Win Secured, Just About

The thinking ahead of yesterday’s game was pretty simple: just win, nothing more – and certainly nothing less. We managed to do that, but did come dangerously close to surrendering two points in the dying stages of an encounter that will have had football purists stunned into silence. As a spectacle it was truly horrible, as we seemed content to play a game in accordance with Cambridge’s style, although the conditions may well have played a part. No moans, we needed the points, but it wasn’t a performance to warm the heart.

The team was always going to be about whether Jones and/or Campbell would be fit to return and if anyone else had picked up a knock. We got one out of two in that Campbell was back in, but with Jones still sidelined. He returned for Anderson, who was back on the bench, where he was joined by Mbick as well as Aneke and Ahadme, with Dixon and rather strangely Mitchell dropping out of the squad. In a match in which the ball spent more time in the air than on the ground, and we ended up defending our box primarily against high balls, just why it was thought Mitchell might not be useful, and that instead we would have three replacement forwards, I really don’t know.

The early exchanges were mixed and scrappy, with a Campbell cross after a superb Ramsay interception and then lay-off from Godden causing confusion, then Cambridge threatening with a couple of balls into the box, then two McIntyre attempted clearances from inside the box rebounding off their players. Campbell took a whack from behind and went down injured, followed by Edwards after a strong challenge, all of which had every Addick mumbling about the approach of Harris teams, but they had their needs and priorities, we had ours.

Campbell took his revenge by opening the scoring on 13 minutes. A decent but simple ball down the line from Edwards saw him collect and then inexplicably allowed to cut inside. He then planted an excellent low shot across the face of the goal and beyond their keeper’s outstretched arm into the far corner.

That might well have been his final contribution as a few minutes later he was on the receiving end of another kick after laying the ball off and reacted badly, getting back up and shoving their guy in the chest. He went down clutching his face and rolling around. Fortunately the ref saw it for what it was and produced a yellow and not a red (although their guy’s initial challenge and subsequent histrionics went unpunished). But Campbell’s actions did oblige the referee to make a decision and some might have interpreted it as a red card offence.

Campbell soon after almost delivered a carbon-copy goal as this time Godden laid the ball back for him in the same area. Once again he cut inside, the shot was very similar, but this time their keeper got his fingers to it and turned it wide. And in what was with hindsight a golden spell for us shortly after Godden hit one from the edge of the box that beat the keeper but came back off the outside of the post.

As an attacking threat, you have to say that after that we rather disappeared. Campbell lasted the half but was clearly limping while Small on the other side was having a remarkably ineffective game. Our midfield was strangely content to loft every ball forward in the air, which gave us little to feed off. If anything the passing moves came from Cambridge, although the closest they came to equalising was when a smart ball across our area was met by Edwards and his effort to clear only just went wide of the post and behind.

The half-time stats showed Cambridge had had 59% possession but just three attempts on goal and none on target (against five and two for us). It was a fair indication of how we had struggled to hold onto the ball – or rather that we insisted on hoofing it forward in the air at just about every opportunity.

The second half was as a spectacle even worse than the first. We failed to create any really good chances, being restricted to a few shots easily dealt with and a header or two, with Jones’ substitutions adding energy (Anderson and Mbick), more height and strength (Aneke), and greater control down the right side (Watson) but nothing material inside the box.

At the other end, despite the probing of Stokes and Ballard, Cambridge were restricted to two key moments late on – although either could easily have cost us the win. First, with about five minutes of normal time left their guy was allowed to advance unchallenged and from just outside our box put in a slightly scuffed low shot. It ended up going just wide of the post with Mannion only able to watch. Then in the first of five added minutes chaos at a corner saw the ball headed back and reach two Cambridge players unmarked close in. Fortunately they managed to get in each other’s way, then the shot from close range came back off McIntyre’s face, then another shot over.

If either of those chances had resulted in an equaliser our mood would have been a great deal different. As it is we can gloss over some of the issues the game raised – such as why Small barely touched the ball (and when he did either miscontrolled it or slipped), why Aneke looked so leaden-footed, and why our midfield (and advancing defenders) were so happy to hit balls forward that we had no chance of getting on the end of. On the plus side Watson did well when he came on, as did Anderson and especially Mbick, even though our efforts in the final stages were focused on getting to the corner flag.

Instead we can look at the league table and know that another win on Friday guarantees us a play-off spot (in effect three of the play-off places are now pretty much decided - Wrexham/Wycombe, Stockport and us). Tantalisingly we have moved to six points behind Wrexham in second (and five behind Wycombe), but that’s to look at after Friday’s results – and Wrexham still only need seven points from their final four games, starting at home against Bristol Rovers, to ensure we cannot get automatic promotion. We hope football’s a funny enough game to make the top two, but let’s just guarantee top six on Friday and then see what the world looks like.