Gerry Oldham's Cheltenham Saracens will head off on holiday after a season of steady improvement in Hellenic League Division One West.
Wednesday night's 1-0 defeat by Letcombe all-but ended Saracens' hopes of promotion, but Oldham will be looking to end the season in style with a win at Slimbridge today.
The Swans are one point behind leaders Wootton Bassett Town with a game in hand and Oldham rates them highly. "It will be a good way for us to sign-off from a good season if we beat them," said Oldham. They are probably going to win the league, but I would back us to give anyone a game. We have improved massively from last season when we came 12th. If we started with the players we have now, I would have backed us to win the league. It bodes well for next year."
Don't Be Complacent - 9th April
Gerry Oldham will be trying to ensure complacency doesn't affect his Saracens team this weekend.
Saracens make the short journey to face Gloucestershire rivals Cirencester United, a team they thrashed 14-0 when they last met. That stupendous victory came on Boxing Day and while the Saracens boss is confident his side possess the quality to win the game, he will be urging his charges to be on their guard. "We won't be going there with any complacency, we will treat them like we do any side – with respect," said Oldham. "Obviously we played really well to beat them 14-0 earlier in the season and I am confident that we can win again."
Saracens are one of five sides that can still gain promotion from Hellenic League Division One West. They currently sit in third place on 52 points but with only two teams going up they face a battle to gain promotion. All the clubs around them in the league have games in hand and will go above Oldham's men if they are victorious in those games.
However, the Saracens boss remains confident in his own side's chances. "If we get nine points from the last nine then we will have a chance," said Oldham. "Our last game is against leaders Slimbridge, so if we win that who knows."
Title Hopes Fade - 19th March
Saracens' hopes of winning the Hellenic League Division One West title all but ended with defeat to Headington Amateurs on Wednesday night.
The 1-0 defeat, secured by a controversial late penalty, leave Saracens requiring a host of results going in their favour between now and the end of the season. Gerry Oldham's men still top the table by three points, but with all of the three chasing teams having as many as four games in hand, the Saracens manager has conceded the league title.
"I think any chance we had of winning the league title have now gone," said Oldham. "But we are still in with a great chance of promotion with two teams going up, so long as we win all of our remaining games."
That run starts with the visit of Winterbourne United tomorrow. With title-chasing Slimbridge still to play and a number of the top teams facing six-pointers against the each other, Oldham is still eyeing second place. "Promotion would be terrific as we are a progressive club, but whatever happens we have a good season," he said. "I have only had the squad together from about six or seven games into the season. If we had started the season with the current squad then we could have been right up there in the shake-up."
With clubs from higher leagues sure to be interested in some of Oldham's players, the boss will be keen to keep the likes of top-scorers Jamie Hammond and Ian Sercombe for a title tilt next season. "There will always be interest in the better players," said Oldham. "But the grass isn't always greener if they decide to leave. We have a great spirit and we're hopeful that they will all stay."
Saracens travel to Winterbourne United tomorrow after a frustrating 1-1 draw at Wootton Bassett on Tuesday night.
The stalemate came just three days after Saracens had racked up their second double-figure scoreline of the season, a 12-0 hammering of Launton Sports. Boss Gerry Oldham was left cursing the gods of football as Saracens dropped two crucial points in their quest for promotion from Hellenic League Division One West.
"That's football for you," said Oldham. "Perhaps we used up all of our goals against Launton. The lads were a bit down afterwards and said that it felt like a defeat and that's a good thing in the long run."
Saracens are currently in third place in the table, five points behind leaders Purton but having played two more games.
However Oldham's men have still to face all of the top teams in the division during the run-in. "We're buzzing and the lads' attitude has been 100 per cent throughout and overall the situation is looking good," he said. "Winterbourne will be a tough game as they are a big physical side, but we'll go there confident of getting a result."
More Of The Same - 1st January 2010
Cheltenham Saracens boss Gerry Oldham will be asking for more of the same when Winterbourne United visit Petersfield Park tomorrow (3pm).
Oldham's boys enjoyed an unbelievable end to the year, handing out a 14-0 Christmas stuffing to Gloucestershire rivals Cirencester United on Boxing Day. The win, believed to be a club record, propelled Saracens up to third place in the FTL Futbol Hellenic League Division One West table, hot on the heels of the front two. With the top two clubs earning promotion into the Premier League, Oldham's charges are in fine form heading into the new year.
