The Journeyman - A FM 21 Story

[jasontoddwhitt]

CLUB NEWS

Wealdstone add striker

With the striker position being a thorn in the side of Wealdstone all season, the Stones have been turning over every rock trying to find a solution to the issue until the return of Danny Parish from injury.

The club announced the signing of 22-year-old Scottish striker Andrew Dallas to a two-year deal. Dallas, a former graduate of the Rangers academy, has been out of contract since League One side Cambridge United did not renew his contract.

Last season, Dallas was on loan at National League South side Dulwich Hamlet where he scored 13 goals in 27 appearances with an average match rating of 7.26.

"I love how physical Andrew is," said manager Drew Welch. "He possesses a fair amount of speed and fits in nicely with what we are trying to do."

Wealdstone hammered by Yeovil; Parish returns

The 0-4 drubbing at the hands of Yeovil Town goes down as the worst loss of the Drew Welch era, but the one silver lining is the return of Danny Parish in the 77th minute. Parish should see his activity ramp up over the next couple of weeks.

Hopefully, this gets things kickstarted, as fans have begun grumbling about the results on the pitch. Having said that, it seems the players love playing for Welch and the board fully supports him.

Stars of the Month

1.ST Andrew Dallas -- 4 apps, 2 goals, 1.76 xG, 6.95 rating
2. ST Dominic Hutchinson -- 1+2 apps, 1 goal, 0.78 xG, 7.00 rating
3. MF Rick Pickert -- 3 apps, 0.02 xG, 6.77 rating



This has been a very frustrating period of time for us. We've been watching ourselves slowly slide down the table. I don't think we are in any danger of getting relegated, and while ownership is very pleased that we are avoiding relegation, it's not good enough for me. Especially considering the heights we went to last season.

I do have to remember that we have had a lot of turnover since last season. That's always going to upset the balance of the club. We have two months to make a run at the promotion playoffs. It's time to put up or shut up.

Meanwhile, I passed my exam for my Continental C license. In other news, after giving me a little bit of grief before finally allowing me to study for it, the board immediately cut a check to go get my Continental B license. Let's keep moving up that ladder.

[jasontoddwhitt]

CLUB NEWS

Don't listen to sports radio

Despite a poor run of form that has seen Wealdstone drop four straight matches and only have one win in seven matches, the atmosphere around the club does not seem downbeat. The board is overall pleased with the product. While disappointed by the poor run of form, the players remain upbeat that they can get through this blip and get back to winning ways. The players remain confident of making the promotion playoffs, though the odds are getting longer and longer as the schedule ticks away.

The airwaves tell a slightly different tune. Fans grumbling about tactics, player selections, and the manager especially.

Some managers have their systems, while other managers will chop and change depending on their opponents. Welch falls into the former category, typically employing a 5-2-1-2 formation. Despite the challenges of this season, Welch has Wealdstone firmly in the mid-table of the National League when some pundits were calling for their relegation before the season started.

Welch has exceeded all expectations since arriving at Grosvenor Vale. Perhaps the supporters should stop being so fickle.

Dallas finds his footing; honored by National League

After arriving last month and playing his first competitive football this season, everyone expected it was going to take Andrew Dallas a little time to find his footing at Wealdstone. Wealdstone's poor form combined with Dallas only scoring two goals in eight appearances, fans were thinking that Dallas was a waste of wage budget.

Wealdstone finished out the month on a three-game winning streak, and the biggest reason why for that is Dallas. In his last three starts, Dallas has found the back of the net five times and finished third in voting for the National League Player of the Month award for April.

"Once he got his legs under him, he's been fantastic," said Welch. "The thing that has been great to watch is his ability to get shots on target. I think last three matches, 10 out of 15 shots have been on target. So he's constantly pressuring the keeper and that's all you can ask for from a striker."

In six matches this month, Dallas has scored five goals and registered one assist with an average match rating of 7.57.

Aldershot striker Malcolm Linton won the award for the third straight month and fourth time this season. In six appearances, Linton has scored seven goals to increase his league leading tally to 32 goals.

Players of the Month

1. ST Andrew Dallas -- 6 apps, 5 goals, 1 assist, 2.81 xG, 7.57 rating
2. MF Sam Cornish -- 3 apps, 1 assist, 0.08 xG, 7.13 rating
3. ST Christian Norton -- 5 apps, 1 goal, 1.21 xG, 6.94 rating



Have a little faith. That's what I told the lads after a four-match losing streak.

Trust the process. That's what I would love to say to every single club supporter. I can understand why they got agitated by our poor run of form. Believe me, no one was more frustrated than me.

Have we cost ourselves a shot at the promotion playoffs? Probably. We're not mathematically eliminated, but it's a definite long shot. There are two good pieces of news. One is we can't be relegated, so that pleased ownership. The second piece of good news is that we return the vast majority of our squad...minus the loan players of course.

