Not a Penalty is it Moose?.... You Twat!!
Having been a Saints supporter for many years, I have developed a certain understanding of which games to be especially wary of. It’s not the relegation 6 pointers or the games against the better sides that are the issue but the ones you ‘should’ win, you know the ones where you’re higher in the league and in good form and the opposition is not on the best of runs and are struggling. With Saints, there is no such thing as a sure thing aside from that we will bollocks it up when we shouldn’t. So, here we are at a game that on paper, we should win. Against that is the fact that no one wins shit on paper and that Millwall knocked us out of the FA Cup and despite us rotating the squad a bit for that game, Millwall looked a decent side and showed that they could play.
It has been a relatively quiet week for Saints with us basking in the glow of Sir Rickie being the best player in the Championship. Reading played in midweek and were held to a draw at Doncaster which burned their game in hand and left them two points and a worse goal difference behind us.
Word had leaked out of the camp that both Tadanari Lee and David Connolly were struggling and so it was proved with Nigel’s team selection which saw Chappers come in on the right hand side with Guly going up front. Billy Sharp again had to settle for a place on the bench where he was joined by Corky, Steeeeeeve and Aaron Martin. Dan Harding took the spare place left by Connolly dropping out, which in my opinion would have been better filled by Bart. On the subject of keepers, Millwall have Maik Taylor in goal who was a very good keeper for Saints for a year back in 1956. He’s 74 now but still getting a game and fair play to him. The other major Millwall team news is that Liam Trotter is missing who was easily their best player in both games at SMS this season. They do however have Andy Keogh up front who I believe is on loan from Wolves to partner Darius Henderson who is on loan from the World Wrestling Federation.
I know I’m in for a shocker in trying to keep in touch with his game as I’ve got a dog to walk, a choir practice to take one of my kids to and a trip to Wickham to go and collect some shit table and chairs that my wife has bought on ebay. I would rather be at Millwall in a West Ham shirt… I start the game, walking the dog with Dave Merrington.
Saints start well and are in control of things, passing it around, having good control of the football (Adkins Classic Quotes Number 432) but it takes 15 minutes to fashion the first chance as Sir Rickie works a 1-2 with Lallana before letting fly from 25 yards a seeing it smash onto the bar and back to where the grateful Taylor could grab it. It was later shown that the 86 year old got a touch with his arthritic fingers so it was in fact, a superb save.
The goal appears to be coming though and it duly arrives in the 20th minute as Foxy chips a pass down to wing to where Morgan has broken free. He calmly slides it across the box to the awaiting Sir Rickie who momentarily scares the shit out of everyone by firing into the open goal via the underside of the bar. I’m walking the dog listening to the radio while all this is going on and I then have to listen to Adam Blackmore basically saying that it was game over and “Saints never lose when in front” and “Millwall never come back” and all that. Now I know that the ramblings of one plonker doesn’t have an effect on what goes on on the park so it’s not his fault that within five minutes we are 2-1 down. It’s not his fault but he does look like a complete tool.
The tale of what happened starts with us still knocking it around nicely and Millwall being unable to get anything going but they only need to do so the once and they score. A decent ball gets played by Wright in between Big Jos and Foxy which sends Keogh away down the wing. In an echo of the goal we conceded at home to Ipswich , he cuts in past Jos, Foxy slips and then he hits it at the near post. It’s harsh to point a finger at Superkelv but it evades his dive, hits the post and pings across the goal onto the shins of Jose and ends up in the net.
Our organisation then goes to shit at a corner when Jose and Jos go for the same ball and it eventually falls to the unmarked Robinson who takes a touch and lashes it into the top of the net from the edge of the box. Great strike but distinctly preventable. So, 2-1 down and we are attempting to put the game out of sight with our shambolic marking at corners and Robinson gets on the end of the next flag kick to force Superkelv into a smart save at the post. Get a grip!!!!
We manage only one decent effort for the remainder of the first half as Guly cuts in off the left wing and fires in a low effort to the back post but Taylor
Steeeeeve is on for Chappers at half time – tactical or injury... who knows but he’s straight into the action and nearly scores after he’s picked out by a Sir Rickie nod down following a superb pass by Morgan. The left footed volley is past Taylor who has dropped his dentures but headed off the line by Robinson who really shouldn’t have been there but Millwall must be glad that he was.
