Paul Beasley

Mitchell Cole – R.I.P

I got this devastating news by text whilst at the motorway services on the way to Accrington. Every so often something tragic happens whether it is to do with Oxford United, the wider football family, a national disaster or one’s more personal close family that really throws the importance of a football match into harsh perspective. Saturday was such a day.

One can’t help but admire the man. As a youngster he knew he had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy yet battled on nonetheless and managed to start 20 games for Southend and 90 for Stevenage. The record books tell that he hardly played for us. He came on in the 81st minute against Bury, played the first half at the Hammers, came on in the 56th minute against Accy, had about 70 minutes in the two games against Aldershot and finally came on for 10 minutes against Macclesfield.

But that’s not the point. It’s the football family thing and I must confess to not having appreciated until after the match what an impact this had, on the club as a whole, and in particular certain individuals who knew Mitchell well. It was only then that I heard of Chris Wilder’s tearful interview and sought out a short clip on the internet.

FA Cup Round Two

Stanley were much improved from their Kassam visit but it would have been difficult for them not to have been. That still doesn’t make them particularly good.

They started the better of the two sides but we’ll allow that as they were at home. We’d not seen much of the ball when JPP worked something very special in the 12th minute. Just how good this goal was should not be overlooked. With Aristote Nsiala in close attendance he wasn’t favourite to gain control of Tony Capaldi’s long clearance, but control it he did. Then instead of manufacturing a tangle of legs as many players do he skipped away from Nsiala before beating the keeper with a deft feint and hammering home from close range.

With this lead I was hoping that we would take some kind of control, but we didn’t. When the equaliser came midway through the half it therefore wasn’t the biggest of surprises. The more men a team get forward the more likely they are to benefit from a loose ball. Accrington got men forward. Andy Whing allowed Rommy Bocco enough room for a cross which Padriag Amond mis-hit perfectly for Craig Lindfield to net with ease.

Last week I banged on about excuses and so called bad luck and said I wasn’t having any of it anymore, but wtf is going on. How many teams lose a player stretchered off just before and just after the break? It all seems a bit quiet on the extent of these injuries but it didn’t look good. JPP’s shoulder and Whingy’s knee? JPP had been our man of the first half, bugger.

With Damian Batt having replaced Lee Cox at half time CW was suddenly left with no cards to play. With Batt and Liam Davies on the pitch we had players who will willingly and capably run at the opposition with the ball. This I like to see. We look better for it.

I’m all for saving the planet by saving energy but someone needs to have a word with ASFC and point out that skimping on the floodlights isn’t really the way to go. Never before have I lost sight of high clearances in the gloom.

James Beattie obviously had no such trouble seeing as he sliced through and across the ball from way out as it fell invitingly to him following an attempted headed clearance. It would obviously have been more sensible of Batty to have nodded it into touch but in mitigation a fellow defender did get in his way. Could Ryan Clarke be blamed in any way for being too far off his line and could he have taken a step or so backwards and tipped it over? Probably no & probably not. Probably fair to just applaud a special strike even if it was from the opposition.

“You’re not singing any more” sang the pre-pubescent Accy fans in the seats to our left. All very sweet and civilised.

Six minutes later there was some more singing, well at least noise, as equaliser number one went in. Adam Chapman did well to find Alfie Potter. Potter played what looked like a one two but instead of giving it back to Chappy found Beano who controlled and slotted past Paul Rachubka (another good northern name).

Drama enough? Not a bit of it.

The Oxford fans thought that we were unlucky (yes that again) to have conceded a free kick within shooting range in added time. Jerome, who was closer, thought so too.

The way the wall was lined up and Clarkey’s positioning increased the chances of us conceding to almost 100%. It was worse than sloppy.

The men called Stanley celebrated as though they’d got to Wembley. The bloke stood near me of Question Time fame who usually utters wise words said something like, “that’s us done”. The usually pessimistic me said, “no it’s not” and I kind of believed what I was saying.

Praise to Adam Chapman again. After a corner had been headed out he picked the ball up and beat a man, found the corner taker, Peter Leven, who got a cross over. A mighty enough leap from Michael Raynes and people around me went a little bit mad.

I just wish those who have criticised Raynes would give credit where it is due. He might not get the distance on the ball that a Dubes gets but he won what he had to in the air and it was some feat how he managed to head one off the line in the first ten minutes.

So it’s all to do again the week after next and before we’ve negotiated this we should not really be giving a second thought to the fact that, a bit boringly, it’s the Blades again for the second year in a row.