The game didn’t have an awful lot for us to discuss in terms of chances. It was, as I have alluded to, bitty and broken, with no rhythm or flow. We had decent chances in the first 20 minutes, one from Reeco, who fired wide, and another from Ben House, who also put wide. In terms of xG, I know we had the better, 1.26 to 0.42, so we had the opportunity to win the game 1-0. If one of the teams did deserve to win, it was us, but putting my objective head on for a moment, 0-0 was probably the fairest result.
Our plan looked quite straightforward. We forced them to have possession where they didn’t want it. You know you’re short on entertainment as supporters when you’re chanting ‘ole’ to passes across the back, and that’s what they were reduced to for a short stint. I know I’m doing them a bit of a disservice here, but I’ve taken the hump with some of their fans. Apparently, me describing it as ‘anti-football’ isn’t fair as they had more shots on target (one more, but five fewer overall), and they played more passes (19 more, but 10 more backpasses and 20 more long hoofs upfield). We wanted them in their half with the ball, and because they knocked it across the back a bit every so often, and launched it forward more, it does nothing to convince me it’s worth watching every week.
Of course, they have a threat, and of course, they have half-decent players; otherwise, they wouldn’t be where they are. I think the time-wasting and niggly fouls should have been dealt with better by Madley. The assault on Jensen wasn’t pretty by Reid, and another of their lads did the same in the second half. The pulling and shirt tugging were evenly spread, and I wonder if instead of making a rod for his back (as the ref did against Burton), he looked to put the dangermen on yellows to calm everyone else down. Jamie Reid got his (warranted) House got one for a foul no worse than others we’d seen, then Erhahon opened his mouth at the wrong time and got one. Let’s be honest – he could easily have been sent off, so Madley did us a favour there, but overall, I thought the ref was just inconsistent. One moment in the second half stood out – House was clearly fouled with one of Stevenage’s trademark barges, and he waved play on. Not a minute later, he gave a free-kick to us in the middle of the park for exactly the same challenge.
In the second half, Stevenage certainly started the better, and they had a spell for maybe 20 minutes where I thought they rattled us as much as they’ve rattled me for this report. We got penned in, and we began to see some moments of nice football – sporadic, but they were there. We weren’t getting out quickly enough, and they have the power to keep you hemmed in. They’ve got decent players – Jordan Roberts looked a different prospect from his time here, and whilst I disliked Reid, he’s very effective at what he does. It took us a while in the second period to find our feet, but once we did, I never felt we’d lose the game. Vadaine Oliver came on, and his first involvement was to smash an elbow into a defender’s face (I think it was Roughan). A leopard never changes its spots.
I thought Paudie was excellent throughout; winning
62% of his aerial duels against a team that loves the ball in the air is not to be sniffed at. I also thought Roughan was superb – he won 70% of his defensive duels. This was certainly a game for the defenders, but we did have our moments going forward. Ted had a decent game, although a pretty crude forearm smash early doors left him in no doubt his fancy footwork wouldn’t be tolerated. Not having McGrandles or Hamilton left Ted with a bit more ‘dirty’ work to do, and I thought he did it well.
Jack Moylan needs a mention. I named him as my Man of the Match coming out of the ground (on reflection, I think perhaps Paudie deserved it). Moylan worried me before the game. I thought maybe he might be a bit lightweight and anonymous in a game you know is going to be a war, but he absolutely proved me wrong. He looks great on the ball, and in the pub afterwards, Chris likened his arrival to that of Ben House. He has a ‘don’t care’ attitude on the ball and a natural ability that really shone through. On an afternoon where the overriding outcome was disappointing, he was one of the (many) positives to emerge in terms of the bigger picture.
After being out of the second half for a while, we came back into it when Freddie came on. Joe Taylor had a tough afternoon. It wasn’t quite the type of game for him, but Fred wasn’t afraid to knock into a few players to use his bulk to win a couple of balls. It’s been tough for him since coming back to the club, given his injury, but there’s no doubt he offers us a bit of something different. He had a late chance from a corner he headed over, but he was a general nuisance and a major part in me believing if either side was going to win the game, it would be us.
Here’s the thing – if that game was six or seven into the season, we’re lauding a good result against a tough side who are organised well and do what they do with ruthless efficiency. When it’s ten from the end, and you need a win, it becomes a disappointment, a result that leaves you with an empty bitterness, rattled and hypocritical. You start saying ‘what if’ to anyone who’ll listen. What if the injury time rules that have been relaxed weren’t in play at the start of the season, and we’d hung on to beat Bristol Rovers and Northampton? What if we’d had one striker fit between September and December? What if the Orient game hadn’t been abandoned and the result had been allowed to stand? Oh no, that doesn’t quite fit the narrative! The truth is this – we are where we deserve to be. Stevenage, for all my moaning, are where they deserve to be. I’m not sure any Stevenage fans will still be reading this – I hope they are because the whole point of this report is to show the contrast between fanalysis and analysis and how a game can be watched through rose-tinted glasses but seen objectively.
There’s a sadness and a sense of peace in me this morning. Sadness that we’re not two points closer to the top six from a game where if any team deserved the points, it was us. However, there’s also peace in knowing we’ll be okay. We do things the right way, sustainably, and if we keep the nucleus of the side together, we’re going to be knocking on the door of the top six next season. If we hadn’t had such terrible fortune with injuries concentrated on key areas of the field, we’d be there now, because I haven’t seen a promotion-chasing side this season who have blown me away – probably still only Peterborough at their place, and that was a game xG said we should have won.
I’ll give the final word to Evans, who squats rent-free in my head and has done ever since he oozed into the Football League with Boston when his suspension ended, like bin juice running out of punctured, rotting bin liner. I will acknowledge he is effective at what he does, but I’ll never respect it. I’ll confess the job he’s done with his current vessel is impressive, but I won’t praise it. He is to football what rain was to the Ashes – affecting the outcome efficiently, but it’s not really cricket.
Up the Imps.
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