We're going through changes

It's a pretty basic general rule, isn't it? Broadly speaking, you don't change a winning/unbeaten team. Well, we did, and it did not go well.

It was an eyebrow-raising starting XI at Notts County. Obviously we know how good Caprice is, but did Sutton really deserve to be dropped? Why on earth did we drop Pett? Surely Payne and Drummond are better used as impact subs? Quigley on the left?!?

Remember how, when Pett was out injured in August, we kept starting games badly? Well, guess how we fucking started with him on the bench for no obvious reason. Before last Saturday's game, we had the best defence in the division. It didn't look like it 7 minutes in. It was too easy for Notts County to run through our midfield, and from their throw in, Jatta's cross into the box took a horrible deflection off Daniels into the net.

Poor Donervon's afternoon got worse 26 minutes in when he was forced off injured. It meant Sutton was restored to the team, and at his favoured centre-half position for once, but three minutes later, County doubled their lead. Jatta tore us apart down the left, he crossed it to Hall, and, credit where it's due, it was a great finish.

We were awful, and Hudson's heroics in goal were the only thing keeping the score respectable. "Surely it can only get better for Oldham?", the commentator asked at the start of the second half. Nope. Jatta - who was superb for them - had yet another shot, and Hudson was unlucky to see it go in off him.

We did improve in the second half, but it was too late. Mellon's beautiful lob over their keeper deserved to be more than a consolation goal, but the damage had already been done.

📸 Phill Smith

Mellon snr criticised the players for not giving a good account of themselves, although he did single out Hudson for praise: "I thought my goalkeeper was outstanding". Predictably, he didn't think making 4 changes to a team that was unbeaten in September was a factor: "I don't think they were massive changes, it's probably like for like. We just didn't play well enough." Hmmmm. In Micky we trust, but I'm not sure I agree.

We didn't follow the game that closely as we were in a shooting range in Prague, and it is with a heavy heart that I must admit that I am worse at handling a pistol than Kane Drummond is at taking one-on-one chances.

We missed out on the trip to Notts County, but we got to go to the Prague derby instead, which was cool. Andy spent a fair bit of time and energy trying to see if the Sparta mascot's shield was a reasonably accurate representation of the kind of shield the Spartans would have carried, because he is a massive nerd. Apparently it is.

Chaddy could take him.

It was exactly what you'd want from a derby - a cracking atmosphere, pyro (which caused the game to be paused for five minutes after Sparta looked like they'd opened the scoring, only for it to be disallowed for offside, thereby rendering it a bit of a waste of explosives), and a hard-fought battle on the pitch.

Sparta were comfortably the better side, and it was a little against the run of play when Slavia took the lead through Kusej. Rrahmani equalised for Sparta with the last kick of the first half, and the home team totally dominated the second half, but lost their cutting edge up front when Rrahmani was subbed, and couldn't take their chances. I'm surprised there was only one sending off. It was a great day out.

I was a bit gutted that we also missed Peter Clarke's 1000th game. What a man. What a legend. Fittingly, he kept a clean sheet and helped Prescot Cables beat Lancaster City 2-0 and progress to the 1st round of the FA Trophy.

📸 John Middleton

Apparently we also played on Tuesday night, and I have absolutely nothing to say about that other than to wish Tom Conlon a full and speedy recovery. Losing our captain for the rest of the season is absolutely gutting.

A bit of a sickener of a week, then. But if there's one thing you shouldn't be upset about, it's missing out on Salford tickets. A dump of a ground and a pain in the arse to get to. Lancashire are playing Yorkshire in the women's RL Roses match at Boundary Park the same afternoon and it's free to get in, go to that instead.

Also, the Salford fanzine took huge offence at a piece that they asked one of our fanzine writers to do for them and refused to print it. Make your own 'angry middle-aged white men' joke. You can read it in the new issue of the Beyond The Boundary Park Alert System fanzine, which we'll hopefully be selling in the usual spots (car park entrance, Boundary Park Road, back of the Rocky) today. £2. Bargain.

The bright spot of the week was this frankly unhinged clip of Ryan Reynolds saying that Frank Rothwell is sexier than David Beckham. Yes, that is what he actually says. Amazing.

Write off the last two games. We go again today v Barrow, and it's another stupid KO time, this time at 5:30pm. Is this what it's like to support Liverpool and Arsenal? Hmph. At least we get a lie-in. So no excuses for starting the game half asleep. Time to show our bouncebackability. KTMFF.

📸 Phill Smith

Written by Arlene Finnigan