halfaperson
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Chelteham (h) 21st Feb 2009The second of a must win duo before we go into a trio of very demanding possible season defining games. The debacle on Tuesday night made the day hang on a thread with the safety net of indifference to catch the fall should the worst happen today. It should have been tense, it wasn’t. A sarny in the very excellent Riveresque café just up from the Adelphi, a couple in the Palace and my round in the Taps. Embarrassingly I found mesen at the bar with no money while he poured our drinks. Thankfully one of the others bailed me out but it wasn’t without penalty  . You can usually gauge the attendance by the density of the Taps crowd and the bus queue. There were periods when you would have thought there was no game on so we arrived at a 20,000 collective guess.
So Hughes back from injury surprisingly quickly and Douggy back in the center. Delph was the one of the central youngsters to be shifted wide when it could have been him or Howson. Robbo on the right and Snoddy partnering Becchio up front. This was the line up I was hoping for at Huddersfield so it got my thumbs up.
‘nam were the poorest side ive seen this season at their place (Tuesdays fiasco apart that is  ) but that didn’t stop us struggling keep a precarious 1-0 lead down there. They didn’t start much better yesterday either. A combination of that, our apparent renewed spirit and a better balanced midfield ensured we dominated the opening spell of the game. There was some lovely interchanges in the last third involving all 4 midfielders but the precision of the final ball was missing. That final missing piece of artistry was the difference between 0-0 and 3-0 after 30 minutes.
Howson probed, Snoddy laying slightly deep busied around the box, Robbo making inroads down the right and Delph dragging the ball around the left made it constant pressure in front of the South Stand. Howson had a shot and finally we were getting some quality corners swinging in especially from the left. It seemed like it was scramble after scramble in the far 6 yard box and twice Snoddy and Howson were put through to squander the chances. Just after the Snoddy attempt Hughes limped off to be replaced by Kilkenny. Hopefully the lad has worked hard enough during his dropping out of favour to convince the new manager not to forget about him. He can bring close control and composure in tight situations but he can also prove to be a liability when disposed too easily.
In fact he made an immediate impact in the center when Douggy moved to full back. It was his initiative that led to yet another 6 yard box incident that saw a robbo effort hit the post. Somehow we gave away a free kick after the rebound which they took quickly and suddenly we were under pressure. Casper fumbled and we looked shaky. This must have inspired Cheltenham has they had another chance moments later. Rui made a hash of a clearance that had aspects of comedy in it if it wasn’t so agonizing. Robbo made a rash ferocious looking tackle immediately in front of the dugout to send their bench livid. It looked clean but if it wasn’t he could have done some real damage.
We came through that little period thankfully unscathed and continued our dominance. Howson showing everything he should have but didn’t on Tuesday as time and again he got hold of the ball and prompted attacks. When he wasn’t trying to find the killer pass he shot, once high and wide and one narrowly skimming pass the post. Becchio squandered another one on one chance with the keeper. Delph won a free kick with 2 minutes extra time to go. Robbo sent a great attempt just over the tp LH post corner. The half ended not quite as It should when Kilkenny showed his defensive inconsistency with a silly attempted headed back pass that was thankfully cleared.
Second half got under way in very much the same vein. Robbo foraging down the right ourleft as we looked at him, Becchio dropped short to receive the pass from him and set Snoddy up in a super move. Snoddy then shortly produced some trickery of his own to lay it back to Kilkenny who chose to over elaborate when a shot was called for to see another chance wasted.
Delph broke through the center to send a curling shot wide leaving Snoddy fuming as he was in a great position himself to receive the pass.
Finally some great interchange between Robbo and Snoddy on the right sent a superb cross for Howson to meet perfectly for a well taken goal to give as a much deserved lead. The attacks continued. Delph again in space but the ball took a bobble and possession was lost as Snoddy was wide of him waiting the pass that again never came.
Becchio did what he did best and held up a ball holding off three defenders to send Robbo through who unfortunately produced another tame harmless cross. It really was all Leeds and it was difficult to comprehend that Cheltenham were that poor because we played some superb stuff with every player looking hungry. Douglas was a very able full back and he too was getting forward regularly.
Shortly after and incredibly, Cheltenham had the ball in the net for what looked a good goal from our distant position in the Kop. From the free kick we too broke but a poor Douglas pass wasted the break. Becchio had a header just over the bar before Fab Delph deftly put Howson through for a very well taken second goal.
As the sun shone on the East Stand it all started to feel good again and the misery of Tuesday night lifted. Kilkenny was enjoying himself. He does make his fellow midfielders work never hesitating to find them with a pass when they are in closed positions. I don’t mind this, the midfielders need to be comfortable taking these passes if we are to develop as a football team.
There was a bizarre sight to our left as a host of coppers rushed Keystone cop style through the tunnel to the West Stand car park for some reason. While this was happening Snoddy broke forward and there was a handball. Robbo took the free kick but straight to the keeper. Next it was Robbo again to break through and produce a great diagonal ball to Snoddy whose poor control sent the chance begging. JD as mentioned earlier was getting plenty of possession to move forward and get crosses in. Kilkenny was at the end of one of them but his header missed the mark. There was a scare when JD mishit a back pass but the danger was rescued. The last chance we had to make it three was yet another chance with only the keeper to beat but a by now tired Snoddy could not produce the goods. He was immediately replaced By Trundle and he and Becchio continued their diametrically opposed link up play of Tuesday. I looked at them both closely and could actually see the mutual look of disdain as each one looked at each other. Trundle about Becchios lack of natural talent and Becchio about Trundles lack of athleticism and big time Charlie attitude.
For some bizarre reason the manger replaced Becchio with three seconds left on the clock with Grella who even then found time for one decent touch before the ref blew. It was only right the lads got warmly applauded off. Yes 2-0 should have been 6-0 if we had shown some class and composure in front of goal but with other results going for us and three big games in front of us it was a much needed win.
I cannot stand waiting for the buses back to town after the games so I usually walk if im going back there. Did it in a very respectable 25 minutes and beat most of the lads back to the Prince Of Wales for an excellent pint of Black Sheep. Met H2 there who was accosted for the twenty quid I owed before getting a full blown account of what a waste of space I am. Tragically she agreed with them when money is concerned but didn’t see fit to put the record straight on other things. Me n Her then left and had another in Becketts and went to that seafood place Loch Fyne in city square across from the station to complete a very very decent day.
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