It’s been a while – again. Forgive me?

Well, it’s been a while. I know, I’m sorry.

There are mitigating circumstances though – hear me out.

1) I’ve had my first child. My daughter was born over Christmas, and what can I say? She takes up a lot of time. Hopefully she’ll have been to a game by the end of the season…

2) I also have a job. In the office all day and looking after my daughter in the evening doesn’t leave me much time for getting my ramblings online.

3) I have a lot to say, and I want to do it in a considered manner.

So there we go, a hat-trick of what i consider to be reasonable excuses. I’m back now though, so watch this space…

Into the great unknown. Again…

So there we have it. Aidy is no more.

The instant reaction is shock, despite being a supporter for over 20 years, sacking a manager still doesn’t seem like a very Watford-like thing to do. It feels like one of those things that happens to other clubs…

Anyway, the dust has settled a bit, we know who is going to be in charge for the immediate future and I’ve had a chance to give it some sensible thought. So what do I reckon? Well…

Firstly, if you look back over the past 12 months, it has been pretty horrible. The majority of last season was utterly woeful, both in terms of entertainment and results. This year has been more exciting than many of us anticipated, but in the cold light of day, the results haven’t been up to scratch, and 12 wins in almost 50 games tells it’s own story.

Secondly, in the cold light of day, a lot of Aidy’s signings haven’t been up to scratch. They have ranged from the rubbish (Ellington) to the bizarre (Collins John) to the illegal (Junior) and with a few notable exceptions the players brought in have left a lot to be desired.

I have a huge amount of sympathy in this area, as replacing Ashley Young, Hameur Bouazza and Marlon King wasn’t going to be hard – it was impossible. Latterly he has found his hands tied behind his back when it comes to transfers due to financial constraints, but how much his earlier errors in the transfer market contributed to our lack of cash, I guess we’ll never know.

So, it is pretty apparent that Aidy has made mistakes and has struggled. HOWEVER…

This season we have been absolutely decimated by injury. We have been unable to keep the same side for any length of time, and quite frankly it shows, especially in our defensive displays. But we are still in there and fighting – we are scoring goals (against all odds!) and haven’t been outplayed this season. we haven’t been that bad at all…and certainly haven’t rolled over like we did so horrifically last year. This told me that Aidy was till in there scrapping, and the players were too. He hasn’t exactly made a silk purse our of a sows ear, but we ALL knew that this year was going to be very tough, and so it has proved. I was personally confident that Aidy was the man to pull us through…

The Board disagreed though and now all eyes must turn to potential replacements. Who are we going to get that is better equipped than Boothroyd? Who are we going to get that is willing to come to a club that is;

A) For sale
B) Flat broke
C) In a relegation scrap?

I have a feeling that the list will be extremely limited, and those mentioning the likes of Curbishley and Allardyce are quite frankly in dreamland.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Malky given the job – he knows the players and the club, and above all else will be cheap which I assume will be one of the main criteria.

So to sum up, I think this decision is a massive gamble. On the one hand, Boothroyd has made mistakes and the results over the last 12 months have been undeniably poor. However the timing surprises me. If we get this wrong now, we are in deep, deep trouble. Relegation whilst in this perilous financial state would be catastrophic. Look at those who have gone before us and never made it back – Oldham, Bradford, Swindon, Huddersfield, Millwall to name but a few – previously fixtures in the top 2 divisions, now languishing in the nether reaches. That could easily be us.

I remember thinking the same when Lewington went. I thought the Board had made a mistake. As it turns out, they were right, I was wrong. I really, really hope they are right this time too..

On a lighter note, Skybet have published their odds for the next manager, Curbishley is 3/1 favourite. Check the details out here -

www.bettingzone.co.uk/footba…

Ashley Cole. The Final Word.

 

Right. Enough is enough. I’ve had it and can hold my tongue no longer.

