Season Review – October

October was the month that County finally got going. We didn`t lose in the league all month, and our only defeat came in some tin pot paint trophy towards the end of the month. It`s a month that I can look back on and smile; there were some definite great memories of October.

Barnet visited Edgeley Park on the first Saturday in October, and County continued their good home form with a 2-0 win. David Poole got his first goal in County colours when he followed up a Tes Bramble effort, before Adam Le Fondre pulled off a spectacular overhead kick from about 12 yards out after a Bramble flick-on.

Next up was Hartlepool away, and it was going to be a really tough game for County. However, the battling, resilient County that we hadn`t seen were now turning up at games. We managed to take a point away from Victoria Park, and it really was a well earnt point. Adam Griffin gave County the lead when he scored straight from a corner, before Hartlepool equalised on the stroke of half time through Matty Robson.

Jim Gannon then had an opportunity to look at some of his fringe players with the first round of the tin pot trophy away at Macclesfield. Jim Gannon did play a lot of his fringe players, but the County fans treated it as a normal game and doubled the amount of home fans present at the game. It was the largest away following that was taken in the whole of the Northern & Southern section of the trophy. Macclesfield had picked up just four points in the league, and County`s reserve team easily beat them 1-0. Michael Malcolm headed home from a Michael Rose cross, and the 1000 or so County fans went home much happier than they had in their last visit to this ground.

Torquay were the next visitors in the league as County looked to continue their fine run of form. It really was one of the dullest matches Edgeley Park has seen, but it didn`t stop County recording another win. Adam Le Fondre continued his fine season by netting the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win.

The first real local derby was up next as County visited Rochdale in the league. Sure we had earlier played Macclesfield but this game mattered. You could tell from the turnout that it mattered to the fans and that County were in form. The side stand was over three-quarters full, despite Rochdale only giving the attendance as 1700, there was easily 2500 there. County took the lead when Ashley Williams rocketed a 40-yard strike into the top corner. The Rochdale keeper didn`t move and the travelling fans went mental. County then won a penalty for handball, and Mark Robinson stepped up to double the lead. Rochdale were awarded a penalty after the break for nothing, but Gary Jones stepped up and buried the penalty to make it 2-1 with the whole of the second half to play. Tes Bramble then missed the easiest chance ever and left County fans fuming. He picked up a through ball at the half way line, took the ball round the keeper but then hesitated and was tackled. Rochdale got a goal kick from it but the County fans weren`t happy. However, Bramble made up for it by finishing off the game minutes later when he took advantage of a Rochdale injury to make the game 3-1 and to start off the first promotion songs in 10 years.

October finished with the second round of the paint pot trophy, the only game that County would lose in October. A second string County side were hammered at Chester, with a poor performance by second choice keeper James Spencer the story of the night. The less said about that game the better.

So October. Four league games and ten points, County had moved up to 12th and suddenly the season was looking much better from a County fans point of view.