It was a pivotal season that had promised so much for Logica, but had ended only in the huge disappointment of the club's first relegation of the second millennium. The hope came with a new management team being installed pre-season with an emphatic mandate for change. The transpiring reality was that the core problems facing the club were not so easily surmounted, and perhaps the consolation is that they could be more radically addressed in a lower division which will perhaps be a little more forgiving as the team rebuilds.
The ringing endorsement had come courtesy of an Extraordinary General Meeting attended by the clubs' directors, share-holders, playing staff, and supporters, held at what is fast becoming a frequent and aptly name venue for club events: The Comedy public house near Piccadilly. The had already announced his retirement at the end of another successful but draining relegation battle, and clandestine cloak and dagger negotiations behind the scenes had identified the eager duo of and as his proposed successors.
But even bigger questions filled the smoky Comedic atmosphere on that decisive May evening. Should Logica seek voluntary relegation to try and find a level where the squad could rebuild without the constant and discouraging pain of heavy beatings? Should we leave the Stade in search of a new home where games weren't called off at the first drop of rain? Is two gaffers enough? Should players be limited to ten pints on a Saturday night? Should order a light salad or the triple club burger with extra fries?
After much healthy and constructive debate, voting produced a decisive mandate on all these issues. Not only were and unanimously accepted as the new men at the helm, but a sizable committee volunteered and were seconded to help them on matters of finance, socialising and asset management. When it came to the crunch, few honestly preferred to face a cold Sunday morning without the aid of the dressing room heaters at the Stade. And, of course, inevitably plumped for triple fries with extra club burgers.
The most divided issue finally resolved itself in favour of not giving up our place in Division Two. The decisive arguments were that our position had been hard won and merited, and that the club and players should always aspire to play at the highest standard possible. There were however a number of vital caveats that convinced the initial doubters. It was agreed that we would need to recruit at least four good quality players to bolster our dwindling squad, whilst extra efforts were needed to bolster team spirit and club togetherness.
The latter promise certainly appeared to be being fulfilled to as the core of the team embarked on some industrial strength pre-season training sessions every Sunday morning throughout a lengthy summer. And come September, the traditional Victoria Challenge seasonal curtain-raiser saw Logica triumphing 12-1 due in no small part to the significant contributions of impressive new signings and .
Unfortunately that was about as good as it got in what would prove to be an extremely tough opening campaign for the dynamic management duo. The Victorian debutantes turned out to have higher priority Saturday playing commitments (although they would both return to help out with great impact later in the season), and rather than recruit the swathe of promised new stars, Logica instead ended up losing some its established big names as the season progressed. was soon tempted by the lure of Sporting Lisbon, could hear the drums beating out a lucrative offer from York city in January, whilst could not resist the offer of as many shirts as he could wear in New York. was of course a big loss after retiring towards the end of the previous season, and and would both miss chunks of the season due to their new found parental status.
There were some new signings, and Reading World Cup winning captain both contributed significantly in 11 and 8 starts respectively, whilst showed immense promise in just two late-season appearances. But these imports were not on the scale demanded at the EGM, let alone sufficient to further balance the mass emigration once the season had begun. The familiar problems of raising a bare XI and the resultant on-field struggle soon resumed. When Logica did muster a full squad, some impressive victories resulted, proving they were not out of place in Division Two. However, the numbers game ultimately defeated them, and the voluntary relegation rejected at the EGM was ultimately achieved by more traditional means.
The first two matches of the season proved bizarre extremes of the old game-of-two-halves cliché. Impressive showings for 45 minutes yielded half time leads against both the ultimately promoted Shoots & Leaves and Welham, before monumental second half implosions conceded seven goals on each occasion. The die was cast, and four consecutive defeats followed with just a solitary goal scored, 's strike in the 1-2 first round Big Ron Cup exit shocker against third division Invictus.
It was time for the new management to earn their corn. The haemorrhaging of goals was deemed an even more urgent problem than the lack of the same at the other end. The gaffers devised a cunning 4-5-1 formation based on the innovative strategy of a sweeper providing cover in front of the back four combined with the pace and width of two geriatric touchline hugging wingers ( and ). Contrary to the opinions of scathing pundits, the plan had merit, and its unveiling against Croydon Red Star so nearly had the desired effect. It wasn't pretty, but the team who would finish as Division Two Champions were restricted to few clear sights of the Logica goal, and only sneaked off with all three points courtesy of a late winner.
