Meet Goalkeepers Jamie Cox and Kieran McGregor

Jamie has been at Heyford for quite a few years and currently enjoying his second spell with the club.

Kieran McGregor is a new addition to the squad, he is here to add depth to the squad and fight for his place to be Heyford Reserve’s first choice goalkeeper.

Cox is only 23 but has a lot of experience playing for teams like Blisworth Firsts, Earls Barton and Gregory Celtic.

However, Kieran doesn’t have a lot of experience and is looking to learn off of First team goalkeeper Ben Smith and Jamie Cox.

Jamie has only been available for seven games this season due to work commitments and a broken hand injury that he sustained in training.

McGregor joined in the middle of September but the injury has meant he has played a few games for the reserves and impressed manager Sam Barker and new man Liam Bailey-Shaw

“It is great to have two quality goalkeepers that you can rely on at all times, we bought in Kieran as our previous goalkeeper Shaun had left for personal reasons, said Sam Barker.

“Kieran really well since joining, he has settled in really well and I am sure he has a bright future ahead if he can stay fit.”

When Liam Bailey-Shaw he made it clear that everyone was playing for a place in the team and that he would be looking for players to bring in.

“Jamie (Cox) and Kieran (McGregor) are both great personalities to have in the dressing room before a game but more importantly they are even better players, said Liam Bailey-Shaw after seeing both goalkeepers in training and on a matchday.

“If both Goalkeepers are fit and ready then I will have to make the tough choice of choosing who starts but as a manager that is what you want, you want a couple of quality players in each position of the pitch.”

Kieran was delighted after making his debut for the reserves and is “excited for the rest of the season.”

“I have been waiting for my opportunity and it finally it came, hopefully I have done enough to keep my place next week but we will see but looking ahead I am excited to see what comes for me and the team for the rest of the season.”

Jamie Cox is loving the competition but he is confident that he is the right man for the position.

“Me and Kieran get on really well he is a great guy and a goalkeeper with a lot of potential, I am looking forward to battling it out with him and I am sure Liam (Bailey-Shaw) will make the right decision for the team.

I back myself 100 percent to be the starting goalkeeper I just need to prove it in training and when I get my opportunity again.”

 

 

By Alistair Jardine

 

Pre and Post Match thoughts from Liam bailey Shaw vs Weldon – league 

 

Kettering Park Orchard Post-match Thoughts 

Heyford’s losing streak continued on Saturday afternoon with a 4-0 loss to table topping Kettering Orchard.

Despite the result, it was clear performances are beginning to improve, and manager Liam-Bailey-Shaw took some solace saying “Positive result, 4-0 doesn’t sound positive I know but in the weeks leading up to this fixture things were looking pretty daunting, but I must say we gave it a good go today”.

“We proved out there that we can compete with sides higher in the table so the lads need to go out and perform like that week in week out, if we are too get out the mess that we put ourselves in.

We also asked Liam about his Debutants and he heaped plenty of praise on the duo, “Some great debuts from some great players, they have come in and raised the level of the team, but honestly the lads have come off that pitch absolutely shattered,  their a good group, we are aware we need results but sometimes these things can take time”.

Cup action next for Liam’s side as they take on Weldon in the county cup.

Article – Dante Grey

Audiogram – Dante Grey

 

 

Manager Liam Bailey-Shaw interview from the cup loss to Weldon.

“Not good enough from the very start,” Heyford manager Liam Bailey-Shaw shares his thoughts as his team gets knocked out of the cup by Weldon

Liam Bailey-Shaw has now been manager of Heyford Athletic Reserves for 3 games at this point into the season and already he knows how many problems are going on inside the club as he looks to try and fix these problems off the pitch and on the pitch.

one of the problems for Liam is how many players either don’t show up to training and the game or call in sick now I wanted to speak to Liam about these issues. “At 12 o’clock this afternoon I knew we were not going to play great because of the amount of drop-outs we had and those lads have let the lads down today”.

Heyford has to play Weldon again this coming week in the league this time and I wanted to see if Bailey-Shaw would maybe change his tactics up for this weekend’s game or whether he would stick with his game plan as he looks to implement his tactics.

“At the end of the day, it was how it was set up in our mind, there were difficult circumstances in the game but we were just not smart and we made the wrong choices at the wrong time, decision making and what we are doing at the time a more of a mental training session than physical one this week i think.”

Many injuries this season towards the Heyford team especially in this game with keeper Paul Anderson picking up another injury so I wanted to see what the problems might be and why they are picking up so many injuries.

“We had 4 go down last week and a couple in training as well, but the most difficult thing for me it is the lads don’t turn up and let the rest of them down, I have a plan at 12 o’clock about the people coming in what my team talks are, training is, the team is and how am I supposed to do when half my players don’t turn up”.

It is clear to say then that Liam Bailey-Shaw is having a hard time so far at Heyford but hopefully, his players and himself can start picking up points and rescue their league position.

Audiogram – Gabe Moss 

Article – Gabe Moss 

 

Liam Bailey-Shaw on first game in charge of his new club and they game against Higham Town Reserves.

“Congratulations on becoming Heyford Reserves manager, how are you feeling about the role?” 

“To be honest I saw last week’s result against Great Doddington and where Heyford sat in the league and I did not know what to expect and how today’s game was ging to play out,” said Bailey-Shaw.

“How did it feel managing the reserves for the first time this afternoon?”

“It felt good to be honest, obviously not the result we wanted but it is something we can build on this week in training and hopefully push on for the rest of the season.”

“What are your thoughts on the performance today?”

“For a team that has not played together before I thought the players did themselves proud and the performances will build and the results will come when we get use to how everyone plays.

“It was a tough one take as I thought we played well in patches of the game but other parts of the game we switched off and that is what cost us.

“I thought Jimmy was excellent today, grabbing two goals and his ability to move on and off the ball was very good.”

How do you think the rest of the season will go for the team?

“For me, it is the start of the season, I have told the players to forget about the league table because we are a new team and we need to focus on getting results.”

By Alistair Jardine

Brandon Sullivan gives his thoughts on last week’s loss against Higham Town Reserves

By Alistair Jardine