FL2: Northampton v Torquay United 5th April 2010

Probably their way of moaning that we didn't roll over and die. Remember how some on here used to moan last season about teams coming to Plainmoor and "Parking The Bus"?

we know as a club how wicked this game can be,51 points saw us relegated very unluckily from league one,i just got a feeling a club that isnt hyperventilating yet will get sucked in,maybe lincoln,who knows but it makes it interesting and as long as we survive it can be anyone else

..interesting point about Lincoln getting sucked back in and their remaining Fixtures, LoyalGull.....

The oponents are the same in four of the final five fixtures for both Torquay and Lincoln.

the odd ones out in the five? We have Grimsby, they have Shrewsbury...

Good battling display today - thought we defended well second half, great Yellow Army Support, and although Longeaton Gull had been up and headed the ball into the net from a great left wing cross second half, Elliot just couldn't reach it....
If only.
Think I heard that Car Park 'coming together' too... ;D

One point gained in my book...keep the faith and support the boys next Saturday......

teddgull

I am not worried - stats do not lie!

We have got a very important, welcome and unexpected point today. If anybody had offered any of you 4 points at the start of this easter weekend you would have ripped their arm off (or, more likely, popped a few ribs from laughing so much.)

The fact of the matter is that, stats wise, we are the team that has picked up the most points from those around us in the last eight games.

We have 12 points from our last eight (W3,D3,L3), with Lincoln (W2,D4,L2), Cheltenham (W3,D1,L4) and Grimsby (W3,D1,L4) all picking up 10. Chelts have the advantage with their game in hand, but points on the board are what matter.
To put the above another way, if we were starting off the season now with the above form we would be 10th. We just need to continue with our current form and we will be fine - we need to continue the momentum from picking up a morale boosting draw against a team who have picked up 20 points in the last eight games. This in itself is a far more impressive achievement that Grimsby, who picked up a win against a side that had only picked up 7 points in their last eight games.

somebody always hits a bad patch at the wrong time,grimsby have a massive task if not heres looking at lincoln there bitter rivals who hate each other with a vengeance,the irony of it all,as stated before long as it isnt us

Great battling weekend and how we needed those two results. Reamaining fixtures look daunting particularly the next three, Rochdale, the team of the season Aldershot on a great run of form followed by "D" day at Grimsby.
Not looking forward to next week - or am I ?

We pulled out of town to the sight of 2 magpies playing on a grass verge. The omens were good.

2 hrs later and deap in coversation we flew past the turnoff only to stumble on a sign for sixfields. Never been before so didn`t know what to expect. Came away thinking if ever there was an advert for how to build an all seater industrial unit and kill the chance of the home fans generating any atmosphere that was it.

Paid £3 in the car park and saw 2 chaps get out of cars in front of us decked in blue tracksuit tops. One looking a little like Branston. surely it couldn`t have been.

got out and found we had parked next to a Gull from Harpenden, so we were not to be alone.

as we walked to the ground i was thinking maybe 100 fans.
by k.O. we had about 400-500 a fantastic turnout. But most impressive was the non stop singing and clapping from the first to the last whistle. As was to be expected Bayo came in for quite a bit of stick. Perhaps a little too much when he was injured.

Id heard it was kid for a quid & £10 for the accompanying adult so we went to the box office. only to be told you had to fill a form in beforehand and it was for home fans only.
So back to the kiosk to buy our tickets and then hand them to the turnstile operator. odd bit of double handling.

i don`t think I`ve ever got in a ground so early. Saul halpin later emerged and meticulously laid out some white discs on the pitch.
Scott Bevan later appeared followed a few minutes later by the rest.
I was slightly concerned by Zebs constant Hamstring walks between sets. I did wonder if he was carrying an injury or has a tight hamstring.
He`s a player whose body language suggests he`s coasting through a game rather than busting a gut. not sure if thats deceptive or whether he is holding himself back.

So to the game;
We were given acres of space in the first half but never really took advantage.
With the wind at our backs we should have been looking to shoot at every half chance but for some reason didn`t. I could only recall one effort and Nicho slipped over as he let fly and the ball bobbled to the keeper.
A word hear for their GK high vis kit. Sadly we did little to dull his image. His lime green gear could have been packed away without the need for a wash.

That said I do not want to be critical. The wind and pitch made play very tricky.
We battled and fully deserved the point. 4 pts and gaining one on Grimsby over easter is an excellent return.

I was though puzzled by our lack of substitutions.
Carayol had a good first half but offered nothing as an outlet or defensively in the second. He appeared to lack determination, control and belief. We felt fresh legs in the form of Stevens may have given the RB something different to think about for the last 30 mins. That said its easy from the terraces, Its a whole different ball game when you have to weigh up being positive and risking upsetting the balance and throwing away a precious point.

We struggled in the second and perhaps due to the conditions couldn`t hang on to the ball. Too often we gave away possession cheaply. Nicho for instance in a great position with a free kick which begged to be whipped in. Chose to play it down the line to Carayol who wasn`t looking and the ball rolled into touch by the corner flag.

to sum up Bevan & the back 4 looked solid. Branston was a rock.

I could see why we have struggled to win many games. We lacked the necesary belief and determination in midfield to get the ball in the box or to shoot.

Strikers worked hard and Benyon especially chased everything.
I notice though all his running is to chase a lost cause. Not to create space with movement ahead of the ball. Rendell often dropped or the midfield had it but their was no running to the corners for an angled through ball. He also has a tendancy to half turn when the ball comes to him with his back to goal. If he stayed square on I`m sure he`d force more free kicks with challenges from the back.

All in all though a great day out, really enjoyed it. Fans and Utd played their part in getting a valuable point from a tricky game.

Milber