|
 |
THE AWAY END - FRATTON PARK 1-1-08
John Powls
The Build Up To The Game
As we left The Away End after the win at Pride Park my mate Ian said that if we repeated the Derby performance at any other Premiership ground we wouldn't win. He obviously got it wrong because he should have said against any other Premiership team whichever ground it was as we slumped to defeat at The Riverside against The Hammers.
The other galling thing about that West Ham defeat was when Gate said in an interview after the game that he couldn't understand the performance. That hit the nail right on its (his) head.
Neither Gate nor anyone on the management or coaching staff seems to understand how or why we got the results against Arsenal, Derby or The Hammers. If they don't understand, they can't influence. Mistakes - like soft goals conceded in the 'red zones' - get repeated and have gone unrectified whilst successes have come like bolts from the blue.
As Ian also said to people he knows in Derby before the game - 'it all depends which Boro gets off the team coach that day.'
The Boro that got off the coach at St. Andrew's were obviously embarrassed that they hadn't got The Blues a Christmas present. Birmingham didn't so much win that six pointer - they were handed the points gift-wrapped.
On the websites the unexpected elation from the Arsenal game and the suspension of disbelief from Derby has evaporated after what even The Boat called 'our usual poor Xmas' to be replaced by scathing appraisals of our current predicament.
There were several harbingers of doom about the Pompey game. Notable amongst them were:-
Pompey had gone 450 minutes without scoring a home goal.
Aliadiere's injury may have opened the door for Simba to start.
Our record at Fratton Park was dismal.
Against those, they hadn't conceded at home for ages either - our only ray of hope! But as Ian has also said - you always get some points when you least expect it.
Phil and I took the train to Portmouth, having been trapped for hours in traffic the last time we travelled there. It was a good choice; the trains were uncrowded and on time and the station is only ten minutes walk from the ground.
As we approached Fratton Park we were reminded of what a throwback to a bygone age it is, crowded in behind terraced houses, scruffy back alleys and waste ground. But there were plenty of places for the ritual gristleburger with cheese and onion.
As we scoffed we noticed the Boro coach as it pulled up at the end of the stand. We thought it was the perfect chance to test Ian's theory and see if we could discern which Boro got off the coach. The lads' demeanour gave no clue and neither did Gate's or the coaches'.
What we found out later from Gate's description was that what got off the coach were the only sixteen fit first teamers available.
The Game
This was our second trip to Fratton park. The first was a miserable occasion - not just for the result but also because The Away End there was the most miserably appointed in the Premiership and exposed to the harsh wind and thin drizzle off the channel.
It has now been 'improved' by the addition of a roof and has now attained the architectural status of a bin with a lid. The 'toilets' were more accurately 'middens' and would be well placed in the less savoury corners of Beamish for disbelieving schoolkids to gawp at. But it is, I am told, the birthplace of ComeOnBoro.com - Phil and I couldn't find the plaque!
It was a bright, dry afternoon with a gusty wind that seemed to be coming from several directions at once. Whichever direction it was coming from you felt where it went to!
I had also forgotten quite what a camber Fratton Park has - like a turfed over railway tunnel!
When we read the programme - and despite the 'no game is ever easy in the Prem' stuff in every article - it was clear that they saw this as a home banker and a chance to kick start their goal-scoring at home again. Logically, you couldn't blame them.
The team was confirmed early with Simba starting as well as Shawky for his Prem debut after half a season of 'preparation' and just in time for him to disappear to Ghana on international duty! Phil and I hoped that the extended tune-up had improved him from his first team debut that we saw in the Carling Cup at Spurs when he was subbed at half-time after the whole of the first forty-five had passed him by.
We were pleased to see that O'Neil was playing. His absence in the last two games had cost us dear. He was out on the pitch a good ten minutes before the bulk of the squad doing an extra warm up with Luke Young. The reason would become clear when the game reached the second half. Luke Young spent most of the warm up doing cramp-avoiding stretches.
