Mixed emotions hardly begins to cover what the last week has been like for CD Tenerife fans. A week ago we couldn’t have imagined that we would be following a 2-1 away win in Conquense by packing into a church to mix tears with laughter as we said goodbye to Andy Glover, or Twat Hat as he was affectionately known. At least fate, if you believe in it, had the decency to deliver a rare away win, I’m sure I could hear the clink of a glass and a trace of Andy’s Sid James laugh as the final whistle blew.

On a rock hard frozen pitch, bereft of grass, another new era was begining for the team, Calderon had been sacked and new coach Garcia Tebar took his place in the dug out, latest new sigining Luismi Loro made his debut up front just behind Kiko Raton. Chechu had the best early chance but fired wide after 10 minutes, a few minutes later he threaded a long pass through to Kiko who stretched but couldn’t get his foot to the ball. Maybe that effort gave the big forward an injury, he was replaced by Aridane after 20 minutes and his first touch was a well plaved header from new boy Loro’s  perfect pass.

Loro looked classy and left back Raul Llorente (above) continued to impress after his eye catching debut in last weeks home defeat. Sergio had little to do in goal but just before half time he had to be alert to a shot that swirled in the icy cold wind. The Tenerife keeper followed up with a decisive take of the ball on the edge of the box as Ruano closed in. The second half opened well as Chechu took advantage of some slack home defending to make it 2-0. Loro had a clear penalty claim but the referee wasn’t having it and within two minutes Tarantino was sent off for his second red card. Medina was brought on for Chechu and resumed his old place in the heart of defence.

New coach Garcia soon discovered the facts of life when the customary jitters set in, Vinuesa grabbed the first decent home chance of the second half to reduce the arrears and alarm bells were ringing. Ten man CDT did well to hang on but had to thank Sergio for two more outstanding saves, one in the last seconds of injury time. Plenty for the new boss to work on in the week as he tries to instill his own ideas, at least the win put Tenerife back up into the fourth promotion play off spot.

Back at the church there was a good turnout as at the Santa Cruz crematorium on Friday. Andy enriched so many of our lives, however bad the games, and there were many shockers, he could always crack us up with a well chosen word or another of his endless filthy bad taste jokes. The coffin and the urn had no connection with the Andy I knew, for me his spirit will always be there in the Heliodoro stadium, any bar where we watch an away game, and most of all in some fantastic memories of a great friend.

Say Hello Wave Goodbye was playing over the speaker on the Armada Sur bus when we heard of the inevitable sacking of coach Antonio Calderon. It just about sums up our record with coaches (and shows how old we are) but this has been coming for weeks and a disasterous first half ending in a 2-o deficit sealed Calderons fate, even a fight back before losing 3-2 at home to Sporting Gijon B couldn’t gloss over the glaring problems out on the pitch.

Nothing is ever quite clear at CD Tenerife, who really picks the team, young midfield prospect Abel (above right) was a shock recall to midfield and looked like a headless chicken. I suspect even he was surprised to get the call up, it came as he was looking for assurances about his future at the club, clearly a political selection to keep him sweet, handed down from sporting director Cordero or even President Concepcion. Why is Medina playing at right back, and Tarantino at centre back, both had poor games, it’s worrying when the normally consistent and assured Medina loses the plot. Atleast Raul Llorente (above left) looks a classy new addition at left back. How does Chechu keep getting picked, his crosses from the right were sloppy and off target and Mendy tortured Tenerife down that flank.

Abel lost the ball just before the opening goal after 23 minutes and Guerrero had no problems with the static defence before giving the visitors the lead. There was no effective midfield for Tenerife, the ball did get up to new forward Aridane several times but his control on the ground is shockingly bad, of course top scorer Perona was dropped to the bench – work that one out. Then after 34 minutes it got much worse, Muniz struck a pin point free kick and Sergio was late to the ball and it beat his outstretched hand at the top corner. The shouts for Calderon to go rained down and after Tarantino picked up a yellow card there was a chorus of support for the return of Ayoze to the middle of defence. Pablo Sicila had his work cut out mopping up at the back and it was all painful to watch.

