grafikhaus
Kraft durch Freude
So, after ‘walking it’ in primary school, how would we get on in Upper school, against bigger boys and facing harder examinations?
This term started with a creditable win at home to Brentford 1-0. Stern reality would come with two defeats against Middlesborough and Cardiff although it could be argued that we were unlucky at ‘boro, being denied a last-minute ‘equaliser’.
We bounced back with three consecutive wins against Derby at home and Sunderland and Bolton away. The Derby win was especially impressive. As the Derby team was announced pre-kick-off, they seemed to have quality all over the pitch.
A narrow 0-1 loss at home to Norwich followed which was more due to outrageous gamesmanship by Norwich which everybody in the ground – apart from the ref. and his assistants – could easily see.
This was followed by comprehensive wins at Hillsborough and at home to Wolves. The former was well-deserved as we out-fought and out-thought the pigs. Wolves going down to ten men early on was no excuse for the big-spending Old Golds.
A narrow 1-2 defeat a Nottingham Forest made us wonder how the season would pan out, but three wins (Ipswich and Reading at home and Leeds away) put us back on track. The Leeds game was, for me, the best win of the season. Leading with an early Billy Sharp goal, Leeds equalised and most managers would have ‘shut up shop’ and settled for a draw. Not Chris Wilder, and David Brooks scored a fabulous late winner.
Another narrow 0-1 loss at QPR was followed by two more wins. First, at home to Hull, where a half-time deficit of 0-1 was reversed by four goals by Leon Clarke in a 4-1 win. Following this was possibly the defining moment of the season where, despite a 3-1 win, ace playmaker Paul Coutts suffered a broken leg and will probably not feature again this season.
A crazy defeat to Fulham (4-5) saw us start the present run of six game wins without a draw.
A 1-1 home draw to Birmingham was followed by three consecutive defeats – Millwall 1-3 away, and an incredible Friday night 1-2 home defeat to Bristol City (where we hit the woodwork four times) and a poor showing at Preston(0-1) made us wonder where we were going.
The first half of this season ended with a creditable 2-2 draw at Aston Villa where an early 0-2 deficit was pulled back to 2-2 with a brace from Clayton Donaldson.
So, after being in 18th position after three games, we mounted a strong revival and would spend eighteen games in the top six. Indeed, after the win at Leeds, we were (briefly) top of the table, before the draw at Villa saw us eased into seventh position by goal difference.
After 23 games, it could be argued that we should have some idea of how this season will pan out? Truth is, none of us had a clue. We could end up in the play-offs, mid-table or in a late-season battle to fend off relegation. Our squad is – compared to most teams in the Championship –pretty threadbare. Will yellow cards/suspensions and injuries deplete us further? Will Brooks leave us? How will CW reinforce in the JTW? Who knows?
Buckle up and enjoy the ride – it sure beats looking forward to games against Yeovil, Fleetwood, Crawley etc. Nobody said it would be easy and it’s all part of being a Blade.
Merry Christmas, everybody!
This term started with a creditable win at home to Brentford 1-0. Stern reality would come with two defeats against Middlesborough and Cardiff although it could be argued that we were unlucky at ‘boro, being denied a last-minute ‘equaliser’.
We bounced back with three consecutive wins against Derby at home and Sunderland and Bolton away. The Derby win was especially impressive. As the Derby team was announced pre-kick-off, they seemed to have quality all over the pitch.
A narrow 0-1 loss at home to Norwich followed which was more due to outrageous gamesmanship by Norwich which everybody in the ground – apart from the ref. and his assistants – could easily see.
This was followed by comprehensive wins at Hillsborough and at home to Wolves. The former was well-deserved as we out-fought and out-thought the pigs. Wolves going down to ten men early on was no excuse for the big-spending Old Golds.
A narrow 1-2 defeat a Nottingham Forest made us wonder how the season would pan out, but three wins (Ipswich and Reading at home and Leeds away) put us back on track. The Leeds game was, for me, the best win of the season. Leading with an early Billy Sharp goal, Leeds equalised and most managers would have ‘shut up shop’ and settled for a draw. Not Chris Wilder, and David Brooks scored a fabulous late winner.
Another narrow 0-1 loss at QPR was followed by two more wins. First, at home to Hull, where a half-time deficit of 0-1 was reversed by four goals by Leon Clarke in a 4-1 win. Following this was possibly the defining moment of the season where, despite a 3-1 win, ace playmaker Paul Coutts suffered a broken leg and will probably not feature again this season.
A crazy defeat to Fulham (4-5) saw us start the present run of six game wins without a draw.
A 1-1 home draw to Birmingham was followed by three consecutive defeats – Millwall 1-3 away, and an incredible Friday night 1-2 home defeat to Bristol City (where we hit the woodwork four times) and a poor showing at Preston(0-1) made us wonder where we were going.
The first half of this season ended with a creditable 2-2 draw at Aston Villa where an early 0-2 deficit was pulled back to 2-2 with a brace from Clayton Donaldson.
So, after being in 18th position after three games, we mounted a strong revival and would spend eighteen games in the top six. Indeed, after the win at Leeds, we were (briefly) top of the table, before the draw at Villa saw us eased into seventh position by goal difference.
After 23 games, it could be argued that we should have some idea of how this season will pan out? Truth is, none of us had a clue. We could end up in the play-offs, mid-table or in a late-season battle to fend off relegation. Our squad is – compared to most teams in the Championship –pretty threadbare. Will yellow cards/suspensions and injuries deplete us further? Will Brooks leave us? How will CW reinforce in the JTW? Who knows?
Buckle up and enjoy the ride – it sure beats looking forward to games against Yeovil, Fleetwood, Crawley etc. Nobody said it would be easy and it’s all part of being a Blade.
Merry Christmas, everybody!
