Thanks to Storm Dennis, all of the local football (and indeed, many of the sporting fixtures) were cancelled at the weekend. Instead, we feature an interview here by former Somer Valley Sports Show presenter and football commentator, Ian Nockolds and Radstock Town’s Manager, the Miners’ Brett Partner, as the side dare to dream of winning the League this season.
Ian Nockolds: “I’m delighted to welcome back to the Toolstation Western League podcast, Brett Partner, the Manager of Radstock Town. You saw a 2–0 ‘clash of the Titans’ win recently, Brett, and you owed Calne one after that defeat at their place on the opening day of the season.”
Brett Partner: “It was a really good game to watch, like you said, they beat us 2–0 at the start of the season, which I thought we were a little hard done by, but at the end of the day, the result counts. In a way, my team talk went along the lines of ‘remember what happened last game?’. We played really, really well, then again, it was a really good game to watch for the neutral as well.”
IN: “So, Calne have obviously been doing very well this season, can you see why they’re currently top of the table?”
BP: “They’ve got three really good forward players, and you can see why they score goals. Defensively they’re pretty sound as well, they’ve got tall, strong lads. But I did my research on them, studied their last five or six games to see what formations they played, what players they’ve got, and so on. Literally, my team talk was about half an hour about how to beat Calne, but they definitely should be up there, they’re a fantastic team when you watch them play. I think we stifled them, really, when we played them.”
IN: “One of the things that interest me about both yourselves and Calne is that both clubs have put their trust in young Managers, both yourself and Ben Redford have proved that age is no barrier to success. Do you think that younger Managers in the league have a more progressive outlook and a more progressive style of play, perhaps, than we’re traditionally used to seeing in the Western League?”
BP: “I think football is changing and we’ve got more of these modern coaches coming in now. I think if you look at the League, the young Managers are doing well, they’re probably coaching more than usual. Back in
the old days when I was playing, there was less coaching and more of a Manager-type thing, you know, you managed game days instead of coaching. Calne, again, are well drilled, and I think this new style of managing will be good for Western League football and will filter down through the other leagues as well. Now you’re getting good Managers for game days, but, actually, you’re getting good coaches for the players and you should start seeing the quality of the performances, from probably every team, improve.”
IN: “Now, you’re in sixth at the moment in the table, but you have got four games in hand over most of the teams in front of you. There’s something to be said for having those points on the board, isn’t there?”
BP: “I always see it as we are the sixth best team at the moment, regardless that we’ve got four games in hand. I know that will take us, I think, five points clear at the top. Again, you’ve still got to beat those teams in front of you when we do have to play them. I’m just taking each game as it comes and the players are similar to what I’m thinking as well. If we get too carried away with ourselves, that’s when you start disappointing yourself; if you get a loss and another one as well, form might start to dip. Take each day and each game as it comes, and hopefully we can win our games in hand and take us five points clear.”
IN: “For those of us who have been watching Radstock for a while, concerns exist about the potential for the side to be a bit “Radstock-y” and perhaps go on a bad run, which is why it is so important to get those points on the board. Of course, you came up against a very different Corsham outfit to the one that you played earlier in the season and I was a little bit concerned that the omens might not have been good, but you have recovered very well from that defeat.”
BP: “We’ve got a really good, resilient team. Corsham, fair play to them. I wasn’t there at the game, I was working for Bristol City,
but what I heard was that the first-half was very dominant from our side – they sat back, and the second-half they got us on the counter and they won the game, 2–0. It’s instilled in the lads being resilient and ruthless. Once the game’s gone, it’s done, we focus on the next game. It’s about how quickly can you put yourself back on track again, and since that game, I think we’ve got four clean sheets which is really good. Can’t ask for more from the lads, really.”
IN: “When we spoke earlier in the season, I know that a top four finish was certainly what you were planning for. Now we’ve got half-way through this sea- son, are you still focussed on a promotion push? Or, given how well you’ve done so far, is it now about a title bid?”
