After one of the most nerve-ridden weeks I can remember for a long time, the big day has finally arrived. I’ve steered clear of reading or listening to all of the media guff, not deliberately, but because after ten seconds, I started to wander off with my own thoughts and therefore lost the plot that they were trying to lay before me. I managed to see enough to get me angry when they claimed that this isn’t much of a derby compared to Liverpool/Man Utd or Arsenal/Spurs, which is the biggest load of hoss muck west of Scarborough. London derbies are diluted by the fact that there are so many of them, and while Spuds v Gooners is a passionate affair, it’s nowhere close to ours. It’s not even close to Brum/Villa or Sheffield, which are tasty affairs. The Manchester v Liverpool comment is particularly irritating, as the “passion” there is generated by two of the most self-centred and arrogant bunches of supporters in the land.

All the talk of signing Muntari should remain just that, as he’s said he’ll only come to England to play in London. Not the kind of player we want, while the other feller, Sessathingy (another I’ll never be able to spell) could bring a Benin influence to the squad.

All of which is just fluff leading up to the main event. Setting off for a home game before it’s properly light makes the day a bit special to start with, and everybody on the bus was in some sort of nervous state. Seeing our barmaids still in their jimjams was a bit of a laugh as well. Before kickoff, I was happy with the defence and the attack, but a bit worried that we lacked a ball-winner in midfield. Not to worry, Archie the dog (from Durham) predicted that we’d win by two goals – I’m not sure exactly how he predicts these things, but he got it right for Blackburn. Not today, though, despite the red and white cards working well and the crowd being well up for it.

Gordon
Onuoha Ferdy Bramble Bards
Elmo Hendo Rico Steed
Bent Gyan

That bloody magpie turned up again, despite a good chasing by Samson, and our central midfield didn’t. Without a ball winner, Hendo was trying to do two jobs and getting nowhere at either, and for the first fifteen minutes they were well on top. They set their stall out early, with Smith busting Elmo’s nose with a well-placed elbow, and Nolan and Barton winning most of the challenges. We should have been a goal down after a few minutes when slack defending let Ameobi through, but he shot horribly wide with only Gordon to beat. Eventually, Steed and Bards put in a couple of chunky challenges, Rico cleared off the line after a corner, and we at last got a bit of the game. Bent was nearly through on three or four occasions, but a combination of first touch and Collocini kept him out. We won a series of corners, Steed had a shot charged down, and we won a free wide on the right – nothing came of it, though, which was the story of our day. Elmo forced Harper into his first real save on 27 with a low cross cum shot, then Smith had to leave the field after being clipped by Rico – his most telling contribution of the day. Gyan worked it well down the left to play in Hendo, and the shot was charged down. All square at the break, and we were happy with that considering our lack of midfield creativity.

We started the second half a bit brightly, with Bards finding Bent, only for Darren’s flick to go a yard wide, but then we gave away a corner, they slung it in, and there was the softest headed goal from the back post that a team is ever likely to concede. It could have been a lot worse, as they won almost every second ball, and we got on the end on none of our knock-downs or flick ons. Elmo’s shot, deflected just wide by Rico, was as close as we got before Zenden replaced Onuoha on 75, with Elmo dropping back. Still we didn’t really look like breaking through, being halted on the edge of the box several times, then Colback replaced Elmo and the defence moved around again. I’m not sure what Brucie thought young Jack was going to bring to the game, as his record for late goal is about as good as mine. Five added minutes were announced, and Bards decided to sort things out. He fired in a vicious shot from the right through a crowded box, Harper saved it, and Gyan basically got in the way of the loose ball. In slow motion, it looped up and over the defenders to nestle satisfyingly in the back of the net. We even had a fan run on a mimic Nolan’s chicken dance celebration. 1-1, a moral victory I suppose, but in truth we haven’t been that lucky since...well, we must have been that lucky at some stage in the past, but it’ll take me a while to remember when it was.

We found their front two a real handful, with Ferdy and Bramble having a real battle, while we allowed Jonas loads of space down the left, but thankfully he is rubbish. Up front, Bent and Gyan were feeding off scraps because the midfield just didn’t function as a unit. Elmo got down his wing often enough, but wasn’t supported well. Rico – well, he cleared one off the line, but just couldn’t find a decent pass all afternoon, and Steed burrowed away but found nobody to give it to inside.

Man of the Match: I’ll give it to Bardsley for at least getting stuck in, and creating that late, late goal with what is becoming a trademark rocket shot.

Keep the Faith

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