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Thread | Accrington Stanley, oo are dey? 'xactly!
at 13:14 3 Jan 2026
As the round of matches over the festive period draws to a close, we have the visit of Accrington Stanley on that most rare of events in our football history, a Sunday afternoon kick-off. If you filter out play-off and cup games, in the league this accounts for just 25 games since we were formed, seven won, six drawn and 12 lost. As you would imagine, Sunday games are generally focussed around Christmas and the New Year, or more recently, Sky-mandated final games of the season. It’s been a pretty positive holiday schedule for the U’s too, eight points from four games, and with other results often going our way, we’re now just two places and three points outside the play-offs.
Before we consider Accrington Stanley, a word or two first about the MK Dons match. It wasn’t as free-flowing as I had hoped, I’d even go so far as to say sluggish at times. I didn’t know about the frozen irrigation pipes preventing the ground staff from watering the pitch. I could, however, see dust/sand kicking up off the pitch, particularly for spot kicks, but didn’t have the knowledge to put two and two together. Others on social media have also commented about the definite ‘bobble’ the pitch seemed to have – so who knows, maybe there really was something in what Danny said post-match?
Nevertheless, although the energy and drive seemed diminished, and despite losing Bishop early on to injury, we still had much more about us than MK Dons, who I thought were very poor in the first half, but without carving out many clear-cut chances of our own. MK Dons found a bit more rhythm second half, and for a spell I genuinely though they might nick it. However, the defence held out no problem (apart from Rob Hunt’s suicidal back pass, but Macey pulled off a good double-save to keep them out). The substitutions on the hour mark made the difference, although I thought Samson had quite a good game, with the pace of Lisbie and Mbick finally started to turn the tide. Deep in added-time I had almost given up hope we’d find the winner, until Lisbie was hauled to the ground and Payne blasted home the winner – oh my days, the celebrations!
Since returning to the football league in 2006, Accrington Stanley have proved themselves to be no pushovers, grinding out generally lower mid-table finishes season after season. It was Andy Holt’s takeover in 2015 that changed that, taking them from plucky League 2 battlers to League 1 promotion in 2018, and where they stayed for several more seasons until relegation back to League 2 in 2023. They’re not doing too bad this season either, again in their customary mid-table slot, but with three wins on the bounce they are now only three points behind the U’s and really shouldn’t be underestimated on Sunday.
But don’t just take my word for it, our record against the ‘Owd Reds says it all – in nine league matches since Accy's return to the football league, the U’s have just a solitary victory, two draws and the rest defeats – talk about a bogey team. That victory btw was under caretaker manager Scott Marshall during the infamous Wagmi-gate debacle, when Matty Etherington had to stand down for a game whilst our lawyers checked the fictitious contract hold that Crawley claimed they had over him. With the benefit of hindsight, maybe we should have stuck with Scott Marshall?
As for tomorrows line-up, unfortunately we continue to be plagued by injuries, with Bishop limping off early against MK Dons with a calf strain, Kuffour Jr reportedly out with an ankle ligament injury, Oni a hamstring injury in training, even Harvey apparently has a minor injury, and Anderson seen at the New Years Day match wearing a knee brace. With all that in mind, I can’t decide whether Danny might stick with the general theme from the last game with Tovide on the right, Lisbie on the bench and possibly Mbick and Goodwin leading the line, or reverting to our more regular line-up with Tovide and Mbick up front and Lisbie starting? I’m going for the latter and fingers-crossed everyone comes through the game unscathed.
I may be getting old, but although there was a stunning sunset on New Years Day, it was bitterly cold. Tomorrow will be more of the same, a bright sunny day but barely above freezing, and in a gentle breeze from the west, it’ll feel well below freezing. Wrap up warm if you’re heading to the JobServe, and I do hope they’ve sorted out the frozen irrigation pipes.
It’ll be a tough game tomorrow, but the U’s to win 2-0 with Read opening the scoring.
Up the U’s |
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Reply | Happy New Year, with a great start!
at 22:19 1 Jan 2026
HNY to you too Gerry, and all on the U'sual.
Well I was there, and I'm pretty sure ghughes was in bed (when I say there, I mean the JobServe, not spooning in NZ  ).
I've just watched Danny's post-match interview, and that explains why sand (or something) seemed to be kicking up a lot during the game, no water on it. Whether that's the reason or not, although we largely controlled the game we did seem to lack a bit of spark. Traditionally that would be put down to hangovers, but our squad these days are far too professional to have that as a reason.
We got the result we deserved in the end, and both firsthand and from the highlights I've seen on the Sky Sports website, it was a clear penalty. Credit also to Jack Payne for having the courage to just blast it down the middle, confident their keeper would commit to diving to where he thought Jack would place it. The deafening roar and celebrations of the 6,000 U's fans after were just spine-tingling to be part of.