 

First we have commentators and pundits calling England fans “out of order” and “thoughtless” whilst also accusing them of not being “true supporters”.

 

Then we get Rio Ferdinand sticking his oar in, stating that the fans in question “can’t be that bright”. Yes folks, you heard it right – Rio Ferdinand questioning the IQ and mental capacity of others…

 

In case you haven’t guessed, Yes, I am talking about Ashley Cole, and the booing thereof.

Let’s start with the commentators. Instead of telling us about the game with Kazakhstan, what happened, what went well and what didn’t, these so called professionals chose to largely ignore the game and focus on the booing of Ashley Cole. Telling us in the process that those involved in such activity couldn’t possibly be true football supporters. As with many of their ill advised observations, this statement couldn’t be further from the truth.

 

Now, I don’t boo. However, I completely understand why those who chose to express themselves in that way did so. It’s precisely because they ARE true football fans, who care deeply about the game, and their National team. Football fans are very passionate, very knowledgeable and have long memories. Not that they would need long memories to be able to come up with a valid reason for disliking Ashley Cole.

 

Let’s take a look at some of his career highlights.

 

1) He falls publicly out of love with Arsenal and their fans, after fans didn’t sing his name on the last day of the season. “…I was sat in the centre circle after the final whistle waiting to hear my name – but they only wanted to sing about Thierry Henry…” Bless. Fancy craving adulation and not getting it. If that isn’t grounds for a transfer, I don’t know what is.

 

 2) Wages. He went on record in his book, explaining his disbelief that Arsenal weren’t prepared to match his pay demands. He wanted an extra 5k per week, which Arsenal refused. Poor old Ashley couldn’t believe it. He explained; “I couldn’t believe Arsenal were quibbling about it – it was only 5k a week”. Yes, that’s right, just £5k a week. The small matter of an additional £20k a month. Extra. You can really feel his pain can’t you. Poor old impoverished Ashley couldn’t understand why Arsenal wouldn’t pay him an extra £240 grand a year. And who was he explaining this tale of woe to? Who was his target audience? The same people who he expected to chant his name. The same people who contribute to his wages by turning up tow watch him play. The same people that he expected to buy his book and the very same people who on average, don’t earn his weekly wage in a year.

 

3) Fast forward a bit, and having been forced out of Arsenal by fans who refused to idolise him, and by a management team who for some reason wouldn’t be held to ransom over his salary, he is now a Chelsea player. Last season, away at Tottenham and our Ashley launches into a two footed challenge on Anthony Hutton. It’s a shocker, two footed, studs up and is the sort of challenge that could feasibly result in arrest and not just the obligatory red card. However on this occasion, Ashley is lucky. For some reason, the referee thinks that a yellow card will suffice. There is no doubt about it – Cole was lucky not to get a red card. He should have been off.

 

So, what does Ashley do? Accept his lenient punishment and skulk off, embarrassed, making a mental note to make amends for his horrific challenge? Does he heck. He launches into an astonishing tirade against the referee, face twisted and contorted with rage as he berated the hapless official. Here is a player who has been spared a red card after almost breaking an opposition player’s leg, and he is still attacking the ref. This alone warranted a red card, yet still he persisted, walking away while the ref tried to book him, seemingly refusing to give details of his name and number. Such was the appalling nature of this display, the very next day the “respect agenda” was born.

 

So, to sum up.

 

He threw a very public tantrum when fans didn’t sing his name.

He threw a very public tantrum when he didn’t get the money he felt he was worth. (“Just an extra 5k a week” remember – just 5k)

He threw a very public tantrum when he was yellow carded (instead of being sent off) for a potentially career ending challenge on a fellow pro.

 

This man is the epitome of what is wrong with modern football. Here is a man as far removed from the average football fan as it is possible to get. He expects to have his name sung. He expects us to care that he wasn’t awarded a pay rise. And even worse that these obvious displays of arrogance, he tramples all over the game with his viscous challenges and tirades against officials when he was very clearly in the wrong.

