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The Centre Spot Newly redecorated and the proud home to all Grecians. Opens Friday 29th January 17.00 - 22.00 Come and be one of the first to our new Visitor Centre and watch our new Grecian Voices film.
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EDG's dig deep
In addition to many fund raisers shown on this page, the EDG's have broken open the piggy bank and found One Thousand Pounds to donate to the Pitch in for the City fund. This was presented on the pitch at SJP before the Walsall game on March 27th.
Even better than that, another £1,000 was collected from various EDG efforts, and this was presented at the Huddersfield match. Well done everyone!
-------- Paul Tisdale speaking to the BBC about his thoughts for the coming season (6 August 09)
------------- EDG Grecian Goal for Dacre’s Acres
With only a small amount of money still to come in from the first half of the season we're on course to collect £270. You can contact us by post, phone, email, at EDG meetings or on the EDG away travel bus – Clive & Elaine Davis, email: eadavis5@hotmail.com
--------------------------------- Getting knocked out of the Cup produces strange behaviour; is Ian practicing his robot dance in preparation for an appearance on "Strictly"?
 And why is Barry Corr on our bus? Maybe Ian is Barry Corr.....you never see them together in the same place, do you?
Last week we brought a mystery passenger home, this week it was a chair from IKEA. No robot dance, and no chance of getting this sorted.
It takes a good woman to sort out a Poang!  --------------------- Wind and rain were the stars of the home match against Millwall. It was the predicted hard-fought game between two well-matched sides. In the first half the wind blew the ball towards the City goal, culminating in a clear penalty in the 21st minute. Marriott dived to his left and Martin's shot passed over his body and into the net.  It wasn't a great night for photos; the ball is the blur going above Marriott's waist and into the net. In the second half the wind favoured Exeter but it wasn't the goal-fest we were hoping for; in fact much of the action was 100 yards upwind around the City goal. After Tully was sent off in the 53rd minute the home team was heading for defeat. But an evening standing in the wind and rain all became worthwhile when when Stansfield made a floating cross from the right.....well the players and fans thought it was a cross but the wind had other ideas, and whisked it into the far netting for a memorable goal.  Another lousy photo, but the excitement was extreme when City grabbed an equaliser in the 88th minute. Nick Thompson ----------------- Colchester's 10,000 All-Seater stadium is bril, although being on a business park out of town it lacks atmosphere, and the ref had a very long look at the pitch before the match, so it must have been touch and go whether to call it off. Thirty mins before kick off it stopped raining and off we went. By off I mean with a SPRINT and we could have been two up within the first 5 mins Fleetwood hitting the post and having a ball cleared off the line, great start. It became clear to me that the pitch and the wind would be a major player and so it turned out. In a nutshell, City adapted to the conditions much better than the U’s and went one up courtesy of Fleetwood. After levelling the U’s conceded again via a brilliant free kick via Ryan Harley, a favourite of mine. (I only heard it was a bril free kick as it was bang on half time and I was first in the queue for Bovril and only heard the City fans shouting and cheering, never again will I get a drink before the whistle blows.) Over all the City players worked very hard and continued to play attractive football frustrating the U’s who became more and more desperate and physical. My player of the match was Bertie who was bril; bril to the extent that he was so badly tackled that the offending player RECEIVED A RED CARD. A great day out we did deserve to win but most of us on the East Devon Coach would have settled for a draw before we set off. In my opinion Tis has almost got it sorted, with the defence almost picking themselves, a final word for Andy Marriot who was an inspiration to his colleagues on the pitch. IAN EMERSON ----------------- Home to Swindon in the Johnstone's Paint Cup I accept that Paul Tisdale has forgotten more about football than I will ever know, but listening to him talk about the match on the radio while driving home made me wonder if I needed new specs. He said that we had the best of the second half and did enough to win the match. Everyone stood around me seemed to agree that we were lucky to grab a last minute equaliser and that the Swindon goalie was better at saving penalties than we were at taking them. Swindon's