THE EDMONTON ROVERS FORUM
This coming Sunday sees us playing at Home to East Herts in a Division One match at Hazelwood....weather permitting. (The forecast at the moment is non-stop heavy rain from 9.00.p.m. Wednesday evening until mid-day on Saturday ! 
)
Full details of the match are on the Forthcoming Fixtures page.
Manager Trevor Hughes is still in Australia, so myself and presumably Stuart Dorward ? will be picking the squad/starting line-up. We will confirm after training on Wednesday night (or on Thursday morning if Stuart is not at training), but we will be hoping that the following players can make themselves available for selection:
Simon Jackson (GK)
Stuart Dorward ...or is he going to Spurs v. Charlton to entertain clients ?
Alan Barnard
Martin Loveday
Andrew Warmerdam
Terry Moore
Rob Brown
Terry Brown
Danny Hagan
Steve Cokell
Dean Assiamah
Vernon 'Kizza' Nxumalo ...If he pays his Annual Subs as promised.
Lee King
Tom Watts ...If he is not playing Futsal.
Conor McGovern ...Assuming he now has a car ?
Danny Smith
That's 16, and if any of them can't play, we will then look at who turns up to training this week as replacements for them in the squad.
If any player in the 16 listed above fails to get in touch or says he is '50/50' and won't be able to let us know until Saturday whether he can play or not, then that is no good and we will name somebody from training in the squad ahead of them. The 50/50 player can then come back in on the day of the match if they are suddenly available at the last minute and somebody else has dropped out.
Lexton Harrison is suspended for this match (and the following week).
I will need either Terry Moore or Martin Loveday to help me open up the changing rooms and put the nets up. One of them will also need to pay the Ref and collect in subs after the match while I am packing the camera away. 
Warmers and Loveday both have flu at the moment and I have not had any confirmation from Conor or Kizza that they are playing...unless they have told Stuart ?
According to Facebook, Kizza still has a hangover from his birthday, which was on New Year's Day ! Also he has still not paid his subs into the club account as promised. Kizza will text me on Saturday afternoon as usual (when I am out driving/filming) asking 'Is there a match tomorrow ?' 
The only player in the squad who is definitely unavailable though is Tom Watts, who is still at home in Middlesbrough for Xmas and doesn't return to work back down in London until next week.
Although we might end up with a squad of 16 on the day if Warmers, Loveday, Conor & Kizza all make themselves available, I want Tony King in the squad to replace Tom Watts. I will also need Tony to do the opening-up/nets job if he can, as Terry might have to give players a lift. (Can Tony please confirm ?)
There were only 5 of us at training last night (myself, Jacko, Barney, Terry Moore & Lee King), so nobody else deserves to get called up into the squad ahead of Tony King.
Regarding the weather, the forecast is still pretty much non-stop heavy rain until Saturday afternoon and indeed it is chucking it down at the moment.
Enfield Council told me they are now going to do pitch inspections on Fridays (mid-day'ish ?) instead of Thursdays, so we should know by the time you all go home from work on Friday evening.
I went for a walk over Hazelwood on Sunday morning just gone (2nd January) and the pitch was very muddy and badly churned-up even then. It looked as if somebody had played an (illegal) game on it on New Year's Day !? Presumably the Broomfield bloke will be over there forking & rolling it tomorrow morning though ?
Enfield Council have not been in touch yet to say all pitches have been called off for this Sunday, and in fact at the League Management Committee Meeting I attended last night, I was told they are now going to leave decisions on waterlogged pitches up to Referees on the morning of the match ! 
However, that situation may well change. The most likely scenario is that they will let Broomfield play on it tomorrow, then 'someone' will stick a note up on the changing room doors straight after their match saying 'Pitch One Off' for our game on Sunday (so as not to damage it too much for the rest of the season). We would only find out when I get there to open up at 9.00.a.m. on Sunday morning. This has happened on numerous occasions in the past.
The weather forecast is for it to continue raining heavily up until early tomorrow (Saturday) morning...and indeed it is still hammering down as I write this, but it is then going to be dry, very mild and windy thereafter. If Broomfield don't play on Saturday, then I reckon the pitch will be playable by Sunday morning as it does actually drain very quickly. Normally, we only have games called off waterlogged at Hazelwood on a Sunday when it rains heavily on a Saturday, and especially a Saturday night...unless the Council have already called it off on a Thursday or a Friday.
All we can do then is just make a load of phone calls & texts on Sunday morning at 9.00.a.m. to chase players up (e.g. Warmers, Loveday, Kizza & Tony King) if I get there and find the pitch is fine.
Kizza has texted me to say he will phone/text me tomorrow (Saturday) regarding his subs & availability for Sunday, but as I have said before, I am out all day driving & filming.
I probably won't be able to phone/text players back until midnight Saturday night.
By the way, McKenzie Rangers have now given up playing on Pitch 2 at Hazelwood and are back at Enfield Playing Fields (on Pitch 23...the one we played Broxbourne Rangers Old Boys on with the tree overhanging the goalmouth). Apparently Pitch 2 will now be out of action for the rest of the season because of the dip in the middle. It is already 'like a lake'.
Pendayia (AC Varosi) are still on Pitch 3 (the kids' pitch behind the far goal) and they are over there on Sunday playing a League match which kicks off at 11.00.a.m.
I have no idea whether they have keys for the changing rooms or not. As far as I am concerned, whether they have left their belongings in there or not after their game kicks off, then we lock up afterwards and go home. No way are we waiting for them to finish. If they haven't got a key, then that's their fault. They'll have to phone the Council to come and unlock so they can have a shower.
However, that situation may well change. The most likely scenario is that they will let Broomfield play on it tomorrow, then 'someone' will stick a note up on the changing room doors straight after their match saying 'Pitch One Off' for our game on Sunday (so as not to damage it too much for the rest of the season). We would only find out when I get there to open up at 9.00.a.m. on Sunday morning. This has happened on numerous occasions in the past.The weather forecast is for it to continue raining heavily up until early tomorrow (Saturday) morning...and indeed it is still hammering down as I write this, but it is then going to be dry, very mild and windy thereafter. If Broomfield don't play on Saturday, then I reckon the pitch will be playable by Sunday morning as it does actually drain very quickly. Normally, we only have games called off waterlogged at Hazelwood on a Sunday when it rains heavily on a Saturday, and especially a Saturday night...unless the Council have already called it off on a Thursday or a Friday.
All we can do then is just make a load of phone calls & texts on Sunday morning at 9.00.a.m. to chase players up (e.g. Warmers, Loveday, Kizza & Tony King) if I get there and find the pitch is fine.
Kizza has texted me to say he will phone/text me tomorrow (Saturday) regarding his subs & availability for Sunday, but as I have said before, I am out all day driving & filming.
I probably won't be able to phone/text players back until midnight Saturday night.
By the way, McKenzie Rangers have now given up playing on Pitch 2 at Hazelwood and are back at Enfield Playing Fields (on Pitch 23...the one we played Broxbourne Rangers Old Boys on with the tree overhanging the goalmouth). Apparently Pitch 2 will now be out of action for the rest of the season because of the dip in the middle. It is already 'like a lake'.
Pendayia (AC Varosi) are still on Pitch 3 (the kids' pitch behind the far goal) and they are over there on Sunday playing a League match which kicks off at 11.00.a.m.
I have no idea whether they have keys for the changing rooms or not. As far as I am concerned, whether they have left their belongings in there or not after their game kicks off, then we lock up afterwards and go home. No way are we waiting for them to finish. If they haven't got a key, then that's their fault. They'll have to phone the Council to come and unlock so they can have a shower.
