Tomcat, I can see why you're having minor problems with reinforcements. The use of archers and strong points in high and late periods is common and getting reinforcements in those scenarios is covered already. I find though that that tactic on English Early isn't really needed unless you're not fighting the French and are facing loads of HAs (from slavic or muslim factions)and/or heavy cav (Byz or crusade cav).

With the French I used a simple cost effective tactic. I basically used 1 or 2 units of spears, 3-4 units of hobilars and filled out my roster with highland clansman. No need for reinforcements. I advanced clan formations through wooded areas keeping the hobilars close, but in open areas. If the French advanced on my cav I'd feint to draw them deeper and throw the clan on them from the woods (where they were mostly protected from missle fire from archer units). My clansmen would eat their vanilla spears, peasants, and archers for lunch and on impact I'd send in my hobilars as the clansmen's attack would generally expose the French flank and I'd rout them quick. It took lots of patience for this tactic to work, but when it does, their reinforcements tend to rout as they walk on the field. My spears I tended to try and keep on high ground (there isn't much of that on most French maps) and I kept them close to my cav. If the AI countered with a cav charge I'd flank with the spear and any height advantage seemed to make the spear charge more effective. If I wasn't threatened by enemy cav I'd send the spears in the enemies rear marching double time (shortly after my cav charge) so that by the time they routed they'd run into my spear and be trapped (use a long thin double or single rank formation for best effect). If you capture/kill the general in this tactic the morale of the French forces is so low from losses and the general hit that reinforcements rout when you look at them funny. The other advantage is you don't waste money on too many vanilla archer units as you'll be ditching them in 1205 for LB. That said, if you're playing a defensive strategy, vanilla archers are VERY effective in that time period.

One of my favorite fights was English early/hard. I had 7 units of Hobilars, 2 units of peasants and 3 units of vanilla archers and I was attacking 2+ stacks in Britany (mostly peasants). I had no reinforcements (obviously). The French AI was unusually timid keeping their primary forces in the tree line. I figured I'd try to draw out their units into my missle fire, but after 25% of the timer had expired it was clear they were not having anything of it. I marched the archers to the edge of the map to entice the French by putting the odds in their favour, feinted with peasants and cav (one of my cav units routed without suffering a single casualty during a feint and would not give me the option to rally). I finally got spear units to exit the wood, trapped 2 spear and one peasant unit and routed them charging with peasants and then charging the rear with hobilars. I took horendous losses, but won the fight charging the wooded French formations with my archers (after marching them back). While this fight is off topic a bit, I think it shows to some extent what you can do in your campaign to avoid having to call in reinforcements. Honestly, I found the English to be a slow start financially (I had bribed the scots, wales, norway, and sweden and had NO cash left for troops and and teching up).