"Now it's time for us to use that win to kick on," said Oldham. "They weren't the best side we will come up against but you still have to play well to get 14 goals. It's now the ideal position for us to start pushing the top two as promotion is our aim for the season."
Saracens currently sit in third, six points behind second placed Slimbridge with both teams having played 18 League games. Table toppers Purton are one point ahead of the Swans with a further two games in hand. However, Saracens are currently the form side in the division, especially in front of goal, where they lead the way with 53 goals.
Striker Jamie Hammond scored eight in the 14-0 Boxing Day massacre, to take his tally to 26 from 16 games in total.With strike partner Ian Sercombe also striking at better than a goal a game, Oldham knows his side are in top form. "It's in our own hands," he said. "If we can go on a run of wins we will pressure the front two. I am just going to tell the players to go out and start where they left of on Boxing Day."
First Of Six? - 4th December
Saracens host Easington Sports tomorrow, hoping to kick off a run of six Hellenic League Division One West home games in a row with a morale boosting win.
Saracens lost 4-0 to Hellenic Premier high-fliers Almondsbury Town last week, a defeat that ended their interest in the Bluefin Insurance League Cup. Despite the defeat, manager Gerry Oldham was happy with the way his team performed against a well-drilled outfit from the higher level. "They were the better side over the 90 minutes, but needed two individual errors from us to score," said Oldham. "But we kept the ball really well which is a major positive for us after a few sloppy performances. However, they took their chances and that proved to be the difference between the two sides."
With Saracens harbouring ambitions of promotion to the higher level, Oldham said that the game provided his players a chance to prove that they could cut it against Premier Division opponents. "They are a really good club at that level and they have a big budget, but their players were very complimentary about the way we played," said Oldham. I've come away from the game with positive thoughts despite the result and I have every faith that these players can cut it at that level."
Oldham welcomes back top scorer Jamie Hammond for tomorrow's visit of Easington and has an otherwise fully fit squad to chose from. Defender Dan Harvey will play for the reserves on Saturday as he regains match fitness after serving a suspension.
Gerry Oldham is expecting a tough game for Saracens against Premier Division Almondsbury Town in the first round of the Bluefin Insurance Hellenic League Challenge Cup tomorrow.
While Saras are fourth in Hellenic League Division One West, Almondsbury are second in the Premier Division after an unbeaten start. Saracens made it through to the first round by edging out Penn and Tylers Green by a single goal at Petersfield Park three weeks ago.
The leading scorers in Division One West, Saras will have to overcome the absence of leading scorer Jamie Hammond, who is away. Oldham said: "They're doing well in the division above, so it's going to be a tough game. But we want to be playing teams in the Premier Division every week next season, by getting promotion, so Saturday's match will give us an idea of the standards we'll need to reach."
Saras suffered the agony of conceding a late equaliser in the league against North Leigh Reserves last Saturday. It left them 10 points behind leaders Slimbridge with a game a in hand, but Oldham is happy with the season so far. "We were a bit gutted last Saturday and it's another game we should have won," he said. "Our finishing let us down and we're our own worst enemies sometimes. But if someone had said that we'd be fourth coming up to Christmas, I'd have taken that. We've played all the top sides and of the 15 league games we've played 10 have been away, so you have to take that into context."
Improvement Target - 20th November
Saracens manager Gerry Oldham is targeting an improved performance from his side when they welcome North Leigh Reserves to Petersfield Park tomorrow (3pm).
Saracens secured a 2-0 win at Hellenic League Division One West basement boys Launton Sports last weekend, but Oldham was far from happy with the performance. "We've not played well in either of our last two games," said Oldham. "I'm not going to make any excuses as we need to be better both on and off the ball.It was a horrendous day and it's always difficult when you're playing a team at the bottom of the league. But there is no excuse for not being able to pass to a team-mate five yards away."
Despite not performing to their potential, Oldham was pleased to see another three points earned in their quest to break into the top six. Saracens face a bit of an unknown quantity tomorrow in a North Leigh Reserve side that can be vastly different from one week to the next.
"North Leigh are just below halfway in the table but some weeks they can have a few of their first-team players," Oldham said. "But we're more than a match for anyone when we play well. I suppose it's a classic sign of a half-decent team that we're winning despite not playing all that well."
Luke Tovey and Ryan Oldham are both fit again after missing last week's win and striker Ian Sercombe is available after missing the Launton trip due to attending his university graduation.
