January 2009 - Posts
Boro are set to play Burton in the FA Trophy tomorrow. I think it will be great if we can carry on our winning ways, and the cup is great for the club and its fanbase if we can make it to the final again.
Burton are doing really well in the league so I am sure they will be well up for it. Whether they put out their best squad is another matter. I think with them being at the top of the league they may want to focus on that a bit more as they lost their manager only a few weeks ago.
I am not sure whether we will field our best 11 either. I am sure GW wants to win the cup, and he has already come and said that, so I think players like Peter Vincenti will probably start because he is on the fringe of the first 11.
Having said that we have played a lot of games already this season so it is not like we are overrun with fixtures, unlike Wrexham and Kettering. So maybe we will play our first 11.
As long as we win that is all that matters. Come on Boro!
Boro pulled out all the stops last night as we recorded another win.
The evening started off well, I had to queue for a while to get my free programme but it gave me something to read before the game.
I was a bit worried about the game last night, it would mean a hell of a lot to get the three points. We started quite well but the pitch looked like someone had taken a tractor to it, but apparently there has been a drainage problem.
It wasn’t easy playing on a surface like that, the ball kept getting stuck and players were sliding all over the place.
We dug deep though, and we were getting a few shots on goal. Murphy was making some deadly but cracking challenges, and it showed how much the lads wanted the win.
Kettering were trying to play the ball on the floor too, but it soon became evident that the way to play was balls into the chest, so they had time to control.
They also had a secret weapon in Exodus Geohaghan. I have never seen anyone throw so far in the conference, he was like Rory Delap, it was ridiculous.
Every throw was worrying as he could be so precise. They were more ruthless with their throws than they were corners and in open play.
Somehow they managed to go ahead right before half time. We completely gifted them the goal. The defence got in a muddle and Jason Lee was there to put the ball in the back of the net.
Everyone was fuming, we shouldn’t have gone in 1-0 down, we should have been drawing.
The second half was a different story in terms of Boro. GW must have had a right go at them because they looked a different side. They played the ball well and looked like they had the desire and passion to win the game.
Ronnie Henry was outstanding again and I think the midfield worked really hard. Considering Bostwick was put in the back four, I don’t think he really did anything wrong yesterday. Roberts was once again untouchable.
Boro’s good passages of play inevitably led to our first goal. The ball was here there and everywhere in the box, but who was there, none other than Mr Tackle himself, Darren Murphy to head it in. He deserved that goal, he had worked really hard, and more importantly we were 1-1 now, so we really had a chance to win the game.
After the goal Murphy quietened quite a bit. He looked absolutely knackered.
There was a period where it looked like Kettering could come back in the game, but they looked like they had 11 tiring players. There was a time for change, so Lawrie came off for Vincenti, and what a substitution that was.
We were struggling a bit up front, and it just wasn’t working for Mitch and Moro. Vincenti came on and went straight up top with Moro, with Drury switching sides and Cole going on the wing.
He instantly came on and was pressing for the ball. He won headers and had good vision for passes. It was only a matter of time before he scored, and he did with style.
Nearly 85 minutes on the clock was gone and the ball came to him and he slotted it into the right hand corner of the goal after controlling it well on his chest.
We all went mental, the players all went mental. But then for some unbeknown reason the fourth official put 4 minutes of extra time on the clock. There had been a few substitutions but not 4 minutes worth.
Kettering decided this was their calling and they really hammered us for those minutes. They had quite a few corners and chances. They should have scored, but I am glad they didn’t as we did deserve the win.
Few areas of concern
I hope the pitch improves, I have never seen it that bad before. I also hope Cole improves. I thought he would be raring to go after his 3 goals at the weekend, but he barely made any effort last night. We all know he can do it, he has the talent, but he just seems to have gotten a bit lazy. Sometimes he would do a run and it would really put the defence under pressure. If he did that all the time, I am sure we would have picked up a few more chances.
But on the whole it was a great performance and the 3 points have helped us consolidate third position a bit more. The lads seem to believe that we are not going to lose games anymore, and I think that winning belief is only going to make them work harder and believe they can make the play-offs and win games.
