[LU] Huddersfield

[Robert HEATH]

Thrilled that the Bangkok Khow can for once contribute a first hand opinion:

Basically, I felt that we seemed so superior in the first half hour but seemed curiously lacking in urgency.  Despite being so much better, we really created nothing.  Nobody was really playing badly except Douglas whose touch was awful.  I felt that we needed to score soon b/c they would eventually get fired up with the Your Cup Final syndrome, and when Douglas got himself sent off that was the result.  His first yellow was for a stupidly mistimed tackle which he had to turn into a block on a player who had got past him down the right.  This left him open for what happened soon after when their lad ran across him and allowed his heels to be clipped.  Goodnight Irene. They were of course then all fired up and it looked grim, until we luckily benefitted from their lad getting a red.  

So....2nd half 10v10 and I was confident at h-t.  But I felt Macca really was out-thought for the 2nd half.  Both teams had lost a midfielder from a 4-4-2.  Macca just carried on as usual, ie 4-3-2.  however, they pushed a defender up into MF to play 3-4-2, thereby outnumbering us in the middle of the park.  I think this cost us the match because they dominated much more in the 2nd half, confidence building along with the noise of the halfwits in the crowd, and really 0-0 or 1-0 seemed like the only possible scorelines. They brought on some kid to play on the left and almost with his first touch he provided a rare bit of quality from them with a delicious cross which was well headed home.

Some comments about the players, many of whom I was watching for the first time:

Howson: Wow!  This kid is fantastic.  Just wonder how long we can keep him.

Lubo: A lot better than I had been led to believe.  i thought he was great although don't know if he lost his man for the goal.

Kilkenny: pointed a lot....looks class

Freedman: Not 100% impressed.............looks like he has been taken ijn a bit too much by his own publicity about being canny and having a great touch.

Kandol: Nowhere near as bad as I expected from the vitriol which has been hurled his way.

Rob Heath

Bangkok Khow On Tour.