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Diary - Friday 2 October 2009

2 October 2009

The last time we played Barnet away something went right for that endlessly enthusiastic and frustratingly ineffective Adrian Forbes. He scored a decent goal and earned us a point. Whether he will get in the team tomorrow is anyone's guess, but he has been vocal in the local paper apparently, "calling on his team mates to deliver the goods". Your Guest Diarist saw the Forbester in the summer kicking a ball about with local village kids in Ancaster - a thoroughly decent bloke with loads of infectious enthusiasm, he seemed. But is that interview enough motivation to go out and buy a Telegraph just for the matchday preview?

The men of the moment for Town (until the Jarman returns - a man with both infectious enthusiasm and ball control) are undoubtedly Wood(s) and Bore. Wood(s) has played well twice; Bore is trying, and managing finally to go past players now and again. Manager Newell repeats his drone-like 'penny must drop' mantra about the young hetero on his pay-to-see-it interview with Mariners Player. This week the interviewer seems anxious to pick out the bright spots of play Town have mustered. Colgan making a couple of saves; the Borester beating his man twice; blah, blah flipping blah. Let's face it - Town were rubbish on Wednesday and the scoreline flattered them.

There is a part of me that wants Barnet to win tomorrow - we did them so cruelly, so many times, that they deserve to dole out a mauling of their own. And now we are almost totally shit, and they are quite good. But the devil on my other shoulder is making reassuring noises about how we always win unexpectedly away when a victory is least expected. Think Wycombe, it wheedles, in a wormtonguey voice. Yeah, well, we can always dream.

The Guardian reports that Phil Brown took his team for a walk over the Humber bridge, dissuading a woman from a suicide jump en route. The Hull squad had been told to 'look for clarity'. Newell needs some of that - stringing five across midfield isn't the answer. Getting the midfield to win and hold on to the ball; getting the front two to take the pressure off by holding the ball up; getting everybody properly fit so they can actually run about for 90 minutes; and working out what the hell has gone wrong down our left-hand side are just some of the issues he needs to address quickly. Oh well, we live in hope. See yer.