Matty D
28th February 2005, 10:50
A very entertaining game, and another demonstration of this team’s resilience and self-belief; but on the evidence of the first half a missed opportunity to push on towards the play-off places.
Paul Sturrock must be wondering what his team have to do to beat us – a goal and a man up at Hillsborough entering the last ten minutes, only to lose, two goals to the good at Griffin Park at the same stage, and denied a win by an emphatic injury time equaliser from Steve Hunt, after substitute Ryan Peters had clawed one back in a goal-mouth scramble on with 8 minutes left.
Although Rankin had the ball in the net within a minute his looping header was ruled out for offside, and instead it was Wednesday who got off to a flyer – Peacock giving Bankole no chance with a volley from the edge of the box on 4 minutes after a weak defensive header. After that setback the Bees rolled up their sleeves and, attacking the Brook Road end, dominated much of the opening 45.
Talbot took the game by the scruff of the neck, and Tabb and Hunt gave him plenty of options. Tabb surprisingly rose highest to one far post cross and forced Lucas to tip over, and Talbot slammed a shot inches wide of the top corner with the Wednesday keeper rooted to the spot.
The game lurched from one way to the other in the five minutes either side of half time. First Peacock bagged a second against the run of play when his 41st minute effort looked to have been well claimed at full stretch by Bankole, only for the ball to escape his grasp and roll over the line. Brentford hit back almost instantly, as Burton brought the ball down and turned to drill an instinctive 25 yard volley past Lucas. Their was till time for Hutch to loop a header onto the roof of the net, but with the lead pegged back to one goal at the break our first half superiority looked like making it a close second half.
Sam Sodje failed to appear at the restart and Dobson, the only defender on the bench, deputised at centre-back, although initially lining up at right back. Right from the off he looked uneasy, letting balls bounce, and strikers get goal-side far too often. On 49 minutes Wednesday won a corner and in a masterclass of poor set-piece defending three Bees players went to close down the short option; and as the kick was floated in for a near post flick-on and simple finish for Bullen the remainder stood rooted to the spot.
3-1 and all the good work of the first-half seemingly thrown away. Peters replaced Rankin and Pratley, Talbot, as Martin Allen possibly looked to keep something in the tank for Southampton. It looked a risky strategy as Wednesday continued to exploit the lack of communication in the Bees defence, and looked increasingly comfortable with their lead. Peters’ pace gave us a glimmer of hope, although there were rarely enough bodies up to capitalise on his breaks down the right. Pratley also started to make inroads, and it was his burst of pace that won the corner from which Peters scrambled a lifeline.
3-2 and something to play for, but Wednesday still looked capable of holding us at arms length, a marginal shout for a penalty as Jay Tabb crumpled in the box excepted. Right at the death though a long throw from Salako wasn’t cleared and the ball found its way to Hunt, cutting in from the right and picking out the top corner deep into injury time. He enjoyed it, the fans enjoyed it, and Martin Allen seemed fairly pleased too!
So, still a lot of work to turn all those games in hand into the points we need to secure a shot at the play-offs, and still doubts about our strength in depth, but the encouragement that this is a squad who just don’t know when they’re beaten.
Bankole 5 – question mark over the second goal, and very unconvincing after half time
Turner 6 – below par
Sodje 7 – the pick of the defenders, we missed him in the second half
O’Connor 6 – feeling his way back
Salako 6 – decent
Talbot 7 – ran the game in the first half, tired later on
Hutchinson 6 – anonymous
Tabb 7 – kept us on the move
Hunt 7 – never stopped running, and was rewarded with last-gasp equaliser
Rankin 6 – useful display
Burton 7 – lots of good work, superb finish for his goal
Dobson 5 – given a torrid time
Peters 7 – gave Wednesday problems and bagged his first goal
Pratley 7- added pace and vigour to the midfield
Paul Sturrock must be wondering what his team have to do to beat us – a goal and a man up at Hillsborough entering the last ten minutes, only to lose, two goals to the good at Griffin Park at the same stage, and denied a win by an emphatic injury time equaliser from Steve Hunt, after substitute Ryan Peters had clawed one back in a goal-mouth scramble on with 8 minutes left.
Although Rankin had the ball in the net within a minute his looping header was ruled out for offside, and instead it was Wednesday who got off to a flyer – Peacock giving Bankole no chance with a volley from the edge of the box on 4 minutes after a weak defensive header. After that setback the Bees rolled up their sleeves and, attacking the Brook Road end, dominated much of the opening 45.
Talbot took the game by the scruff of the neck, and Tabb and Hunt gave him plenty of options. Tabb surprisingly rose highest to one far post cross and forced Lucas to tip over, and Talbot slammed a shot inches wide of the top corner with the Wednesday keeper rooted to the spot.
The game lurched from one way to the other in the five minutes either side of half time. First Peacock bagged a second against the run of play when his 41st minute effort looked to have been well claimed at full stretch by Bankole, only for the ball to escape his grasp and roll over the line. Brentford hit back almost instantly, as Burton brought the ball down and turned to drill an instinctive 25 yard volley past Lucas. Their was till time for Hutch to loop a header onto the roof of the net, but with the lead pegged back to one goal at the break our first half superiority looked like making it a close second half.
Sam Sodje failed to appear at the restart and Dobson, the only defender on the bench, deputised at centre-back, although initially lining up at right back. Right from the off he looked uneasy, letting balls bounce, and strikers get goal-side far too often. On 49 minutes Wednesday won a corner and in a masterclass of poor set-piece defending three Bees players went to close down the short option; and as the kick was floated in for a near post flick-on and simple finish for Bullen the remainder stood rooted to the spot.
3-1 and all the good work of the first-half seemingly thrown away. Peters replaced Rankin and Pratley, Talbot, as Martin Allen possibly looked to keep something in the tank for Southampton. It looked a risky strategy as Wednesday continued to exploit the lack of communication in the Bees defence, and looked increasingly comfortable with their lead. Peters’ pace gave us a glimmer of hope, although there were rarely enough bodies up to capitalise on his breaks down the right. Pratley also started to make inroads, and it was his burst of pace that won the corner from which Peters scrambled a lifeline.
3-2 and something to play for, but Wednesday still looked capable of holding us at arms length, a marginal shout for a penalty as Jay Tabb crumpled in the box excepted. Right at the death though a long throw from Salako wasn’t cleared and the ball found its way to Hunt, cutting in from the right and picking out the top corner deep into injury time. He enjoyed it, the fans enjoyed it, and Martin Allen seemed fairly pleased too!
So, still a lot of work to turn all those games in hand into the points we need to secure a shot at the play-offs, and still doubts about our strength in depth, but the encouragement that this is a squad who just don’t know when they’re beaten.
Bankole 5 – question mark over the second goal, and very unconvincing after half time
Turner 6 – below par
Sodje 7 – the pick of the defenders, we missed him in the second half
O’Connor 6 – feeling his way back
Salako 6 – decent
Talbot 7 – ran the game in the first half, tired later on
Hutchinson 6 – anonymous
Tabb 7 – kept us on the move
Hunt 7 – never stopped running, and was rewarded with last-gasp equaliser
Rankin 6 – useful display
Burton 7 – lots of good work, superb finish for his goal
Dobson 5 – given a torrid time
Peters 7 – gave Wednesday problems and bagged his first goal
Pratley 7- added pace and vigour to the midfield