BP: “At the start of the season, yeah, it would be nice to finish top four, but my overall target was to win the League and that was from when I first took over the season before. I said the season before was just to stabilise the squad, get the velocity and get the right players in, then win the League next year. Simon Wilkinson the Chairman will back me up on that.
“Given the stage now, looking at where we are, why can’t we win the League? We’re showing some fantastic football, we’ve got some really good players, I’m confident in myself to prepare the players tacti- cally, technically, and to keep doing my research. Giving them information on the side of the pitch and encour- agethemasmuchasIcan,I don’t see why we can’t win it.
“Everyone above us has got a chance as well, but I really do believe that we’ve got a really good chance, especially with our games in hand as well.
“Like I said, I don’t want to speak too far in front, but you’ve got to take each game as it comes. It’s a hard one, I don’t want to get carried away, because I’m a very ambitious Manager. I really want to win it, I’m very determined to win it as well. I just need to keep my feet on the floor a little bit and take each game as it comes.”
IN: “If you do go up, the challenges of the Premier Division next season will be very different, won’t they? Not just the quality but the travel, it’s going to represent a challenge for Radstock, both on and off the pitch.”
BP: “No one really knows what’s going to happen, there’s if and buts and rumours going around. I’ve built a team which is a lot of local lads, which is really good. [As to] the travelling, the club has got to look at thatandifitisgoingtobea lot of Away games, you’ve got to pay for maybe a coach and make it as professional as possible. Keep the players we’ve got, maybe add a few more faces just to bolster the squad, but you’re looking into the unknown with next season. Again, I don’t want to look too far in front I just want to focus on this season, win it, and we’ll go on from there.”
IN: “Let’s get back to the business in hand. Bristol Telephones, you’ve got them up next and there’s no point in beating the top of the table side if you can’t beat the side at the bottom.”
BP: “Exactly. I think that it’s just as hard a game as playing Calne, to be honest. I’ve played Telephones for quite a few years, and this season they’ve had a tough time down there. They’ve played really good football, and again they’re such a resilient team when they’re on it.
“They lost 5–0 against Corsham, and they might not have had enough players, whatever the situation was down there, but you’ve just got to beat whatever is in front of you.
“As I’ve always said, its 11 vs. 11, anything can happen in football, you’ve just got to want it more. You’ve got to stick to what I tell you and do exactly the same tactics and you’ll do the business. If you start going to play your game and you’re really not up for it or you’re not focussed on the game, regardless of who you’re playing, you’re not going to give 100%.
“Wednesday will be a good test for us, and it’ll be good for the squad to see other players getting involved.
We’ve got a few players getting back from injury, so it’ll be nice to get them out as well. I will treat this exactly the same as the Calne game, because you can’t take it for granted.
IN: “If we look at a little bit ahead into March, that’s going to be an interesting month – you’ve got Longwell Green away on the 3rd, and then four days later you take on Welton Rovers in the Coalfield Classico.”
BP: “Longwell is going to be a really big game for us; there’s three games that I thought are going to be our biggest games. Calne was one, Longwell’s another one and I think we have got Wells as the second-to-last game of the season, so those two games are going to be massive for us.
“No disrespect to other teams, you know, each team’s going to be really hard to break down. Those are the three for us, because they’re around us and competing for what we want. Those are must-win games.
“Welton’s a hard one, it’s a derby, anything can happen in those games. It’s a test now for my players to keep focussed, our focus is on this title and it’s just another game we’ve got to beat them and carry on with our run.
“Obviously, for the fans, yes, we want to win it. We want Norton to be red as they say, not green. It’s going to be a must-win game for that, but not just because it’s the derby, it’s because we want to win the League. We’ve got a fantastic load of players who feel exactly the same, and they take each game as a derby for whoever we’re playing. It’s not going to be much different for our mindset.
IN: “Brett, thanks very much for taking the time to speak to us, and I’m sure if your good form continues we’ll get a chance to catch up before the end of the season as well.”
