Please be aware that as I am away for a few days updates will not be as quick as they usually are. I have included the preview of next Tuesday’s game as I won’t be back in time to get this on-line before matchday.
Saturday 30th July 2022
UHLSPORT UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE-PREMIER DIVISION SOUTH
RUGBY TOWN v COGENHOE UNITED
Butlin Rd,
Rugby.
Warks.
CV21 3XH
KO 3pm
The Cooks kick off their UCL campaign on Saturday with a trip to Rugby Town, a team who are always expected to be at the business end come next April. Carl Adams has been in charge at Butlin Road since they were moved across from the Midlands League a few season’s back and has made gradual changes to his squad over time, with a few players from those early days still with the club. He has brought back former players Charlie Evans, Ryan Seal and keeper Matt Hill in the summer, along with some new faces in Drew Kear and Ben Whitehead.
Pre-season has been very good for the Valley, with just one reverse, a 0-2 defeat at home to Redditch United. They have beaten FC Stratford 3-0, Romulus 3-1 and Gresley Rovers 5-1, all away from home, whilst pre-season was rounded up with a 0-0 draw at higher grade Bedworth United. The club’s all-time leading scorer David Kolodynski has already netted four times during the warm-up games and is always a constant threat, but he is just one of five players to have already hit the target this season.
Our last trip to Butlin Road was Craig Adams final game in charge of the Cooks before his move away and on an emotional night we were pegged back to 2-2 draw by a 94th minute equaliser. Dylan Parker had put the Valley in front on 9 minutes, but the Cooks took control in the second half to turn the game around through Rico Alexander on 62 and Dylan Wilson on 75. It looked like the Cooks had done enough to have earned the three points, but a drilled cross hit Josh Thomas and flew past Craig Foxall deep into stoppage time.
For the Cooks it will be the first league game in charge for Scott Carlin and his backing team and should be a stern test for his young squad. They have shown us what they are capable of in pre-season with some excellent performances against teams from a higher grade and we have 24 players in the matchday squad all chomping at the bit to get a place in the team, meaning those who get the nod tomorrow will be fully aware of the need to perform to keep a hold on their place when we face Bugbrooke three days later.
Tuesday 2nd August 2022
UHLSPORT UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE-PREMIER DIVISION SOUTH
COGENHOE UNITED v BUGBROOKE ST MICHAELS
Compton Park,
Brafield Rd,
Cogenhoe.
NN17 1ND
KO 7-45 PM
Our first home league game is the first under the lights when we entertain our local rivals Bugbrooke St Michael. Now under the management of former reserve team manager Dale Walton, assisted by last season’s all-conquering U18s boss Daniel Powell, have a completely new look to their first team squad this season. Jamie Forrest moved to O.N Chenecks in the summer and took pretty much his entire first team squad with him, so Walton has done the same by promoting his championship winning Reserve team squad, with a few of the U18s players also making the step up.
With such a young side, much the same as Cogenhoe’s, it may be a learning curve for the badgers this season and I’m sure they will be more than just competitive, but there are likely to be a few ups and downs along the way. Pre-season has seen some promising performances starting with a 2-5 defeat at home to Harborough Town and an incredible 6-6 draw with Biggleswade United, but a narrow defeat at home to Kettering Town in the NFA Hillier Cup was followed by victories over Blisworth, Lutterworth Athletic and Saffron Dynamo, although they did lose 2-1 at Harpole on Tuesday night. A potentially big signing for the Badgers is Will Jones who was a real prospect to make it big with AFC Rushden & Diamonds, but things turned sour for the teenager at Hayden Road and he was allowed to leave in the summer.
Last season’s game here ended 2-2 in the latter stages of the season with Tom Wakley netting twice for the Cooks, whilst former Cogenhoe players Ben Drinkwater and Joe Power accounted for the Badgers goals.
