It’s always nice to go to Cambridge to see Luton play and it’s not just because of our fine record of playing at Cambridge in recent years. Another reason is that it’s a chance to visit the very excellent Cambridge Blue in Gwydir Street; a fabulous oasis of real ale. When standing at the bar whilst your ale is been poured direct from the barrel in the temperature controlled “cellar” you have a chance to tour the country reading the army of hand pumps that adorn the bar and the unusually large selection of exotic lagers. If a beer hunter were looking for paradise then this watering hole would surely come close: great beer and the great company of fellow Hatters supporters. Nathan made two changes to last Tuesday's team that lost at home to Leeds: Pelly and Cook in for Gray and the unfortunate Iniesta Smith the “can’t make a 10-yard pass” chap who made two wonderful defensive splitting passes for Marriott’s chances in that Leeds game. Pre-match sitting in the very decent away end stand although the atmosphere was building nicely there was just a little something missing and that was, of course, the man who had given these games an edge in recent seasons that charismatic cheerleader Richard Money. If the football in those previous games did not entertain you enough then the play fighting of Money and JS certainly did. To be fair, I did like Money and had his personality been a bit less volatile then maybe we would have been back in L2 a couple of years sooner. The match started at some pace with both sides pushing forward and Luton almost snatched the lead when receiving a cross-field pass volleyed the ball against the top of the post with Norris totally beaten. Cambridge then pushed forward and seemed to have decided that our vulnerable right flank was worth concentrating on. For the next thirty minutes, Cambridge took the upper hand rather overrunning us in midfield where Olly Lee was really having trouble getting his game started. I do like Lee’s vision and range of passing; he says he likes playing a holding midfield role but I am not convinced that he is anywhere near good enough in the defensive side of his game for that role. Mullins and Rea looked to be very stretched and O’Donnell, a player I have stood up for so often when he has been criticised, came under serious pressure. I can’t say he was enjoying his best game, not just in terms of closing down the right-hand wing but also losing his man in the area. Thankfully the excellent Walton was on top form positioning himself well and making some excellent saves. Walton is growing on me; when he is of a mind to, he can leave his line and dominate his area; in this game, he also showed us that for a giant of a guy he can also do the really agile reflex stuff at waist height. McGeehan also had a great long range pop at goal when picking the ball up near the half-way line and going on a tremendously powerful charge before unleashing a great shot; that was close. The hatters produced another excellent chance this time for Pelly who cut in from the left and only had Norris to beat but managed to drag the ball the wrong side of the post Marriott style. Cambridge came roaring back and we were really looking in danger. Nathan Jones to his credit decided that a change was needed on the 30-minute mark and replaced the ineffective Lee with Cuthbert; Rea moving into the holding midfield role and Cuthbert slotting in alongside Mullins. Immediately Cuthbert was in the action winning headers and looking to be in control especially as Rea was making some forceful challenges in his holding role. The whole defence now seemed more assured with Cuthbert and Mullins working well as two experienced centre backs and Rea supporting just in front of the pair. We reached half-time and I felt a touch relieved that we were not behind. Although there was plenty of action, that first 45 minutes was to my mind our weakest first half performance so far this season. For much of the half, we had been under pressure, not winning the midfield battle, exposed on the right and reliant of Walton pulling off some fine saves. The first fifteen minutes of the second half did not produce any magic from either side and you began to get the feeling that a point would be fine from a game we were having real difficulty imposing ourselves on; to be truthful at this stage Cambridge were no better. Then things changed when Rea headed Cook’s beautifully weighted free kick across the goal for one of the Cambridge defenders, Coulson, to connect with his shin and divert the ball past Norris : 1-0 to the Town, fortunate stuff but when you are in the lead, let’s take it. Anyway, why lets things rest there? Within a couple of minutes, Marriott had scored a belter cutting in from the right and hitting a great left foot shot that beat the keeper: quite a moment of class that one for a L2 side. The Cambridge manager, Shaun Derry responded by making a double substitution sending on “feed the pig & he will score” Pigott and the giant Ikpeazu, so no prizes for guessing what Derry’s approach would be for the remainder of the game. Of course, then aerial bombardment from Cambridge continued and a little annoyingly we often did not help ourselves by giving away a few too many free-kicks. The free kicks gave Cambridge opportunities to launch balls into the area but Walton and his centre backs were thankfully up to dealing with the basic tactic. I remember Berry in his first spell when he came through the Cambridge