After the disappointment of Saturday's defeat at Chester City in The Trophy, it's back to Clarence Park for league action and the visitors are Carshalton Athletic, City's only match that has needed to be re-arranged due to the weather this season. Remember the snow 2 weeks ago?
Carshalton Athletic. The Robins. They play in red. 20th in the league with 4 wins and 3 draws from 23 outings this season, having conceded 56 goals, the highest in the league by a margin. They have lost 13 of the last 14 league outings, a dreadful 3 months. Only one team is likely to be relegated this year and although there is a way to go, they are second favourites to Dulwich.
They drew 1-1 with City on the opening day of the season but there have been many changes at The Park since then. Remember the sunshine on August 19th? A deluge at 6.00 and this game was in danger but after stirling effort by Leigh Paige and the ground staff the referee passed the pitch fit at 6.45.
For the march to the championship, JK selected Hurst in goal; 4 at the back, Rooney, Goddard (C), Moran and Campbell; 4 in the middle Pratt, Blaney, Davis and Knight; and 2 up front, Simba and Andrews. On the bench were Simpson, Birch and someone else.
It was dire in the first half with most of The City side seeming to be waiting for for the goal rush to come but to be provided by someone else. Little evidence of committment, communication, effort or work-rate. In their first attack after about 20 minutes Carshalton had a couple of close range shots blocked following a corner that wasn't cleared before the ball was stabbed home from 2 yards. The Robins celebrations came from surprise as much as relief. H.T. 0,1.
Strong words from the manager at half-time, no doubt, and City pressed from the re-start. Now there was effort but, frankly little skill on display. Carshalton packed their defence playing a 5-5-0 formation well supported by their young goalkeeper who stopped shots from Davis, Simba and Blaney for corners only to practice gathering the resulting crosses unchallenged. The visitors No.5 had a fine game. Simpson came on for Campbell with Andrews switching to his customary defensive role. The Saints seemed to run out of ideas. F.T. 0,1.
The Manager will not be happy. Neither was the sparse crowd of about 150 with only 30 or so up from Surrey. A bad night for all Saints fans.
Atmosphere 3/10. Entertainment 3/10. Technical Merit 2/10. Referee 7/10. I don't think that the MotM award will be presented tonight.
Next up. Away at Hendon on Saturday in the league. Hendon have a hatfull of games in hand over the rest, 7 over City, as a result of postponements due to the unfit pitch. Localised bad weather at the bottom of the M1, obviously. Our next home game is on February 17th against Purfleet.
Report by Homer
St Albans City followed up their gutsy FA Trophy defeat with a thoroughly inept display on Tuesday evening which handed struggling Carshalton Athletic their first victory at Clarence Park for seven years and their first away Ryman League success of the season.
The Saints started brightly enough but quickly they became bogged down as the pitch turned to mud having been swamped by a torrential downpour just a couple hours prior to the kick off. But to use the pitch as an excuse for the Saints eighth home defeat of the season - the second worst record in the Premier Division - would be to mask over a dreadful performance which was soundly condemned by manager John Kendall and his assistant Jeff Wood.
Attacking the Hatfield Road end of the ground during the opening half, City almost went ahead on ten minutes when David Pratt slipped the ball into the path of Mark Rooney who evaded one challenge and looked certain to score his first goal for the club before the outstretched legs of goalkeeper Mark Osbourne deflected the ball over the crossbar for a corner.
It was to be a further 20 minutes before either goal was threatened and it proved to be decisive as the Carshalton captain and current Player of the Year, Matt Elverson, had two efforts close to goal blocked but the ball ricocheted kindly to Matt Fowler who cracked home his first league goal of the season.
City had another scare on 38 minutes when Richard Hurst's occasional trouble in dealing with crosses was again exposed as he flapped poorly at a Neil Robson corner and the error was almost further compounded as Ben Andrews came close to heading the ball into his own goal. The Saints final chance of the half to restore equality disappeared when Corey Campbell's cleanly struck effort from the edge of the penalty area flew a couple of yards wide.
Campbell was taken out of the action ten minutes into the second period with his replacement, Robbie Simpson, offering the Saints best hope of extending Carshalton's miserable record to a ninth defeat in ten Premier Division awaydays. On the hour Simpson dived full length to get on the end of Spencer Knight cross but couldn't direct his header towards Osbourne's goal. Two minutes later Simpson freed Danny Davis whose shot took a deflection before being neatly pushed over the bar by Osbourne.
In the 72nd minute the Carshalton goal enjoyed a piece of good fortune that City hadn't earlier in the game as Osbourne spilled a cross and in the melee that followed Simpson had a shot blocked for a corner. Ten minutes later Simpson again freed Davis and this time the youngster mishit his shot into the ground and as the ball bounced upwards the keeper was able to claw it away for another City corner.
Four minutes from time City were fortunate not to go down to ten men when Ben Andrews, booked earlier in the game, brought down the lively Fowler with a late challenge. Before the game was over Andrews used his reprieve well as Fowler sped past two City players down the visitors left and looked set to burst into the penalty area until the former Brighton player put in a crunching tackle which left both players writhing on the ground in agony.
In between those two incidents the Robins goal survived another almighty scramble, in which Simpson again came closest to scoring, before the debut making Denver McKenzie fired well over the crossbar.
On Saturday the Saints departed the Deva Stadium to a standing ovation from their followers, this time they left to a deathly hush as Carshalton pondered how to celebrate a rare victory having lost 13 times in their previous 14 outings.
Report by Dave Tavener |