Cheltenham Town 2 Torquay United 2 - Last Minute

I never learn.

Sitting in the Whaddon Road Press Box last night I had my report pretty much sorted out by the 66th minute when substitute Ben Stevens added a second goal to Jake Robinson’s 14th minute opener. At that point you couldn’t see Cheltenham fighting back and so the introduction my report read:

“Danny Stevens’s super strike was too hot to handle as Torquay edged closer to the play-offs.”

Keeper Scott Brown had already made two great saves in the game, but could only palm Stevens rapier-like 20 yarder over his head, off the post and into the net. You could see that Brown was trying to deflect the ball over the bar and – in fairness – he did what he could, but the shot was just too powerful.

Even though Brown also got a hand to Robinson’s opener, he stood no chance with this one either – the striker’s 2nd goal in six games since joining on loan from Shrewsbury (where he had scored nine goals in fourteen games) until the end of the season.

Gulls skipper Lee Mansell’s free kick from the right picked out the unmarked Robinson on the opposite wing and he took one step in-field before unleashing and great shot from the angle of the box.

All sorted then. An easy night and the deadline to get the report over to the paper “on the final whistle” looked comfortable.

Step up Jeff Goulding in the 73rd minute to volley home a weak punch clear from under pressure keeper Danny Potter. From 12 yards and having made some space for himself, Goulding wasn’t going to pass up on his 10th goal of the season.

It had been strange to see Jeff playing wide left in the game as the understanding he has with Wes Thomas up front seemed good earlier in the season, but if he fancies getting his striking role back from Oxford loanee Matt Green, he certainly sent out the right message to boss Mark Yates.

Nice to see the Robins get a little something out of the game though, I thought to myself. The report was still looking good and I was at peace with the world ... until the 94th minute.

Now don’t get me wrong, Wes Thomas is a lovely lad, but at that moment I could have throttled him! Suddenly the Press Box resembled New York’s Fifth Avenue during a ticker tape parade as I tore up my notebook.

Fortunately the report was only a tiddler (see below), but I remember being at one game many moons ago when the way side came back from three goals down to win it in injury time. In those days newspaper technology wasn’t what it is now and each goal entailed a call to the desk with details while trying to do a large re-write at the same time.

Wes won’t get many easier goals this season. He pounced to spring the offside trap and poke the ball home for his 17th of the season from about eight yards out.

My clipping from this morning’s paper

Yates was by far the happier of the two managers at the end of the game and rightly said:

“Points wise it’s not what we would have wanted, but I thought we deserved at least a draw from tonight. We were the better team against what is a very good side. I told the lads to keep knocking at the door and that’s what they did.”

I also had a brief chat with Mark about the pitch which really deteriorated during the game and he agreed with me that it is now “terrible”. If Cheltenham miss out on a play-off spot – something they are more than capable of doing – they may look back at the surface and have a case for pointing the finger of blame in that direction.

Having Gloucester City share the ground is not doing them any favours at all, but- as I mentioned in yesterday’s post – beggars can’t be choosers and a small club like Cheltenham need revenue from whatever source to survive.

Paul Buckle was left shell-shocked by the last-gasp equaliser and groaned:

"We've drawn, but it feels like a defeat because it was a game we controlled. Cheltenham pushed a lot of balls up, but they didn't really hurt us. Ours were two good goals and there was a lot of good play from us on a poor surface, but we're disappointed because we know that was a game that was there for the taking.


At two goals up we were coasting and then the ref goes and gives a free-kick when the lad has won the ball and from that they score. We only had ourselves to blame at the end and we have to learn from that."

Cheltenham v Torquay - Chasing the dream

I have one of my increasingly irregular trips out to Whaddon Road tonight and I’m looking forward to seeing how the Robins are getting on when they face fellow play-off chasers Torquay.

Mark Yates boys are looking for their first win in seven and they have alternated between draws and defeats in the last six games – should they continue this run they should lose tonight!

But like Yates, I believe that they are good enough to turn things around. And it’s not too late.

Cheltenham are still only seven points off the play-off places and a win against Torquay will see the Gulls reeled in. The visitors are currently on 43 points compared to Cheltenham’s 40, but have a much better goal difference.

