Today, the season ended with the expected whimper.
Burnley came to Wimbledon and, as expected, lost, and once again the cause
was basic defensive errors.
The game, which served as a backdrop
to Wimbledon FC’s final hours
at Selhurst Park, was played in what can only be described as a surreal atmosphere.
Football should not be played without a crowd, or any sort of atmosphere:
unlike
cricket, where the sound of leather on willow is a quintessential part of
the game, the sound of plastic on the foam of a keeper's gloves and
the sound of the referee turning down yet another penalty shout with a sweep
of
his arms
and a resounding "no, play on" does absolutely nothing
for the game.
Wimbledon’s problems are well
documented. I do not wish to go into them again - last season, after doing
this match report, I received much foul and
vile personal abuse from persons purporting to be Wimbledon fans, because I
stated
that Koppel may have a point. Again, as in so many ways nowadays in this
once great country, it seems that freedom of speech and the right to have an
opinion
is no longer allowed.
One side has now taken the decision
to form its own club, and the remainder have continued to follow Wimbledon
FC, which is their personal choice. I’m
quite sure that both sides believe that they are in ‘the right’,
and it is up to the individual to make that decision based on facts. I
intend not to go into the rights or wrongs of the move - I feel that we
have enough
problems of our own at Burnley. I made my decision on Sunday to go to the
match because as a Burnley supporter I will watch my team whenever and wherever
I can, regardless of the circumstances.
The decision to boycott the game
was, of course, made easy for most by the Clarets’ abject end of season
form, which had left us miles adrift of the play-offs. As it was there were
472 Clarets there. I wonder
how many
who stayed away would have had to re-think their decision if we had needed
to win to make the play-offs or even win promotion? Regardless of the
politics of it all, if only for those fans that have stayed loyal to Wimbledon
this
season, I wish them luck for the future.
As it turned out, I am pleased to
have made the effort to go to this game if only as it gave me the chance
to say farewell to two players who have played
an integral part in Burnley’s success over the last decade. Having
been told that they were not being offered a new contract, it would have been
understandable
if Steve Davis and Marlon Beresford had taken the decision that they would
rather not have played in this match. As it was they both turned out and
played well, and both were given a rousing welcome and send-off from
the travelling
Clarets. Both these players have given a great deal of their careers to
the Clarets, and they deserved their applause.
Ternent once again started the game
with Ian Moore on the right wing and Matt O’Neill on the left. Dean West was restored to right back, and
Arthur Gnohere had completely disappeared (perhaps his head was "up
his arse" again,
to quote Stan Ternent).
In truth, this season has shown
us the problem with Arthur: one week he has been his magnificent, cavaliering,
imperious self; the next he has
been abysmal,
appearing to be in some other time zone. It is this inconsistency within
our top players which mirrors the inconsistency of the team as a whole.
Marlon Beresford, making what appears
to be his final appearance, replaced Michopoulos, after the Greek Teflon
man had finally thrown one too many in
the back of the
net. Not to say that Marlon hasn’t done his fair share of that this
season, but this was a day for sentiment, so Marlon played.
It is difficult to work out exactly
who was playing where, to be honest. The team selection once again had something
of a lottery look about it - you
know, stick your hand in the bag and the first eleven numbers out play.
The formation I have absolutely no idea about - it could have been 4-4-2,
4-3-1-2,
4-1-3-2, 4-3-3... well, to be honest, it could have been anything. To
steal a quote from Mike Bassett, it appears that Stan may well have said "I
don’t
know, just do what you want". It appears that they took him at
face value.
We did actually take the lead; Gareth
Taylor firing home after Wimbledon’s
Davis had parried from his own defender. Even at this stage it was only
a matter of time - Connolly, who was to be chief destroyer, was looking dangerous,
and
it is easy to see how he has scored so many goals this season. It is less
easy to work out how the donkey that is Neil Shipperley has scored quite so
many.
After half time, Wimbledon became
a little more positive, and they attacked the Burnley ‘defence’.
West was once again out of position more times than not, and McGregor, it
appears to this observer, is quite simply
not up to this division's required standard. Indeed it was from a ball which
McGregor
failed to clear, the ball bouncing over his head, which allowed Connolly to
fire home his first, giving Marlon no chance.
The game was effectively over then - we were never going to get a winner,
and it was only a matter of time before Wimbledon got theirs. Steve Davis had
gone off to rapturous applause, to be replaced by the already-released Waine.
Incidentally,
why do all our youngsters appear to be 5 foot 2 and weigh about 8 stone?
Do we not feed them?
Wimbledon found their winner, and
gave their remaining fans a good send-off, when a scramble in the box ended
with Connolly smashing the ball into the top
corner. Game over. The only other thing worth noting was that (as per
usual) Gareth Taylor was booked. After 70 minutes of being kicked from
pillar to post by Wimbledon’s Leigertwood, he went into the tackle hard,
as you would expect, and was duly booked. No surprise there, then. What
exactly is the
problem that these referees have with our striker? According to one
newspaper, he is the third dirtiest player in the division. What absolute
rubbish!
The second half had been a replica of most other Burnley games this season.
Robbie Blake had plenty of possession, but due to a lack of any support had
to attempt to take on the entire defence on his own. How Robbie has missed
Glen Little and the outlet that he provides. I am sure that we will see the
best of Blake next season if Little returns; the worrying thought for next
season is that our three most saleable assets may be sacrificed for the sake
of the black hole that is our finances. Wigan are reportedly interested in
Blake, and at present it is a buyers' market. It would not surprise me if
Wigan made a bid and Burnley bit their hand off.
This would be soccer suicide.
Burnley
fans are already sick and tired of our constant whinging about ITV Digital
- we have been hit no harder than any other side in the league, yet we
constantly wring our hands and whinge. At present we are a prime target for
a club like
Wigan, and our three top players - Taylor, Blake and Little - are our prize
assets. Little has only one year left on his contract, and is unlikely to
be offered
a new one at anywhere near the terms he must be on now. Do not be surprised
if one or more of this trio are back at Turf Moor next season in different
colours.
Incidentally, with all the veiled
threats about what will happen if Clarets fans don’t rush out to buy season tickets (which amidst the present
climate of disillusionment is not a high priority on most people's agendas),
isn’t
it amazing that for the first time in history, the Club had the new season
tickets ready and available before the end of this season. No constant
backdating of their delivery this season. Highly professional, or cynical?
The decision
is yours.
My man of the match has to be the excellent Graham Branch. He shows a
calm composure sadly lacking in his defensive team-mates, and this,
added to his pace, makes
him a splendidly effective centre back. Not bad for a man we signed as a
left winger, and who was once the subject of the crowd's abuse.
So, that’s it. Roll on the three-month break - we all certainly need
it. Regardless of our general feelings of malaise, we’ll all be back
next season. See you there.
You’re gonna miss me when I’m
gone