Mr Loophole

Mr Loophole, Ray Johnston, talks to Ian Nockolds on the Toolstation Western League Podcast about why he fears a backlash from sides in the second half of the season and why he’s not a fan of Boxing Day matches, although they are at least a great leveller!

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Well, I'm delighted to welcome backto the Tour Station Westernly podcast Ray Johnson,
the manager of Radstock Town the Miners. Ray, thank you so much
for taking the time to speak tous, and let's reflect on that seven
goal thriller you had at the weekendagainst Cribs Reserves. Can you talk us
through the action? It was agame that I thought we controlled for large
parts. We let some stupid goalsin at stupid times, but I felt

(00:24):
that we pretty much had the gameat arms lengths mostly. I know we
went won the downs, but weequalized pretty quickly. And it wasn't the
game that I felt uncomfortable with.I just felt that when we won,
it was going to be a matterof time. It sounds like you were
happy with the result, but howhappy were you with the performance? Yeah?
Again, the boys after the gameseemed pretty flat. Afterwards, they

(00:47):
did their little victory song and allthat nonsense that they all like to do
these days, most teams there,but afterwards it just seemed fat. I
think the boys were considering the dominanceof the game. I think they were
disappointed with the scoreline, and youknow, they needed me to remind them
that they had to remind them,like, you've just beaten the team.
You just took four points in thelast two games. It took four points

(01:08):
off of the team. That's somebubby in the league. Like get over
yourselves and start like spots that rememberinghow to win, how to enjoy winning
games of football. Again, youknow it's not the winning games of football
isn't easy to come by at highlevel. Yet you've got like, so
enjoy and when they do, like, do you know what I mean?
So that's that's kind of the approachI had with them. Do you think

(01:29):
that attitude has got something to dowith the disappointment they must have felt with
the defeats to Cabri Heath and WinCanton. The Cabri deef game, we
were The goals we conceded were absoluteshambles. We were terrible that game.
And but again that happens. Youknow, we're dealing with humans here,
We're not dealing with robots, badpeople. We will have bad games,
and that was just that was ourone. But that was our bad game

(01:51):
where we were absolutely horrendous. TheWin Canton game was a bizarre set of
circumstances. A game that dominated earlyin the first half, took the league
twice, and then it got descendedinto chaos when we had a delivery.
Uh we had two red cards,and we had two red cards, and
it actually changed the context of thegame. So it was a shame really

(02:15):
because it was a game we weredominating sincerely, but we found a way
to lose that one. But youknow, we can't dwell on that,
and we've as of now, we'vegot all of our people that were suspended.
They're made back from that we hadoff that day and paying the nine
men, so they're both back nowand available for us. So you know,
we're getting stronger as we go.Because although you've been on a fantastic

(02:38):
run of form, obviously a lotof your games are very close, aren't
they just you know, just asingle goal in it. So I guess
your players and yourself are exerting quitea huge amount of concentration and effort to
sort of get you over the overthe line to get those three points game
after game after game. Yeah,well, well they aren't. They might

(02:59):
be a bit singy some homes inwhat I mean, I can't fault them
for their effort, So I genuinelycan't fault them for their effort. They're
buying loans. They're really a goodbunch of lads that really wanted to try
their liners for everybody. But yeah, right, they aren't close games,
but a lot of them are moremore to do with the fact that we've

(03:19):
made it hard for ourselves more thanteams dominating us overall. Though, if
we look at your body of workover the first half of this season,
it feels like your project with Radstockis well ahead of well ahead of schedule.
I mean, is that is thatunfair or do you think that?
Is that how you see it?Yeah? No, I mean the last
season I was really really hard worktrying to get players in and trying to

(03:43):
basically spent the youngest trying to sixesrather than as quality. That's the game
different though. We've got a differentset of players, not different SAT players,
all of our by so what wewanted to do and we kind of
unit that we're trying to create thetogetherness that we're trying to create, which
I think buys us small points thanactually our ability does, and keep finding

(04:08):
them. I've said to you,and I've said many times to various people,
we just want to We're not.We've not got any sort of targets.
We've not got any of this that. And what I wanted to do
is take the season as deep aspossible. I wanted to make every game
relevant so that it's easier to motivatethe players. What I didn't want to
do is get February with like usbeing in mid table and there's nothing to

(04:30):
play for, and you're just tryingto find ways to motivate players to win
games. But at the moment,because worried this, we're in. I
think if you assume porter Z willwin the league, if you assume plays
have been a thing a second,then it's a I make it a bit
of a four or five horse racebetween for the remaining free playoff spots,
and that gives us that time tokeep every game relevant. You know,
makes my job easier than in termsof motivation. So I guess ray the

(04:54):
flip side of being in a positionin the league that keeps your players focused
on being competitive in every game isthat it's put something of a target on
your back because of course, youknow, for so long in this season
you've been second, you've been theteam pushing. Paudie said, you hadn't
been dropping points where perhaps other teamshad. So, you know, we

(05:15):
talked a bit earlier about how closea lot of your games have been.
You know, is that adding tothis attritional season? You know? Are
you now a scalp that other sidesin the division want to beat? Yeah,
but I think that's more to dowith the fact that my players are
a bunch of a bunch of idiotsthat have probably annoyed a lot of teams
this season with how they reacted tosome of the wins that they've had,

