2 - 2 
Wednesday Blackburn
So,
a week to go to the big kick-off and Wednesday kept up the tradition of
recent years by playing a Premiership side for the last of the
pre-season friendlies.
This time, Big Sam brought his Blackburn team to Hillsborough; a good move I thought, as his style of football is probably more akin to what we can expect week in, week out in our League.
As today was my 35th wedding
anniversary I was treating my wife to all that Hillsborough could offer
– I know, you’re thinking what a lucky girl she is, and I spoil her
rotten!
Global warming was much in evidence as we parked up;
leaden skies and sleeting rain so we called in the Megastore until the
rain eased.
There to greet us - and everybody else – was a
be-suited and smiling Mr Hemmingham, a bit like the “meeter and
greeter” fella in the entrance at Asda. He was handing out free car
stickers (you part-timers obviously didn’t get one!) and gave Mrs ’53
one…….
The shop was packed; there were long queues for both
match tickets and merchandise, and plenty of people looking at the new
kit and leisure wear which looks a class above the Lotto stuff from
last year.
I wanted to sit in the top part of the South Stand;
(an area I didn’t actually know was called the Grandstand) as I hadn’t
been up there before.
Blimey, what a hike!
Mrs
’53 was puffing a bit by the time we finally climbed the last flight of
steps. We just had time for a quick drink before going to our seats,
and the first look at the ground since the last game of last season.
The
pitch looks great; but to be honest you are so far away up in the Gods
that anything would have looked good at that distance.
With
only the South Stand open for home supporters and the West stand
accommodating a couple of hundred away fans it looked a sparse crowd
when the players came out; thankfully it will be a different case when
the real stuff start next Saturday.
I really expected us to come
out of the blocks quicker than Rovers. Our training should be ahead of
theirs, but they looked sharper than us and took the lead with their
first attack.
They won a corner that we failed to clear and it
fell nicely for Nelsen to poke home. A second goal followed when our
attack broke down and we were left short of numbers as Blackburn broke
quickly.
Roberts got one-on-one with Purse, and got a fierce shot away from close range which gave Grant no chance.
We
needed a quick response and we got it when a cracking through ball
split their defence and fell nicely into the path of Sodje who made an
earlier than planned appearance when Leon came off injured.
Fair
play to the big lad; his touch looked awful last time out at
Stocksbridge, but not this time as he drilled a low shot past Robinson
to put us back in the game at 2-1.
This nearly became 3-1 when Rovers were awarded a penalty for a tug by Woody, but Grant was smartly down to save Diouf’s effort, then much to the crowd’s joy the obnoxious El Haj poked the rebound wide.
This seemed
to spur the home side on, and Rovers didn’t offer much after that, save
for a well-struck free kick from M G-P which clipped the bar.
We
started to play some decent football, and got a deserved equaliser when
Tudders held off his marker in the box and forced the ball home from a
corner.
We had chances to win it; Robinson who had earlier
saved a point-blank header from Tudders made a couple of reaction
saves, including one from Franneh, who looked sharp when he came on.
The
down side to what was a good performance was that our injury jinx
doesn’t seem to have left us though TBF, Leon didn’t look too worried
when he came off. Sodje was a different matter as he looked distraught
when he pulled up suddenly, and I fear that he could be destined for a
long spell on the sidelines.
Half our strike
force now looks unlikely to make it next week, and Simon Davey must
have been rubbing his hands with glee when he heard the news.
I don’t know what I have let myself in for taking the wife though; she only bloody well enjoyed it!
That wasn’t in the script!
I’ll have to think of some good reasons not to take her again….
Charlie (1953Owl)
Owls Alive.
