H.M. Aircraft Carrier Courageous was sunk by a German submarine on 17th September, 1939, and an eyewitness account of the incident was recorded by eighteen-year-old Naval Writer, Tom Hughes. He wrote: "When we realised we had been torpedoed, our men were so infuriated that they threw depth-charges overboard in an effort to sink the U-boat.

"I was swimming when I heard a dull roar. Suddenly the submarine lifted clean out of the water and fell back like a stone. There is no doubt she was sunk. Hundreds of us who were struggling in the water for our lives raised a cheer. While we were swimming someone shouted 'Are we downhearted?' and there was a resounding 'No!' in reply. Then we started to sing."

By Jove, if that doesn't make your heart swell with patriotic pride, you must be dead. Or possibly not British, but hey, nobody's perfect. And it is that sort of spirit, albeit in infinitely less dramatic circumstances, that has driven Cambridge United's young team to top ten success against the odds this season. Unfortunately today, it rather went missing against a determined Tamworth side, and Jez George rather resembled the Courageous' commander, Captain Makeig-Jones, as he stood at the salute on the bridge while the vessel went down for the last time.

Tamworth, always one of the minnows in this league, have done well this season to keep themselves firmly ensconced in mid-table, away from the desperate relegation scrap at the bottom, but they arrived at the Abbey on a run of one draw and six defeats in their last seven league matches. And they had never beaten the Mighty U's since the clubs first met a little over six years ago.

Their team was devoid of household names but included former England C keeper Jonathan Hedge, Watford loanee Chez Isaac, which really should be the name of a quaint little bistro just off the Portobello Road, and striker Kyle Patterson, whose CV details time at West Brom, in Finland, Sweden and the USA, including a very brief spell with David Beckham's LA Galaxy and the splendidly named Hollywood United Hitmen. I really hope they come out at home matches sporting dark suits and shades to the strains of "Stuck In The Middle With You."

United line-up: Naisbitt; Roberts, Hudson, Johnson, Jennings; Carew, Shaw, Jarvis, Dunk; Berry, Gash

Wimbledon loanee Brett Johnson, a 26-year-old left-footer, made his debut alongside Blaine Hudson in central defence with Josh Coulson needing an operation in an otherwise unchanged side from that which won at Telford last week. New £15k signing from Welling, Andy Pugh, was on the bench and although no keeper was selected among the five subs, Adam Marriott was overlooked in favour of the inexperienced Jack Eades.

It was a chilly winter's day for the 2,281 spectators, which included 83 intrepid travellers from the Midlands, and the tepid match action which unfolded did little to warm their collective cockles. Tom Shaw broke forward to have a shot blocked by Nick McKoy on 2, and three minutes later the first really good chance of the day was spurned by Luke Berry, who rose unchallenged to head Rossi Jarvis' corner across goal and wide of the far post.

United did not look at their flowing best but continued to press, James Jennings having a shot blocked off by Sam Oji on 8 then finding himself brought down by McKoy for a free-kick just outside the left-hand corner of the box. Ashley Carew curled it over the wall but straight into the arms of Hedge.

Hedge also caught a Jennings free-kick which glanced off Harrison Dunk's head on 13, then Carew floated a cross onto the top of the net, but thereafter the visitors began to get more of a grip of the match, pressing and closing down their opponents to deny them time and space on the ball, something which they found in abundance at Telford last week. The full-backs began to struggle to get up in support of the wide men and the increasingly harried midfield could get little quality supply forward to Berry and Michael Gash.

Tamworth also began to look more dangerous themselves, Patterson leading the line with impressive energy and strength, and he found Liam McDonald with a promising cross on 22 which his colleague promptly miskicked. Three minutes later McDonald chipped forward to send Patterson away and his angled shot forced a low stop from Danny Naisbitt.

United looked as short on ideas as Bruce Forsyth's gag writers and started to resort to hopeful long balls towards Gash. They forced a corner on the half hour from which Carew blazed high and wide, but Hedge was otherwise untroubled and one began to yearn for the movement and unpredictable creativity of a Marriott; perhaps Pugh might provide a solution later in the afternoon.

For now it was pretty grim fare, the Lambs snapping into the tackle like, well, lions and United not playing with any sort of tempo and failing to impress themselves on the game. They certainly were not impressing anyone in the crowd, although Hudson and Johnson looked a solid, reliable centre-back pairing.

Tamworth passed the ball pretty well and now looked the better of (two admittedly very average) sides. They came close to breaking the deadlock on 37 when McDonald's corner found the head of Oji near the penalty spot, and his bullet header was well saved by a leaping Naisbitt, tipping it over the angle. United survived another couple of corners but the amber army was now as silent as that film with the skateboarding dog.

Jarvis at last broke forward on 43, having a powerful shot blocked then following up as it ballooned into the air, but he was harshly if predictably judged to have fouled Hedge as Shaw poked it into the net. An unsatisfactory end to a pretty unsatisfactory half. Tamworth had done their job well so far, and the U's needed to think of a Plan B if they were to defeat the red-shirted snappers.

