Deep, meaningful analysis of the game is not going to happen today, I’m afraid. It feels like I did see a football match yesterday somewhere in the back of my brain, but it’s fuzzy, a bit like a mangled dream merged with a bit of reality.
Did we really get a last-minute penalty? Did they hand us an opening goal in bizarre circumstances? Was I really drinking Cruzcampo out of a can before breakfast? As it turns out, the answer to all of those questions is yes.
I am a football fan, not just someone who does fanalysis (a new word I learned). I pick Lgames apart, write about players, and research the history of the club because I love Lincoln City. That means, sometimes, my analytical eyes go out of the window, and I just want to enjoy the whole day out. Not just the game but everything – the bus journey, the pubs, mingling with different people, and (apparently) going out in town afterward. That’s an occasion, something that I love every so often, and that was what yesterday was all about.
Usually, I’d bemoan Ben House’s late omission, but in fairness, it barely registered. Our bus got into Uttoxeter at 10.10 am, and there was no suggestion of taking things easy. When your breakfast is washed down by #wassoncoffee buying shots of something that is definitely not made with cocoa beans, you know the day is going to be long. Of course, there were jager bombs, not sure who they came from, and there were lots of pints. All in the morning. At 2 pm, Ben House being poorly really did seem pretty trivial, and of course, it isn’t.
What I did pick up as I bounced from fan to fan chatting and slurring was this huge feeling of optimism right now. It’s hard not to be optimistic when you’re eight unbeaten and have taken four wins from six, but so many people cited my article from Friday night about precedents for the play-offs and really feel it is possible. Nobody thinks it absolutely will happen (except Cornell), but it could happen, and there’s nobody who looks at the table and completely writes us off. From Jack as we waited for the bus to Piers as we sunk vodka and mixers late into the night, everybody has this air of optimism, not an expectation, but what actually felt like belief. Just like my mate Matt, as he descends the stairs to Popworld (Roman Ruin, Charlie Mangoes, Barracuda’s, Po Na Na etc), we might be able to sneak into the top six unnoticed. If we do, you wouldn’t rule out us making quite the scene once in there. Again, like Matt.
What I do recall from the game was an opposition that felt deflated and dejected. Of course, it’s always easier to make a noise when you’re away. Away fans are on the big day out, and buses come from all over. It’s a Jolly Boys (and Girls) outing, and spirits are high. Home supporters are different – I’m different at home. I watch and observe, and that can be mistaken for being passive, but it’s not. That’s why away fans almost always sing ‘football in a library’ because they’re raucous; they’re out in groups for the day, while some of the home fans might just have come from work or shopping. Mind you, Vale Park was quiet. Dare I say, more quiet than when we rattled six past them.
I’m not surprised. When you’re struggling, the last thing you should do is give the visitors a head start and calamitous play from Nathan Smith allowed Joe Taylor to score. Funny, I said last week that I felt that if Taylor got one, more would quickly follow, but I didn’t think he’d be given the ball in such a lackadaisical manner. Smith just rolled it to Taylor (I’ve watched a replay), and despite having a bit of work to do, it was routine for the on-loan striker to beat Ripley, who was out of his goal. If you’re Darren Moore on your first home game as manager, you’ve got to be fuming at that point.
Remember, we’re a side that doesn’t concede a lot of goals – 32, the fewest outside the top two. That’s not the sort of team you hand a head start to, not when you’re fighting against the drop, a fight I think they’re destined to lose, sadly.
I quite like Port Vale, I don’t know why. I like the ground; it’s old school without being ramshackle. I like the away trip, even though we stop 20 miles away. I even like the club generally, the way they’ve been reborn under their new owners after the last chairman nearly killed them. It feels odd saying this, but there’s something ‘real’ about Port Vale that I can identify with as a fan. That’s why it’s a little bit sad to say that it feels like they’re almost certainly going to go down.
From what I recall and what I have been told, not very much happened after that until the last few minutes. I’m sure that’s not the case. I do remember a decent Jensen save and Ripley almost gifting Ted a second late on, but it didn’t feel like a classic game. That’s why talk of the top six feels a little unrealistic – we’ve taken six points from two matches but haven’t played well in either. That’s not a criticism; winning when you’re not quite at your best is great, especially if you can keep doing it as you get better. We still rely a lot on Ben House, and having Freddie injured is a blow. But, despite this, we still never looked in danger yesterday. I never felt the home side were going to get back in it, not for a second, and I told (slurred to) anyone who would listen that the game would finish 1-0. So, of course, it didn’t.
I do remember the penalty because I tried to be objective and said we got lucky. I’ve watched it back, and we didn’t; it was a penalty. I didn’t hear the boos that were ringing out around the ground in the away end, but they were quite noticeable on the replay. Their lad definitely fouls Duffy, and in fairness, he tried to stay on his feet. Had he not been tugged back, he would almost certainly have got a shot away, so it’s a penalty. The ref seemed to have a decent game, but it didn’t feel like a tough one to officiate.
Reeco, back in the team and playing 90 minutes, stroked home his fifth league goal of the season from 12 yards, drawing him level with Danny Mandroiu as leading scorer. It looked as though Ted might have fancied it as well, but in a bit of a switch around from the Blackpool game, Ted was left to one side as Reeco scored. However, the togetherness of all the players was evident as they celebrated the goal that put the game to bed.
There’s not a lot more I can say about the game, not without watching some extended highlights, which I will do before the podcast. It’s strange because a little under a year ago, we went to Sheffield Wednesday and drew 1-1. The mood on the bus was exuberant that day; chants of ‘we’re not going down, and we’re not going up’ rang out all the way home. Yesterday, there was none of that. The game didn’t go how I expected at all. I thought Vale would fight and scrap, but after conceding the early goal they merely tickled a bit but never found the aggression they’ll need if they’re going to stay up. They were passive, so we didn’t need to be full throttle.
It’s that mood on the bus back that interested me. Against Sheff Weds, I think it was a relief that we weren’t going down – under Mark Kennedy last season, we never really looked like we were going up, either. That made the chant more of a release and expression of happiness at staying in the division. The lack of such a chant yesterday on the way home, even after celebrating the win in the stands, said more to me than the pensive silence that replaced it. It suggested that those supporters on our bus, and indeed many I spoke to yesterday, think that maybe, just maybe, this season isn’t going to peter out as early as we think.
On February 1st, we were 15 points outside the play-off. On February 14th, we were 13 points away from the top six. As we enter the month’s final days, we’re just nine points away. On Tuesday night, with Oxford not playing, we could be six points away – especially as Orient play Blackpool, so someone else above us will drop points. From 15 points to (potentially) six in a month?
Next weekend, we have a chance to inflict some serious damage on Stevenage, another contender for the final play-off spot, whilst Oxford travel to Portsmouth, and Orient have a tricky visit from Bristol Rovers. Feasibly, we could be three points outside the top six in seven days’ time. Can you imagine that? Dare we dream, a dream more coherent and exciting than the mangled memories residing in my head from yesterday?
Can we actually do it?
Even reading about your drinking makes me feel hungover so kudos for the excellent write up. Glad you enjoyed the Potteries, thank you for sharing the optimism. In Gary (and Cornell) we trust; if the boys have got you believing then maybe I can shake off my mid-table malaise!