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| 'Neil, can I play again in another month's time?' |
Here we are again. Lets play 'What do you think the formation is today?'
Guess what - it's a 4-4-3! Who expected that shock!?
The formation may be predictable but there's many changes in a side I don't think looks very coherent on paper, Garbutt and Gabriel join the mystery that is Jordan Thorniley with on only Jimmy Husband retained from the weekend. Full backs fine, but that's two left footers in the middle and it looks like Jimmy is on the right of the pair. In midfield, the lad with the long hair we're not sure about comes in for the man with the floppy but tidier hair we like a lot. Sarkic (who I'm baffled as to why people* think he's a striker) replaces Yates and Kemp starts ahead of CJ.
*By people, I mean Critchley
Accy are playing weird pop classical music. It's more like the beginning of Lord of the Rings, an advert for Camelot Theme Park or the music to a Hot Ice show than the sound of an EFL Cup game behind closed doors. Chissy gets grumpy about it the big fun sponge. He describes it as 'an infernal racket' coming across like a comedy Grandad from a 1990s sitcom. I also realise I can't remember whether the crown ground had a giant rubix cube in the corner last season or not. Surely I'd have noticed. Do you notice a giant Rubix Cube if it's not there though?
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Pool look quite bright in the opening few minutes, some quick passing and seeming fluency leads to a series of decent looking balls but the only threat on goal is a Bez Lubala effort that has as much threat as a back pass.
Terrific work from Daniel Kemp leads to Pool's first, Kemp stealing the ball from a dozy Accrington full back and working the ball across via a little bit of luck and a bit of Ollie Sarkic to Keshi Anderson in acres of space who strokes the ball home from just inside the box.
Pool are playing with pace and verve. Whether it's a weaker opponent in a partly second string Accy side or the extra something provided by players with something to prove, this looks more like the energy we saw in preseason. Lubala looks far more purposeful and integrated, Kemp and Gabriel have struck up an understanding and Sarkic looks better than Saturday at least.
Accrington have few moments of their own, a header flashed wide from a free kick (which is ruled offside) and a couple of moments on the right hand side when they exploit a bit of rustiness from Luke Garbutt the best they do in the opening 25 minutes.
As the half gets older, the quality declines and Accrington have a bit more possession. It's a crappy, scrappy period with lots of head tennis and not much else.
Finally, something happens, nice control, a turn on the edge of the box and decent long range effort from Sarkic draws a diving stop. That's the first moment of strong period of play for the Mighty. Sarkic crosses low for Kemp who is just squeezed out, Lubala plays a really nice pass for Kemp who spins on the edge of the box, but just can't run on to his own touch. Roles reverse seconds later as Sarkic's excellent flick on is won by Kemp who then threads a terrific ball for Lubala. Bez doesn't quite read the intent and is running outside the full back when the opportunity to dart inside seemed to present itself.
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I've been very taken with Jordan Gabriel, he has skill going forward, but he's also looked good defensively. Call me old fashioned but in a league where getting it forward quickly is a key tactic of so many teams, it's good to see a player who seems to be able to deal with that as well as do the fancy stuff. Garbutt looks mostly like he knows what's he's doing if not quite up to fitness yet.
Thorniley has, thus far been really good, doing what he needs to do with minimal fuss and showing some nice touches of control and simple but well timed passing from the back. Williams has been neat and tidy without particularly influencing the game. I'm not entirely convinced by him. I'm not sure if it's him or the fact he's not really got the passer next to him to make clear who he's in the team to make space and play it simple for.
This has been the best half I've seen from Bez. Ollie Sarkic does quite well up front, more so later in the half where he links play really well without being an out and out threat. It seems the time on the pitch does him good and I'm pleased to say he definitely looks more like the play Critch seems to want him to be. The energy in the side I think can be partly put down to Dan Kemp who offers movement and buzzes about quite effectively, even if quite often it doesn't quite come off for him.
It's not vintage but broadly, it's encouraging and the side looks more coherent and quicker than I felt it might before kick off.
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It feels I've tempted fate - Sarkic has gone off after a heavy challenge late in the first half, so no more growing into the game as he gets minutes. Yates replaces him. Not only that, but then Gabriel is beaten for a flick on that Accy can't quite bundle home at far post.
The game becomes very physical, Yates leaves an Accrington man on floor after a clash with real intent behind it, Grant Ward is poleaxed a few minutes later.
About the most exciting football event is Dion Charles winding up for an effort, striking it beautifully but into the Blackpool defence.
Pool offer little. The game offers little. I wonder why Chissy says 'the piece' when he means 'the season.' No one else says that. I muse on the fact he sometimes says it to mean 'the game' as well. It's really not a good half.
