One player whose name was banded about at the beginning of the month was Middlesbrough full-back Jonathan Grounds, however these rumours were quickly discarded by Town chairman Dean Hoyle – the funds were simply not available at the time.

Another rumour to have surfaced this past week is that Theo Robinson is moving on to Millwall on a permanent deal, with fees of around £175k-£200k being circulated. Terrier24 suggests that a deal has been struck between the two clubs, and that Theo has already agreed personal terms with the London club. This move could be met with a bit of uncertainty from Town fans. Robinson certainly showed his potential earlier this season when he and Rhodes struck up a strong partnership together. However the goals have dried up recently and if Clark can bring in a more consistent relationship, Theo will not be missed for long.

A fee of £200k would add significant growth to the “defender fund”, and with Town being one of the highest scorers in the division, going after a replacement striker may not be Lee Clark’s main priority.

September
Town top the league with the maximum 15 points, however their strong run of form was not to continue into September. MK Dons visit the Galpharm early on in the month and pick up their first win of the season, with their only goal coming late on in the match in a 9-on-1 counter-attack situation. Alan Shearer is sacked as manager of Newcastle as they prop up the Championship without a single point. Rumours circulate that he is to come out of retirement and Town to partner Andy Booth up front, giving the forward line a combined age of 108 years. Town pick up just 3 points during the month, after a scrappy 1-0 home win to Brentford. On the last weekend of the month, The Examiner releases a “9 Weeks ‘Till The Leeds Match” thirty-page special, with free calendar to count down those days!

October
Despite the poor set of results from September, Dean Hoyle expresses his full confidence in manager Lee Clark. Shearer takes the manager’s job at non-league Histon, so Town are left with just two available strikers in Booth and Novak. Robbie Simpson fills Danny Cadamarteri’s place on the treatment table and Theo Robinson receives a lifetime ban from the game after raising his arm in the air when celebrating a goal – now deemed illegal under new FA law. Town pick up form during October, grabbing 2 home wins against Exeter and Leyton Orient and also coming away from The Valley with a draw. However, the main talking point of that match was the tirade of abuse directed at Phil Parkinson, who snapped and went into a murderous rampage on the Town gathering, killing 3. Fortunately though, one of the victims had been banging a drum for the whole match so Parkinson was suddenly deemed a hero amongst the travelling supporters.

November
Into November, and Town sit comfortably in the play-off zone, but just 4 points off an automatic spot. However, fans are getting worried that the up-coming Leeds match has taken priority in the dressing room, with many players creating shrines to Joe Skarz, Michael Collins and Nathan Clarke. Despite this, Lee Clark is insistent that Town are focused on every match until then, as he speaks to htafc.com whilst taking a break from throwing darts at a picture of Simon Grayson. The fans have nothing to worry about though, as Town pick up 10 points from a possible 12, only drawing 3-3 away at Swindon, with Simon Cox grabbing a hat-trick and pushing his tally to 26 for the season. Post-match DATM comments include “He’s a useful player”, “LOLROFLMAO” and “Where can I find a Pav ringtone?”.

December
A busy Christmas period sees Town play 6 games in December, one against Leeds and five against some other less-important teams. The national media have been building-up to this game for weeks, with 3 Match Of The Day broadcasts being solely dedicated to Town-Leeds discussion. Alan Shearer – back on the panel after his stint at Histon didn’t work out – boasts about being approached for the Town job on two separate occasions but had to refuse as there are only three pubs in town that sell Newcastle Brown Ale. The game itself is a 0-0 bore draw with only 1 shot on goal from Alex Smithies, which was more likely to be a goal kick as it only reached the half-way line. A statue of Smithies is erected in the town centre for this achievement. On a side-note, Town win all their other games during December and go into the New Year in 2nd place.