Changes had to come at half time, Abel went off for Nico and Medina went for Kiko Raton with Chechu dropping back to defend the right side. The wake up call made some difference, just a few minutes in and Kiko’s prescence helped to make an opening for Aridane to tap in for a goal. CD Tenerife showed a bit more fight and the final change, Perona for Ferran Tacon added more fire power. Nico was lively when he was fed the ball and after 76 minutes his determination earned a penalty, Perona was sharp from the spot and maybe we had a hope of getting out of jail.

It was a short lived and false hope, Guerrero took advantage of a rare slip by Sicilia and put the ball in the net – taxi for Calderon! As many of the 8,352 crowd streamed away new left back Llorente, easily the best home player, pushed forward again and unleashed a good shot that wasn’t too far away. The whistle came and we were left with the wreckage of another home game without a win, last one was 20 th November. Dare we hope that new midfield signing Luismi Loro from Elche can make a difference, dare we hope that a new coach can squeeze more out of the squad, and dare we hope that that coach (looks like Garcia Tebar) will have a free hand to pick his team. Stay tuned for the next gripping instalment.

It was a win, had to be a win, 1-o up at Vecindario and into the last seconds of injury time and then it happened, a corner, Futre got his head to it and Sergio’s punch just helped it into the CD Tenerife net for a 1-1 draw. What a sucker punch but the day was another glaring lesson in taking your chances, while Kiko’s head was displaying first half power but not accuracy Real Oviedo were winning 5-0 at home to Leganes to jump into third place.

There were changes again despite last weeks 4-0 away win, Medina was moved to right back to allow Pablo Sicilia to return to the heart of defence. Vecindario had the first shot of the game just over the bar after five minutes but after that Tenerife dominated the first half. Chechu from the right and Bravo from the left put in some perfect crosses but Kiko couldn’t get the headers on target. Bravo had a go just before the break running the ball down the left and forcing a corner, Chechu slung it in but again Kiko missed the target.

The second half started with a booking for Marcos that will rule him out of next Sundays home game. Vecindario born Aridane came on for Kiko after 60 minutes to a fair few boos. Ferran Tacon raided down the left but with noone closing in on goal he screwed his shot into the side netting. Perona came on for Chechu but it was Bravo who nearly broke the deadlock with a floated free kick that the home keeper punched clear. Kitoko showed great determination to win the ball and charged into the penalty area, an outstreched defenders foot brought him crashing down and Perona sent the keeeper the wrong way to score the penalty.

There was wild celebration in the stands from the 500 plus Tenerife fans but as the game went into four minutes of injury time Vecindario got a corner and as the ball came over Futre rose to head the ball, Sergio went to punch it away but merely helped it into the net, what a sickener. It was definately two points dropped and spoilt what would have been a perfect start to the new year.

Alcala had early chances but found Sergio Aragoneses at his agile best. At the other end the home keeper tried to stop Bravo taking the ball around him and pulled the CDT player down for a penalty and got sent off. Bravo slipped the ball past the keepers replacement for a 27th minute lead. Victor Bravo (above) was having an outstanding game and his shot just after the break was parried to Kiko who scored with a bit of help from both posts. Marcos Rodriguez came on for Zazo and within 10 minutes had made it 3-0 after another half hearted stop from the keeper.

New boy Aridane took to the pitch after 80 minutes and proved his worth with a well taken header from a Bravo cross five minutes later. A much needed boost for the confidence of players and fans, hopefully a draw at least at Vecindario next week and the numbers will be on the rise again for the home games. Tenerife remain third on 34 points behind leaders Castilla on 40 points and Lugo on 37, Oviedo are just behind in fourth but only on goal difference. Better but still a long way to go.

