Saturday 22 SEPTEMBER 2007

Blue Square South

Peter Beadle’s match programme notes for this game hinted at a fair level of insight as he counselled fans that “the key word this season is going to be patience.”  County showed that quality in abundance to beat a Braintree side who won no friends with their display. 

Whether visiting sides have a duty to entertain home fans is a moot point and doubtless the handful who travelled from Essex would have accepted a positive result however it was obtained.  Nevertheless, it has to be said also that football is a part of the entertainment business, and Braintree extended the boundaries of gamesmanship so much that their defeat and the nasty memories they left behind just might have given their players, officials and supporters cause for reflection during the long journey home.  Concern must also be expressed at the performance of the match referee Richard Greenwood.

Criticisms of match officials have to be measured because they are often accompanied by the usual bunch of sour grapes.  This is not the case on this occasion.  The Plymouth official seemed to suffer tunnel vision and did not offer protection from some poor challenges.  His liaison with his assistants was almost non-existent and he persisted in turning his back on play thus missing challenges from both sides that needed his attention.  He did show a red card to Braintree’s James Hawes in first half injury time for violent conduct but his failure to take control in the early stages set a trend he was unable to reverse, and he spent the 90 minutes chasing the game.  The cries of “You don’t know what you’re doing” from the Shed terrace showed more perception than usual!

A statistic worth noting is that Greenwood awarded Braintree 20 free-kicks for non-offside infringements with just eight going to the home side.  As traffic towards the away goal was almost constant throughout and Newport dominated possession, it is difficult to reach any explanation other than that the referee had an absolute nightmare of a game.

Previous observations of Braintree last season and this suggested that their thoughts would be concentrated on defence, and sure enough they lined up with three centre backs and two wide players who doubled up as defenders.  They did show some attacking intent early on with James Hawes forcing a save from Glyn Thompson on 13 minutes with an angled drive but the game gradually settled into a pattern of home enterprise met with packed defence, time wasting and disruption from the visitors.  The track record of their manager George Borg is well known and he would have been dealt with by a firmer official when he kicked a second ball onto the pitch at one point, and for spending much of the game outside the technical area ranting about something or other as is his style.

County should have taken the lead before the game descended into chaos as half-time approached.  Lee Jarman hooked the ball narrowly wide on nine minutes, Julian Alsop headed wide when well placed and Nathan Davies hit the bar after the best move of the opening half.  Jarman was harshly cautioned for a second foul in a minute before a moment of farce as Steve Jenkins was taken out by a dreadful late challenge as he took the ball over the halfway line.  The impact of boot on shin could be heard around the stadium as could the cries of anguish from the County skipper, but Greenwood not only ignored the incident but proceeded to caution Jenkins after Braintree keeper Nicky Morgan had sportingly played the ball into touch to allow the player to have treatment.

Ollie Adedeji also picked up a caution for a foul on Alsop before a bad challenge by Mark Jones on Jason Bowen was followed by Hawes grabbing Davies in a headlock and striking the County player.  This was the sign for a display of solidarity from the aggrieved teammates of Davies with a mass melee including Thompson who had run from his goal to add his ten pennorth, receiving a caution for ‘incitement’ in the process, while Hawes was deservedly shown red.

Beadle explained after the game that he had been frustrated with some sloppy play from County in the first half and his interval talk had asked for the players to stay focussed and for the wingers to push on.  His words were heeded, as County gave a near exemplary second half display against 10 men camped in their half.  Lee Collier hit the bar in the 68th minute and the crowd kept their patience as County played possession football, waiting for the moment to strike. 

The County boss made a bold substitution on 73 minutes by withdrawing left-back Damon Searle and sending on Craig Hughes as a third striker.  Wingers Richard Evans and Bowen were increasingly effective and the stadium erupted when the heroic ALSOP climbed highest to head home a Jarman cross on 78 minutes.  Yet Braintree suddenly threw off their negative shell and Micky Shinn then forced a decent save from Thompson before Bradley Quinton fired over the bar.  There was to be no travesty of a result though and HUGHES sparked more wild enthusiasm from the home fans and players with his first goal of the season in the final minute when his angled drive found the net via a deflection from Adedeji.  Braintree deserved nothing from the game though, so their player/assistant manager is not even getting  the credit for an own goal!

There was more utter incompetence from the officials with Alsop and Quinton having a set to a few yards away from Greenwood and his touchline ‘assistant’.  The ‘award’ of a yellow card to the County forward was probably a fair judgement, but did the referee really turn his back, as seemed the case, when Quinton raised his hand to the striker’s face?  A literate fly on the wall during the post match debriefing between referee and assessor would have enough material for a documentary!

Man of the Match

County: Mark Dodds (impressive home debut).

Braintree: Micky Shinn (new signing who showed up well).

© Colin Jeremiah