A link to the podcast can be found on the Western League website. The full interview will be available on Radstock Town’s audio platform, the Sounds of the Sea.
Ian Nockolds: “I’m delighted to welcome back to the Toolstation Western League podcast, Brett Partner, the Manager of Radstock Town. You saw a 2–0 ‘clash of the Titans’ win recently, Brett, and you owed Calne one after that defeat at their place on the opening day of the season.”
Brett Partner: “It was a really good game to watch, like you said, they beat us 2–0 at the start of the season, which I thought we were a little hard done by, but at the end of the day, the result counts. In a way, my team talk went along the lines of ‘remember what happened last game?’. We played really, really well, then again, it was a really good game to watch for the neutral as well.”
IN: “So, Calne have obviously been doing very well this season, can you see why they’re currently top of the table?”
BP: “They’ve got three really good forward players, and you can see why they score goals. Defensively they’re pretty sound as well, they’ve got tall, strong lads. But I did my research on them, studied their last five or six games to see what formations they played, what players they’ve got, and so on. Literally, my team talk was about half an hour about how to beat Calne, but they definitely should be up there, they’re a fantastic team when you watch them play. I think we stifled them, really, when we played them.”
IN: “One of the things that interest me about both yourselves and Calne is that both clubs have put their trust in young Managers, both yourself and Ben Redford have proved that age is no barrier to success. Do you think that younger Managers in the league have a more progressive outlook and a more progressive style of play, perhaps, than we’re traditionally used to seeing in the Western League?”
BP: “I think football is changing and we’ve got more of these modern coaches coming in now. I think if you look at the League, the young Managers are doing well, they’re probably coaching more than usual. Back in
the old days when I was playing, there was less coaching and more of a Manager-type thing, you know, you managed game days instead of coaching. Calne, again, are well drilled, and I think this new style of managing will be good for Western League football and will filter down through the other leagues as well. Now you’re getting good Managers for game days, but, actually, you’re getting good coaches for the players and you should start seeing the quality of the performances, from probably every team, improve.”
IN: “Now, you’re in sixth at the moment in the table, but you have got four games in hand over most of the teams in front of you. There’s something to be said for having those points on the board, isn’t there?”
BP: “I always see it as we are the sixth best team at the moment, regardless that we’ve got four games in hand. I know that will take us, I think, five points clear at the top. Again, you’ve still got to beat those teams in front of you when we do have to play them. I’m just taking each game as it comes and the players are similar to what I’m thinking as well. If we get too carried away with ourselves, that’s when you start disappointing yourself; if you get a loss and another one as well, form might start to dip. Take each day and each game as it comes, and hopefully we can win our games in hand and take us five points clear.”
IN: “For those of us who have been watching Radstock for a while, concerns exist about the potential for the side to be a bit “Radstock-y” and perhaps go on a bad run, which is why it is so important to get those points on the board. Of course, you came up against a very different Corsham outfit to the one that you played earlier in the season and I was a little bit concerned that the omens might not have been good, but you have recovered very well from that defeat.”
BP: “We’ve got a really good, resilient team. Corsham, fair play to them. I wasn’t there at the game, I was working for Bristol City,
but what I heard was that the first-half was very dominant from our side – they sat back, and the second-half they got us on the counter and they won the game, 2–0. It’s instilled in the lads being resilient and ruthless. Once the game’s gone, it’s done, we focus on the next game. It’s about how quickly can you put yourself back on track again, and since that game, I think we’ve got four clean sheets which is really good. Can’t ask for more from the lads, really.”
IN: “When we spoke earlier in the season, I know that a top four finish was certainly what you were planning for. Now we’ve got half-way through this sea- son, are you still focussed on a promotion push? Or, given how well you’ve done so far, is it now about a title bid?”
BP: “At the start of the season, yeah, it would be nice to finish top four, but my overall target was to win the League and that was from when I first took over the season before. I said the season before was just to stabilise the squad, get the velocity and get the right players in, then win the League next year. Simon Wilkinson the Chairman will back me up on that.
