Oh well the first round proper of the FA Cup with on the face of it an unattractive tie away to Exeter on a very cold November day: not exactly one to get the Hatters fans heading to the South-West in their numbers especially as we head back to Exeter in three weeks time for a league 2 game. Before the game, I headed to St Ann's well for a swift pint of Otter ale. I felt I really had to go and have a look at the place as the last time I visited the inn it was pretty dreadful but has since has had over £100k spent on it refitting the place out and to be fair they have done a very decent job of it. From there it was off to the Centre Spot, the bar of the Exeter supporters club housed in an old Victorian school next to the ground. I really have to write a word or two of praise for the outstanding effort that has been made by a group of CAMRA volunteers who man Exeter City Real Ale & Cider Emporium; just brilliant, well done guys. Imagine two bars in the room, one serving all the usual offerings and one totally dedicated to real ale with three quality locally brewed ales on offer drawn straight from the barrel and a selection of local cider. I certainly know where I am heading in three weeks time: well-done guys, what a brilliant effort by a group of four volunteer CAMRA dudes. Over a beer, we were discussing the team selection which included the reinstatement of Justin for O'Donnell and a place for Pelly with the injured Marriott sitting this one out. McGeehan according to the early news, was to be rested and the initial line-up given was:
Walton, Justin, Cuthbert, Mullins, Sheehan, Rea, Lee, Gilliead, Pelly, Cook & Hylton. Maybe it would be fairer on Lee to see what he could do in a possibly more creative role with Rea doing the cleaning up. However, once again the away day warm up jinx struck with Mullins picking up a “warm up” injury. So off goes Mullins before the game begins; Glen Rea drops back from holding midfield with that role taken by ferocious Olly Lee and McGeehan having to give up his bench seat and start the game. I felt we started the first few minutes alright with some decent passing moves as we pushed into the Exeter half and likewise Exeter were probing our defence; not a great deal in it in the first 10 minutes. Then we are awarded a penalty for a foul on Hylton which Hylton himself takes and cheekily clips the ball into the net; 1-0 to the Town; could we build on this? Exeter were not themselves offering that much at this early stage but after the goal, they woke up a touch and started to put some pressure on the Hatters. Having said that, if the Exeter keeper had not been in good form we could have doubled our lead; the guy made a really decent save when it looked as if we were about to double our lead. Yes, a decent enough first ten to fifteen minutes but then we seemed to let things drop a fair amount and lost our way for the majority of the first half. Exeter began to get their game together and really put some pressure on our back line and in particular young Justin who was been severely tested but to his credit did not flap and kept at it even though most of the creative stuff was coming at him down the Exeter left flank. To be fair on Justin, I thought he could have been supported a touch more during this period by our midfield but the midfield were having problems of their own at this stage. We were not really getting to the second ball early enough, Lee certainly did not look the part in holding midfield and McGeehan pointed & pointed but did little else; we had begun to look a touch lightweight. Several very good Exeter crosses came over from that left side and had the home side been a touch more composed, they may have capitalised on those well-placed crosses that really did trouble our defence. Those type of crosses are the ones you just love to see; just too far out for the keeper and into the danger area where I felt our defenders should have competed better. As it was, the Exeter equaliser came from a move unintentionally started by Olly Lee with a dreadful pass from well inside his own half that McGeehan was always going to be hard-pressed to reach. Immediately the Exeter youngster Ethan Ampadu was onto it striding forward and hitting a great left foot shot that came back off the post for chubby Reuben Reid to tuck away: one apiece at half time and from a decent first 15 minutes, Exeter took over the final 30 minutes of that half and sadly we were getting little in the way of decent contribution from our midfield as the half progressed. So evens at halftime but could we turn things up a gear or two in that second half, get that midfield working and would Cameron get into the game? Well, pleasingly the answer to those questions was yes as the team upped their performance in the second half and Cameron started to get into the game. We were passing the ball quite well and Pelly was really looking threatening with his pace and power. One bit of Pelly magic out on the left produced a far post cross that was eventually put into the net by the classy Glen Rea and how he celebrated that goal: great stuff back in the lead. We continued to play reasonable well enough, not anywhere near our brilliant best form but as I say, well enough to be in the lead against Exeter. Then we had an utterly bizarre moment; the referee had stopped the game for a foul and the ball had run some 15 yards away near Pelly. Pelly was then incredibly elbowed to the floor by an Exeter player and all hell broke loose. Pelly got up from the deck and verbally confronted the offender then several players from both sides joined in the heated argument. The officials consult and then the Exeter offender is booked; wrong decision referee he should have been given a straight red; no doubt at all in my mind. Then things get a touch unreal as Pelly is then given a yellow from the referee to go with his yellow from the first half and then sent off. I don't usually moan about refereeing decisions but that was plain and simply absolutely terrible officiating from the referee/assistant referee; simply downright poor. The home crowd could now sense the advantage and excited local tribalism pervades the home terrace. In addition, the locals at every opportunity make their dislike of Hylton known; surely it's reasonable to take your time getting up off the deck after every challenge in a cup game: well certainly if your name is Danny Hylton and you are wearing a Luton shirt. Although Exeter had the extra man advantage, to their credit Luton really did dig deep with the back four splendidly mopping up just about every Exeter advance plus