Merry Monday and I hope you’re up for a trip to Wales. That’s where we’ll find Matt Wills with the latest from Cardiff and his Welsh only save. Can they make a push for a second promotion in two seasons?

Welcome back to Wales – last time around we left Cardiff making a great start to life in division 2 in my second season, but what’s in store as we head into 1999 – lets have a look.

We’re staying in Wales and heading to The Racecourse Ground, scene of a famous Mickey Thomas free kick, but today Deniol Graham is the hero with a goal at either end of the game.

Three days later and D.G is at it again, but Brighton make us work for it, Deniol with another late strike to wrap up the 3 points.

League Cup 3rd Round action next and Swindon are sent packing – Graham is in the form of his life at the moment, but last seasons hero, Carl Dale is stuttering.

So, when Graham doesn’t score, things can get difficult and we can’t find a way past 10 man Walsall.

After that blank, I decide to switch the team up a little and its a bit of a horror show against Bjorn’s boys. Youngsters Morgan, Hartson and Parry on the score sheet but our back up defensive options are woeful.

Talking of Hartsons, my cheeky bid last time out was rejected, but here Big John opts to stay in London and join Palace. I did try again, but could not bring John home.

I don’t think in all my years of playing this game I’ve faced Atherstone Utd, and I probably never will again, but the good news is Dale is up and running and its two for Pugh.

Alan Knill, who did a job for Dave’s Retirement Home in the early days pops up with a rare strike away to Wigan and Pugh wraps it up. Local papers on Thursday morning go with ‘Wigan Knill, Cardiff Pugh’ – you can’t write headlines like that. Well, obviously you can, but you know what I mean….

Bobby Gould (me) takes the Red Dragons to Russia for our next Euro 2000 qualifiers and Mark Hughes leaves it very late to rescue a point – you can always rely on Sparky.

While the national team are in deepest Russia, Cardiff are in south Devon and we never seem to perform well around international dates

Is this a slump? A loss of form? Better watch out….

Yeah, its just a blip

Hopefully just a blip. I make up for that Orient loss to get us through to the next round of the Windscreen Shield

More cup action and its good to see the goals being spread around a little, even its only against lowly Chesham.

Gillingham are becoming our nemesis and they halt our League Cup run. Lee Chapman rolling back the years for the G’s.

Veteran actor Tony Curtis denies a Dale Double at Chesterfield

Have you ever, ever felt like this? When strange things happen, are you going round the Twiss?

An eventful first couple of minutes settles down into a routine win against Grimsby in agreat warm up for the xmas period.

Cardiff legend Carl Dale gives us a boxing day win away against Oldham.

1999 already and FA Cup 3rd Round action at lofty Forest. Our lads celebrate when parry gets the equaliser and it’s back to our for the replay.

Rovers put up a real good fight, but D.G. gets us into the area semi’s

It’s rare I’ll be focussing on non-Welsh news but this transfer caught my eye – not often you see this legend move on so early. Utd will be dominant for a while to come.

We warm up for our repaly with Forest with a sweeping win against Crewe. Deniol gets 4!

Ninian Park is almost packed put Pierre is at it again. DG gets us back in it but the Dutchman breaks our hearts and that’s where this cup runneth over.

The boyo’s are glum after losing after such a brave fight and the match against Carlisle is over after 18 minutes. Honours even.

Oh no, this is a blow to our promotion hopes, Graham has been phenomenal lately. Hopefully he’ll be back for the final weeks of the season though.

Young Kristian Hartson takes his place and earns us a point at Blackpool.

You’ll remember last time out Ian Rush took over as player-manager at Huddersfield but by the time he scores, we’re four nil up and Dale restores the four goal advantage within 3 minutes. I hope this pushes Rush towards retirement and I can sign up his regen, Dale and Graham won’t go on for ever.

That’s for the future though. In the here and now we’re pushing Fulham hard at the top with our rivals Gillingham chasing us hard.

We’re doing well in the league, but we’re not yet able to attract big Welsh names. Most of these guys I’ve rarely come across before, so delved into Deiniol Graham’s background.

One of Fergie’s Fledglings, the Man Utd youngster played 2 games in four years for Utd, before spending 3 seasons at Barnsley, then spells at Preston, Carlisle, Stockport, Scunthorpe and Halifax until winding down his days at Dagenham and Redbridge, Colwyn Bay and Caersws. In 2011 he had a spell in charge of Llandudno.

He’s available on a free at the start of the game, in real life, he was playing for Emley in 1997/98, getting to the 3rd round of the FA Cup where they lost to West Ham 3-1. He’s proving to be a lower league find for this Cardiff team though.

See you next week for the final furlong of Season 2 – can we make it two promotions in two?