I felt safe though, Bozzie and Scott Wharton were both on form and the full backs looked much happier in the 4-4-2 than in a 3-5-2. Toffolo had the best game I’ve seen him play and as for Neal Eardley, he is certainly a full back over a wing back. We lost the midfield battle for a short while though and with the players Swindon have, it didn’t surprise me. Maybe if they had a Matt Green or John Akinde it would have been a different story.
The game shifted again with a change in midfield, the excellent McCartan was replaced by the equally as excellent Tom Pett. City immediately looked energised again, with Andrade and Anderson absolutely terrorising their opposite numbers and getting balls in and around the area. Andrade drove at goal himself once or twice, Harry was a bullish and defiant in possession as I’ve seen him. He’s one who can go on and be a great player, but since his New Year’s Day dismissal at Luton he’s struggled. Not today.
O’Connor swapped for the new boy Jason Shackell on 73 minutes and a short while later Akinde came off for Green. Let that sink in, we brought on Matt Green and Jason Shackell. What other team in our division wouldn’t have started those tow players? None, that’s how many.
Bozzie stepped effortlessly into midfield and we turned the dominance back on. For a moment, I thought we might never stop scoring, we rained down on their goal again, firstly Green set up Toffolo and then it was last year’s leading scorer himself getting the fourth. Matt Green changed the game, 13 minutes on the field and he weighed in with a goal and an assist. That is where things have changed, we can now affect things with the players who come on just as much as those who start the game. It’s frightening that at 2-1 up looking to defend a lead we can have such big players coming on to take advantage of the other side’s fatigue, quickly making a tight looking score line seem like a hammering.
Such was the display that I heard several names mentioned for Man of the Match, Bozzie, McCartan, Anderson and Andrade all got a shout, Scott Wharton got a mention as did Matt Green! I have to go for Harry Anderson, I thought he was back to his unplayable self, direct and physically strong but playing with confidence once more. Bruno Andrade wasn’t far behind though, he’s a different winger, packed with flair and flicks and maybe a touch more guile to Harry’s battering ram. What a pair they might turn out to be.
That said, special mention to Freck and Michael O’Connor who won the midfield battle in the first half hour, something that was never going to be easy against Swindon’s quality. They laid the foundations of today’s result.
I’ve kept it relatively brief tonight as I have to go out (Shakesby’s in Horncastle, looks like posh nosh so I’ll be a bit lost. Hope they do chips), but when the final whistle went I had the same elation as that day two years ago as North Ferriby made their way off the field having been hammered 6-1. What we saw today was the starting point for the next chapter, the blueprint for how things are meant to be. The new philosophy isn’t look for the big man, it isn’t diagonal balls and managers ‘knowing what they get with Lincoln’. It is a first team full of surprises, line-ups nobody can confidently call, strength in-depth and impact from all of the match day squad, those who start and those who do not.
This, Ladies and Gentleman, is the Cowley Empire rising once more, evolving and changing to adapt to the new pressures and challenges. I scoffed last season as we made the play offs and Danny talked about ‘work in progress’ and all that. I thought he wasn’t far off with what he’d got, but if the first thirty and last thirty of today or anything to go by, in the words of Bachman Turner Overdrive, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Good luck for the rest of the season. I hope we learn our lesson.
Great game, so excited for the rest of the season! Bloke behind me though (who hated Woodyard) has already declared Akinde to be lazy and a £150,000 flop. Green is also a bit “shit” apparently. He also at one point said how he pleased he was that we had defeated a newly relegated side?! I am looking forward to sitting near him for the rest of the season!
Kerry did he have a white stick and guide dog
No, I did turn round a few times to see if he looked like he was joking! He didn’t look like he was. Some people just like to moan!
Great description of the game Gary. It was scary at times even though I thought we could go up a gear! The team will get better the more they play together for sure.
At least the referee was consistent as both decisions looked harsh to me.
Same feeling as N.Ferriby I got too. Will take a good team to beat us that’s a fact.
To be fair I thought Danny Cowley was more measured in his appraisal of the game. I do think you need to take off the rose tinted glasses some times Gary. We played well for 25 mins but the final pass was lacking which meant their keeper had little to do during that period… Second half they just waltzed through us but we held out. It was clear we had to make changes. Bostwick going into midfield was the key. Akinde is robust but on a warm day he seemed to wilt second half and a fresh legged Green was able to capitalise once the midfield gap had been plugged. Thought the referee got the first pen right but may be not the second but I thought the game was played in a good spirit and overall I don’t think either side could have too much to complain about the referee.
I don’t think Gary was saying it was perfect. But he can see where it is going and we will look back on this game and declare “That’s when it begun”
It wasn’t perfect but I saw several passages of play that did t quite come off. With more time together this team could be quite awsome. God help the rest of League 2
Think the ref bottled it for their penalty and on relection realised that.
The second half handball appeal from them looked a certain penalty from where I was sat but he turned it down.
possibly to atone for his earlier decision?
Superb first half hour or so, we looked like a well-oiled machine. We played more football than last season, but the effect felt the same to me – relentless and efficient, bit by bit squashing them into the ground. Mccartan superb, as were the wingers. That’s the good bit…
They got a pen out of the blue and then dominated first 30 of the second half. That’s a long time to be dominated. They pressed Freck and O’Connor, who gave them ball away time and again. Akinde was sloppy and also gave it away countless times. They got tighter on Mccartan and also stopped the balls into him with their pressure on our midfield 2, and he disappeared completely. If they had scored an equaliser, we couldn’t have complained, and with the space Doughty was given in our half, it was coming.
I’d put our late goals more down to randomness than subs or tactical changes – superb third goal though and Swindon were done then. Lovely flick from Pett (maybe?) for the fourth.
Despite all of this, I do agree with Gary’s main point that it felt as though something was brewing. We were so good that first half hour, almost like we playing at the wrong level. This team could be really good.