1:48pm Monday 18th January 2010
By Dan The Fan
I'M sure last weekend’s postponement against MK Dons came as a welcome break for the first team after a busy Christmas schedule.
But we are straight back into action this Saturday against rivals Gillingham at the County Ground.
This season has turned out differently to what everyone thought after the reverse fixture six months ago, when an embarrassing 5-0 defeat left us looking at another long campaign.
It’s good to look back now and know it was just a bad day at the office for the team.
While Town have gone upwards since that result, Gillingham have not made any sort of progress in terms of their league position after being promoted last season.
Their biggest threat on Saturday will come from Simeon Jackson, who has already scored 13 goals this season.
It will be a tough job for centre-backs Gordon Greer and Scott Cuthbert to keep him quiet, but I'm confident they can do it.
Curtis Weston makes a County Ground return also, after playing with Swindon in the 06/07 season under Dennis Wise and Paul Sturrock.
Meanwhile, there have been all sorts of rumours flying around since the transfer window opened.
Our former captain Hasney Aljofree could be set to leave for League Two side Crewe, which I think is a deal that suits all parties.
He could do a good job in that division and there’s no chance of him getting near the Town first team with three good centre-backs in front of him.
Midfielder Craig Easton has expressed a desire for first team football, which comes as no surprise because he is still a good player and could walk into a lot of League One sides.
He showed how good he is in the November game against Norwich in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy. That night he was one of our best players.
But with Douglas and Ferry playing so well, it will take an injury to one of them before he makes a first team return, so I expect him to leave on loan in the near future.
One player being linked with Town is the Scotland Under 21 International Paul Caddis, a player who made his debut for Celtic against Barcelona in February 2008.
That would be just what we need going into the second half of the season, and would provide decent backup for Jon-Paul McGovern and Kevin Amankwaah on the right flank.
But there is also the worry that McGovern could leave the County Ground in January.
With him not yet extending his current deal, the club might be forced to sell him to get some transfer money.
Let’s hope that doesn’t happen and he is part of the team that will get us out of League One.
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