| Colchester v Bradford - Durham's perspective 10:49 - Feb 1 with 981 views | durham_exile |
Colchester deservedly achieved a vital point in their battle against relegation with a spirited performance at Valley Parade.
The weather was dry and very cold with the wind-chill factor taking the temperature to sub-zero. The 170 faithful in the TL Dallas Stand were as warm as toast however with loud and proud singing for 77 minutes of the game. They are indeed the bar side boys making all the noise everywhere they go as we were constantly reminded.
Journey down from Durham was uneventful; the A1 and M62 both light traffic wise. Bradford City centre was as normal very busy, but this time we found a car park less than 200 yards from the ground for £5 and which was ideally situated for the away end of the ground.
The souvenir programme included 16 pages in tribute to the Bradford team that had prevailed in West London last weekend. A pre-match coffee was in order and then it was a case of settling into our seats for the game.
Now as predicted the pitch was heavy but it was also sticky and it was very much a pitch of two halves. The first 20 yards from the players’ entrance in the SW Corner of the ground right across to the other corner was perhaps the worst part and this was to play a part in the second half.
TH had made his enforced changes (already covered in my pre-match assessment) and Colchester lined up:
Walker
Clohessy Eastman Wynter Briggs
Massey Szmodics Fox Lapslie Gordon
Porter
Subs:
Lewington Vincent-Young Harney Bonne Sembie-Ferris Watt Marriott
After the Bradford heroics at the Bridge Parky was keen to play down that match and make this Colchester game more important. It was however the super U’s who started in great style and quickly converted the stadium from a 13,917 strong cauldron to a library save for the 170 faithful who sang and sang and sang.
Sam Walker (who is now definitely seven feet tall) made a smart save to deny Stead and then for the first 20 minutes it was the Colchester show.
We only had to wait five minutes for the opening goal and what a goal it was. Clough will be choking on his cornflakes after allowing Chris Porter to leave the Blades on a permanent deal.
One of the Colchester “pocket rockets” Tom Lapslie passed to Porter who was on the left side, his first touch was sublime and he wasted no time in cutting inside and stuck a delightful shot from the edge of the box high into the far corner of the goal. Cue wild celebrations and it was time for the Bantams to redeem their library tickets.
Now things should have become even more peachy for the dominant U’s. Gavin Massey who had started like an express train shot wide when well-placed and had another opportunity which grazed the top of the goal.
Sammy Szmodics raced through and was one on one with Pickford but perhaps went too far wide and his shot was smothered by the keeper.
The U’s were very good value for their lead and the Bradford crowd was becoming increasingly restless. Colchester were playing the football and had the benefit of attacking the Kop end of the ground which had more grass or perhaps less mud. It did however favour better passing and the outstanding Szmodics and Lapslie took full advantage.
Parky prowled the touchline and urged his team to do more. It was in truth only the last five minutes of the first half when Bradford started to come back into the game. Stead and Morais the winger were enjoying plenty of possession, but Walker was rarely tested.
Quote of the day was overheard at half-time; an exchange between two of the faithful “they had a pitch inspection at 1pm today, really, did it pass?” This perhaps summed up the surface which only deteriorated during the second half when the temperature dropped and the floodlights were employed.
In fact it became a war of attrition with Bradford stepping up the pressure, enjoying more possession, but without creating any clear cut opportunities. Despite the conditions both teams only made a single substitution; for Bradford it was last week’s hero Mark Yeates who came on after 63 mins. He failed to have the same impact however.
It was left to the excellent Stead and Morais to fashion an equaliser after 77 minutes. The ground then came to life (at last) and the hoards roared their team as if expecting the same result as 7 days earlier. This would have been a travesty however and I am sure that both managers accepted the draw as a fair result.
TH took Szmodics off after 86 minutes to allow the faithful a first glimpse of Marriott. This would be nothing more than a cameo role with little opportunity to shine.
