Cod Almighty | Diary

Pass the pickle tray on the left hand side

5 October 2023

This weekend is Indian weekend at your Guest Diarist's house. You catch me halfway through marinading chicken and alooing gobi. And the forecasters are predicting an Indian summer this weekend so no need for four layers under your Town shirt. The Michelin Man look is so next month.

So we won a game of football by playing really badly. I said after we got beat last Sat'day we were playing better than our results and somethings gotta change sometime soon. And it did - the performance deteriorated just enough to get us the three points in a poor old game played in front of a sparse, slightly mournful sounding crowd. Think how different it would have been if the manager had succumbed to the cries for 4-4-2 - we would have had the extra excitement of seeing all those alarming gaps in the middle of the park where we didn't have enough players standing.

No, for me forget 4-4-2 (that was last century) and start asking the manager to get players making more forward runs as soon as we win possession instead of playing tika-taka to make the possession stats look good. Worry a tiny bit less about control - the opposition stop worrying when we pass it from side to side. And when we concede a set piece near to our goal leave someone up for the counter otherwise we trap ourselves in defence and can't get out. OK, maybe I should stick to cooking, but I am not wrong am I? Oh, I forgot, and please make sure the best penalty taker at the club always takes the penalties even if you have to sub him on.

We knew it would be a tough division and it is. Ask Sparky Hughes this morning. Ask the class of '92 how Salford are doing in their brave new world. Ask Paul Hurst who strengthened his squad, got good board backing, and is finding it tough. But I'd rather be a Town fan than a Bradford or Salford one this morning. Come on folks, you bought the season ticket, you may as well go - what happened to the fans being the 12th man? I know we've been a bit shit lately but we'll be better soon, honest. See yer.

P.S. If you are going Saturday we need a match reporter if you fancy it