There’s something about Christmas that brings out the worst in CD Tenerife, we have had some stinkers in the past just before the break but this 2-2 draw with Marino de Luanco was one of the worst.

With current form described as wobbly at best, a strong performance was needed against opponents from a small village with just 5,000 inhabitants. The defensive mentality of coach Calderon has alienated many fans and even allowing for other festive distractions the Heliodoro looked well down on numbers, a mere 6,441 was the official figure.

The first half hour of play was awful, neither side troubled the goalkeepers and play was scrappy and lacking any direction. Tenerife finally managed a shot after 27 minutes from Kiko (top pic) but this and a Chechu effort soon after were easily dealt with by former CDT stopper Ponzo. Woken from their slumber, Tenerife started to show some good football and were rewarded after 33 minutes, a Bravo cross was met perfectly with a glancing header by Kiko and it was 1-0. The visiting keeper had looked confident but lost the ball after Zazo shot following another Bravo cross, Perona (above) was on hand to score his 7^th of the season for a 2-0 lead at the break.

That should have been the springboard to a demolition of Luanco but the old problems came back for the second half. Tenerife looked happy to sit back on the lead and sure enough six minutes into play Titi put the ball past a hesitant Sergio to reduce the arrears. The confidence drained away and coach Calderon brought on Ferran and Marcos but they couldn’t make any impact and Meji on for Sergio Rodriguez a few minutes later was also a fruitless move.

The inevitable happened after 71 minutes, a break on the left ended with Arias scoring to level the game. Calderon was squirming on the bench as abuse started to fly his way from the frustrated crowd. Tenerife managed a late fight back, Bravo had his legs taken out from under him in the box but the ref didn’t give the obvious penalty. Bravo had a clear chance when Ponzo fumbled the ball but his reactions weren’t fast enough to reach the ball. Into injury time and Kiko could have got a penalty after being mugged in mid air by Ponzo and a defender but again the ref wasn’t interested. The final whistle brought a chorus of calls for Calderon to be sacked. Amazingly rival teams dropped points and Tenerife moved up to third spot but the problems remain and all eyes will be on our three wise men – Concepcion, Cordero and Calderon for some encouragement before Segunda B resumes in January with two away games.

Sports Director Pedro Cordero this week compared CD Tenerife to a salmon swimming against the current but this game was about two lost points, the ones that got away. A O-O  home draw against a free scoring Atletico Madrid B team isn’t bad but with leaders Castilla three goals down at half time Tenerife should have taken the bait and made up valuable ground.

Coach Calderon is too negative, he kept Kitoko in the centre of defence alongside Ayoze (pic) and brought back Medina after his one game suspension but played him in midfield with Marcos, leaving no place for the eager to attack Zazo. Tenerife were the better team in the first half but there were plenty of warning signs about their visitors strengths. Madrid are a big side and Pedro Martin up front caused plenty of problems, his chipped shot after 8 minutes just cleared the home bar. Bravo had a good early chance heading over after good work by Chechu on the right. Perona and Bravo both had further near misses but Madrid twice saw shots saved by the woodwork.

Medina and Marcos weren’t sparking many raids from CDT, it was mainly down to breaks down the flanks to cause a threat and Perona and Ferran couldn’t convert what came their way. Just before the break Martin had the home goal in his sights again but Sergio got a finger tip to the ball to turn it over but the generous referee gave a goal kick. At half time the buzz among the 8,920 crowd was about Castilla’s downfall but it didn’t act as a further spur to the players. Tenerife just don’t have the killer instinct and Madrid always knew they were in with a shout. Just after  an Atletico chance went looping over the Tenerife bar, Calderon made a double change bringing in Kiko and Nico for Marcos and Chechu.

Kiko was a little rusty but added more threat up front and Nico’s speed was a useful addition.Sergio had more to do in this half and was as always superb, particularly after a Kitoko slip let Madrid through. Tenerife showed some late urgency, Kiko barely troubled the keeper with his weak shot and Perona got into a good position but was bundled wide by a visiting defender. Tarantino came on too late to make much difference, replacing Medina, and injury time was nail biting as first Kiko’s final touch let him down in front of goal and then play switched to the other end where Sergio again showed his class with a crucial save.