Despite the distance to travel and the festive season The Away End was full again and in terrific voice as we combated the justly famous Fratton atmosphere and irritating Pompey chime, drums and that damned bell.
Another surprise as the teams emerged was the choice of Boro Captain in the absence of The Boat - it was Julio Arca. No reflection on the Argentinian but O'Neil has captained us before and it's not unusual to give that honour to a player visiting his former club.
O'Neil got a warm welcome from he Pompey fans but that only lasted as long as it took him to rattle into a couple of challenges and surge down the wing a few times. It was clear that he was up for it. The rest of the team took their lead from him and we started well and confidently. Amazing, considering the Boxing Day shambles.
What we started to see and get behind from The Away End was the beginnings of what turned out to be the best and most complete ninety minutes away performance, certainly this season and probably last too.
The performance was built on a totally sound defence in which the joint pillars were Woody and Huth - both immense. They were complemented by Pogo and especially Luke Young.
Whichever way they came at us, in the air, on the deck, through the centre or from the wings, in open play or from set pieces they were met with obdurate and measured resistance. There were no panicked clearances, the ball was won cleanly and passed or headed out into midfield or chipped to the front.
As in the best team play the defending wasn't just from the back four. Stewie worked back and the central midfield pair, Arca and Shawky grafted hard, got their foot in and passed away neatly and carefully. The key mention, though, must be made for the partnership Gary O'Neil forged with Luke Young - brilliant defending, setting attacks off and overlapping eachother going forward.
This was especially commendable as both seemed to be suffering with Boro's latest injury fad - cramp - throughout; presumably the reason for the additional exercise in the warm-up. Young spent the whole game stretching at every opportunity.
In defending from the front Tunny worked like the Duracell bunny again and Simba couldn't be faulted for his work rate so their midfield and defence never got a rest and couldn't dwell on the ball.
Such was the calm dominance that they were restricted to one chance from open play in each half. The first was blazed over by Bouba Diop when he should have hit the target, the other gave Kanu chance to hit the post when Skippy did a 'Scissorhands' and the ball squirmed from his grasp to create a six-yard box scramble. Other than that Schwarz didn't have a save to make but was commanding when he had to be.
They had a couple of chances from free-kicks, one or two given away by Arca as he fouled after having given the ball away and then, late on, when Mr. Riley's increasingly 'homer' refereeing saw him giving them totally unjustified free-kicks when it was clear that they weren't going to score any other way.
But this solid defensive basis from the back four and the team as a whole was far from the whole story. We took every chance to attack as a team too and had as much of the play as the home side, created more and better chances and looked purposeful throughout. Our passing was generally accurate and was made possible by much better movement and runs than we have shown of late.
Most important to this was the width given to us by Stewie and O'Neil who held their wings, coupled with their tireless working up and down. With Tunny's movement and Simba's effort this meant we always had an edge, a pass on, an out ball and we could always threaten and did.
So ominous did we look for them that their usually very vocal home support couldn't raise the steam to get behind their side and The Away End was dominant for most of the game.
It came as little surprise when Boro opened the scoring. Equally, the three players involved were no surprise either. Stewie - our most constant supplier for this and many seasons picked out a superb left footed cross from the right wing which curved to Gary O'Neil, free beyond the far post. His firm shot could only be parried by James and there was Tunny, on the spot again for his fourth in six - a classic poacher's finish which The Away End celebrated with him.
Truth be told we should have had a second later in the half but Simba wasn't quick enough to appreciate or seize on the half-chance. Sadly, both of the best openings that we fashioned in the second half fell to him too - both should have gone in and made our afternoon even more comfortable.
Goodness knows what the response would be from Boro's fans if he did score. The chants are prepared and were practised yesterday - they involved rhyming 'scores' with 'Labradors' - but died away quickly as another chance went begging. But such was his effort that when he was subbed for Ben Hutchinson he received warm and generous applause as he trotted off.
Shawky's debut contribution was also solid and neat, if not spectacular - he let nobody down, unlike at Spurs. Arca was still a little ring-rusty from his lay-off and tired late on but picked a few very good passes to add to his graft.