Dave Merrington is old school as we know and he obviously would rather all the players were called traditional names like Smith or Clark or anything English that he can recognize. So, I have a few emotions when Hameur Bouazza (pronounced Ham-ur Boo-at-zah) goes thorough on the left and Superkelv makes a decent save with his feet. Firstly I’m crapping it because it’s a clear chance, secondly I’m relieved because it’s not ended up in our net and thirdly I’m laughing as Dave sums up the action by referring to the Millwall player as “Hammer Boozer”.
Saints went to three up front in an effort to step things up with Billy Sharp coming on for Deano. When you consider that two of the midfield three were now Adam Lallana and Steeeeeve, you appreciate how attacking this is. We began to look threatening again with Sharp immediately looking lively.
Time is running out and psychology is beginning to play a part. Saints have nothing to lose and without a home win in ages, Millwall’s collective sphincter is doubtless tightening up. Sir Rickie feeds the ball out to Sharp who you expect to shoot but he plays it square back into the middle where Sir Rickie goes down. Penalty. You can’t tell what’s happened at first but the replays clearly prove that Robinson was lying on the ground, Sir Rickie tried to hurdle him to get to the ball and Robinson lifts his leg and trips him. Guess what happened next... bang , 2-2, top right. Sir Rickie runs to get the ball which tells everyone that we still want to win this... come on !!!!
And so it came to pass that we won a corner, Foxy swung it in, Big Jos went up with Dunne who flapped the ball away with his hand. About 5 Saints players appeal for the handball and the ref gives it. There is an element of confusion as the Millwall players protest because Jos had his arm up as well but the ref had got it spot on. Sir Rickie versus Taylor Part 2..... bang, bottom right, same result, 3-2 to Saints.
There are 3 minutes to go and I’m back listening to the Plonker Show on Solent and it sounds like the Alamo in our penalty area. Crosses come in, Sir Rickie is playing as an auxiliary centre back, more crosses come in, Guly heads them away (what!!!). We manage to work the ball down the pitch and Corky smashes it as far as he can as the referee blows the whistle. Seat of the pants stuff but we’ve won again.
The Millwall fans, being the benevolent sort, think that we’ll need a bit of cash if we go up to the Premier League and start a collection for us by throwing coins at our backroom staff, one of whom has to have a couple of stitches in a head wound. I know it’s only a minority but they let down the club again and again and ensure that Millwall as a club will never lose the reputation they have been trying to lose for the past 20 odd years. Kenny Jackett is not a happy man afterwards but we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt as he’s not seen the replays as yet. He seemed to be implying that we were fortunate to get the penalties in an away game. Must have been a good referee then as he ignored the threat of getting coins thrown at his head and gave the correct decision both times.
Nigel was a picture of smug in his interview, empathising that both spot kicks were fair and that the manner of the victory is unimportant, it’s just getting the win and the three points. He’s right of course with two teams breathing down our necks. So what of our promotion rivals – well Reading completed a comfortable win at Barnsley by 4-0 and The Fat Sam Total Football Academy grabbed a decent point at Leeds having been 1-0 down with a minute to go. So, West Ham are in 3rd place and 5 points below us with a game in hand, nice.
One of the more irritating things with taking notice of West Ham is that total bell end, The Moose who is on talkSHITE. He’s just wrong – every time he opens his mouth about Saints he just talks complete shit. The last time was the Matt Taylor – Billy Sharp incident and he was all “shoved him in the chest, fellow pro, never a red card” until the pictures clearly showed him shoving him in the face. This time he’s moaning about referees wanting us to go up by giving us loads of penalties. Hmmmm, look at the two we got given today and then look at the two they got given at home to Forest recently. His penalty related rant has though, seen a number of articles spring up on the internet about the number we have been given this year which is annoying. The fact that we’ve been given 9 or 19 or 99 is not the issue - It’s only an issue of the decisions are wrong. Today they weren’t but that won’t stop idiots like The Moose.
Next up is a very difficult looking game at Hull
9 games left, 25 points needed
Final whistle, Millwall, Saturday
It is a great picture that they took of him holding the ball with his hand. Maybe he thought that he can do as Maradona did.
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