No 11 Anthony McNamee can't be more than 5'6" but he ran rings round defenders throughout the match. His goal from well outside the area may have been intended as a cross, but it was a beauty which left Marriott flat footed on its way into the far corner of the net. Sure, City had some chances but it was only when Fleetwood came on that City looked dangerous, and he scored a typically opportunist goal in the 92nd minute. Penalties are mainly down to the goalkeeper. Phil Smith read them right and got fingers to four of our attempts, saving two. Marriott seemed to guess wrong, and didn't touch any. Nick Thompson Like Nick I wondered if we had been at the same match as Tis; the only explanation behind his praise for the team seems to be one of a confidence motive. When one considers that we had three mid-fielders missing (Harley, Stewart and Russell) plus a right back in the form of Duffy perhaps our performance was not too bad. If it had been a league game with those absentees it would have been a creditable draw. We started with three up front (most of the people I know had this on their wish list) and frankly it was disappointing. At the end of the day it is just as well TIS PICKS THE TEAM and not me. IAN --------------------- Away at Charlton, 26th September
In my last submission to this website I concluded by saying, “City did well in getting a draw at Leyton and that as the season progresses it will all come right”. After the visit to Charlton the evidence was there for all to see. It was a brilliant match and the comments on the EDG coach were all positive, yes, even though we lost. In the second half it came together and we were unlucky due to a goal keeping error. Let me say that our loan keeper is very good but in that position any slip up costs. My man of the match was Rob Edwards and all we need to finally put the jigsaw together is someone to play well at left back every match. The Charlton right wing were all over our man for most of the game until Rob played as sweeper and provided the much-needed cover. Ian Emerson ----------------------------
Away at Leyton Orient, 12th Sept. Comments from Ian Emerson Exeter did very well in my opinion at Leyton, having had two recent setbacks with M.K.Dons and Gillingham they dug deep and fought well in the second half to earn a draw 1-1. Craig Noone, the new signing on loan from Plymouth, is another good piece of management by Tis; he was our best player adding width to the team and scoring the goal for City. It is clear to me that this division is a different cup of tea to division 2 and is much quicker; the players have to think faster when on the ball and the strike force of our opposition in the games played to date are more direct choosing to shoot far more often than we have been used to. Leyton have been in this division a number of years and know the needs of the division. On balance we did well and will get better as the season unfolds - well done City. -------------------- An unsolicited testimonial
Ever got on the wrong bus? Trevor Pike did that at Colchester on Saturday when he boarded the EDG's bus by mistake. Fortunately he wanted to go to Exeter anyway, so we made him comfortable. Here are his comments:
Hello Di,
Just a quick note of thanks for allowing me to join you yesterday. I had a great time and was really knocked out by the welcome that everyone in your friendly group gave me. Congratulations on all you've done in building up this spirit.
If I ever grow out of my need for a new ground every Saturday, I know where I'll be heading! At present, it seems the next new League grounds will be at Chesterfield and possibly Brighton so I'll be looking to sign up for trips there eventually.
I contribute to a website which allows "groundhoppers" to air views, experiences & information and have aleady posted a short report on the visit to Colchester. If you'd like to check it out, key in Tony's Non-League Forum : Main Index. Then go to Groundhopping & Programmes followed by Where did you go? and then the date Saturday 14th November. After that, look for the TCP bottle! You can backtrack on my previous reports by following links on Saturday dates.
Once again many thanks and please pass on my appreciation and best wishes to everyone else I met when you have the opportunity.
Trevor the "Newbee"!
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 After back to back promotions what will the coming season hold for Exeter City? Life in the First Division is proving to be tougher. Paul Tisdale spoke to the BBC about his thoughts and plans.
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Against Charlton:
 In the first half Jones failed to secure a cross, and Charlton nearly grabbed a lead.
Against Walsall:
 Harley's penalty has beaten the goalie and is heading for the net.