“Given the stage now, looking at where we are, why can’t we win the League? We’re showing some fantastic football, we’ve got some really good players, I’m confident in myself to prepare the players tacti- cally, technically, and to keep doing my research. Giving them information on the side of the pitch and encour- agethemasmuchasIcan,I don’t see why we can’t win it.
“Everyone above us has got a chance as well, but I really do believe that we’ve got a really good chance, especially with our games in hand as well.
“Like I said, I don’t want to speak too far in front, but you’ve got to take each game as it comes. It’s a hard one, I don’t want to get carried away, because I’m a very ambitious Manager. I really want to win it, I’m very determined to win it as well. I just need to keep my feet on the floor a little bit and take each game as it comes.”
IN: “If you do go up, the challenges of the Premier Division next season will be very different, won’t they? Not just the quality but the travel, it’s going to represent a challenge for Radstock, both on and off the pitch.”
BP: “No one really knows what’s going to happen, there’s if and buts and rumours going around. I’ve built a team which is a lot of local lads, which is really good. [As to] the travelling, the club has got to look at thatandifitisgoingtobea lot of Away games, you’ve got to pay for maybe a coach and make it as professional as possible. Keep the players we’ve got, maybe add a few more faces just to bolster the squad, but you’re looking into the unknown with next season. Again, I don’t want to look too far in front I just want to focus on this season, win it, and we’ll go on from there.”
IN: “Let’s get back to the business in hand. Bristol Telephones, you’ve got them up next and there’s no point in beating the top of the table side if you can’t beat the side at the bottom.”
BP: “Exactly. I think that it’s just as hard a game as playing Calne, to be honest. I’ve played Telephones for quite a few years, and this season they’ve had a tough time down there. They’ve played really good football, and again they’re such a resilient team when they’re on it.
“They lost 5–0 against Corsham, and they might not have had enough players, whatever the situation was down there, but you’ve just got to beat whatever is in front of you.
“As I’ve always said, its 11 vs. 11, anything can happen in football, you’ve just got to want it more. You’ve got to stick to what I tell you and do exactly the same tactics and you’ll do the business. If you start going to play your game and you’re really not up for it or you’re not focussed on the game, regardless of who you’re playing, you’re not going to give 100%.
“Wednesday will be a good test for us, and it’ll be good for the squad to see other players getting involved.
We’ve got a few players getting back from injury, so it’ll be nice to get them out as well. I will treat this exactly the same as the Calne game, because you can’t take it for granted.
IN: “If we look at a little bit ahead into March, that’s going to be an interesting month – you’ve got Longwell Green away on the 3rd, and then four days later you take on Welton Rovers in the Coalfield Classico.”
BP: “Longwell is going to be a really big game for us; there’s three games that I thought are going to be our biggest games. Calne was one, Longwell’s another one and I think we have got Wells as the second-to-last game of the season, so those two games are going to be massive for us.
“No disrespect to other teams, you know, each team’s going to be really hard to break down. Those are the three for us, because they’re around us and competing for what we want. Those are must-win games.
“Welton’s a hard one, it’s a derby, anything can happen in those games. It’s a test now for my players to keep focussed, our focus is on this title and it’s just another game we’ve got to beat them and carry on with our run.
“Obviously, for the fans, yes, we want to win it. We want Norton to be red as they say, not green. It’s going to be a must-win game for that, but not just because it’s the derby, it’s because we want to win the League. We’ve got a fantastic load of players who feel exactly the same, and they take each game as a derby for whoever we’re playing. It’s not going to be much different for our mindset.
IN: “Brett, thanks very much for taking the time to speak to us, and I’m sure if your good form continues we’ll get a chance to catch up before the end of the season as well.”
A link to the podcast can be found on the Western League website. The full interview will be available on Radstock Town’s audio platform, the Sounds of the Sea.
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