The Conference Season

As the Conference Season draws to a close, with the final games being played out in Blackpool this week, all of our attention is being drawn to Gordon’s big decision.

Will he call an autumn General Election?

Now forgive me for being a bit dull. But didn’t I vote in an election on May 5th 2005? And didn’t Tony Blair lead the Labour Party to a third consecutive victory? And wasn’t Labour’s House of Commons majority 66?

Mmmm, and another thing. Don’t General Elections cost a lot of money…..my money?

So just a couple of years after retaining power and then being gifted the top job in the Country….I didn’t see the advert in the Times appointments….the ‘grim-faced son of the manse’ may just call another election because his advisers tell him, ‘the opinion polls look good, Gordon’.

‘No Prime Minister. No’ is the answer Your Majesty should bestow on Gordon, when he asks permission to dissolve Parliament.

Politicians and their hangers-on….and in some cases ‘partners’. …..have only one fundamental desire. Personal survival. And one ambition. Personal advancement.

I’ve known and worked closely with a number of leading Politicians over the years, and I can’t say that I have liked any of them. In fact I don’t know of one who I would entrust with the safe keeping of my ‘Aldershot FC programme collection’ for an afternoon. And certainly not for a maximum Parliamentary term of five years.

So when Jack Dromey, Trade Unionist and official hanger-on to Harriet Harman (Deputy Leader of the Labour Party) had a go at Boris Johnson during the Party Conference, I felt just a bit of political passion rising.

Now I don’t have any more time for the politics of Boris than I do for those of Ken Livingstone. And living on a hill top retreat in Wales I don’t suppose the winner of the 2008 London Mayoral Election will have much of an impact on me.

No, but I just might like Boris if I met him. Calling him a ‘tufty toff from Eton’ who was as ‘genuine as a nine-bob note’ was a bit rich coming out of the mouth of a man who on March 15th 2006, in the Cash for Peerages scandal, spoke of being unaware, despite being party treasurer, of £3.5million worth of loans….in fact it wasn’t until he read the papers that he knew anything about it.

Oh and by the way Jack….your wife was the niece of an earl and attended St Paul’s Girls School. But unlike Boris who went from Eton to become President of the Oxford Union , poor Harriet ended up at York.

And I have no doubt that David Cameron and his platform guests will do their best to upstage all those who have gone before…..

Football blog….yes, I remember……this is a football blog.

And it’s not just politicians who demand media attention.

But the constant need for the media to have ’comment’ and a ‘story’ makes the life of a football manager a nightmare. Some are of course very clever….Jose was brilliant. But Brian Clough was the best….his one liners fill page after page of ‘Google searches’.

And some managers dine out on their past comment. Reliving a quality of output that would fall well short of the standard required by Boris, when editor of the Spectator between 1999 and 2005.

Bobby Gould was awarded the Golden Bull Award by the Plain English Campaign for his Wimbledon FC Programme notes in 1987.…..and yes, they were…. ’good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, all I hope personally this afternoon is that we don’t have an ’after the Lord Mayors Show’ game situation!…….’

A few years ago Bobby and I were guests at a ‘Sporting Dinner’. At the time Bobby was Manager of Wales. And a bit like Aldershot’s manager last season….he was under pressure. The results were not good. Performances dire. And the fans had had enough.

But as we sat next to each other at dinner, I warmed to him. He spoke in a language that was not readily discernable. But he appeared open and honest. Clearly genuine. A nice man.

He spoke with great pride of his son.

No, not Jonathan who made 109 league appearances for Celtic and was capped twice by Scotland (he also made 14 appearances for Hereford in 2004). No the sense of pride was for his other son…..a serving officer in the Army.

He started the conversation with the Balkans, it continued through religion, tanks, snow, politics, the United Nations….I was breathless. But Bobby didn’t stop. All of his sentences joined as one.

I turned briefly to his charming wife in search of support. She smiled and whispered in my ear. ‘When he starts at home I get the silver polish out. And do a few of his trophies and medals. He will pause for breath soon….’

And she was right. Just after a return trip to Kosovo he stopped……then he started up again.

After all that I feel a bit more focussed….and Aldershot Town FC sit proudly in third place in the Conference. A great point at Cambridge on Tuesday evening, only to be followed by a weekend off because of television. How I look forward to the day when all matches kick off at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon. Come on Gordon do something useful with my money for once.

And what of the game at the Abbey Stadium?

Passion and pace after a slightly too respectful start. A goal for Aldershot inevitable….was it really so late in the game (87mins).

And the obvious difference between this season and the previous two….all of the players want to play. All of the substitutes want to get on the pitch. And when they do….like Dean Smith on Tuesday evening, they play with the same enthusiasm and desire as the rest. The whole of the squad have developed a togetherness and infectious desire that will overcome much bigger and stronger teams. And Dean, who spent last season looking like a frightened rabbit caught in the headlights of a car, played with a confidence that can only be the result of our pre season management change.

Best of luck AFC Wimbledon ……….but I am so pleased that Aldershot Town now have a good young man at the helm.

Exeter next Tuesday will be a test and Stevenage on Saturday will be another hard game. But I have confidence in our management team. I'm sure they will grow stronger with our results, and they will learn from the mistakes that have been made. But above all else, Gary and Martin will build upon the power of ‘the team‘.