At the final whistle (90 + 3 mins) there was tangible relief from Bradford and disappointment from the faithful, although I overheard one comment that we had been “lucky.” Nothing could have been further from the truth.
For the U’s everyone played well with Briggs and Wynter outstanding. Lapslie and Szmodics ran the midfield and Chris Porter covered every blade of what grass there was upfront. If being picky I would criticise TH for not employing all available subs, simply because of the tiring conditions but it was difficult because I suspect every player wished to remain on the pitch. Szmodics was replaced because he had taken a hard challenge otherwise I think the starting XI would have seen the game out.
So another point towards safety and only 23 more now required. The Railwaymen must be derailed at the WHCS next weekend.
Up the upwardly mobile U’s
 [Post edited 1 Feb 2015 10:59]
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| Colchester v Bradford - Durham's perspective on 12:59 - Feb 1 with 941 views | Barsidepete |
Great one as U'sual, mate.
ColU drew level with the club that defeated Chelsea 2-4. I'm not bovvered. |  |
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| Colchester v Bradford - Durham's perspective on 13:18 - Feb 1 with 936 views | BluenWightExile |
Well said Pete - absolutely excellent result.
And thank you very much Durham - I was clearly there.
I am keeping the faith - hard though it is with so many points needed - and remain delighted that by deploying our own youth we continue to live within our means.
Whoever decided that we needed a bit of experience [Porter, Fox, Gorkss] to add to the youthmix eventually got their way and I am relieved, if disappointed that Gorkss has gone before Kent became fit.
You are absolutely right Durham - we must beat Crewe. I thought of you yesterday when SKY underlined that we had the worst home record in England. If only that could be overturned we'd probably be more than OK.
Up the U's |  |
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| Colchester v Bradford - Durham's perspective on 14:30 - Feb 1 with 922 views | burnsieespana |
Thanks for that Durham as gives those of us afar a good idea of how we are doing.
30 points left to get at home I think and if we could get 15 we should be able to pick another 8 up away.
A lot of football to be played yet and some funny results will happen and a team who think they are safe today will suddenly be dragged into the mire.
Up the U's and keep the faith. [Post edited 1 Feb 2015 14:31]
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| Colchester v Bradford - Durham's perspective on 14:42 - Feb 1 with 918 views | noah4x4 |
Durham beat me to the post whilst I was in 'press'; so I append my perspective;.....
There was a distinct feeling of Déjà vu. The ‘bus was expertly parked in the valley below ‘Valley Parade’; and we sang the Hovis theme as we “clim’ed up t’steeped ‘ill” taking care not to wake the roosting pigeons in the adjacent back yard. It struck me that the ‘Coral Windows Stadium’ did seem a misnomer given the total absence of windows on three sides. Half way up, D.O.M let out a few brass band like noises from his rear end to disrupt our rheumatic agony with a giggle, but the long ascent still took an eternity for our Clegg, Foggy and Compo of Highwoods.
Having wheezed to the top, we old boys paid our respects with appropriate dignity at the Memorial to the 56 fans that lost their lives in the tragic fire of 30 years ago. Then, as in the season before, we were promptly ushered into the superb (usually) Bradford members only ‘2012 Celebratory Bar’ by the kindly stewards that had remembered us. It was ‘Brrr, tis a cold enough day for a hanging’ weather as the Yorkshire saying goes. We hence welcomed the respite from the biting wind and good old Yorkshire hospitality cannot be bettered; notwithstanding the absence of real ale; but some mildly alcoholic amber liquid that we previously thought was a brand of tea did suffice.
Praise must go to referee Kevin Johnson for giving the match the go ahead when the pitch looked like West Mersea’s Strood at low tide. Frankly, it was worse than Stamford Bridge in the 1960’s before pitch covers and undersoil heating, but this time the Bantams were playing the real ‘CFC’.
