Is it finally the season for Macc to do well?

With a manager who has a near 50% winning record, Macclesfield Town could be one of those teams who do considerably better than a lot of people think they would. With a new look midfield and a recent record that shows that they are due a decent season, where can Macc finish?

Macclesfield are one of those sides that have constantly found themselves down the lower end of the bottom division. Ever since entering the Football League in 1997 they have only registered two single digit finishing position. They were automatically promoted in 1997/8 and made the Playoffs in 2004/5. Since that Playoff campaign they have failed to finish above 17^th.

Despite the troubles, you could argue that Macclesfield are punching above their weight. By comparison, there are very few smaller clubs in the Football League, and I don't really mean that as an insult. I actually quite like Macclesfield. You're virtually guaranteed to see old Lincoln players whenever City play Macclesfield, with four ex-Lincoln players at that the club, Paul Morgan, Hamza Bencherif, Nat Brown and Richard Butcher.

Infact, Bencherif (right) is set to return from injury after breaking his leg against Rochdale last term. Despite only playing nineteen times for Macclesfield last season, he did himself enough to earn a new one year contract at Macclesfield, including scoring five goals, not bad for a defensive midfielder.

Paul Morgan has also now been made the captain of Macclesfield Town. The Imps legend has been at Macclesfield both on loan and permanently since 2008 and has been one of Macc's consistent performers. If he manages to rediscover his brilliant form that arguably made him the best player that Keith Alexander had during his spell here, then Macclesfield are laughing.

Taking charge of Macclesfield is Gary Simpson. Simpson initially took over on a caretaker basis towards the end of last season after the death of Keith Alexander, signing a permanent deal soon afterwards. Macc's form improved after that and they gained a respectable 18 points from their next ten games, including a run of six games unbeaten, their longest such run for a long time. They did however end the season with just one point from their last three games.

Simpson's total record as a manager for both City and Macclesfield stands at 25 games, 11 wins, 8 draws and just 6 defeats, that is an excellent record for a rookie manager. Simpson was also able to get the best out of Ben Wright at Macclesfield last season. During that run that got 18 points out of a possible 30, Wright scored four times, more than he scored in the entire 2008/9 season for City. Wright was released though.

Pre-season results have been excellent for the Silkmen. They've been scoring for fun and beat a Man City XI. They are quickly becoming a side that are very difficult to beat, just as City realised on the final day of last season. Keith Alexander's teams were always based on a solid defence (back in the heady days when the Imps only conceded 37 goals in the 2002/3 season) and Simpson appears to have picked up that view of things.

He has also done another "Alexander" by bringing back Paul Bolland just months after releasing him (Alexander did the same thing with Niall McNamara). Infact, Simpson is arguably the ideal replacement for Alexander at Macclesfield. Having worked with Alexander at Lincoln, Peterborough, Bury and Macclesfield in the League, there would be very few people who would be able to offer such continuity.

Pre-season signings at Macclesfield have also been interesting, with the majority seemingly focusing on the midfield. Richard Butcher joined the ever-growing list of players who leave City and find their way to Macclesfield (it's now six summers in a row that they have signed one of the players who was out of contract at Sincil Bank). Butcher had a loan spell at Macc last season and impressed enough for them to want him back again on loan towards the end of the season, only for Chris Sutton to deny them at the last minute.

Matt Hamshaw has joined following a successful trial at Moss Rose and he has been joined by Lewis Chalmers from Aldershot, Sam Wedgebury from Sheffield United  and Jack Cudworth from the Welsh Premier League. Cudworth will be fighting with Jose Veiga for the goalkeeper's jersey. They all join a squad which on paper isn't that bad, with Emile Sinclair being one of those players who has the potential to go on to bigger and better things.

Elsewhere in the squad they have John Rooney, whom any time he scores is just refered to by the media as "Wayne's Brother". Macclesfield has also kept hold of Ricky Sappleton. Despite no-one scoring a prolific amount of goals last season, Macclesfield did share the goals around with Emile Sinclair, Ricky Sappleton, Ben Wright, Hamza Bencherif and Matt Tipson all getting five or more goals, something that no current Imps managed last season.

Macclesfield are due a good season and I think that with Simpson they have a decent manager. Although I don't think they'll be anywhere near the promotion places, I can see Macclesfield finishing midtable and even sneaking a top half finish.