The clubs communication manager phoned me to find out more about where the article was going, apparently the winter break was supposed to be “under the radar” . Strange that within a few hours of ariving on Sunday night at their west coast hotel the players were out and about in Playa de Las Americas chilling and having fun. It was a bit of a surprise to get an email from T3 a few days later demanding I pull the photos from my Tenerife Magazine article, not because of dodgy boots but their bright yellow training bibs with a sports company’s name across the front,  it appears it was another non sponsor.

Thankfully there were smoother waters the next day for my trip to La Gomera and bright and early I was on the Fred Olsen Express with a looped tape of Barry White playing over the tannoy. Pushing through the water with the Love Walrus crooning away the sun was hot and the sea calm and in 40 minutes I was off the ship in San Sebastian and into the marina next door to meet the crew of Row For Freedom, one of 17 teams in the Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Challenge. Only four of the six female crew were there to greet me (the others arrived later) but they were even more lovely than in the publicity shots, I managed a quick interview before touring the marina to hear some of the amazing tales of determination and courage from the other rowers.

It’s a good four years since I set foot on La Gomera but it all came back to me quickly and I was able to scamper up to the mirador off the main plaza to get some panoramic views for photos and a short video of the trip. Back in the plaza I enjoyed a snack and a drink as I basked in the sunshine. Huge German  cruise liner Mein Scheiff was in port and its passengers swarmed around the town, they even had cycle hire on board so a squad of about 30 bikers on identical bikes with matching helmets were sweeping around the square.

Going back past the repairs and stocking up at the marina and through the tunnel I emerged on Playa de la Cueva and looked out across the sea to a crystal clear Tenerife, a truly inspiring sight. A tall rock stack with steps hewn into the rock made a great vantage point to enjoy even better views, maybe Christopher Columbus had stood on the top prior to sailing for America. Back in the marina I met the other two equally lovely ladies from Row For Freedom as they all posed in new t-shirts. The rowers were a joy to talk to, so unassuming and all with great tales to tell, their enthusiasm at being cramped into small rowing boats for around two months on the way to Barbados was as bright as the baking sunshine.

Having crammed my notebook and camera it was time to get the 5.30pm last ferry back to Tenerife, it pulled out of port as a pair of rowers trained out at sea and the sunset that followed was just another reward in a day of highlights. Good luck to all the rowers for the off on Sunday 4 December, in the words of my on board friend Barry White “Your my First, My Last, My Everything”.

Perona threw down an early marker dribbling through the home penalty area before slipping the ball out to Marcos who shot wide. Lugo were always going to be tough to contain, it took a strong tackle back from Cristobal to stop an early break and that was soon followed by a looping free kick that just cleared the Tenerife bar. Chechu (below) looked hungrier this week, Zazo set him up for a strong run at the home defence that the keeper did well to block. Monti was the main Lugo threat and unleashed a long range effort after 20 minutes that missed the target. Then the opening goal showed what a good side Lugo are, they drew the Tenerife defence wide and a telling cross found the head of Belencoso as Cristobal stood rooted to the spot.

Tenerife lost their way for about 20 minutes, Monti had a couple of decent attempts, the first blocked by the cool and impressive Ayoze (above) and the second was high and safe. With the half ebbing away Bravo took off on a speedy raid and passed the ball into the box, Perona looked like he had missed his chance but scooped the ball up and fired it into the net with a lethal strike. The play switched to the other end with Ferran Tacon coming to the rescue scrambling the ball away from a Lugo attack.

