In his post-match interview, Mark Kennedy was eager to ensure he got a single message across; there’s a long way to go this season.
I’d second that. I always refer back to Mr Cowley and his comments about ‘never too high, never too low’. Last weekend, I got a few pelters from supporters for suggesting I wasn’t disappointed with our performance against Bolton. I tried not to get too low, despite the defeat. This weekend, not getting too high (not literally) was also very challenging. That’s because for 65 minutes of the game yesterday, I thought we looked every inch like a top-six League One team.
Yesterday’s weather was as changeable as people’s opinions on football. For some, it’s doom and gloom, wind and rain. For others, the sun shines brightly, and the Imps are on the up. The majority of the day was the latter, both in terms of the weather and people’s opinions. it is easy to let your imagination run away with you in August, but for now, the dream of a top-six assault remains strong, which cannot be said for yesterday’s opponents.
City started with a lineup I think most could have predicted. Is it our strongest starting XI? Possibly. Jensen is the first-choice stopper, and only Adam Jackson would have a serious case for starting over one of TJ, Paudie and Sean Roughan. Jack Burroughs may well be pressed into action over the coming weeks, but Lasse and Jaden Brown are the assumed first-choice wing-backs, whilst the Ethans are as strong a midfield pairing at this level as you’ll find. Ben House and Tyler Walker are possibly interchangeable, Reeco Hackett has come here to play and Danny Mandroiu is already underlining why I named him as one of the most important players in the squad this season. There were no surprises, no disappointments and very few talking points with the team selection. Dare I say, the bench looked very strong at first glance, which it certainly proved to be.
I started my day in the Treaty, then moved up to Gwynne’s, and everywhere I went, there were happy faces. We lost 3-0 last weekend, but the midweek win settled a few nerves, and there weren’t many supporters not filled with hope. I tried to place a bet that City would win, over 2.5 goals in the game, and Hackett to score anytime. For some reason, the bet builder on my usual app wouldn’t take the bet – needless to say, I won’t be using them again. However, even being cost around £250 by faulty technology didn’t dampen my excitement post-match.
We did have a ticket problem. Dad accidentally ordered a new physical ticket, as you do, and got an email to say his new one had arrived on Thursday. We went in to pick it up, and it hadn’t arrived, the ticket office was apologetic and said his old one would work. He got another email on Saturday saying his ticket had now arrived but not to pick it up on matchday as they’d be busy. Lo and behold, his old one no longer worked. Teething troubles, especially as dad is to technology what Steve Tilson was to free-flowing attacking football (allergic), but hopefully, this was a one-off.
Speaking of free-flowing, attacking football, do you remember that was what Mark Kennedy promised us when he arrived? Last season he adjusted to a more pragmatic approach, and it brought some success, but we all yearn to be entertained. I maintain football is a results business and I’d rather watch successful functional football than a gung-ho lose more than you win attacking style. Sadly, the first 20 minutes or so were neither.
That’s not the player’s fault. The conditions were horrendous, and Wycombe opted to kick with the wind in their backs, making their lump-it-up-top philosophy likely to succeed. We toiled in driving wind and rain and toiled without success. Wycombe should have been 1-0 up early doors, only Lukas Jensen’s feet ensuring we remained level. It looked like an error on our part, two men going for the same ball, leaving space to exploit, and had that gone in, the story would have been very different.
Those first 20 minutes were attritional, Wycombe just bombarding the Imps and us struggling to get out. We couldn’t go long as Jensen’s kicks didn’t make the halfway line, and Wycombe looked organised enough to throttle any attacks we had. Occasionally, when we did have a chance to create, I felt our decision-making was awry, and I even chastised Danny Mandroiu, at least once, after a moment’s hesitancy undid his good work. That’s not to say we didn’t threaten – Jaden Brown worked hard on the left flank and Lasse on the right, both putting in decent shifts. At the back, I thought both Roughan and Eyoma were excellent. It almost goes without saying that O’Connor was, but the other two both have points to prove 0 Roughan as the left centre back and TJ after a couple of seasons where he perhaps hasn’t had the best luck with injuries and form.
It was Mandroiu who teed up House for the game’s first major Imps’ talking point. A threaded ball saw House race clear, only for a nudge in the back from Forino to send him down in the area. Adam Herczeg waved play on, and despite me jumping up and swearing, I quickly sat down and agreed it wasn’t a penalty. One second watch? Penalty. Their lad doesn’t play the ball, leans into House, and it’s a pen. I’ve seen them given, and I’ve seen them waved away.
Not the Herczeg waved a lot away in the first half – he didn’t impress me at all. He was overly fussy with our players in the first half, then (perhaps) swung the other way in the second period. There were two free kicks awarded to them in good positions, which were never fouls, and with their danger almost exclusively coming from set pieces once the wind died, that could have been crucial.
Once the weather abated and the sun came out, I felt we grew into the game. I’ve seen some opinion that suggests the subs changed the game, but I don’t agree. The 11 that started the game looked stronger with every passing moment, and from around 20 minutes onwards, I felt we were the better team. However, the first half petered out without too much incident, and as the two teams filtered off the field, I felt relatively calm.
You must be logged in to post a comment.