As the game wore on, and unlike the Derby game where the situation was similar, we never looked like we were going to concede - even when Mr. Riley started piling on invented free-kicks around our box.
'Arry had tried everything he knew and used all three subs but to no avail and he, his team and their departing fans knew the game was up a fair while before it ended.
Towards the end Gary O'Neil succumbed to cramp and then to what could have been a repeat of his hammy that kept him out of the last two games. Whichever, the second time he went down he signalled straight to the dug-out to come off and was replaced for the last few minutes by Johnno. We hoped that it was precautionary and he would be available for the Everton game as The Away End applauded his every step off the field.
From somewhere, Mr. Riley found 4 minutes added time. But some work must have been done on seeing the game out as we intelligently used Johnno and Hutchinson to run the channels and pin them back. We could even have added a second had Johnno not been cynically hacked down when headed for their area after he had wriggled free from the attentions of two defenders in the corner.
Eventually, the whistle went and we celebrated a well deserved win and a good performance with the team and departed happy with the chanting ringing out into the surrounding alleys and streets.
Later...
On the train home Phil and I basked in both the heating of South West Trains and the afterglow of the win. We hoped that O'Neil's substitution was a precaution and that he'd be back for the Everton game. We also both liked us playing in white socks - it lent some interest and distinction to our most boring kit in years.
But we still couldn't fathom - could anyone, including, as I said above, anyone at the club - how we produced that almost faultless performance only a few days after the abject, error-strewn surrenders to The Hammers and Brum.
Just as much to the point, have any of us any better idea how we will play against Everton on New Year's Day or which Boro will get off the coach at Ashton Gate?
All teams experience the blips in performance but for Boro lurching from one type of blip to another has become what we do as the norm. Surely, getting the squad to a level of consistency that comes close to their capabilities shouldn't be beyond a decent managerial and coaching group. If we could do that we surely have enough in the squad - except up front - not to be wallowing in the bottom reaches.
Our discussion turned to strikers available in the window. Jason Roberts, the Amoeba from The Barcodes, Hulse, Dickov, Lita, Nugent and even Ezquerro from Barcelona have been mentioned as reasonable possibilities.
If it only to be one Phil and I identified Roberts for pace and power in our straw poll of two. If it's two - but no more money available - we'd take Dickov as well on the basis that he's a thorough damned nuisance, works like stink and is always liable to pester a goal out of nothing.
On MOTD later we have returned to the usual graveyard slot but at least we get some praise for the performance and the win - see below. I'm waiting for the New Year's Day edition to see Tuncay net us Goal of the Month for the second month running!
'Yerjokin'aren'ya' Quote of the Week
"I might have to become a Boro fan too." Alan Shearer on MOTD seconds after also proclaiming himself a born again Mackem. Planning a trip to Rome, Alan, just to see The Pope?
The Away End will be back with an FA Cup edition after the Bristol City game on 5 January. All good things to you and yours and to our beloved Boro for 2008!!
************
John Powls is a published poet with five books of his work in print. He is a regular performer of his work at major literary festivals and exhibitions in the UK and America, often working with musicians, painters with photographer Carol Ballenger.
Check out Red Shoes 250 for more of John Powls, right here.
RETURN TO AWAY END INDEX HERE
A GUARANTEED PROFIT OF AT LEAST £41.20 ON PORTSMOUTH v FULHAM
Did you know that it is possible to win money on Sunday afternoon's Premiership clash between Portsmouth v Fulham, whatever the result?
The game kicks off at 3.00pm and we can guarantee you a profit of at least £41.20, whatever the result of the match. All you have to do is follow the simple instructions below and then sit back and enjoy the game. At full-time, you will be at least £41.20 better off, whatever the result of the match.
We must point out that if you want to take this bet, you should do it now because if the odds change, then the figures here will be invalidated. If they have changed, let us know and we will rework the bet for you.
