Cardiff City kept up their good start to their season by making it ten points from four games to remain in second place with coming up to ten percent of the season played – if we keep this up, we’re on for a hundred points plus!
I’m not holding my breath on getting a century of points though because tonight’s 1-0 win at an AFC Wimbledon team widely tipped to finish bottom of the league by many before a ball was kicked presented a challenge which it looked like City would be unable to answer until a goal in added time swung the game our way.
I think the result was a fair one because we were the better side over the ninety minutes, but a Wimbledon team that owed their promotion through the Play Offs mostly to their excellent defensive record, clearly know how to stay in games when having to absorb pressure.
Evidence of this was provided in the first half as City, playing far better than they did in their only previous away game at Port Vale, enjoyed a domination of the ball and territory as complete as it was against Rotherham on Saturday. However, it produced very little in terms of chances to show for that domination. Some of this was down to us lacking a cutting edge or a good enough quality final ball, but Wimbledon’s defending was very good for much of the time and, on this showing, there are definitely worse teams than them in League One.
City were never as dominant or impressive in the second half and gradually Wimbledon, confident after two wins in three in the league and a League Cup win, came out from their defensive trenches to look the more likely to break the deadlock through the game’s last quarter as their more direct attacking play resulted in more near things than our more intricate approach could come up with.
It had reached the stage where, after thinking a goal had to come for City through the first half, I was happy to accept a second successive away goalless draw through the last ten minutes. However, as the match went into added time, the pendulum swung back somewhat and it was us who looked like we could win – as we duly did in the ninety second minute.
City made two changes, one of them very predictable as Joel Bagan came in for Dak Mafico at left back and the other less so as David Turnbull, many people’s man of the match on Saturday, made way for Joel Colwill.
The younger Colwill was in the action straight away as City made a forceful start by stamping the BBM approach on the game from the off. In the third minute, Joel drove deep into the Wimbledon penalty area in the inside right channel only to be felled by an impetuous challenge by Steve Seddon. It was as obvious a penalty as you could wish to see, but, referee David Rock began as he would go on by awarding a goal kick!
Mr Rock constantly gave fifty/fifties in the home team’s favour, he stopped a dangerous City attack because of a clash of heads, which was fair enough, but then he restarted play with a free kick to the home side. He spotted a handball that was hard to see on replays of the incident when Cian Ashford hit the post in the second half. He then ended the night with another howler of a decision when City cleared a corner deep into added time and when Isaak Davies played it forward, we had a two on one with the home goalkeeper Nathan Bishop, who had come up for the corner with his team trailing well into added time, out of position, but Mr Rock stopped play to award City a free kick for a foul on Davies.
There was also a penalty claim against a Wimbledon defender for handball which didn’t go our way (I must say mind it was nowhere near as obvious a penalty as the earlier one was).
Mr Rock was a homer, simple as that, and, if he had done his job properly and awarded us a penalty in the opening minutes, we could have maybe ended up with a much more comfortable night.
As it was though, despite all of our attractive and enjoyable approach play, there was only a Yousef Salech header from a Ronan Kpakio cross that flew just wide, a viciously struck Ollie Tanner shot that did not bend back round enough to be on target and a Tanner cross just out of Joel Colwell’s reach to really worry Wimbledon in the first half.
For their part, home captain Jake Reeves flashed a shot not too far over, but there was little else of note in attack from the Wombles until they got a few crosses in during added time when City were coming to terms with the loss of Ollie Tanner after he injured himself falling into an advertising hoarding which necessitated him being carried off on a stretcher.
Tanner was replaced by the less dynamic Chris Willock, but after his no show at Port Vale, Willock’s more deliberate style became more of a factor as the game moved into its final stages and, unlike some of our substitutes, he could be said to have made a positive impression.
For a spell after half time, City were still fluent and forceful, but the introduction of Turnbull, Davies and Callum Robinson for Joel Colwill, Ashford and Salech didn’t work for me – I know that sounds daft when you consider two of them combined for the goal, but the ball kept on coming back at us in the final quarter on a night when, more and more, you had to look at defenders when trying to find our best players.
I say that, but Rubin Colwill was bright and confident if a little careless at times with his passing, yet, rather like the team in the first half, it looked like there was a big threat there, but nothing really came of it.
All of the back four did some valuable defensive work when called upon on a night where a game that was always watchable produced just three on target efforts. The first came from Alistair Smith when his long range effort was easily held by Nathan Trott while the other two provided the late drama at either end of the pitch.
The home side came closest to breaking the deadlock when Smith I think it was shot just wide from the edge of the penalty area, but Willock’s cross caused problems and when the ball dropped to Robinson eight yards out it seemed we were finally going to get a goal, but his well struck shot was blocked with City players claiming a penalty for handball.
Home sub Omar Bugiel looked to be in on goal, but was robbed of possession just as he tried to shoot and then when Calum Chambers, on for Bagan, swung in a lovely cross from the right, Robinson headed over when he really should have scored.
