Latics can draw on the positives
Reporter: Matthew Chambers
Date published: 18 October 2010
Athletic 0, Colchester 0
IT SAYS plenty about Athletic’s current self-confidence that this result will be viewed in many quarters as a disappointment.
In a third goalless draw of the season, stubborn Colchester just about hung on, but were put under huge pressure in the second half following a soporific opening 45 minutes.
Paul Dickov’s men could and probably should have won.
Dean Kelly’s 64th-minute header from one of a number of high-quality Ritchie Jones deliveries was ruled out for offside, and it must have been a very tight decision. In fairness, the assistant referee raised his flag immediately.
Oumare Tounkara, who again covered a huge amount of ground, blasted wildly over in a good position for the second time in consecutive games, while in the first half new permanent captain Rueben Hazell nearly marked his accession with a headed goal from Dale Stephens’ corner, his effort landing only a yard wide of the target.
United’s chances? There weren’t many — if any. Right winger Ashley Vincent gave on-loan Arsenal left-back Cedric Evina a torrid time, but the visitors’ main threat came to any passing pigeons who happened to be in the way when the ball was belted from back to front.
Colchester were direct to say the least and in the first half, Athletic were dragged down and unable to get a consistent passing game going.
From 45 minutes on — and particularly after the arrival from the bench of Kelly and Paul Black, replacing Lewis Alessandra and Evina respectively with around half an hour left — there was only one team searching for a winner.
With Dean Furman scurrying and Dale Stephens feeding the ball forward, Athletic looked dangerous.
Jones was a peripheral figure in the first half, but a transformed one in the second, proving to be highly effective in finding angles for crosses after switching wings to the left.
The only thing really missing for the home side was a goal.
But despite not seeing either net bulge, few fans will have left Boundary Park feeling short-changed.
While not finding the target, Athletic were very incisive and impressive at times and played the game at an entertainingly brisk pace.
A point against a side built with the sort of money the home directors can only dream of does not represent failure.
And any lingering sense that Athletic should have won is tempered by the realisation that on the pitch at least, things have clearly come a long way from the darkness of last season under Dickov’s stewardship.
Still unbeaten at home, it is clear from this evidence that even sides with play-off ambitions are arriving at Boundary Park with a mindset of being glad to take away a point.
Hazell’s return to the side after recovering from a knee injury saw him replace Jason Jarrett at centre-back and he nearly opened the scoring with his header after only three minutes as the home side started brightly amid a frantic opening to the clash.
Athletic were trying to get Chris Taylor into the game, but as he was getting close attention from the big U’s defence, Vincent wasn’t getting quite enough from home left-back Evina.
The Colchester winger twice stung Brill’s palms midway through the half with a low shots towards the near post which had to be knocked away.
United were gradually getting on top of the contest and Anthony Wordsworth weakly shot into the side-netting, while Hazell and Jean-Yves Mvoto were forced into some hurried clearances as the game continued to be played on the terms of Ward’s side.
After Dickov had been taken to task by referee Peter Quinn for questioning some odd calls, Athletic’s frustration shone through in the form of tackles by Dale Stephens and Dean Furman which earned yellow cards.
From an entertainment perspective, it was impossible for the second half to be as poor as the first.
And things improved markedly for the home team.
Evina picked up a second yellow card in consecutive matches for a crude hack on Vincent, but that aside it was all positive for Athletic with Jones a big threat on the left.
Tounkara’s low pull-back was just too close to goalkeeper Ben Williams with Taylor waiting to apply a finishing touch 10 minutes in, before at the other end David Mooney’s shot was blocked after Vincent had nutmegged Evina and crossed low.
Taylor lobbed in off a clever Tounkara pass but was rightly ruled to be well offside and Dickov’s canny double substitution followed.
Athletic were re-energised and set about the visitors.
Kelly’s header was chalked off and Tounkara hit a powerful effort straight at Williams, either side of the breaking Mooney’s cross just being too strong for the sliding Vincent.
Another close offside call prevented Kelly from having a shot at goal.
With 11 minutes of the 90 left, while only the four players who ran around, in front of and behind Jones’ excellent fizzed cross will know how they failed to find what would surely have been a crucial touch on the edge of the six-yard box.
Soon after, Tounkara twisted, shimmied and blazed half a mile over and Stephens forced Williams to dive low and turn his shot behind.
But despite a couple of edgy late moments in both penalty areas the game stayed scoreless.