Onwards and upwards!
Boro are set to play Kettering at home tonight. I am sure it will be a great game, with both teams really pushing for positions in the league.
Both teams seem to have eachothers players, so I am sure they will be some friendly banter among the squads.
Albrighton was injured at the weekend, so I think Luke will probably step into the centre-back role. I hope this change doesn't mean we concede tonight. We have been strong defensively in recent weeks and I would like to keep it that way. Although I am sure Luke will do his job.
Mitchell should be full of confidence following his shed load of goals at the weekend, and I am sure Morison will want a share of that tonight.
As it stands we are currently 3rd in the league and Kettering are 11th. However, they have a massive 7 games in hand over us, so if we are really up for getting into the play-offs, 3 points tonight will be essential.
I really hope we win, I think we deserve it.
Fingers crossed and all that.
Now I am off to my free programme and cup of tea (hopefully they let me have hot chocolate as I am not a big tea fan!)
I feel a bit weird this morning. I was really pleased with the result on Saturday and it was great to see us in the top 3 despite everyone else’s game in hands. Mitchell did really well to get a hat-trick and I am sure it will do him the world of good for his confidence. The fact were were drawing as well with not long to go shows the character in the team to then put two goals pass the keeper and put the game to bed.
But now I feel Boro’s name change has sort of overshadowed it. I feel a bit riled after seeing that Boro are changing Broadhall Way to the Lamex Stadium in a sponsorship deal.
I don’t get it? I know we are getting some money because they are a sponsor, but I just think it sounds a bit rubbish. It may mean good for the club, and I hope it all works out, but it sort of sounds like a cleaning brand.
I know sponsorship is big in the game now, but if anyone had said to me would you have wanted this I would have said no. The same being so for spurs as it was rumoured we were going to have that changed too.
The name of a stadium should show character and have importance and I believe that Broadhall Way did, and does. It is a real shame to see it go. I can’t really see myself saying when my dad asks me if we are home or away, and I have to reply with we are at the Lamex. Does it make us sound lame?!
As I have said I hope it works out, and I hope it proves a good deal for the club, I just don’t want to see the end of a great BHW.
Boro are through to the next round of the Herts Senior Cup. They beat Hertford 4-2 and are now in the semi finals.
We may be onto a winner with this competition, we could even reach the final and gain some silverware which would be nice.
I know it is not that important for a lot of people, this cup, but it is giving players who are fringe players or youngsters a chance to get some football under their belt. That is always good. Especially for players like Jerome, who will thrive on extra minutes on the field.
Hopefully we continue our cup run and get to the final and that will be a boost for the club all round!
Here are your views for Boro v Barrow at the weekend.
By Iwan Evans, Boro & Wrexham fan.
Prior to kick off and on paper there was only ever going to be one winner to this game. Barrow were coming off the back of a 3-0 home defeat to a struggling conference north side. Stevenage however, were undefeated since the visit of arguably the biggest and best team in the league, Wrexham. With this in mind Boro fans were expecting a comfortable victory for their team. Despite the confidence there was still the usual nervous atmosphere surrounding the terraces of Broadhall Way, with little vocal support for the home team. A bumper crowd was packed into the stadium following discounted prices attracting 2,200 fans.
Westley selected an unchanged team for the third game in a row for the first time this season, an indication that perhaps he has finally selected his “strongest” side. This could yet be disrupted if the rumours surrounding Steve Morison are true and he is to leave for Crewe or Millwall.
The home side did not disappoint their followers strolling to a comfortable 3-0 victory. Stevenage looked very comfortable throughout the match without ever really looking overly impressive. The game today further demonstrated the vast gap in quality between the top and the bottom of this league. Stevenage attempted to pass the ball along the ground while Barrow were content to keep men behind the ball and hoof it as far as they could when they got on the ball.
