League Two 2011/2012: The Lowdown Part 2

The second part of my little look at league two with the final 12 teams, starting with Hereford United.


Hereford United Football Club
Stadium & Capacity: Edgar Street, 5075
2010/2011 Finishing Position: 21st League Two
Manager: Jamie Pitman
Key Players: Michael Townsend, James McQuilkin, Joe Colbeck, Stuart Fleetwood.
Prediction: An improved team on last season and have plenty of fighting spirit, I expect them to be comfortable in mid table, 15th.

Macclesfield Town Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Moss Rose, 6355

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 15th League Two

Manager: Gary Simpson

Key Players: Nat Brown, Colin Daniel, Waide Fairhurst

Prediction: Macclesfield always seem to finish mid table once more avoiding the job easily and maybe even providing a top half push if they perform well enough, 17th.

Morecambe Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: The Globe Arena, 6918

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 20th League Two

Manager: Jim Bentley

Key Players: Andy Parrish, Izak Reid, Kevin Ellison, Phil Jevons

Prediction: The second season in their new stadium and a change of management with a club legend coming in, I can see them pushing for a play off place like two season ago, 13th.

Northampton Town Football Club
Stadium & Capacity: Sixfields, 7653

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 16th League Two.

Manager: Gary Johnson

Key Players: Ben Tozer, Kevin Thornton, Tadgh Purcell, Shaun Harrad, Jake Robinson.

Prediction: One of the deadliest forward lines in the league and a proven manager to steer the ship, a good season could be in order for the Cobblers, but their unproven back line may be their downfall, 9th.

Oxford United Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: The Kassam Stadium, 12,500

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 12th League Two.

Manager: Chris Wilder

Key Players: Jake Wright, Alfie Potter, Peter Leven, James Constable, Jon Paul Pitman.

Prediction: One of my tips for promotion, they have a very large squad which is good and they've brought in good players such as Peter Leven to start the charge, 3rd.

Plymouth Argyle Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Home Park, 19,500



Carl Fletcher



2010/2011 Finishing Position: 23rd League One

Manager: Peter Reid

Key Players: Stephane Zubar, Carl Fletcher, Simon Walton, Warren Feeney (if he signs)

Prediction: With the most thread bare squad for obvious reasons, they may struggle in the League, but I expect their experienced heads to make sure they don't go down, 21st.

Port Vale Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Vale Park, 19,052

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 11th League Two

Manager: Micky Adams.

Key Players: John McCombe, Gareth Owen, Lewis Haldane, Marc Richards.

Prediction: A fairly strong defence will be their best quality this season, a fairly average squad elsewhere, with no real strength in attacking, I say they'll be towards the bottom end, this years draw specialists, 18th.

Rotherham United Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: The Don Valley Stadium, 25,000.

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 9th League Two

Manager: Andy Scott.

Key Players: Ryan Cresswell, Danny Harrisson, Danny Schofield, Chris Holroyd, Le Fondre.

Prediction: Once again you expect Rotherham to challenge but will they keep hold of Le Fondre, the saga continues, a good manager who is proven at this level should lead them towards the top half, 8th.

Shrewsbury Town Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Greenhous Meadow, 9875

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 4th League Two.

Manager: Graham Turner

Key Players: Shane Cansdell Sherriff, Nicky Wroe, Matt Richards, James Collins.

Prediction: Like many others, expect a promotion push , I'm not convinced with their forward line as yet, Marvin Morgan will not do the business for them, 10th.

Southend United Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Roots Hall, 12,392

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 13th League Two.

Manager: Paul Sturrock.

Key Players: Bilel Mohsni, Jean Paul Kalala, Kane Ferdinand, Jemal Johnson, Neil Harris.

Prediction: A very strong squad all round and Neil Harris' addition will scare a lot of defences, if they don't reach the play offs I'd see it as a failed season for them, 4th.

Swindon Town Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: The County Ground, 14,700.

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 24th League One.

Manager: Paolo Di Canio

Key Players: Alberto Comazzi, Joe Devera, Matt Ritchie, Simon Ferry, Alan Connell.

Prediction: A new manager and a fresh approach at the County Ground with an influx of foreign players, this will either send them up or I'll go into mid table, I vote for the first, 2nd.

Torquay United Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Plainmoor, 6104

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 7th League Two (lost in play off final)

Manager: Martin Ling

Key Players: Kevin Nicholson, Lee Mansell, Billy Kee, Rene Howe.

Prediction: Clubs have a tendency to struggle after they've lost in the play offs and they haven't strengthened enough for my liking however I have a soft spot for them and hope they do well, 22nd.

The league is so tight this year, anyone could do anything, it's anyones guess who will get into the play offs, but I'm fairly sure that Cheltenham & Barnet will face the drop.



Where are we all this season!



