Swansea 1 Town 1
Picture from Mark’s Mobile Phone
Mark Harrison, Writer.
Twitter: @MarkHarrison15
Behind enemy lines I went on Saturday as a guest of a couple of Swansea supporting friends.
Did I learn some Welsh lingo to remain “under cover” and to fit in?
When I moved as a ten-year-old to West Yorkshire from London in the late 1970s, I soon had to adapt to my new surroundings and learn to be a Yorkshire lad. I might as well have come from Mars as opposed to London such was the amazed fascination of my fellow pupils at Castle Hall Middle School once I opened my mouth to reveal a cockney accent. I’ve never been one to be the centre of attention, so I quickly learned the Yorkshire dialect and strange words like spice for sweets, pumps for trainers and what “are you laking” meant!
Fitting in at Swansea was made somewhat easier by the fact I lived in Pembrokeshire for three years when we moved away from West Yorkshire. So, I could pretend to be a Welshman quite easily if the need arose.
Visits to Swansea’s old ground, the Vetch Field, were quite frequent when I lived nearby, and I’ve also been to the “new” ground on a few occasions since. But my overall record was 6 visits, 6 defeats and 1 goal scored. Despite this, my belief in the law of averages, meant I went with a hope which was further encouraged by the result against Sunderland and the home side’s stuttering form.
So, we sat quietly in the South Stand and were admirably and sensibly restrained as we took a 3rd minute lead when Cabango or Cabungle as my Swansea friend called him, made a complete mess of an attempted clearance following a good break by Headley down the left. Slicing the ball past Rushworth and into the onion bag right in front of us!
91 minutes was to pass until that net was to bulge once again. This time, Patino (a summer target for the Terriers I understand) capitalised on a rare lapse from a tiring team, to finish well past Maxwell. It was gut wrenching to concede so late after a wholehearted rear-guard action, which so nearly yielded three points. But Swansea will feel a point was the least they deserved for their efforts.
The Alamo
The Swansea way is a well-established pattern of play involving patient, passing football. You could say it’s the opposite of what we see from Town currently. In the first half, it was very much like a Russell Martin pass, pass, pass and then pass it again version which Town handled very well. 82% of the ball, but not much to show for it was the half time conclusion from the home end. Town have developed a game plan to suit the squad circumstances and it is paying off with some excellent off the ball performances.
Predictably, Swansea moved from the old Russell Martin style to a hybrid of that and the more pragmatic approach of Michael Duff. They increased the pace and played far more long passes and Town were made to work harder to protect their early lead. The introduction of Bolasie also brought with it some added quality to the home side’s attack. But barring a misplaced header by Nakayama, which Helik did well to mop up and a great save by Maxwell with his left boot (does Nicholls come straight back in when fit?), Town looked like holding on. Moreover, the introduction of Bergzorg and Koroma also improved by a small margin, our ability to hold the ball and move forward all be it without really threatening their goal and for a while it looked like Swansea’s flame and been blown out.
But the concession of the ball and the tactic of a 5-man defence with 2 holding midfielders is not going to lead to much attacking football and is exhausting for the players to maintain. In a 3-game week with a threadbare squad restricting rotation, 5 points is an excellent return, and the players deserve great credit. Ultimately though, a small error of judgement by Hogg to which fatigue undoubtedly contributed, lead to the equaliser.
In the Swansea end I had to pretend to be happy with this moment, but inside I was forlorn. Balls and some such words!!!!!!
What Next?
The last week has been a pleasing one for Town and mirrors very closely how the team performed tactically when Warnock turned the tide last season.
We need to build on the solid platform that has been laid and be more expansive in the upcoming home games with Bristol City and Preston. The players have shown they can do it in spells.
Will we see the return of some injured players? Can we also expect more from the likes of Ward, Bergzorg and Koroma now that they have returned from their lay offs? Although I think I am right in saying that Sorba Thomas picked up his 5th booking (for mouthing off to the referee. Please keep a lid on it Sorba!) and is therefore suspended for the next match?
In the long-term, Moore needs to find a way to enable us to retain possession and give the opposition something to worry about. Clearly, he has an opportunity in January to help with this objective.
In the meantime, let’s see if they can turn some of these draws into wins.
Matt’s ratings
In this section Matt will rate the players on a scale of 1-10 with 6 being used as an average to passable performance. TRIGGER WARNING! half marks will also be used if a player is between scores.
Chris Maxwell -7- Gave me heart palpitations pawing at one or two balls into the box in an otherwise good performance with 1 crazy save with his feet thrown in.
Matty Pearson -7- Steady away as always, don’t take that for granted because he’s a huge miss when he’s not playing.
Michal Helik -8- The Ściana at it again with yet another solid display.
Tom Lees -7- Steady, organised and reliable as always.
Ben Jackson -6- I’m sorry Ben Jackson, oooh. A steady first half performance to back up his great run of form. The 2nd half saw tiredness creep in before being changed due to injury.
David Kasumu -6- Looked a little jaded after his fabulous performance against Sunderland in midweek. Worked hard, defended in the shape well but perhaps didn’t have the legs for the driving runs of Wednesday.
Jonathan Hogg -7- Yes, he made a mistake at the end but that’s in the 280th minute of football that he’s played these past 7 days. Rather than scold him for one error I’d rather commend him for being an absolute warrior these past 7 days and being a big part in us collecting 5 very welcome points.
Yuta Nakayama -7- One ropy header aside, Yuta defended well on the front foot and his 9 clearances shows you how he mucked in with defending the box.
Sorba Thomas -6- Worked hard as always in what was a slightly tired looking performance. Lacked support from his team mates in attacking areas.
Danny Ward -5- Wardy’s first start for exactly 3 months, which explains the lack of sharpness.
Jahiem Headley -5.5- Created the goal early doors and worked hard but perhaps needed to offer more support to the forwards and midfield in possession.
Edmonds-Green -6- Replaced Jackson and helped quieten the threat of Bolasie.
Josh Koroma -5- Struggled to get into the game as Town defended deep.
