
Name an opposition player
you would love to have at your club?
It will never happen but a
player I think would fit into our system perfectly is Millwall’s Josh Wright.
The creative midfielder has a great ping on him and would be the perfect
replacement for George Boyd.
If I was to visit your club
on an away trip this season, name one thing I must do in your town? (Can be
anything, football-related or otherwise... from visiting a famous sight, to
making sure you don’t park your car somewhere, to find a certain drink in a pub
or a nice place to eat)
Peterborough will offer you a proper away day, with plenty
of pubs all accommodating away fans. I recommend you all get here early and
head to Charters, a pub on a boat.
Onto other important matters:
You were unfortunately
relegated on the last day of the Championship season, is it important for you
to bounce back straight away?
Definitely. Going into the
last day no one honestly expected we would be relegated so it was a real
disaster. The only good thing to come from it is everyone’s determination to
bounce straight back. We were on our best run in history in The Championship so
it’s vital that we return straight away to continue building. No pressure!
Manger Darren Ferguson
managed to keep his job despite the relegation; do you think he is the right
man to take you back up to the Championship?
He’s definitely the right
man to get us back but it could be argued that he doesn’t have what it takes to
keep us up. I respect Fergie for the way he has come to the club with no
managerial experience and made an immediate impact but he does struggle with
vital games. However he has plenty of experience in this league so everyone
will expect him to take us up again.
Dwight Gayle was a
revelation in the Championship for you last season; will he be better in League
One?
Not now he’s in the Premier
League ;)
And now onto the really important stuff:
Who do you think will be
the top 6 at the end of the season?
Wolves,
Posh,
Sheffield
United,
Bristol City,
Brentford,
Gillingham.
Who do you think will go
down to League 2?
Stevenage, Shrewsbury,
Oldham, Colchester.
And finally, in all
honesty, where do you think you will finish this season?
Second
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Over the next few days, more fans from clubs in League One will be given their chance to speak out on the new season which begins soon.
To be continued...
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