 

He has no humility, no grace, no charm, and is viewed by many real football fans as a symbol, an all too visible illustration of what is wrong with football today.

 

The fans weren’t booing him on Saturday just because he made a mistake. They were booing him because he made a mistake, and more importantly because he is one of the most odious characters in football today. Real football fans understand that people like Cole are slowly but surely taking the game away from us, and if they chose to let him know that they are onto him by booing, then so be it. It’s the very least he deserves. I think he is lucky that he isn’t booed when walking down the street, such is the widespread dislike for this oik. If he messes up when representing our nation, then he is certainly going to know about it.

 

These commentators who are paid to commentate on games should concentrate on doing just that – commentate on the game. Don’t try to tell us who are real fans and who aren’t. When you start paying to go to games you can pass judgement. Until then, stick to what you are paid to do.

 

Oh, and as for Rio Ferdinand suggesting that anyone that booed Ashley Cole is missing a brain cell or two, well, isn’t irony delicious sometimes?

 

Watford 2 Reading 2 (Apparently) – 20/09/08

Reading's opener flies into the net

“..but funny things happen when you least expect it, especially at Watford…”

 

 

 

That’s what I said at the end of my last post after the defeat to Plymouth – looking forward to the Reading game. Funny things can happen. Crikey, did they happen!

I don’t suppose I can say much that hasn’t been said or thought already. The decision to award the “phantom” goal was completely and utterly bonkers. The whole thing just beggars belief.

The one concession I am willing to make to the linesman is that, yes, the ball DID cross the line. Definitely. He was spot on there. The fact that the ball was some 4 yards wide of the goal however, usually means that either a goal kick or corner is awarded. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t mean a goal. There are a whole load of factors that should have indicated to our flag wielding friend that it wasn’t a goal – the ball should have been obscured by the net, the players should have run off appealing for a goal, you know all the usual stuff. What actually happened was that every single player in both a yellow and blue shirt simply trotted back to the centre circle, ready for the goal kick. Surely something in his brain must have been telling him he was making a mistake?

Our fearless leader has been saying in the press that he doesn’t blame the ref. He is of the opinion that if his colleague (the linesman) is telling him a goal has been scored, then he can do nothing but accept it and award it. Codswallop. The ref, like the 14,000 fans and 22 players should have been alert enough to realise that the ball was nowhere near going in. Nowhere near. He is just as culpable as the linesman in my view, and I will be very, very disappointed if they both don’t face a very, very lengthy period away from the game.

Should Reading have let us score an equaliser? Lets face facts, they all knew they hadn’t scored. Maybe. Would Watford have done so if the boot had been on the other foot? I doubt it, so I think there is our asnwer.

I don’t really know what else to say on the subject – the Country will be waking up to it with Sky Sports News and the 15 seconds of coverage ”The Championship”  will give to it before moving on to Ned Boulding interviewing the Macclesfield mascot, and everyone will see it, everyone will know. I guess everyone will laugh too. Unbeleivable.

Steve Coppell aluded to it after the game, and I agree. I think this injustice did us a favour. I very much doubt that we would have heard the Vicarage Road crowd in such fine voice had we not suffered so hugely at the hands of the officials. I also doubt that the team would have raised their game to the degree they did, and I definitely don’t think we would have scored twice. we may have done, but I doubt it.

On the balance of play, I thought a draw was a fair result. Scott Loach performed near on heroics a couple of times, and I dread to think how many dangerous looking crosses Reading got into the box. From where I was sat it was only a matter of time before Reading got their equaliser, it’s just a shame it came as a result of such a poor challnge. Hey ho.

A great team performance though, with Hoskins defying nature to still be running around at the final whistle – he took a fearful battering from Bikey throughout. John-Joe O’Toole managed to keep going too, which was good to see, whilst Tommy worked his socks off again. For a team who have lost their previous two games as well as most of their squad to injury, this was a great effort, and one which I appreciated greatly. Lets hope we can sort out our treatment room, get some players fit and keep this battling spirit going.

