TheNE40

Not a bad result for the Heed last night against quite a strong Boro side. Lot of trialists on show (including one in goal who had a blinder apparently). Hopefully bodes well for the season ahead.

Agree with that - though I guess others may argue that because one has been segregated other positions should follow?

Both will be up there I imagine, though think Hebburn will edge it as they've had a year to gel and they've probably got a better squad on balance. Think Whickham will be right in the mix but it may be a while before they gel (Hebburn came good towards the end of last season). Also other clubs to chuck into the mix. Could be an excellent NL season (especially with the state of Newcastle and Sunderland plus the 3 automatic promotion spots up for grabs).

Scott Barrow re-signed for the club yesterday. Great signing for Gateshead and a lot of the old squad seem to have resigned now. Will be interesting to see how they do after the turmoil of last season at the GIS.

Think Allisson will have a shout as well - Golden Glove in PL, in UCL, and Copa America, though I suspect it could well be Van Dijk who wins it. All worthy winners to be fair.

Think Hebburn will have a strong season. Have kept the core of last year's squad that finished in 2nd in the NL1 and have strengthened (Darren Lough, Danny Carson, Jack Elliott) - back them to have a strong season in the league and the Vase/Cup. Got a great set up there and great to see things turnaround after they were on the brink only two seasons ago.

Ex-Blyth keeper Pete Jameson has now also been confirmed as following Dan Maguire into full-time football at York City.

Also a friendly with Hebburn Town (who very kindly them use of their facilities) when they were kicked out the GIS. Good to see them give them something back.

Few signings for Gateshead over the past few days: Elliot Forbes (re-signs), Connor Oliver, Alex Nicholson (both Blyth). More to come no doubt.

Don't think it's been mentioned yet but Dan Maguire signed for York City yesterday, moving into full-time football. Bad blow for Blyth but can't blame him for wanting to give it a try.

It's really sad to see with Blyth, but as Disco[/member] quite rightly says, it's the cost of their fantastic season last year (along with their sensible approach to sustainability - though I'm not sure the fans will see it that way if they have a poor season this time round). They have signed a lot of lads from Newcastle Benfield in NL1 and it could be a big tough task for them to adjust to three levels higher but it's an excellent opportunity for them all the same. Lee Clark has a big job on his hands there.

It'll mean one of them won't have a local game over the Festive Period (my guess would be York) as it'll probably be Blyth v Gateshead and Spenny v Darlo.

Think the successes of South Shields, Morpeth Town and Marske United (along with Spennymoor to a degree) have a role in this, as well as the compulsory promotion enforced by the FA as of last season. That said, all sides have had to contend with massive travelling issues and costs (Morpeth had to go to Wisbech in Peterborough last year), and the fact that they've all performed well within their divisions shows the strength in depth of the Northern sides, and hopefully this continues will all of them this season and newly-promoted Dunston UTS as well. Over the next few seasons (and as we know with the Northern League's success in the Vase), there will be more and more sides going up the pyramid (3 next season) so the travel impact will be lessened as there will be progressively more local games. For better or for worse, the outlook (and geographical footprint) of the Northern League will change over the next 5-10 years.

Hebburn have made a few very good singings with some more in the pipeline so should be right up there again! Promotion will be a must! I'd certainly put Hebburn in the mix at the top. Had a cracking end to last season and seem to have strengthened even more this year. Know its early days and squads haven't been fully finalised but the signs look good. Think there's feasibly 7-8 sides (Consett, Bishop Auckland, West Auckland, Hebburn, Whickham, Stockton, Sunderland RCA, Shildon) who could all fancy their chances.

Only potential issue with Whickham is their ground (and the huge amount of work they would have to do to meet the required ground grading). They have the makings of a squad (will be a few more incomings I'd imagine) to challenge at the top end of the table. With three teams being promoted next season it could be a race against time to get it all done, although I'm sure there has been ample preparatory work that has gone into this already.

Being reported in the Record (and @NUFC360 that we're in the hunt to sign Andre Almeida (RB - Benfica) for 8m. Leicester and Brighton also interested.

Hopefully they can rebuild and the majority of the squad who were there last season can stay, whilst their aim will be promotion back to the National League, given all the troubles I'd say a good season for them would be consolidation of the club off the field and a steady mid-table finish in the NLN.

Apparently Iron Mike Williamson looking likely to be appointed the new Gateshead manager after they sacked David Dickson yesterday (Sunderland Echo - Mark Carruthers).

The problem with VAR is the timing - like in the England v Holland game it takes too long to reach these decisions, and the procedure is currently communicated very poorly to spectators in the stadium and the viewers at home (we never got a full replay of the actual incident until after full time). This along with the very hardline handball directives that will be in play next season will mean there'll be a lot of penalties given (like in the UCL final) that are very harsh (but by the letter of the law are handballs). It'll cause its fair share of drama, I just hope it doesn't leave a sour taste in the mouth for everyone.

This is it. Massive shame there was nothing the council could do to help a couple of years ago. Surely Gateshead could do with a new business park they could bolt onto a new stadium... Totally agree with this - lot of National League clubs have done this already and it's a good way to ensure a bit of sustainability for the club and surrounding area. Question is where in Gateshead could this be?

Will be a very competitive and local Conference North next year: Blyth, Darlo, Gateshead, Spenny, York