That seemed to City’s last chance gone, but when Willock’s cross was half cleared to Turnbull, his shot looked to be going just wide until it was nudged in by Davies from six yards out.
Still there was drama as, just about for the first time on the night, some weak defending left another sub, Antwoine Hackford free to get in a cross shot which was going in until Trott produced his first great save for City as he turned the low shot around a post.
Finally, a quick note to record that the under 21’s won impressively by 3-0 at Crewe yesterday afternoon thanks a goal by Troy Perrett and two by young Rob Tankiewicz who I believe is still sixteen..
Well, Paul…
I must eat some humble pie after last night.
First the goalie: that save at the death was very fine. That said he needs work doing on his rare long balls aimed over the halfway line.
Second, City’s pleasing FORWARD PASSING AT SPEED in the first half. Even my guru Charles Hughes* would have been impressed, for he wanted to get to his beloved POMO by moving the ball forward at speed… and not fancy-dan tiki-taka in our own penalty area.
As for our opponents…
When I saw Wimbledon come here to Grimsby 3 months ago and win a scrappy game 1-0, they played exactly the same as yesterday. That defence is very fine… although yesterday, it must be said that their team were playing with nine men, because I am convinced that Asiimwe (2) and Smith (12) were actually enemy agents working for us. Neither did a single thing all game to benefit the Wombles… lest you perhaps count a tame daisycutter shot from Smith which although on target, went straight into Trott’s hands… and one goodish cross from Asiimwe in the second half.
But at least that Smith shot was ‘on target’… which astonishingly was something we could not seem to register until injury time and that fluke of a Davies goal… methinks that Turnbull shot would have gone wide otherwise.
So let us not get carried totally away. We were essentially playing a Div 2 side yesterday. A side that even Div 2 Grimsby got 54% possession against in May just gone, compared to our 66% last night. And Grimsby got three shots on target, against our one.
So Luton on Saturday will tell us more about City, but that said, having watched on TV the whole of the season opener at Kenilworth Road (where Wimbledon were unlucky to lose to a very late own goal)… then City will have much tougher tests this season than the coming Saturday’s.
But I expect Luton to provide a proper press, which Wimbledon made no serious attempt to do last night.
My mentioning Port Vale just a moment ago, makes me think that I never thought I would see a better turned-out team than them in their home strip.
Until last night, that was.
Have City ever looked smarter in their team colours? I don’t think so… and I include the Robin Friday 1977 sartorial gem. OMG… what a divine shirt colour (which the club officially are calling ‘mint green’ though it is the creamiest mint green I have ever seen) and fantastically matching dark green shorts (which are officially called ‘emerald green’ though again I reckon misnamed, as they are more a cadmium green). And particularly striking socks finish the ensemble with a flourish.
Very impressed with the 1410 City supporters though who made a trip 20 miles longer than the Stevenage fans had to make to Port Vale last night… yet they could only muster a couple of hundred fans judging from TV pictures.
Mentioning the referee as you did Paul, I must gently part company. He was no homer: he was a million miles from one.
Yes he was in error in not giving us a penalty just 3 minutes in. But the real villain there was the linesman, who had a perfect view, whereas the ref’s was partly blocked… plus I have a notion that had we been attacking the Home end, there was a greater chance it being awarded. (Those 1410 City fans appealing with massed shouts and arms raised… probably worked against us in the ref’s subconscious.)
No, I thought the ref very fair.
*gee, even the outstanding Simon Jordan yesterday was the latest football revisionist historian to slander his memory, by saying Charles Hughes’ philosophy was to fill your team with ‘big brutes who hoofed the ball the length of the pitch’. Simon, you are better than that. ‘Father, forgive them’… etc…
TTFN,
Dai.
Apols. Just read what I wrote.
‘My mentioning Port Vale earlier’?!! Start of 9th para. What was that all about? (I did not refer to them, at all.)
Simple.
A friend phoned just at the end of the 6th or 7th para… and I mentioned to him Stevenage doing a smash & grab on Port Vale last night in injury time.
Then conversation over, I went back to my MAYA comment… and promptly merged the events of the previous fifteen minutes.
Oh dear… a fog begins to descend on one at 78.
DW
Another great result, and as you say Paul, over 90 minutes we were deserved winners. I often don’t agree with Dai, but I do agree that the Assistant Ref could have helped with the early penalty decision on Colwill junior.
I’m not sure what the convention is these days with officials, especially when there is no VAR, but going back many years, the ref would often tell the then linesmen what he wanted them to help with, and I remember hearing a couple of refs (admittedly at a lower level although still with designated assistants) saying to leave everything apart from throw-ins and offsides to them.
The other thing that I thought from watching the Port Vale and Wimbledon performances, was how poor their finishing was overall (the Wimbledon injury time shot which produced a magnificent save by Trott being the exception).
