football rambles

 The FA Vase on Sunday offered us a bonus game as Downham took on Swaffham in a local Derby. The last time I'd been to the Memorial Ground, Downham had put Ely to the sword in the Vase. That time Downham had been the underdogs, but this time they were the favourites having won promotion to the Eastern Counties Premier. They seem like a pretty accomplished bunch, but you do wonder how much advantage the slope of the pitch gives them. It was a good extra day out, but not much of a competition. Downham were 3-0 up after 15 minutes and despite on blot on the copy book early on in the second half eased past the Pedlars with what eventually was a 5-1 victory. 

 On Saturday we travelled up to London Road to see Posh take on Derby and although it started off looking good for Posh, things quickly went downhill.  Posh definitely started the game the brighter of the two and it was Johnson Clarke Harris who put the home team ahead on 23 minutes. At this point it looked like Posh would be comfortable and Derby who would be on the end of a beating. However, that was not to be the case and the trio of ex-Posh boy Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, ex-Villa man Conor Hourihane and Martyn Waghorn who set to put the home team to the cosh. Just before the half hour mark Waghorn struck. On 37 minutes the game was turned on its head when Hourihane and Mendez-Laing put together a move straight off the training ground with Mendez-Laing putting the ball on Cashin's head to give the Rams the lead.  By the 40th minute, it really did feel a long time since Posh had been in the lead and this goal really did sum up how the day was going for the home team. Mendez-Laing ha

 After losing to Stevenage on Tuesday it was back to the Abbey to see if Cambridge could bounce back against Bristol Rovers. They did and in doing so went to the top of the league. It is obviously early doors and Cambridge are probably still amongst the favourites to go down, it is important for them to get points early on, as teams with smaller squads do go through a rough patch at some point in the season when injuries and fatigue start to set in. Anyway, probably best to enjoy the Us being at the top of the league for now! The game itself was pretty frustrating for the most part. Neither side created much in the first half. Rovers had the majority of the possession, but didn't seem in any hurry to force the issue and actually go for goal. Cambridge meanwhile didn't seem like they could breakthrough a sturdy Rovers back line, who were too often allowed to mess around with the ball at the back. In the opening games I had been impressed with Gassan Ahadme up front, but he seeme

 No football on Saturday, but Cambridge played Stevenage on Tuesday night on what apart from being a quasi-Derby was surprisingly a top of the table clash. Ok it's only a couple of games in, but both teams were expected to struggle this year, so we have to take the positives where we can. The first 20 minutes were a fairly scrappy affair with neither team really settling, but both teams battling hard. Cambridge had had to change tactics early on when Janneh limped off injured after only 7 minutes to be replaced by Elias Kachunga. It's a shame as in the opening two games Janneh has really made a difference down the flanks and Kachunga despite being an accomplished player offers something different, so Cambridge had to alter their game plan. Despite a shaky start for both teams with most of the play being scraps in midfield Stevenage opened the scoring when Jordan Roberts scored on 27 minutes. After this Stevenage claimed control of the gaem by playing an effective defensive line

 We followed up the game on Saturday with a trip to London to see Shakhtar take on Spurs in a friendly at the Tottenham Stadium. It was good to catch up with Jonny, Phil and Dean and also to go to the Elbow Room for the first time in years. Not for Spurs fans, but for me the highlight of the match was the chance to see Piatov play in goal for the Miners for the last time before hanging up his gloves. He only lasted 15 minutes and was given a guard of honour.  Ukrainian football has obviously been impacted by the war and to be honest Shakhtar look to have suffered a bit more than other clubs and for the first time in years are not favourites to win the title, therefore it's perhaps not surprising that Spurs dismantled what was a bit of a makeshift team.  Tottenham opened the scoring in 38th minute when Maddison went down like the proverbial sack of ..... to 'win' Spurs a penalty, which Kane converted from the spot. Their lead was short-lived though with Venezuelan, Kevin Kel