Jake Bickerstaff

Striker - Cheltenham Town
27 Sep 2026
Sunday
Process

Marked for Jake Bickerstaff

4 Edition

The Cheltenham Town Courier

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tom Bradshaw breaks a bone — 110 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 110 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Transfer targets

Marcus Bettinelli will not be coming to Cheltenham Town

Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Manchester City is saying, and nobody at Cheltenham Town is enjoying the guessing.

Boardroom

Cheltenham Town go back to the board over Sheldon Kendall

The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $55.2K — a club that wants Sheldon Kendall enough to be asked twice.

Squad

Alfie Whiteman in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cheltenham Town this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Transfer targets

An offer of $57.0K for Sheldon Kendall

Cheltenham Town have gone to Millwall with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

The dugout

Shaun McWilliams gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Match

Tranmere Rovers take the points off Cheltenham Town

Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

Squad

Appearance number 100 for Jake Bickerstaff

100 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.

Squad

Harvey Rodgers is a square peg at Cheltenham Town

The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.

In brief

Back issues
1 Edition

The Cheltenham Town Courier

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tom Bradshaw breaks a bone — 134 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 134 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Squad

Andreas Weimann stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Andreas Weimann and Cheltenham Town agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Transfer targets

An offer of $76.0K for Ben Wilson

Cheltenham Town have gone to Coventry City with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Squad

Alfie Whiteman has outgrown this division

There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Cheltenham Town know it, and so does everybody who watches him.

Market

Talks stall between Cheltenham Town and Shaun McWilliams

“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.

Transfer targets

A loan move for Tom Smith is in the works

Cheltenham Town have made the call to Colchester United. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.

In brief