So all in all, a pretty crazy day. Bizarre decisions, a noisy crowd, penalties, late equalisers - the works. What fun!

Watford 1 Plymouth 2 – 16/09/08

I was late for this game.

Guilty pleasure

I was hungover to high heaven after seeing Metallica at the O2 the night before (one of the teenage habits that I don’t seem to be able to break) and was entirely reliant on a lift from a mate. He was late, so I was late.

Sauntering up to Vicarage Road 10 minutes after kick off was an interesting experience. There were fans clearly on their way to the game, clearly late, yet clearly not bothered. Instead of rushing to the game little pockets of supporters slowly shuffled towards Vicarage Road, preferring to stop and fill up on take away food and confectionery – some even stopping to read the paper.

As we walked down Occupation Road 12 minutes into the game the other thing that struck us was the dirth of sound. There was definitely a game on – we could hear the ref’s whistle and the shouts of the players – but nothing from the fans. This is no great suprise, we all know Vicarage Road is hardly a seething pit of partisan support, but this really did seem strangely subdued.

When we got into the ground, settled down and got the team news from my brother, the reason for the apathy became clear. The East Stand is shut, and with no-one in it our quaint reminder of yester-year is an increased eyesore. On top of that, there is the building work in the corner of the Rookery. With no idea of when or if that project will be finished, the ground provides a fairly depressing spectacle. But the thing that really struck me about this game, and the state of our team/squad, was the subs bench.

Loach, Mariappa, Ainsworth, Bangura, Hoskins. There was something about this list of names that put me in mind of some of the distinctly average Watford teams throughout the 90’s (obvious exceptions excluded). I was immediately put in mind of players like Peter Beadle,

Beadle -Mediocre

Colin Pluck, Gerard Lavin, Dominic Ludden.   Journeymen. Like those ex players, none of our subs for this game are going to change a game. They are all honest players, and I am not  entirely displeased that they are Watford players, but they aren’t exactly inspirational and this is the best we have at the moment.

It’s all a bit comfortable I suppose. No-one really expects us to challenge for promotion, and we should have enough quality to stay in the division, but apart from staying in the

Championship, it is hard to see any other realistic goals.

Admittedly the treatment room is now at bursting point, and one could argue that an entirely fit squad would be an interesting proposition – hopefully time will tell. For now however though, I think everyone is in neutral. We all turn up at the games because, well, that’s what we do. I don’t think anyone really expects anything.

In a way, that kind of sums up why supporting Watford can be god fun. When expectation levels are low (non-existant?!) things can happen. When our little club starts thinking it deserves or is entitled to success, then things go a bit wonky. Just look at last season – the expectation was poisonous and it made sure that last year was utterly ghastly. Already this year we have had the fun and games of the Ipswich game, and have beaten a decent side in Charlton. We have also been beaten by a rubbish Plymouth side – who knows what will happen on Saturday against Reading…

As we left the Plymouth game the feeling was that everyone was pretty much as apathetic as they were at the start. We had lost, but we hadn’t played that badly. There is a long way to go in the season, and we’ll play worse and win (according to Aidy at any rate). Not a great night’s entertainment, but not the worst, so home to bed before we do it all again on Saturday. 

With only one fit striker avaialble to us, it will be tough, but funny things happen when you least expect it, especially at Watford…

Sing when I’m winning? Watford 2 Ipswich 1 – 30/08/08

So then. I’m back.

Having missed the Palace, Rovers and Charlton games (holidaying in the South of France) I made my home debut against Darlington.

This was something of a strange experience for me. Those of you who read my ramblings towards the end of last season will know that me and football weren’t really getting on. So much so in fact that the last entry in this blog was on the 19th April. On that day I severed ties with the game for the summer.