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Against Southampton:
 Matt Taylor has beaten the defender, and the ball is heading for the goal
 The crowd had something to celebrate
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EDG's warm hospitality on a cold night
139 Carlisle fans enjoyed the match but for most EDG's the best part of the evening was the hospitality.
 Russell and Harley got the better of Carlisle's Hurst for once.
After the match Adam Stansfield came to meet the EDGs.
 The meal was good!
 --------------------- For our meeting on Monday 18th April Di was able to get two new on loan signings to visit us, namely Joe Heath and Ryan Taylor. They were both very polite young men who were very clear about what they wanted and why they were at Exeter City. John Lee opened the question and answer session by asking both players to give a brief account of their careers to date. First Joe Heath, Joe is from Merseyside and his favourite team is Liverpool and then apologised to us by confessing that he also watched Tranmere as it was only 10 mins to the ground to his home. His last club was Nottingham Forest and he played 12 games for them in the Championship when Colin Calderwood was sacked and Billy Davies became manager he was told he had no future at the club and his contract was paid up in full and he left. One of the senior coaching staff at Forest knew Paul Tisdale and rang him and said he was a good player and that prompted Tis to have a look and he liked what he saw and Joe was signed to the end of the season. He hopes he will any day now be offered a one year contract with City and play a part next season. Next Ryan Taylor a Rotherham lad through and through, fresh as a daisy and has only had one club i.e. Rotherham, on the return of Ronny Moore to Rotherham he did not fit, Moore wanted a ball up the middle centre forward and that’s not Ryan’s style he likes Tis's style football hence his spell with us. Tis admired Ryan when we met Rotherham last season partially when we won and gained promotion Ryan played in that match and did well. Ryan has a year left on contract with Rotherham but hopes he will be released and is able to sign for City. Though the audience was smaller than usual the evening was a great success and both players endeared themselves to all who were present.
---------------------- Barry Corr visited the EDG's on Monday 18th January. Thanks to Martin Weiler for the photos.  Barry Corr visited EDG’s on Monday evening. Barry gave us a brief resume of his career to date: I come from Co Wicklow, south of Dublin, and always wanted to be a footballer. An Exeter scout saw me playing in Ireland but nothing came of that, then a Leicester scout found me. After Leicester I moved to Leeds, then Sheffield Wednesday where I played around 20 first team matches, then Swindon and on to Exeter. I'm now 25 years old. Q: what about your “shady conduct”? BC: It was really stupid to be sent off at Southend. For days after that I thought about it every 30 seconds. I was a bit unlucky to be sent off against Millwall, and that makes it more difficult to get back into the first team, particularly after they’ve beaten Leeds. I think refs tend to go easier on the big teams. Q: what about the Leeds match? BC: Rob Edwards had three front teeth pushed into his upper jaw and is having dental treatment. Matt Taylor and Stanno were the stars of the match – they never stopped. Q: who coaches you? BC: Marcus Stewart and Rob Edwards. Paul Tisdale plays more football than most managers. Q: Why did you come to Exeter? BC: I’d had a lot of injuries. I got a call from Steve Perryman, who is a gent, and was examined by Ian Andrews who said he could get me fit, which has been the case. Q: which club did you support when you were young, and who was your role model? BC: I supported Villa. All my friends supported Man U, and I wanted to be different. I saw Villa playing on TV and chose them! Roy Keene and Zidane were people I admired. Q: You scored two goals against MK Dons. BC: yes, it gelled that day. It takes a while to work well with a new team. Previously I had played with teams who used wingers, not the Exeter style. Being fit helped too.  Two Barry Corr's, there's only two Barry Corr's!
