Sunday, 24 March 2013

Two minutes with… Cheltenham Town


Despite the weather and playing conditions, promotion-hopefuls Cheltenham were the visitors to Underhill this weekend. Rubies fan and journalist Mark gives his thoughts in this instalment of Two Minutes With.

Pre-match
Had you been to Underhill before?
This is my fourth or fifth visit, and it is a little sad that it will be my last. I saw Cheltenham win 1-0 there in 1987, the last win we had there, and have seen three league meetings between the sides, resulting in one defeat and now two draws.
How did you get to the game?
Drove through the snow.
The match
Whereabouts in the ground did you sit/stand?
Main stand, in the press box. Had Rob Nothman of BBC Five Live next to me and Talksport’s Moose, Ian Abrahams a seat further on.
What did you make of the game?
It was a farce. It should never have gone ahead, to be honest. Neither side could pass the ball, players could not stand up and the conditions took away any sort of creativity. I cannot remember either side stringing more than three passes together at any point. In the end, I was pleased it ended in a draw as neither side deserved to go away with nothing after trying to play in those conditions.
Who (from either side) do you think deserved to be man of the match?
Michael Hector for Cheltenham was our best player by quite a long way. For Barnet, John Oster was quite influential and I thought Kyle de Silva on the right did quite well when he came on – and the left back Elliott Johnson looks a prospect.
Post-match
Was the score line a fair reflection on the game?
Yes, as neither side strung anything together. Cheltenham hit the post and Sam Deering went close, but neither keeper really had a shot to save.
Who do you play next, and how do you think you’ll get on?
We now have a massive Easter. We play Port Vale away on Friday and Northampton at home on Monday, and we need to get four points from six to still be in the hunt for a top three finish I think.
Ratings
Cost of match day ticket
I had a press pass so it didn’t cost me anything... ––– 10/10
Purchases made at ground
I didn’t buy anything, but others did and said it was ok and good value ––– 7/10
View
Good, as we were in the front row, but the snow got in the way ––– 8/10
Quality of football
Terrible, but the conditions were to blame. Sides deserve a 10 for going out and doing their best, but will have to be ––– 4/10
Overall experience
I love Underhill and I will be sad not to go there again. But I have to say the weather and conditions ruined the day for me and I will have to say ––– 5/10
Total ––– 34/50

Be sure to follow Mark on Twitter @MarkHalliwell1 and check out his blog ‘Cheltenham Town Chatter.

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