Jonny Seabrook speaks to Club Captain – Joe Partington, Manager – Jon Meakes, Chairman – Lawrence Levy, and Saints fan – Tom Dean! In this episode, the group discusses the impact of the young players in the squad, our changes in form throughout the season and the stresses involved in being both a fan and chairman of the club.
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right continuing sort of our our journey throughout the season and we spoke about George but we got to seem to have a history now over the last couple of Seasons with Dylan Barry and Glenn McConnell Francis Clark coming back Shay Cooper and we were talking just before we started to recall that this season Jake berser came in uh canum trip um Joe mcnamar in goal which you know people s of forgot about the importance he had they all had a big impact how important is it John to get the youngsters in it supplements the squad especially we’ve got injuries I mean we put in place here and that was part part of the philosophy of the club to put the structures in and we’ve got a good scouting uh structure that Alan clar heads up now that uh we’ve got good relationships with with a number of the the pro clubs but we have to do our homework and identify and watch these under under 21 games and see whether they’re they they’re ready the managers we’ll have a chat we’ll go through we can have a look at them and then then we’ll bring them in so and that started last year year and that’s why I think if you do your homework right and get the right ones in and they’ve got to fit in with the team as well and in positions that you want and is a risk there’s a small amount of risk depends on what the dressing rooms like that you’ve got and and the style of football helps and the way we play football will help them cuz most Academy footballers are talk to play the way we play from a football so it suits from that perspective but then canah the men’s game of football with it as well and that’s why we’re successful with the players in name last year and the ones that have have come in this year so if we can do that and and and add them and bring them in key thing is to bring them at the right time whether it’s a a season long loan or whether you have an injury or whether we need to look at adding something or strength thing as the season progresses and I think over the last two seasons that the Lan Market has work really well who stood out for you out of those youngsters Tom I think yeah Matt namara did well he could tell straight away that he’d been at City Club City football group Man City on the ball which is brilliant um and important um time the season as you said and obviously with MJ who we all know so reliable over the years here um yeah I think he you big boots to fill but he did well and what role do you have to play as Captain with these youngsters coming in as as a mature member of the year I was going to say I’ll take older brother older brother yes of course yeah it’s um not a big one to be honest that like he just obviously cor environment that people feel comfortable in and then it’s up to to them really where they where they take it it’s not a difficult changing room to come into to be honest the lads will welcome you it’s what you do with that that that sort of counts um it’s actually a nice place to figure out maybe for a young person where they’re at um and I quite you know obviously seen a lot of young players I quite like watching lad sink or swim in a way like it’s it’s quite like it’s it’s an eye opener for young players when they come it’s the nature of the profession you come into this environment and I’m sure many of them think that they’re going to be better than the level and and they quickly realized that the level’s very very good MH and um and then you find out a little bit about people um it’s is the reason why George did very well I think obviously Jake and Aiden coming at the latter part of the season did very well don’t work out for everybody but that’s nature of the game really yeah now as we come into sort of towards the end the last part of the season um we spoke about the Maidstone game being a being a benchmark at that start for this good run of form and then perhaps the midone game and the western superm game being sort of the end of that run what was what could we put our finger on why we didn’t sort of carry it through to the very end John do you want to start us off with that I mean it’s a hard question I know but it must be a frustrating one something that must have gone around through your mind many many times yeah always you look back and you analyze the whole season where it went it’s not just that the last bit is where obviously the focus is but you can go back to the start the season that we won the first game and then we had a little bit of blip and then September was really good not conceding the goal got to the chel going and won that and then had three quarters of the back line all injured in the same game and it went sort of turn the season around Joe Joe playing in there obvious he partnership to key and Joe can tell you what it’s like playing at the back there you need continuity and partnership so we managed to stable up Christmas and then the momentum carried on we got the Run going and the West yeah think you got into the playoffs again after a little little stall at B but the reaction was good and we keep saying bounce straight back and then realistic whether take the ball Eye Off the Ball don’t think so the tro game at home is I mean all the games i’ looked back we should have won and it’s right we can say it but they’re they’re all mistakes that we’ve made collectively as a as a team the goals and yeah the other end as well we created chances that we should have scored as well and you put those two together is why we we we’ve um lost games if you can’t C keep clean sheets even though we we kept 11 in the season um at the wrong wrong time that we conceded poor goals and you only got to win one or two of those games and that that was a difference the four five point short in the end and probably five five win short and you and you where it should be and those wins are at home and I think people have touched on it we’ve lost 11 games at home from the fans point of view though expectations were still there and there was optimism still there wasn’t there right the way through right throughout the season yeah well other than maybe October um going back to October November maybe not so much but then as we’ve gone through the season you know and even those even though the last gamees like Good Friday here there was optimism yeah definitely yeah we did think that you know after the highs of the playoffs last game get into the final obviously we all wanted that again and we did think you know you’re always looking at the other results when you’re here at 3:00 um but yeah we did think