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| Behind the bar at the Antigallican |
The relegation-fighting duo of The Captain and Geordie Al once again waved their magic, as Phil did the necessary, buying me a match programme and yet again we came away with victory. I make that 4 wins and a draw in 5 games. Promotion form! (Handily, the magic doesn’t work in reverse, witness Bournemouth away).
Well, talk about s*** or bust. 12 (free) coachloads came down, courtesy of THAT postponed game in January, and there wasn’t an away fan there who didn’t know we HAD to win last night. There was no other option. Even a draw and we’re certainties to go down. Hell, even a win and we’re (virtual) certainties to go down. All to play for!
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| Entrance this way, please. |
1st half, both sides struggled to create and the one chance of any note was theirs: Crainie was skinned at right back (he was playing centre half, I’ve no idea where the actual right back had gone) and a cross to the back post was met with the kind of simple header that only a side at the bottom end of the table could miss. They did. Meantime, our one chance was buried by that unbelievable new signing ‘Jean-Yves M’Voto’. Did we get him in the January transfer window? Anyway, the corner came over and M’Voto buried it with his head. ‘He scores when he wants, he scores when he wants, Jean-Yves M’Voto, he scores when he wants’. We saw out the rest of the half with no scares.
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| 'He scores when he wants...' |
The second half, Charlton looked like they were committing more men forward…which meant leaving more holes at the back. Time and again we had chances to break. Time and again we failed to create any goalscoring opportunities whatsoever out of it. So a good job we had goalscoring machine Tom ‘TK’ Kennedy to rely on. Or a good job he can’t cross a ball, as his latest effort sailed over the keeper….and landed in the far corner of the net. GET THE F*** IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ‘We are staying up, we are staying up!’ (No, I never joined in. There’s just something too sensible – is that the right word? – about me to join in with chants I don’t really believe in. Along with those ‘Yorkshire Yorkshire’ chants, and anything to do with hating Sh*tfield Washday). Tho I did enjoy one of the worst chants I've heard this side of the Kevin Betsy song, as the away end opened with 'Two-nil and even Kennedy scored'. It's a syllable thing.
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| The Valley |
Anyway…where was I? Oh yes, I was dancing down the gangway cuddling anyone and everyone. (Disappointingly, no teletubbies this week). There’s no way Chorlton (and their wheelies) are coming back from this. And they didn’t! Even the addition of substitute Mellis to proceedings (just to give them a chance) didn’t really make a difference and, honestly, time flew by, in a way it normally doesn’t when we have a lead. As I said to Selwood with a minute left – ‘we could do with them scoring just to make it interesting’. And they did. A scramble in the box off a corner and it’s 1-2. Hilariously, the ref then calls 5 minutes of injury time. Where did he get THAT from? Thank god they didn’t equalise, cos I think I’d have had no teeth after my earlier comments.
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| FIVE minutes???? |
*** M’Voto. He’s magic you know. You’ll never get past M’Voto! Awesome. Who is this dude? Remember Darren Moore when we won at Charlton the other year? ’He’s here, he’s there, he’s every f***ing where’. Well, that was Jean-Yves last night. And a goal to boot.
** TK. Decent enough game and deft chip to the back post for the winner. Think of Hoddle scoring THAT goal against Watford in the mid 80s.
* Crainie. The names might change, but our central defensive partnership continues to be the rock that’s holding this team together.
Despatches: Reading the programme, does anyone know who’s created the most goals for us this season? Is it a) midfield genius Jacob Mellis, b) wing wizard Dale ‘he used to play for Bayern Munich you know’ Jennings or c) Godlike genius Tom ‘TK’ Kennedy?
Yes indeedie, proving that if you play enough games and gently dink enough balls into the opposition box, you will be credited with creating any subsequent goals bundled in. Good on yer, Tom! (I’ve always liked yer!)
As for players’ performances, they huffed and puffed but once again the defence shone. Steele barely had a save to make, certainly nothing of note. The midfield ran about. Jennings kept slipping over. (I’d play with studs, myself.) And O’Grady held up the odd ball without ever looking like scoring. All in all, a typical Barnsley performance, without the typical result.
Afterwards, we ran the Charlton gauntlet on the way to the station, which consisted of an older lady telling me (politely) we’ll see each other next season…in division 3. We told her we’d won the battle, but they’d win the war. I love Charlton, everyone’s so nice. Even their hooligans come in flip-flops, as Barnsley baited Charlton on the station and one or two of their boys were getting all hot under the collar on the opposite platform. If this was St. Andrew’s, Molyneux, Bramall Lane, et al, you’d have seen their lot legging it back over the bridge to shake our hands. As it was…
Onwards and upwards. Come on you Reds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A
ps, mention in despatches to Dave’s mate, ‘Nice guy’ Jamie. 3 games – Brighton, Reading and Charlton away – 3 wins. I suggest we chip in for a season ticket for him next season.
pps, and good to see Kev last night, back from representing England in an over 50s chess tournament in Croatia (as you do).
Away: dunno. Maybe 1000?
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