I wouldn’t say it was more of the same in the second half – City were resolute and played immeasurably better than two weeks ago, but I thought the opposition made it hard for us to affect the game as we did in the first. I’m not sure why – you’d think ten against eleven would be easier, but it wasn’t. They went a bit more direct and certainly remained committed, and I wouldn’t even say things fizzled out. We didn’t get our rhythm going in the second half in the same way as the first, but we still looked more likely to add additional goals.
Harry Anderson came on at half time to a round of applause, which in my mind, was the right response. I recall being horrified at us applauding Terry Hawkridge’s goal for Notts County back in 2017, and I feel the correct response is to cheer a player on, applaud them at the end, but whilst the ball is in play, treat them as any other opponent. That’s my opinion only, but it was nice to see Harry back at the Bank, and even nicer to see him ineffective for the most part. I don’t mean that as in I’m happy he didn’t do well; I hope he goes on and scores goals between now and May, but against us, I hoped he’d be average at best.
I did find it ironic that Rovers spent the second half in a 4-4-1, given how their manager had been critical of Danny Cowley for playing 4-4-2 at Portsmouth (it stinks, and it won’t work. It just doesn’t get you the traction you need, he said). However, it did give them a bit of traction – they got their best chance in the second period, a free kick beaten away excellently by Rushowrth, who is having a solid season for the Imps. All afternoon his catching, command of his area and distribution was spot on, so much so, David Preece gave him Man of the Match on the radio. The sponsors gave Ethan Erhahon the award, but I was split between him, O’Connor and Ben House. I know it’s important to have goals all over the team, but when your Man of the Match options are so varied, it’s another huge positive.
We had our second-half chances – Jack Diamond robbed Liverpool loanee Jarell Quansah, only for the 20-year-old to match him for pace and get back with a wonderful tackle. Of all Rovers’ players, he stood out for me, wearing the number five, although he shouldn’t ‘t have been on the field come the end of the game. His partner at the back, James Connolly, was the opposite, a player who looked uncomfortable all afternoon, a walking mistake waiting to happen.
John Marquis came on and had a half chance, Luke Plange came on for his home debut and had a couple. Plange’s introduction was interesting because his first involvement was a perfect example of what we’ve needed. He strode down the flank, but instead of playing a straight ball back down the line, he found Ted Bioshop on the edge of the area with a little diagonal. Plange had run into a dead end with three players around him but still found Ted in space, although he fired over. He looked single-minded and caused them plenty of problems in the dying moments. He had one shot deflected wide and was hauled down when about to go one-on-one with their keeper.
Should Quansah have been sent off? Plange had got around him and was to chase a ball over the top with no defenders in sight. The Liverpool loanee wrestled our man to the ground, but it was inside our defensive half. Is it denying a clear goalscoring opportunity? Even with my rose-tinted spectacles on the side, I can see an argument for a second red, but perhaps with it being so far from goal, their man has had a reprieve. Either way, it made those last few minutes quite intense, with us not hanging on as such, but certainly a little more vexed than we should have been in a game we largely controlled and created 19 shots with eight on target. They felt they might go and get the equaliser, and despite the fact we won to nil, I’m confident we’ve seen much worse sides than Bristol Rovers this season.
I’ve got to 2,000 words without mentioning the obvious, but I have now got to mention him – Joey Barton. Oh, we love to hate Barton; the whole world loves to hate Barton, and I’ve largely had a strange kind of admiration for him. I haven’t deeply despised him as I do Evans, for instance. I’ve never liked him, but I always felt it was a bit of a show, especially when we played Burnley. He tried getting Rhead sent off, but afterwards, he happily signed autographs in the car park, and it felt like he played the pantomime villain well. Recently, with various controversies, I’ve leaned towards him actually being a bit of an actual villain, but yesterday he proved it.
You’ve lost 1-0, and you’ve had a man sent off for an elbow which was quite clear, although some refs might not give it. You’ve been lucky not to have a second sent off, and in terms of possession, shots and xG, you’ve been outplayed. Why react like a petulant child? The scenes at the end of the game were great for us – Ethan Erhahon has become an instant favourite for how he handled himself as Barton strode over looking for a fight at the end, and the song Joey Barton You’re An Anchor (I think), was ringing out as he argued with the referee and had our safety team escort him from the pitch. It was pure pantomime, galvanising and great PR for our boys and coaching staff, who conducted themselves very well. Then, for Barton to come out swearing and offering to fight a 21-year-old live on the radio was pure embarrassment for him and his club. Mark Kennedy absolutely refused to be drawn on the situation at all, and that’s what I want to hear from the men in charge of my club – how would we feel if MK had started on their number five for the foul on Plange?
I’m led to believe, like the iceberg that sank the Titanic, there was some conduct from Barton that may not have been visible to the supporters, which might warrant further investigation, but I don’t know for sure. Whatever happens, we’ve got three points and have gone above them in the table, which won’t change. I think my overriding image of the incident will be Ethan’s smirk on the YouTube clip after Barton has come out for a go live on the radio, the smirk your 15-year-old son might give as an angry Dad is dragged away from him at the end of a youth game. I think someone ought to sit Joey down and suggest it is time to grow up a bit, because eventually, the edgy hard man routine turns into sad, washed up angry former footballer and there’s no coming back from that. Have some dignity, lad.
That is pretty much it. Saturday, February 11th will be a day where aggro seemed to reign supreme all over the land – there are reports of a car being driven into spectators at Grimsby, and retribution being immediately health by fans putting windows through. There’s the already-famous video of the Chelsea fan saying a bit too much against West Ham and ending up being wheeled home with a confused look on his face, and there’s the former Manchester City footballer verbally abusing a young player live on the radio. For some, it was to a proud day, certainly not one to remember. For Lincoln City fans, it was one we won’t forget in a hurry.
This win doesn’t mean we’re going up, and it doesn’t mean we’re finishing in the top half, but it does restore my belief in where we’re going. Two weeks ago, I had a wobble; I’ll confess that. I’m a fan, I react sometimes, and I call what I see, but what I see is often through passionate eyes, not objective ones. Those games against MK Dons and Cambridge were, at the time, disappointing, but they’re now part of a run that looks much more impressive. We’ve only conceded ten goals at home – only Ipswich have conceded fewer. We’re unbeaten, still, and a win makes that run look more impressive. We’ve conceded fewer goals overall than Plymouth and Ipswich, both in the top three.
They’re building blocks, and whilst two weeks ago I felt we might be that building project you always see where the foundations get built, but the project stops, and it’s a sorry-looking site, it turns out we’re not. We’ve got the players in place now to carry the project on, and I’m super confident that come April 28th (my stag weekend away at Morecambe), we’ll be safe and looking forward to next season with a spine of a team in place and the means to start pushing up the league once more.
See you at Derby, up the Imps.