COLCHESTER UNITED: (0) 0
ATTENDANCE:
13,512
COL U TRAVELLING SUPPORT:
350 or less
WEATHER:
Mild and still, some sun
THE ‘You're The Man' AWARD to:
I'm not really sure we had one although Roger Johnson won sponsor man of the match and probably was brightest on a day when few shone.
THE “You're Not Very Good” BOOT goes to:
Malvin Kamara ... raw and it showed..
ATMOSPHERE:
On the pitch, not so good. Off the pitch, not a lot better but we tried.
THE TEAMS:
CARDIFF- Oh for those first dozen games of the season when Cardiff City could name the same side to blow away the opposition. Now it's change and disruption by the game, it can't be coincidence we've struggled. This game's absentee was Steven McPhail. Ironically, sent off at Colchester at the start of November but getting that overturned, his appeal for a red at Stoke was dismissed so his 3 game ban started against Col U. It forced Joe Ledley into central midfield, sent Paul Parry to the left and brought in Malvin Kamara on the right, only his 2nd start for City. Defensively, Alan Wright was making his home debut with McNaughton swopping to the right. On the bench, Mark Howard's' time there may be limited with news that David Ford is arriving for Eire on January 1 .
It was Alexander, McNaughton-Purse-Johnson-Wright, Kamara-Scimeca-Ledley-Parry, Thompson-Chopra. On the bench, Mark Howard's' time there may be limited with news that David Ford is arriving for Eire on January 1 whilst Glenn Loovens was a surprise inclusion but,there again, with our small squad, next choice would have been the tea lady. The others with him were Gunter, Campbell and Kevin Cooper, his first time in the 16 since returning from loan at Yeovil.
COLCHESTER- What a season the U's are having. With crowds of 5,000 and a stadium that is barely good enough for League Two, they came here in 7th place. Welsh manager Geraint Williams, the 2nd City fan to manage against
us in successive game (after Stoke's Tony Pulis) is performing miracles. The key is home form, their 3-1 win over City four weeks ago was a shock but they've won 8 on the bounce at Layer Road and now have the best home record in the Championship, their best coming with the midweek 5-1 thrashing of Hull.
However it's a different story on the road with just 1 point from their last 15 available away from home, comprehensive beatings by Sunderland and eeds in the previous time and only one victory early season at Burnley. It was a game you felt City needed to win to prove to themselves and anyone else that we had something about us more than 3 month wonders.
The Essex boys today were Gerken, Halford-Brown-Baldwin-Elokobi, Duguid-Jackson- Watson-Izzet, Cureton-Iwelumo. Dean Gerken was a young stand-in keeper having only his 2nd start of the season but his defence were reasonable even without Chris Barker, not allowed to play under the terms of
his loan from City. Greg Halford is not only the tallest right back I've seen but showed why he's talked about as heading for the Premiership and centre-half Brown battles all day for the cause. In midfield, Captain Karl Duguid is talented but is the news currently for a storm after he did a "Lee Hendrie" to help get a Southend man sent off recently and we knew attack needed marshalling with the livewire Jamie Cureton and Chris Iwelumo fresh from a four goal haul against Hull. Subs included ex-Jack agitator Kevin McLeod..
THE DAY & THE MATCH:
And so the slide continues as City have slipped from 1st to 2nd to 3rd and are now just 4 points ahead of sides outside the play-offs following another poor home performance produced only a pointy in a low key, poor performing 0-0 bore draw with Colchester United leaving City - who averaged almost 2.5 points a game for their first dozen matches - with just 9 points in 9 games since, that's more akin to relegation form..
There are currently more questions than answers - why have so many players lost form at the same time?, where has our slick passing and movement gone?, what happened to the magic pairings and partnerships we had all over the field?, how is it that so much possession and domination turns into so few chances?, why have midfield dropped back?, why are the team lacking the zest, belief, pace, passion, commitment and never say die attitude they displayed so proudly earlier in the season?, what sees us start with width which looks like our key to winning but then we stop using it?, why have we resorted to hoofball with defenders lumping it forward and nowhere in particular, commitment and never say die attitude they displayed so proudly earlier in the season?, can anyone explain why we have stopped running off the ball and appear to be waiting for it more, when is Michael Chopra going to score again? or, after 7 hours with no goal, when is anybody going to score again?
It's been a wonderful season and we're still in a position we could only dream about in August but that doesn't make it any less frustrating to be a Cardiff City fan right now.
Maybe the first disappointment came at the start with just 13,500 in the ground with gaps visible all over the Bob Bank and Grandstand areas in particular, this on a day when the 6,000 Ambassadors could buy 2 tickets for £10 for others. I got mine but quite obviously, many didn't take advantage of an offer that, it must be said, wasn't publicised too well by the club either. After a train connection that didn't arrive in Barry and getting to Canton too late to meet others, maybe I already knew it wasn't going to be a great day, the omens were there ... especially when I had a pre-match pint in the Ninian Park, exactly how depressing is that pub? It reminded me why I stopped going there some time ago..
