A banging tune this one, it was track two on the album “Tales From The Thames Delta”, which was the 2012 debut album by the group The Milk. So it shouldn’t take a genius to work out why I’ve picked that seeing as we’re playing Accrington Stanley.
After the stirring away draw against Gillingham last week, which saw what was probably our best performance of the season, and a draw against a team in the play-off places felt somewhat of a disappointment, it is back to home action with the visit of Accrington Stanley.
During the week I completed reading Steve Leake’s fourth book – Better The Devil (if there wasn’t the milk connection this week then the title of today’s piece may well have involved a bit of Kylie). It is an excellent read, and reminder of the roller coaster of emotions of the last two seasons, and an overview of one of our rivalries.
It turns out the injury to Max Anderson was a serious one and he has a broken leg and is therefore out for a considerable amount of time. And yesterday it was announced we have sent Will Heater out on loan to Sheppey United for an undisclosed time period, where he is likely to get game time and not be a bench warmer.
The current Accrington Stanley side are not a team to be confused with the entirely different Accrington team who were one of the founder members of the Football League back in 1888, the Stanley team existed whilst that Accrington team were in the league, and only took on the Accrington part to the name after the original team left the league and folded before the end of the nineteenth century. The original Stanley team folded themselves in 1966, and the current team are a phoenix club founded two years later in 1968. That original team resigned from the league during the 1961-62 season after thirty-four games and had their record expunged, along with Aldershot, one of only two teams to have done so (Maidstone and Bury never got around to starting their seasons when they were expelled, and Port Vale took over expelled Leeds City’s record midway through the season). They were replaced in the league by Oxford United.
But I did confuse the two sides as a kid, it was many years before I learnt that they were two sides. As a kid totting up years worth of stats taken from Rothman’s yearbooks into graph paper notebooks (making my own manual spreadsheets long before Microsoft had even thought of Excel), I treated them as the same team (a mistake I also made with including Middlesbrough Ironopolis’s one season in with Middlesbrough). Meanwhile as I scribbled in the notebooks, my parents looked on thinking what the hell the little freak was doing and wondering if it was too late to go back to the hospital and query whether they’d been given the wrong baby.
But I had certainly heard of Accrington Stanley long before their name was dragged by the infamous Milk Marketing Board advert of the eighties which I’ve referenced with today’s piece title. Exactly.
The first of the programmes I’ve dug out is from our first season in the Conference (a game we won 2-0). The Accrington Stanley lineup has a very familiar look about it. However it isn’t THAT Robbie Williams, and it isn’t THAT Paul Mullin. The Jagielka is the brother of the more famous Phil (and now sadly deceased), and the Flitcroft is no relation to Garry and David. Paul Cook was their manager on the next programme I’m going to look at, and we’ve faced him this season as he’s currently Chesterfield’s manager. The Michael Flynn isn’t the one who was sacked by Cheltenham Town just over a week after we beat them in September. Ged Brannan is Accrington’s assistant manager now. It is one of them where a quick glance might have you thinking, “I know all of them”.
The second one is a game longer serving fans than I remember with great fondness as it was the away game where Crawley secured promotion to League One in their first season in the league.
And the third one if from our game against Accrington, just over three years ago in an FA Cup first round loss, the last season we had a programme. The only member of our squad on the programme that day still with us is the much-maligned captain, Dion Conroy. Whereas Accrington have Liam Coyle, Shaun Whalley, Josh Woods, and Connor O’Brien left in their squad from then.
It was nigh on impossible to find any old cards for Accrington Stanley, there are only some stickers from this year’s brand new EFL Panini collection.
But then when looking at this programme from 2006,
I saw that John Hollins was our manager, and I knew I had an old card for him from his QPR days.
Speaking of the EFL Panini collection, it was launched on Thursday at a ceremony at the National Football Museum in Manchester (somewhere I’m planning to visit next weekend when up there for the Salford City game). It’s been more than twenty years since Panini, Topps, Merlin, or anyone else has released a collection not concentrated on the Premier League, so it is good there is a more inclusive collection.
There are 788 stickers in the collection, which at a pound for a packet of five would mean if you never got a duplicate, it would cost £160 to complete the set. When I first started buying cards back in the seventies, a pack of six cards (and a stick of bubble gum) was five pence. So £160 would have bought me 19,200 cards.
In the collection, Championship teams get 18 stickers per team, shiny club crest, stadium, home/away kit, and 15 players. League One teams get 8 stickers per team, shiny club crest, shiny star player, and six with two players per sticker on them. League Two teams get 4 stickers per team, shiny club crest, and six half stickers each with two players on them, and the halves are on the same large sticker as a half for another team. 5 EFL general ones to start, 11 for last season’s playoff’s, 24 elite players from the three divisions (includes Will Wright), 12 ones to watch, and 16 ‘raised in the EFL’, so players like Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy. Only the players in those last three groups get named in the books, the rest are only known when you get stickers, so there is no guide to who the Crawley players are (yet).