Part two resumed without any sign of change, and within five minutes of the restart the visitors were ahead. It was a fortunate goal but had as the saying goes 'been coming': McDonald advanced to the edge of the box, shot low, it soared into the air off Hudson's foot, and flew unerringly over the helpless Naisbitt's head and into the net: 1-0.

United resembled a team of meerkats caught in the headlights of a Land Rover, and were lucky not to go two down shortly afterwards when first Patterson made himself space to shoot wildly wide, then Tamworth broke from a U's corner and found themselves three on two, Connor Gudger finding Paul Green in acres of space but the latter spooning his shot even more wildly wide than his colleague the minute before. United had to snap out of their tepid torpor tout de suite.

On the hour a long-needed change was made when Andy Pugh was introduced for his debut in place of Jarvis, who is a good team player when the going is good but lacks that added creative and energetic oomph for when the going gets tough. Berry took his place in midfield, but United persisted with their cautious and fruitless 4-4-1-1 instead of pairing Pugh and Gash in a proper 4-4-2.

On 66 a poor corner from Dunk was salvaged by Carew and he crossed for Gash to flash a shot across goal and wide. Then Carew's afternoon was over, a frustrating and substandard one with too many lazy, mishit passes and crosses, replaced by the less naturally talented but more industrious Jonathon Thorpe.

A long ball forward found Gash and he chested down for Shaw to zip an impressive goalbound shot which was tipped around the post by Hedge. Had the lion awoken?

Only slowly. If I had a penny for every duff corner I have ever seen taken by United, I would be as wealthy as Harry Redknapp's dog, or at least the average RBS executive, and today was no exception, with flag-kick after flag-kick trundled into the box at waist height and easily cleared by the first man while the tallest player on the pitch, Hudson, waited in vain in the middle. Thorpe was as guilty as his predecessors, prompting the perennial question 'What do they do in training?' to which the reply is probably 'Tamworth are better defenders than those tatty old bollards…'

Jennings gained United a corner with a deflected shot on 75 and at last Thorpe got it right, arrowing it onto the head of Hudson whose header looked a goal all the way until plucked out of the air by a full-length Hedge. The hosts gradually began to build up a head of steam as the hard-working visitors' thoughts began to turn to seeing out the remaining time as painlessly as possible. United were still a shadow of the side which won well last week, but at least they were now having a go.

Ref Whitton had kept order with ease so far, but finally resorted to his notebook on 83 when Thorpe clattered clumsily but honestly into Scott Barrow. Now at last it was time for desperation, I mean Plan B, as Liam Hughes replaced Johnson, who had enjoyed a thoroughly competent debut, and he joined Gash up front in a 3-4-1-2 formation.

It was not particularly pretty or sophisticated, but neither is Mick Jagger and he done OK for the last fifty years, and United concentrated on getting it forward fast and early. Gash might have done better with a header wide from Thorpe's cross on 89, and four minutes added time was indicated. For some reason the 'Countdown' music entered my head. Dinky-dinky-dink…

On 91 Hedge came off his line through a crowded box for a high cross, failed to gather and it dropped to Pugh on the edge of the area; his clever, delicate chip looked goalbound for a split second, but Hedge stretched to get a fingertip to it and in the ensuing melee he gained a sympathetic free-kick from the ref, which he milked for all he could. As you do.

Then Hughes gained possession out on the left and curled a superb cross towards the far post where Gash rose to head for goal. Hedge dived to parry it onto the post, and somehow it was scrambled away as Shaw tried to ram it home.

Patterson was booked for a foul on Hudson, and as United entered the last chance saloon, a half-clearance was hoiked back over the top to send Dunk sprinting clear into the box down the left channel; he only had Hedge to beat from ten yards, but Hedge spread himself to block with his legs, and as the ball ran clear, the final whistle sounded. What a finish.

When the dust had settled, one had to accept that the better side had won: Tamworth had come with a plan, stopped United from playing their normal game, played some decent stuff themselves and nicked it, albeit with a highly fortunate goal. The U's had simply not been at the races until the last quarter of an hour, albeit they had come agonisingly close to snatching a draw at the death.

It was only United's third home defeat of the season, although their previously hard-to-beat team now has a record in its last seven league games of loss-win-loss-win-loss-win-loss. At the moment they are consistent only in their inconsistency. They have come a long way since August, but now need to get some of that old 'invincibility' back if a credible push for the play-offs is to be sustained. And that is still very much within their grasp. Let's see some more of that old British bulldog spirit. 'Are we downhearted?' 'No!'

Statto Corner

Congratulations to Tamworth, who today achieved their first ever victory over the U's in nine attempts. The clubs first met at the Abbey on 7th October 2005 and United ran out 2-1 winners with goals from Fola Onibuje and Andy Duncan. The return match finished 1-1, and the following season the U's won 1-0 home and away.

