Rather late to bed (I think it was about 4am) and this followed an interesting Virgin train journey up to Birmingham. All trains were ****ed as usual, so you could use any train and any seat, I managed to grab an earlier train than the one I was booked and got a nice first class seat.
It was complementary food and drink all the way up, so I left the train with more food and alcoholic drink than I started with, they couldn't give it away fast enough!
My little table was running out of room for the little spirit bottles!
SO it was up slightly later than planned on Saturday morning, I eventually made the 11.18 from Brum and arrived in Stoke just after midday.
Then it was straight into a cab to meet up with the others, who had come by train, in the Old Brown Jug in Newcastle-Under-Lyme. It's a great pub and after a few pints of Guinness I felt human again.
Taxis arrived about 2.30 so we just got to the ground for kick off (a few missed kick off as got stuck in traffic).
The match - well for 45 minutes we were the better team, Carole and Frutos looked lively, but the front 2 didn't IMHO. Stoke defended well, but under NO pressure.
We had the ball for long periods but there was little option for the midfield other than to have to resort to going sideways, backwards or playing long hopeful balls forward.
Stoke looked poor, but the complete opposite upfront. They weren't great, but the 2 forwards hassled Butters and McShane for 90 minutes. Stoke scored very much against the run of play, we gave away the ball in midfield and the through ball from Stoke put Butters and McShane out the equation and the number 7 tucked the ball away well.
Arrgghhhh.
The 5/600 Albion fans did there best to create an atmosphere as the Stoke fans appeared to be asleep. What has happened to our away support this season? We were taking about a 1,000 to every game over the last few years, this season we are taking hardly anyone, 500 is a good turn out for us now.
Back to the game, second half and we disappeared from the game. I thought McPhee looked hungry and up for it when he came on, but the rest of the team didn't. We gave away silly goals and at one stage we looked like getting a 5 or 6 drubbing.
The away end was down to about 300 at the final whistle and I didn't have the enthusiasm to clap them off, not many did. We were well beaten in the end, and second best in most areas. We just didn't play as a team and we certainly don't look menacing going forward.
The one aspect of our game that annoys me is our set pieces. Our corners and free kicks are generally a waste of time. How many times this season has the corner been cleared easily and under no pressure by the man at or in front of the near post? Carole must have done that about 5 times on the trot on Saturday.
It's one area that surely we can work on and put the opposition under some pressure.
Blayney - 5 didn't do much wrong, but had to pick the ball out the net 3 times, could have been more
Hart - 7 battled hard, looks like a proper full back!
Reid - 4 doesn't look happy or comfortable when on the ball
McShane - 5 poor game by his standards, caught for the first goal but harshly yellow carded again
Butters - 4 looks tired IMHO, glad he can rest for a few days before the Palace match
Nicolas - 4 does he want to win the right to keep the shirt
Hammond - 5 strangely subdued
Carole - 5 good start to the game but drifted out
Frutos - 7 my MOTM, at least he is prepared to have a shot
Robinson - 4 looked like a little boy against men, not sure what to make of him these days
CKR - 4 very poor match, didn't contribute much to the game
McPhee - 6 put himself about, made the Stoke defence have to think about defending
Turienzo - 4 no impact when he came on
Dodd, Mayo and Chaigneau not used
As for Leon "prima donna" Knight, if he was scoring goals, and contributing well to matches then fair play to him not liking being subbed, but he is not playing to his potential. Perhaps he needs a new club and a new challenge.
It's strange how he cant get on with any manager he plays for!
Oh well, at least no Albion game to have to sit through on Saturday, roll on a trip to Geneva for the England match.
Mark R
My team against Palace would be
Blayney
Hart El-Abd Butters Mayo
Frutos Hammond Reid Oatway Carole
CKR