Cheltenham midfielder Marlon Pack recognises how frustrated the home support are, but has said to the local media (link to full article below):

“There is nobody more frustrated than us. We just need to put our finger on what's been going wrong and get a scrappy 1-0 win to get confidence back and kick on for the rest of the season."

http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/sport/Cheltenham-Town-Players-frustrated-8211-Pack/article-3248637-detail/article.html

Young Blackpool loanee defender Ashley Eastham has already been ruled out by the club after finding himself in a car accident at the weekend, but fortunately he is physically unharmed. Unfortunately winger Josh Low remains sidelined with an injury and so it will be down to his midfield colleagues to supply hot shot striker Wes Thomas with his ammunition. Thomas has already scored 16 League and Cup goals this season.

Torquay boss Paul Buckle’s major injury concern is striker Billy Kee, 20, who suffered an ankle injury during Saturday’s game against Southend and the Torquay boss will be hoping that the lad – who has scored six goals in eleven League starts – makes a speedy recovery.

It’s true I haven’t been to Whaddon Road as much as I would have liked this season, but during my last visit I noticed that the pitch was starting to cut up more than it had in previous seasons.

Cheltenham have developed a reputation over the years for having a great playing surface – which would certainly suit Yate’s style of play – but like many other clubs who share their grounds (in this case Gloucester City FC) the pitch has suffered this term.

Down at Bristol Rovers it won’t be too much longer before the Mem resembles Derby’s Baseball Ground in the winters of the mid-70s which in turn looked like a Somme battlefield.

Of course the problem these clubs have is to balance the needs of the parent club with the much needed revenue a ground share can provide. It’s a tough call for the directors, but worth bearing in mind when the odd pass goes astray or a player blazes over the bar when the ball rises up at the most inopportune moment.

Maybe Mark Yates would be well advised to bring in a couple of non-league cloggers to see the Robins through their home fixtures.

The season so far in League Two - Guesswork

Having set myself up for a fall by promising to update this blog each day, I often need to wrack my brains to think of something to write about and so as we’re nearly 25% of the way through the season, I thought I’d take a look at League Two and give my predictions/thoughts on the sides I’ve seen so far and where I think they’ll end up in May.

Of course fans of these teams will have seen a lot more of them than me this season and you can’t make any real judgments on a handful (or even one) of performances. It’s just a bit of fun, but post a comment if you agree or disagree.

Working my way up from the current table (positions in brackets), these – for the little they are worth - are my views:

Lincoln (23 out of 24) – Saw them recently against Wycombe and they showed a great deal of heart coming from behind twice. They have a good manager in Steve Tilson and I really can’t see them struggling all term. Mid-table finish.

Hereford (22) – Another good young manager in Jamie Pitman who has them playing well and they are unbeaten in seven. However, I’m sticking by my prediction in an earlier post that old boy Steve Guinan - who is currently on Northampton’s books – will be offered the job in January. Either way, they have too much talent to go down and I expect them to pull away from trouble. Bottom half finish though.

Stockport (21) – I saw them at Oxford where they were impressive in a hit and run win. However, subsequent results suggest that I might have seen them on a good day. Paul Simpson has no money to spend and will be relying on his contacts and loan deals to ensure a bottom half finish.

Northampton (19) – Ian Sampson will be hoping that they get over the hangover of their up win at Anfield pretty quickly as it seems to have dragged on and is in danger of costing him his job. Should finish mid-table.

Morecambe (17) – A poor side they day they played Oxford at the Kassam and they will do well to beat the drop.

Oxford (15) – Chris Wilder is about to set the cat among the pigeons with several loan signings which is a good indication that he has no intention of consolidating in League Two and doesn’t want any chance of promotion to slip by. They enjoyed their day out at Wembley last season and I have a gut feeling they’ll be back on the train to North London again in May.

Burton Albion (14) – This is just about where they will end up I suspect. A good manager in Paul Peschisolido, but he needs funds to help bolster a meagre squad and he just doesn’t have them.

Crewe (11) – Write off Dario Gradi at you peril. A play-off place beckons for the Railwaymen. I saw them lose at Oxford, but have faith in the old fella.

Cheltenham (9) – My surprise package for League Two. I think that they have one of the best managers in the division in Mark Yates and wouldn’t put it past them to make one of the top three automatic promotion places.

Wycombe (5) – Doing well at the moment (away from home), but I wonder whether they’ll last the pace. They were pre-season favourites for promotion, but I didn’t see anything to suggest they could do it when I was there.

Of course this is all good and well, but Bradford were string into the abyss a couple of weeks ago and now look as though they'll keep on marching up to the summit of the table. There's still an awful lot of football to be played.