Talk about schadenfreude though, watching MK trying to play hurry up football in the dying seconds, having spent all of the second half trying to slow the game, waste time and run down the clock. Tough luck suckers! If they are genuine top three contenders then we have nothing to fear.
On to Accrington on Sunday, with the U's two places and three points outside the play-offs. [Post edited 1 Jan 22:22]
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Reply | MK Warne Down By Weary U's
at 21:56 31 Dec 2025
Haha - probably a clerical oversight, but I will check on his wellbeing tomorrow, rest assured. Happy New Year BTW ghughes, I think you're already in 2026? Do let us know how it is, did we win tomorrow?
Great review RS, and thanks for stepping in - your Durham-esque thread title was totally on point. I can't immediately add to the "they played for both" list, but whilst I probably agree your score prediction is closer to reality, I'm going for an upbeat 3-1 to the U's, and given the slight controversy, Payne to score the first.
Up the U's, and MK No Way! |
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Reply | Xmas Quiz 2025.
at 11:19 31 Dec 2025
Very tough indeed. Thanks to the clue I think I’ve got it, but I don’t have all the answers. I’ll PM you. |
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Reply | Match Previews In Honour Of Durham
at 14:01 30 Dec 2025
I think I'll struggle to find the time for MK Dons, as I'm out visiting my daughter's new house tomorrow, and going to the game itself on New Years Day, but I can pick up Accrington no problem. |
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Reply | Gills to be left gasping as 2025 closes
at 22:01 29 Dec 2025
Entertaining end to the game, looked like Ainsworth had Danny by the shirt collars, followed by a mass brawl. Be interesting to see what the referee picks out of that. We definitely deserved at least a point out of that, but to be fair Gillingham were better second half, though they couldn't have been much worse. |
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Reply | Gills to be left gasping as 2025 closes
at 20:36 29 Dec 2025
A really good game for the U's so far, but still 0-0. One or two wayward passes on occasion, but plenty of energy. Big 45 minutes to come. |
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Reply | Gills to be left gasping as 2025 closes
at 18:43 29 Dec 2025
Two changes tonight, with Rob Hunt coming in for KVY and Payne for Tovide, which I assume means a 4-5-1 with Mbick as the lone striker and a midfield of Bishop, Payne and Read, with Lisbie and Anderson out wide. Happy with that, so fingers-crossed Payne comes through unscathed. |
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Reply | Happy League 2025/26 Week 22 (of 38) - Deadline Monday 29th December 18.00
at 22:39 28 Dec 2025
COVENTRY CITY v IPSWICH TOWN (18.00) 2-1
LEICESTER CITY v DERBY COUNTY 1-1
MIDDLESBROUGH v HULL CITY 2-0
MILLWALL v BRISTOL CITY 1-1
WREXHAM v PRESTON NORTH END 1-1
CARDIFF CITY v STEVENAGE 2-0
BRISTOL ROVERS v BARNET 1-1
CHELTENHAM TOWN v SWINDON TOWN 0-2
CHESTERFIELD v CAMBRIDGE UNITED 3-1
MILTON KEYNES DONS v NOTTS COUNTY 2-1 |
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Thread | Gills to be left gasping as 2025 closes
at 14:31 28 Dec 2025
First and foremost, I hope you are all having a pleasant Christmas break relaxing with family and friends, and wishing you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. This will be our final match of 2025, with a trip to Priestfield to face old adversary Gillingham, our second game against them this month and our third this season. This will be our 112th game in all competitions against the Gills, a relationship that started with a Ted Davis U’s side winning 2-0 at Layer Road on 27th August 1938. At the final whistle tomorrow we will also be at the halfway point of the season, so considering at the end of September we were 20th, plenty of optimism for the second half of the season.
As for the U’s and the travelling faithful of nearly 800 at Crawley, I had family over on Boxing Day, so I couldn’t really give the game my full attention. Crawley’s early goal on the balance of play at the time didn’t appear undeserved. It was well struck, might have got the faintest of deflections off Tucker, but Macey will still be disappointed that he let it slip under him so easily. However, the equaliser was equally deserved, an excellent run to the line and cutback from Samson, Read should have buried his chance but the keeper’s parry fell nicely to Lisbie who drilled in off the inside of the post. Thereafter, it seemed quite an even (though dare I say dull) game. We created chances in the second half, but in truth Crawley probably should have won it at the death, only foiled by the feet and then hands of Macey in a last-ditch double-save, with Loft then blazing the final rebound wide of the far post. On balance, a solid point, another game unbeaten away, but the gap to the play-offs is growing again.
Since our return to the football league, Priestfield has often been quite a happy hunting ground, with only five out of our 21 most recent visits ending in defeat for the U’s, the last one under Kevin Keen exactly ten years ago today (28th December). Gillingham are in a somewhat indifferent run of form at present, yes only three games lost in the last ten, but only one victory and the other six drawn – and that victory was at imploding Bristol Rovers back in early November. Their long-suffering home supporters haven’t seen a Priestfield win since beating Notts County 1-0 on 13th September - I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of those kinds of stats. That early run of form took the Gills to the top of the table, but they’ve floundered since then and currently sit one point and two places behind the U’s.
