U's 1-2 York: Too late for a Tonking
Saturday 28th November 2009 - U's 1-2 York: Too late for a Tonking
So it is time to pack away the Cup paraphernalia for another year: back into the loft with the top hat covered in rosettes, the rattle, the foil-covered replica of the FA Cup... At least we had not dressed as babies and superheroes like that Lincoln lot at Northwich. Time to concentrate on the league now. Where are we in the table? Oh.
What does the FA Trophy look like again?
The old tin pot still raises a frisson of excitement, especially when you are ninety minutes away from a possible glamour tie at Old Trafford, Stamford Bridge or, er, Turf Moor. The atmosphere at the Abbey certainly had a good fizz to it today, thanks partly to an excellent turnout of York City fans, over triple the number that Rushden brought on Tuesday, armed with more flags than the United Nations.
On a chilly day under a lowering, glowering sky which brought out the hats and gloves amongst the players warming up as well as the spectators, comeback kings United were forced into naming a new central midfield in the suspension-enforced absence of Paul Carden and Jai Reason, and CRC graduates Sam Ives and Rory McAuley stepped up to the plate. Two returnees from suspension, Robbie Willmott and Anthony Tonkin, were reinstated to the side at the expense of Andy Parkinson and Darryl Coakley, while the extra places on the bench accommodated more youngsters, Adam Marriott and Jordan Patrick, and unfortunate forgotten man Ben Farrell.
York arrived at the Abbey on a run of five consecutive victories, including a 3-2 win over Crewe in the previous round, with top scorer Richard Brodie restored to the side at the expense of former U Michael Gash, and another ex-United man, James Meredith, at left-back. The away supporters helped to create a proper Cup occasion and greeted the teams by sending half a dozen people down to the front of the South Stand to wave their flags as if sending some subliminal semaphore signal to the players. Although the message was probably only "Look at our lovely flags!"
A keenly fought encounter ensued, both teams playing entertaining football in the absence of the strong wind which has influenced recent games. The lively Willmott cut inside early on and had a shot blocked and on 4 Tonkin's cross found the head of Chris Holroyd but he flicked his header wide.
The two sides continued to probe each other without overly troubling either keeper, United prompted by the promising central midfield and making good use of the full-back/winger pairings down both flanks, and on 13 a marauding Dan Gleeson had a shot at the near post blocked by Alex Lawless; Brian Saah headed the ensuing corner wide.
The visitors' strikers, Brodie and Michael Rankine, also looked mobile and dangerous, but they both appeared to have some sort of undiagnosed inner ear imbalance because they kept falling over when an opposing player came near them. Ref Rushton was soon forced to have a word with Brodie and his marker, Wayne Hatswell, when the York man started tumbling about to the United man's obvious annoyance.
On 20, however, Hatswell was caught out by the Minstermen's hitman when he failed to knock a ball down the left wing out of play, Brodie blocked then ran onto it, cutting inside with Hats in pursuit, and as he shaped to shoot or cross with two colleagues in attendance as he approached the near post, Gleeson came across and neatly dispossessed him then cleared his lines. Danger averted.
Crow headed a Courtney Pitt through ball off target then on 22 a Pitt corner created an almighty scramble in the six-yard box from which Holroyd had a close-range prod blocked off the line. Five minutes later the mercurial Pitt set up Holroyd again with a cross but he flicked it just over the top under pressure.
United were playing some decent stuff but, as on many occasions recently, their possession was not translating to attempts on goal, or at least those which would cause the opposing keeper to actually make a save or put him under any great pressure. Danny Crow pulled a shot across goal just after the half hour, then Potter gathered a Brodie scudder with some ease.
But with Martin Ling doubtless fairly happy with the way his mix-and-match side was taking the game to the visitors, a moment of brilliance put them behind on 37. Rankine received the ball on the left, lost Gleeson with a swift turn and hared inside then, with no tackle forthcoming, blasted a tremendous shot past Potter from just outside the box that no keeper could have stopped. A bolt from the blue: 1-0.
The U's had barely had time to consider the injustice of the scoreline when they were caught again. Brodie broke away down the left channel with several United players on his heels, and it was the unlikely figure of Willmott who stuck with him. Somehow the powerful York hitman bustled his way past the nominally faster U's winger, and as he burst into the left-hand side of the area, Willmott lunged in with a clumsy attacker's tackle which felled Brodie for a stone cold penalty.
Potter tried in vain to psyche him out, but Brodie stepped up to send him the wrong way and slot into the bottom left corner: 2-0.
The score was very harsh on the U's, who had been punished by York's only two notable attempts on goal of the half, but they were left to reflect on the lack of such chances created by themselves for all their possession and neat passing in the middle of the park.
United were unable to create anything else of note before the interval, despite the promptings of Pitt and McAuley, and for the third game in a row they faced the prospect of having to chase down a two-goal deficit just to force a replay. Third time unlucky?