There is no overlap of current players in the two squads today, and there has been very little overlap over the years with only Tom Dallison, Joe Maguire, and Jack Rose who have played for both.
Apart from the FA Cup game mentioned earlier, we have played Accrington Stanley ten times in the league, all of the games have been in League Two, we have won five, drawn two, and lost three. At home it has been two wins, two draws, and a loss. We played against them for two years in the Conference when we first got promoted, and before Accrington were promoted to the league in 2006. We won one of the four games and lost the other three.
We go into the day in twentieth position in the league, one point and two places behind today’s opponents, and the form guide over the last six games is identical for both sides, two wins, two draws, and two losses apiece. Therefore a win would see us climb at least one place, whereas a loss could see us slip back into the relegation places. Although by the time kick-off comes around both sides could be a place lower in the league if Harrogate Town win their early kick-off at home to promotion chasing Walsall. (They lost, so we were safe from the relegation places this weekend.)
It’s a strange day, as for the first time this season, there is no away travel, nor writing group before the game, and so it is a case of wondering how to fill the time (apart from writing this). There was a wander into town before getting to the ground about the same time I usually do, but Helen is wandering around in a state of shock as she’s not used to being here that early, but it did mean that there was talking to people before making it into the ground, which gives me a state of shock instead. It is getting cold, so the big coat makes its debut for the season.
There is a forced change from the line up from last week, with Harry McKirdy returning from his own injury to replace Max Anderson. Accrington are in all blue with a bit of patterning on the bottom of the shirts, and so with us in our usual home kit it is the third game on the trot with it being all red versus all blue and looking like a big game of table football.
From the kick off we play it forward and win a corner, it’s taken short and then put in as a deep cross and Geraldo Bajrama gets his head to it, but it goes out wide for a goal kick. We attack quickly down the right, and Ade Adeyemo and Harry McKirdy combine and win another corner, it skims across the box and to the far post and Jay Williams gets down low to get a header on it, but it loops up and over the bar.
Accrington have their first attack, and their left winger has about twenty seconds of turning Harry Forster every which way but loose before putting a cross in that JoJo Wollacott flaps away. It may take a few minutes for Forster to detangle the knots he’s in after that.
There’s a great ball out of defence from Bajrami which slips McKirdy into the box, he has a look and tries to dink it over the keeper, and it goes just wide, but the keeper must have got something on it as we are awarded a corner. It is taken low and towards the penalty spot, just as ones we’ve conceded from in the last two games, and Louie Watson gets a shot from it which is saved and wide for another corner. That is half cleared and we play it about before putting it back into the box where it is cushioned back to the keeper.
A long ball out from the back gets to Adeyemo down the left and he plays it back to Reece Brown, he puts it across the front of the box to Watson and he puts the ball into the box where Forster stretches to get a shot only to be able to just poke it to the keeper. A poor Accrington pass in our half sees the ball go straight to Louis Flower in their half. He beats a man before being clipped, and there is a booking for the defender. As the ref is getting the card out of his pocket he catches McKirdy in the face with it, and after the booking does go back and apologise to him. The free kick is taken deep, and the ref blows for a foul somewhere in the box as the ball is in the air.
We put some sustained possession together and it seems as if all of the team get touches on it as we play it across the pitch and back before getting it into the box where there are a couple of attempted shots blocked before an attempted clearance hits Williams’ arm and a free kick is given. There is a coming together in midfield and Flower picks up a booking. That looked as harsh or more so than some of the bookings he’s picked up this season (last week at Gillingham, and the ridiculous one at Boreham Wood spring to mind). There is another coming together nearer our box between Charlie Barker and their number eleven, who goes down like an extra from Platoon and rolls about for a bit. The ref isn’t interested in the slightest in giving anything for it.
When play gets going again we are attacking only to see a quick ball down the right wing see their number seven beat everyone for pace and then pull it back to an unmarked paly actor in the middle of the box, and he steers it in and we trail 0-1. To say that was against the run of play is an understatement similar to saying Hitler was a little bit naughty.
TAFKAL sees an opportunity to shout ‘get on with it’ at an Accrington player taking a throw, and he sees the ball slip out of his hands and the ref gives it as a foul throw. We are still having a lot of possession, but it takes an age before we fashion a chance out of it, as Josh Flint gets it to Watson and his shot from twenty-five yards is just wide right.
There is a minute’s applause on forty minutes for former club vice-president Jim Green who died during the week. I’m not sure where the club announced this beforehand, his picture appeared on the scoreboard and clapping started slowly.
Two added minutes are shown on the board and we attack again, get a ball into McKirdy, who lays it back to Flower, his shot takes two deflections on the way through and is saved by the keeper with his feet. We are trying to keep the pressure on, but there is no shot at the end of it again and the half time whistle goes with us trailing 0-1.