youth scheme, his free kicks used to be something special in those days but thankfully on Saturday they were not as good as I remember them. Pelly was giving the Cambridge left flank some real trouble and in one move starting close to the corner flag produced some total magic worthy of a much higher league than L2, beautifully beating the defence and squaring the ball across goal to create a decent opportunity. If you get a chance, have a look at the match highlights when they are published. We very nearly had a third when Cook, a player who is really growing on me, beautifully weaved his way through the Cambridge defence but could not get sufficient hit on the final touch to beat Norris. I reckon once Cook, Pelly and Marriott recalibrate their overall finishing, and Jack did that a little earlier, then some defences are going to be really under the hammer. With injury time ticking away we had yet another injury time goal which seems to be the pattern of the league season. Berry made a mess of an attempted pass and the ball was collected by Iniesta Smith who ran down the wing and squared the ball beautifully for our card collecting Hylton to turn the ball into the left-hand corner of Norris’s net: what a beauty 3-0; Yes! Last week as we were leaving the Stevenage ground I said that in some game to come we would play less well than we did at Stevenage and wing 3-0; little did I know that it would be 7 days later. Overall I felt we stuck at our task after being under a lot of pressure in the first half hour of the game and to my mind, Nathan has to be congratulated for sorting out that initial frailty and introducing the impressive Cuthbert. For many supporters, the words impressive and Cuthbert do not sit comfortably together but with a commanding keeper behind him, he can do just fine in my view. He may not be our best centre back but praise where it is due. Not a bad day out, not a brilliant game but a couple moments of class made all the difference. My impressions of our player’s performances: Walton: what a good game he had and it’s credit to him that we remained level at half time. We know that when he has a mind to he can dominate in the air; we now know that he is also a decent reflex keeper. O’Donnell: I have always argued O’Donnell’s case but he did not have his best game and came under a lot of pressure from Cambridge as they targeted him a fair amount. He must be looking over his shoulder at Justin by now. Mullins: played well after the initial pressure; looks what he is, an experienced centre back. Rea: was trying to cover all over the defence in that torrid first thirty minutes. Came into his assured self patrolling in front of the back four when Cuthbert came on. Cuthbert: had a super game winning lots in the air against taller players: well done Cuthbert. Potts: looks to be growing nicely into the LB role and did well enough yesterday. Lee: as I said above, I like his vision and creativity and when allowed to play his game both he and the team look good but I just don’t think he is aware enough or robust enough to play that deep holding role. Pelly: did some great stuff and very powerful. He did miss a Marriott type chance but he is getting better and better the more he plays. Cook: I was not that sure about him in his first few games but he is gradually growing on me as he quietly goes about his work. McGeehan: seemed to play deeper than usual but the power and will seen in the previous two games was there. Marriott: I am just so pleased that he got that cracking goal and let's be fair if he had put away the chances in the last few games then he would not be playing in a L2 team. Hylton: complete competitive pain to the Cambridge defence all afternoon. Unfortunately, he collected his 4th yellow of the season; not long before he has a day off fishing! Iniesta Smith: he loves our club and by heck, he is really trying to polish his passing game. On the back of his two super through balls setting Marriott away against Leeds, be produced the goods again late in the game. Vassell’s: brought on for that fit of fresh energy and pace. I would love to see what he can do once he has a couple of goals to his name The Teams: Cambridge: Norris, Taylor, Adams (Gosling 78), Dunne, Legge, Mingoia, Berry (C), Williamson (The Pig Pigott 65), Coulson, Clark (Ikpeazu 65), Elito. Subs not used: Gregory, Sean Long (remember him?), Dallison, Newton. Luton: Walton, O’Donnell, Potts, Rea, Mullins (C), Lee (Cuthbert 28), Cook, Pelly (Smith 87) , McGeehan, Hylton, Marriott (Vassell 90) Subs not used: King, Justin, Gray, Josh McQuoid. Bookings: Clark 33, O’Donnell 40, Rea 63, Hylton 83. Attendance: 5,606 (1,690 Luton). Nathan's post match interview & the goals:
4 Comments
RutlandHatter
8/29/2016 05:12:37 am
Superb review, as always. I thought Cuthbert was oodles better than at Stevenage and then realised that I've always thought he plays better when next to an experienced centre half. For me, the introduction of Cuthbert was what turned the game. I also thought Walton looked so much better so I think my initial thoughts of him were too hasty. Please keep up the good work with these posts.
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Curlz
8/30/2016 06:22:51 am
Not a bad report Old Bean lol. Terrific stuff Sir. Iniesta, Love it. Where did they all run to after the 3rd goal ? My hero... I actually thought Hylton was expecting that pass precisely where he got it.
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