The U's made a promising start to part two, albeit they still had to learn to keep the ball on the deck because they were never going to defeat York's towering defenders in the air, and Crow gained the first of many corners on 51 with a blocked shot. Pitt and Willmott proceeded to ping the ball into the visitors' box, but their rearguard stood firm.
A half-cleared corner on 55 was touched back to Ives to flash a shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box, then claims that a Pitt shot had been stopped by Danny Parslow's hand were waved aside by the increasing random man in black. The crosses continued to fly in, but just would not fall for an amber shirt. McAuley miscued a half-chance from another semi-cleared flag-kick on 63, then a Willmott free-kick ran to Ives in a crowded box but his shot was deflected behind by Meredith.
Pitt's ensuing corner found McAuley, but a sea of bodies blocked his shot, another corner resulted and eventually McAuley again headed just wide, United still unable to find that vital finish which would get them back into the game. There were more flag-kicks, and on 70 a fine curling shot from Pitt was well stopped by keeper Michael Ingham at the second attempt.
Next to try his luck in an increasingly one-sided contest, as York found themselves pinned down in their own half, was Willmott with a mazy run past three opponents which culminated in a shot just over. A rare potential break from Brodie on 74 was halted by a scything foul from Hatswell, which one suspected from his thumbs-up to the ref as he showed him his yellow card that he had found positively therapeutic in his battle with the accident-prone York striker.
McAuley was next to try his luck with an ambitious long-range shot over, then came the afternoon's most unpleasant incident when the timewasting Ingham bawled out a ball-boy who returned the ball to him too quickly, leaving the poor kid in floods of tears. He was comforted for several minutes by a kindly steward then a couple of policemen as Ingham studiously stood as far away as possible on the edge of his area while the amber army vented its disapproval.
Eventually, after many long minutes, Ingham finally deigned to turn around before the boy was led away and gave a vaguely contrite thumbs-up 'sorry' gesture. I do not believe he really intended to so upset the kid, but I hope he apologises properly for ruining an innocent young lad's day.
Still United pressed, Tonkin arriving to shave the post with a low shot, but on 79 they were nearly caught out on the break. A simple long ball down the middle sent Brodie clear, and under pressure from Gleeson and with Potter advancing, he trundled his shot millimetres wide of the far post as the whole ground held its breath.
Martin Ling had shown his lack of confidence in his substitutes by not even having them warm up during the second half, to many's frustration as his side continued to flail fruitlessly, but on 80 he at last made a change with the introduction of Adam Marriott for Ives, who had given a splendid account of himself. The new formation initially appeared to be 4-3-3, but after a few minutes it became apparent that Marriott was stationed just behind the front two and Pitt had moved inside to a more central position, leaving Tonkin to more or less play as a left-winger. So, 3-4-1-2 it was, then.
And within three minutes United at last gave their followers some hope, after yet more pressure. When the ball was half-cleared from the York box it was Tonkin who latched onto it in a central position 25 yards out, and his half-volley flew into the bottom right corner of the goal, ricocheted off the inside of the post and nestled inside the opposite side netting. It was Tonkin's first ever goal in black'n'amber: 2-1!
More unpleasantness followed as Ingham and Holroyd tussled for the ball in the back of the net, and both were booked for their pains.
With the amber hordes at near fever pitch, United forced more corners, Holroyd nodding one just over, a wicked Pitt free-kick just brushed off Saah's forehead with the goal at his mercy, and on 87 York tried to slow things down by introducing Gash for Rankine. McAuley had a shot saved, Pitt's effort was blocked for another flag-kick, and when that was cleared as far as Gleeson, his intelligent header back over the top found three U's men onside with only Ingham to beat, but just as McAuley was swinging his boot, a brilliant saving tackle from David McGurk swept it off his toes for another corner. Four added minutes.
Danny Potter trotted up to join in the fun, and when Ingham leapt at the near post to catch Pitt's flag-kick then seemed to fall backwards over the line, the ref did not award a goal but instead gave a foul on the keeper even though the only player near him was one of his own defenders.
The drama was non-stop now. Brodie broke away again and this time it seemed he must score, but Pitt of all people scampered back and robbed him with a last-ditch tackle. Andy Ferrell replaced Neil Barrett for the fingernailing visitors, and Potter joined the attack again for another free-kick and corner, but Ingham was equal to them and United's time in this season's FA Cup was up.
It had truly been a good old-fashioned Cup tie, and the end-of-match stats of shots (16-3 to the U's) and corners (16-1) was testament to United's territorial supremacy, but also to their lack of a cutting edge where it hurts, and to York's stout resistance.
The youngsters had done well, but will doubtless be replaced by older heads next time.
Some small comfort was derived from the news that Dave Kitson had scored a brace for Middlesbrough at London Road, described on Sky Sports News as someone who had started his career at "Posh's rivals, Cambridge", to send another shiver of nostalgia down black'n'amber spines.
But now we must look to the future, and that surely belongs to the outstanding young talent that is being nurtured so well by Jez George and his team. Forget the past; here's to progress. Or at least a run in the FA Trophy and a late dash for the playoffs...