The opening fifteen minutes were pretty uneventful. Stevenage’s main chance fell to Cole as he outpaced the Barrow centre back bursting into the box but was unable to provide a telling finish. At the other end Chris Day showed good hands holding onto a deflected free kick. On the quarter hour mark Stevenage fans felt they were denied a clear penalty. Bridges was brought down in the area but his over elaborate dive to the ground appeared to convince the referee that there was no infringement.
The turning point of the game occurred in the 18th minute. A loose ball in the centre circle lead to Boylan and Bond both diving in with studs showing; however Bond’s challenge was two footed and came from over the ball. Boylan stayed down after the challenge and the red card was promptly shown to Bond. Worryingly for Boro fans Boylan was forced to be stretchered off the field wearing a leg brace and time will tell if this was precautionary or if Boylan will have a spell on the sidelines.
Following a long delay, the game continued with the Stevenage free kick. From this moment it was clear that Barrow would be more than happy to leave with a point and would be playing a lot of long ball football. Despite having a one man advantage Stevenage failed to create any clear chances but were dominating possession and a goal appeared only to be a matter of time.
On 39 minutes the break through was made. A ball from the right wing appeared to be over hit and heading for a goal kick, but Willock did not give up on it and managed to retrieve the ball and lay it back to Cole. From his cross Bridges’ free glancing header nestled into the corner of the net leaving the Barrow keeper with no chance. There was little action in the remaining moments of the first half and Stevenage went into the half time break one up both in numbers and goals.
The second half started much more brightly with Westley appearing to have got to his players in his half time team talk. Two more Boro goals quickly followed the break. Morison firstly headed in Mark Roberts’ cross on 50 minutes before latching onto a free kick and volleying home on 53 minutes.
Only two minutes later an apparently harmless long ball caused chaos in the Barrow defence and Morison found himself through on goal for his hat-trick. McNultey however had different ideas and hauled him down to the ground on the edge of the box. This left the referee with no choice and the second straight red card of the day was shown. At this point Stevenage were expected to pile on the misery and add to their three goals.
The expected rout did not follow and the game fizzled out into a training exercise for Boro. The players appeared to be satisfied with the score line despite Westley’s clear frustration on the touchline. The Boro players had stopped playing as a team and started to show off as individuals, which was ultimately Boro’s downfall. Morison became increasingly irritated as he desperately searched for his hat-trick, but the illusive third goal never arrived.
The Boro fans left the stadium satisfied that their team had cruised to a comfortable victory and yet with an uneasy feeling that against a better side today that they would have struggled. Nevertheless Stevenage are now 8 league games unbeaten and find themselves 2 points below the playoffs although have played a number of games more than their competitors.
On a negative note, despite today’s referee probably having the best refereeing performance I have seen this year, the game was still littered with inconsistent decisions and pointless stoppages. Having seen at least 30 BSP games this season you would think that I would be used to the appalling standard of refereeing that is on show week in week out. I am yet to see one referee this season that is worthy of a placement to a professional football match. It is a shame that the standard of refereeing is not increasing at the same rate of the standard of football in this league. I fear that the game will soon become a non contact sport if the current trend in refereeing continues.
Player Ratings
Day - 7 – Very little to do but performed well when required
Henry – 8 – Solid at the back and made some good overlapping runs.
Roberts – 7 – Won nearly every header both at the back and in the opposition’s box.
Albrighton – 6 – Saw very little action
Laird – 6 – Very little to do showed some poor touches on the ball
Cole – 6 – Looked lazy throughout especially when three up.
Bridges – 7 – Had some poor touches in the midfield but made the vital breakthrough.
Bostwick – 8 – Very solid performance, quietly doing his job.
Drury – 6 – Lacked his usual class on the ball
Morison – 9 – Looked dangerous every time he had the ball scoring twice
Willock – 7 – Held the ball up well upfront to build attacks
Boylan, Anderson, Bayes – 5 – Had no real part in the game.
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By
They were a poor side, with real motivation and morale issues.
One has to question why we only managed to score three given that we were playing against 9 men for most of the second half.
