SUMMARY
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| Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Ave Att: |
| 24 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 6,979 |
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Programme Style 1999/00
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This issue is for the game against Norwich on 25th September 1999 and features Shane Nicholson on the cover. He had joined us from Chesterfield in the close season and missed only a handful of games during the season. He later moved on to Sheffield United and then Tranmere before returning to Saltergate.
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NEW MILLENNIUM – THE DECLINE STARTS
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Well we might have entered the 21st century on a high, but it was one way travel, not only in the first few months of 2000, but for a good number of years afterwards. The summary of the home games that I saw tells it all. 3 wins in 24 games, and away from home it was much the same. 3 wins in 19 games. It was enough to test the patience of even the most fervent follower. In league points terms I saw us capture, (if that’s the right word), 31 points from a possible 123. It was only the good form before the new year that kept us from relegation in 1999/2000. That was to be deferred until 2002, but it was a close call in 2001 as well.
Which gets me to thinking about the ‘life span’ of the smaller clubs that reach levels they have never aspired to, never mind achieved. I’m thinking about County certainly, but you can add clubs like Walsall; Crewe; Rotherham; Doncaster and others. The impetus provided by a good manager; the assembly of a decent team and the backing of a supporter base which is tasting success contributes to a good start at the higher level. But it’s difficult to sustain, especially in these days when the disparity of resources between some clubs in the second tier is huge.
Back in the early 2000’s there may have been parachute payments for Club relegated from the Premier League, but nowhere near what they are today. And clubs come down having had the benefit of almost countless millions in TV money. I have little doubt that had we retained the team that won promotion in 1997 we would have been a serious competitor at the top of Division 1. But the smaller clubs will always have to sell.
Jones; Todd; Armstrong and Marsden all went fairly soon after the promotion. We received somewhere around £3.5m. Only £1.2m of this was re-invested, (in Moore; Cook and McIntosh). The team had been weakened, but not sufficiently to result in an immediate relegation, but it became harder to survive at that level.
In my opinion Elwood was beginning to lose interest as the 2000’s dawned. With the benefit of hindsight the decline was inevitable. It’s happened at all those clubs I’ve mentioned. A smaller club has a limited lifespan at the higher levels. Some may argue that Bournemouth have proved this isn’t true, but they are either a financial debacle awaiting or have a backer with very rich pockets. Whatever the rights and wrongs of my arguments, there is no doubt that, after the highs of the previous 5 years, 2000 was a watershed which set the pattern for the next few years.
Putting all this into context, we had entered the year in 6th place. 21 league games were left and there were real hopes that we could push into the play-off places, and a tilt at reaching the promised land off the Premier League. I remember a conversation at that time in which I said that I would love just the one season at the highest level, even with the certainty of immediate relegation and probably with a record low points total. This daydream soon proved to be a complete delusion.
After beating Wolves on Boxing Day, we didn’t win again until the end of April. 120 days and 19 games had passed, with an appalling haul of 8 points. Kilner brought in some new and old faces. Karim Fradin, (from Nice); Stuart Elliott, (on loan from Newcastle) and the return of Kevin Francis, who came back. It simply didn’t work out for the Big Man, and he made a 4th and final appearance against Manchester City. It was the last time we saw him in a County short. Coincidentally that same evening, Jim Gannon was taken off injured – it was his last appearance as well. With the Francis experiment not having worked Kilner then recruited Ali Gibb, (who was to become a fans favourite); Ian Lawson from Bury and Martin Taylor, (loan from Blackburn).
It felt at the time that this was all panic stuff – anything to try and get a result. Frankly it was dismal to watch, and hard to make the effort to go to away games. When the final whistle blew on 7th May, (another defeat – this time at the hands of Forest), there was an almost audible sigh of relief. Let’s have the summer off and hope for better things next time round.
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ELWOOD STARTS TO LINE UP THE SALE
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The close season saw Kilner use his Scandinavian connections. He had played in Sweden, and after bringing in Bergersen the previous season he supplemented this with Jarko Wiss and Frederick Bryngelsson. Also arriving in the close season were Layton Maxwell, (a season long loan from Liverpool) ; Brian Carrigan; Peter Clark and keeper Lee Jones. Carlo Nash was still at the Club, and it turned out to be a season in which we used 4 keepers – Jones; Nash; Andy Dibble and Alan Kelly.
