Got home after this one and immediately went to check the league table because I had no idea whereabouts in the table (other than some where below us) the team that we'd just robbed of two points, were. In the relegation zone, pre-kick-off apparently. That didn't make me feel much better. Yesterday we were ever so lucky that Crewe were the same old Crewe - they play the game the right way (when they've got the ball, I don't mean all the bloody feigned injuries) short precise passing, always a man available, but true to form they are lightweight and pack no punch up front. If they had a big strapping old school centre forward they'd have got a bagful yesterday. We started with the same back 5, Fraser at RMidfield, Prutton and Howson in the middle and Sweeney at Left, with Flo and Kandol up front. In the first 10 minutes we had 6 or 7 presentable efforts on goal - Flo, Kandol, Michalik, Sheehan and Prutton all putting narrowly wide or producing decent saves/blocks from Crewe. When nothing came of the opening bluster it all faded away. Slowly Crewe's better footballing habits began to give them the upper hand and they were playing controlled precise football in our half, mainly, occassionally breaking through for a shot on goal. They had 2 small fast forwards who seemed to really throw Lubo every time they ran at him. Fortunately they couldn't hit a barn door. For the rest of the half there were several half chances, we did have a few and several corners all of which led to very little. Fraser had a couple of half decent long range efforts. Right at the end of the half Prutton was adjudged to have fouled a Crewe player on the edge of our box - right where Donny scored from. Fella steps up and rattles the crossbar with Caspar nowhere. Unlucky. Straight after half time and we give them a goal from nothing. In their half of the field, a loose ball, banged away to where our left back might well have been, but wasn't. They had a bloke after it and another one coming through the middle, Rui had to go across to the man with the ball who is on the edge of the box, he slips it square to his mate who is more or less unmarked, he rolls it past Caspar with a first time shot. We are nowhere and have managed to commit hari-kari. An unbelievably bad schoolboy goal. For the next 30 minutes we ran around trying to get the ball off an increasingly confident Crewe, who began to believe they might actually win at ER. When we did get the ball, we gave it straight back. They had a couple more decent chances, bringing a good save from Caspar, and forced several scrambles. Meanwhile, in response to the goal we brought Carole on for the recently limping Kenton and moved Fraser to RBack. Carole immediately set about running up all the dead-ends we'd forgotten about. His main problem being that neither of the two lumps of wood we had playing up front ever showed for the ball, or got themselves in half decent positions. The only time we looked likely when going forward was when a midfielder ran beyond the man with the ball...then we sometimes got something going down, usually the right side - Prutton, Howson and later Johnson did at least make the Crewe defence turn and track back. With 20 minutes to go and still no real chances Sweeney - who was lightweight to say the least - was swapped for Johnson and Elding was to be brought on, the only question was whether for Flo or Kandol. People around me booed when Kandol stayed on and Flo was subbed. Kandol is not a better player than Flo - never will be - but Flo was treading water, he's a sub, he can't do 90 minutes. Kandol did almost zip all match, he's not right good and his confidence is shot to pieces but he got us a goal that Flo would not have done. The only possible options for the next game to play alongside Beckford are Elding or Kandol. With Flo to come on for the last 20. myself I'd go for Kandol - for 2 reasons, he seems to blend better than any of the others with Beckford, as in creates space for him and wins some flicks (admittedly Elding has not really had chance to prove or disprove his credentials yet) and secondly, the argument of continuity. Which I realise also requires recalls for Heath, Thompson and Douglas when fit, but who said logic has anything to do with football. For what its worth, Douglas would walk (or limp) into this midfield at the moment. Its not a surprise that Kandol has no confidence if people are booing the fact that he isn't subbed off...for Christ sake, some pondlife behind me started giving it to Elding about 5 minutes after he'd come on - "you're fucking shit you are you bastard why don't you fuck off back to Stockport" - this poor guy has had what, maybe one full game all told in a Leeds shirt. No wonder the guys have no self belief with this level of "support". Despite these changes, little changed in our fortunes. Crewe looked odds on for the 3 points. 