This good showing boosted confidence, and a buoyant Logica rampaged through the first round of Little Ron with a 4-0 drubbing of NBG, bagging an impressive hat-trick that included a spectacular diving header. Logica's first point of the season came the following week in a claustrophobic goalless draw against Parklife, and an unbeaten run began to take shape with a creditable 2-2 draw in a friendly against Senior Amateur Reserve side Kensington.
In their next two league games, the new formation suddenly clicked perfectly into place as the correct balance between defence and attack was finally struck. Despite going a goal down, Logica roared back to trounce Maxilla West 6-1 at the Earlsfield Arena, with left-wing wizard of the dribble, , bagging a hat-trick on his 300th domestic start for the club. 's all-round quality in the middle of the park was rewarded with a brace, and he opened the scoring in the following league match against Old Sergeant by finishing the team move of a season in which he'd make his 100th appearance. That set Logica on the path to a 3-1 win, and they were off the bottom of the table for the first time as a result.
But even during this run, there were signs of the underlying problems. Between those two league victories, a Logica team missing a large number of regulars crashed out of Little Ron to fourth division Valtaro Wasteels. The final game of 2007 found a limp Logica going down 2-6 to a pretty average Parklife side, a display all the more disappointing for what had preceded it. The Christmas break failed to revitalise the players, and the new year stumbled in with five straight but increasingly demoralising defeats. The last two of these against relegation rivals Battersea City and Welham found all the confidence of November and December completely gone.
and again tried to stem the flow, and and were persuaded to help out. The former struck twice along with as Logica secured a narrow but vital win against a ten-man Spectra team, and the following week's 3-1 defeat against promotion chasing SW Alliance at least had the consolation of a good team performance. It was ' turn next as he scored the opener in another nervy 4-3 win over Maxilla. scored the third goal in this victory, before badly spraining an ankle in a comedy air shot moment. He would miss what was left of the rest of the season, but that first half goal, as well as contributing to three vital points, would also prove sufficient to earn the ageing striker his tenth club Golden Boot.
Logica's problems were all too clear when they could only raise ten men to face SW Alliance, and the 9-0 defeat could, and perhaps should, have been terminal. But Spectra had subsequently folded, giving Logica three more points and a final lifeline. Just as last season, victory in our final match against West London Select would guarantee survival. Indeed a draw would probably suffice. But even a guest appearance from could not save the day, and although he scored two fine goals, Logica were comprehensively outplayed in losing 6-2.
So almost one year to the exact week after that decisive EGM, Logica were relegated by the more orthodox approach of securing less points than most of the other teams in the division. Ironically, Logica had performed better than the previous season, collecting a total of 16 points (compared to 13 in 2006-07) that would have comfortably ensured safety in most previous seasons. But Logica's goal difference, combining just 27 goals for, and a mammoth 80 against, perhaps told a starker truth.
Within weeks it emerged that star midfielder had been signed by a glamorous Chiswick Saturday team. had topped the appearance charts in three of his four seasons with the club, missing just three games in the process. He'd topped the goal scoring charts in his first campaign, bagged the Goal of the Season this time out, and is probably the last person Logica FC could afford to lose at this difficult point in their history. All the problems identified at that EGM seemed only to have got worse rather than better, and to that end life one rung down the Sportsmans League ladder would perhaps grant the club the breathing space they need to regenerate themselves.
SEASON AT A GLANCE:
Most Appearances: (21 out of 23 games max)
Golden Boot: (7 goals in 13 games)
Players' Player of the Year:
Goal of the Season: vs Spectra
Football Writers' Player of the Year:
Biggest Victory: 6-1 v Maxilla Arms (a)
Heaviest Defeat: 0-9 v SW Alliance (a)
Number of Players used: 33
Goals Scored: 34 goals in 23 games (average 1.48 per game)
Goals Conceded: 87 goals in 23 games (average 3.78 per game)
Clean Sheets: Two in 23 games (average one every 11.50 games)