Pursuit cycling. Bravo!

It really all had got too much. Watford were woeful, England were worse and the Premiership was (is) full of some of the most unpleasant people on earth (Hi Ashley. Send my love to Cheryl. You tw*t.). So, I began a trial separation. It was quite nice really. I watched some cricket, I played some cricket. I kept half an eye on the Euro Championships in Austria and Switzerland and I played some half decent golf. I watched the Olympics and discovered that I quite liked pursuit cycling.  I went on holiday. I even did some gardening. Lots and lots of stuff that didn’t involve football.

So, when it came to the Darlington game, it was all a bit alien. The first time I had thought about Watford for a good couple of months was when I attempted to go through the turnstiles ahead of the game.

I say attempted because, this being Watford, the end of our trial separation just had to have a hitch. The ticket office had failed to activate my and about 3,000 other season cards, necessitating a lengthy queue at the ticket office to collect a paper ticket. Welcome back to Watford!

Anyway I got in, and the game began. It followed the formula we have come to expect from these games – we play a weakened side against a lower league side. Both sides cancel each other out, with us looking marginally the stronger. We score, they score (late) and there is extra time. The fitness levels and presence of a few experienced players finally tells, and we win through. Just.

It wasn’t a great spectacle, but my brother and I agreed that our reserve side beating a first team, albeit a lower league first team, could only be a good thing. That’s right ladies and gents, a good thing.  I could feel something I hadn’t felt for ages. Enthusiasm.

Ipswich next. And I am definitely back. In the week leading up to the game I am checking websites, reading fans forums, and generally looking forward to it.  I am taking my 7 year old nephew who had specifically requested a trip to see Watford as his birthday present. (Quite remarkable as his only previous visit was the 1-2 reverse against Bristol City last season). The promise of another young Hornet. in the family only adds to the feel good factor.

Game day is sunny and all is well. The ground is full (in the areas that aren’t unsafe for human inhabitants)

5:22pm

and there is a big away following, adding to the atmosphere. Z Cars kicks in and I am definitely, definitely back. Football is brilliant. Mart Poom’s 2nd minute clearance isn’t however, and Ipswich are ahead.

This is an important moment for me. I’m not sure how I am going to react. I sit there for a while, staring at the Ipswich fans cheering and laughing in equal measure. I think about texting my brother (he is in the Rookery, I’m in the Rous) with some sarcastic comment about great starts. Then it dawns on me. I’m OK. There is a long way to go, and we can turn it around. We can still win this. Yes, that’s right ladies and gentlemen, we can now add optimism to the newfound enthusiasm.

I’m delighted. You see, at the end of last season I thought I might have completely fallen out of love with Watford. Maybe even the game as a whole. A couple of minutes after Ipswich went ahead I realised that I am still head over heels.

The Ipswich fans serenaded us with an array of chants that were both amusing and aggravating in equal

7:05pm

measure - “One-nil to the football team” (That one is presumably on loan from the oh so stylish WBA, currently struggling to score in the Premiership) and the even more laughable “We’re just too good for you..” rang out from the Vicarage Road End…

The rest of course is history. Late winner+Ipswich fans and their daft chants+sunny Saturday evening+Watford FC=happiness. Brilliant. I make no excuses or apologies for my feelings and subsequent rants last season, and I stand by them. I don’t think I have enjoyed a season less. It was horrible. I really thought it may have been over. I thought I was going to be one of those blokes who “used to go to Vicarage Road a lot when I was younger, but you know, I just stopped going really…”It turns out I’m not.

Bring it on!

Excuses, excuses…

“You must remember, it is very early in the season for our players, they have only just begun the season, and will take a while to get up to full match fitness…”

Fabio Capello, after the 2-2 Draw with the Czech republic last month.

Different, but the same?

