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Regrets. We have a few but then again…
When Dean Holdsworth took over at the turn of the year Aldershot were on the edge of the relegation zone whilst Lincoln City were outside bets for a playoff place.
How ironic therefore that Saturday found the roles reversed with the Imps teetering on the edge of the Conference trap door playing a Shots team safely ensconced in the middle of the table.
With Port Vale needing at least a point at Barnet it was always going to be a tricky afternoon for both Mark Grew (The Vale Manager) and Holdsworth. Without any shadow of doubt the latter was the one who got it right with the post match comments of the two Managers summing things up quite nicely.
“I’ve told the players” fumed Mark Grew after their 1-0 defeat, “their performance was unacceptable. It was a complete disgrace. It lacked passion and I just feel that some of them have been on holiday for the last two weeks.”
In complete contract Holdsworth made sure that his team turned up on the day and for that he deserves great credit. “I gained no pleasure from sending Lincoln down” he commented. “ I just asked my team to be professional and that’s what they were.”
The popular image of professional players is one of loyalty to the Club, one of kissing the badge, of applauding away fans and giving 100% for the cause.
The reality is of course somewhat different as was nicely illustrated at the Aldershot Club’s fans/players get together after the last home game. A few of the players did the rounds but the majority, as in any club, sat in a group fiddling with their mobile phones obviously desperate to slip away and get on with their lives.
That’s not a criticism. It’s just the way it is in football. For supporters the Club means everything. For the majority of players it’s what pays the bills and, if and when something better comes along, all to the good.
As far as last Saturday was concerned you can argue that the word professional implies players giving their all even when it makes no difference. You can equally well argue that being professional means playing within yourself until it actually counts. Fortunately for both Barnet and Shots supporters the Aldershot team took the first rather than the second route in their final game of the campaign.
Just a few seasons ago I remember seeing Lincoln take an absolute battering down at Northampton. On the day they were abysmal but even so they never gave up. The fifth Northampton goal went in to chants of “You’re rubbish but we love you” from the away end.
Last Saturday the cry from the home supporters soon turned to “You’re not fit to wear the shirt” and in truth once Danny Hylton had slotted in a second half penalty their team never looked like changing things round.
For the 500 or so Shots fans present it was indeed a bitter/sweet afternoon. Any feelings of optimism for the future and of satisfaction in a job well done were for the most part overshadowed by the role their team had just played in another’s demise.
The Conference, as teams such as Luton Town have found out to their cost, is hard and uncompromising and for Lincoln City the journey back will be incredibly difficult. Unlike last time it may well take them a lot more than a single season to get back. We Shots fans wish them well.
Posted by Aldershot fan Old Timer
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