Tenerife looked more confident in the second half, the paltry 2,500 crowd got frustrated and that filtered through to the players as the game wore on. Bravo forced a desperate home clearance after a strong run from Ferran but there was danger at the other end with a fierce shot that Sergio took command of. Tarantino came on for the quiet Zazo just before the best move of the game. Bravo danced through the home defence beating three players but couldn’t find a gap to shoot and laid the ball off to Tarantino who showed why he is a defender. Kiko made his return to action replacing Chechu who had been struggling after getting a knock. Lugo made a late double substitution to try to force a win and could have grabbed all the points in injury time, the ball was loose and dangerous as Lugo closed in, Sergio was brave and decisive diving in to push the ball clear to secure the draw.

There we were 2-0 up at half time, the sun shining, birds singing, fish leaping in the Atlantic – I think I even saw a rainbow over the gassworks at one point. Sadly we had been softened up by CD Tenerife, a flowing, skillful first half display against Celta Vigo B was followed by a dull, negative, and almost suicidal second half betrayal for the 8,198 crowd. Coach Calderon applied the shackles at half time and the team looked determined to sit back and wait for the final whistle, of course that led to lazy, sloppy play and Celta pounced.

Despite their lowly placing Celta looked a good side and could have taken the lead in the first five minutes, a goal dissallowed for a clear offside and another near miss just after. Tenerife took that as their cue to turn on the style, Ferran Tacon, playing just behind Perona up front,  made a great run and delicately tucked the ball past the visiting keeper after 10 minutes. There were plenty of ideas going forward, Zazo was making good runs and both full backs were launching raids down the wings. Young Ayoze showed his inexperience with a defensive slip but Marcos Rodriguez mopped up nicely and fired Tenerife forward again.

Zazo had a clear shot at goal but blasted his effort wide with barely five minutes to half time, there was better to come though when Tacon did the hard work to leave Perona with a nice tap in for a half time 2-0 cushion. Even as we enjoyed our rare state of bliss at the break we knew that the best plan was to push for more goals against a side that has the worst defensive record in our section of Segunda B. The coach obviously thought differently and the transformation was ugly and uncalled for, I know we are not a pretty sight at the Grada Popular end but the players seemed scared to come anywhere near us.

Of course the inevitable happened, a solo effort from Albert reduced the arrears and had our nerves jangling. Time after time Tenerife players lost the ball and made terrible slack passes, Chechu (below) had one of his worst games, and Kitoko came on for Bravo to underline the defensive intentions. Tacon tried hard and was alert to run on to a high ball but slipped it just wide. The defense stood still as a Celta forward eased his way through and luckily for us curled his shot over. One of the biggest blows in the game was a booking for Medina that means the consistent central defender will miss the vital game at leaders Lugo next week.

German came on in the final minute, presumably the substitution was meant to run down the clock.  Going into four minutes added on, German twice raced up to Celta’s nervy keeper forcing him to make panic clearances, maybe if he had come on earlier we may have got the killer goal. Celta will wonder how they didn’t get a late equaliser, hitting the underside of the bar only to see Sergio deflect the falling shot onto the post and wide as their players queued up. The final whistle brought relief but it should never have been that close. Coach Calderon can feel fairly secure in his job but the last few weeks has seen him struck off an increasing number of fans christmas card list.

No television coverage again so my earphones were disturbing wax again. At least I had the FA Cup goal round up on ITV to give my eyes a reminder of how good it is to see the net bulging. Over in Toledo CDT had an early penalty appeal turned down, Sanchez apparently handling the ball. Victor Bravo nearly broke the deadlock after the half hour but no joy. Meji replaced new boy Sergio just into the second half and already the prospect of hollering goal and waking next doors cat up looked remote.

Chechu came close before making way for Ruben Rosquete making a surprise return from injury. I was hoping the Armada Sur party at the game might be able to inspire a win but even they couldn’t break the away win drought. German, a recognised goal scorer didn’t come off the bench until the 88th minute, hardly time to break sweat, and Zosmar was left at home again watching the Canarian equivalent of the Coronation Street omnibus. Zazo’s last minute attempt was met with dirision by the commentator so that was that.