The Weekender

Its been a while but we're back! The Weekender has been off on his travels, sampling some of the classic footballing derby across the UK! Sunday league football is on the rise and black boots have made a come back! It's like going back to the 70's!

With the season drawing to a close it looks like we're gonna have a few newbies joining us in the dizzy heights of the top tier next season - 'Arrys old-boys Bournemouth look nailed on for top flight. The seasons other surprise package Brentford are trying to get into the playoff places, spearheaded by a young loan player by the name of Pritchard - With the youngster gaining rave reviews along the way... A future Frank Lampard maybe?

Anyway thats enough rambling on for a Saturday morning, lets have a cuppa and a slice of toast and get down to business!


The Weekenders - Weekend cuppa

Now we've had some crazy results in the last few weeks and my footballing brain is telling me we're gonna have some more this week! But if you have a cheeky fiver to spare stick it on a high scoring draw at White Hart Lane, Tim's back in town and he has a point to prove against his old employers, his got his big men firing and the fact Spurs can't defend it has all the makings of a cracker!

We're going for a 4-4 Draw with Harry Kane to score a hat-trick!

Seasons to be cheerful....

Is the break between seasons getting longer and longer or is it just our imagination? We here @ It's a Football Thing have been chomping @ the bit from the second Man City's injury time winner hit the back of the net!
Throughout the league's last season will take some beating, but even if 2011/12 was named 'best Premiership season....... EVER!!' we've come up with a few good reason's why next term will knock it bandy....

The Summer of Sport

Ok, so England didn't win the Euros. But did we expect them too?? They did better than some thought though and while Woy's Boys wasn't everyone's cup of tea (with chocolate Hob Nob) Spain's 'tika taka' possession style of play would have had many a Football League manager reaching for the tactics board with new found zeal.....will it catch on over here we wonder?
While Euro 2012 extended our football watching pleasure for a couple more weeks, the exploits of a Brit from Scotland, a Mod in Paris and some event in Stratford will mean more interest in sport for the remainder or this and the rest of next year are guaranteed and while the price of watching a game has once again become an issue we will see once again record crowds @ football.

The heat is on!

We never thought it would happen, we'd seen the last of them.......or so we thought. This group from the North with a loyal following were about to achieve the greatest comeback since Lazarus to a joyous reception, that's right The Ston....er....sorry Manchester City were once again a force in English Football.! Maybe not the biggest of shocks once the billionaire owners had dipped their toes in the murky waters of Premiership football but those ripples will be felt well into next season with a wake up call reverberating amongst the chasing pack that will see them all reach for their wallets. Good news for fans as more top names head to our shores with Chelsea being fastest out the blocks to secure Hazard, Marin and Oscar to mount a challenge and consolidate their Champions League triumph, even Mr Scrooge Wenger @ The Emirates has dug into those deep pockets of his and got spending!


Under new Management


Round and round they go where they stop nobody knows. Yep the managerial merry go round has been spinning into overdrive this Summer! From what turned into a mini soap opera @ Spurs to the once again revolving door policy @ Villa, there have been more ins n' outs than Russell Brand on the rebound. But with these comings and goings brings new drama, pressure and interest around the country.
Can AVB now @ Tottenham put his Chelsea nightmare behind him and build upon the potential shown @ Porto? Chris Hughton once the people's favourite at The Toon - who were universally derided for giving him the tin tack, will be keen to bounce back with Norwich where former boss Lambert has jumped into the very hot seat at Villa Park. While another popular manager RDM @ Chelsea will have many people itching to see how long he lasts even after last season heroics with a certain ex-Barca manager watching from the wings.
Arguably though all eyes will be on Brendan Rogers, after King Kenny was ousted from his throne the Welshman - though having shown his pedigree with The Swans, may have gone too early to a 'big' club - only time will tell.......


Coming up?


Once again for some clubs and supporters it will be about getting up or staying up. In The Premiership Reading, Southampton and West Ham have made the leap. The Upton Park outfit have become a bit of a yo yo side in recent times and under Big Sam will be looking to consolidate on there Play Off Final win which the club itself has been treating like some kind of Champions League victory and I guess revenue wise it almost is.
The promoted clubs will bring a fresh batch of players for us to feast our eyes on as well, with Rickie Lambert @ The Saints and Alfie Le Fronde with Reading looking to make their mark at the top table.
In the lower leagues the long journey to riches starts all over again and added to the mix will be those dropped down looking to bounce back up at the first time of asking. Once the Premiership settles down to it's usual three horse race, it's in the outer reaches of the countries leagues where all the drama and action actually happens, along with some teams under new management it's worth gazing further down the tables to see where the proper footballing stories unfold.

