 |
Wednesday Round 1. |
|
||||||||||||
| Millwall Spink Lavin Ryan Cahil (O'Dunsy 83) Nethercott Fitzgerald Reid  Newman Harris Shaw (Sadlier 57) Roche (Neill 46) |
|
Cardiff
City Hallworth Eckhardt Allen Mitchell Jarman Bonner Hill (Cadette 72) O'Sullivan Williams (Roberts 64) Thomas Middleton Sub not used |
||||||||||||
| Report by
Stewart Edge. What a waste of time watching Cardiff's reserve team look totally incoherent against a full strength Millwall side for whom this is the only realistic chance of silverware this season. City played with 3 Central defenders that became a back 4 whenever Millwall attacked by either dropping O'sullivan in at right back if Millwall attacked down the left or dropped Middleton into left back if they attacked down the right, with the back three moving across a place. City started brightly enough but didn't create any chances and the match was predominantly played in midfield. City's best chance fell to John Williams had the ball played to him on the edge of the penalty box, he turned to beat one defender, took the ball past a second defender but then he gently lobbed the ball into the arms of Nigel Spink in the Millwall goal, I think Williams was trying to be cute and lob Spink but he got it all wrong. Cardiff effectively lost the match in the space of 90 seconds when Millwall scored their 2 goals. The first was created down the left and then the ball was crossed into the middle just outside the area to an unmarked Millwall midfielder, Jarman left his man to close down the midfielder and no picked up the player Jarman had just left, so the Millwall midfielder just rolled the ball forward 5 yards, passed the on coming Jarman to the completely unmarked attacker who turned and had enough time to look up and select his spot beyond the stranded Hallworth and slotted the ball into the net. Millwall's next attack resulted in Eckhart heading behind for a corner, which was taken short, the ball was then crossed and one attacker took 2 City defenders out of play with a near post run, leaving the other attacker completely free to hit the cross into the bottom corner of the net, again giving Hallworth no chance. That, to intents and purposes was that as far as a competitive encounter was concerned. I t was almost as if the teams had called a truce. You could be forgiven for thinking that it had been pre arranged that if either team went 2 goals clear, the game was over and time was just played out. Unfortunately for the spectators there was still an hours worth of dross to watch, so we decided to make our own entertainment, chanting Franky Burrow's barmy army for the rest of the first half. The second half just didn't happen, nothing, 45 minutes of wasted time, City had 2 efforts all half, a 25 yarder from Chritian Roberts which threatened us in the top tier of the stand than it did the Millwall goal, and a wayward header from Jeff Eckhart that went behind the goal line closer to the corner flag than the goalpost. That was it. Let's hope the support against Scunny on Saturday is as vociferous, and the team reverts to the one that plays football, rather than the disjointed mob we put out tonight. |
||||||||||||||