January
Bad news for Town at the start of the month as Steve Black leaves the club to start his new career as a talk-show host. In “Blackie – I’m A Depressed Sportsman, Turn My Career Around!” Blackie talks to depressed sportsmen and turns their careers around. More bad news comes as the FA suspends the transfer window, with rumours circulating that clubs will never be allowed to buy or sell players ever again. On the 9th, Town should visit the St. Mary’s stadium for the first time in their history, however Southampton fold after not paying wages for the whole season and Matt le Tissier is seen working double-shifts in McDonalds. Because of this, Leeds prop up the table due to another 10 point deduction after Ken Bates submits his contentious expenses claim form. The FA feels that a £100,000 payout on a brand new Grass-Away 3000 lawnmower is not justifiable. Town’s form takes a nose-dive as they pick up just one point from a possible 15 including an embarrassing 5-0 home defeat to Yeovil – a hat-trick of Lee Peltier own goals suggests to Town fans that he is yet to find his feet at the club.

February
It’s the Leeds match again!!!!! Town play hosts to the bottom-of-the-league side on February 27th, with absolutely no other matches during the month, at least that’s what the club is saying. However, one DATM poster unearths a long-lost fixture list which shows that Town do actually play other games during February, and a huge conspiracy is uncovered. Lee Clark conceded all four games in order to free up Saturday afternoons for extra training sessions in preparation for the game of the season. The majority of Town fans are fuming, however a small collection are still in full support of the manager, saying that his dedication to beating our fiercest rivals is a quality that should be sought in every future Town manager (the next of which is closer than they think). Hoyle is under extreme pressure to get rid of Clark as another pointless month goes by, and the Leeds match proves to be the final nail in the coffin of the young manager. The Examiner headline reads “Poor refereeing as Leeds scrape 6-0 win”, with a small article at the bottom reading “Clark sacked”.

March
Into March and the annual “Manager Hunt” starts again. Gerry Murphy is drafted back in for his 14th stint as caretaker manager, however time seems to have taken its toll on poor Gerry, who turns up with a broom and mop bucket. “You did say ‘caretaker’, right?” states a confused Murphy in his first pre-match interview. The usual names are thrown into the hat and the infamous ‘Announcement Tomorrow’ thread is re-launched on DATM. nsevent has now racked up an amazing 1,878,024 posts stating “It’s Adkins”, however the front-runner for the job is Town legend Peter Jackson. Lincoln City top League Two with a near-perfect record and boast the top-scoring strike force in the lower leagues with Kiegan Parker and Phil Jevons already having scored 78 goals between them. However, Jacko’s love for Town is something he cannot ignore and he is all but ready to sign on the dotted line when he expresses his intent of bring the gruesome twosome back to the Galpharm. A lot of umming and aahing takes place in the boardroom before Hoyle and Clibbens decide to turn down Jacko and turn to another Town favourite – Andy Ritchie. Hoyle states his reasons for appointing Andy, “Surely lightning doesn’t strike twice!”

April
The end of the season looms and despite some shocking results of late, Town somehow sit just outside the play-offs and can still mathematically make the top six. Ritchie injects a new lease of life into the Town side and Robbie Simpson finally makes his first start for the club at home to Walsall, however pulls up in the first minute with a thigh strain. Andy Booth is sat waiting in the stands and is on the pitch in no time, easily the best performer on the park. Booth hits a stunning injury-time winner after a mazy run from the half-way line to put Town within two points of 6th place with four games remaining, two at home and two away. Town pick up another four points in April and sit level on goal difference with Millwall for that final play-off spot. Town’s poor ‘Goals For’ tally of 30 hinders their progress.

May
Town start the month at home to Colchester and line up in the infamous 4-5-1 formation with Booth as the lone front man. Many fans are left wondering whether the club has developed in any way whatsoever over the past two years, and their fears are confirmed when Ritchie tilts his body slightly and makes actual contact with the home dugout. A 0-0 draw leaves Town needing a win at high-flying Exeter on the final day of the season, and for Millwall to lose at home to Leeds, whose relegation was confirmed in March. Lee Clark – who, despite being sacked as manager, was kept on in a playing role – is handed the captain’s armband for the match. Town are in peak condition and news from Millwall is that their 30-goal top scorer Kevin Phillips is injured and will not be able to play against Leeds. Nerves are jangling throughout the afternoon as more and more news filters through from The New Den – still 0-0. Town have pulled off a miraculous 2-1 win at Exeter and fans sit on the edges of their seats after the match, waiting for the final score to come through from Millwall. Absolute pandemonium in the stands as it is announced – Millwall 1-0 Leeds! Leeds are consigned to yet another defeat and the fans go wild. On a side-note, Town miss out on the play-offs. The general consensus on DATM is “Next year is our year”, “We just need 3 or 4 signings!” and “Where can I find a Pav ringtone?”