It was a shame Boylan got injured. a poor tackle, which from our perspective on east side left us thinking that Boylan was going to be penalised, not the barrow chappie. Conversations at half time with folk nearer to the incident revealed that the barrow chap had stamped on his leg as he had tried to slide for the ball, with no effort to play it. So red card.
Same in second half with their giant bruiser Mcnulty, brought Moro down as he clearly getting away from him.
Poor show from rest of squad in inability to get on target. We needed 6 to better our goal difference.
Very poor passing from bridges, albrighton and roberts. They all did good things in the game but were wastefull in distribution. Playing a better side they would have been penalised.
Good show from ronnie h in getting yup the wing more, helped by having no real problems to deal with, but confidence is improving and he is working well with drury.
no so with laird and cole. whenever the opportunity arose to go forward, mitchell kept dropping back, rather than make the forward run to be passed to. maybe i was not keeping tabs on the offside trap as much as him, but he seemeed unwilling to run at them. When he did he could beat them as they were big and heavy blokes, not agile enough to turn and keep up with him.
SBFC are playing well, but we have played such *** so far that it will be an uphill stuggle to keep in touch with the playoffs. We must get three points against kettering
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If you would like to share your opinion about the Barrow game, either post a comment or send me an email to catherine.gill@archant.co.uk
After Boro's great win on Saturday, I want to here about your views on the game as I was unable to make it. Let me know what you think and I will post it on here.
My email address is catherine.gill@archant.co.uk
I look forward to reading your comments!
Cat
Yay, Boro got another win last night. We played Farnborough in the FA Trophy second round, and beat them 2-0 away from home.
I am really glad we got the away win, it will do no harm at all to continue our unbeaten streak. We seemed to dominate most of the game last night, and it was great to see Mark Roberts get his first goal, which is richly deserved, and Boylan got on the score sheet as well.
Boro now face Burton at home in the next round. Now that is not going to be easy. Of all the teams to draw out, we go and end up with Burton. At least we are at home, and hopefully because we have done reasonably well of late, the lads will be full of confidence for that tie.
These are Burton’s last five results:
DWWWW
These are Boro’s last five results:
WDDWW
As you can see, they seem on top form, which is not good for us. But we have a couple of good fixtures coming up (Barrow, Salisbury) between now and then, so hopefully we will be flying just as high as them.
I am unable to attend Boro's home game with Barrow on Saturday. So if anyone is interested, after the game, email me your thoughts on the performance and the game, and I will include them in my blog on Monday.
Hopefully we can continue our good form and get the win and start moving up the table. Fibgers crossed!
My email address is catherine.gill@archant.co.uk.
I look forward to reading your comments!
Catherine
Boro are set to play Farnborough in the Fa Trophy tonight after it was called off at the weekend. Hopefully we can get the win, although if we do, it certainly won't be easy as we have gone and drawn Burton in the next round. The game is at home though, so that is something at least.
We need to continue our winning ways, and it my opinion games like we have tonight should give the team the added confidence they need if they can get a few goals in the back of the net.
Of course, I don't think Farnborough are going to make it easy for us. And they definitely don't like Westley over there, so I am sure they will be well up for it. But aggression towards Westley will only make GW want to win it even more, so hopefully we will get the win and progress in the competition that could see us get a trophy.
There is a lot of stuff surrounding Boro at the moment. There are rumours of players going and a lot of transfer speculation. This can’t be good for the players but somehow, we seem to be grinding out the results at the moment.
I am not sure whether Moro will stay or go in January. I hope he stays, I really do. I think he is vital for the squad, and he scores so many goals for the club. If he left we would have to replace him with someone who has a similar scoring ability and skills, and they are not easy to find in the conference.
It looks like McMahon is going to be on his way to Cambridge. I am pleased for him; he has got a bright future ahead of him so I wish him all the best. I am sad to see him go, but Drury has been excellent since he came back from injury so I can see why he hasn’t been played or picked.
It does make you wonder though because if a side like Cambridge is interested in him, who are higher in the league than we are, want to sign him, why shouldn’t we have him? He obviously has the ability to do well otherwise they wouldn’t be interested.