Coming Up? - Lower League Preview

Coming Up - A Lower League Preview

Welcome along to our soon to be regular lower league feature, we've realised here @ 442 that we have a lot of fans following the lower leagues and while the main spotlight is on the Premiership the "Big Four" (or five?) with their "loadsamoney look at my wad" mentality have started to make each season a fairly predictable scenario.
A dip into the lower leagues will show some quality young players, goals and action that some people may be missing out on. The Premiership teams have always been sniffing around the lower Leagues looking to unearth a gem, Connor Wickham - snapped up by Sunderland was wanted by a host of clubs in the top tier before signing on the dotted line for Steve Bruce and Arsenal's pursuit of Oxlade-Chamberlain is well documented, the lower leagues are also used by the "Big Boys" to blood their own youngsters and get vital first team experience in a tough physical league.
It's not just just the players either with a fresh crop of young and more importantly (to me anyway) English managers starting out on their careers in the lower divisions,  when meanwhile on the top table you'd be hard pushed to find an Englishman.

The Championship

The hardest to get out of and the one offering the biggest prize, teams that have been relegated the season before will be looking to bounce straight back up, getting in some experienced players up for a dogfight or two and trying desperately to hold onto the stars they have.
West Ham will be early favourites to come back up and with Big Sam in charge they have arguably not only one of the most experienced managers for getting the best of out his players but in Kevin Nolan one of the signings of the season (in any division)
Elsewhere, a Thai revolution is taking over at Leicester City and some of the Premiership-style fortune has fluttered it's way down a league into Sven Goran Eriksson's pockets, who's been snapping up new players like a fat kid in a sweet shop. Whether those players can gel and also whether Sven can stay there long enough are two factors to be looked at though.
Elsewhere in the league there's the return of another England manager to club management "the wally with the brolly" (he must be sick of that!) Steve McClaren who's been practising his Nottingham accent, Chris Hughton (probably one of the nicest blokes in football) taking charge at Birmingham who have the odds staked against them financially but could still come straight back up, Ollie @ Blackpool no doubt still adopting a cavalier approach to the game and a wicked sound bite in a press conference and amongst overs Brighton - under Gus Poyet playing the sort of sexy football his one time boss Ruud Gullitt would be proud of.

Predictions: Champions - West Ham; Promoted - Leicester City & Notts Forest

League One

Moving on down to League One doesn't necessarily mean a drop in quality and with two former Premiership clubs in the shape of The Blades of United & Owls of Wednesday renewing their local rivalry it's a great time to come from Sheffield.
Other clubs worth looking out for include Huddersfield Town who narrowly missed out on promotion last term under Lee Clark with the help of Kevin Keegan's former number two Terry McDermott, League Two's runaway Champions Chesterfield who were packing them in @ their new stadium last season will be a welcome addition, Brentford with one time Man City striker Uwe Rosler taking over a team that's on the rise who'll be hoping for more heroics from their highly rated 'keeper Richard Lee, the MK Dons who's set up may not be everyone's cup of tea (and a cheeky hob nob) but young English manager Karl Robinson could be one to watch for the future and on a personal note two local teams we here @ 442 who will be looking out for Leyton Orient and Stevenage.

Predictions: Champions - Huddersfield Town; Promoted - Sheffield Wednesday & Leyton Orient

League Two

In League Two teams have the added threat of relegation out of the Football League entirely (and possibly in some cases, existence) to contend with as well as trying climb up and out at the top.
This season the two teams which came up will be on every lower league watchers radar, Crawley Town who after last seasons FA Cup exploits are one of the favourites to continue their ascent, while another chapter in the fairytale that is AFC Wimbledon will be written as the club aim to build on the hard work that has been put in by players and fans alike after the demise of the parent club from Plough Lane.
Other teams of note will include Swindon Town where former West Ham, Sheffield Wednesday & Celtic cult hero was a surprise appointment earlier this year, whether he'll be a success or not is anyone's guess but it's sure to be entertaining, Shrewsbury Town you have a great record of making the play-offs - can they go that extra step this season? And over @ Crewe Dario Gradi (who with 24 years in residence was the longest serving manager in English football) is well respected for finding and coaching young players that have gone on to bigger things including Neil Lennon, Danny Murphy & David Platt so his team could be one to watch for you the talent spotters out there.

Predictions: Champions - Crawley Town; Promoted - Torquay United, Accrington Stanley & Shrewsbury Town

So, that's my little bite-sized nugget of a preview, any lower league fans out there feel free to drop us a line or comment. It's going to be a regular feature so look out for the next installment.