(05:38):
and then that basis we've basically done. Other teams now are playing everybody for
the second time, I think theirmotivation levels are that much higher because I
think the annoyed them slightly in thefirst game. So I think the scalp
is more to shut the boys upmore than anything. And quite rightly said,
if I was the managers of theplayers of these other being exactly the

(06:00):
same position. So in terms ofbeing a target, I would rather be
the target than you know, andbe up there part of the conversation for
the playoffs than than mid table justchilling out and waiting for the season to
finish. Well, that's probably agood thing in that case that you've got
odd Down up next on Boxing Day. Obviously that's a club you know well.
But you haven't played them yet thisseason, so based on what you've

(06:20):
just said, you haven't you haven'tannoyed them yet. Yeah, No,
we've got them, We've we've doneour research. Though, we've done our
we've done that accordingly for them.We've hadn't watched, so we know what
to expect, hopefully, and weknow it'd be a tough game. But
one, if if we're at it, if if our boys, if our

(06:42):
boys you know, are at it, and we perform, then one we're
confident of winning. Whether we dowin or not want to be dependent on
you know, individual performances, refereedecision or whether you know anything anything could
happen during the game, but youknow, we were approaching a positive mindset.
Now that of course is the Boxingday game. And I mean you've
been involved in the game for along time, so Boxing day games,

(07:04):
I guess are nothing new to you. But I mean, what's it like
to prepare for a game like this, because I mean the obvious thing is
that it does call for quite somerestraint on Christmas Day. Yeah, no,
I as a manager, I assumethat all boxing day games at garbage
that's sort of played out because everybody'shalf a stone to a stone heavier on

(07:24):
the day, then they would normallybe a normal match fitness because who's not
going to turn who's not going tolike, I've got a game tomorrow,
I better not have those extra twoor three potatoes and bit of Christmas put
and like, of course you're goingto level that, and I'd encourage them
to do it. That's that's thething I find it yourself. You just
accept the games are not going tobe as lively and as energetic as other

(07:44):
games would be, saying on anight game or whatever, just because people
are people just are half a stone, if not more heavier than their normal
fighting weight. I mean, haveyou ever made it work to your advantage?
Though? Have you ever sort of, you know, booked all of
the leads into a monastery for thenight and sort of gone up against the
fancied side and pulled the real shocker. To be honest, the only thing
that keeps that going is the factthat the league end up putting like a

(08:07):
local derby on a boxing day,So it does keep a little bit it
puts a lot on it, likedo you know what I mean? It
keeps it keeps it interesting, Itkeeps like the lads will be sort of
like turned on by it because itcould have you know, it be a
local derby, whether it's you knowwhoever, that might be the chance of
a bigger crowd could spit people on, So you know, like that that
sort of thing. Really, Butin terms of boxing day, you know,

(08:28):
it is what it is. Youget through it, you ope,
you win. You know, youcan crack on and do some more eating
and get getting stuck into that bubblinsqueak. Once you've got that game out
of the way, you've got acup of real tests, haven't you.
Bradford Town and Well City. Imean, both of these teams have proved
very competitive this season. You knowagain, I can see those those two
matches being very close for you WellBrads will be interesting. We haven't played

(08:52):
we haven't played Bradford yet, sothat'll be an interesting game. Some of
our lads live quite local and thefriendly with some of their players, so
that would be quite That be agood game, really, that'd be a
good game to watch that. ButI want to watch that if I if
I was nothing to deal with eitherside. Regarding the well side, I
still put they're one of the WhenI was talking about the dark like one

(09:13):
of the playoff candidates that you know, when it was like sort of five
or six from the next for thenext three spaces, I know they're doing
where they are, but with thegames in hand, they're one of the
teams that I've identified as as theDark. Corse is going to put a
late season push in to get inone of those spaces. Now, just
before I let you go right,there was an article a few weeks back
in the Non League paper concerning theuse of players suspended from steps one to

(09:39):
four in steps five and six,and also vice versa. This is an
old chestnut for you and I.We've discussed it before. Obviously, it's
interesting that the issue still lingers.It's a loophole that the FA haven't chosen
to close at this point. Imean, what's your take on the position.
If it's a loophole that I mean, I'm boys will tell you I'm

(10:03):
big fans of a loopholes. Ido love a loophole. Do I agree
with it? Absolutely not? Ifyou bang your band, that should be
the same across the board. Ialso don't agree that you should be able
to sign for multiple teams across varioussteps and even change steps in different leagues
like Hellenic and Western League and stuff. I don't think that that should be
allowed either the posts from my personally, you sign for one club and anything

(10:26):
under and perhaps a junior team andlower than lower than the Canty League,
perhaps, but I don't believe thatthat should I don't believe that should be
in play, however it is,and would I use it. Absolutely can't
let you go without saying Merry Christmas. Obviously, what have you asked Center
to bring you in his sack?Well, dear, I haven't asked for
anything really. As long as Iget a good bit of Christmas dinner,

(10:48):
I'm happy. And i'd also likesome new slippers with some Hord Souls excellent
stuff. Ray, It's always apleasure. Have a very merry Christmas,
and I'll look forward to speaking toyou again in the new Yeah.