I remember watching our team of many years ago the season after a promotion, with Jason Fowler playing, and marvelling at the standard of football we were playing and thinking that we didn’t look out of place in the higher division.
One downside however, was that for all our good football in the higher division, our opponents were usually ruthless in front of goal when presented with a mistake from us, and so we often drew home games and lost by a single goal away.
We’ll have to see as the season progresses if this poor standard of finishing is a feature of League 1 strikers in general, or whether it’s too early in the season for them to have worn their shooting boots in yet!
Again, thank-you, Paul, for your assessment of Tuesday night’s game at Wimbledon.
I’ve allowed time before writing so that I would not be guilty of the charge of over-reaction. In fact almost 48 hours on I feel the exact same on the issue.
My mate, Arthur, we bumped into one another in the late 1960’s behind the Boys’ Enclosure on the Grangetown End, as it was then called, was a wit beyond his station. One dire, wet afternoon at Ninian Park whilst witnessing an awful exhibition of his craft he bellowed to all who cared to listen words of rebuke about the referee: “He couldn’t control a knife and fork!” Those who cared to listen further would have heard the Bard of NP state that the ref was, “as bent as a corkscrew!”
I have long since held the view that refs are either ignorant of the Laws of the Game or partial. There is no other category to place them in. In both cases they should be debarred from duty. Tuesday’s official, a Mr David Rock from Herts, started his case of being in the dock from as early as the third minute. The disgraceful decision not to award a penalty to City and a red card to Steve Seddon was beyond justification. Many readers will have already seen views of the tackle (?) online. The younger Colwill could have had both his legs broken by the scissors-like challenge. That he chose, then, to give a goal-kick as the ball went out of play said it all. When viewed against other free-kicks that were awarded re-enforced my view. The referee’s first responsibility is a duty of care to the players. This he did not do.
I could go on but I keep coming back to Arthur’s comment from many a decade ago. This was not the only incident but time prevents me writing further. Either it was a case of being ignorant or partial. I hope City give a long and detailed account of the handling, not only of this game but the four league games this season the PGMOB. And the Peterborough one was a penalty? Yeah? Never! By my reckoning some four or five penalties have mysteriously not been given to us even this early in the season.
Yes, we played Wimbledon off the park but were thankful for a mishit shot from Turnbull bouncing into the net via Davies’ knee. But hey. Who cares? It was, “1-0 to the City!”
One point about Kpakio. Many times he made 30 yards down his flank only to stop and pass inside to Fish inside him, instead of going all the way or passing to Ashford. Has been told to do this?
Some great replies again to this post with discussion centring on the officials. I accept that that the linesman nearest the early penalty shout was equally guilty of truly inept officiating, but the referee had a virtually uninterrupted view of it all (only Cian Ashford may have been in his way) and should have seen enough to award the penalty if he qas doing his job properly. I side much more with Steve on this matter, the penalty inicedent gets just about as a good a vi=ew as you can get in the early stages of this video
https://tv.cardiffcityfc.co.uk/videos/f5706ee1-341e-4e09-b41e-f2382b488040
and, having watched it a few times, the only slight sympathy i have for him is that he may not have been best positioned to get a true impression of what a bad tackle it was – he should have been able to see it was a clear foul though.
I would guess that AFC Wimbledon manager Johnnie Jackson would have had a word with Steve Seddon at half time for going into such a reckless tackle so early in the game as it could have left his team with 87 minutes plus to play with ten men. As Steve says, there was an element of a “scissor” movement to the tackle and the authorities are really not a fan of such tackling these days. As an aside, Mr Seddon was caught on You Tube video indulging in a ridiculous dive in Wimbledon’s win over Reading last Saturday, so he seems to be a potential liabolity for a team I hope should stay up.
However, you could just pretend that the penalty incident never happened and Mr Rock would still have to be judged as inept homer of a referee. I listed some of the reasons why in my piece, but didn’t mention the pull on Joel Colwill to prevent him reaching Tanner’s cross.which would have left him twelve yards out from the home goal with nobody close enough to him to prevent him from shooting.
I’ve mentioned before that I’m quite proud that my match reports don’t turn into blame the ref exercises when we lose, but, having largely ignored the talk about how bad the officials are in League One compared to the Championship, I didn’t really believe it. However, four games in and I’m thinking that referees aew going to be featuring quite extensively in my post game pieces if they continue to be as bad as they have been up until now.
SO far, I’d say the guy who took charge of the match at Port Vale is the best of the four I’ve seen so far and even he probably should have awarded Vale aoal (albeit it was much more of a linesman’s blunder than his) and could easily have decided to show Joel Bagam a red card. Second was the ref for the Rotherham who still managed to miss a blatant penalty when Ronan Kpakio was brought down late on by a defender. Finally, it’s hard to separate the pair who touch charge of the matches with Peterborough and Wimbledon as they both made some absolute howlers of decisions at regular intervals
https://tv.cardiffcityfc.co.uk/videos/f5706ee1-341e-4e09-b41e-f2382b488040