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Squad – 2000/01
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Things looked good on the opening day as we won at Gillingham. It provided one of those little quirks. Kevin Gray played at Priestfield – he was on loan from Huddersfield – and purportedly had never trained with the team. He was never seen again, returning to the McAlpine. The win was the high spot of the first three months. After a 4 goal trouncing at St Andrews we had 8 points from 13 games and were 3rd bottom. The malaise that had afflicted the second half of the previous season was continuing apace.
A youthful Rob Clare had made his debut, and was becoming a fairly regular starter, but the new signings Maxwell and Carrigan had made little impact. Carrigan lasted the season, scored once, and then was promptly sacked in the middle of June 2001, after being found in charge of a taxi; three times over the limit and with no insurance and, just to make it a full house, no driving licence either!!.
A 4-3 last minute win over Bolton featured a strike from Andy Tod, on loan from Dunfermline. A defender he had an eye for goal as well. He was certainly one of the better loan players who drifted in and out of EP around that time. But it was still thin gruel, as we added only 3 more victories before the end of December. We stood in 20th place, and the new year promised to be a struggle to avoid the drop. Things hadn’t been helped, on the field, by the sales of Tony Dinning and Ian Moore.
Off the field the balance sheet looked better as we picked up £1.6m for the pair of them. By the time February came Kevin Cooper, (£1m to Wimbledon); Carlo Nash and Sean Connelly had also taken the one way route down Hardcastle Road. There could be little doubt that Chairman Elwood was straightening up the finances more than likely in advance of a disposal of his asset. The feeling that he had lost interest was growing stronger. It was to take another 3 years for it to happen. It turned out to be a disastrous move and one which in my eyes, set the Club on the path to the heartache of the next decade and beyond.
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Back to 1999 Forward to 2001 Home Games Summary Page Away Games 2000..
THE HOME GAMES I SAW THIS YEAR
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| Day | Date | Competition | Tier / Round | Opponents | Res | F | A | Crowd | Home Game |
| Mon | 03/01/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Crystal Palace | L | 1 | 2 | 8,570 | 607 |
| Sat | 22/01/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Portsmouth | D | 1 | 1 | 8,008 | 608 |
| Sat | 05/02/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Charlton Athletic | L | 1 | 3 | 8,185 | 609 |
| Sat | 19/02/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Blackburn Rovers | L | 0 | 1 | 7,902 | 610 |
| Fri | 03/03/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Barnsley | L | 1 | 3 | 6,386 | 611 |
| Sat | 11/03/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | West Bromwich Albion | L | 0 | 1 | 8,238 | 612 |
| Tue | 14/03/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Bolton Wanderers | D | 0 | 0 | 6,412 | 613 |
| Tue | 21/03/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Manchester City | D | 2 | 2 | 11,212 | 614 |
| Sat | 15/04/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Ipswich Town | L | 0 | 1 | 8,501 | 615 |
| Mon | 24/04/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Swindon Town | W | 3 | 0 | 5,362 | 616 |
| Sun | 07/05/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Nottingham Forest | L | 2 | 3 | 7,756 | 617 |
| Sat | 19/08/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | D | 1 | 1 | 7,758 | 618 |
| Tue | 22/08/00 | Worthington Cup | Round 1 (1st Leg) | Blackpool | L | 0 | 1 | 3,014 | 619 |
| Mon | 28/08/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Huddersfield Town | D | 0 | 0 | 6,137 | 620 |
| Sat | 09/09/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | West Bromwich Albion | D | 0 | 0 | 6,632 | 621 |
| Tue | 12/09/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Norwich City | L | 1 | 3 | 5,703 | 622 |
| Sat | 23/09/00 (Highlights County goals not included) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Watford | L | 2 | 3 | 6,933 | 623 |
| Sun | 08/10/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Portsmouth | D | 1 | 1 | 6,212 | 624 |
| Sat | 21/10/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Bolton Wanderers | W | 4 | 3 | 8,266 | 625 |
| Sat | 28/10/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Nottingham Forest | L | 1 | 2 | 6,021 | 626 |
| Sat | 11/11/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Queens Park Rangers | D | 2 | 2 | 6,358 | 627 |
| Sat | 02/12/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Sheffield United | L | 0 | 2 | 6,460 | 628 |
| Sat | 16/12/00 | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Barnsley | W | 2 | 0 | 5,383 | 629 |
| Fri | 22/12/00 (Highlights) | Nationwide Football League – Division 1 | Tier 2 | Gillingham | D | 2 | 2 | 6,095 | 630 |
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