More from the A40 derby - We’ve got your back

After you’ve had a bad day at the office – or on the football pitch – it’s good to know that your friends or colleagues have your back. I speak from experience.

From school football, to Sunday morning games and five-a-side kickabouts the football chant “You’re sh*t and you know you are” was actually created for me and has followed me around … it was usually sung my team mates! Come to think of it, people hum it in the office too! I digress.

On Tuesday night Cheltenham keeper Scott Brown was culpable for Oxford’s equalizer, but striker Wes Thomas – who scored the Robins’ opener – leapt immediately to Brown’s defence and was refreshingly honest in his evaluation of the game. He said:

“As a goalkeeper you’re totally exposed when you make a mistake. No-one will be talking about the chance I missed, but Scott has nowhere to hide. I should’ve scored in the second half as well. One mistake doesn’t make you a bad player and Scott will bounce back. Everyone has faith in him.”

Manager Mark Yates was understandably fuming, but has also praised Brown in the past and I predict he will stick with him and make sure he doesn't dwell on it for too long. He said:

“There’s no beating around the bush, Scott’s cost us three points and he knows I’m not happy. The way the goal went in just deflated us. We went from up there to down there.

We worked our socks off and that has to be the minimum expectation every week. I’m just disappointed for everybody that we didn’t get all three points.”

Yates knows though that in football you can’t dwell on the past and Thomas himself has cited his boss as someone who has given him self-belief and confidence. He’ll do the same with Brown.

Oxford’s Chris Wilder was the happier of the two managers after the game and funnily enough made the point I’ve made on this blog. He said:

“Despite the fact that we only came up last year, I’ve said to the players that we’re seen as one of the big clubs in this league. Other clubs will have a go at us and Mark Yates set up his side to do that. That was always going to be Cheltenham’s biggest fixture of the season.

We were a bit naïve at times, but one thing we do is work for each other. I didn’t enjoy the first 20 minutes when we were out fought, out passed and out battled, but then we started passing and looked a decent side.”

Cheltenham Town 1 Oxford United 1 – Oops

Ouch!

Scott Brown proved the old adage that there is nowhere to hide when you make a gaff as a keeper.

Having gone a goal down after a header from the prolific Wes Thomas in the 29th minute, Oxford edged their way slowly back into the game and following a fairly sustained period of pressure in the second half and got their reward in the 59th minute.

My clipping from this morning's copy of The Sun

The Sun’s football website: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football

Tom Craddock let fly with a low shot from about 22 yards that skidded off the wet surface and bounced back off Brown’s chest into the path of Jack Midson who poked in his third of the season from 5 yards.

It was great news for Midson who replaced suspended skipper and leading scorer James Constable for the fixture and will give boss Chris Wilder something to think about before he selects his next team.

Constable will probably get the nod, but both Craddock and Midson showed they are up for the fight when called upon.

It was a bad night for Brown though who must now put it behind him once the papers have been read and thrown away and his team mates have given him some merciless banter in training today.

Mark Yates was fuming last night, but he strikes me as someone who doesn’t hold a grudge and will ultimately put an arm around the shoulder of a player who he has lauded in the past.

And that’s the thing about football – one minute you’re a hero, the next and you’re not fit to wear the shirt. It can certainly be a fickle business. Ask Rob Green. East End hero last weekend and national disgrace a couple of months ago. You have to have thick skin and a lot of bottle to pull on that Number 1 shirt that’s for sure.

The good thing for Cheltenham is that Brown isn’t someone who will shirk his responsibilities and try and hide away. He’ll come out on Saturday with a point to prove and bust a gut to do it. He also has team mates who will back him as they appear to be a close knit group down at Whaddon Road.

Ultimately, a draw was probably a fair result anyway. Oxford took some time to find their feet, but in the second half Simon Heslop started imposing himself in midfield and they looked a real threat going forward.

Debutant Leigh Franks replaced Mark Creighton in the 14th minute - after the captain for the evening seemed to twist his ankle – and despite a couple of dodgy moments, grew into the role and built an understanding with fellow centre back Harry Worley.

In goal, Ryan Clarke was the pick of the bunch for me. He pulled off two low saves from David Bird and Jeff Goulding in the first half. He produced a brave double save from Thomas and Goulding late in the second half and also spared Franks blushes when the youngster’s sliced clearance looped over up and threatened to bounce into the net, before the former Bristol Rovers stopper managed to back pedal and scoop the ball the safety.