Statto Corner
United had played York 27 times since their first meeting in 1971, but always in the league: today was the first time the clubs had ever met in a cup competition.
The U's have now conceded two goals in each of their last four matches. The last time such a leaky run occurred was in the first month of the 2006-07 season, when they lost 2-1 at Weymouth, 2-1 at home to Halifax, 2-0 at Dagenham and 3-1 at home to Exeter. The latter was Rob Newman's last game as manager.
Danny Potter has now saved three penalties and conceded fourteen in his Abbey career.
The only keepers to have saved more than that since 1970 are Keith Branagan and John Vaughan (5) and Malcolm Webster (4). Lionel Perez, Graham Smith and Peter Vasper join him on three.
On the other hand, the only keepers to have conceded more are Branagan and Webster (20), Vaughan and Shaun Marshall (19), while Roger Hansbury joins Potter on fourteen.
Anthony Tonkin broke a welcome duck today with his first goal in United colours on his 68th start (with two subs) in the first team. The top ten non-goalscorers' chart (since 1970) now looks like this for all competitions, with one column for appearances from the start and a second for games from the bench:
|
ALL COMPETITIONS |
App |
Sub |
| Marc Joseph |
150 |
19 |
| Dave Donaldson |
143 |
2 |
| Jimmy Thompson |
123 |
1 |
| Warren Goodhind |
111 |
11 |
| Freddie Murray |
90 |
10 |
| Mike Bennett |
84 |
0 |
| Steve Clark |
69 |
3 |
| Ray Seary |
61 |
2 |
| Ian Measham |
57 |
0 |
| Mark Crowe |
55 |
0 |
All of the players in this illustrious table managed at least one goal for another league club except Seary and Clark. They were of course all defenders; midfield man Paul Turner is the top non-scoring non-defender with 34 appearances plus 10 as sub. Peter Graham was signed as a midfielder in 1978 but played almost all of his 38 (+3) games at the back.
Tonkin has not, however, yet scored in the league for the U's, so he does make an appearance in the league-only top ten:
|
LEAGUE |
App |
Sub |
| Marc Joseph |
136 |
17 |
| Dave Donaldson |
130 |
2 |
| Jimmy Thompson |
116 |
1 |
| Warren Goodhind |
95 |
8 |
| Freddie Murray |
78 |
8 |
| Mike Bennett |
76 |
0 |
| Steve Clark |
63 |
3 |
| Anthony Tonkin |
58 |
1 |
| Ray Seary |
55 |
2 |
| Mark Crowe |
51 |
0 |
Tonks did score twice for Yeovil in his first spell there, so I look forward to the day when I can remove him from this chart, too.
Player Ratings
Potter 7. No chance with the goals, although it would be nice if he could at least dive the right way against a penalty once in a while. Otherwise in command.
Gleeson 7. Much improved after Tuesday's nightmare and almost back to near his best.
Tonkin 8. Excellent from start to finish, cracking first goal in United colours and effectively played much of the second half as a winger.
Saah 7. Tidied up neatly and came so close to an equaliser near the end.
Hatswell 6. Some worrying signs that age is starting to catch up with him, albeit mostly satisfactory. Coulson will be able to state his case as a replacement on Tuesday.
Willmott 6. Decent first half was spoilt by clumsy 'defending' to give away the penalty. Quieter after the break.
McAuley 8. Passed with flying colours.
Ives 7. Took a bit of time to get going, but gave a good, positive account of himself.
Pitt 8. If only Courtney could keep up this level of skill, commitment and workrate for a whole season.
Holroyd 6. One of his less distinguished games for United, he looked off his game and lacking in touch, although still got a few efforts in on goal. Everyone has an off day... and far too much of his 'service' was pinged at his head or chest facing away from goal, not exactly playing to his strengths.
Crow 6. Also struggled with excessively aerial supply, and was back to his old ways regularly as crosses pinged into the box while he looked on from out on the wing.
Marriott 6. Did his best to get involved but it was all a bit chaotic out there in the last ten minutes. And that was just United's 'formation.'
Match Summary
United dominated possession for long periods but once again lacked the quality or inspiration in the final third to save a third consecutive two-goal deficit. At least the youngsters gave good accounts of themselves.
Man of the Match
Rory McAuley. It is asking a hell of a lot of a young player making only his eighth first-team start, and his first in this particular position, to play the holding role in midfield with an even younger man alongside him, but Rory rose to the occasion superbly, his passing rarely short of exemplary, and he always kept his cool.
Ref Watch
Rushton 4. Another of those refs who make apparently random decisions, punishing the most innocuous of challenges while ignoring more serious ones, he also did nothing about the York forwards' persistent diving and play-acting and made the worst of fudged decisions when faced with a United goal appeal. Not very good at all.
Out of the Mouths of Babes
"My friend Duncan, instead of getting the autograph of a footballer, got the autograph of a policeman instead." (Thomas Greenbank)
Soundtrack of the Day
Rose Elinor Dougall 'Fallen Over'
Andrew Bennett
Andrew's previous match reports
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