Manager Shaun Pates decided not to persist with Division Four football for the clubs fourth successive year. He opted to move into the Third Division after considering that previous entrants in the leagues bottom tier were already decent organized outfits that fancied their chances of gaining a trophy.

Netherfield had a quiet summer on the transfer front and with the previous season’s signings establishing themselves in the side, Netherfield started the campaign with only attacking prospect Nigel Carney (pictured), brought in, along with experienced centre half Ian Wilkinson to sure up an otherwise young and untested defence at the higher level.

After a late opening day defeat Netherfield otherwise had an excellent start to the season, with new signing Carney, in particular grabbing the headlines. First the young right sider came off the bench to score a dramatic late winner in a 2-1 win at home to SSR, and three weeks later did the same, this time against Southbank as the side won by the same scoreline. Further wins were added against the likes of Culimore and Cotgrave and by the time Netherfield crushed Burton Joyce 10-2 in the County Cup second round, the club needed three points, to take them to the top of the league in November. That however may have been easy on paper, but against bottom of the league Express in a game that Netherfield was angry about playing (due to the kick off coinciding with England’s European Championships playoff game in Scotland), an upset was caused at Melbourne Park with ‘the Milkmen’ winning 4-3.

Further Cup successes and a respectable draw against AK Construction ended the year with Netherfield still in with a chance of the title. The turn of the Millennium however, saw Netherfield knocked out of the County Cup at the Quarter Final stage, after being comprehensively beaten by Fleet Cars of the MAA league 4-1. The signings of Goalkeeper Shay Holland and Defender Matt Stone coincided with a run of eight games without defeat, including victories in the League Cup to higher leagued opposition in Vernon Vila Reserves and Hickling cemented Albion as trophy hunters but from their it all went wrong.

The signing of (another) striker Steve Tindel (pictured) gave Pates an added selection problem, but with six league games remaining, and Albion unknowingly at the time needing only 12 points to take the title, Netherfield slipped to four straight defeats, one of which a humiliating 8-3 League Cup semi final defeat to the hands of an intimidating Broxtowe Celtic of the First Division, another our second defeat to Express, Brodsky although scoring all of Netherfield's goals was unfourtunate to be on the losing side in a 6-4 defeat before two straight draws and a last day loss, which left Manager Shaun Pates reeling over missed opportunities in a season when Netherfield finished for the third time in four years fifth position, rather then building on the form they had at the start of the campaign, to consolidate a top two birth.

Key: F-Friendly Match, L-Notts Amateur League Division Three Match, LC- Junior League Cup, CC- Notts FA Minor Section Cup. n-neutral venue, h-home, a-away.

Notts Amateur League Division Three Table

Steven Brodsky 30-20, John Burnett 29(1)-23, Stef Carey 13(1)-0, Nigel Carney 12(6)-10, Tom Creswick 28(1)-2, Paul Guy 27(3)-1, Shay Holland 2(2)-0, Andy Merrin 11(5)-9, Antonio Navarra 5(15)-2, Kwabena Osayande 17(7)-3, Kevin Parsons 24(2)-3, Shaun Pates 3(1)-0, Danny Peacock 10(3)-0, Andy Richardson 26(2)-3, Phillip Rippon 6(3)-0, Ben Rowson 23(4)-2, Phil Schofield 11(8)-2, Matt Stone 14-0, Steve Tindel 3(2)-5, Ian Wilkinson 29-11.