You can still do this if you have a Betfair account but your overall profit will be reduced by £25.00 as you won't receive the £25.00 cashback as an existing account holder.
If you are unsure about this bet, you are most welcome to call us on 01642 223229 and we will help you as much as we can.
We're going to lay out a total of £71.00 on the Portsmouth v Fulham match and we will collect £115.00 if Portsmouth win, £112.20 if Fulham win and £114.13 if it's a draw. That's a minimum profit of 58%, a much higher interest rate than you will get in any high street bank.
Here's how it's done. Just follow these simple instructions.
1. Open an account with Coral. It is really important that you enter the bonus code of CORALTD when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Betfair. It is really important that you enter the promotional code of BFB425 when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Extrabet
 .
This shouldn't take you any longer than a few minutes.
2. Make the following deposits into your new accounts.
Deposit £20.00 into your new Coral account.
Deposit £26.00 into your new Betfair account.
Deposit £25.00 into your Extrabet
account.
3. Now make the following bets.
Place £20.00 on Portsmouth at 3.00 (2/1) with Coral.
Coral will now add a £10.00 bonus to your account. Place this on Portsmouth as well. You will now have £30.00 riding on Portsmouth.
Back the draw with £25.00 at 3.7 (11/4) (or higher if available) with Betfair.
Place £26.00 on Fulham at 2.2 (6/5) with Extrabet .
Extrabet match your first bet up to £25 so you will now have £51.00 riding on Fulham.
The £25.00 matched bet will not show in your account but you can read all about how it works on the Extrabet site. It's the purple box that says '£25 FREE BET FOR NEW CUSTOMERS' on the top right hand side. Click here to visit the Extrabet site.
If you are unsure about placing these bets, please feel free to mail us or call us on 01642 223229 and we will talk you through it, no problem at all. There is no such thing as a stupid question.
You have temporarily laid out a total of £71.00 on the Portsmouth v Fulham match. I stress, temporarily... Now sit back, crack a beer open and enjoy the match.
4. Here's what happens at the end of the game.
If Portsmouth win, you collect £115.00. That's £90.00 from Coral plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If it's a draw, you collect £114.13. That's £89.13 from Betfair plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If Fulham win you collect £112.20. That's £87.20 from Extrabet plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
5. This means that the worst case scenario on the Portsmouth v Fulham match is Fulham win and you make £41.20 profit. However, if it is a draw you make £43.13 and if Portsmouth win you make £44.00. That's a minimum profit of 58%, a much better rate of interest that you would get at any high street bank or building society.
6. It is absolutely vital that you click on the links on this page to open the accounts with the two bookies and enter the correct bonus codes or you may not qualify for the bonuses.
Also, before you place your bets, you should check that the odds haven't changed. If they have, let us know by mail or phone us on 01642 223229 and we will rework the bet for you.
Please feel free to contact us or phone us on 01642 223229 if you have any questions at all about this bet and we will help you as much as we can.
Please note that the bonuses are valid for new customers only so if you already have an account with one or more of the bookies we are using, you won't be able to do this. If that is the case, mail us or phone us on 01642 223229 and we'll create an alternative bet for you using different bookies.
This method of betting was used very successfully during the 2006 World Cup and you can read all about how it was done right here.
We guarantee this bet
It's understandable that some people will not believe that it is possible to do this. "What's the catch?" I hear you asking. My answer to that question is that we have been publishing arbitrage bets for four seasons now and literally hundreds of people have profited from following the advice on these pages.
Only twice has our refund guarantee been triggered and that was when we did all the figures wrong and sent refunds out to those who had followed our advice and made a small loss.
Our refund guarantee works like this. If this bet doesn't work like we say it will and you end up out of pocket, we will refund your losses. Simple as that.
That means that you simply cannot lose on this, whatever happens and even if we messed up the numbers.
The only stipulation here is that you must click on the links on this page to be eligible for the refund guarantee, not that you'll be needing to claim anyway. Just enjoy the profit and stay posted for many more of these throughout the season.
|
|
|
|