I am not sure what is going to happen to Martin. The likelihood will be that he will end up at Grays as they are the ones who showed the initial interest. He needs to go now as much as it pains me to say it. If he is not going to get picked then he might as well leave and have a future at another club. At least then he will play some football.
I don’t know how many players Westley will bring in, in the transfer window, if any. There have been many reports that we are suffering a bit money wise. He has brought in Mark Roberts and Darren Murphy already, and I assume he will be looking for another striker. Whether we get one is another question. We really suffer if Moro isn’t playing, and Willock doesn’t seem to take his chances in front of goal.
We need another good striker who has the ability to do well and who is young, so they don’t expect to play every week, because realistically they wont play every game. We need someone who can put the ball in the back of the net!
We are in January now so we have to look at the table and start to think realistically. We do have enough games to theoretically make the playoffs, but many of the teams above us have quite a few games in hand which is when it starts to get tricky, especially as teams like Wrexham who are quite close to us in the league currently have 5 games in hand over us.
I really hope we make the playoffs but it is going to have to be one hell of a performance to get us there. Hopefully we can continue with the form we currently have and we move up the table a little bit more.
I am so proud of Boro for their performance at the weekend. The boys beat Lewes 3-0 and it should have been by more. They really looked hungry for the game and worked well together. They seemed to battle hard and were winning nearly all of the passes.
Mind you, Lewes were terrible. Really terrible. They didn’t even look up when they passed the ball. Sometimes they would win a ball well, and then just pass it aimlessly. I think they would make any team look good. I feel sorry for the fans if they have to watch that week in week out. Fair play to them though, some of them did make the journey.
The first goal was a relief. We had a failed to receive a blatant penalty early on against Cole, so it definitely made me feel a lot better to see the ball go in the net. Morison broke with the ball, controlled the ball well on the right hand side, and pulled it back to Boylan, who had loads of time to bring the ball down, set himself, and slot it in the left hand corner of the goal.
I was pleased for Lee, I think he works hard, and he doesn’t seem to be at his best at the moment, so people are getting on his back. If he keeps scoring though, I am sure he will silence the critics.
The second goal came quick after the first, when Morison once again breaks through the defence and fires the ball home. Another goal in the bag for Moro.
The second half saw a whole host of chances go amidst and even Willock missed a clear cut chance when the ball was crossed in.
The game was rounded off with another Moro goal. A great ball from new boy Murphy saw Morison smash the ball into the back of the net. A well deserved win from Boro, and well deserved goals from Moro.
Two other little mentions:
Firstly to Ronnie Henry, who I thought was excellent on Saturday. He gave his all, and was great on the overlap with Drury. His balls into the box were also much improved on last season, and he looked very strong in the back line.
Secondly, to the bizarre sending off. Not quite sure why the Robinho look-alike was sent off. He looked quite bewildered too. Not that I minded of course. Just would like to know why he left the field?
How frustrating! I was so pleased yesterday when I found out we were 1-0 up. Steve got another goal, and I really thought we were on the way to another victory over Rushden. We should have killed them off, and 1-0’s are never safe, but I thought we were going to be ok.
But then the bitter blow was struck. In the 93rd minute we conceded from a free kick. Grrr. 3 points at the moment can get you far in the table. It felt like a loss rather than a draw.
We had a good amount of possession and quite a few shots on target. The team looked strong too, with both Boylan and Moro returning to the squad.
We are level on points with Rushden now and we are still in ninth place in the league. I suppose when you look at our last few results we have done well, it is just a shame that we couldn’t nab 3 points yesterday. Mind you, I suppose we did exactly the same to Cambridge, so it is all swings and roundabouts.
Here are our last 4 results:
Oxford United 1-1
Rushden & Diamonds 3-1
Cambridge United 1-1
Rushden & Diamonds 1-1
We are not doing too bad in the form table too, but it needs to be better if we have any chance of catching Burton and the other current play-off position teams.
Tomorrow we have Lewes at home, so hopefully we will do the business then and put ourselves right back in contention, like Forest Green did last year.