As if it wasn’t bad enough having to watch yet another woefully substandard England performance. As if it wasn’t bad enough to watch yet another woefully substandard England performance ON SETANTA. To add insult to injury (injury to the eyes that is – watching it made my pupils itch) our intelligence was well and truly insulted with the post match interview.

According to the national manager, the reason for his charges performing so poorly was that it was early in the season. The problem with this being that it is also the excuse in the middle of the season (“We are in the middle of a very busy Domestic and European season, players are tired, with many playing in 3 or 4 competitions…” ) and again at the end of the season, when England’s abject performances are virtually always down to player fatigue (“We are at the end of a very busy Domestic and European season, players are tired, with many having played in 3 or 4 competitions”)

You see it has become apparent that the post match interview now consists of nothing but a string of excuses. And not very original ones at that. What’s wrong with just holding your hands up and saying “We weren’t very good. I’m sorry. We’ll make it better next time”? Is that so hard? Evidently, it is.

I think as (long suffering) fans of the national team, we deserve a bit of respect. Not all of us spend England games singing about German bombers, we’re not all bereft of functioning brains. So why do the management insist on treating as absolute idiots?!

Be honest. When we play rubbish, admit it and try and get it right next time. DO NOT use the same excuse after every single game. It’s bad enough having to watch rubbish. Having to listen to it afterwards is just not on.

 

 

Watford 0 Crystal Palace 2 – 19/04/08

I have been a Watford supporter since I was old enough to understand what football is. I have been a season ticket holder since not long after that.

Watford are a big part of my life, and will remain to be so – whatever happens, Premier League or Blue Square Premier League, I’ll be there.

I wasn’t there on Saturday though. I’ve had enough for this season. I’m not sure what that makes me – perhaps I haven;t got the stomach for the fight any more, perhaps I am getting older, perhaps I am conscious that I could spend more time with my girlfriend, or paying attention to the work that needs doing to my house.

I don’t think it is any of those to be honest.

I had a moment of clarity during the week. I realised that i wasn’t looking forward to going to the game. I just didn’t want to do that walk to the ground that I have done however many hundreds of thousand times before. I just couldn’t see myself enjoying it.

Now I know supporting your team is about supporting your team through thick and thin – being there for the good and the bad - yada yada yada. Well I have been there for both the good and the bad, but this season seems to have transgressed into some sort of baffling twilight zone. It isn’t bad because we are 5th in the league, and still in with a (vague) chance of promotion, but it isn’t good because, well, it just isn’t is it?

Whatever it is, being at Vicarage Road this season has largely been an unenjoyable experience.

In the main, I enjoy my club being up there with the chasing pack. I enjoy us being “contenders”. I’m not so sure I like what it has done to some of our supporters though.

“Boothroyd’s got to go”
“He’s taken us as far as he can” and of course, my personal favourite
“He’s lost the dressing room”

All these phrases come tumbling out of fan’s mouths, with varying degrees of inteligibility but increasing frequency and volume.

Yes, Boothroyd has spent money that no other Watford manager has had. But there is money in the game that the game has never had. Yes, we had a good start and were 9 points clear, but hey ho – other people have been up there and blown it too. At least we were up there and fighting. In with a chance. Yes, the football isn’t going to win the Arsene Wenger style award, but hey, we are Watford fans – apart from pretty isolated pockets, when has it ever been anything else?

Perhaps we have a right to expect more, perhaps we don’t. There are some that argue without ambition and indeed expectation, we may as well give up. What I am certain of is that people deserve time to get it right.

Adrian Boothroyd is a new manager. Not just new to us, but new to the job. He is bound to find it hard, and unfortunately that has been all to obvious at times but in the cold light of day, he hasn’t done too badly has he.

Season 1  – Kept Watford up.
Season 2 – Watford promoted.
Season 3 – The Premiership – tough, but not embarassed.
Season 4 – Who knows, but it looks like another Top 6 finish.

