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Diary - Friday 29 August 2008

29 August 2008

Even staunch Buckley loyalists like your Guest Diarist had begun to get very nervous about the paucity of experienced cover in the Town defensive squad. A positivist would have said that the back line with three players out of position last Saturday sort of coped for most of the game. But the realist in me said that Town's back four looked horrible and capable of mistakes at any moment. And one duly arrived, courtesy of Mr Hegggaarty. Game lost. And yet another home league game without a win: a run that stretches back far too far.

Another match with Stockdale and Hope still missing and the possibility that the resurgent Hunt might miss out with a dead-leg, especially an important game away at Lincoln, spells trouble. For the team, for the manager and ultimately for the dwindling bunch of diehard fans.

But Lord Buckley has selected m for Man City on his speed dial and got a result. Not the return of the most attacking ever right-back who hadn't quite got to t for tackling in his coaching manual and appeared to have accidentally skipped c for covering. No, not Logan; this time it is reserve player Javan Vidal - another bright young prospect from the City youth set-up. First team experience? Zero. Facebook page? Mais oui. Middle name? Noel. His own personal biographer, who has even annotated a local map to show all the places he has played? Click here, and prepare for a long sapping read.

For those sensible readers too idle to go a-wandering on the web, young Mr Vidal is just 19 and a converted striker. He has been on City's books since the age of 13 and plays reserve team football. Vidal has had a run-out for England under-18s, but seemingly just the one, against France, when he started at right-back. His faithful blogger says: "With his sharp pace, strength and deft control, he has played as a right-back, centre-back but predominantly as a right winger under City reserves coach Ian Miller." The blogger goes on to wax lyrical about Vidal's "eye for goal" but makes no comment about his defensive capabilities at all. In a word: Loganmarktwo.

Now how his arrival will affect tomorrow's team selection is an interesting question. If Vidal is slung straight in then he will play right-back, leaving Bennett to cover for the missing Hope at centre-half and allowing Newey! to revert to left-back in a 4-4-2 formation. That sounds kind of obvious and logical, so this may not be what happens. I'll leave you, gentle reader, to speculate further.

Up front, in the absence of a Mariners World interview with our manager (this is all I pay my bloody subscription for!) the superb new official site claims that midweek goalless pairing Till and Jarman are set to continue up front. Although quite why we would play effectively 4-5-1 at home with Butler sidelined I leave you to work out. Just because he hasn't scored is not reason enough to drop him, in my view. But Buckley has told the Telegraph that Jarman has been exceptional in training, saying: "If he took how he is Monday to Friday into games he'd be in my team for sure." I would like to see Butler play with Jarman in a 4-4-2 using Taylor as a late-impact substitute, which is when he looks most dangerous. Especially in conjunction with that deadliest of weapons: the two-minute Bore cameo.

But whatever happens team-wise, tomorrow is an important game. Town need points however early in the season it is. I know we shouldn't look at the table until October or summat, but I have, and we are already five points off the play-offs. We need at least a point tomorrow, preferably accompanied by goal(s). Those of us that will be there will have to shout that bit louder - ticket sales are way down on a couple of years ago. Let's hope we play well or get lucky. And don't forget to cheer on the lads cycling to the match - you can put your hand in your pocket here to support their charities. See yer.