It's that bad that the icy rain suddenly bouncing down and making a racket (a quite meditatively pleasing one, not an infernal one) is definitely a highlight. Gabriel does more good work in the downpour snuffing out a Dion Charles opportunity at the far post. Other moments that happen and only merit a mention because it's such dreary stuff include Yates winning a flick on but no one taking advantage and Lubala beating a man then passing to no one.
A substitute brings yet more excitement. It's really that poor. Demi Mitchell replaces Luke Garbutt who has been perfectly fine. He'll be good with a few games I think.
Anderson picks it up in space and dallies, daring a defender to come, then releases Mitchell, he beats one and crashes a shot goalward. It hits an Accrington defender and bounces for a throw in. It's the best moment of the half so far.
Accrington have it wide, they show real tenaciousness to force a cross, which is a good near post effort, Bishop gets in front of Gabriel and glances it home for a simple equaliser.
Robson replaces Lubala who hasn't really done anything second half after a decent first period.
Pool do a passable but ultimately futile impression of trying to win the game.
Robson gives and goes with Demi Mitchell, racing on to the return pass, charging into the box and pulling back... to no one. Gabriel does a beautiful spin and looks set to race away into space but Accrington chop him down and the moment is gone... Robson puts in a looping cross that drops almost on the goal line but Yates can't get anywhere near. Anderson feeds Mitchell who drives into the keepers hands. Robson finds kemp with a long cross field ball, Kemp takes it in space, looks at his options, drives a cross that hits an Accy body - there's semi convincing shouts for a penalty but there's nothing doing.
Maxwell makes a close range save from Bishop to save Pool from a sucker punch.
Chissy adopts the manner of a low budget after dinner speaker and makes a dodgy comment about his wife. GTF ignores him.
Pool lump it forward. The whistle goes for penalties....
Bishop for Accrington, looking like a Rugby League player in the rain. Wipes his eyes, shoots low, to the left and Maxwell dives low and pushes it away. 0-0
Yates takes and age to place and then side foots it home with the keeper going the wrong way. 0-1
Dion Charles tamps down the penalty spot like a golfer then smashes it home into the corner. 1-1
Ethan Robson also spend ages then chips it home, the keeper going the right way but getting under it. 2-1
Sykes who has the manner of a farmhand, smashes it. No stopping that one. 2-2
Anderson takes one, two, three deliberate strides back, glides forward then finds the corner. He really does have a surprising grace about him for a lad who looks quite squat 3-2
Joe Pritchard is completely no nonsense as he puts it down the middle. 3-3
Ward does a little stutter at the beginning of his run, hits it towards the corner but at a nice height and the keeper beats it away. Ward has looked shattered since about 80 minutes. 3-3
Tom Scully looks with intent at the bottom corner but places it in the other one and Maxwell buy it completely 4-3
Kemp goes all round the houses, to the right, to the left, then comes at the ball almost side on but blasts it over the top. 4-3
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Something about bad games making you appreciate the good ones. At least I wasn't stood in that pissing cold rain.
The second half was really, really poor. I think I've made that point so suffice to say, the attacking players offered almost nothing at all. I still don't know if Williams is good or bad, it's just hard to really see what he does at all. Kemp lost his way and Ward offered little. The pick of the front 6 was Keshi Anderson who obviously scored but I thought used the ball better tonight.
What was noticable was the change from Sarkic to Yates seemed to completely upset the rhythm, I didn't Sarkic was great, but he seemed to link up the attacking work and as I said previously, was growing into the game and I was starting to warm to the idea that maybe, after all, he could play in that position and not look totally out of place. Yates got no change out of the Accy defence at all and didn't really link play either. Accy also switched formation a bit at half time and we didn't seem to offer much to counter any changes they'd made so perhaps I'm pointing at Jerry unfairly. Again, it seems like we do what we do what we do. I'm not sure about that. It was good enough for Clough so who am I to question doing your own thing and to hell with the opposition, but I'd just like to see us try and shift things about a bit to make things happen when we hit these sterile patches we seem prone to.
At the back, things were solid enough. Was the goal Gabriel's fault for getting beaten. I dunno, I don't really subscribe to making pronouncements like Gary Neville about every goal being down to someone's mistake. He certainly had a decent game in general. Husband did fine and for me, Thorniley was really good, just calm and Accy got little joy up the middle at all. It does make you wonder if that's the player Wednesday fans saw and where exactly he's been since he signed.
I liked the young Accy lad who came on with the dreadlocks and hairband (I look him up, he's a Chelsea kid, Tariq Uwakwe), he had a certain drive and directness, a nice touch and energy, a bit unpredictable. He seemed to be focusing on getting the ball close to the goal from wherever he was, it always felt like he might shoot or do something dangerous, even when he was deeper and he roamed with intent. It's that sort of free spirit we don't seem to have at the moment.
It's probably confidence.
A game that won't live long in the memory.
utmp
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