substitutes Smith and CMS chasing everything down. In fact, from a clearance downfield the alert CMS runs into the Exeter box and draws a “challenge” that has the referee immediately pointing to the spot: yes, CMS was showing all of his experience in that situation. Was it a penalty? Well it happened right in front of where I was sitting and to be fair I thought it was very soft indeed; I will leave it there. As Hylton had already scored from the spot our Cameron thought that this should be his turn but as Hylton was holding the ball and was obviously not prepared to release it, Cam was onto a loser. A nicely taken penalty from Hylton and there we are game over and in the hat for the draw for round two of the FACup. Overall impression We had a decent enough first 15 minutes but fell away markedly after that and stayed that way until halftime. I did see Nathan’s post match interview when he was scathing about our first half performance and saying possibly one of the worst he has seen since being at the club. Sorry Nathan, can’t agree with that assessment; we were not great in the first half but let’s not forget for starters: the first 30 minutes at Cambridge when we were out of it, Crawley away a duff performance and Cheltenham away with an absent midfield. At Exeter we may well have rode our luck a little in the first half when a couple of good crosses that troubled our defenders may have been capitalised on by a better opposition but that's the way it goes Thankfully we upped our performance in the second half and ran out fairly deserving winners: overall a decent away performance which as has been said many times before, away games suit our style of play. . Overall happy enough with the result but a few things for Nathan to sort out such as why were we so troubled by those threatening Exeter crosses why do our midfield so often struggle to pull it together as a unit. If we could manage another youngster on the books then let’s try to get Ethan Ampadu the 16 year old who played for Exeter yesterday; looks a really promising lad to me. The Sunday Rant Not sure it qualifies for a rant but I would have liked to see what Olly Lee could have offered supported by Glen Rea behind him doing the midfield defensive role allowing Olly to be a touch more creative. I do moan about Olly’s role in the team as I just don’t think he will ever make a decent holding midfield player, but it’s Nathan who does the selecting and plays him in that role; maybe yesterday it was a case of needs must etc. Oh well, let’s have a food rant. Come on LTFC catering just have a look at what was on offer at the food bar outside of the supporters club at the back of the main stand. Loads of selection from fried eggs to massive chunky pulled pork roles and very decently organised. Really, something for our club catering to learn from and have a bit more on offer that a mature dry bread roll wrapping itself around a tired burger or sausage. Some thoughts on individual performances: Walton: decent game and knew when to leave his line and come for the ball. As ever Walton was very confident handling of the ball; just simply a good guy to have in goal for the Hatters. Justin: mixed game in truth as he had a lot of pressure heaped on him in the first half of the game. However, he stuck to it and came through well enough in the end before being substituted late in the game; slight injury I think. Cuthbert: did a lot of things really well and overall had a captain's game. He certainly gave the referee a verbal dressing down over the Pelly incident. Rea: Good game with some very timely and strong interceptions and just how he celebrated his goal. Sheehan: a much sounder all round game than he had at County lady week. Some real saving tackles after we had gone down to ten men. However, as Nathan said earlier in the week, his days of running down the left wing are probably behind him Lee: not a very brilliant first half but he seemed to get things going well in the second half: well done him. I am often critical of Lee but that's more about his capability as a holding midfielder: maybe one day he will get to play a more constructive midfield role with Rea doing the holding job behind him. Pelly: produced some fine moments with powerful play and creative passing; just wish he could harness that talent more consistently because if he did, we would surely have the best midfielder in the division. Cook: a touch better than his anonymous performance last week and played his part in winning the first penalty but in truth, only a touch better than last week. I still don't quite get what Nathan sees in him but I guess it's early days. McGeehan: not up to much in the first half unfortunately but had a decent enough second half. Just why does he disappear from a game so often; really frustrates me as first touch apart, he has a lot of latent talent! Gilliead: some nice touches as he tried to take the game to Exeter. Some of his covering whilst enthusiastic could have been more effective but he is a young guy learning the game. However, undoubtedly a talent I would like us to keep at the Kenny. Hylton: what can you say? An absolute pain in the arse the arse for the opposition and also really winds the home crowd up. He just never stopped trying in the game; what a great guy to have in our ranks! Hylton did pick up his yellow to add to his collection but again as with some other decisions, that seemed very unfair; a bit of a marked man our Danny. The subs: CMS: he has come back after injury as the same angry wasp perfectly made for that time in the game when you are a goal ahead and need the angry wasp to keep the defenders on their toes. Did well in winning that penalty. Smith: added his usual assassin like quality to our midfield as he chased and challenged: he did well. O'Donnell: came on for Justin who had taken a couple of knocks and did fine. The Teams: Exeter City: Olejnik, Woodman, Simpson (Grant, 67), Holmes, Wheeler (Archibald-Henville, 83), Moore-Taylor, Taylor, Ampadu (Watkins, 87), Stacey, Sweeney, Reid Unused subs: Hamon, James, Oakley, McAlinden Luton Town: Walton, Rea, Cuthbert, Hylton, Cook (CMS, 69), Gilliead (Smith, 62), McGeehan, Pelly, Lee, Justin (O'Donnell, 87), Sheehan Unused subs: King, Gray, Vassell Referee: John Busby. Yes, he awarded us two penalties and thanks for that but to my mind, the second yellow for Pelly was just poor refereeing aided by an assistant referee. Attendance: 2,972 which included 310 cold Hatters supporters.
1 Comment
lizard
11/6/2016 02:18:32 am
thanks Bill, excellent as always
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