Two weeks in which to digest the comings and goings of the transfer window, which basically brought us Nicklas Bendtner and lost us Ferdy. To be honest, Anton’s performances of late have been pretty decent, but if there’s one department in which we have bodies to spare, it’s in central defence, so the wages saved have brought us a Danish international with Prem and European experience. So what if he’s a bit big-headed – I’d rather have someone who isn’t quite as good as he thinks he is, but is willing to try to be that good, than someone who could be quite a lot better than they are if they could just be arsed. While much of the press has been having a go at Bruce for our less than stellar start to the season, at the same time grouping us with Liverpool as one of the summer’s biggest spenders, it should be remembered that City spent more than we did in total on several individuals, and Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Man Utd have all spent considerably more than us.

I spent the early part of the week having a spot of building work done – by someone whose wife’s granddad played for the Lads. What do you mean; you haven’t heard of Jimmy Temple? Thirteen goals in thirty four games is a good ratio for a winger, even if it was in the early thirties. Mebbe ask yer great granddad about Scarborough-born Jimmy, who’d already scored sixty one times for Fulham in a hundred and sixty one games when we swapped him for Albert Wood. Life after SAFC was a round of the Northern League with Gateshead, Ashington, and Murton. Just a little bit of SAFC trivia for you to bring up over a pint next time there’s a lull in the conversation – and my bathroom is now joined to the rest of the house thanks to someone with an SAFC connection. Magic.

Friday brought the less than surprising news that Gyan wouldn’t be part of the fun today, as he is presumably suffering a neck strain from having his head turned so many times over the summer. Bruce has virtually admitted as much by acknowledging that Asa’s head is not right and that he needs time to sort himself out. A pox on agents the world over for spoiling our fun by trying their best to move players around and thus up their own earnings. The buggers. And then at half one in The Kings, the little Sky Sports banner brought us the news that Gyan is off to Al-Ain for a season on loan. That’s in the desert, with no other clubs for competition. Well, if that’s what you call furthering your football career; you can stick right up your greedy Ghanaian arse. Let’s face it, there’s not much else for him to do out there but count his money.

Friday also brought belated ticket news from the club concerning our trips to Arsenal and Bolton. The latter is advertised as a “Traditional 3pm Saturday kick-off” – a real sad indictment of the modern game that Saturday afternoon games are now such a rarity.

So, after that shock (really?) news seen in the King’s, we wandered over the bridge in the sunshine to see the Lads line up

Ming
Bards Bramble Brown Rico
Larson Catts Colback Gardiner Sess
Bendtner

Note to Steve Bruce – one up front has never worked in this country since Spurs had Clive Allen atop their famous Christmas tree formation and a midfield full of goal-greedy players. We have Larsson wide right, then three tripping over themselves in the middle and Sess out left. Doesn’t work, mate.

In fairly bright and lively start, they won a corner that never was, Sess got away but was fouled, and Larsson slung in a great free-kick. Shame the header was way off the mark but it showed promise. A few attacks either way, then Ming seemed happy to let a shot bounce off his left hand post, we all screamed for offside (proved by TV to be onside) then watched as Anelka produced one of the dives of the season (proved by TV to be just that, and it’s only September) to win a free kick 20 yards out. It had to be that most obnoxious of human beings, John Bloody Terry, he of the pointless diving headed clearances, who popped it away for 0-1. Bollocks – we were showing them way too much respect. The ref followed up that howler with a series of blue-tinged decisions - look, I’m biased, live with it – to help the first half towards a visiting dominance. We did change things around a bit, with Sess coming inside and Colback moving left, but we didn’t get through. Bendtner happily clattered into every challenge that our high balls presented him with, but never got a clear look at Cech. Brown put in a series of timely challenges, and Ming did well with his feet to keep it down to one approaching the break, then Sess fired in a decent shot to win corner which was easily cleared. In the two added minutes, Bendtner managed to get a header way off target as we finished on a bit of a high (by our standards).

Mr Ellis short, normally conspicuous by his absence from public view, was on the field during the break to help Marco and some choirboys with the half-time draw, then it was back to the action. Unfortunately for us, it was a scuffed shot from Sturridge that evaded both Ming and Bards that bounced in off the post for their second barely five minutes in to effectively kill the game. Five minutes later, they took Sturridge off for Malouda and we took off Bards (with his impressive leg bandage) for Elmo. Sess came a bit deeper, Ming brought off another decent save, and Colback got in a decent cross from the left. It was killed, and Bendtner turned and saw his shot blocked. Another five minutes later Catts was replaced by Wickham, and we finally went two up front. Bendtner headed onto the roof of the net from a right wing cross, then Ji replaced Sess with ten to go. With barely a minute to go, Elmo fired over, but in injury time (to use an old MOTD term), another cross from the right was partially controlled by Bendtner and rolled to Ji coming in from the left, and the goal was a well-taken side footed affair. In what remained of the game, we piled into them in real gung-ho fashion and it would have been no surprise (well, it would, really, but bear with me) had we got another goal. Plenty of spirit in the last twenty minutes, but where is David Vaughan? We have three midfielders of a similar ilk, the pick being Colback, but nobody who will put their foot on the ball and look for the clever pass – which is what Vaughan is all about, so we’re told.

So, no disgrace in defeat, but we showed them way too much respect and fell foul of their ability to win over the ref early in the game. Had we gone at them from the off, with a proper strike force, we might have got something. As it was, I’ll give man of the match to Brown for his ability to win the ball when it didn’t seem to be there to be won.

Keep the faith

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