However the team came out to a big ovation and you hoped they wanted to get back to winning ways and avenge that depressing loss at Colchester just 4 weeks earlier and, in the early stages, they certainly came out with the
right attitude.
The boys looked keen, created some early pressure and Gerken in Col U's goal looked very nervous, either flapping about or sticking to his line. Paul Parry sensed it in particular and sent over a couple of crosses but we failed to get near them. A Parry inswinger corner within the first 5 minutes saw the keeper clumsily punch away and it was Parry who also had the game's first shot as he fizzed a rising drive which deflected off Brown's head, had Gerken beaten but cleared his crossbar by a couple of inches only.
City couldn't maintain that tempo. Despite having most of the possession and territory to go with it, it just wasn't happening in that crucial final third, we looked hesitant and were stuttering as too many final balls were cut out. Frustration mounted amongst the crowd not just because of our display but news was out that Preston were 2-0 down away meaning any win would have put us back top even with Birmingham winning comfortably.
However chances came. On 20 minutes, Paul Parry, swapping wings, broke on the right and noticed Chops delivering a perfect far post ball that Chopra met 4 yards out. The Michael Chopra of a month ago would have revelled with a chance like that but his confidence is so obviously affected and he
delivered a hesitant header where he concentrated more on making sure it was on target. The result was a downward header that Gerken managed to turn behind but former contact would most likely have seen it buried. The half's outstanding moment was a superb Riccy Scimeca edge of the box scissors shot that seemed destined to fly in but he was denied by a great stop by the keeper who had now got over his earlier nerves.
City didn't exactly have it all their own way. Halford showed what a prospect he is with his defensive work exemplified by superbly bringing down the ball, turning and spinning away from Chops in the corner, it even brought applause from City fans. Better still was his peach of a cross from 30 yards out that was too good for his team mates to reach but it had City's defence beaten all ends up with Alexander and Purse both not knowing what each other would do. Chopra fired over, Parry hit one at the keeper but we were starring to tread water.
Then, on half-time, with City now going quiet came a major let off as a cross from the right was met by Iwelumo bang in front of goal but he glanced wide when he probably should have netted. By this point, the boys needed the break - a promising start had quickly fizzled out into very ordinary. At times, Colchester were showing the application and work rate that we used to show in abundance but which is currently lacking in Cardiff displays.
I thought it couldn't get any worse, I was wrong. Ali played Tom Waits at the interval, it felt like a funeral march was underway. Great artist but hardly inspiring half-time music ... could it get worse again? Sure could, then there was the 2nd half..
Half-time: CITY 0 COL U 0
Just as the first half, City opened up brightly. Paul Parry was the main threat and sent over enough crosses with variation but nobody got on the end of any really. City also won corner after corner but the only one we onnected with - Roger Johnson's fine header just around the hour mark finally had Gerken beaten but was agonisingly headed off the line by a defender. Just before that, a superb Riccy Scimeca 30 yard skimmer almost caught out Gerken but produced another good stop.
Unfortunately, that was as good as the 2nd half got for City, it really did become a mess after that. Stray passing, ideas lacking, confidence and belief wilting away City had got sucked in. Just like at Stoke, the outlet to City grabbing that elusive goal seemed to be feeding Paul Parry wide but with Alan Wright less able to get forward than Chris Barker (a player Dave Jones declared he no longer wants for that very reason) and midfield bogged down and dropping deeper in a battle, he was isolated and forced to come inside. Kamara did the same on the right but after one poor pass to many and not setting off on any run in particular, had no disappeared out of the game. Chopra has now stopped making his trademark runs and showed his confidence had drained by refusing to shoot when the chance was there and firing well into the Grange End when there wasn't really a chance at all.
Most disturbing was how we stopped working as we used to. When things aren't going for you, the answer is often work twice as hard. Instead, it was Colchester who seemed to be closing down in twos and threes, making space and winning all the loose balls, City were still enjoying the lion's share of possession and territory but were just not working their opponents over.
The crowd knew City were misfiring and did their bit to help. It was heartening to hear the whole ground get behind the team, backing them and singing rousing chants in all areas of the ground too. There's been many times over the years a faltering display like this and a series of below par performances and results would have produced the exact opposite effect. Who'd envy Dave Jones when it is like this? Any other manager at the top could look to his bench and change things about, Pulis did the exact same thing for Stoke in midweek, he really didn't have that option.
Colchester, six goals conceded in their last two aways and 4 defeats out of 5 on the road, decided if anyone was going to take three points, it may as well be them. The final 20 minutes saw little meaningful action but what there was came from the U's and in particular the dangerous Jamie Cureton. In the closing stages, Neil Alexander had to make a fine save from him, had a shot covered that gave the crowd a heart in mouths moment and the side netting bulged. It was the wrong side but some didn't realise that. At the very end, it was almost a replica or QPR's smash and grab win as Colchester came from nowhere down the left, sent a low ball between Alexander and Purse but the man at the far post couldn't quite get there.
