Hucknall Town - the forgotten man?

Thursday 13th December 2012

Spent a pleasant hour in the company of "on the road" friend Steve Peat, the Hucknall Town General Manager. No reason in particular, just wanted to offer a kind word and a listening ear!

Steve seems to be the forgotten man at Watnall Road - the only survivor of the Derek Blow "revolution", after Derek followed Brett Marshall and Graham Walker out of the door. With the current goings on at the club, the Town fans need to be reassured that the big man is doing his damnedest to keep the wheels from coming completely off the wagon! 

Steve isn't a trumpet blowing, self important type of bloke, just a man in a difficult position trying to do his job he is there to do.  Self-confessed Stags fans, we were both chuffed at the Mansfield/Lincoln result, but he mentioned that he would now have to put his planned call to Paul Cox on hold, until "Coxy comes down off cloud nine"!  

At the moment Steve appears to be wearing several hats -- not just the GM, but CEO, Treasurer, press officer, programme editor and unless he can persuade Tony Knowles to retract his resignation, looks like being Secretary as well! 

We sat in Steve's office at the club, and during our informal chat, it came over strongly that Steve will fight tooth and nail to keep the club alive.  With only a handful of players definitely confirmed they are staying, he hopes that a players meeting called by Truscott for Thursday night will reveal the extent of the others commitment - or lack thereof.  Relegation is not far from Steve's thoughts, but is sure that if the worst does come to the worst, the sojourn in the NCELP will not be a long one!  

Steve said it was great news that Jody Cauldwell has returned as a coaching advisor, but to end his sleepless nights, an injection of cash would be most welcome. Trouble is, who wants to take the risk in today's economic climate?

As it is, the club will keep going, but the "amateur" status tag from last season may need to be revived. I've been a resident of Hucknall for all of my 59 years, and to my shame, I am not a dyed in the wool Yellows supporter. At the fans' pre-season forum, I did admit I was only an occasional visitor to Watnall Road, but opted to buy a season ticket with the thought that the new regime had enough about them to give both me and Kev value for money - and entertainment "Marshall" style. 

Even though that didn't work out as we would have hoped, we have no plans to stay away from Watnall Road. There are three home games coming up and although none of the opponents will bring massive support - every pound through the turnstiles will be most welcome!!

Newcastle Town 15th December

Rainworth MW 26th December

Lincoln United 29th December

So the Blow /Marshall revolution has ended and the Blow/Sucharewyzc combination is in the history books. Hopefully the Truscott/Paling pairing can go in the records has having saved the club - although history will need to remember the forgotten man who will have been behind the scenes doing his utmost to ensure the future of the club. Hucknall Town's suffering fans have to be among the most patient in the non-league game. The club has good level of real hard core supporters - and even though things appear dark at the moment, they need to be reassured that Steve will be working flat out to not let the club die without one hell of a fight. 

Next game - weather permitting -- HUCKNALL TOWN v NEWCASTLE TOWN on Saturday 15th December : kick off 3pm. Your support would be most welcome!!!!