Most of you know I volunteer and sell programmes and 50/50 tickets. Last night I was at the Cut Throat Lane turnstiles’, and trade was good.
Then I started to get issues with the card machine by getting a “too many attempts” error message. At first I thought I was pressing the buttons to quickly, so I slowed down, but still got the same message, but after a few retries it would work.
Unfortunately this meant the queue backed up which in turn caused a blockage near the turnstiles, so my apologies to those caught up in the mess!
Then came a tannoy announcement that all food outlets were having payment difficulties, so it wasn’t me breaking the system!
On to the game.
I am no expert on the Southampton players, but judging from the squad numbers they put out a pretty strong team.
Mark Bonner again used the competition to make a number of changes to give playing time to those currently on the fringes of the first team, so it could be argued we put out a reserve side!
From the start Southampton showed their Premier league class. They were quicker in thought and movement, and stronger in individual battles. They closed us down quickly so our passes were hurried and misplaced. Our set up seemed to be very narrow to stop them passing through the middle.
When they had the ball they seemed to have a couple of extra players free and in space, creating overloads especially down each wing, and they scored when a wide player had time and space to cross low behind our defence for a tap in inside the six yard box as our defenders stood watching. Mannion got a hand to the ball but couldn’t keep it out.
Half time and 1-0 down, but it could have been more.
Second half continued in the same way with Southampton scoring twice, each time an initial shot was stopped by Mannion, but Saints player was on hand to turn in the rebound.
U’s had a couple of “moments” getting dangerously close to the Southampton goal without making their keeper work, and some free kicks around the edge of the penalty area came to nothing.
Being beaten by a team of far better players is no disgrace, but I felt we let ourselves down in some areas where we should have done better. We seemed weak in 1 on 1 battles, as if we were scared to hurt the opposition players. For all 3 goals their players were allowed to get into our six-yard box unmarked.
We could have been quicker to use the long ball to give their defenders something to think about with Smith and Janneh running in behind, but it rarely happened, much to Smiths annoyance!
If our “first” team had played I don’t think the score would have been much different, but I do think Southampton would have had to work a bit harder to make their chances. Rossi and Jones did OK in the aerial battles, but struggled with the trickery Saints players were able to produce , but then so did the whole!
Ironside won a lot in the air, but rarely did the ball go to a U’s player. Janneh looked our most dangerous player while on the pitch, then Knibbs when he came on. Simper, Digby, Lankester and Smith were chasing shadows most of the time, and the wide midfielders had to do a lot more defensively to help Williams and Haunstrup.
Mannion was my Man of the Match. He made some good reflex saves, was quick off his line, distribution was good and looked solid.
The linesman on the Main Stand side deserves a mention. He will not be on Williams Christmas card list when he flagged for the ball going out for a goal kick when it hadn’t, and late on Knibbs was flagged for a foul when a defender stumbled while they were both going for the same ball.
We now wait for Liverpool in a competetive match, the only League team we have never played in our history!
We are out of the Carabao cup, beaten by a team from 2 divisions higher but not disgraced. At least we didn’t lose to a team from a lower division!