League One is starting - is Exetear FC ready for the new season?
At the time of the writing of this article, the first games of the season for Exeter City F.C are just around the corner. After having spent 10 eventful, but very long, years in league two the Grecians finally managed to make their way into League One.
This was after nearly making the cut in both 2017 and 2018, where the team missed the promotion by the skin of their teeth. After a couple of years of trying to find their stride again, Matt Taylor spearheaded a strong campaign where Exeter City found themselves back in League One. The club also managed to do it in its 120th year of existence, something which made it extra exciting for the fans. There are a ton of exciting League 1 fixtures coming up in the coming weeks, and Exeter City will want to do everything in their power to show that they deserved the promotion.
The first season back
Matt Taylor, the former team captain with 160 games for the club, is firmly planted on the Exeter City sidelines. Much appreciated in the club and amongst the fans, he has a massive task ahead of him. It’s very common for newly promoted clubs to come out of the starting blocks flying. Exeter City has a good thing going for them and had an extremely strong last season. Now they even plan for a big screen to show it.
But the important thing is to cement Exeter City in League One for many years to come. Building a good foundation that the clubs can continue to build on will be one of his biggest challenges, especially placing above archrivals Plymouth Argyle.
The players
But how will he do this? One of the key things will be to activate the goal scorers earlier in the season. During the beginning of last season things were not looking like everything was well, as the Grecians had trouble scoring and ended many games with an even score against their opponents during the initial stages of the season. Captain Matt Jay, Tiem Dieng and Sam Nombe will be absolutely crucial in managing to secure wins early in the season.
One of the key pieces to the puzzle last year was goalkeeper Cameron Dawson, on loan from Sheffield Wednesday. Unfortunately for Exeter City, he will be returning to the club he is contracted with after proving to have been one of the best goalies in League Two. He was a vital part to the success of last season, and finding a replacement is absolutely vital to the success of the team.