The half time game of kick the ball through the County Mall hole, has changed from the top corner in the canvas covering the goal, to roll it though a hole in a smaller plastic / cardboard stand they put in the middle of the goal. Still no winners though, and the thing got blown over by the wind halfway through.
Into the second half and it is properly persisting it down. The walkways around the ground are now just one large puddle, but the pitch seems to be holding up remarkably well considering, and making a mockery of those negative ninnies on the forum saying the game would be postponed due to a waterlogged pitch (after those who’d said it would be a frozen pitch causing a postponement a couple of days before – almost as it they are willing games to be called off.)
Accrington start the second half better than they did the first and win a free kick on the left wing. It is taken deep, and we head it behind for a corner. It is taken short and then played deep, but the linesman has the flag up for offside.
We make a couple of substitutions, with McKirdy and Brown making way to be replaces by Kabby Tshimanga and Jack Roles, respectively. A long ball down the left if just caught in the corner by Adeyemo and he manages to win a corner out of it. It is taken deep and there is a scramble in the box but Accrington clear and break quickly down the right but the cross in is too deep and harmless. But their number thirty-eight is fucking rapid, he’s been leaving everyone in his wake over and over. They win a free kick on the right wing and the ball put in is headed (well) over his own bar by Adeyemo for a corner. It’s taken low to the near post, and we put it out for another corner, that’s taken short, played in and a shot goes wide.
There is a lot of possession, but as so many times this season there appears to be a real unwillingness to take a shot. Of course, as soon as I scribble that in my notebook, Bajrami has a shot from outside the box, it goes straight at Tshimanga, who controls it, turns and shoots and scores and we are all level at 1-1.
Which brings about a bit more urgency from the players. A ball out from the back to Barker, and he puts it down the wing for Forster, he cuts inside and exchanges passes with Flower on the edge of the box and then lays it across to Roles, who we all know rarely needs a second invitation to have a shot, only he scuffs it a bit and it goes harmlessly to the keeper. Accrington break quickly and force a decent save out of Wollacott, and we try our own quick break only for things to go a bit skew-whiff and see the ball put out for a throw.
An Accrington player is down injured after what looked to be a bit of a late one from Flower. We take the opportunity to make the (quick and very tactical) substitution of Flower as the player is getting treatment, much to the annoyance of the Accrington players who are calling for a second yellow for Flower. That one looked a nailed on yellow, but perhaps the ref realised what a non-event card he’d given to the player in the first half.
And again we get the ball to Watson on the edge of the box, and again we seem to be unable to work an opportunity for a shot. In midfield Roles beats a man and gets hacked down and the yellow is out for an Accrington player, not the one committing the foul though, a different one for arguing with the ref for giving the free kick. Nothing comes of the free kick anyway.
Fannying about (imagine that) at the back and give the ball away and Accrington get a shot out of it, but it is fortunately wide. We go down the other end and win a corner on the right; it is taken deep and cleared. Accrington break down the left and Forster brings the winger down at the corner of the box, gives away the free kick in a dangerous position and picks up a booking for his troubles. It comes in low and we manage to clear.
There are four added minutes at the end of the game. We win a free kick on the right wing, and it swung in and headed over. Barker picks up a ridiculous yellow on the far side, and he plants his feet, the Accrington player runs into him and throws himself to the ground in a (successful) effort to win a free kick out of nothing. Watson is absolutely flattened but the ref waves play on and Accrington shoot which forces a great save from Wollacott which goes for a corner. That is cleared and the ref blows for full time, and it finishes as a draw 1-1.
Looks like there are a few fractious words between the players at the end, and if Accrington had scored after the foul on Watson, I think Scott Lindsey might well have blown a gasket at the official.
The crowd was announced as being 2,885 with there being 90 hardy souls down from Accrington in the away end. There was no sponsors’ man of the match announced. Personally, I’d give it to the groundsmen for the pitch being able to handle all the rain being thrown at it.
A point sees us stay a point behind Accrington in the table, but we did go up a place to nineteenth as Bristol Rovers lost to Cheltenham Town and both of them are on the same points as us, only behind us on goal difference.
The club were (I’m assuming given by the EFL / Panini) a number of sticker albums to give out before the game. Some people took them, looked through them and just left them dumped with the rest of the rubbish they are too lazy to take to the bins themselves. TAFKAL pointed out that the Panini website was sold out of all stickers for the collection though, almost as if they were thoroughly under-prepared for the demand of seventy-two clubs across the country. There were no sold-out Premier League items.
And onto the next game, which is an away trip to play Salford City next Saturday, which will be an all weekend trip for me, visiting old stomping grounds from when I lived in Manchester, and a day up to Morecambe to visit my mum. I don’t think I’ll have any problems finding a post match curry either, the Rusholme curry mile is already calling to me.
Come on you reds.