On top of that, during his tenure he has had the unenviable/impossible task of replacing 4 of our most important, influential and valuable players – Marlon King, Hameur Bouazza, Adam Johnson and Ashley Young. Did anyone see Ashley Young play against Birmingham on Sunday? How do you replace that?

Boothroyd has spent more than any other Watford manager. Yes. But he has also achieved more than all but one manager already. Perhaps he deserves the chance to have another crack at it? OK, so we haven’t won anything this year, no Cup Semi Final, No Championship. Last time I checked, Arsenal aren’t going to win anything either. Does this mean Arsene Wenger has taken Arsenal “as far as he can”?

My point is, while I agree we should be aspiring to be as good as we can, and aiming to be an establishd Premiership team, the expectation among seems to have manifested itself in some sort of impatient, posionous desire for everything to be good, and for it to be good RIGHT NOW.

Players and management are berated in equal measure for misplaced passes, for not playing the ball on the floor, and in the same breath for not “getting rid of it”. For not bringing a substitute on, and then for bringing him on to late. That substitute is then subject to abuse too, just for good measure.

Like I said, I haven’t enjoyed the footbal this season. Whatever way you look at it, you couldn’t describe it as awe inspiring. I can see the bigger picture though. Building a team, a successful team takes time. Look at Fergie at Man United. What had he won in the time that Boothroyd has been at Watford?  Not much. What has he won now?…

So the combination of the angry, impatient and perhaps ill informed anger of the home fans and the prospect of another Neil Warnock side running rings round us at home meant that i gave myself the afternoon off.

Of course all I did at home was pace the lounge and fret. I had Three Counties radio on, I turned it off. I had Soccer Saturday on, I turned it off. I had Beach cricket from Australia on, and quite enjoyed that for a while, but turned that off too. You see, you can’t escape. That’s what football does to you, it consumes you. It’s irrational and it’s daft, but it’s the way it is.

I’ve renewed my season ticket already, and I’ll be there next year, excited and full of hope. Again. I just hope EVERYONE learns something over the coming summer months, and we all come back stronger and better. We’ll all enjoy it much more then.

WBA 1 Watford 1 – 12/04/08

Well that was better wasn’t it. A lot better.

It couldn’t have been much worse, I grant you, but lets give them the benefit of the doubt. The sight of John Eustace back in a yellow (red) shirt will very rarely be the cause for so much relief – crikey we missed him.

Most of you will have either been there or watched it on the box, so I won’t bore you with a match report. I think it can be pretty neatly summed up by saying that the 1st half belonged to Watford, the 2nd to West Brom.

Their disallowed goal should have probably been allowed, we probably should have had a penalty. All even on the refereeing front I reckon.

So they CAN do it you see. They can pull the odd decent performance out of the bag. The fact that it took such a small number of 2nd half minutes to elapse before we surrendered our hard earned lead was disappointing, but sadly, not unexpected.

I guess this game sums our season up in a way – decent start, just about held it together for the majority, but in the final analysis we really didn’t have enough to see us over the finish line.

Watford 0 Barnsley 3 – 9/04/08

I think I’m calm enough to write something. Just about though, so please forgive me if I lose it.

It’s funny you know, I had a bad feeling about last night. It set in when I read a report on the West Ham V Portsmouth game from Tuesday night. In it Alan Curbishley bemoaned the poor performance form both his West Ham team and the crowd at the Boleyn Ground. He said it was “flat”.

He couldn’t understand this he went on to say, as this was an important match for the club. The team need to stay in 10th to hit their target for the season (and therefore for the players to qualify for their huge cash bonuses) and this was an important game in making sure they achieved that target.

However, despite the carrot of cementing their place in 10th and banking their additional vast wedges of bunce, they couldn’t get themselves out of first gear. This transmitted itself to the fans in the stands and the whole thing ended up as a damp squib and a forgettable home defeat.