Following the Lambs' relegation, the clubs did not meet again until the 2009-10 season. United saw out a goalless draw in Tamworth and won the return 2-0 thanks to a brace from Danny Crow. Last season a Danny Wright goal secured a 1-1 draw at the Lamb, while a thriller at the Abbey saw the U's fight back from three down to draw 3-3 with goals from Robbie Willmott, Jordan Patrick and Adam Marriott.

Tamworth did not use any substitutes today, the first team to fail to so against the U's since 22nd August 2009, when United drew 0-0 at… Tamworth. The last time United did not use any subs was in both FA Cup games against Huddersfield Town in November 2010, while in the league it was in a 2-1 win at Salisbury in April 2009. The U's have not omitted to use any subs at the Abbey since 6th September 2008, when they defeated Wrexham 2-0.

Andy Pugh is the first player to join the U's directly from Welling United, although Ashley Carew and Richie Hanlon both had spells there before coming to the Abbey. Welling's Moses Jjunju had a brief spell as an unsuccessful trialist at the Abbey in 2006.

United player-manager Bert Johnson joined the club from Bexleyheath & Welling in 1955, but that club has no direct connection with Welling United, who were formed in 1963, the year that B&W changed their name to Bexley United.

Players to have gone the other way include Martin Brennan, Simon Brown, Neil Horwood and Ollie Morah, while Dan Gleeson went to Welling on loan while an up-and-coming youngster at the Abbey.

Pugh has been allocated squad number 15 at the Abbey. Previous incumbents of that number are Tom Youngs, Tony Scully, John Turner, Adam Davies, Robbie Simpson, Paul Carden and Steve Kinniburgh.

The only other Pugh to play for the U's was Welsh Under-21 winger Daral, who joined on a month's loan from Rotherham United in December 1987. He started six games and scored once, the winner in a 1-0 home win over Scarborough, before returning to Millmoor. He finished his professional career at Torquay before moving on to Bridlington Town.

Brett Johnson is the second player of that surname to have played for the U's in the post-1970 era, after Bradley, who played once as a 17-year-old substitute in a 2-1 home defeat by Scunthorpe United in December 2004 before moving on to Northampton Town. He is now of course gracing the Premier League with Norwich City alongside another former Abbey youngster, John Ruddy.

Gary Johnson turned out for the U's in the odd friendly and reserve match when he was on the staff in the late 1980s/early 1990s, while his son Lee was on the books for a while as a schoolboy. Pre-1970 Johnsons who sported the black'n'amber were David, Len, Sid, Fred and the aforementioned Bert.

Johnson has been handed squad number 14, whose previous owners were Scott Eustace, Luke Guttridge, Paul 'Asbo' Atkins, Michael Gash, Mark Convery, Jai Reason and Conal Platt.

Both Pugh and Johnson are the second players to wear their respective numbers this season. The largest number of different men to wear one squad number in one season is four, which has happened twice. In 2004-05 Matt Robinson, Colin Heath, Lee Blackburn and Simon Rea all wore number 23, while in 2006-07 the number 26 was allocated to Rob Gier, Carl Patten, Sam Page and Chris Flynn, although Southend loanee Patten never got to make the first team.

Squad number 27 has changed hands the most times, being allocated to 20 players since the system was introduced in 1999, followed by numbers 20, 25 and 26 (nineteen times). At the other end of the scale, only four players have worn number 4, with even lower figures for rarely used numbers such as 36 and 37 (1 each), 39 (2) and 38 and 40 (3 each).

Player Ratings

Naisbitt 6. Rarely overly tested and had no chance with the goal.
Roberts 6. Reliable, although relatively subdued.
Jennings 6. Adequate but not much of a threat going forward.
Hudson 7. Impressively mature.
Johnson 7. Always looked cool and in control and seems to have a decent left foot.
Carew 4. Lamentably lackadaisical.
Shaw 6. Below par by his own high standards.
Jarvis 6. Always tidy, but United needed someone more dynamic and proactive today.
Dunk 6. The odd good run and cross, but can do so much better.
Berry 6. Not up to his usual standard, although never stopped trying.
Gash 6. Did his best with some pretty poor service.

Pugh 6. Promising, getting involved well and almost equalising with a delicious chip near the end.
Thorpe 6. Competent and contributed a darned sight more than Carew.
Hughes 5. Had the occasional good moment, notably his teasing cross late on.

Match Summary

Off-colour United slumped to a disappointing and lacklustre defeat against a hard-working and organised Tamworth side who always looked like winning after gaining a rather fortunate lead. The U's almost papered over the cracks with a flurry of late chances, but Jez and co will know that this was a very poor day at the office and lessons must be learned by next week.

Man of the Match

Blaine Hudson. The youngster again distinguished himself with strength and reliability and had a decent header saved to boot.

Ref Watch

Whitton 8. A little fussy on occasion, but kept the game flowing reasonably well and was sparing with the cards.

Soundtrack of the Day

Doug Jerebine "Ashes and Matches"

Cambridge United: YOUR CITY - YOUR CLUB