Sara's Full Of Confidence - 30th October
Cheltenham Saracens get their Bluefin Hellenic League Cup campaign underway with the visit of Penn and Tylers Green to Petersfield Park tomorrow.
Saracens go into the game on the back of a positive run of results that has seen them climb to sixth in the Hellenic League Division One West table. Gerry Oldham's men secured a 4-2 victory against Trowbridge Town in their last outing and go into tomorrow's game against the Division One East strugglers full of confidence. "They are in the bottom four of the league at the moment, but that counts for nothing in a cup tie," said Oldham. "We're in a terrific run of scoring goals, but we're also beginning to look a lot more solid at the back."
Top of the goalscoring charts is former Shortwood United forward Jamie Hammond ,who has already found the net 13 times in the league after joining the club in August. "Players like Jamie and Ian Sercombe really make a difference to your side," said Oldham. "Goalscorers can be the difference between mid-table, promotion spots and winning the league and in Jamie and Ian we have two of them."
With former Cheltenham Town youth product Cleo Hoare finding his feet after joining the club recently, Oldham is confident that a previously leaky defence is also showing signs of improvement. "Cleo is doing really well, it's feels like he's been playing with us for a few years, he's settled that well," Oldham added. "He's enjoying his football and he's probably dropped down a level too early, but he's good enough to go back up a few if he wants to."
Saracens manager Gerry Oldham has insisted his side are not scared of Division One West leaders Slimbridge.
Shell-shocked Saras will go into tomorrow's meeting still dazed from last week's 5-5 draw at Cricklade when they threw away a 5-1 half-time lead. The Petersfield Park club followed that with a Floodlit Cup defeat at Abingdon United on Tuesday but Oldham says his Saras are ready to face the Swans. "It's the best game we could have right now because everybody will be up for it," he said. "It's a local derby and we're playing the best team in the league. The table doesn't lie and Slimbridge are at the top. But we're not frightened of them and they will know they have been in a game."
The Swans are unbeaten in their opening 11 games but dropped points for a second time of the season last week when they were held to a goalless draw by North Leigh Reserves. Saracens could break into the top four with victory while Slimbridge are bidding to extend their advantage at the summit to six points. Oldham has a full-strength squad to select from with Dan Harvey making his first league appearance of the season after returning from injury to feature in the Floodlit Cup defeat. "We used a few of the fringe players in that game and lads who hadn't been involved for two or three weeks," added Oldham. "Dan came back in, he did well and we were 1-1 at half-time but they've scored a couple in the last 10 or 15 minutes. Out of the competitions we play in it's probably the one I have
the least interest in because you could end up playing away at a London side in midweek and we could do without that."
Promotion remains Oldham's priority and he was able to take a positive out of last week's remarkable draw that saw Saras drop two points. He said: "We took advantage of the strong wind in the first half and they did the same in the second. But that's no excuse really, when you're 5-1 up at half-time you should be winning the game. It was a freak result but on the positive side we've picked up a point away at a team higher than us in the league."
Saracens: Betteridge, Rayson, Finch, J Oldham, Pates, Harvey, Slender, Sercombe, Hammond, Tovey, Tustain, McLean, Hoare, Burrows.
Saras' Debut For Hoare - 2nd October
Former Cheltenham Town trainee Cleo Hoare is set to make his debut for Cheltenham Saracens when they visit Cricklade in Division One West tomorrow.
The teenage defender will line up as Saracens go all out for revenge following Crick's 3-2 win at Petersfield Park on the second day of the season. Manager Gerry Oldham was delighted to sign up Hoare but insisted that payback was not the motive for his team. We were 2-1 up in that game with 10 minutes to go and really should have won," said Oldham. "But I'm not too bothered about the whole revenge thing. The three points are all I'm worried about."
Top four Crick, who play at Stones Lane, had their three-game winning run brought to a crashing halt by a 5-0 defeat at Winterbourne United last weekend. Saracens, who occupy sixth place, are unbeaten in five games but they drew a blank for the first time this season in last Saturday's goalless draw with Tytherington Rocks. "I was pleased we didn't lose and keeping the clean sheet was really important too," added Oldham. "I would say the game was 50/50 in terms of possession but we had the better chances and should have won the game. Even still, I'm happy with the form we're in and the run we're on so we just have to keep that going now."
Saracens will aim to bounce back from last week's disappointing FA Vase exit when they visit Tytherington Rocks tomorrow.