Trust the process folks. I think we needed this season to solidify the future of this club.

[jasontoddwhitt]

CLUB NEWS

Wealdstone secures mid-table finish

With a 1-1 draw against Stockport, Wealdstone was knocked out of contention for a promotion playoff spot. With four matches remaining and nothing really to play for, manager Drew Welch began heavily rotating the squad.

"With the vast majority of this team back for next season, I figured it was as good a time as any to give some of the younger guys a look," said Welch. "Obviously we're disappointed with this season when compared to the heights of last season, but I feel like we built a foundation to build upon for next season."

Many people will point to the injury of striker Danny Parish being the downturn in Wealdstone's fortunes this season. Parish missed 11 league matches while out with a torn thigh muscle, and the Stones went 3-4-4 over that stretch. Dropping 20 out of 33 points did the Stones no favors, and left them scrambling to avoid dropping into a relegation fight.

Thankfully, the Stones were able to right the ship. While Parish only scored three goals after he returned in March, the signing of Andrew Dallas helped solidify the attack. Dallas, the former Glasgow Rangers youth who was released by Cambridge United, scored eight goals in 12 appearances for the club down the stretch.

With a healthy Parish and a full season of Dallas, the fans have high hopes for Wealdstone's attack next season.

Club announces stadium expansion

Grosvenor Vale is getting a bit of a facelift this summer.

The club announced a standing capacity expansion that will take the capacity of Grosvenor Vale from 3,200 to the National League minimum of 4,000. The club is hoping the renovations will be completed in time for the start of next season.

The $100,000 expansion will be jointly funded by the club and the village of Ruislip.

[jasontoddwhitt]

[jasontoddwhitt]

These end-of-season meetings are always interesting. Whether it be the meeting with the board or meeting with the players, they are a time to reflect on what could've been and what we are looking to do next season.

The meeting with the board went as expected. Despite the calls from the fans at points this season about "boring tactics", the board is very pleased with the overall leadership of my staff. It was to be expected. After all, I thought their goals for this season were very unambitious. 'Just avoid getting relegated' they said. A season after making the promotion playoffs and nearly winning the league outright.

I still think their goals are slightly unambitious with our upper-half finish. 'We want to avoid a relegation fight' is what Mr. Fitzgerald said. I mean, I'm pretty sure we can do that, considering we are bringing most of this team back next year. I think the stadium expansion set the club back a bit financially, which is why we were directed to cut spending.

"I know you and Michael both are ambitious," said Mr. Fitzgerald. "Once we get through this season with the bigger ground, then we can begin to push back into the promotion playoffs."

"Agreed sir, but you'll have to extend my contract first."

"Let's cross one bridge at a time, Drew," said Mr. Fitzgerald.

***

Club Memorandum

* The board approved a construction project to increase the standing room capacity of Grosvenor Vale by 800 people to reach the 4,000 minimum capacity standard of the National League. The project, slated to be completed by August 12, 2022, is being jointly funded by both the club and the village of Ruislip. The village supplied the club with a grant of $49,476 to help cover the projected cost of the $98,534 expansion. The club will contribute the remaining $49,058. This expansion will empty the club's cash reserves, meaning investment from stakeholders will be necessary for the short term.

* The board has set the payroll budget for the coming season at $669k (an increase of $22k compared to last season) and has set the transfer budget for the coming season at $21.93k (a decrease of $21.93k compared to last season). The club currently has $325,779 committed to next season's payroll at this time.

* The board is pleased with the progress made towards realizing the club's vision. The board is hoping to avoid a relegation battle next season as the club then ramps up to push for the promotion playoffs in years two through five of the five-year plan.

***


CLUB NEWS

Contract decisions have been made

Unlike last season when most of the club was out of contract, Wealdstone only finds itself with three players who will be out of contract after the season.

Goalkeeper Charlie Grainger has decided to extend his stay with the club, signing a one-year extension worth $13.75k. Grainger, who originally signed last season after a two-year stint at Dulwich Hamlet, served as the emergency keeper for Wealdstone and failed to make an appearance in league or cup action. In 30 appearances for the Under-23 side, Grainger recorded 15 shutouts while allowing 1.93 goals per 90 minutes of play.

Unfortunately, attacking midfielder Ben Stephens has turned down the opportunity to return to Wealdstone. Stephens, who signed with Wealdstone after being released by Kettering, scored six goals and registered an assist across 18 appearances for the club. Stephens was seen as a nice rotational piece for the club, but it appears Stephens has his eyes set on more playing time somewhere else.