Q: what about Tis? BC: He is a good manager; the only one I know who wears a cravat! Paul Sturrock was always shouting, and you called him the gaffer. Tis rarely shouts, so when he does you listen, and you call him Paul. Q: when are you going to get back into the first team? BC: I was sat on the bench with Troy on Saturday, and we were wondering about that. Now that Danny Seabourne has gone to Southampton Troy’s prospects have improved. Q: Other players? BC: David Noble is still injured, so we aren’t tackling him too hard. He talks a lot! Q: what about when you stop playing? BC: I don’t see myself as a manager, maybe a coach though it’s very tough to get a job. I plan to live off my girlfriend! Q: how tall are you? BC: Six foot five. Well, actually six foot four and three quarters. Q: What about the supporters? BC: it gives you a lift when you hear the crowd singing your name. If they pick on you it’s not so good. Q: where do you live? BC: In Exeter, next door to Craig McAllister and Ben Watson.
Given that Barry leads the team’s sending-off list we were all a little surprised by what a likeable guy he was, and we look forward to him getting back into the first team. Many thanks for coming Barry, and good luck. ---------------- Rob Edwards visited the club on 23rd November and was subject to the EDG's usual barrage of questions.
Here's a summary: Gerry: Why did you play for Wales? RE: My Dad’s Welsh and I never thought I would be able to play for England. It was a great experience, playing against Turkey and Belgium, with Ryan Giggs, etc. Paul: What needs to progress in the defence? RE: We have recruited a series of good young defenders; we need to bring them on. EDG: Tell us about your goal at Wembley. RE: We’d been practicing set pieces. I ran to the point I had been told to go and the ball came to me. EDG: what next? RE: I am not in the team at the moment; I have played about 150 times for the club, which is about 140 more times than I thought I would, but I have a few more in me, and I want to play them. I am now coaching and would like to become a manager. Julian: What about that goal against Torquay? RE: It was an exciting match for the team. I ran from the back with the ball, thinking this is “Torquay” or bust! We wore our white strip thinking, “White for Wembley” .  This month's caption competition Steven: How far can Exeter go? RE: Tis says we should think of the Scunthorpe model. A small club can go a long way. Gareth: How does Tis compare to other managers you’ve worked for? RE: He is a thinker, and pays great attention to detail. We had to analyse the last 150 throw-ins to see what worked and what didn’t. He’s always a step ahead. Roger: Tis doesn’t suffer fools, does he? RE: No. Colchester scored in a way Tis had explained they might and he was really mad at the team for letting that happen. But he wants the team to have their heads up on a Monday morning, whatever happened on Saturday. Martin: How do home and away matches compare? RE: Away matches are less intimidating than they used to be, particularly at the big modern stadiums. Ian: What about playing Millwall? RE: We’ve had reports from their last four games, looked at their players, studied their set pieces. Home games are more defensive, less passing. Millwall are strong lads and it will be a tough match. EDG: How difficult is it to keep the reserves happy? RE: It depends. Some young players think they only have a limited time to get to the top and don’t want to play in the reserves, but most of our players do want to stay with Exeter. Marcus Stewart was a great finisher, and now coaches the strikers. He was ready to retire before he came to Exeter. Ian: Danny Seaborne has come good in the last 3 – 4 matches, will he stay? RE: lots of clubs would like a left-footed centre back. EDG: Who’s surprised you most this season? RE: Bertie Cozic. Eric: Who’s the player you found most difficult? RE: Roy Keane at Notts Forest. When I came to Exeter I was surprised at how good Conference players were. EDG: How often were you sent off? RE: 3 or 4 times. There is much less tackling now than a few years ago. EDG: When you see a forward coming for you in white boots do you want to get stuck in? RE: Some younger players persuaded me to try white boots. It lasted a couple of matches. EDG: Thierry Henri? RE: I think we’ll see a change in the rules eventually. Denis: who would you like to see us play in the Third Round. RE: I have never played at Old Trafford! Gareth: Who might get scouted? RE: Younger players such as Danny, Scott Goldburn? EDG: Has Matt Gill been dropped? RE: He has a long term knee problem which the physios at Exeter were good at keeping OK. If you’re 100% fit for 10 games a season you are lucky. EDG: If we could sign one player in January who would you be looking for? RE: “Nooney” isn’t playing for Plymouth.... Julian: Tell us about your early days. RE: I told the careers teacher I wanted to be a footballer. EDG: Has Manni Panther got a future with Exeter? RE: He didn’t like being dropped from the first team, so he requested a loan to Morecambe. EDG: Which is the best ground you’ve played at? RE: Birmingham is good. It’s a modern ground but it has a very good atmosphere.  