Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Tuesday 13 April 2010

13 April 2010

Middle-aged diary writes: Football is a particularly partisan sport. There is a rough code over what kinds of taunts are acceptable between different sets of supporters, depending on whether the sides are traditional rivals, competing for the same league positions in the promotion places or above the relegation zone, or are purely 90 minute rivals for the purpose of a single match. The taunts, the temporary enmity, are part of the experience, the bitterness ideally washed away within minutes of the final whistle in mutual analysis and good wishes. Not always, of course. While we are currently fair game for chants of "going down", the spectacle of Tranmere supporters revelling when our anticipated relegation was confirmed in 2003 still seems to have overstepped the bounds. Years before, my impulse to congratulate the supporters of a Portsmouth team that had beaten us 4-2 in a thrilling early season match was cut short when I overheard them moaning that one of our goals, a rather fine chip by the much maligned Mike Jeffrey, should have been ruled offside.

The skills of your opponents you may come to appreciate only hours, days or years after the event; misgivings over your own side's stratagems are suppressed in the heat of the moment. There can be little doubt that should Jack Lester take a tumble in the penalty area tonight, our misgivings will be expressed at far greater volume than they would have been a decade ago. As our pre-match factfile makes clear, at least Barry Conlon will not be on hand to convert any kicks he is awarded.

In the usual pre-match interviews in the Telegraph, Mark Hudson and Neil Woods are as usual making the right noises: the question, as usual, is whether they can be backed up by the distinctly unusual third (and then fourth) win in a row. A fair few players are recovering from various knocks- Colgan, Widdowson, Akpa Akpro and Peacock - or illnesses - Wood and Chambers. Woods stresses that any use of the word "rested" in tonight's team selection will not be euphemistic. And no doubt euphemism will also be in short supply in the Pontoon.