League Two 2011/2012, The Lowdown Part 1

In this Blog, we'll take a look down all of the League Two clubs, a bit of info on each and ultimately predict where they'll finish. If you take a bet on any of my tips for this season, it's your own fault, you've been warned. The first part is the first 12 clubs, key players will not feature any goalkeepers.

Accrington Stanley Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: The Crown Ground, 5057

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 5th, lost in Play Off Semi Finals.
Manager: John Coleman

Key Players: Andrew Proctor, Sean Hessey, Craig Lindfield.

Prediction: A rather thread bare squad and not many Summer signings leaves Accy with a bit of a challenge, I reckon lower mid table, 14th.

AFC Wimbledon

Stadium & Capacity: Kingsmeadow, 5194.

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 2nd Conference National. Promoted via Play Offs.

Manager: Terry Brown

Key Players: Jack Midson, Luke Moore, Ricky Wellard.

Prediction: The Dons are going into new territory and without prolific Danny Kedwell could struggle, but you never know, 19th.

Aldershot Town Football Club



Dean Holdsworth

Stadium & Capacity: The EBB Stadium At The Recreation Ground, 7100.

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 14th

Manager: Dean Holdsworth

Key Players: Anthony Charles, Manny Panther, Danny Hilton

Prediction: They've kept largely the same squad and I think they could be find out by some at this level,12th.

Barnet Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Underhill, 6200

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 22nd League Two.

Manager: Lawrie Sanchez

Key Players: Anwar Uddin, Mark Hughes, Izale McLoed, Ricky Holmes.

Prediction: Barnet have constantly flirted with relegation and have just survived season on season, however I think this will be the year, their attackers may save them, 23rd.

Bradford City Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Valley Parade, 25,136

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 18th League Two.

Manager: Peter Jackson

Key Players: Guy Branston, Ritchie Jones, Ross Hannah.

Prediction: A potentially strong back line will be their strength this season, but the rest of the squad is young with unproven strikers, another unpredictable season, 20th.

Bristol Rovers Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: The Memorial Stadium, 12,100

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 22nd League One

Manager: Paul Buckle

Key Players: Byron Anthony, Joe Anyinsah, Chris Zebroski, Scott McGleish.

Prediction: Paul Buckle has brought in a few former Torquay players and their strike force looks menacing, they'd be disappointed with anything but promotion, 1st.

Burton Albion Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: The Pirelli Stadium, 6912

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 19th League Two

Manager: Paul Peschisolido

Key Players: Darren Moore, John McGrath, Calvin Zola, Jackques Maghoma.

Prediction: With one of the best young managers in the game, they have potential, but a small squad with not many standout players could be their downfall, a struggle, 16th.

Cheltenham Town Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Whaddon Road (Abbey Business Stadium), 7066

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 17th League Two

Manager: Mark Yates

Key Players: Alan Bennett, Marlon Pack, Jeff Goulding, Daryl Duffy.

Prediction: A hard one to call, but for me they won't have enough, their main threat will be up front, but their defence looks short of players to me, 24th.

Crawley Town Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Broadfield Stadium, 4996

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 1st Conference National.

Manager: Steve Evans

Key Players: Pablo Mills, Sergio Torres, Matt Tubbs, Wesley Thomas.

Prediction: A very strong side going forward thanks to their bag loads of money, whilst I want them to perish and fail miserably, I reckon they'll get into the play offs, 5th.

Crewe Alexandra Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Alexandra Stadium (Gresty Road to you and I), 10,153

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 10th League Two

Manager: Dario Gradi

Key Players: David Artell, Ashley Westwood, Nick Powell, Shaun Miller.

Prediction: A club with a real emphasis on youth, with the majority of their squad home grown, a pleasure to see, but will they have the required experience, 11th.



Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club

Stadium & Capacity:Victoria Road (London Borough Of Barking & Dagenham Stadium) 6078

Jon Nurse, Scott Doe & Danny J Green

model the Daggers new kit.

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 21st League One

Manager: John Still

Key Players: Mark Arber, Peter Gain, Luke Howell, Jon Nurse, Josh Scott.

Prediction: Very hard to pick key players as the are all as important to us, losing Danny Green & Romain Vincelot was a blow to the Daggers but new players are ready to fill the gap, a number of new players look to break into the team such as Jake Reed & Danny J Green, a interesting season is in store, 7th at an optimistic push.

Gillingham Football Club

Stadium & Capacity: Preistfield Stadium, 11,582

2010/2011 Finishing Position: 8th (missed out on play off on goal difference)

Manager: Andy Hessenthaler

Key Players: Barry Fuller, Curtis Weston, Charlie Lee, Danny Kedwell.

Prediction: A very impressive squad with Kedwell spearheading the attack and a experienced midfield & back four, a team to be feared this season, 6th 

The second part with the rest of the teams will be published on Tuesday.