Nervy Latics wilt under fire

Photo: Alan Howarth

ON THE CHARGE: Athletic winger Chris Taylor, who made several promising raids into enemy territory, puts Sheffield United on the back foot in typical fashion.

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Athletic 0, Sheffield Utd 2

New-look team in confidence crisis after Blades strike

ONE goal was all it took.

All Athletic’s pre-season optimism seemed to vanish three minutes into the second half and the demons ran riot, biting chunks out of certain players’ self-confidence as the visitors swaggered.

Another goal soon followed and, despite a late flourish, it was effectively game over.

For the first half of this opening fixture of a 46-match campaign, Athletic at least matched the Blades, relegated last season but displaying a tenacity that suggests they aren’t content to hang around in npower League One for a moment longer than absolutely necessary.

Alex Cisak had looked solid in goal, commanding his area to punch everything clear; Zander Diamond in front of him indicated that he would plough through a brick wall in order to win a high ball; and Chris Taylor caused plenty of consternation among the visiting ranks with his strong running from deep.

Though Athletic hadn’t really created a clear opening in a blood-and-thunder clash – Taylor’s late 25-yard shot which fizzed a couple of yards over the top was matched by a clean strike from similar range from Lescinel Jean-Francois which skimmed Cisak’s crossbar – after a slow start in a frenetic game, Dickov will have been happy with the run of things heading back into the dressing room.

Why, then, did the sky fall in when Harry McGuire swept clear of his marker Jean-Yves Mvoto to head home a disputed corner three minutes into the second half?

Why did Mvoto’s game suddenly go to pieces? Why was Stephen Quinn allowed time to pick out Richard Cresswell for the second minutes later?

And why were Athletic suddenly unable to make use of Taylor’s attacking instincts?

Perhaps it was merely inexperience and with it, an inability to maintain the necessary focus for a full 90 minutes plus injury time.

It could be down to the impact of a Blades side who pressed the ball in all areas of the pitch, never allowing the home team to find an easy rhythm.

Or maybe it was the nagging feeling that the team doesn’t as-yet quite have the fire power up front to recover such situations.

To his credit, new captain Dean Furman gave his mentally unfocused colleagues a dose of plain talking following the double calamity, which appeared to have some effect.

Unlucky Furman had a header from a Matthew Lund corner hacked off the line by full-back Matthew Lowton, with Mvoto’s follow-up failing to make it past a posse of Blades players inside the penalty area.

And Diamond could have done better when directing his header in the six-yard box over the bar after big Matt Smith had nodded Lund’s corner towards the danger zone.

The final whistle set the seal on Athletic’s first opening-day defeat for five years.

A to-and-fro first half started with the visitors in the ascendancy, forcing Cisak to emerge from his goal to punch clear a couple of times before Jean-Francois produced his stinging left-foot effort.

Athletic responded and Mvoto couldn’t control the direction of his header off Lund’s corner, though most of the running was made by the respective physios as a tough and uncompromising first half, in which Jean-Francois and Lowton received cards, saw bodies regularly lying on the turf.

Taylor gave the home support reason to cheer with his run down centre field which ended with his shot over the top.

As the players came back out, there was no hint that United would suddenly take such a stranglehold on proceedings.

Dickov disputed the award of a corner in a tackle between Kieran Lee and Quinn, but there was no arguing with McGuire’s finish which gave Cisak no chance.

Lost in his own mind, Mvoto twice got in a tangle in the space of a few seconds to leave Cisak blocking well at the feet of Ryan Flynn, before almost playing a blind pass into his own net beyond Cisak.

The Blades were piling forward and got their reward after 54 minutes. Quinn got in down the left wing, cut inside to the penalty area and kept his composure well to feed wily veteran Cresswell for the second goal.

Matt Smith got a bang on the head and also a new partner up front as Reuben Reid was retired in favour of new signing Josh Parker.

The new man looked quick and bright and was the catalyst of a comeback by the home team in the final quarter of the game.

Furman hit a first-time effort from Lund’s corner over and wide of goal and Diamond shouldy have done better with his header.

Furman and Mvoto both caused further excitement and substitute Daniel Bogdanovic forced Cisak into another good block.