I don’t think I need to write too much about Sages 2 Rebels 2, but I need to get back into the swing of things. How can we hold our own at Worthing yet decide to play for 70 minutes?
Before their goal, I would have put somebody else’s house on us getting a third or even more. Smeltz and Butler were linking up so well that Slough couldn’t cope with us. Suddenly, like a bolt out of the cold blue air, they scored and the confidence drained away quicker than a Lib Dem poll rating.
As I wrote this last night (and re-written again this morning), the worst thing wasn’t so much losing the lead, but the knee jerkism that followed. We’ve somehow adopted the affliction that England fans have : one good result and success is a mere formality, and anyone who disagrees is a cunt, or worse Scottish. Lose and/or draw, and it’s sack the manager/midfield/left back/tea lady.
2-0 up and we fucked up. Fine. These things happen. I hate throwing away leads but it’s something that every other supporter of every other club puts up with at some given point. I’ve seen teams lose 2-0 advantages before, and I will see them again. If we’re guilty of anything, it’s the complacency (perhaps due in part to the “we’re going to win the league” mentality that greets every victory) that allows these sort of results.
Are we good enough for the playoffs? Dunno. Right now, we’re a “dunno” team. Beating the likes of Worthing and Fi$her then failing to win vs Folkestone and yesterday suggests we’re getting it right in some areas yet not in others. Yesterday’s play between SS and RB was some of the best front two work I’ve seen in ages. And I genuinely mean that. Yet our defence and midfield should be buying a drink for those two for the next week.
Yes, we need a midfielder who will gee up everyone else when the going gets tough. That and a backup for SS/RB are the only types of players we need right now. No, I don’t think we need a massively radical approach to transfers for a while (though if Plummer and Harvey foxtrotted oscared right now I wouldn’t be that upset). No, we don’t need to get rid of DA* – again, he was good enough for 70 minutes yesterday. No, we shouldn’t flop – a team about to win the league never does that. But then, we’re not a league winning side this year. We never were, despite what beating Worthing may have us believe. And neither are any of the other sides in the division.
* – quite interesting to note that some people aren’t too impressed with DA’s post-match OS comments. I didn’t go to the interview,and I wrote most of this article before I read his comments, but I don’t think he’s THAT wide of the mark. My NLP notes certainly suggest that we had a couple of chances towards the end…
Perhaps the most depressing thing about today is, I really feel a massive sense of deja vu writing the above. Perhaps it’s because I watch other teams play that I don’t consider it a personal slight whenever we don’t win. As said plenty of times last season on here, perhaps our fans need to do that once in a while…….
Anyway…
Plus points: We didn’t lose. RB and SS.
Minus points: Should have been 3 points. Everything from 2-1 onwards.
The referee’s a……: He was all right, I suppose. Couldn’t really think of much he did wrong. The linesman though was definitely a homer and a half. If we didn’t know better we’d swear he was something like the home team’s kitman, who just so happened to have a ref qualification when the real lino got injured….
Them: To be fair to them, they didn’t give up. Their first goal was a screamer anyway. Nice to see away fans who look like they support their club and not just come once a season to sing MK songs towards us.
Three’s a crowd: 2859 isn’t bad at all. Was there some sort of club incentive for this game? Incidentally, I was aware of a couple of comments that our support wasn’t exactly vocal. Certainly from the Press Box it didn’t seem a cauldron of hate, more a quiet gathering place for rest and reflection. Anyone know why this is?*
* – not a rhetorical question either
Point to ponder: And something I bet every post mortem will forget to cover. We didn’t actually lose, yet it feels like a loss. I’m not too sure whether that’s a good thing or not.
Truth is stranger than fiction: Your editor may soon be in an upcoming Shoot feature in the programme, though I’m going to demand a far better picture than the one already taken….
Anything else? Not really. What else can you say after letting a two goal lead slip, apart from plenty of swearwords?
So, was it worth it? Cough
In a nutshell: I came back from the USA for this?