Still smiling at the antics of Issy, both during and after Monday's Teesside tonic, the Lads welcomed Watford to Wearside on a dreich/dank/damp/miserable afternoon/dinner-time and produced a performance that was, in the large part, equally dreich/dank/damp/ miserable. While the ref can't be blamed for our performance, his interpretation of the rules regarding free kicks, time wasting, and pretending to be hurt were shockingly bad. Yet another 2-2, largely because of defensive daftness, doesn't bode well for the possible outcome of what is increasingly looking like the playoffs - simply because nobody else wants to be there. A fairly early opener should have been built on rather than defended, but that's not the way we roll, apparently.
Normally, a team looking to end a bad run of form does all it can to play us next (Plymouth, anyone?) - look, I know it happens to most teams, but it just seems to happen to us more often - so we hoped we'd go against the grain and dish out a proper whupping. We got another forward, including a mad hairdo, in Danns of Liverpool but he was unavailable due to a bad back. Naturally, this caused a section of our fanbase to label him "made of glass" although his injury record is...well, this is his second. While on the transfer front, Greg Halford (ask yer dad) has just signed for Bishop. Still playing at forty!
Stay unchanged or mix it up a bit? That will become more of a pressing concern once Watson and Mundle are available and we can afford to move The Magic Fairy inside to what is apparently his natural position. Let's see what happens in a couple of games time. Having once again had to set the alarm for a home game, but with Monty the dog having a day off, we were in town mid-morning to help build the atmosphere and pick the team. A chance meeting with Dr Phibes (aka Skinner) for the first time in years was a pleasant part of the build up so we discussed Bellingham's day off. If Samed can play like he did at the Boro, we'd be fine, as there was no Bellingham due to an ankle injury...
Patterson
Hume O'Nien Mepham Cirkin
Neil (c) Samed
Roberts Rigg Le Fee
Isidor
...and a bench of Moore, Aleksic, Ballard, Hjelde, Mayenda, Jones, Middlemass, Poveda, and Ogunsuyi.
We were (presumably) made to kick north and start proceedings. Almost immediately their 45 made game and lay down after a nothing challenge, but we hit back when Le Fee cut it back to Rigg, only for the keeper to save. Our French magician then won a corner in the middle of a flurry (well, three) late challenges on our Lads. Only the third was punished. We gave away a daft free just outside our box, which we cleared and were straight up the pitch to win one of our own in a virtually identical position. We hit the wall and win a corner, which Le Fee hit to the back post, from where Hume knocked it back and there was Luke, driving in at what had become the back post to make it 1-0. Smashing.
Unfortunately, I suppose, we held our defensive shape as obviously instructed by Reg, but we fans wanted more in the attacking part of the game. Rigg did break away down the middle, but with options either side decided to drive on and was fouled. The resultant free was hit well enough, but straight at the keeper. There was a yellow for a foul on Cirkin in the centre circle, then one for Issy after a spell of mutual shirt-pulling that should really have been dealt with by the means of a quiet word.
Le Fee then robbed their man and laid it back but the shot was blocked for a corner, and after the ball whizzed about a bit, Luke was still up there to flash a header across and wide as we screamed for the second. A tremendous save by Patto knocked a header away, but Cirkin barged their man over for a penalty (confirmed by the telly watchers as genuine). Patto was sent the wrong way and it was a frustrating 1-1, which remained the score after the three added minutes.
Even the appearance of Aiden McGeady to do the half time draw didn't cheer us up much, as we'd made a poor Watford side look much better than they'd been in weeks. Bellingham had been a real miss as nobody was doing what does in carrying it out of midfield.
No changes for the second half, and we'd barely touched the ball after the restart before they walloped one in from way outside the box. Bloody dreadful. We managed a cross from the left which was headed wide, then we went mad and made two changes before the hour when Poveda and Aleksic replaced Samed and Roberts. I felt a bit sorry for Samed as he'd had a decent first half but, to be fair, never looked like getting into the box and doing damage. Le Fee went to his alleged natural position in the middle - but proved far less effective there. Perhaps Rigg looking knackered alongside him was a reason, but it just didn't click. A Poveda cross was knocked back in but the ref missed the very obvious holding and they cleared it.
A free on our left was lofted in but brought nothing as we decided that Aleksic is no left winger despite his obvious efforts, then Rigg made way for Mayenda. About time, as we'd not hit the target since the first half, and we were nearly in when Poveda squirmed into tho box and laid it off, but there were too many defenders in the way. A rather strange swap saw Ballard replace Mepham - but big Dab proved to be our most positive player of the second half in his ten minute cameo. A corner on our left was hit low to the near post (much to the disappointment of the fans) and Cirkin was there to flick it in.
Phew, but somehow there were only five added minutes which prompted Watford players to throw themselves to the floor. We had two decent chances well saved, the ref stopped play for yet another Watford lie- down, and our liveliest period of play ended with the final whistle.
Massively disappointing result - if you're a betting person, go for us at 2-2 at home. At least we didn't lose, but we made a very moderate Watford side look like Brazil at times.
Man of the Match? I'd be tempted to give it to Ballard for his mad ten minutes, by it'll probably go to Neil. Mind, we missed Bellingham.