Maybe Wilder and Yates will have felt they both could and should have taken three points, but from my point of view a draw was the right result.

Cheltenham v Oxford - Legal Eagle Shuffle

I'll be off to Cheltenham tonight to watch the A40 derby and think that this one could be too close to call if both sides play to their full potential.

I suspect that the bookies will have Oxford down as favourites, but manager Chris Wilder will be aware that when the Robins play the way they can, they are a match for any team.

In Wes Thomas, Jeff Goulding and England U-19 international Shaun Jeffers (on loan from Coventry), the Robins have a wily and stylish attacking threat. The midfield is just as strong with Brian Smikle and Michael Pook taking front and rear positions respectively in a diamond formation. Pook can expect some good natured 'banter' from the away support given his Swindon background, but isn't the sort of guy to let it affect him.

Cheltenham are looking to bounce back following defeats away at Chesterfield and at home last Saturday to Bury. After that game, manager Mark Yates said:

"We went out with a whimper but we've got a chance to put it right on Tuesday. I take full responsibility, but we need to grow up and start putting in consistent performances. One fan shouted at me that I didn't have a clue, and he was right today, as a team we didn't have a clue today."

Well there's no better game than this one to get things back on track.

Oxford on the other hand managed a credible 1-1 draw up at Crewe, although skipper James Constable - who saw red for his second booking in the 89th minute of the game - will be missing. When you consider that he has scored seven times so far this season for the Us, his absence might just play into the home side's hands - although co-strikers Jack Midson and Tom Craddock might see it as an opportunity to make names for themselves.

Having said that, Cheltenham have also been missed the influential winger Josh Low who has been out with a calf strain, but has an outside chance of making the tonight's game.

If he does, fans will see two lawyers doing battle on the pitch rather than in the courts as is usually the 'case'.

Low ,31, earned a law degree with the Open University and spent much of last season gaining work experience with Gloucester-based solicitors Iacopi Palmer, but having been offered a full time job, decided to stay with the Robins. He said:

"I was dealing with criminal and clinical negligence work one day each week last season, but the temptation to continue playing proved too great, although it is something I will obviously hope to continue with once I've retired."

Ben Purkiss,26, has forced his way into the Oxford starting line up and may well have cemented his place as first choice right back following his move from York - the team the Us beat in the play-off final last May -  in the summer. Like Low, Purkiss is a bright lad and hasn't given up a career in the legal profession just yet. He told me recently:

"I got my degree from Sheffield University and have spoken to people about the law profession, but football's all I'm concentrating on at the moment. You have to consider life after football at some stage and I did have a chat once with the company that Stuart Ripley (former Blackburn and England winger) works for, but at the moment I'm just enjoying life as a player."

Cheltenham Town 2 Burton Albion 1 – Ugly

My clipping from this morning's copy of The Sun - with someone else's byline!!

The Sun’s football website: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football

They say that if you are going to achieve anything in football, sometimes you have to win ugly – if so, this performance was a bit like watching Susan Boyle at a gurning competition.

In total contrast to the “semi naked Cameron Diaz show” the Robins put on last time I went to see them against Crewe, this time the Robins stole all three points with a fight back prompted by on loan substitute Shaun Jeffers who set up both goals.

Having said that, Cheltenham boss Mark Yates won’t mind if he wakes up next to the football equivalent of SuBo next May knowing that he will be strutting his stuff in the harem of League One beauties in 2011/12.

Jeff Goulding started the game after passing a fitness test, but Jeffers, 18, replaced him on the hour - as was the plan according to First Team Coach Neil Howarth after the match.

In the 80th minute Jeffers – on loan from Coventry and joining up with England U-19s for a game against Slovakia after the game –teed up co-striker Wes Morgan for his 5th goal in four games and less than two minutes later did the same thing for winger Josh Low to wrap up the win.

Mind you if it hadn’t been for several great saves by keeper Scott Brown things could have been very different. The last one – in injury time – was a stunning low save to his right from an 18 yard shot by Burton goal scorer Shaun Harrad that flew through a sea of legs.

I spoke to Harrad afterwards and he generously paid tribute to Brown saying: “He deserves the man of the match champagne for that performance.”

I had to wait until the man from BBC radio had finished talking to Harrad before I could grab a few words, but listened in as the striker was told he had “got away from the Cheltenham defence once and scored a goal”. I have to admit that I sometimes wonder what game my colleagues are watching as Harrad had several attempts on goal and I’m sure the central defenders – Steve Elliott and Keith Lowe – will happily admit Harrad made sure they earned their corn.

