Gateshead secured the FA Trophy on the final match of the 2023/24 season, but can they use that success to propel themselves into promotion contention once again?
Rob Elliott’s side may have enjoyed a penalty shootout victory at Wembley Sstadium, but an off-field stadium issue saw the football club banned from competing in the playoffs.
In this daily series, I dive into each of the 24 National League clubs and deliver my pre-season verdicts based on their recruitment, pre-season success and much more.
You can read yesterday’s Forest Green Rovers-focused piece by clicking here.
Let’s begin…
How did Gateshead fare last season?
The 2023/24 campaign was partly a complete success for Gateshead as they secured a play-off place and won the FA Trophy at Wembley Stadium despite losing manager Mike Williamson, but unfortunately, a stadium issue saw the club banned from participating in the quest for the EFL.
Gateshead finished sixth in the National League, winning 22 of their 46 league matches whilst finishing as the third-highest scorer with 88 goals – only beaten by Barnet (91) and Chesterfield (106).
Similarly, the club averaged 62% of the ball within their matches which was the highest in the division. They also had the most accurate passes (500), most shots per game (14.3) and had the most penalty goals (eight from nine attempts).
The club also finished inside the top-seven in both the home and away league tables, earning 41 home points (7th) and 34 away points (6th).
Summer transfer activity thus far:
After what initially was an extremely quiet start to the summer for Gateshead, their summer activities quickly picked up beginning by publishing their retained list.
Following their triumph in the FA Trophy final, Rob Elliott’s side confirmed that five players had been released after their contracts came to an end. Amongst those to be leaving were James Montgomery and Joe Cook.
Similarly, all of the clubs loanees returned to their parent clubs which meant the club had to say goodbye to Derby County loanee Dajaune Brown.
Elsewhere, five of their out-of-contract remained in talks over new contracts, with four of them (Joe Grayson, Kenton Richardson, Robbie Tinkler and Harrison Bond) already signing new contacts – only Will Constantin is yet to sign a new deal. Jordan Hunter was also transfer listed by the club but has since signed for Chester FC.
Before I can discuss the six new arrivals, I can’t not mention the four other players that have left the club. Firstly, new signing Jamie Bramwell and Harrison Bond have both being loaned out to South Shields and Blyth Spartans respectfully. Midfielder Ed Francis has been sold to League One side Exeter City whilst forward Marcus Dinanga has joined League Two side Bromley for an undisclosed fee.
However, it isn’t all ‘doom and gloom’ for Gateshead as they have made a handful of signings so far. The two names that stand out to me is Notts County’s Tiernan Brooks and Derby’s Owen Oseni who have joined on permanent contracts. Their other signings are Middlesbrough’s Fenton John, Blyth Spartans’ Will McGowan (more on him shortly) and Grimsby’s Jamie Bramwell.
Verdict so far: It has certainly been an interesting window so far for Rob Elliott’s side since he took the job on a permanent basis.
Losing key players such as Francis and Dinanga have left significant holes in the squad, but one of those has almost certainly been filled. OsenI have had a terrific pre-season so far and look to be capable of filling the void left by Dinanga.
Elsewhere, Will McGowan has been an unsung hero for Gateshead so far in pre-season scoring a hat-trick on his debut.
Although I do believe the overall quality of the squad has decreased slightly – the football that Gateshead play and the players they have retained still fill me with an enormous sense of confidence in their campaign ahead.
Pre-Season 2024:
Fresh from their Wembley success, Gateshead have showed a lot of early promise during pre-season so far, winnin each of their first four matches and only tasting defeat at the hands of Championship opposition.
The club began with a 7-1 away victory against Hebburn Town in which new signing Will McGowan scored a hat-trick. This was followed by victories against Championship side Sunderland as well as Non-League duo North Shields and Blyth Spartans.
Unfortunately, Gateshead were unable to hang onto their 100% record due to their narrow defeat against Championship side Middlesbrough on Saturday. Rob Elliott’s side currently have just one pre-season friendly left to play unless they can source a fixture next weekend. This match is against League Two side Carlisle United, who suffered a defeat against fellow National League side Rochdale over the weekend.
Verdict: Though pre-season means nothing, Gateshead have certainly made themselves heard in pre-season so far, likely giving them a major boost heading into the new campaign.
The football club have kept two clean sheets so far, scoring an eye-catching 18 goals in just five matches – showing that despite losing the likes of Brown and Dinanga, Gateshead have continued to score an impressive number of goals.
Beating Championship opposition will also have given them a big confidence booster and although they slipped to defeat againot Middlesbrough, Gateshead have shown plenty of positive signs within their performances thus far.
Star player:
Gateshead have a number of excellent footballers at their disposal with the likes of Kenton Richardson, Will McGowan and Callum Whelan, but the player I have decided to pick out is midfielder Regan Booty.
The 26-year-old was a goalscorer for Gateshead during their FA Trophy success and was at the heart of the midfield for the vast majority of the previous campaign.
From his 37 league appearances, Booty contributed to six goals as well as averaging 9.3 ball recoveries, 5.6 duel wins and 3.5 interceptions as well as a pass completion rate of 84%.
With Gateshead being known for their possession-based style under Rob Elliott, having a player like Regan Booty at their disposal is crucial and if he can maintain his fitness, he is going to be vastly important for the club this season.
What do Gateshead fans think of their sides’ chances this season?
To further understand what Gateshead supporters are expecting ahead of the upcoming campaign, I spoke to supporter Luke (@LRbix on Twitter) who stated…
“Well after our FA Trophy Final win against Solihull Moors, getting kicked out of the playoffs due to no fault of our own and a couple of big departures from the club such as Ed Francis and Marcus Dinanga, this season is going to be a tough one.
“This league is starting to become more competitive than ever and lots of clubs want to be up in and around the playoffs.
“From a Gateshead perspective and from what I have seen in pre-season so far, it appears like we are most likely to up there challenging for the play-offs. The defence looks incredible, the midfield is fantastic, and the attack is coming on really well together which gives me confidence.
“The feeling around the club is really positive at the moment, which gives us all hope but yet again this league can be crazy sometimes so we will just have to see how it pans out!
“If you told me where would we finish I would probably say around about 5th-9th not certain on the final position though. Roll on the 2024/25 season!”
Where do I think Gateshead will finish?
To be completely honest, I think last season’s play-off heartbreak will be all the motivation that Gateshead need to go out and have another strong campaign in the National League – and that’s without mentioning their triumph in May.
There is a risk trying to implement a certain style of football in the National League, even more so if you don’t have the players that can operate that system. However, Gateshead do have the right players at their disposal to play the system which Elliott wants and that’s including Francis’ exit.
Even though their FA Trophy defence could come into their mindset, Halifax Town have already proven that you can use the success of one trophy to push towards a play-off spot in the following campaign.
I do still think Gateshead have some work to do in terms of further additions to their squad but I thoroughly believe they will finish inside of the play-off places once again this season.
Gateshead’s minimum aim will be to secure a top seven finish, but I definitely believe they have the ability to push for a top three finish – though I don’t think they have enough to win the league at this precise moment.
Also I can’t finish a Gateshead piece without mentioning to keep a close eye on Will McGowan this season…
Gateshead fans, where do you think you will finish this season?