Rob scores for the first time this season! Rob, thanks for visting the East Devon Grecians. We wish you every success. ------------------- At Monday's EDG meeting we had two volunteers to work with ECFC's proposed Ticketing Workshop. They will represent our members and forward views regarding future ticket arrangements. They are: Rob Northcot / 07790350539 ------------------------- "No ordinary football club" These were Norrie Stewart's words to describe Exeter City when he started the talks which have led to his appointment as interim CEO of the club, and he repeated them at our meeting on 5th October. What an interesting evening; Paul Morrish, Bruce Henderson and Norrie Stewart all spoke about the club and its future, and answered many questions from the floor. So much was said, adding insights and colour to the club's activities and plans that we can't attempt to capture it all.
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Barry Corr visits EDG's
 See Meetings for full report
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Join us on Facebook
The EDG's now have their own Facebook page. If you'd like to join go to the Facebook home page and enter "East Devon Grecians" (in full) in the Search field (top right) and you'll see the EDG logo:
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EDG Car Stickers now available for £1.50
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Rob Edwards visits EDG's
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  EDG's were the match sponsors for the game against Carlisle, and some members joined the teams on the pitch before the kickoff. It was a great evening (except for the scoreline). --------------
Paul Tisdale visited the club on 2nd November.
After a short introduction Tis took questions from the audience for over an hour. Naturally he was very warmly received and also thanked the East Devon Grecians for their continuing support.  Q: Craig Noone. PT: Released at request of Argyle. He wanted to stay at Exeter Q: Scot Fox? PT: he is still registered with the Scottish FA. We don’t know how good he is or how much they want for him. He has gone back. Q: do you always play strongest team? PS: last season there were always 5/6 players fixed. This season we don’t have such a strong core group yet and we don’t think our strongest team is always going to win. Q Sendings off PT: I don’t think discipline has got worse, though we sometimes train as a 10 man team! Discipline is important off and on the field, respecting the ref, etc. Q: how will we respond to losing some long serving core players? PT: Rob Edwards, Marcus Stewart, etc, may leave in next year or two. That’s always going to happen. We have more players than we need at present, and we didn’t release some players when we might have. Looking forward Matt Taylor may play a bigger role. Q: Why did you stay at Exeter when you were offered a bigger job? PT: I would like to manage a Championship club one day, but I thought there was more to be done at EC.  Q: Ian Emerson. There are at least 5 people in the room who think they would be a better manager than you (laughter!). As usual Ian wins the prize for the longest sentence without a question mark at the end of it.
Q: what are your expectations from the business side? PT: Arguably we were promoted too quickly and the business hasn’t been able to keep up with the footballing success. Norrie is on board and I expect things to change. I have to trust them to do what’s needed, they have to trust me. Q: Paul Buckle attends reserve team matches. PT : He’s entitled to come and look at our players. We have had offers for 4 players, none went through. There are three parties who have to agree; the buying club, ECFC and the player himself. Q: who’s the best player you’ve seen us play against? PT: Jermaine Beckford (Leeds). He will make the Premiership. Also Danny Livesey at Charlton. I don’t watch the other players during the match, only our team.  PT: I like all our players and it torments me to leave them out.