There is no word yet on center-back Connor Stevens, but it seems likely that the club will not retain his services, ending his four-year tenure with the club. Stevens, who missed all of last season with a knee injury, couldn't seem to regain the form that made him a staple of the club his first two seasons. After scoring seven goals as a center-back his first two seasons with Wealdstone, Stevens was only able to score once this season and was otherwise unremarkable. Stevens made 105 appearances over four years with the club.

[jasontoddwhitt]

Season Review

National League: 11th
FA Cup: Fourth Qualifying Round
FA Trophy: Fourth Round
SPFL Trust Trophy: Quarter Final
Top Goalscorer: League - Danny Parish (19) | All - Danny Parish (21)
Highest Attendance: 1,969 vs Barnet (National League)
Lowest Attendance: 591 vs Motherwell B (SPFL Trust Trophy - Fourth Round)
Average Attendance: 1,234

Best XI



National League Playoff Results



Teams Relegated from League Two

[jasontoddwhitt]

SEASON PREVIEW

2022-23 Roster



Transfers Out

CB Connor Stevens - Released
While Connor returned from a catastrophic knee injury that caused him to miss the 2020/21 season, he wasn't the same player. While he made 34 starts and 12 more appearances as a sub, he just wasn't up to the standard we need. He had trouble adapting to our style of play, as he was being asked to be a complete center back versus a no-thrills, no-nonsense center back.

MF Ben Stephens - Released
Ben came in on a six-month deal after being released by Kettering Town, and we were very much pleased with what he gave us. We were hoping to sign him to a contract extension, but we were unable to come to an agreement.

Transfers In

GK Adam Smith - Signed 2-year, $63k contract after leaving Yeovil Town
While Jacob played well for us last season, there were too many mistakes in defense last season. We felt the need to have a veteran presence in the keeper room, and Adam gives us that. Adam had 19 shutouts for Yeovil Town (one of those against us) versus Jacob's 13 for us last season. We've got to keep the ball out of the net. Neither player separated themselves in preseason friendlies, so there may be some rotation with the keeper position. Jacob still has a bright future in this game, but let's see if the vet can push him to a higher level.

MF Jayden Davis - Signed 2-year, $29k contract after leaving Millwall
A product of Millwall's youth academy, Davis is a pacey central midfielder who has shown an ability to spot a pass and create chances for his teammates. I do worry his small stature will cause him to get pushed around a bit by some of the more physical midfielders in the league, but I'm hopeful his pace will get him out of those situations. The 20-year-old is an exciting young prospect who's not far from first-team level.

CB Hugh Ferris - Signed 2-year, $27.7k contract after leaving Ross County
Honestly, I think this signing is a bit of a coup for us. Hugh has been capped by Scotland at the U19 level, and we were shocked that Ross County didn't stop us from poaching him out of his youth contract. Debuted for Ross County at the age of 16 and made six appearances for their first team last season. I think he's already our best center back, which is quite the feat for a 17-year-old. The sky is the limit for this kid.

Season Goals

National League: Mid-table
FA Cup: First Round
FA Trophy: Second Round

Season Goals



A very successful preseason in my eyes. We didn't lose a game, no injuries, and the thought of a whole season of Andrew Dallas and Danny Parish up top is making me salivate. Not only that, but Hugh Ferris also got a couple of goals off of set pieces. The goal-scoring potential of this team excites me. What also excites me is five shutouts. It seems bringing in Adam Smith has spurned Jacob Russell to reach another gear. Both played well in the preseason, but I'm inclined to stick with the youngster for now.

[jasontoddwhitt]

MATCH REPORT | Barnet 0 - 2 Wealdstone

A local derby to start the season may not be ideal for a manager looking to ease his club into the new season, but it means everything to local supporters. Over 1,000 Wealdstone supporters made the trip to Harrow to invade The Hive and support the Stones in their season opener against the Bees.

A brace on either side of the half by striker Andrew Dallas put the exclamation point on a dominating performance as Wealdstone defeated Barnet 2-0 to open the 2022/23 season with all three points.

Barnet squandered two early goal-scoring opportunities after hitting the woodwork twice in the first 20 minutes of the match. Barnet struggled to get shots on target, only registering one shot on target out of seven total shots.

Wealdstone: Russell - 7.4, Meekings - 7.5, Ferris - 7.6, Spencer-Adams - 7.2, Efete - 7.1, Wishart - 7.2, Davis - 7.0 (Hutchinson - NR), Petit - 7.2, Dyer - 6.4, Dallas - 8.4, Parish - 7.8

Subs not used: Smith, Barrett, O'Leary, Orban

Manager Drew Welch: First off, I want to thank our supporters for making the trip. We had a strong traveling contingent today, and they made it feel like home. I was delighted that our strong form in the preseason carried over to our first match. We dominated possession, we were able to pass the ball at will, and we did a great job of keeping their keeper under pressure. If we keep this form up, the sky is the limit for this club this year.

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