So, who will win the Battle of Broken Nose? We’ve gone from the ridiculous to the sublime in our last two games, while Wolves put in a better than decent performance at Old Trafford in midweek. Rico seems to have found his niche, according to Brucie, as the new Mickey Gray – or Wilf Rostron for the older reader – midfielder turned fullback. The tactics for the day were well discussed over doms at the Ship on Friday night, when we also went into great depth on the education system in the sixties – one of us being so old that they went through a Modern School rather than a Secondary Modern. Opinion seemed to fall on the side of starting with Campbell and Bent up front and bringing Jones on for the last thirty, while the Bittermen should rent a villa in Majorca for a month next summer, lock ourselves in for a month, and watch the world cup. Shame some of us have to work.

With no football yesterday, we looked at family gravestones rather than the mags on the telly – despite being tempted by the sign outside the William IV in Birtley advertising “TOON MACTH TODAY.” You had to laugh. Shame about the result, but in the Prem the new boys seem have been rumbled – five against Burnley, a loss for Brum – while Pompey and Hull continue to make my relegation predictions look pretty sound. And the winners of the Championship, unfortunately.

In a bout of reverse logic, the bus that left Bish 40 minutes before kick-off on Tuesday left five hours before kick-off today, so it was early out and a git big Sunday roast in the Salty. Scran sorted, we shifted up the hill to the Kings. where South West Durham’s Fit Young Men won the quiz (quizmaster Mr Brown off the telly) by getting only one answer wrong, then off to the game.

Well, there was a fairly disjointed introduction to what turned out to be one of the most disjointed game I’ve ever watched. I don’t think I’ve seen us win a 5-2, and after today, I don’t want to see it again.

Gordon
Da Silva Mensah Turner Rico
Steed Cana Cats Reid Bent Jones

McCarthy, nicely honest about what he’d do with a time machine(sod £60 million to spend at SFAC, he’d be at Man city earning £5 million a year), won the toss and made us kick north, which is never good. Bent had a chance to open the scoring, but knocked it way high with the keeper stranded, then only had to wait a few minutes for a silly challenge to upend him for a penalty. Easy peasy, away it went hard and low, and only seven minutes gone. Wolves kept on coming at us, as they had from the start, and we failed to get a grip of the midfield. Halford, point to prove, had a freekick well held by Gordon, then Bent headed on for Steed to have a shot deflected, but we seemed determined to give the ball away as cheaply as possible. Jones almost got Bent away with a header, but we weren’t quite there. Thank the Lord that Wolves were woefully toothless up front, although they showed plenty of aggression in the tackle, with one particularly nasty stamp on Cattermole going un-noticed. Kenwyne almost got round the keeper, and Bent almost lobbed one in over the keeper, but (there’s a lot of buts in this one) we had to resort to last-ditch defending to see out the half in front.

Henderson straight on for an out-of-sorts Cattermole was the only change at the break, and we’d barely got ourselves comfy when Bent was flattened going for a Steed cross. Like the true gent he is, he passed up the chance of a second goal by allowing Jones to thump in the resultant spot kick – remember when we went for about three years without a penalty? Three already, and it’s only September. By the time we’d stopped celebrating that one, ther was a spot of pinball in our area, and the ball ended up in the net for 2-1, then Richo followed that one with awful backpass that Gordon had to palm away. when the indirect kick was eventually awarded, it went where these things tend to go against us and it was 2-2 from Doyle – and still 35 minutes to go.

Though we worked at it, we just couldn’t get a grip of the midfield, and seemed to be second to most things. Henderson almost got Jones away, Reid and Richardson combined down the left, but no real football came. When Jones collected a pass near the edge of the box there didn’t seem to be much on, but he took aim and fired past the keeper’s right hand hard and low for 3-2. Still 20 to go, still time to get a hold of the game. Or not, as it proved. Cana found Reid, he fed Bent down the right and the shot was saved, in came the corner and there was Turner with a thumping header for 4-2. Still nervous. Ferdy replaced Da Silva, Richo headed off the line, and we were wondering if we could surrender a 2 goal lead for the second time in a game. Wolves brought on Ebanks-Blake and the ridiculously tall Heifenhoffer (or whatever), Bent found Henderson but his shot from the scoring position on Tuesday was weak and easily saved. With ten to go, we finally got hold of the game as Wolves tired badly, and as 5 added minutes were announced, Steed and Bent exchanged passes for the latter to run at goal and get the fifth.

Phew. Bent was replaced by McCartney for the last few seconds, and it ended at 5-2 when on another day it could have been 10- 0 or 2-5.Nervous to the last, and I don’t think I’m alone in thinking that it was a pretty (bad choice of word) sloppy game. I’ll take 5-2 any weekend, but against Man Utd and Liverpool........we’ll have to be better than we were today.

Man of the Match? To be honest, nobody really stood out, but I’ll give it to Bent just ahead of Jones, as those two made the best of what little quality service they got.

Still happy, mind.

Keep the faith

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