At last! Something to shout about
Reporter: Matthew Chambers
Date published: 04 April 2011
First win in 13 matches; first goals in five games
Notts County 0, Athletic 2
IT shouldn’t have come as too much of a surprise.
After all, this weekend was chock-full of them.
From an unspeakably hideous Michael Jackson statue being unveiled in Fulham to the revelation that blander-than-bland comedian Michael McIntyre is set to pocket £20million from an upcoming tour, it was almost impossible to read or listen to the news without finding your jaw dropping a good few inches.
In the usual scheme of things, scoring a goal on a football pitch is a comparatively sane and regular event.
But when Jason Lowe slotted home a stylish penalty for Athletic at Meadow Lane three minutes from full-time, it took a second or two to process the requisite information.
There was no trick photography involved. Nobody was offside. Space and time weren’t about to collapse.
It had happened: Athletic had actually scored a goal.
The primal roar from the 493 away fans was so loud it threatened to shake off the remaining letters from the top of the Jimmy Sirrell stand.
Cedric Evina’s violent clearance had earlier removed the ‘N’ from a remaining ‘otts County’ adorning the roof of the structure, which fell down and came close to decapitating one of a row of children sitting in the front row.
Reuben Reid added another goal for good measure in injury time, turning sharply and slamming a left-footed shot home after a terrific Evina run and cross to finish off the crestfallen home side.
Chants of ‘Incey out’ from disgruntled fans came after Athletic’s second, with home chairman Ray Trew giving them what they wanted 24 hours later following a meeting with the former Manchester United midfielder.
While Athletic are climbing out of their own results hole, County remain embedded in theirs.
Without a win in nine games and with no goals in seven, a swift return to the basement division appears to be on the cards for ex-Athletic poacher Lee Hughes and his team-mates.
Fragile confidence on both sides and a shoddy playing surface didn’t lead to many expecting a classic before kick-off.
As it turned out, Athletic didn’t actually perform as well as in recent weeks but just about shaded the contest, certainly in terms of scoring chances created.
Aidan White was only denied by an incredible block on the goal-line in the first half from Stephen Darby and Oumare Tounkara’s strike three minutes from the break was disallowed for offside.
From a vantage point in the press box right in line, it looked what is often euphemistically referred to on these occasions as a ‘marginal’ decision. The flag going up didn’t halt Athletic fans wildly celebrating the ball hitting the net.
The marauding Kieran Lee got in behind the County back-four on two second half occasions; once, firing a cross which was too high for everyone in the penalty area and on another occasion, side-footing a cross-shot which went agonisingly wide of both Tounkara and the far post.
Hughes was the home side’s most potent threat but, thanks to the efforts of the visiting defence, he was restricted in his attempts on goal.
A header caught comfortably enough by Dean Brill was about as close as Hughes, or County, got to ending their own wretched goal scoring run.
Athletic started the game brightly and were in the early ascendancy in terms of territory, without managing to find enough quality on their deliveries into the penalty area.
Then came the chance for White, in the side for the injured Paul Black.
Lee did well to rob the ball from Dave Martin and the right-back picked out his man well from the byline — only for a flying Darby to produce a sensational clearance from White’s well-struck right-footed effort from five yards out.
Taylor had to produce a neat saving tackle on Hughes after his own sliced clearance, White stumbled when presented with a two-on-two chance on the counter-attack and former Athletic target Febian Brandy had his low cross well cleared by Reuben Hazell after neat footwork took him past two players.
Generally, though, the opening 45 minutes was attritional and without much excitement.
Five minutes after half-time, Lee overcooked his cross from a good position after being played in by Taylor.
The next shooting chance fell to County’s Karl Hawley, who got dog’s abuse from his home fans after getting his attempt from the left side of the area all wrong with 22 minutes left.
Brill claimed Hughes’s header, Taylor had an effort blocked and Tounkara couldn’t arrive quickly enough at the far post to get on the end of Lee’s cross-shot.
Home substitute Njogu Demba-Nyren sliced horribly wide with a rushed effort and the game appeared to be slowly stumbling along to another stalemate.
Enter Chris Taylor. The winger tried to thread a pass to Tounkara, but it bounced off Darby and fell kindly into space in front of the Athletic wide man. Taking the ball into the area, Taylor found his shooting window shut down by Mike Edwards and instead of going for goal, stepped around the centre-back and was brought down for his trouble.
Referee Bobby Madley pointed to the spot and brandished a red card for Edwards and Lowe converted the penalty.
Taylor then went close to a second, shooting over in injury time after a slaloming run, before Evina’s surge from his own half and cross was clinically tucked home by Reid to more cheers from the away fans.
Latics’ next game: Saturday — Charlton Athletic (home), npower League One