City had no answer. Kevin Campbell, a man who undoes a theory that only white men can't jump, came on and had next to no impact again. It just looks as if it is a season too far for him, certainly at this level. His only contribution was as a cheerleader, trying to whip up fervour in the Grange End at a corner. He came on like for like for Thommo however, there was no gamble on Dave Jones' part. The most disturbing sight for me was now watching a City side play "hoofball" with hit and hope balls being hit forward - this from a side playing City's best football for 30+ years very recently. We have gone so far backwards in such a short time. Light relief came watching Alan Wright go on a 50 yard dash against a Col U forward, his little legs pumping like a hamster on a wheel. He lost out, danger was averted and we needed that laugh amongst the gloom descending.
Then the most stupid substation, not in terms of the choice a=but the crazy timing of it. Kevin Cooper, one man on the bench who maybe could have made a difference came on in injury time for the Hapless Kamara who really could have gone on anytime in the 25 minutes beforehand but to give Kevin Cooper just 3 minutes at that stage did bring the words "lost" and "plot" to mind. I don't think even Lennie Lawrence - renowned for having no idea how and when to introduce substitutes - would have done anything like that.
Final whistle blew and out rang a few very audible boos. Dave Jones attacked that afterwards but it was a minority, the team had had far better vocal backing in that 2nd half than their performance merited and I am quite sure, on the whole, it was simply fans who pay their money letting out their frustration. After all, we may be third but our bad run is now getting close to being as long as our outstanding run, it was back-to-back poor home shows, we haven't scored for 7 hours, we completely lost our way against an average away team and had we nicked the win, we would have gone back to top of the league.
It would happen at Man U, Chelsea, Barcelona on Milan when it's like that. There's a limit to how long anyone can get away playing the blip but you would have taken this at the start of the season card.. Even if we weren't at the top, recent displays have been substandard and in terms of points per
game, relegation standard. It's inevitable some will express their feelings.,
I bet the players themselves admitted they were sh*t back in the changing rooms so I don't see what's so wrong with a few boos of frustration from the
support after the game ends. I didn't boo, I never would but I can understand where it came from and the context of it. Give me that anyday to fans booing and abusing players during the match which, today, was thankfully very rare.
So now we're in third, two points off the top but three points away from 6th. It wasn't that long ago we were 6 points clear at the top and 10+ ahead of the team outside the play-offs. For now, that has evaporated. There are no easy answers as Cardiff City have 6 more games with the same group of players before Dave Jones can hopefully take some positive action in the transfer window. He and they somehow must sort this out and fast before more damage is done. But, even with a kindly fixture list of sorts, it does feel as if we're just hoping to hang in there rather than fight our way back to the top - after what we were seeing a few weeks ago, that really is depressing. There's no hiding from it.
Report from FootyMad
The shot-shy Bluebirds failed to score for the fourth successive match as they were held to a goalless draw by Colchester United at Ninian Park.
In fact it was the visitors that carved out the best chances and three times in the final minutes Jamie Cureton went close to snatching all three points for Colchester.
The Bluebirds switched Joe Ledley into central midfield to cover for the suspended Stephen McPhail and Malvin Kamara started on the left.
Colchester had Chris Iwelumo up front after his four goals in midweek against Hull City but former Swan Kevin McLeod was on the bench.
A move started by Ledley in the eighth minute gave Michael Chopra a glimpse of goal but Wayne Brown recovered to toe-poke the ball away for a corner.
There was danger for City when Greg Halford swung a cross over from the right flank but Iwelumo seemed to lose sight of the ball when well-placed.
Halford then mis-hit a pass that Darren Purse collected before sending Paul Parry scurrying down the wing. His deep cross was met by Chopra but his header was saved by the legs of United keeper Dean Gerken.
The Bluebirds were pressing Colchester back in their own half but without opening up their defence and making clear-cut scoring opportunities. They nearly broke the deadlock in the 34th minute when a goal-bound shot from Riccardo Scimeca was brilliantly tipped over by Gerken.
Colchester were quick on the break and Karl Duguid had Neil Alexander stretching to gather a low angled shot.
On the stroke of half-time Purse allowed Iwelumo to find space but the big striker could only glance his point-blank header across the face of the goal.
A mistake by Kamara five minutes into the second half gave Cureton a run on goal but he screwed his shot wide of the far post.
Roger Johnson almost capped a fine display with a goal on the hour but his header was cleared off the line by Kevin Watson with the keeper beaten.
Kevin Campbell replaced Steve Thompson in the 68th minute but it was Colchester that looked more likely to break the deadlock and Cureton was inches away from connecting with a low cross from substitute Jamie Guy.
The busy Cureton then had City fans' hearts in their mouths as he flashed a shot into the side-netting with Alexander beaten. Then he hit another curler that the City keeper did well to gather.
The match finished with the Bluebirds desperately hanging on to a point and when the final whistle blew there were jeers from the home crowd after yet another poor home display.
External Reports
Wales On Sunday
Western Mail
The Guardian
The Independent
The Telegraph