PT: against Brentford, Steve Tulley shouldn’t have been forward. I was shouting at him to go back when he scored! Q: what is best formation? PT: in League One you can’t start with 3 forwards. I want a team that thinks forward, passes forward, runs forward. Q (from Jack). What about players leaving? PT: Our players don’t want to leave, they like the Baked Potatoes at the Cat & Fiddle. Di: they are lovely lads and they are always laughing. PT: I must go to the C&F more, I didn’t know the team spent their time eating baked potatoes and laughing! Q: Stewart Fleetwood looks a bit lazy. PT: all players have strengths and weaknesses. My job is to highlight their strengths and hide the weaknesses. PT: the manager’s job is to match players’ expectation with reality. We won 3-0 last Saturday yet on Monday morning I had three (unhappy) players in my office. Q: Keiran Bolton, shall we send Scot Bennett on loan? PT: No, he’s captain of the reserves. Q: are you nervous about playing against a minnow in the FA Cup after last year’s debacle? PT: I’m always a bit nervous. I won’t be playing a weak team, though there will be no Craig Noone and no Marcus Stewart. Q: when Steve Perryman calls your mobile during the match do you ever think “Sod Off”? PT: No, he can see stuff from the other side of the field. Q: please can we all have your mobile number? PT: No reply! Q: what about refereeing? PT: it’s a hard job. We’ve had some bad decisions and no favours. I get the feeling that the refs feel we have to earn our place in League One. Q: The pitch. PT: our pitch is mainly soil which means it changes through the season, three main phases. Modern pitches are all sand and have constant condition. We water the surface to make it run fast, not because the ground is dry. Q: some players have made comments on Facebook. PT: don’t know about all that stuff and I ignore it. I can’t pay attention to everything people say and do. I won’t be joining Facebook. Q: What about Troy? PT: I’d like to pick him but it’s him or Matt Taylor. When he played on the left he admitted he wasn’t comfortable. Q: Team Bath. PT: I am very sorry it’s folded, too many obstacles from other teams. Q : future of Danny Seaborne? PT: Norwich put in a silly offer. Others are interested. First bidder doesn’t usually buy the item. Q: Who would you like to sign? PT: must be someone who will want to come, fit in, and live in Exeter. Sol Campbell at Notts County shows how it can go wrong. I would like to buy all those players we loved and lost. Many thanks to Tis for spending his evening with us. I guess it’s true to say that while his replies were always interesting and informative there were no great surprises; that is what we should expect when the boss has planned and communicated well.
Bottom Line: when I meet friends who support clubs mightier than Exeter City I tell them that our manager comes to a working man’s club in a small seaside town and will spend an evening answering any question we care to ask. They are impressed and rightly so. Thanks Paul, we really appreciate your visit.
Monday night's Sports evening featured pool, darts and skittles, not to mention food and drink.
    Rose had a fine Skittling action
 Never mind the sports, Jean's Christmas cake alone was worth the trip out on a wet night.
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EDG Quiz Night
Steve, Kelly and Tasmin visited the club on 21st September to tell us about Exeter City's Ladies team and the challenges they face. For most of the audience this was pretty new stuff and we all went away impressed.
To help the Ladies team for the coming season the East Devon Grecians have donated £200 earned from recent quiz sales and the Raffle proceeds.
Roger Constable's quiz was a lot of fun, and enjoyed by everyone (well almost).
Match report - a Bad Loser writes:
Monday's quiz was a hard fought contest with the final result hanging in the balance until the final 10-point question. The opening rounds trod familiar territory, Exeter City, Football, Sport and Devon. In the second half the questions were wide ranging General Knowledge for which all members of the teams were able to provide the right answers, or not. But then in the 93rd minute Quizmaster launched his match decider, "which Exeter player was born in Cambridge about 38 years ago?" Few teams were willing to wait for all five clues, and the match swung in favour of the team guarding the Raffle prizes.
Yes, we wos robbed and the ref needs new specs! But don't worry, Pervs-R-Us will be reading Wikipedia with their cornflakes for the next 12 months and will be aiming for the championship in 2010.
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