Harrad had last season’s amazing 6-5 home defeat against Cheltenham on his mind and admitted they felt as though they’d been mugged again. He said “We said at half time we couldn’t take it for granted especially after what happened last season, but they had two chances and scored from both. It’s a big knock back. I’m pleased to get of the mark in the league.”

Harrad is an extremely likeable guy and – more importantly – looks a real threat when he gets the ball in front of goal. Burton boss Paul Peschisolido will be hoping that he is given more opportunities by his teammates as the season wears on.

Indeed Pesch said: “We had enough three on twos and sometimes we chose the wrong option going forward. If you don’t take your chances away from home you don’t win and we had enough chances and we had the chances.”

Howarth is pleased that the Robins now have enough options on the bench from which they can pick to change a game as they did against Albion. He said: “A couple of times last season we looked at the bench and didn’t have much to change things, but now we have Gallinagh, Bird, Shroot and others who can come on and change things and Jeffers did it today. We’re very pleased with the squad we’ve managed to put together so far.

Josh Low is a Rolls Royce for us. Not any people would have got there and timed his run perfectly, but he’s got ability and it took some finishing.

We’ve played a lot of pretty stuff this season and today when we’ve needed to show bottle and character we did that as well.

We had a lot of huff and puff and weren’t able to break them down, but our couple of substitutions gave us a little more impetuous when we needed it.

Shaun is a lovely lad. He’s very lively and been staying on the training ground after training. He’s not quite in the starting eleven yet and we’ve got a couple of players like that and they’re going about things the right way. Their attitude is spot on.”

Scott Brown’s decisions are correct and a made some outstanding saves today and deserves a big pat on the back. That’s why he’s there at the end of the day, but every credit to him.”

Thomas, 23, was delighted with his equalizer, but paid tribute to both Brown and Jeffers. He said: “Scott has come in for a bit of stick, but to be fair he’s kept us in the game right at the end and if he can keep doing that we should have a good season. He’s got us the win really.

My confidence is high right now and it didn’t affect me when I missed one, I just feel another chance will come along. Shaun Jeffers is an exciting player and he’s got pace and ability and a great future.”

Off to Whaddon Road – A-lex

Just got a call to cover the Cheltenham game against Crewe tomorrow afternoon and I’m looking forward to seeing the side Mark Yates has put together in the summer.


It’s tough being the manager of Cheltenham. The team doesn’t have a lot of money and the town itself is hardly noted as a hotbed of football. Rural Gloucestershire is rugby and horse racing country and – despite being one of the most affluent areas in the country – the football club is definitely the poor cousin in sporting terms.

Having said that, the Robins have done well to flit between League One and League Two in recent seasons. Sometimes expectations from some fans are too great given the limited resources. I remember former boss John Ward once telling me that while half the fans at Whaddon Road remembered the non-league days and were just happy to be punching above their weight in League One at that time, the other half were younger and expected the club to be pushing for the Championship and beyond!!

In the brief period of time that I have got to know Mark Yates, I suspect that he will deliver for those more demanding fans, although I suspect it will take a couple of seasons before they return to League One.

Crewe boss Dario Gradi has more experience than just about any other manager in the English game and is in his third stint in the role having twice tried to retire to the relative sanity of the boardroom as the club’s Technical Director. If anyone can revive Alex it is Gradi and I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes them to a top seven finish this season.

Having said that, I predict a win for Cheltenham on their home turf tomorrow by 2-0.

Tony Pulis – We’ll Meet Again

I had a quick chat with Tony Pulis the other night after the Stoke boss had seen his side beat Bristol Rovers in a pre-season friendly and he was as nice a fella as I remembered from our last meeting – about 17 years ago!

Tony had taken his Bournemouth side to Cheltenham Town for an FA Cup tie very early on in his managerial career and come away with a 1-1 draw against the then non-league outfit. Standing in the bar after the game he asked my opinion of the game and – chuffed that any professional should give a f*ck what I thought – I merely told him that it was a job well done and his chairman would probably be delighted with the readies a replay would bring in. He smiled and nodded in agreement.

Given Bournemouth’s decline since, the chairman at that time obviously didn’t invest the money wisely, although Tony Pulis’s reputation has grown over the years and if he keeps Stoke up this season he will have done another amazing job.

See you again in 2027 Tony!