You missed a treat, Satdy. In that first half we were FABULOUS. So obviously, we went in at one-all, despite absolutely dominating, and ripping them apart time and again. It helps that a) we don’t have a centre forward and b) our defence can balls one up at the drop of a hat. Their goal was comical, as a harmless looking flick-on was heading to Slonina. MdG left it, Pines thought he’d intervene, then didn’t...then maybe did...and the ball was past Slonina, leaving their centre forward with an empty net to tap into. We’d created chance after chance but we save our best one for them.
That we looked so good going forward was down to my new Favourite Player, this bloke with the double-barrelled (isn’t it great that ‘double barrelled’ is double barrelled?) name from Mansfield. He looks a class act. And he managed in 11 minutes what centre forward Cosgrove hasn’t managed all season. Score a goal. A throughball is delightfully flicked on by Connell to send Keilor Davis-Dunn...or is it Davis Keilor-Dunn? Keilor Dunn-Davis?...clean through and he has the composure and wherewithal to calmly stroke it home.
Together with his movement and passing, he looks some player. There was a moment second half when he superbly controlled a ball that was in the air behind him into his path without breaking stride. (Benson tried, and failed, the same thing later.) He already looks the future. I knew we couldn’t go the season with Cosgrove and Watters up top, so Watters’ injury has provided a handy inroad. (Of course, based on form and goals thus far, Cosgrove is in greater danger of the chop.)
Yet, for all our pressure first half, Rovers miss an unbelievable opportunity to take the lead early second half as O’Keefe (haplessly on at HT for the hapless Pines) unfathomably heads the ball back into his own 6 yard area for them to head it straight at Slonina. This will no doubt be forgotten about as people focus on their goal. We have 80% of the game and gift them the best two chances of the match.
Thankfully, it’s all to no avail, as Cotter bursts past the left back and clips the ball in for Phillips to run in and head. Just like he did last season. The kind of goals our centre forward(s) should be scoring. In comparison, Cosgrove’s best (worst?) effort came 1st half, as he completely missed the ball, 10 yards out, from a pull back. To be fair to him, why would he expect a Barnsley player to find him, free, in the penalty area, with a simple pull back?
Coach...Christ, I still can’t remember his name. Darrell something-or-other (triple-barelled!) is either extremely confident, or Phillips is injured…he’s hauled after scoring before the opposition even kick-off. On comes Benson (remember him?), the modern-day Phil Gridelet. Cost a fortune, full of promise, made of glass. He looked alright actually. Full of promise. He’ll be out for the season within a fortnight.
Onwards and upwards!
*** DKD. KDD. DDK. Anyway, him. It’s a photo finish between him and Cotter (and the FLP gave it to Cotter) but for having such an influential debut, I’m going with our new signing. What a player!
** Cotter. POTY. Who is this bloke? Will the real Barry Cotter please stand up (please stand up)? Well, he did in the first half, as he let a ball under his feet. I KNEW that was Barry. For a month I’d been thinking he’d been taken over by Josimar.
* Connell. Some great link-up play with DKD. WKD. ACDC. BBC.
Official MOTM: The new bloke.
Londontykes’ MOTM: 1. Keilor-Dunn 2. Cotter 3. Craig
Despatches:
Taking into account the away contingent (and there never looked as many as 337 of them) there were less than 9,000 Reds fans there on Satdy. Given the figure includes ST holders who didn’t rock up, this is very worrying. Is it a direct result of the new Sky deal? Anyone with a new Sky box could have watched today’s game from the comfort of their sofa, despite the 3pm Satdy kick-off. (This had passed me by.) I wondered how Sky was going to get us on their screens 20 times this season, as per the agreement.
Surely this will result in a downward spiral in terms of attendances? Not just this season, but future seasons. Home matches being switched to Friday nite (Mansfield), Monday nite (Rovrum) and Satdy nite (Stockport) which some fans can’t get to. Matches shown on a Satdy afternoon when the weather turns (it turned today, from half 4 onwards Barnsley was covered in drizzle). We’ll have 7,000 season ticket holders next season, 6,000 the year after...oldies will start dying, there’ll be few New Kids on the Block, we’ll go down to 5,000...by which time the rest of us are thinking how miserable it is rattling around a barely 20% full Oakwell, we go down to 4,000...by which time the Sky deal is over, Oakwell is empty, there’s no TV money and The World Has Ended. But that’s me being optimistic.
*I’ve now seen the official attendance as 11,196, so 10,800 home fans. But that’s NOT what was said Satdy.
Regarding defensive misunderstandings between keeper and centre halves, we’ve now had 3 of these in a year (MdG and Roberts in a game last year, OG, MDG and Slonina at Lincoln, cleared off line). These should happen once every few years, so something’s not quite right. The head coach has changed too, so there’s no constant...or is there? Maybe it’s just one of those things that we’ve had a relative rash of them. Talking of centre halves though, I did enjoy one bloke’s comment on social media that MdG is unsteady in possession. It’s like he’s never SEEN Pines and Marc Roberts (and Earl). It comes to something when I can’t be bothered to argue with somebody…
Oh, and we’re now 3rd. Bottom of the table a month ago, at this rate we’ll be half way up the Premiership before Christmas and winning the Champions League by May. I can get used to this.
Drink du jour: Paulaner Weissbier (cans of) in Spiral City. Word from behind the bar is that Brewdog Wingman will be here for a while as they’ve given Spiral a terrific offer.
Away: 337. Really?
The Damage:
c. £8 petrol
= c. £8
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