08/09 Season Review - Part 1

To use the most overused of clichés, it has been a real rollercoaster ride this season down at the Shay. FC Halifax Town’s first season has seen them go from extremely bad, to decent, to average to worse than extremely bad. In amongst, the club, in keeping with its previous incarnation, has sacked its first manager just 8 months into a 2 year ‘plan’ and the first chapter ends without success - so familiar is this route, we fans could have written the script.

The club’s first challenge was to put to put a team out in time for the start of the Unibond season. This was achieved but to be fair, FCHT were only there in spirit. This was perhaps the first indicator that our management team of Jim Vince and Nigel Jemson had only a small network of contacts from which to pull favours. The reality hit home on with an uncoordinated, clueless performance that ended in a 3-0 defeat at the Shay against Bamber Bridge. Brigg were the first of many teams to come to Halifax and treat it like a cup final, not used to playing in proper stadiums on proper pitches with paying guests watching, over-celebrating like real footballers when they scored a goal.

That first month saw Town take just 4 points from 12 and draw at home in the FA cup to Silsden (a village near Keighley). September started with another defeat, this time a 3-1 mauling at Mossley who were made to look like Brazil by our weary bunch. Things then started to improve a little and the month ended with 6 wins from 8 games, however, only 2 of the victories were in the league and despite the record looking good on paper, the performances were neither entertaining nor convincing.

October was our turning point, both on the field and the terraces. Somehow one night in Gartforth a floppy haired football fop called Simon Clifford accidentally managed to unite us all together for the first time. The ex school teacher turned entrepreneur did everything in his power to niggle the supporters, players and officials of Halifax. He taunted Jim Vince, instructed his players to kick lumps out of Town (picking up a total of 6 bookings) and even pretended to have run out of footballs at one point. I don’t know to this day why he chose the route he did, although I would guess there may have been an element of jealousy in there somewhere, Here was this group of pretenders taking over his manor, more fans, better players and more potential - in short, something his money couldn’t buy.

That night Town started badly and when in the 83rd minute they found themselves 2 goals down and with little to offer in response, defeat seemed inevitable. Indeed, those less faithful fans had started to leave (more fool them). In that last 7 minutes something clicked and first up stepped Junior Brown, powerfully heading home a Damian Allen corner. Brown then linked with Chris King nodded the ball home through a crowded penalty area.

The buzz started as fans left the ground buoyed by the fact that Clifford, despite all his antics, had failed to get one over on us. At the same time, names like Phelan, Brown, Daniel, Meadowcroft, Allen and Coo, were starting to look like they were glad to be part of our mini revolution.