Along with the Peltier signing, Theo Robinson of Watford was expected to be announced today, however rumours suggest that a glitch in his medical has delayed the official signing. Robinson will be known to Town fans as the player who missed an open net against us for Southend last season, however during the match in question he showed some real promise and under the right guidance could become an asset to the team. Whether he will be in the starting XI come the first game of the season away at Southend, incidentally, is another matter altogether.

Despite the additions of Robinson, Simpson and Novak, Town fans will still be hoping for that ‘big name striker’ that everyone has accepted is on his way to the club. The three names already signed certainly provide promise, however none have that goalscoring reputation that needs to be injected into the side. The usual names are doing the rounds: Ricky Lambert, David Healy, Kevin Phillips, however who will be signing is anyone’s guess…

The one name on everyone’s lips is Kevin Phillips. It is common knowledge that the Birmingham striker is good friends with Town manager Lee Clark, and rumours about the ex-England ace have been doing the rounds since January. I guess all we can do is just sit and wait…

Clark will also be looking to bolster his defense after Martin Kelly’s return to Liverpool. Whether the young defender will be coming back to Town on a season-long loan, as Lee Clark has suggested, remains in the balance. Rumours are circulating that Southend defender Peter Clarke will be joining the Terriers sooner rather than later, and that it is just a matter of dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s. Town fans will be expecting at least one right-back to come into the squad after contract talks with Andy Holdsworth broke down and an agreement couldn’t be reached.

At the time of writing, Andy has a majority 25.6% of the votes (10/39), with TomTheTerrier sitting in second place with 17.9%. The removal of Andy will come as welcome relief to as many as three posters, however those who were to afraid to use their vote for fear of being purged by the fascist administrators will surely be regretting that decision now.

One suggestion has already been proposed that an Admin Factor competition should be held where one true all-powerful administrator will prevail after a series of displays of talent, nerve and ability to appease posters when a matter such as this arises. Possible judges for the competition involve ex-Town players like Jon Newby, Fola Onibuje and Ken Monkou.

Punters have already been offering odds on betting exchange Betfair, with Andy_Hudd favourite to go out in the first round. The best odds you can currently get on that outcome are 1/20, with the next-favourite TomTheTerrier being all the way out at 7/1.

It was no secret that the ex-Barnsley defender was on Lee Clark’s radar, and despite beng offered a new deal at Tranmere, the signs are pointing towards a move to the Galpharm.

Another position that Clark will be hoping to fill is in a defensive role. Nathan Clarke and Andy Butler have been strong this season, but the team needs strength in depth if they are to mount that elusive promotion push that they are capable of. Lee Clark has already expressed his desire to bring Liverpool defender Martin Kelly back to the club, after the promising youngster impressed in both full-back positions during his loan spell. One name in the hat is Antony Kay, who is meant to have turned down a new deal at Tranmere and is on his way to the Galpharm. Kay is primarily a centre-back, but can also play in the hole just ahead of the defence so would fit the bill perfectly.

Either way, Town fans are not expecting a huge influx of players as the squad is only five or six good players away from being one of the best in the division. I, for one, have complete faith that Lee Clark can get his men and the whole team can hit the ground running come the beginning of August.

Despite the rumours flying around, his retirement always seemed inevitable, with this being the Centenery season, and him struggling to maintain fitness for the full campaign.

Everyone at DATM wishes Boothy the best of luck in his new role, and hopes he knows that he will be sadly missed on the field!

Despite doubts over his long-term fitness, his experience and influence over the game are second-to-none in League One, and rumours are now circulating that he will be offered a new one-year deal by Lee Clark. The Town manager originally wanted Booth to stay on in a non-playing role, surprising considering the player’s insistence that he doesn’t want to work behind the scenes after retirement. However, this offer was rejected, leaving Clark no choice but to offer Booth another year’s extension.

You can discuss this rumour HERE.

Also, discuss last night’s Blue and White Foundation meeting HERE.