“Our aim today, is not to lose.” Thus spoke Greg Dyke, chairman of Brentford, 20 minutes into the game last Saturday and soit proved. A heavy pitch, a tight litle ‘ground and the home team playing 6-4-1 in front of theie own fans — we took 1,737... ‘Apparently it was their highest gate ofthe season. Nine ‘other clube can say that forthe visit of Leeds ~ and we have only played 10 away league games. Now you know wihy 50 many clubs voted for the 15-point deduction! It was a fa ery from the Brentford of my cldhood when 40,000 poured into Grifin Park to watch them in the old First Division. That must be why they have only scored 14 goals in 11 home games but only lost twice. (Our consolation is that they will probably take the same attitude towards the other promotion contenders Meanwhile, we have broken the back ofthe toughest fixture lst in recent memory with fve matches in just 12 days fully stretching a fist team squad racked by injuries, All tributes o the lads who have come in and filed the gaps. The second half of December is easier with just four ‘games, starting tonight, in 16 days AND we sit top of the league, two points ahead, afar superior goal diference ‘and a game in hand with the 45-point year-end target beaten with three games to go. Let us hope the team have as happy and successful a 2010 as they have fought for and earned in 2008, 9,031 of thom. Well, less really, Be “Our popular Carol Concert for the Club Members takes place next Monday December 21 It starts at 6.30pm and is free to Members... a great family night out!” Cry ‘Tonight we weleome Accrington Stanley in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy Northern Area Semi-Final, for the winner the prize of being just 180 minutes away from a day out at Wembley. For me, Accrington Stanley isa voice from my past. Growing up as @ Londoner with no television and ite travelling fr the working classes, the North was a closed shop of ignorance. Just as we heard of the good of citizens of Hartlepool nanging @ monkey, suspecting it of bing a French spy, we laughed at people vino lorie in such names as Entwistle, Harbottle and the tke. Imagine my culture shock when | maved to the North, lived near Blackburn and opened my frst quary at wait fori, Oswaldtwistle which had its own little counci next tots bigger neighbour Accrington. Mind you, the North’s perception of London wasn't much better. IMy ft business transaction was conducted through an Acerington lawyer who prefaced the negotiations with a famous introduction of: "Now then, tel us about thissel. Just because we doa't hang around Piccadilly Circus wearing wide painted tis.” (this was the Arthur English era ...we'e not dat, you know!" That was when Iirst discovered that wnen a Lancastrian expressed his opinions he was being honest, forthright, blunt and outspoken. But when the Londoner responded in kind, he was being ignorant, arrogant, abusive and rude. Those were, and in some parts stil are, the rules those days. Back then Accrington used to have a huge board of directors and | became good friends with one of them, ‘Stan Armitage. Stan owned Stantons Beverages Ltd, @ ‘soft drinks manufacturer. n those days, the club used to have gates of 11-19,000 and half of them went to watch SStan and not the tear, He used to go on the terraces and he had @ span of about 20 feet around him to watch his frantic efforts to urge on the toam. “The club got into financial cificulies and in desperation the board called an emergency meeting to seek advice ‘rom Bob Loxd, chairman of neighbours Burnley. He told them to resign from the Football League and in a panic they did. Overnight they realised it was bad advice and tried to reverse it but couldn't because once the letter had ‘been posted the Footbal League had no provision in their