The Saracens lost 4-1 to Bradford Town in the second qualifying round of the Vase at Petersfield Park. But their league form has been more impressive with four successive wins lifting them into the top five. The Rocks are one place and two points below Saras with four wins from nine games and they are unbeaten in three. Cheltenham are at full-strength for the trip to Hardwicke Playing Field with Jamie Hammond, who has now scored 11 goals in five games since joining the club, set to start in attack.
He will be partnered by new signing, tall striker Ian Sercombe, who is nicknamed 'Crouchy' and spent time in the Southern League with both Chippenham and Evesham last season. Manager Gerry Oldham said last week's score was flattering for Bradford but admitted his side were expecting another tough test tomorrow.
"It was only later on that Bradford scored," said Oldham. "It was 0-0 at half-time. "I'd told the lads at the break that we needed to concentrate on set-pieces because they were a big, strong side. I said if we didn't we would get punished and they went two-up through set-piece goals. Jamie Hammond got one back and we were on top for the next five or 10 minutes. But one of the younger lads has made a mistake so it's 3-1 and we're pushing forward chasing the game. They got another late on and the scoreline flattered them but we were disappointed with a few aspects that we need to work on. We will turn our attention to Tytherington now and we beat them 2-0 just last month. But I still think they're one of the best footballing sides in the league and it will be a tough game."
Massive Game - 18th September
Saracens manager Gerry Oldham has said tomorrow's FA Vase tie with Bradford Town is a 'massive game' for the club.
The in-form Saras will entertain the Western League club from Wiltshire in the second qualifying round at Petersfield Park.
Their only previous foray into the Vase was last year's 2-1 defeat to Malmesbury Victoria but Oldham is confident of securing their first ever win in the competition against a side he knows well. "This is a massive game for us because it's such a prestigious competition," said Oldham. "And financially it is important too. The prize money gets bigger the further you go and that is vital for a club of our size. I know quite a bit about Bradford because the manager and half the team were part of the Trowbridge side we used to play against. We go into this game knowing exactly what to expect but we're in good form and I fancy our chances. The way we are playing at the minute I think we stand a chance against anybody but football has a way of kicking you in the teeth when you least expect it so we won't be getting carried away."
Saracens have been in impressive league form with four successive wins as new recruit Jamie Hammond netted 10 goals in that period to go top of the scoring charts. He will start tomorrow while Joe Tustain returns from a two-game suspension and Sam Slender is also back, but Dan Harvey will remain sidelined until later this month.
Saracens manager Gerry Oldham says the whole team should share the plaudits with in-form striker Jamie Hammond.
Since moving to Petersfield Park from Shortwood United, Hammond has scored seven times in three games to help Saras rise up the Division One West table. He bagged a brace as Oldham's men defeated high-flying Easington Sports 2-0 – their third successive win – but the defensive display pleased the manager most of all. "It was a very good win and Jamie has took all the plaudits quite rightly," said Oldham. "But the whole team defended well to keep a clean sheet and that was more pleasing to me. We restricted them to shots from outside of the box and they never really threatened us at all."
Saracens will now visit North Leigh Reserves and a fourth consecutive victory could put them third in the table. Mike Wilce returns but Jamie Bish and Lee Rayson will face fitness tests to see if they have overcome niggling injuries. Leigh's second string are in mid-table after two wins and two draws in four games but Oldham fears players from their Southern League first team could affect the outcome.
"It could be a tricky one because you don't have a clue how many first team players they'll use," he said. "I think their first team do have a game, but you never know what they'll do so we have to be prepared."
On Target - 4th September
Jamie Hammond will aim to continue his remarkable scoring run for Cheltenham Saracens at Easington Sports. Since joining the Petersfield Park club from Shortwood United Hammond has struck five in two with a stunning hat-trick in last week's 3-1 win at Headington Amateurs following the debut brace against Tytherington Rocks.
But Saracens boss Gerry Oldham has warned his players not to rely on the goals of Hammond. Easington are third in Division One West following five wins in six games and Oldham is aware of the threat. "Easington's always been a tough place to go and tomorrow will be no different because they've had a good start," he said. "Having a goalscorer like Jamie in the team has made a real difference and five goals in two games is fantastic. But we can't rely on him and everyone has to chip in and share the responsibility."
Oldham will be without suspended duo Joey Tustain and Marcus Finch for the trip to Addison Road while Mike Wilce is away. The squad is also depleted by injuries to Dan Harvey and Ryan Oldham but Jack Oldham is back. Jamie Bish and Lee Rayson may return if they pass fitness tests.