5 minutes left. We got a free kick down near the corner flag on our left wing. Carole and Johnson stood over it. Seb clearly wanted to bend it goalwards with his right foot but Johnson wasn't having it and waved him away. Johnson took it left footed and predictably didn't get it beyond the first man. He headed it clear to Carole, still lurking out by the corner of the box on the left side, he turned the ball onto his right foot and swung in a beautiful cross that took out the CHalfs but left the goalie unable to come for it and Kandol really couldn't miss from 5 yards. At this point Crewe folded. 6 minutes of injury time were shown. We threw lots at them but couldn't force another decent chance on goal. In many ways this was robbery, but we'll have to take it and hope that we can start beating teams pretty damn sharpish. ANKERGREN - some decent saves - not sure about his positioning or reflexes for the goal but in truth it was more the fault of the 10 other numpties out there KENTON - solid defensively - willing if not particularly adept at getting forward SHEEHAN - to be honest I don't get this guy - at times he looks really sorted, comfortable on the ball and all the rest of it, but he is guaranteed to do some pretty stupid and rank bad defending at some point in every match - his positional sense is dubious, he looks OK in the air, but I've yet to see him make a proper tackle MARQUES - was pretty much up to his normal standard apart from a couple of wildly bad back-passes/clearances that put us under pressure. MICHALIK - was not what I expected at all - timid, slow and out of position - did not command at the back both Lubo and Rui were put under pressure by having no cover in front of them RICHARDSON - just isn't a midfield player - was game enough - had one really good long shot in the second half that the keeper had to get down to by his post pretty sharply - looked more comfortable at RBack PRUTTON - had one of his best games for us - driving forward, looking for the gaps and generally got stuck in - powder puff header at the back post after 5 minutes which it looked (from 100 yards away) that he should have buried HOWSON - quiet game - had a couple of good efforts in the second half, one of which bounced back off the post - came more to the fore in the last 20 minutes when driving forward - pushing us into the box, unfortunately the man he always found was Kandol, who immediately stopped, put his foot on the ball, and went backwards. SWEENEY - a lightweight butterfly on the left - between him and Sheehan our left hand side has nothing to offer going forwards and the resistance of a souffle when defending FLO - decent enough first half, one or two nice lay offs and a good shot on goal. Was used up by half time. Coming far too deep for the ball. KANDOL - for 85 minutes really looked as if he'd rather be shopping than out on the pitch. Didn't give up, got us a goal and a point. Let's hope it rekindles his goalscoring form of the first 10 games. We need it. Subs Carole - frustrating to say the least - but with two big strikers on it makes sense to have a winger on, and whatever else, he can cross a good ball, as he proved for the goal JOHNSON - came on and "put it about a bit" - he at least looked bothered that we were losing - which is a pretty good start - not sure that he brought much quality - but his physical presence made him an improvement on Sweeney ELDING - won a couple of headers, had one long shot was that was well struck - but at the moment he looks like no-one in the squad knows who he is or how to play alongside him ------------- Crowd was small (for us who aren't famous any more) and noisy at times - not always in a good way - loads of booing at different intervals - loads of shennanigans with the stewards, police throwing folk out for standing, all around us, don't know why but it seems to have been ratcheted up a notch or two this week. According to the official site there's been loads going on in the South Stand as well - looks like they're closing the first 4 rows of seats, limiting alcohol sales and turning the TV's off except just around half time (never understood why anyone would pay to go to see a game live and then stand watching it on the tele) http://www.leedsunited.com/page/NewsroomDetail/0,,10273~1248199,00.html As for the ref - well as an example - how about when we had the ball, which was still in play follwoing a clash when one of their defenders went down under a heavy challenge, for which play wasn't stopped and no free kick given...Richardson is carrying it forward down the right about 30 or 40 seconds after the incident. And the ref blows to stop the game so the guy can get treatment. Play is restarted by a free kick taken by their keeper in his own penalty area. This was some 40 yards from where Fraser had the ball...and it wasn't even their free kick! This was a bad 2 points to lose.
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