Can you see what I’m getting at? Can you see why I was worried, and why I am now a mixture of resigned, angry and disbelieveing?  Watford had more to play for than just cementing 10th last night. They could have gone TOP for heavens sake. Yes, that’s right top of the league, with 4 games to go. Our destiny somewhow in our own hands despite months and months of abject performances and results that would normally be associated with a team facing relegation.

They could have gone top and that was the best they could come up with.

Boothroyd said after the game that Barnsley were there for the taking. That they looked like a team that were going to get beaten. Perhaps the crowd felt this too, and as a result, just like it was at Upton Park on Tuesday, the atmosphere was virtually non existent.

It quickly became apparent that a lack of atmosphere was the very least of our worries. The lack of Tommy Smith, aruguably our most consistent, and definitely one of our hardest working players, set alarm bells ringing immediately. Jordan Stewart was his replacement on the left, a decent shout I guess considering his half decent sub appearance on Saturday, but to cut a long story short, it didn’t really work.

Neither did Ellington and Henderson up front. The rare flick ons that were won by one of the big strikers found no-one running on to them, and Ellington in particular seemed particularly unwilling to shoot when presented with the chance.

These two issues give rise to the question – what is wrong with Ainsworth, and what is wrong with Collins John? Neither were afforded a place on what was a very uninspiring looking bench.

Admittedly Ainsworth may have flattered to deceive on his few appearances, but it is no coincidence that our results and performances began their slide to last night’s all time low when Adam Johnson left. We miss his creativity and ability, and Tommy Smith and Jobi McAnuff (occasionally) have battled manfully to fill the obvious void, but at least in Ainswort we have something aproaching an alternative for one or other of them? To replace Smith with Stewart and have no viable alternative on the bench was conservative at best, and at worst just plain weird.

As for Collins John, his place on the bench was snaffled by the enigma that is Tamas Priskin. He has been afforded more chances than most by Boothroyd, and this most recent recall must be classed as all the more suprising as we now have Colins John – a player that Boothroyd has long championed, but seems to have quickly discarded.

Can we expect to see Ainsworth and John at Watford next year? The fact that they are currently on loan and seem to be unable to break into the 1st team squad at a time when injuries and suspensions are abound would suggest not. (I have since been reminded that Lionel Ainsworth was of course signed permanently in January. Whether I chose to ignore this fact for the purposes of this article or just plain forgot is for you, dear reader, to decide)

Anyway, back to the game.

Actually, let’s not. We all know what happened. Watford turned in one of the worst home performences in living memory and were comfortably beaten by a side who “looked like they were going to get beaten”. In the event, there was only one team that was going to get beat and as soon as Barnsley scored, the game was up. As with the game on Saturday, there was no response from the players, no rally, no extra urgency in the play.

Watford have never looked less of a cohesive unit, never looked so ill at ease with each other or with what they are trying to achieve. This team couldn’t be more different than the squad who swept to promotion last time, they appear to be a collection of individuals with varying degrees of talent and commitment just going throught the motions. And what is worse, they only just manage to pull that off.

Where this team goes from here, I have no idea. Upwards? On last night’s evidence almost certainly (and perhaps thankfully) not. Imagine that team platying in the Premiership if you dare. We’d make Derby look like Barcelona.

So what then? All I can suggest is a summer of consolidation. A long hard look at the squad and what it actually provides. I think Aidy made some decent acquisitions in Eustace, Saddler and Bromby, and has been unlucky with the striker situation – had Ellington managed to produce what the footballing world knows he is capabale it may have ben a different story. He hasn’t though, and so we find ourselves here, limping towards the end of one of the most unpleasant to watch seasons for a long, long time.

We definitely have the basis of a good squad, and it shouldn’t all be doom and gloom but what is painfully evident is that the basis of a good squad isn’t enough, and judging from last night it is nowhere near enough.

 I sincerely hope we improve for Saturday’s big game, although for now I can hardly bring myself to think about it. I have better things to do.