For ten minutes, the U’s played glorious football suffice for Tom Lapsie to slot the ball forward into Chris Porter’s stride so slickly that a fine finish on the tall strikers return to Yorkshire and hence a 0-1 U’s lead was well deserved on five minutes. Unfortunately, Mrs (Chris) Porter took up her nearby seat in the TL Dallas stand late and hence missed it (e.g. missed his goal and not her seat!).
By contrast, Gavin Massey's folks were on time, and before ten minutes had elapsed; Gavin Massey had missed an identical chance. Such is family fortunes. Indeed, many travelling fans felt that the U’s should have put victory to bed inside the first quarter, but that doesn’t give credit to the awesome save that Pickford made to deny Szmodics and doesn't acknowledge the clinging mud that caused a sticky moment before Massey chipped narrowly wide whilst its slime had earlier assisted Sam Walker to deny a Jon Stead strike. If we are honest, it could so easily have been a goal apiece after five. Gavin Massey was my 'man of the match' for showing some outstanding skills in a cauldron of blancmange , albeit that any number of defenders deserved that accolade. The pitch soon cut up to a ridiculous extent and the U’s normal brand of football became impossible. Both defences made uncharacteristic unforced errors due to the conditions, but it was nigh on impossible for modern drilled attackers to exploit this. Leather ball and dubbin versus slippers and hair gel sprang to mind.
This is not to say that the game wasn’t entertaining but it was obvious that nobody could ever 'play the ball' out of defence. At one stage the wind was so great that the two keepers decided to play “after you, after me”, between each other with the ball bypassing the other twenty players on the pitch. How Pickford managed to get so much distance into the wind was remarkable, and he should take up Rugby or NFL kicking. Sam Walker with the wind behind him also made a creditable attempt at the ‘crossbar challenge’ between some ghastly slices into the side stands. So Pickford won that battle; but 7’ Sam stood tall to frustrate the Bantam’s aerial tactics and the howitzers aimed in his direction from both keeper, defence and flanks.
Half time arrived and life seemed good. Crewe, Orient and Yeovil were losing too. We then witnessed the disgusting scene of at least twenty Bradford fans peppering our substitutes with balls of ice; but zero action was taken by the stewards. To be fair, they were only mischievous youngsters (and here I mean both fans and U’s substitutes), but with a zero reprimand how will they ever learn to behave? The game recommenced and for most of the second half Bradford continued with the theory that grass grew in the sky, but into the wind most accuracy denied them. There were long periods of deadlock, but the U’s continued to attempt to play their ‘on the deck’ football, but the hoof-ball of the Bantams inevitably proved the more effective and the home team secured a deserved equaliser. Home fans will be feeling that they should have put the result beyond any doubt in the second half and we the same in the first. but on balance, a draw was justified based on the chances spurned by each.
Ben Gordon did a credible job in a forward position replacing the suspended Hewitt whilst Sanchez Watt merely warmed the bench. This perhaps sends a message to the former Arsenal winger that his laziness in defence has now put him third in the pecking order (whilst Sembie-Ferris is already threatening that). A back four of Clohessy, Wynter, Eastman and Briggs looked pretty solid until some panic set in late into the second half after ex-U Mark Yeates fresh legs gave the Bantams a lift on 63’. Fourteen minutes later, the match was tied at 1-1, but the remainder went largely without incident as tired legs went through the motions; both sides reasonably content with a draw given the conditions.
In summary, a satisfactory result and an important away point for the U’s. We can look forward positively to next week’s encounter with Crewe that must be reeling from yesterday’s (home) massacre by Milton Keynes. Since our own (away) mauling by the same rampant opponents we have a league record P8; W3; D2; L3 including four ‘clean sheets’. Our confidence should be high and that of Crewe low. 'Back to back' home wins for the U’s.....it’s worth a punt! [Post edited 1 Feb 2015 14:47]
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| Colchester v Bradford - Durham's perspective on 17:05 - Feb 3 with 805 views | bwildered |
Was wondering if Parky recognised anyone from his time at the club ? |  |
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