there definitely was optimism that we could do it again get at least get there yeah and CH coming from OB your pro background as well and then playing in front of the crowds here it must be nice to have that buzz at this level it’s really cool yeah it’s a great club with I mean I know there’s bigger clubs around like the Luton and the Watford or whatever but it’s obviously a certain vibe in Cent orb that people come and support the football club it’s really cool um and most clubs at these levels are are quite big in the community and that sort of feels like what this is um as players we sort of get that and and obviously when people turn out I think the average gate might been what about 16600 just under 1,700 and that includes what Tuesday nights that’s that’s amazing for this for this level genuinely even for the level above that would be really really good um the chairman actually ran me through some of the stuff yesterday about about the numbers and the growth of the club and yeah for players that’s great cuz the like the atmosphere in which you playing it does like it does help obviously people’s experience it’s not just about football it’s about everything that comes with that and they experience and the way support obviously the the guys who travel the the south of the country to follow the team it’s pretty amazing really when when you think about it and obviously I think the guys are are quite conscious that after games especially away games that we’d like to thank people regardless of result you know for their effort and coming to support us you get able to to be closer to supporters to thank them you know than what you would maybe on if there’s a you know 2,000 away fans or whatever you can’t really obviously Shake everyone’s hand but it’s that’s a nice club yeah good excellent I mean Lawrence yeah was what a compliment what a compliment I’ve signed a deal now the pens paper I mean Lawrence from a Chairman’s point of view um keeping them all happy um obviously you can’t keep everyone happy all the time is it frustrating sometimes I mean there’s a lot of support that gets behind you and then sometimes people moan it must be frustrating isn’t it at at times uh yeah but does it come with the nature of the job listen we um we took over the club 12 years ago and there’s been highs there’s been lows um I mean the fans are an important part interestingly before we go any further in the last game of the season there was some there was some fans still here we had on the last home game of the season I think we had 1400 people a wet Tuesday night and a dead rubber yes and there were still 1400 people here and that kind of made me think and a couple of them came up to me and said look we really we’ like to thank you for what you’re doing for the community and everything like that and I kind of said well no I’m just one person it’s all of us together collectively do it and and I feel the frustrations that the fans do when we lose I I don’t enjoy watching us play because I’m nervous the whole time I really am well I’ve seen you yeah hang around the whole time um and get the end of the game win or lose or something there’s a sense of relief in fact I was sitting next to um Zane and MJ’s um family and I look and I’ve got my new Apple watch and my seriously 125 at 3:00 till 5 2 weeks running and we’re the two home games really unbelievable and I’m not running around just just from watching it it just um um and that’s a personal choice you put question was Johnny I say just keeping all the fans but you’re a fan yourself I think you just highlighted that I’m a fan myself um and um and I kind of in a way represent the fans I mean I’m I always shake the hands of all the players at every game win or lose I mean you know it was what was the one you said did it for you when we lost away to tr we went no we went to brain tree and obviously we we were oh we were well beat on that night Tom you recognized that I mean don’t get wrong everyone has tough days every every player on every team lose lose his games but for whatever reason that brain T night didn’t quite go our way um you walk off the pitch after having lost 4-0 and you don’t expect the chairman to be the the door of the the tunnel to shake your hand you sort of expect Dead Silence um I thought you know at the time I’ve obviously shared it with the chairman my opinion of of that was I thought it was quite a nice moment of of respect really that whatever happens I think people understand and supporters will understand as well it’s not through lack of effort that we’ve lost games ever for a lack of quality or or in defining moments with conceded and possibly not scored what football’s all about I suppose but yeah obviously when the chair stood by the Cher and d and want to almost thank everyone for their effort regardless of that effort was quite pathetic on the night that it was um but it means the whole thing is is we’re a community club and we’re all in it together and that’s the key to it all is we’re building this environment where we all feel part of it I mean football is is a tribal Sport and we’re all part of the same if you like tribe and it doesn’t matter whether you’re the chairman whether you’re the captain the manager a fan or or or whoever we’re all in this together we all want to see this football club succeed grow and and yeah and have the success that it and I think it deserves I think we deserve success as a football club I think it’s interesting as well because a lot of people move into St Orbin perhaps St Orbin isn’t initially their first Club they may have a bigger Club but they then seem to buy into it and then they can’t let it go that’s seems to be a sort of a common theme you see about lots of the fans that are here that um it’s their adopted Club but it means so much to them as well I mean what’s it like Tom here it’s it’s a fan coming down here I was just thinking of someone I only know from coming down here guy called Chris who I know you know massive Sheffield United fan comes down here relocates here doesn’t quite realize what was going on here I think you knew him through cycling whatever and then now he’s messaging me every game you going away here why you there what was it like if he can’t come if he can’t if he has to work he’s devastated he’s just people really Do’s he’s a brilliant he’s an example he’s a he’s a br he’s a football nut yes he’s from Sheffield he’s a Sheffield United fan and um and he just yeah and I I got to know him through cycling and he just came down here once or twice and he just says it’s just fantastic it’s the whole Buzz of it it grabs you it [Music] yeah so would you take s orens hitting the playoffs or England winning the EUR are we going to have more news about stadiums and developments where are we with that well we’re going to Jo yes Joe get quiet there that’s the next one [Music]