Incidentally, probably one of our most noteworthy, and certainly memorable games at the Priestfield Stadium wasn’t even against Gillingham – it was the 4-4 draw against exiled Brighton and Hove Albion on Boxing Day 1997. Goals from Isaiah Rankin (two) and Tony Adcock saw the U’s storm into a 3-0 lead at half-time. A second half 20 minute hat-trick from Paul Emblen wiped out that advantage, Scott Stamps rekindled hope that we might leave with the three points on 75 minutes, only for an 86th minute penalty from Jeff Minton to dash that hope entirely.
I’m not aware of any (new) injury worries following on from the Crawley game, so I’d expect the line-up at Gillingham to be broadly along the same lines. However, following two 30+ minute appearances from the bench, I have a feeling Jack Payne might be ready for his place back in the starting XI, with Bishop making way.
The weather in Kent tomorrow evening will be overcast with a gentle breeze blowing in from the Thames Estuary, making the chilly 6 degrees temperature feel like 4 degrees. Fortunately for the travelling faithful on the big open terrace, no rain is expected. Our initial allocation of tickets has sold out, with a new block now made available, so I would expect another sizeable following for the U’s to witness a 2-1 victory for the U's, with Anderson and then Tovide on the scoresheet.
Up the U’s [Post edited 28 Dec 2025 14:37]
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Reply | Creepy Crawley Crushed By Cowley's Crew
at 16:19 23 Dec 2025
Nice one RS. I can't think of too many Col U connections at Crawley, other than I suppose Tshimanga, who I think we were interested in before he signed for then non-league Chesterfield a few years ago. There was also, of course, Matty Etherington and the Crawley Wagmi debacle.
I've been to Crawley quite a few times, but will have to pass on this one with the family over for dinner. This will be our 67th Boxing Day fixture, with 21 of the previous matches won, 17 drawn and 28 lost. Best win 4-0 (twice), worst defeat 1-6 (twice), with the most recent of those in 2011 at home to Stevenage. Not surprisingly, matches against local sides Gillingham (9), Southend (5), Peterborough (4) and Northampton (4) account for nearly a third of our Boxing Day fixtures.
We have played Crawley on Boxing Day once before, with John McGreal's U's winning 2-0 at Broadfield back in 2017. Incidentally, that match was also the lowest Boxing Day attendance (2,154) we've played in front of, the highest being 19,563 at Carrow Road in 1952 (we lost 3-0).
I agree, this will be a tougher encounter than it might appear, but if we show the same attitude as we did against Newport, no reason why we can't come home with the three points.
Crawley 0 U's 3, with Anderson to score the first. |
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Reply | Former U's
at 17:10 22 Dec 2025
Pleased for him. Love this quote - "You know what, it's very exciting, everyone says to me 'are you playing Salah?', 'are you playing Marmoush?'. At the end of the day I'm going over there to win a game and they'll be on the same pitch as me." |
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Reply | Agree and proceed
at 11:49 22 Dec 2025
I have the site bookmarked (Chrome) and have no problem accessing from any of my devices - sorry. |
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Reply | Club Statement
at 20:42 21 Dec 2025
I saw some of this interview as a video online, and like you say, nothing new, but reassuring he's sticking to his principles and not going for his previous 'least worse' option. Btw, he's rocking the Billy Bob Thornton 'Hobo Santa' look
Btw, needed an edit for balance. [Post edited 22 Dec 2025 1:08]
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Reply | Exiles to be sent back in exile on Saturday
at 20:08 21 Dec 2025
I would never underrate Bobby Gough, one of my childhood heroes following the U's. That list contains a lot of names, including Packer, Svarc, Walker, Cook, Leslie, Garwood, Froggatt, Dowman, Allinson, Dyer, Foley, Smith and Wignall to name but a few. |
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Reply | Exiles to be sent back in exile on Saturday
at 20:50 20 Dec 2025
Haha - what happened to goalkeepers code Gerry? I don't think Macey was unnecessarily out of position considering the context of where the ball in play was, just beaten by a sublime strike from nowhere. If it's any consolation, we might have just seen the goal of the season, never mind the month. |
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Reply | Exiles to be sent back in exile on Saturday
at 16:58 20 Dec 2025
That pace from Edwards, it was like the Newport defence were in treacle, and what a finish from Payne!
Complete control, not quite my 5-0 prediction, but pretty close! Newport look doomed right now, and if Leicester recall Bravebrook they certainly are.
Edit: my mistake, Braybrooke - I'm blaming the ambiguous commentary [Post edited 20 Dec 2025 17:44]
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