I didn’t fear the second half, I think we just needed more of the same to win the game, but Cambridge definitely changed their approach which stifled us. They retreated deeper, reliant on their defending to ensure a share of the spoils, but never to a point where they didn’t have a go. The lad up top, Joe Ironside, was a right handful, and I thought he gave TJ a really tough afternoon. I actually thought we got away with quite a bit in terms of pulling and fouling; referee Andrew Kitchen let the game flow, allowed some fouls to slip by, but not to a point where the game got overly tasty. Until one key moment, which I’ll come to, he was a 10/10 referee. As a first-year official, I sense big things for him in the future.
I suppose the issue we have at the moment is there isn’t enough on the bench to offer something different. We’d knocked on the door one way, but nobody had answered, but our bench doesn’t really allow for a change to be made that shakes things up. You wouldn’t take Whittaker off, Cullen had more shots on target in 90 minutes than Dan N’Lundulu (who scored for Cheltenham) managed in his last 701 minutes (trust me, I’ve done the research), but who would you replace him with for the final fifteen? Sure, you could put Mags centre, bring Hakeeb Adelakun on, but that’s just replacing one set of tired legs in the middle for another. We are very much ‘what you see is what you get’ right now, without any major surprises, but we’re definitely looking better.
We still had threats to deal with. Ironside I’ve mentioned, but Wes Hoolahan makes the game look unreasonably effortless, which for a man of 39 is remarkable. He is their conductor, their Liam Bridcutt, and he’s certainly a big part of everything they do. I felt we dealt well with their threat, occasionally maybe shooting ourselves in the foot a little. 15 minutes from time Ironside should have worked Josh Griffiths, as he found himself alone in the area. I’ve watched that back and it looks like Bramall has a go at Fiorini for not tracking the runner; I can see how that might be the case, but to pull Fiorini down for his endeavour would be harsh. He had a good game, and looks a different player to that of six weeks ago. Confidence? Maybe, let’s face it, Sincil Bank is a better place than six weeks ago.
The noise levels were superb, even down in Block Three, where you can usually hear the guy in front of you farting, but the signing was loud. The 617 were in good voice, as were the visiting supporters. I’ll tell you what it felt like to me: a good, lower league top-of-the-table clash. It did; two good teams playing good football the right way. No long ball lumping, no time-wasting tactics, no unnecessary fouls, but plenty of fight, creativity and passion. I know it was two teams in the bottom eight, and I know we lost but let me tell you this; I enjoyed yesterday (as much as you can a defeat). I enjoyed 89 minutes of football that kept me entertained at both ends. Of all the games I watched at the Bank this season, the last two have been value for money of the highest order.
I’m a bit gutted about the goal because it shouldn’t have ever got to be a free kick. I’ve watched the replay back and TJ Eyoma clearly gets the ball in the challenge that led to the free kick. Everyone on our side of the challenge could see he got the ball, not the man, and had the linesman on our side been alongside, it would never have been given, I’m sure. It just wasn’t a foul, and it felt like a bit of a sad end to a super game. The referee had been solid all match, he’d let the game flow and made mostly the right calls, and then one at the end he gets wrong, simple as that.
Of course, that’s not why we lost the game. We still needed to defend the set piece and we just didn’t. It was a great delivery, Adam May got his header in well ahead of Chris Maguire, forcing Josh into what I think was only his second save of the afternoon, and Ironside popped up unmarked to score from the rebound. It felt like we’d been floored by a proper sucker punch, but then we’re used to it, are we not? Had we not conceded last-minute goals in three of our last five matches, we’d be five points better off now. Fine margins, right? Arguably, our play, our approach and endeavour should have us five points better off, but the issues at the back, the lack of bodies and height has seen us restricted to two defeats and a draw instead of two draws and a win. Maybe now you see why we miss Tom Hopper so much, a player who wins more headers from set piece in the defending box than any other Imp.
It still wasn’t a foul though, so if you’re the type that needs someone to blame, you could blame Andrew Kitchen. Not for me, it wasn’t the right call, but we still need to defend that better than we did. Simple. I’m not calling players out though; I don’t think we were any worse than last week against Oxford. In fact, part of me thinks we were better in 95% of our play. You see, as I said before the game to anyone who’d listen, this was actually the tougher game. Not in terms of the opponent’s position, but in how they’d approach us. Cambridge did have a go, but they also wanted us to break down nine outfield players behind the ball for long periods of the second half. It was the type of game we have to adapt our approach for, and that on occasion this season, we have failed to manage. Ultimately, we failed again, but we were far, far better than in previous weeks. Also, we started the Oxford game with a recognised central defender in the team, rather than the makeshift defence we have right now.
Genuinely, I can’t fault any of the players for their performance. I thought Cullen and Whittaker both had strong games, I thought the midfield of McGrandles and Fiorini were excellent as well. I couldn’t pick a Man of the Match, and that’s because so many played well. Chris Maguire certainly stood out in terms of quality on the ball, whilst Regan Poole is definitely rewriting his Football Manager bio to be a CB rather than an RB. He was huge again yesterday, and is proving his doubters wrong in my opinion. I think I’d have to give it to Cohen Bramall if anyone though; it might just have been his best game in a City shirt. I think the thing with Cohen is this; if you can fine-tune some aspects of his game, he can go far. That pace is ridiculous, seriously. We’ve seen players like Harry Anderson and Zack Elbouzedi who were quick, but Cohen is different level quick. Comparing Harry and Zack was like comparing a Golf GTI and a Focus ST, but Bramall is like a Formula 1 car. He got to the byline so many times, but the difference this week was his delivery; it was very good in almost every instance. I felt he was a constant menace, and the fact he’s keeping a player who could well be our record signing, Jamie Robson, on the bench tells you everything you need to know.
Still, all that positivity means nothing in terms of points. We still got the same return as we did against Accrington, another game we lost 1-0 against a team you’d expect us to beat on our own patch. That’s not being snidey or detrimental to Cambridge by the way, but we were in the League One play-off final last season, and when you lose that game you expect to be beating the promoted League Two teams at home the following season, you just do. I’m not saying that in a complacent manner, by the way, it’s just eight days ago, looking at Oxford, Sunderland and Cambridge, the one ‘winnable’ tie appeared to be Cambridge. Funny old game, football.
Still, that’s it, we lost, however it came about, and it was a game we should have taken something from. I just think the signs of progress are there for all to see, and whilst we have a tough two matches this week, you wouldn’t bet against three points, maybe even four. I do feel we’re on our way back, I think the team are in a much better place than six weeks ago and I hope that we’re still looking up, not down when I sit down to write my Plymouth article in a week’s time.
NEXT PAGE – GRAHAM BURRELL’S OFFICIAL GALLERY
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