THE VICS COLUMN - By Pete Tongue

NOW that the season has officially been declared null and void, thoughts turn to seasons past and some of the memorable matches that Vics have been involved with.

Vics were struggling during the 2007/08 season and a dramatic finale was on its way.

They had been in the relegation zone the majority of the season and looked odds on for relegation before the appointment of Dino Maamria as manager brought a slight upturn in form.

But even by mid March, they were still nine points off safety.

Things looked hopeless, but they kept battling and picking up points until by mid April and a last-gasp victory against Grays Athletic meant they had a chance.

The following Tuesday evening they had to travel down to face high flying Stevenage knowing that a win would guarantee staying up while denying Stevenage a place in the play offs. The odds were against them.

However, they started well, and took the lead after just 12 minutes with a right footed shot by Michael Carr (My Lord). Could Vics pull this off?

The rest of the first half saw Stevenage having all the chances, but Vics, backed by vociferous support, defended stoutly.

The second half continued the same way with Scott Tynan being kept busy in the Vics net, but in the 59th minute, on a rare foray forward, Vics extended their lead as a Ryan Brown cross fell to Joel Byrom who slotted the ball home.

However the two goal advantage only lasted for 10 minutes as Stevenage’s pressure finally told, and Vics conceded in the 70th minute.

With 20 minutes to go, the pressure was on!

Time passed slowly, the tension was unbearable as Stevenage kept pushing forward but Vics held firm as the clock ticked away.

90 minutes were up, then the fourth official held up the board for eight extra minutes! A groan went up from the Vics fans, and time passed even more slowly.

Every clearance was cheered, every tackle celebrated and eventually the final whistle went, and the players rushed over to the fans to celebrate “The Great Escape” together.

Back to this season and the future.

Now that it has been officially declared finished, it’s time to look forward and plan for the future, however uncertain that is at the present.

Manager Steve Wilkes now has to start deciding which players of the current squad he wants to keep and those he wants to bring in for the new season, whenever that will begin.

We will be hoping that it will be a better season for the Vics after what can only be described as the mediocrity of this one.

One thing for sure, is that it will be as exciting as ever.

Let’s all hope that we can all get back to normality soon and we can start looking forward to the future.

From all at Northwich Vics, stay safe everyone.