National League 19/20 squad

Out of interest was Victor the bookies you won off last season?

Bet365 last time...the buggers won't let me back though! 

Woo Hoo...the monkey is off my back...Betway 16s! 

Now it's just up to TUFC! 😁

link - interview with Little back to Plainmoor ready for training starting tomorrow.

link - nice little article on 4 possible loan signings from Bristol

I see that it has been picked up in a number of places elsewhere that Tshimanga is almost certain to leave Oxford city for a club in the National league and there is a lot of speculation that it could be Torquay with Pete Johnson alluding to one or two more signings coming in shortly during this week’s Devon Live podcast. Easy to add two and two to get five though.

Looking at the line up above we do seem a bit light on numbers up front particularly as Kalala’s stint supporting Reidy did not work and Kozsela is still developing and his signing would give us another very good and different option. Tshimanga scored 29 goals last season in all competitions including his team’s second goal against us at Plainmoor which I described at the time as a good counter attacking move finished with a well taken goal. Would be a very good addition giving us 2 of the 3 top strikers in the NLS last season.

gullone 


It's an area of the field where GJ might still be hoping to add more competition.

Looking at rjd's provisional starting eleven, the three whose places might be most under threat in my opinion are MacDonald, Niate and Keating. Ideally I'd like all of them to prove they're good enough for the National League. MacDonald who arrived with the expectation of being a second fiddle NLS goalkeeper for the season, has impressed us all. His reflexes are good and his quick distribution can instigate an attack before the opposition have regrouped. Whether Shaun's all round game is considered strong enough, and whether he dominates the box sufficiently might still be open to question. As of course is 'Just how good is Covolan ? If National League football proves to be too big a challenge for Shaun, is the man from Brazil of high enough standard to replace him ? 

Niate is just what's needed against opponents of a certain type.....as is Ben Gerring come to that. Will the variety of threats faced, and therefore the adaptability required from our central defenders, require more that big Niate has in his locker ?

Keating, noticeably below the standard required for a striking role at National League level previously, is probably best advised concentrating on the wider attacking midfield position he performed well in last season. Will he be up to National League standard this time around ? He's a little older and wiser, and has hopefully benefited from better coaching.

Injuries, form, tactics, will all impact on GJ's player selection for any given match. Let's hope that once everything is taken into account we'll have more than enough to cope with life back in the National League.