CRC 2 Dereham Town 2
This was disappointing result and performance after the perfect start to the match and brought to an end our run of consecutive victories.That said, with four regular starters missing through injury or first team call ups, it was understandable that we lacked the cohesion of late. We must never forget though that as much as we enjoy winning matches, the primary aim of this team is to develop talented youngsters for Cambridge United.
With that in mind, the absence of Rory McAuley, Jack Eades and Adam Marriott gave opportunities to three first years in Alex Bevan, Joe Bennett and Jonathan Thorpe, whilst Liam Hughes slotted in for Sam Ives. The strength of the team will always be affected by the loss of these players but in order for the conveyor belt to continue, it is crucial that we continue to play first & second year scholars in this league.
Results may dip but Nolan and I have great belief in the talent at our disposal. Inexperience will lead to mistakes but this is the only way that players will improve. Lest we forget, Rory started his career with CRC in a team that won only 5 of their first 30 games. He now tells me that we have won every game in which he has played for us this season!
On Saturday we got off to a dream start, with good incisive play in the opening ten minutes, which was rewarded with a fine goal from our perspective. We talked before the game about two main factors with this opposition. Firstly, their right back is their biggest strength but also a potential weakness. We needed to stifle his attacking threat and take advantage of the holes he leaves defensively. Secondly, Dereham have a very similar shape in and out of possession so our transition as the ball changed hands from one team to the other was crucial. We knew that we could get at them and counter attack effectively but at the same time had to either win the ball back or recover quickly on losing possession. Of course, the transition between possessions is always a vital aspect of the game but it is accentuated against this type of opposition.
The first goal was an apt demonstration of our "game plan" and the ease at which it was executed made it even more frustrating that it couldn't be maintained beyond this opening spell. Their right back drove inside with the ball and was tackled by Luke Berry. The ball ran loose to Liam Hughes who picked out the perfect pass to JP. His finish was precise into the far bottom corner but Jack Bailey's run into the hole vacated by the aforementioned right back dragged the centre back out of position to create the space for JP's run. One nil!
Unfortunately, we didn't press home our advantage and allowed the visitors back into the game. I felt that we played too much football in front of them and didn't get at their back four enough. They feared our pace and movement, but the tempo of our play was too slow and we played sideways and backwards too often when there was an opportunity to break forward. When we did, we carved them open and created chances. We must learn to be persistent when we find a weakness and ruthless in exposing it rather than looking for another way to score.
Their equaliser was particularly disappointing because it came from a forward run by their right back that we knew was a danger. Their wide right drove inside, created a hole which he exploited with a perfectly timed run onto a through ball which gave him the freedom of half the R Costings Abbey Stadium.In fairness, he finished with aplomb but we had been carved open far too easily.
In the second half we produced a mixture of the good, the bad and the ugly! Their goal was one of the latter. Alex Bevan was spun by their player beyond the half way line trying to nick the ball from their goalkeepers throw and he then ran unchallenged to smash the ball past Martin Davies into the roof of the net from 20 yards. Even without Rory, who would again prove his attacking worth from set plays on Sunday, we equalised from a corner with JP nodding in from close range at the far post.
A draw was a fair result but this was a game we would have won if we had been anywhere close to our best despite the absentees. Someone needed to step up to the plate, someone needed to take a lead, someone needed to take responsibility. As the team gets younger throughout the season, which it MUST to serve its purpose, this will become more of an issue so it must be addressed now.
Following on from these thoughts, it was fantastic to see Rory McAuley look so comfortable in the first team on Sunday and Adam Marriott to enjoy his first taste of action, albeit for just a few minutes. This is reward for his sustained high level of performances and goals in recent weeks. He really does have an exciting talent and one that we must be patient in developing. It is pleasing that all of the youngsters have handled the demands of first team football when the opportunity has arisen this season. Their continued development at some point this season may be served by testing them at a higher level than CRC, which in turn will give the first year scholars more experience and aid their progress. At the moment though, they are pushing on well by training with the first team, which tests their technique at a higher tempo, working individually with Nolan, to improve small details in their game, and getting minutes on the pitch.
Whilst we would love to win promotion, we cannot compromise our real job of producing players. I believe our first XI would win this league but that would defeat the object because we want the likes of Ives, McAuley, Marriott et al to be getting into the first team. It would also block the progress of the likes of JT, Alex Bevan and others. It's a balancing act and one that we relish in the coming months. If we can maintain good results as the team evolves again, we really will show our strength in depth.
Team: Davies, Bevan, Coakley, Carr, Hudson, Hughes, Bennett, Berry, Bailey, Thorpe, Patrick.
